A Who’s Who of horse racing’s high society populates two giant murals by painter Rumara Jewett, while a collage of George Kalinsky’s black-and-white photographs of equines and jockeys covers an entire wall. But Seabiscuit and other champion Thoroughbreds and riders are not the only celebrated athletes associated with Siro’s (right), the just-out-of-the-starting-gate Manhattan branch of a 67-year-old, trackside dining hot spot in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Investors in the handsome new restaurant—which specializes in classic and contemporary preparations of seafood, steaks and chops—include New York Yankees pitcher Mariano Rivera, who considers the eatery his “home turf.”

» Siro’s, 885 Second Ave., 212.486.6400

A philanthropist, collector, nutritionist, former ballerina and owner of 10 restaurants in Japan, Mihoko Kiyokawa named her first eatery in the United States (left) for the purported weight of a human soul (21 grams). The cuisine, devised by a team of chefs under Mihoko’s supervision, however, is a world away from soul food. Rather, it’s high-concept Franco-Japonaise fare, offered à la carte and in multicourse seasonal tasting menus amid Versailles-like opulence. Imported marble, bronze lanterns, baroque paintings and treasures from an Upper East Side mansion set the scene for Santa Barbara uni bisque with fennel, lemon and cuttlefish; and Mangalista pork with ratatouille-stuffed squash blossoms.

» Mihoko’s 21grams, 16 W. 22nd St., 212.741.0021

Reminiscent of the breakfasts his grandmère Mamie Angèle used to make, Executive Chef Luc Dimnet’s weekend brunch menu at Brasserie features savory French classics: oeufs meurette (red-wine poached eggs with crisp duck confit, cèpes and fingerling potatoes), vol au vent aux truffes (fragrant truffled scrambled eggs in puff pastry), coeur à la crème (a buttery crêpe with sweetened fromage blanc, Neufchâtel and strawberry compote), tartiflette (gratin of potatoes, pickled rutabaga, farm-fresh eggs and melted raclette cheese) and crêpes à la Reine (right, a crêpe with grilled chicken breast and royal trumpet mushrooms).

» Brasserie, 100 E. 53rd St., 212.751.4840

“My specialty is a dish that I haven’t created yet,” jokes Antonio Mermolia, the consulting chef at Il Punto, who recently arrived from Calabria, in the south of Italy, to innovate the ristorante’s menu. Still, longtime favorites remain, such as orata alla boscaiola (left), sea bream served with Mediterranean shrimp, porcini mushrooms and grilled potatoes.

» Il Punto, 507 Ninth Ave., 212.244.0088