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It seems as if everybody in Lodi loves bright and chipper Guantonio's, and, after tasting the family-style restaurant's wood-fired pizzas, it's easy to see why. Placing the area's pristine seasonal produce atop naturally leavened dough from "organic non-GMO flour," the chefs turn out cacio e pepe (cheese and pepper), pesto and sausage, and a dozen more tour de force pies.
600 W. Lockeford St., Lodi, California, 95240, USA
Known For
- Pepperoni pizza "Nick's way" with ricotta and hot honey
- Craft beers and boutique wines
- Soft-serve ice cream and cannolis for dessert
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.–Tues. No lunch, Reservations not accepted
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$$ | | Italian
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.
725 E. 19th St., Bakersfield, California, 93302, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and Mon. No dinner
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Established in 1966, this is one of the best restaurants in the Central Valley. The California–continental cuisine includes dishes such as French escargot with a white-wine sauce and filet mignon with a cognac-mustard sauce.
216 N. Willis St., Visalia, California, 93291, USA
Known For
- Wine list with more than 900 selections
- Chocolate Grand Marnier cake and other house-made desserts
- Sophisticated vibe
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Special-occasion dinners often take place in the distinguished rooms of this former residence behind, and part of, the Wine & Roses hotel. Painted in rich, textured hues offset by wide white molding, the rooms exude a subtle sophistication matched by seasonal dishes that might include halibut, lamb or pork chops, or a house-made pasta plate.
2505 W. Turner Rd., Lodi, California, 95242, USA
Known For
- Fresh seasonal local ingredients
- Weekend brunch with varied offerings
- Town Corner Café & Market for breakfast and lunch daily
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential
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$ | | American
Only two reasons to come here, but they're both delightful: frosty-glassed root-beer floats and drive-in service that transports patrons (by the view of carhops on roller skates alone) back to the 1950s of Modesto native and American Graffiti director George Lucas. It's a kick. The cheese curds and onion rings aren't bad either.
1404 G St., Modesto, California, 95354, USA
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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$$ | | Italian
In a downtown Tuscan-theme bakery, bar, and bistro, chef Vincent DeAngelo, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, brings his considerable skills to chicken Parmesan, calamari steak dore, and other Italian favorites. All breads, buns, cakes, pizzas, and other baked delights are made on-site in a New York brick oven.
350 W. Main St., Merced, California, 95340, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.–Mon.
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$ | | Thai
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.
1534 19th St., at Eye St., Bakersfield, California, 93301, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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$ | | Diner
Hash browns, grilled-cheese sandwiches, biscuits and gravy, and similar fare are served at this downtown breakfast and lunch joint. The outdoor tables are nice in the morning provided the weather is, too, which (other than wintertime) is likely.
661 W. Main St., at N. St., Merced, California, 95340, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner
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$$$$ | | Modern American
Modestans hankering for a fine-dining experience—especially one involving prime rib or filet mignon—often head to this handsome dining room. Chef Vincent Alvarado introduces French influences (by way of the sauces) and Asian ones (by way of the spices) to beef, chicken, and seafood standards. Beef predominates, but the sea bass is a good alternative, as is the pan-roasted pork tenderloin, served with a sweet and spicy plum sauce.
1505 J St., Modesto, California, 95354, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. No lunch Sat.
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$$$ | | American
A classic San Francisco–style steak house and bar, the Elbow Room has been a Fresno social hub since opening in 1955. The steak sandwich, served open face on jalapeño cheese bread, has been a menu staple since the beginning; other classics include deviled eggs and an iceberg wedge with blue cheese. Among the more contemporary dishes are grilled Alaskan salmon and a salad with quinoa, mixed greens, asparagus, and artichoke hearts. The restaurant has indoor seating areas and a covered patio with year-round temperature controls, a boon in summer.
Fig Garden Village Shopping Center, 731 W. San Jose Ave., near W. Shaw Ave., Fresno, California, 93704, USA
Known For
- Traditional American steaks and cocktails
- Shuttle service available from nearby hotels
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$$ | | Modern American
Elegant yet unpretentious Five Ten serves upscale bistro-style meals at reasonable prices. Sit at candlelit tables and watch the cooks in the open kitchen craft dishes on a seasonal menu that always includes soups (try the mushroom bisque), salads, pastas (among them chicken penne with bacon and tomato), and chicken marsala and other bistro staples. Local vintages and bottlings from around the globe grace the impressive wine list. The on-site After 5 Bar & Lounge lures locals with craft-beer flights and creative martinis. In fair weather, ask for a table outside under the stars.
510 W. Main St., Merced, California, 95340, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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$$ | | Cajun
California meets New Orleans with farm-to-fork ingredients and Cajun-Creole flavors at French 25, an upscale restaurant near downtown Stockton's waterfront. Opened by the owners of Le Bistro, a local favorite for two decades, the restaurant evokes the character of New Orleans' French Quarter. Fried foods being a Crescent City staple, it should come as no surprise that menu favorites include the fried creole calamari and the fried-chicken entrée with malted waffles. Pan-Southern influences crop up everywhere, most notably in dishes such as barbecue shrimp and cheesy grits, jambalaya, and the zesty Cajun-chicken tortellini. F25's oyster bar, Bourbon Street–inspired cocktails, and desserts—among them sugar-dusted beignets and bread pudding—complete the Big Easy theme.
110 N. El Dorado St., Stockton, California, 95202, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. No lunch Sat.
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$ | | Mexican
Mexican-American families, farmworkers, and farmers all eat here, polishing off traditional Mexican dishes such as posole, menudo, enchiladas, and tacos. The Fiesta Special—for two or more—includes generous portions of grilled pork tenderloin, beef top sirloin, chorizo, chicken breast, quesadillas, onions, and deep-fried jalapeños.
106 N. Green St., Hanford, California, 93230, USA
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Lodi's go-to spot for Italian American classics wins fans for its quality ingredients, Tuscan-courtyard ambience, and plant-filled outdoor patio (reservations essential on weekends). Expect straightforward, well-executed renditions of chicken piccata and pork Milanese, filling lasagna and seasonal risotto, pizzas, and the like, all delivered with informal good cheer by the cadre of servers.
317 E. Kettleman La., Lodi, California, 95240, USA
Known For
- Italian-American classics
- Meatball and chicken pesto with cheese sandwiches for lunch
- Lodi and Italian wines
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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A Wine Country–style establishment that sources ingredients from the on-site gardens and surrounding farms and orchards, this popular restaurant occupies a redbrick 1921 schoolhouse in the town of Sanger. Chef Ryan Jackson, who grew up on local fruit farms, creates seasonal menus from the bounty of familiar backyards, mostly filled with classic American dishes with a contemporary twist.
1018 S. Frankwood Ave., Sanger, California, 93657, USA
Known For
- Ingredients from neighboring farms and orchards
- Historical country setting
- Convenient stop between Kings Canyon and Fresno
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. and Tues. No lunch
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$ | | Italian
For northern Italian cuisine in a no-frills trattoria, this is the spot. Try the braised lamb shanks in a Chianti wine sauce, grilled rib eye with chef's seasonal sauce, or the filet mignon with shrimp, roasted pepper, and onions in a demiglaze sauce. To drift back to old Italy—or 1950s Kernville, perhaps—sample the spaghetti and meatballs.
9 Big Blue Rd., at Kernville Rd., Kernville, California, 93238, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. year-round, Tues. mid-Sept.–Mar. No lunch
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A good downtown stop especially for lunch, the Dancing Fox also has a tasting room for its eponymous wines. The restaurant, whose decor shimmers with fairy-tale whimsy, serves sandwiches, salads, pizzas, burgers, and wraps and has more than a dozen beers on tap.
203 S. School St., Lodi, California, 95240, USA
Known For
- Sunday brunch
- Wine tasting
- Historic downtown setting
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. No dinner Sun., Reservations not accepted
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$ | | American
A casual downtown café and bakery, the Lunch Box serves healthful meals at reasonable prices. Choose from nearly 50 types of hot and cold sandwiches and wraps, more than 20 different salads, and soups such as chicken noodle and Tuscan tomato. Tandoori-seasoned salmon fillet and chicken verde enchiladas are typical daily specials. This is good place for a quick bite or to pick up picnic items before or after a visit to Sequoia National Park.
112 N. Court St., at Main St., Visalia, California, 93291, USA
Known For
- Fresh, healthful local ingredients
- Quick service
- Many menu option and combinations
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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$$ | | Modern American
An upscale restaurant and bar in the downtown arts district, The Mark specializes in fresh seafood, hand-cut steaks, pastas, homemade soups, and comfort foods such as chicken potpie. Though the dishes are straightforward, they're skillfully executed. The wine list favors California but includes representatives from France, Italy, and elsewhere abroad. At the bar, which hosts live music, you can sink into leather high-back chairs and booths and order creative cocktails.
1623 19th St., Bakersfield, California, 93301, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. No lunch Sat.
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$$$ | | American
An intimate setting with white tablecloths and contemporary art draws diners to this establishment—part wineshop, part restaurant—with a seasonally changing menu. The Cajun-style crab cakes, served for lunch year-round, are outstanding. For a small fee, your waiter will uncork any wine you select from the shop.
927 11th St., at J St., Modesto, California, 95354, USA
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch Sun.