Every year for the past seven years, WHERE magazine has conducted a poll of its readers, asking them to name their favorite New York restaurants. And every year, the winners of the Visitors Choice Awards have been announced at a gala reception and dinner attended by leaders of New York's restaurant community. This year's event was held on March 4 at the Rainbow Room with comedian Tom Cotter serving as the genial, sharp-witted emcee. As Cotter read out the list of the three winners in each category, I felt, as I do every year, that I was that much closer to knowing WHERE's readers: their taste in food, in décor, in ambience and in price. The results of this poll are always encouraging-and consistent from year to year

While I may look among the results of the Visitors Choice Awards for the hot, trendy restaurants that raise local foodies' blood pressures and have them shamelessly bribing maître d's for reservations, I do so in vain. There were only scattered votes in this year's tally for such new kids on the block as Man Ray, Tao, Ilo, TanDa, Town, The Harrison and Théo-worthy restaurants all and with the reviews to prove it. WHERE's diners are conservative, in the sense of being traditionalists. When it comes to dining out in New York, they invariably choose a restaurant that has passed the test of time.

This year's Grand Prize winner, The Four Seasons (99 E 52nd St between Lexington and Park avenues, 754-9494)-the restaurant that received the most votes in all eligible categories-is a case in point. It first opened its doors in 1959. But even these 43 years pale in comparison to the longevity of Café des Artistes (1 W 67th St between Columbus Avenue and Central Park West, 877-3500), which has been in business in the same location since 1917. Café des Artistes was cited for Best Upper West Side Dining. Another old-timer, Sardi's (234 W 44th St between Broadway and Eighth Avenue, 221-8440), voted Best Pre-Theatre Dining, has been a Broadway hit since 1921. But oldest of all is Barbetta (321 W 46th St between Eighth and Ninth avenues, 246-9171), first runner-up in the Best Pre-Theatre Dining category. Barbetta has been owned and operated by the same family since 1906. Now, that's a tradition to celebrate.

Tradition, in this context, however, does not mean stuffy or fuddy-duddy. Nor does it mean boring or pedestrian. In ambience and décor, this year's Visitors Choice Awards winners are among the city's most flamboyant, over-the-top extravaganzas. WHERE's readers clearly revel in excess.

To create pleasure palaces like these, New York restaurateurs have spared no expense. Pablo Picasso's stage curtain for the Diaghilev Ballet's Le Tricorne-a work once deemed too large to be installed in the Museum of Modern Art-graces The Four Seasons. Museum-quality artifacts pertaining to Josephine Baker adorn Chez Josephine (414 W 42nd St between Ninth and Tenth avenues, 594-1925), her adopted son's ooh-la-la tribute to maman and second runner-up for Best Pre-Theatre Dining. Mars 2112 (1633 Broadway at 51st Street, 582-2112), the people's choice for family-friendly dining, imagines the Martian landscape (no small feat); Nobu (105 Hudson St at Franklin Street, 219-0500), the Best Downtown Dining second runner-up, conjures up a Japanese forest; and Guastavino's (409 E 59th St between First and York avenues, 980-2455), with its soaring, cathedral-like arches, is nothing less than a religious experience for WHERE's readers.

The three winners in the Best Ambience category take the cake. Tavern on the Green (Central Park West between 66th and 67th streets, 873-3200) is a Victorian Gothic, rococo and baroque pile smack-dab in Central Park. If it sounds like a movie set, that's because it is. You may remember Tavern from Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors and Barbra Streisand's The Mirror Has Two Faces. The Russian Tea Room (150 W 57th St between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 974-2111) pays homage to czarist Russia, complete with golden samovars, Tiffany stained-glass ceilings, Fabergé-inspired Venetian glass eggs and a 15-foot revolving bear aquarium. The vodka flows as freely as the Don here. And if you've ever dreamed of running away and joining the circus, Le Cirque 2000 (455 Madison Ave between 50th and 51st streets, 303-7788) may be just the restaurant for you. Adam Tihany orchestrated the visuals: a surfeit of primary colors and luxe fabrics set in a Renaissance-palazzo frame designed by architect Stanford White more than 100 years ago. Definitely a dining experience to write home about.

If WHERE's readers like to be bedazzled by exoticism, their cuisine of choice is, by contrast, overwhelmingly American, from basics like chicken potpie at Ellen's Stardust Diner (1650 Broadway at 51st Street, 956-5151) or a hot dog and ice-cream soda at Serendipity 3 (225 E 60th St between Second and Third avenues, 838-3531) to gourmet feasts prepared by chefs Michael Romano of Union Square Cafe (21 E 16th St between Fifth Avenue and Union Square West, 243-4020) and Tom Colicchio of Gramercy Tavern (42 E 20th St between Broadway and Park Avenue South, 477-0777). As for a steak house, WHERE's readers vote for the one with the stellar wine list: Cité (120 W 51st St between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 956-7100). They also enjoy a wine bar with an American twist, like Morrell Wine Bar and Cafe (1 Rockefeller Plaza on 49th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues, 262-7700). The groaning board at Halcyon (151 W. 54th St between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 468-8888), winner in the brunch category, is as American as apple pie.

French is the second most-popular cuisine. Here the winners run the gamut from casual yet chic Brasserie (100 E 53rd St between Lexington and Park avenues, 751-4840) to clubby Mark's Restaurant and Bar (The Mark Hotel, 25 E 77th St between Fifth and Madison avenues, 879-1864) to hauter-than-haute Daniel (60 E 65th St between Madison and Park avenues,288-0033) and Jean Georges (Trump International Hotel, 1 Central Park West between 60th and 61st streets, 299-3900). Italian food places a distant third, but that doesn't prevent Carmine's (200 W 44th St between Broadway and Eighth Avenue, 221-3800) from being first in the hearts of WHERE's readers for its red-sauce, family-style, casual dining.

Visitors come to New York for many reasons, sight-seeing and celebrity-spotting among them. In glitzy Times Square, the restaurant goes round and round at The View (Marriott Marquis Hotel, 1535 Broadway between 45th and 46th streets, 704-8900), the city's only revolving restaurant. It's a tour de force that WHERE's readers like to take at brunch. If Robert De Niro isn't a superstar celeb, who is? That he is also an owner of TriBeCa Grill (375 Greenwich St at Franklin Street, 941-3900) is further incentive to head downtown to this popular eatery on the off chance that he will turn up. If he doesn't, one or more of the other investors may: Bill Murray, Christopher Walken, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Sean Penn, among them.

Eventually, the piper has to be paid. One observation suffices: WHERE's readers have champagne taste.

I recently asked Charlie Palmer, one of New York's leading chefs, for his favorite New York restaurants. I wanted to see if Palmer's faves corresponded in any way to those of WHERE's readers. After all, his restaurant, Aureole (34 E 61st St between Madison and Park avenues, 319-1660), was voted first runner-up for Best Upper East Side Dining. "For a splurge in sushi," as he put it, he goes to Kuruma Zushi (7 E 47th St between Fifth and Madison avenues, 317-2802), "where little English is spoken." For a quick bite, he heads downtown to Greenwich Village and 'ino (21 Bedford St between Downing Street and Sixth Avenue, 989-5769), another insider destination and a tiny wine bar that seats 25 people max. Finally, he favors "any restaurant with Daniel Boulud's name attached to it." Spoken like a true reader of WHERE magazine, even if Daniel, the restaurant, bested Palmer's own Aureole for the title of Best Upper East Side Dining.

Francis Lewis is editor of WHERE New York magazine

First runner-up of WHERE magazine's 2003 Visitors Choice Award for Best Family-Friendly Dining. Journey back to a 1950s-style diner offering hearty American comfort food and a chorus of singing waiters. Brunch, lunch and dinner daily; opens at 7 am. Family friendly. Wheelchair accessible. Appetizer and entrée average $20 and under. (American Express, Master Card, Visa, Discover, Diners Club, Carte Blanche) 1650 Broadway at 51st St, 1-212-956-5151. www.ellensstardustdiner.com

An extraordinary dining experience in every way, March is for the gourmand and oenophile. Chef Wayne Nish's traditional and tasting menus offer the ne plus ultra of New American cuisine, while wine director Joseph Scalice expertly pairs the wines. The Sutton Place town-house setting is plush, intimate, romantic and lushly bedecked with flowers. In other words, this is one ritzy restaurant in one ritzy neighborhood. Dress accordingly. Prix fixe pre-theatre dinner $55. Dinner nightly. Private dining room available. Appetizer and entrée average $50 and above. (American Express, Master Card, Visa, Discover, Diners Club) 405 E 58th St between First Ave and Sutton Place, 1-212-754-6272 www.marchrestaurant.com

Authentic is the word for the sushi and sashimi here. The restaurant is just a stone's throw from Saks Fifth Avenue and Rockefeller Center. Lunch Monday through Friday, dinner Monday through Saturday. Private dining room available. Appetizer and entrée average $35-$50. (American Express, Master Card, Visa) 38 E 51st St between Madison and Park aves, 1-212-755-1780

How many restaurants do you know that serve ostrich, much less with port and balsamic sauce? Contemporary Italian cuisine is the drawing card at this cozy, romantic and candlelit rendezvous. For the less adventurous of palate, there are more traditional offerings, such as crab cakes and sea bass tortellini with wild herb sauce. Prix fixe lunch $19.95, prix fixe pre-theatre dinner $26. Lunch Monday through Friday, dinner Monday through Saturday. Private dining room available. Appetizer and entrée average $35-$50. (American Express, Master Card, Visa, Diners Club) 29 W 56th St between Fifth and Sixth aves, 1-212-765-5155.