Nobu Tribecca   

The Scene: Widely hailed as the supreme summit of sushi in New York -- and possibly the USA -- this downtown restaurant offers "new style Japanese cooking" -- translation: a high-end, memorable, mountainous meal for a memorable and mountainous price. Specially trained in his native Japan in an elite samurai-like cutting course, celebrated chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa (who co-owns with Robert DeNiro and Tribeca Grill restaurateur Drew Nieporent) serves up a wide and exotic variety of rolls, sashimi and all things sushi -- as well as superb entrees like salmon or teriyaki steak dinners or stir-fried jump shrimp with broccoli. If you're not a raw-fish aficionado, sit back and enjoy the multi-course omakase menu, an "omigod" offering of the excellent cuisine's best. Spotted Here: Gawk at the celebs in a pristine Japanese countryside setting: DeNiro pals like Harvey Keitel and Francis Ford Coppola are regulars, and everyone from Al Gore to Kate Moss has been seen behind the chopsticks. This is also where Beyonce was ambushed by PETA activists posing as her fans. Can I Get In? It might be tough to secure a table at this Tribeca mecca of sushi if your DeNiro speed-dial button is out of order, but it's still worth the extra-long wait.