4 Best Restaurants in The Central Valley, California

The same family has operated this popular restaurant, bar, and delicatessen at the same site since 1910. Feast on generous portions of pastas and sauces made from old family recipes. The extensive menu also includes sandwiches, steaks, salads, and daily specials such as prime rib and lasagna. Plates are served family style in several casual rooms, reminiscent of a Tuscan trattoria and decorated with local sports photos. Luigi's isn't open for dinner, but you can order to-go items, or pick up meal fixings at the adjacent deli.

Aromatic pan-Asian spices, healthful ingredients, and inventive cocktails have made this arts-district eatery a local fave. Chef Preeda Piamfa, who hails from Thailand's east coast, focuses on Thai cuisine, including traditional curries, soups, and noodles (try the drunken noodles with duck), but he also prepares dishes from Japan, Singapore, and Vietnam. Preeda even puts an Asian twist on American standards. Case in point: the citrus-marinated rib-eye steak, served with carrot fried rice and steamed vegetables and topped with tamarind sauce.

An upscale restaurant and bar in the downtown arts district, The Mark specializes in fresh seafood, hand-cut steaks, pastas, homemade soups, and comfort foods such as chicken potpie. Though the dishes are straightforward, they're skillfully executed. The wine list favors California but includes representatives from France, Italy, and elsewhere abroad. At the bar, which hosts live music, you can sink into leather high-back chairs and booths and order creative cocktails.

Thick lamb chops, roast lamb, oxtail stew, and shrimp scampi have made this Basque eatery a local institution. All meals are served family style, so you might share your table with diners you don't know. Meals include vegetables and a potato, pasta, or rice dish, and many gluten-free options—but this is no place for vegetarians.