BLT Bar & Grill

The Jil Sander fashion label isn't actually designed by Jil Sander—she split from the company. Same with designer Herve Leger, who lost the rights to his eponymous label. Also carrying on without their founding father: BLT Restaurant Group, the food-empire-that-Laurent-Tourondel-built, which recently parted with the chef and now plows ahead without him. (He still consults on a handful of existing BLT properties.) BLT Bar & Grill, the new bi-level tavern at the W Hotel on Washington Street, may not have the mega-chef onboard, but the company's owners are no doubt hoping the eatery's crowd-pleasing array of all-American pub bites stands on its own. They've certainly got all the bases covered, including surf (cod with onion marmalade), turf (lamb chop), pasta (short rib ragu pappardelle) and snacks (deviled eggs). New at this BLT location: a pizza oven! Make a beeline for the creamy tarte flambée pizza with bacon and arugula. Prefer something familiar? The popular chopped salad from the other BLT restaurants (with radish, hearts of palm, tomatoes and ginger ranch dressing) is here, as are steaks from BLT Steak.

See more: Financial District restaurants, American restaurants, Bar food restaurants