Here's what it's like to eat a $245 meal at one of New York City's finest restaurants

Kathleen Elkins/Business Insider

A sneak peek of our dessert trilogy.

My food-loving mom recently flew in from North Carolina to spend Mother's Day weekend in New York City with me.

We did a lot of exploring - and even more eating.

As a Mother's Day treat, my incredibly generous grandpa, who happens to be a restaurant connoisseur and former food critic, treated us to an experience of of a lifetime: brunch at Chef Daniel Boulud's renowned restaurant, Daniel.

The experience was thrilling, educational, humbling, and at times, confusing (which of the three forks do I use?); the food was beautiful, complex, mouth-watering, and at times, perplexing (do I eat that small appetizer in one bite?); and, yes, the portions were small ... but we were somehow incredibly full afterwards.

Here's a closer look at the two and a half hour marathon meal: