1438 Best Restaurants in California, USA

Yes, Palm Desert is landlocked, but there's no hesitation when it comes to recommending this seafood specialist, which has drawn residents and visitors for choice surf and turf for 15 years. Fish arrives daily from San Diego, is cooked to perfection, and is served on the rooftop and inside the dining room on the second floor of the Gardens of El Paseo shopping center. If the thought of twin lobster tails, grilled mahimahi with chipotle corn salsa, or sugar-spiced salmon make you seasick, note that the menu also includes chicken, steaks, meal-size salads, and vegetarian pasta dishes.

At this shop, bar, and restaurant inside a former orange-packing house, you can purchase wines from around the world and enjoy them on-site. Throughout the day, pair your selection with seasonal small plates and specialty cheeses and, for dinner, entrées like poke tostadas with sushi-grade ahi tuna and an organic beef burger with smoked bacon, aged cheddar, and spicy tomato aioli.

Mardi Gras energy, team-style service, lively music, and great Cajun, creole, and Caribbean food have made the Palace a Santa Barbara icon. Be prepared to wait for a table on Friday and Saturday night, though the live entertainment and free appetizers, sent out front when the line is long, will whet your appetite for the feast to come.

In what's described as "Cal-Tropic" flair, Palm House serves atmospheric and colorful vibes. The drinks are smoky and competently worldly, and the menu is a vacation in and of itself.

Best for lunch but also open for dinner, Palooza pleases with many beers on tap, jazzed-up pub grub, and an often-packed covered outdoor patio. Pulled-pork and crispy chicken sandwiches and beer-battered fish and fries are among the popular items, with prawn and braised beef tacos and shredded kale salads with sliced apples for those seeking lighter fare.

One of North County's best restaurants, across the street from the Del Mar Fairgrounds and racetrack, offers French cuisine with California flare. Chef-proprietor Jeffrey Strauss brings a caterer's sensibilities to the details, like a mix-or-match selection of sauces—such as wild mushroom, béarnaise, au jus, grain mustard, or peppercorn—to complement the simple but absolutely top-quality grilled meats and seafood. Appetizers can be very clever, like the Kim Chee seafood martini. Whatever you do, save room for dessert; you can watch the pastry chef build it for you at the demonstration area in the dining room. Popular sweet endings include seasonal fruit tart tatin and chocolate peanut-butter bombe. The comfortable rooms are painted with murals of bucolic country scenes, and the service is quiet and professional.

Adding a dose of hip to Balboa Park, this gastropub, located adjacent to the San Diego Museum of Art's sculpture garden, offers a stylish pit stop pretheater or between museum-hopping. The menu features grab-and-go options as well as dine-in upscale pub fare and craft brews, with several vegan options and a weekend brunch. Panama 66 does not take reservations.

This is a great place for a beer and a steak, though the menu also has burgers, chicken tenders, fish and chips, pasta dishes, and salads. In summer, dinners (reservations suggested) are served out on the porch, which has spectacular views of Panamint Valley. A limited breakfast and lunch are also served.

A small, colorful space, Parada 22 serves up heaping plates of home-style Puerto Rican cuisine—think plantains, seafood, and slow-roasted pork. There's also plenty of vegetarian fare on offer. The brick-walled interior is accented by old framed photographs, potted plants, and strings of Christmas lights.

Behind the dripping ferns and inside the eye-catching Millennial pink building wrapping around the corner of Goldfinch and Washington is Paradis, an all-day café and Spanish pintxo bar serving coffee, pastries, brunch, and tapas. Classic California dishes like avocado toast and acai bowls are available, as well as more European-inspired goodies like crispy patatas and Calabrian dates. Ritual Coffee provides the beans and the baristas can whip up anything from flat whites to cappuccinos, macchiatos, and more. Seating is available inside or in the enclosed courtyard, which also leads to the rooftop restaurant-with-a-view, Communion. 

This trendy La Jolla restaurant “plays” tribute to the past with its location inside William Kesling’s historic piano showroom where live music still plays during cocktail hour. The casual yet refined menu features steelhead trout, pan-roasted chicken, and unconventional Caesar salads topped with jalapeño rings and Parmesan shavings; be sure to request a side of the creamy coconut rice pilaf. Its corner location offers patio seating as well as a mid-century-meets-tropical-style lounge with a magnificent mural by artist, Eva Struble, and a travertine bar where mixologists pour Oaxacan negronis and cocktails named after birds. Arrive by 5:30 to hear an hour set of live piano on Wednesday and Sunday and live saxophone on Thursday.

Two French transplants have brought sleek Parisian style to Downtown San Diego, and rows of eclairs, tarts, croissants, colorful macarons, and the aroma of espresso greet patrons as they enter a minimalist space. For something more substantial, look to their menu of crepes, sandwiches, salads, and quiches; caffeinated drinks range from teas and coffee to a sweet lavender honey latte.

A few blocks south of Healdsburg Plaza at the busy roundabout, Parish's chefs whip up beignets, gumbo, muffulettas, and heapin' po'boys—from fried oyster, shrimp, and catfish to roast beef, turkey, and ham and cheese—along with other New Orleans delights. Borderline decadent breakfasts served inside a white-trimmed yellow house or on its patio include bananas Foster French toast, egg po'boys, and the crawfish and andouille omelet slathered in Creole sauce.

The typical family backyard barbecues scattered throughout Echo Park—which has traditionally overlapped with L.A.’s historic Filipinotown—are transformed into fantastic dining at The Park's Finest. Slow-cooked meats and vinegar-based sauces are topped with longganisa sausage, ube, soy sauce, and banana leaves. The name doesn't lie—this truly is some of Echo Park's finest grub.

In a cozy setting down a quiet alley with a beautiful brick-walled courtyard, peak seasonal ingredients are highlighted on the concise, well-composed menu that balances between being comforting and ambitious. Start with one of the beautifully fresh salads or local halibut ceviche before continuing on to a rustic yet refined main like duck breast with sweet potato hash and blackberry gastrique.

Kim Levin’s ode to rustic Italian cuisine in a lofty, natural light–filled space continues to thrill fervent regulars each week. Around 10 pastas are offered each evening, making it very difficult for diners to decide from the many tempting options. Classic preparations like tagliatelle Bolognese and spaghetti puttanesca are given unique touches, like adding pancetta to the former and day-boat scallops to the latter. The adjacent lounge shakes and stirs Half Moon Bay’s best cocktails.

As the rooftop dinosaur and Lady Liberty statues suggest, this leprechaun-green roadhouse, tucked into the hillside of Pacific Palisades, is a maximalist ode to the past crammed with memorabilia ranging from British railway signs to cheeky bronze statuettes. An Old World portrait of a young Arnold Schwarzenegger in epaulets lords over the proceedings, along with Arnold's throne, which you can request to be seated in. Solid breakfast options include the chilaquiles with a generous topping of sliced avocado or the beyond-immense breakfast burrito. For lunch or dinner, come for the just-right fish and chips or the Pot of Gold burger, and try to resist adding the house-made potato chips and banana cream pie. Waitstaff are brisk and friendly and big band and Great American Songbook tunes keep the atmosphere lively.

San Francisco has very few Caribbean restaurants, but luckily locals and tourists can try some excellent Jamaican cuisine from Shani Jones' catering company-turned-permanent kiosk on the Embarcadero sidewalk side of the Ferry Building. Homemade patties (savory pastries filled with meats or vegetables) are the namesake signature dish, complemented by the island's iconic jerk chicken and frequently a hearty stew or two.

Huge windows run the length of the Wuksachi Lodge's high-ceilinged dining room, and a large fireplace on the far wall warms both body and soul. The diverse dinner menu—by far the best at both parks—reflects a commitment to locally sourced and sustainable products.

This low-key, family-friendly eatery in the heart of town serves up made-from-scratch dishes that showcase seasonal local bounty sourced from trusted fishers and farmers. Feast on soups, beef-and-cheese smash burgers, and various salads and sandwiches in the casual interior or in the cozy brick patio.

Checkerboard floors and life-size versions of Elvis and Betty Boop greet you at this funky '50s coffee shop and pizza parlor. It's the oldest diner on Highway 15, and the fare is basic American—fries, onion rings, burgers, pork chops—with some fun surprises such as deep-fried dill pickles. If you're heading to nearby Calico Ghost Town, it's worth a stop to grab a milkshake or shop for souvenirs and sweets in the five-and-dime store.

Filling pizzas, pastas, and steak and fish dishes make this clubby-looking restaurant a fine choice after a long day of skiing in winter or hiking in summer. Start with the signature New England clam chowder (bacon bits add a smoky touch), and follow it up with a salad with the zesty house Peppercorn Ranch dressing before moving on to a flat-iron steak. Other top selections include rack of lamb, surf n' turf, and pasta with shrimp and pasta. 

This cheerful, white-walled storefront serves traditional dishes from Mexico and Latin America, with an emphasis on fresh seafood. Excellent red and green salsas are made throughout the day, and there's a large selection of beers, along with fresh lime margaritas.

From the idyllic vitello tonnato (slow-roasted veal with tuna sauce) to the pappardelle with short rib ragù, California Street's longtime power dining favorite's menu is a delectable paean to northern Italy. With a long marble bar and open kitchen, the brick-lined, ultra-polished space oozes big-city charm, attracting business types and Italian food aficionados alike to the FiDi well after evening rush hour ends.

With a modest, you’ll-hardly-notice-it’s-there exterior, counter seating, a very European-styled dining room, and classic French dishes, a meal at Petit Trois recalls a trip to Paris. The steak tartare or lighter-than-air omelet will make you forgive the restaurant's strip mall location off busy Highland Avenue.

Blocks from Oceanside Pier, Paris comes to the beach at this corner café and bakery where pastries, cookies, cakes, and chocolates will have you oh la la-ing over the French selections. If you're hungry for something a little more substantial, the breakfast and lunch offerings don't disappoint—try the breakfast sandwiches or bowls or the delicious chicken salad.

Philz Coffee in Beverly Hills is all about custom pour-over brews and a laid-back vibe. Whether you’re grabbing a Mint Mojito Iced Coffee or a smooth cardamom-filled Tesora, every cup is made just for you. It’s a relaxing spot to fuel up between shopping sprees or just for hanging out.

This much-praised, popular Vietnamese restaurant offers over 200 dishes so that choosing a meal here can be difficult. Waiters steer diners to familiar tasty offerings like traditional pho, kung pao chicken, garlic-butter fried chicken wings, and fresh pork or shrimp spring rolls. For the adventurous, more exotic options abound, like the broken rice dishes, and bo luc lac, sizzling cubes of beef served with a chunk of butter melting on top. Families can build-their-own spring rolls with the oven-roasted whole catfish served with vegetables, dipping sauces, and rice paper. The large, relatively spare dining room gets packed, especially on weekends, but service is usually prompt, if sometimes curt, typical of almost all Convoy Street dining spots.

Fresh homemade pasta served as the diner wants it is the mantra at this cozy Italian restaurant. Opt for indoor seating, which offers a charming, old-world feel, with warm lighting, wood beam ceilings, and exposed brick.