ES Local: Four Tribeca Restaurants Worth the Tribeca Prices

We don’t make it to Tribeca restaurants all that often, because, well, our food blogger salary isn’t quite cut out for it (and we don’t mean the subway fare). But you can hardly live among the New York food scene without feeling the urge to splurge once in a while, and this downtown ‘hood is home to some of Manhattan’s trendiest (and priciest) dining scenes.  Here are four restaurants that make breaking the bank well worth it.

Corton: New York’s current restaurant critics’ darling gives the greenmarket-fueled locavore trend its highest upgrade yet. You may need a dictionary to decode the menu, which starts with wakame seaweed buttered bread and ends with sour plum/lemon verbana/fig clafoutis for dessert. The three-course prix fixe starts at $85. 239 W. Broadway.

Marc Forgione: Only a year-and-a-half old, this young, Michelin-star chef’s eponymous restaurant — previously known as Forge until a doppelganger Miami resto threatened to sue — has a more laid-back vibe than its longer-standing neighbors, but the food is no less refined. The always-changing menu focuses on local, seasonal ingredients in creative dishes like parsnip agnolotti with braised oxtail and black truffles. 134 Reade St.

Nobu: This Robert DeNiro-owned sushi palace and celeb fave may strike some NYC locals as a little too ready-made-for-Hollywood, but despite the hype, few critics quibble with the food. Starting at $100, the chef’s choice “omakase” menu manages to make fusion cuisine seem hip and new, with tasty options like miso-glazed black cod, sashimi tacos, and monkfish pate with caviar. 105 Hudson St.

Matsugen: Another spot elevating traditional Japanese food to the expense account level, this eatery from French chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten specializes in buckwheat soba noodles, paired here with everything from sweet duck soup to giant prawn tempura, while high-end foodie must-haves like foie gras and truffles are sprinkled throughout the menu. 241 Church St.

Feed Us Back: What are your favorite NYC restaurants for breaking the bank?

Also: Four Four Upscale Restaurants in New York’s Tribeca [Oyster Locals]

(Photo: Forgione)