2 Best Restaurants in Nantucket, Massachusetts

This loft-like restaurant with a harborside deck has enjoyed legendary status since the mid-1970s; these days, the focus is on re-interpreting summer classics that highlight local produce and fresh seafood. The two-course dinner menu ($78), served in the dining room, features such delectables as iced Nantucket oysters, perhaps followed by slow-poached salmon with a Brussels sprout and baby kale caesar. The bar grill offers a short, well-curated a la carte menu. (Moroccan-spiced eggplant "parm" is a favorite.) Hurricane lamps lend a soft glow to well-spaced tables; the vibe is best described as barefoot-chic. (But do wear shoes!)

Climb the copper-clad stairs into this historic home, settle in at one of three dining rooms, and get ready to enjoy the island's freshest fish and produce, impeccably prepared. The menu changes with the seasons, but count on house-made pasta (available in half portions) and toothsome mains with an international tilt, like Moroccan fish tagine.