Chef Walter Bundy brings culinary excellence to Lemaire, which has been redesigned for wider appeal at varying prices. It’s a must-visit destination for cocktails, appetizers and new-South entrees at the Jefferson Hotel.

When it closed last year for a serious retooling, Lemaire at the Jefferson Hotel was known as a somewhat stiff, special-occasion restaurant favored mostly by a sedate and moneyed clientele. By the time it reopened in the summer, the new-look Lemaire retained its elegance and excellent food, but captured a highly receptive, younger following for its outstanding new bar, cozy seating arrangements, lower price points, quartino-sized wine pours, and particularly the excellence of longtime chef Walter Bundy's locally sourced, new-South cuisine.

Lemaire's reopening heralds a turning point for the hotel; it has become a must-visit destination for cocktails, appetizers, wines, tasting menus and everything in between.

“I love Lemaire for never failing to deliver an all-around wonderful experience that is far more than what's on your plate,” critic Tess Autrey Bosher says. “In addition to the great things going on in the kitchen, the warm, professional service, gorgeous dining rooms and the updated attitude have won me over time and again. There's almost nothing they don't do well. I will choose to go to Lemaire again and again because I know I will never be disappointed.”