best creme brulee in manhattan?

No best anything in NYC. Just lots of great stuff.

You mean in a restaurant - or for taking home?

in a restaurant preferably

This is a couple of years old, but...
http://www.sweetsimplicitygroup.com/...-the-city.html

For dessert and coffee I love Cafe Lalo on the Upper West Side. I don't remember them having creme brulee, but more than 50 other dessert options!!

My apartment, it gives a chance to use my blow torch.

The reputed best, or at least the most famous, is at Le Cirque:


http://www.lecirque.com/caffe-dessert.php

I certainly agree with ekscrunchy about the most famous creme brulee in NYC. It's definitely Le Cirque.

They often serve the Le Cirque creme brulee at L'Ecole, the restaurant operated by the French Culinary Institute.

I also like the creme brulee at Marseille.

But you're asking about a rather old-fashioned and somewhat pedestrian dessert these days. There's a lot more great stuff going on in pastry and desserts right now, particularly in NYC. I know people have their old-time favorites, but if you're looking for the "best" of anything, it helps to have a mind that's open to new things.

if you think creme brulee is pedestrian, you havent tasted a properly prepared one...

i thought these forums were for suggestions or ideas, not editorials. am i wrong???

Good luck with that.

I have not seen creme brulee on an upscale restaurant menu in many years. But then, It has been that long since I've eaten in Le Cirque! Surely it is a delicious and decadent dessert, but like other dishes, desserts go in and out of fashion. Of course you can find it, but you will not find it on the menus of most of the "better" NYC non-French restaurants ...and perhaps not at the French ones, not sure about that..

You can get a creme brulee doughnut at the Doughnut Plant, though!

Wait long enough and it will come back into fashion. But again, when was the last time anyone had baked Alaska?

Remember tiramisu?

creme brulee donut sounds good actually! and gotta love tiramisu. looks like le cirque's the place. anyone know if you can go for dessert only?

Actually, that may very well be possible if you are willing to go to the "cafe" where you can get the famous Le Cirque creme brulee there. Though even then I think you'd have better luck at an off-hour like 10pm. I think that would be your best bet. You would not be allowed to dine in the main restaurant and have only dessert.

Chikalicious is an excellent restaurant that serves only dessert, but it doesn't usually have creme brulee on its menu (if ever) all for the same reasons I've stated above. But it's a great place if you love dessert.

Artisanal claims to serve creme brulee "Le Cirque". I'm sure you could go there and eat only at the bar and have dessert and coffee, particularly at an off-hour. They also have a great menu of grilled cheese sandwiches.

You can try their cafe for dessert. Call them and ask if you can order only dessert there.


http://www.lecirque.com/caffe-dessert.php

Also, look:


http://dt-works.net/

I just had an excellent Creme Brulee last week at "Wall & Water" in the Andaz Hotel located at....Wall & Water Streets. One of the better business lunch locations in the neighborhood.

Just to support Starrs's observation (good luck with eliminating editorials): Creme brulee by any other name is just custard. Burn some sugar with your mini blowtorch and you, too, can create a 1980's era, eggy, watery dessert, no? Waste of an egg, imo. blech. I'm with Doug on this one....

And the Catalans go insane because they claim to have invented the forerunner, Crema Catalana.