Johannesburg - Auberge Michel , one of South Africa's finest French restaurants

This is the favourite restaurant of black economic empowerment millionaires, foreign correspondents and those leading politicians who can afford its steep prices.

High-backed chairs make every table a booth and every diner a king, scoffing mostly French (but some Italian) cuisine - cote de boeuf, tarte fine de nicoise, mignon de springbok, a creamy risotto, and frogs' legs and snails served in a brioche for the traditionalists. Foie gras and truffles appear often in the list of ingredients.

Asked to cook a meal for the Eat Out restaurant guide, chef Frederic Leloup produced rabie de lapin cuit vapeur - steamed, stuffed rabbit.

The restaurant, owned by Burgundian Michel Morand and Joburg businessman Vusi Sithole, was opened in April 2004 and promptly began garnering prizes. It was the first restaurant in the country to win the Tourism Grading Council's five-star rating, and it was open only a few months when it made the Eat Out Johnnie Walker list of the country's Top 10 restaurants.

In 2005 it made the list again, and was the only Johannesburg restaurant mentioned in Dine 100's Top 10: Special Occasions. Sponsored by Wine magazine and Diners Club International, the award honours those restaurants known for "superb cuisine, exceptional service and wonderful wines in a setting that tends to be more posh than casual, with prices to match".

Prices at Auberge Michel hover around R45 to R84 for starters, R130 to R160 for main courses (although a Boston lobster will set you back R450) and R40 to R45 for dessert - and, by all accounts, the dishes are worth it.

122 Pretoria Avenue, Sandton
Telephone: 011 883 7013
Hours: Lunch Tuesday-Friday 12.30-2.30pm; dinner Monday-Saturday 6.30-10.30pm