Opened by Benoit Matray in 1912 in the heart of Paris, Benoit is the only Parisian bistro to receive a Michelin star. Traces of its millennial history remain with the hook at the wine cellar entrance where Beaujolais was bottled, and the plates and trompe-l’oeil in the first-floor salon drawn by the wife of Benoit’s son, Michel Petit.  In 2005, Petit sold the restaurant to award-winning Chef Alain Ducasse. Amid its plush décor of ornate mirrors, etched glass panels, faux marble columns and red velvet upholstery, guests dine on traditional French cuisine presented on large porcelain plates. A private oval dining room on the upper floor seats 20 amid decorative panels and a fireplace. Famous dishes include oxtail and gelee terrine with remoulade-style celery; meuniere-style sea turbot with carrots and turnips; pan-seared black pudding with raw apple and mashed potatoes; and savarin soaked in Armagnac and filled with whipped cream.

Opened by French native Antoine Alciatore in 184, the grand dame of fine French-Creole dining is the oldest family-run restaurant in the United States. After a brief period working in the kitchen of the St. Charles Hotel, Antoine opened a boarding house and restaurant on St. Louis Street. New Orleans' gentility was so taken with the restaurant that it soon outgrew its small quarters and in 1868 Antoine's moved one block to the spot where the restaurant stands today. Antoine is credited with creating Eggs Sardou in honor of the French playwright Victorien Sardou when he visited the restaurant. A classic of Louisiana Creole cuisine, the dish is made with poached eggs, artichoke bottoms, creamed spinach and Hollandaise sauce. After Antoine’s death, his son, Jules, served in the great kitchens of Paris, Strasburg and Marseilles before returning to New Orleans, where he became chef of the famous Pickwick Club in 1887. When he returned to take over Antoine’s kitchen, he invented Oysters Rockefeller, so named for the richness of the sauce. The recipe for this culinary creation remains a closely-guarded Antoine's secret. The restaurant’s history is reflected in The 1840 Room, a replica of fashionable private dining. The room is a museum of curio treasures, including a great silver duck press and a cookbook published in Paris in 1659.

Established in 1868 in the historic meatpacking district, the Old Homestead is the oldest steakhouse in New York City. Housed in a three-story Greek-revival mercantile building built in 1842, the restaurant began as a bar with just six seats and served its first charcoal broiled strip just after the Civil War. Today, celebrities and power-brokers dine amid the dark wood, chophouse décor on prime dry-aged meats, 12-ounce Japanese Wagyu beef steaks for $350 and Opus One wine.

Table talk: Some claim the restaurant created the doggie bag. It’s said the portions were so large the staff needed to think of something to suit guests’ desire to take the excess home.

This Chinese and Asian restaurant is known for its Lanzhou-style hand-pulled noodles and braised beef. Portions are large, and diners can watch as skillful kitchen workers stretch, fold and pull noodles to order. Nudo has different noodle bowls, each with a variety of toppings and preparations, but all with the same made-to-order noodles. The most traditional is the beef soup that’s garnished with blanched vegetables and spicy pickles. Chicken, pork or vegetarian bowls are available.

Chinatown in Montreal is clustered around De la Gauchetière Street. The neighborhood contains many Asian restaurants, food markets and convenience stores, as well as being home to many of Montreal’s East Asian community centers, such as the Montreal Chinese Hospital and the Montreal Chinese Community and Cultural Center. For excellent house-made pork, shrimp, leek and egg dumplings, head to Mai Xiang Yuan. The menu is all about Jiaozi - Chinese dumplings - with a selection of about 20 types, interchanging meats such as pork, lamb and beef, with leek, celery, mushroom, dried shrimp and egg. These plumped little purses, pleated and pinched - thick-skinned on the exterior and juicy on the inside - are made to order. The image of a wheat field adorns the business card at Mai Xiang Yuan, and the name refers to the sweet-smelling grain that predominates in the dough for dumplings, noodles and buns.

“Bar Luca have hit the high notes with Blame Canada,” David said. “We were impressed by the team in the kitchen with Sarah and their sheer burger dedication. Blame Canada is an alluring temptress, coming at you with salty and sweet. The poutine is ground-breaking and unique, and forms the base of the burger. The quality double patty meat is on point. The candied bacon is addictive and the cheese is perfection.

“The overall balance of the burger is superb. It’s all going on, and yet nothing is out of balance.

“You can judge a burger by whether you would keep coming back for it. Yes, we would. And only $15! Voted the best we tasted in Australia.”

Award-winning pastry chef Christian Faure founded Maison Christian Faure and the Pastry School in 2013 near the Notre Dame basilica in Old Montreal. The first international institution specializing in the art of French pastry-making in Canada, the school also offers workshops for amateurs. Occupying several floors of a 300-year-old grey stone building in Old Montréal, customers are greeting with a prominent pastry display of mouth-watering gateaux and pastries, mille-feuilles, éclairs and praline Paris-Brest and seasonal desserts like fresh fruit tarts and maple confections. Baskets overflow with buttery brioches, delicate madeleines, canelés, flaky croissants and chocolatines. A refrigerator showcases Chef Faure’s signature ice cream, intricate wedding cakes and sugar sculptures. For savory snacks, a modern dining room offers a seasonal menu, from club sandwiches and vegetable tarts to quiches and Faure’s famous large Choux pastry stuffed with lobster and crab. A weekend brunch offers eggs Benedict, French toast and more.

Opened by chef Juliette Brun when she was just 22, her Montreal-based boutique specializes in chocolates, brownies, pralines and other chocolate delicacies. The dessert lounge dedicated to chocolate offers table service, take-out service and a chocolate shop to take goodies home. Look for chocolate shakes, milk chocolates, hot chocolates, crepes, waffles, brownies, fondue and pastries.  It’s the perfect place to end a romantic date night or to catch up with old friends.

For Québécois comfort eats, fans head to this small, casual wood-walled shop near the Universite du Quebec a Montreal.  The shop offers a great collection of traditional comfort eats, from six kinds of “pâté chinois” (shepherd’s pie), to poutine, a Canadian dish originating in the province of Québec made with french fries and cheese curds topped with a light brown gravy. Burgers, beer and wine are also popular. Try the “Mâche Burger, a hearty handful of seasoned Canadian beef, jalapeño Havarti cheese, caramelized onions, bacon, spring mix, tomato, ketchup and sesame mayonnaise.

This brightly colored cafe on a mostly residential street in East Los Angeles has been plating savory and sweet tamales, breakfast and soups since 1956. Critics rave about its oversized tamales. Made by hand, a layer of stone-ground masa is wrapped around fillings of pork, chicken and chili rellenos, then wrapped in cornhusk shells and steamed in a rich broth (not water). After the first bite, the sauce-heavy filling oozes out of the tamale.