Harkening back to those sober, chic yet vaguely generic days when hotel restaurants were all rather, well, “hotel-esque,” Fives has its place in the pantheon of midtown luxury hotel restaurants. Neither helmed by a celebrity chef nor in the top-10 list of law firm summer associates, the Peninsula Hotel restaurant is nevertheless a dependable and always appropriate expense account restaurant.

Grown-up and formal without being ...

Harkening back to those sober, chic yet vaguely generic days when hotel restaurants were all rather, well, “hotel-esque,” Fives has its place in the pantheon of midtown luxury hotel restaurants. Neither helmed by a celebrity chef nor in the top-10 list of law firm summer associates, the Peninsula Hotel restaurant is nevertheless a dependable and always appropriate expense account restaurant.

Grown-up and formal without being stuffy, with arched windows and luxuriously plump, leather-upholstered dining chairs, this mezzanine-level restaurant serves solid French/American/Continental cuisine to mainly a business and hotel clientele. So it’s no surprise that prices are rather steep, even for an accomplished menu that on any given day could include: langoustine-yellow beet terrine; black cumin dusted lamb loin; and simply grilled bone-in rib steak. Healthy and/or vegetarian options are helpfully indicated directly on the menu. Service is formal but friendly and discreet.

Also open for power breakfasts and brunch; be sure to check out the equally grown-up but slightly more happening midtown bar at the top of the hotel, The Pen.