Restaurants with star power take off in New York City.

Foremost in the thoughts of many New Yorkers is where to shop, where to sleep and where to dine. When it comes to dining, no matter what you're craving, New York is a veritable Zagat Guide paradise. Some of the newest dining options here as well as in our beachy backyard, the Hamptons, are abuzz with imaginative fare and a unique ambience.

Across every neighborhood and in every price range, menu options abound. French-American fare from Simon Oren of Nice Matin and Marseille fame is offered at Cafe d'Alsace at 1695 Second Avenue.

Sascha by Sascha Lyon at 55 Gansevoort Street in the meatpacking district has two floors--a downstairs bistro-bar named Gansevoort Room and an upstairs upscale dining room. Laurent Halasz will open a 200-seat branch of his wildly successful cafe this fall of Fig and Olive, 420 West 13th Street.

In the West Village, The Little Owl at 90 Bedford Street is where chef, Joey Campanaro, now serves Mediterranean fare. Dona has also opened its fabulous doors at 208 East 52nd Street where Donatella Arpaia has opened with chef, Michael Psilakis, blending Greek and Italian food.

Probably the most eagerly anticipated red carpet re-opening was Le Cirque by owner, Sirio Maccioni, in Bloomberg tower on East 58th Street at One Beacon Court.

The posh Ritz-Carlton Hotel will replace Atelier with the latest installation of chef Laurent Tourondel 's BLT dining--BLT Market. It will have a separate entrance on 58th and Sixth Avenue--50 Central Park South.

By Antoine Bouterin and Igor Segota comes Cafe Soleil at 1016 Second Avenue at 54th Street offering a raw bar, salad menu, pasta, chicken fish and steak. Lollipop will debut in July at 27 E. 61st St with a techno-pop lounge specializing in Thai-Vietnamese and will feature nightly DJs and a digital video installation that captures and projects guests' silhouettes.

In the fall, chop house 7 Square will open in the former Oceo space in the Time Hotel at 224 West 49th Street. Replacing Osteria Stella, a fourth Bobby Van's Grill, has opened at 135 West 50th Street. Is there any more delicious news than that 1515 Broadway is now home to the famous Junior's Cheesecake?

Also finally debuted is the original Peter Luger offshoot, Wolfgang's Steakhouse, which opened in a new and larger space at 409 Greenwich Street in Tribeca. Jivamuktea Cafe is a vegan cafe at 841 Broadway. This summer, Yannde Rochefort, who owns Suba and Seamus Mullen, will open Boqueria at 53 West 19th Street.

Coming to Madison Avenue, Peru Mediterranean Brasserie will be an Eastern Mediterranean restaurant at 303 Madison Avenue. At 36 East 20th Street, Parea will offer modern Greek fare. In September, pastry chef, Pichet Ong, will open a new West Village desser cafe, P*ong, at 150-152 West Tenth Avenue.

Most impressive, Buddha-Bar NYC has opened 15,000 s/f and serves everything from French touches to Asian dishes at 25 Little West 12th Street. Buddakan, 75 Ninth Avenue at 16th Street, is a two-story Asian restaurant with tanks of live jellyfish and a 17-foot black lacquered Buddha--making for very visually stimulating dining experience!

In happening Brooklyn, Fairway has opened in Red Hook, 480-500 Van Brunt Street and is the biggest supermarket yet with 52,000 square feet. There is also a plan to open a restaurant with views of the Statue of Liberty on the second floor.

Dining at the shore is also a delight with the new and exciting host of eateries. Eagerly anticipated PassionFish by restaurateur and chef Tom Schaudel's brings eclectic new American fare to the Dune Deck Hotel in Westhampton, 379 Dune Road.

In Easthampton, The Laundry moves to 341 Pantigo Road, formerly The Farmhouse. In the former Laundry space, Leif Hope's Restaurant at 31 Race Lane and features hamburgers, steaks and seafood. Ed Kleefield, restaurateur of JL East and Madam Tong's has opened a Cajun BBQ restaurant, Mumbo Gumbo at 62 Main Street in Sag Harbor. The Golden Pear Cafe has opened a fourth installation in Sag Harbor offering breakfast and lunch at 111 Main Street. Lori Restaurant & Wine Bar succeeds James on Main and is a new American kitchen, 75 Main Street, Southampton. 27 Lobster and Surf Shack is now open at 2095 Montauk Highway in Amagansett and serves up seafood and Cajun dishes.

Whether you're in the City or the Hamptons, there will certainly be plenty of new dining destinations to sample, not to mention the standard old favorites.

BY FAITH HOPE CONSOLO, CHAIRMAN, RETAIL LEASING AND SALES, PRUDENTIAL DOUGLAS ELLIMAN