9164 Best Restaurants in USA

Renowned as one of the country's best seafood shacks, Shaggy's enjoys an open-air setting on Biloxi Beach and is a popular local gathering spot, making for a great atmosphere. Fresh seafood includes a fish of the day, oysters, Southern-style barbecued shrimp, and the signature fried seafood platter. The menu also features burgers, po'boys, and pasta dishes, plus a range of cocktails Key West style. You'll feel like you're among friends right away here—even if you want some nonfried seafood. The pulled-pork sandwich is a local favorite.

Don't expect high-end dining; the place is pretty much your local neighborhood dive, but the food is well liked and well prepared. The specials change daily, but are good, straightforward dishes such as cedar-planked salmon, beer-battered fish-and-chips, and chicken saltimbocca. There are always cool people here, so the bar scene makes the wait for a table on weekends bearable.

This fast-casual favorite born in New York City now has seven locations in Las Vegas, and the only thing different about it is that the lines aren't so long. It's a great place to stop for a Shack Burger and fries, and don't forget the shakes and frozen custard. The Strip location has been joined by others around town and at Harry Reid International Airport.

Although there are other locations of Danny Meyer's burger joint around town and around the world, Madison Square Park is where it all began (as a hot dog cart!); there's no indoor seating—just outdoor lines (go early or late to avoid a wait). The Angus beef burgers are ground daily, making them some of the freshest and tastiest in the city. For a couple more bucks you can order a double, a stack, or a vegetarian 'Shroom Burger—a melty, Muenster-and-cheddar-stuffed fried portobello. The menu also offers chicken, hot dogs, French fries, frozen custard, and—of course—shakes.

Unaffiliated with the fast food chain of the same name, this Southern California landmark sitting on a bluff off of PCH is the perfect spot to get a quick breakfast burrito, tasty Cove burger, fish-and-chips, or a seared ahi sandwich. The menu also includes a vegan Impossible burger, banana date shakes, and root beer floats.

Clubgoers seeking late-night eats can stop looking. Shanghai Mama's is the place to go for inexpensive, satisfying noodle dishes at almost any hour–it's open until 3 am on Fridays and Saturdays. But this is no dive. Appetizers like shrimp tempura and Shanghai ravioli go well with the big bowls of soup or oversized rice or noodle bowls. There are several vegetarian options, and all the noodle and rice bowls can be made vegetarian.

As precious as a jewel box, this red, lacquer-trimmed 80-seat restaurant hidden away in the Peninsula Hotel reveals the hotelier's Asian roots. Come for stylishly presented upscale dim sum, stay for the outdoor terrace that seats up to 70 during warmer months and lets you revel in a relaxing Cantonese and Shanghainese meal four stories above the madding crowds of Michigan Avenue. 

Don't let the name scare you: The namesake shark is meant to be your dinner, prepared any way you like. This off-the-beaten-path place in West Ocean City is worth the trek and takes advantage of every bay view, including from the sweeping rooftop bar. Dishes experiment with unusual flavors like the tuna with wasabi-cream sauce and pineapple meringue. Go for the Eggplant Tower stuffed with layers of shrimp, lump crab, and wild mushrooms with fresh-shaved Parmesan. Entrées are $5 from 3 pm to 5 pm, and a live jazz band plays on Thursday nights.

At this old-fashioned lobster pound beside the water in New Harbor, you can choose from a large menu of coastal classics—shore dinners, fried shellfish dinners, seafood rolls, broiled fish and shellfish, and chowders. There are grilled steaks, too, and you can go all in with a surf-and-turf combo of rib eye and lobster tail. Sit in the upstairs dining room or out on the deck overlooking a true working harbor. The Hardy Boat cruise to Monhegan leaves from the adjacent dock.

Jordan-inspired street food is not easy to find in the Bay Area. The unique Californian catch here is the use of flour tortillas, which are a savvy base for the foot-long, narrow wraps that are pressed on the flat top for an extra level of caramelized delight to each bite (a pita option is also available). It’s irresistible, whether filled with the signature slow-roasted yogurt and spice-marinated chicken shawarma, lamb/beef shawarma, or falafel.

Owner Peter Shelsky pays homage to the traditional Lower East Side deli by stocking the classics—bagels, babka, and the like—but often with a nouveau-Brooklyn twist. Gravlax, Nova, and smoked salmon, for example, share space in the refrigerator with house-cured Jamaican jerk salmon, Mexican achiote salmon, and other deli delectables like pickled herring, whitefish salad, knishes, and prepared salads. You can purchase by the pound or opt for one of the excellent made-to-order sandwiches. For an amusing 1990s fashion flashback, check out Shelsky's bar mitzvah photo album on the ordering counter.

If the name "Sherkaan" sounds familiar from The Jungle Book, the food at this Indian eatery may be less so as the owners have mostly steered clear of the usual office lunch food orders. Instead, they've created what they call bindaas—roughly translated as "the coolest"—which are apps, small plates, and shareables like salmon, chicken, and lamb kebabs that emerge from the tandoor, with larger plates of chicken biryani, curries, and more. Appetizers, or chaat, include filled puri shells and samosas, with street eats, like dosas, noodles, and the "chaat dog," made with veggie kebab, cucumber, pomegranate seeds, and chili garlic chutney on a bun. The bindaas carries over into the atmosphere, which is immediately apparent when you enter an Indian street scene of bicycles, a streetcar, and doors hundreds of years old flanking the room.

A favorite of Boulder's many health-conscious athletes and world travelers, this homey restaurant in a historical house is owned and run by genuine Sherpas, and offers a voluminous menu with Himalayan favorites like curry and tandoori chicken. It oozes mountain culture and has a bar and library, and a chef who has summited Everest 10 times. Owner Pemba Sherpa also offers guiding services in Nepal.

The original 1807 tavern, rustic compared with the elegant dining room, is perhaps the best place around to experience Old Skaneateles—meaning pre-1980, when the village was more of a cozy bedroom community for Syracuse than a vacation destination. Menu favorites include traditional Yankee pot roast and crab cakes with scallop mousse. Seasonal offerings might be seafood bouillabaisse or chicken-and-biscuits. An enclosed porch lined with windows is open in warm weather.

This kappo (cooking and cutting) restaurant in the middle of Downtown is offering up some of the most inventive raw, steamed, grilled, and fried Japanese dishes you’ll ever try. Chef David Schlosser serves you personally from the 400-year-old cypress bar. Order the Japanese sea bream sashimi or the grilled rice balls with pumpkin and ginger. Always ask for what’s off the menu from this Michelin-starred spot—it’ll surprise you.

Proprietor James Shields served the lesser gentry and upper middling ranks of locals and travelers in the 1740s. Today, the largest of the colonial taverns now serves more than just light fare, though soup, salads, wrap sandwiches, and pie are still popular. This tavern closes at 9 pm.

This first U.S. outpost of a popular Tokyo izakaya franchise is on the leafy Park Blocks, steps from several theaters and museums, and offers a reasonably priced, extensive menu, especially during happy hour, which runs a lot longer than in most restaurants in town. Choose a seat in the lively bar area, with both tables and counter seating, or one of the darker booths in the main dining room.

The menu at this Mt. Washington eatery includes chicken and lobster tart, lump crab cakes, apple butter–glazed pork chop, and steaks. There is a deck for outdoor seating (but unfortunately, no citywide view). Valet parking is available on the weekends.

This cozy storefront restaurant is owned by a Culinary Institute alum. The seasonally changing menu might include salmon fillet with fingerling potatoes and citrus-basil glaze, local goat cheese brûlée, or a 12-ounce filet mignon in a black pepper–Chianti reduction. The space—warm and inviting, with exposed-brick walls and dark-wood trim—includes a bar area. The service, friendly and professional, does the food justice.

Located on the ground floor of The Whaler's Inn, Shipwright's Daughter immediately rose to statewide recognition for delicious, tremendously creative fare sourced from local farms and the crisp, clear waters where eastern Long Island Sound meets the Atlantic Ocean. Expect daily specials where the catch of the day was actually just caught, plus pasta, imaginative meat and vegetable dishes, and breakfast daily. Chef David Standridge was recently named Best Chef in the northeast by the prestigious James Beard Awards, so reservations are recommended, although drop-ins may often find comfortable seats at the bar.

Piggin' out since the 1950s, Shiver's BBQ is celebrated near and far for its slowly smoked pork, beef, and chicken. Be forewarned as you settle in at the communal tables; this spot is no place to cut calories. Barbecued cheese fries, potato skins, fried mac and cheese, fried mushrooms, and fried okra are staples for sharing. People rave about the cornbread soufflé. For feasting in the Everglades, you also can order takeout by the pound.

This elegant steak-and-seafood house is in the converted tobacco warehouse district known as the Bluffwalk. With warm exposed brick walls and an urban sensibility, the restaurant offers a wide variety of steaks, chops, and classic seafood dishes. Think traditional, with a variety of cuts and preparations, in addition to seafood standards from surf and turf to shrimp cocktail and lobster bisque.

The oldest remaining saloon in the state—in operation since the 1880s—is a beloved favorite hangout for skiers in winter and bikers in summer. The menu doesn't stray far from beer and burgers, but after a long day of outdoor play, the burgers hit the spot. The exterior looks straight out of a classic Western movie, while inside the rustic accouterments draw the eye to every corner—think dollar bills pinned to the ceiling, comical signs, scruffy old boots, teapots, and rifles. 

This grab-and-go counter service shop offers up sandwiches heaping with meats and cheeses, as well as salads and wraps, soups, and cookies. The house-made chips are the perfect crunchy side. Favorites include the cauliflower Shawarma, Grafton Village grilled cheese, and the spicy Italian. Grab a beverage from the cooler (Mexican Coke, vanilla cream, or a cold brew coffee, to name a few) to wash it all down.

This no-fuss yet continuously fun counter-service spot, opened by longtime wholesale purveyors of Island Creek Oysters (from Duxbury, Massachusetts), serves seriously fresh shellfish and excellent Maine microbrews (and wine) on tap. A clutch of imported, tinned fish and house-made pickled items that pair very well with oysters are also available. If it's sunny, grab a seat on the patio and watch all of Munjoy Hill stroll by.

Dine alfresco on the patio to enjoy locally sourced dishes with a glass of wine or artisanal cocktail at this all day eatery at the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach. The seafood platter with mussels, oysters, poached shrimp, crab meat salad, and cocktail sauce is a favorite. Other dishes include a chopped Cobb salad, seared scallops, and Korean fried chicken tenders.