Dakhin
Open since 2004, this modern South Indian venue with bare tables, wood floors and an open kitchen serves a vast, gluten-free menu with delicious lentil breads and fragrant cookery. It is a must-visit.

La Soucoupe
La Soucoupe, on the summit of Col de la Loze, offers great food and spectacular views overlooking the valley. The restaurant has easy access from chairs and gondolas as well as easy ski runs down should you drink too much. Booking is essential.

Coin Savoyard
In the back of the uber luxurious Les Airelles hotel is a cozy corner restaurant serving excellent fondue from a charming open kitchen. The cheese fondue is great and even better if you can plunk down for the black truffles. But it is the beef fondue that is amazing. The oil is the hottest I have ever seen and yields a mouthful that is crunchy on the outside and medium-rare and juicy on the inside.

Hotel Le Chabichou
This old timer has retained two Michelin stars for more than a decade and it has done so in a warm mountain chalet with Alpine décor that foregoes the other, far stuffier Michelin alternatives. If you are going to splurge, this is the place to do it.

La Saulire
This is FoodieHub’s absolute favorite place to go in the "three valleys." This lovely little bistro sparkles from the moment you enter. Pause for some bubbles at the tiny bar with its addictive olive tapenade and minuscule square toasts before diving into a swoon-worthy mountain menu with river trout, pigeon and truffles galore. The desserts are fantastic.

Ladurée
Macarons, dainty French cream-filled sandwich cookies, have been produced in Venetian monasteries since the 8th century. The macaron's origin isn't clear, but it may have been brought to France from Italy as early as 1533 by Catherine di Medici and her pastry chefs. In 1792, macarons gained fame when two Carmelite nuns, seeking asylum in Nancy during the French Revolution, baked and sold macaron cookies to support themselves. Known as the "Macaron Sisters,” they made macarons of ground almonds, egg whites and sugar. The simple cookies had no special flavors or filling. In the 1830s, macarons began to be served with the addition of jams, liqueurs and spices. But it wasn't until the 1900s that Pierre Desfontaines of Parisian pastry shop and café Ladurée decided to take two cookies and fill them with ganache. Today, Ladurée continues to be one of the first stops for macaron fans in Paris. On bite, the versatilely flavored treat with a thin, light crust briefly gives way to a layer of moist almond meringue followed by a center of silky smooth filling. No wonder the luxury bakery sells 15,000 of the double-decker macarons every day.

Galeto 183 (aka Bar da Dona Ana)
Affectionately known as "Bar da Dona Ana" after its charismatic owner who is always there to greet her patrons, Galeto 183 is one of Rio's best-kept secrets. There is some irony in this, given that the line that forms every lunchtime is made almost exclusively of journalists from the nearby Globo offices. The real stand-out dish is served only on Wednesdays: Angu do Gomes. This dish of soft polenta served with a rich stew of beef, offal, oxtail, smoked bacon and gravy was made popular in the 1950's by a Portuguese man known to one and all as Gomes. In the '60s and '70s, Angu do Gomes had become one of Rio's great street foods, sold from a fleet of carts across the city. Sadly, the carts are all gone today, but the original recipe, handwritten by Gomes' son for Dona Ana, hangs pride of place on the wall. The line of hungry journos starts to form at 11:30 a.m. and, in a couple of hours, the precious dish is gone. So show up early or miss out. The dish is rich, sticky and velvety and totally worth queuing for.

Puro
Chef Pedro Siqueira has serious form, having worked in the kitchens of DOM in São Paulo and Taillevent in Paris. In 2015, he opened Puro in Rio's swish Jardim Botânico neighborhood and the acclaim has been near universal ever since. Although this is a high-end dining experience, the menu is easy-going and includes several excellent adaptations of Brazilian classics like a perfect pão de queijo stuffed with pulled pork. The matambre (rolled beef, sweet roast pumpkin and erva mate farofa) rightfully has a loyal following, but the top pick is right there at the top of the menu - rich, melting, intensely seasoned 'moelinhas de pato' (confit duck gizzards).

db Brasserie
You want classic French? Daniel Boulud (and his lieutenant, Vincent Pouessel) fill the bill with enough over-the-top dishes to make you forget all about the Champs-Elysee. Don’t miss the lobster risotto or the “Frenchie” Burger (remember, it was Boulud who first gave the humble hamburger a gourmet spin a dozen years ago), and by all means end with a soufflé, but do not, under any circumstances, pass up this ode to excess. Traditionalists will remember that a Wellington usually encases filet steaks in pastry dough after coating it with a blend of duxelles (chopped ‘shrooms) and a fine liver pate. Tournedos “Rossini” tops rounds of filet mignon with a slab of foie gras and slathers on the earthy, pungent, truffle-studded sauce Perigueux. Here you get the best of both worlds in a decadently delicious dish that screams for a big, bold Bordeaux. DB Brasserie was written off by many a gourmand a couple of years ago, but with Pouessel at the helm, it has come back from the dead and now gives Bardot Brasserie serious competition for the best mid-priced French in Vegas. When the food is this good, who needs a ticket to Paris?

Pho 45
Recently reopened after minor renovations, Pho 45 is a snug, informal and friendly Vietnamese spot in Garden Grove, Calif. The menu offers plenty of varieties and meats are served in ample portions. Vibrant herbs and fresh condiments accompany the light, fragrant and incredibly rich and flavorful broth. Fans recommend the Tai pho (a side of filet mignon) or Dac Biet, a combination of tendon, tripe and brisket. Diners chose between thick or thin noodles. Always choose the thick pho noodles!