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Verna's is tried-and-true among locals, who come for the juicy house-made burgers and filling plate lunches; and the price is right with a burger combo that includes fries and a drink. If you're hungry for more, try the traditional Hawaiian plate with either laulau, beef stew, chicken long rice, or lomi lomi salmon (salted salmon "salsa" made with tomatoes and onions). Whatever you choose, you won't leave hungry. Outdoor seating is available.
One of the rare breweries in this corner of the state, this gastropub also stands out for its creative takes on pub favorites, including burgers, pizza, and sandwiches. Located downtown, the interior has a big-city warehouse feel, with large windows, tall ceilings, and exposed pipes. Choose from an array of VBC's craft beers brewed on-site, and even get a growler to go. For the kids, there's a varied children's menu and house-made sodas in several flavors.
In an intimate courtyard hidden at the back of a historic brick house in the heart of downtown Bucksport, this cozy bistro has a lovely outdoor dining space. Mediterranean tapas-style plates are accompanied by good wines and beers.
Located in the newly remodeled Park City Peaks Hotel, Versante has become a favorite among locals. The welcoming, casual atmosphere paired with menu favorites such as flatbread pizzas, hearty pastas, and specialty cocktails is hard to beat. The restaurant opens at 4 pm daily, making it a great option for après-ski. In the warmer months, enjoy a local craft beer on the patio and lawn area outside.
Pick up a sandwich or a hot lunch to-go from this distinctly New Orleans take on a deli, open 24 hours, and a prime refueling point for the late-night bar crawl. If you're really hungry, try the All That Jazz po'boy (ham, turkey, shrimp, and two cheeses with grilled mushrooms and tomatoes).
Potato pierogi and other Eastern European staples like borscht and stuffed cabbage are available from early to late at this East Village stalwart, which opened in 1954; the name means "rainbow" in Ukrainian. The authentic Ukrainian-diner food is the perfect stick-to-your-ribs ending to a night on the town—or beginning to a new day, since there's also a full array of breakfast staples. It's a neighborhood experience, with tables of families sharing space with the hipsters. The spacious, sunny interior, with giant wall paintings to please the eye, is great for people-watching.
This buzzing Italian bistro consistently attracts hordes of South Congress Avenue’s heavy foot traffic, with patrons crowding the narrow, warmly lit bar while waiting for a table in the small, tawny-hued dining room. Noshing on the gratis white-bean puree with basil-infused olive oil makes perusing the menu of delicate handmade pastas, thin wood-fired pizzas, and robust northern Italian–inspired entrées an even greater treat. Chef specials change daily, including soul-warming risottos of the day—perhaps one with braised veal and black truffle oil. Smoky, prosciutto-wrapped prawns never disappoint, nor does the savory veal scalloppine wrapped with sage, prosciutto, and wilted spinach.
Known for its authentic trattoria feel, complete with an aromatic waft of homemade Italian classics upon entering, this is a great dinner destination after a long day spent strolling up and down South Congress. Dive into a bowl of cacio e pepe or nibble a slice of classic margherita pizza studded with garden-fresh basil. The inviting atmosphere will make you want to splurge on an espresso martini or phenomenal homemade desserts, from tiramisu to lemon panna cotta.
Vespertine earned two Michelin stars by providing a disruptive multisensory event and a space-age dining experience that's nothing short of unique. Chef Jordan Kahn—who cut his chops as Thomas Keller's youngest-ever chef at French Laundry while still a teenager—and architect Eric Owen Moss have created a one-of-a-kind, spare, undulating space with a menu that's as artistic as it is delicious. You’ll need to fork over $395 for the tasting menu, and the food and the atmosphere have both been contentious over the years, but think of the expense and experience as an artistic journey into a foodie wonderland.
In a part of town where fast food reigns, Vessel Kitchen has a sustainable and healthy menu without sacrificing the fast-casual environment and reasonable prices. Here, you'll find hearty grain bowls, proteins such as braised beef and pork confit, and seasonal vegetables for sides. The high-quality ingredients are sourced locally from farms and purveyors across Utah.
This energetic downtown restaurant is in the elegant space that once housed Lafayette's oldest bar. You won't find long-time Cajun classic dishes here; instead, creative renditions of local shrimp, oyster, and fish dishes are served side by side with steaks and pork chops served hot out of a large, wood-burning hearth. Save room for dessert: the doughnut bread pudding is the kind of regional-classic-with-a-modern-twist that Vestal is known for.
Inspired by Copenhagen's Vesterbro meatpacking district, this edgy café caters to South Boston's residents on weekdays. Everything is made to order, whether you are looking at a selection of toasts, breakfast sandwiches, salads, or wraps, and there's a selection of fresh pastries to go with tea, coffee, and espresso drinks.
Chef and restaurateur Rich Pèpe heats up the night with this lively trattoria downstairs and swinging rooftop terrace, the Star Bar. Pèpe's elegant take on traditional Italian cuisine yields dishes such as risotto made with local seafood, spicy Calabrian sausage, and lobster reduction sauce, crab ravioli, and velvety limoncello mousse cake.
Lush gardens surround the outdoor terrace at this regional Italian restaurant. Inside, the long bar that dominates a corner of the dining room is a favorite spot with locals. Traditional dishes figure prominently on the menu, which includes pork chops with vinegar and peppers, veal scaloppini with artichoke hearts, and shrimp and lobster served over cappellini.
Philadelphia's foremost practitioner of Italian cooking, Marc Vetri, can still be found at his eponymous ristorante just off Broad Street. In this lovely, sepia-toned town house (the original home of the late Le Bec-Fin) you can expect exquisite but superexpensive custom-built tasting menus (no à la carte) that may involve freshly milled alt-grain pastas, quivering buffalo-milk mozzarella flown in from Campania, and long-standing classics like the golden onion crepe and roasted suckling goat. Don't try to eat here if you haven't made reservations. As an alternative, try booking one of Vetri's popular interactive classes or special dinners in the upstairs dining room.
Philadelphia-based Marc Vetri opened his first Las Vegas restaurant in the space once occupied by Alizé high atop the Palms, a full 56 floors above the Las Vegas action. Decor is simple so as not to compete with the views through the expansive windows, which are incomparable. The cuisine's Italian, but make no mistake: this is no red-sauce joint. Vetri conceived a destination restaurant and filled its menu with sophisticated dishes like brisket and doppio ravioli with pickled red onion. You can trust the chef with a six-course tasting menu. If you just want light bites, cocktails, and a view, Tuesday through Saturday offers a happy hour in the bar area from 5 to 6:30 pm.
The brainchild of chefs Jody Williams and Rita Sodi, who run Buvette and I Sodi, respectively, both just a block away from here, Via Carota feels like the perfect West Village Italian eatery. Situated on charming Grove Street, it offers sidewalk tables (or a welcoming long bar at which to perch) and consistently serves up unpretentious and above-average Italian fare. Sip on a Negroni or a tapped wine, and nibble on luscious pork-stuffed fried olives, 'nduja arancini, or one of the many in-season veggie plates. Winning pasta delights include rib-sticking pappardelle with boar ragù, perfectly executed cacio e pepe, and lemon risotto. Or go gonzo, and opt for the grass-fed steak. The owners also run Bar Pisellino across the street—a nice place to sip a drink and wait for your table.
The family-owned restaurant looks a little rough around the edges outside, but it's what's inside that counts—an accommodating staff, an enormous and authentic Mexican menu, and one of the best-tasting and best-priced house margaritas in town. Entrées are ample and include more than just tired combinations of beef, beans, and cheese. Try the fajitas calabacitas with a yellow- and green-squash succotash, or the delicious chicken delosantos, a cheesy chicken breast and tortilla concoction. You'll wait on weekends, either at the bar or outside, but the experience will be worth it.
If you're longing for a true taste of Italy's Emilia Romagna region and a respite from the overpriced SoBe dining scene, head to this adorable hole-in-the-wall restaurant off Alton Road. The pastas and sauces are made fresh daily, using only the best ingredients imported from the chef's homeland supplemented with local produce.
Loud, mad, bustling, and chaotic, this casual, family-friendly restaurant features authentic, thin-crust, Neapolitan-style pizzas cooked in massive ovens named after Italian volcanoes. Toppings include an array of cheeses, spicy Italian sausage, truffle oil, prosciutto—even melon. Particularly good is the seasonal and very authentic carciofi (artichoke) white pizza. The menu also has a large selection of southern Italian favorites; the tortellini is an outstanding pizza alternative. Adults will appreciate the selection of Italian beer, wine, and cocktails. You're very close to neighboring diners here, so make friends.
Whether you come for the pasta (pappardelle, fettuccini, tagliolini, gnocchi) or the secondi (scalloppine, scampi, pollo, vitello), diners here enjoy authentic Italian cuisine in a setting where you can actually have a conversation. You can also opt for a brick-oven pizza—with usual or unusual toppings—too.
This upscale Southern charmer is one of the finest spots in town for well-executed Southern delicacies like andouille hash and seafood po'boys. The five-story brick building was originally designed by the famous New York architect John Norris as a warehouse in the 19th century and was painstakingly renovated into the elegant space you'll find these days; reserve a window table for great views of the Savannah River. Lunch is popular with local business executives and out-of-towners looking for quick and delicious options. The wine list is nothing short of formidable and suits every palate and price range, and the super-rich praline cheesecake is strongly recommended. Grab a copy of the eatery's cookbook to get more insight about what's going on in the kitchen.
Featuring massive buttermilk biscuits, this brunch favorite is also acclaimed for its Bloody Marys.
For folks watching their wallets, this family-owned, family-friendly diner serves a worthy bang-for-your-buck, all-day breakfast, with nearly everything under $10. Veterans of the restaurant business, Vicki and Ron Beisel received plenty of kudos when they opened their diner in spring 2012. It's for dishes like Belgian waffles topped with strawberries and whipped cream; three-egg omelets made fresh in a sauce pan; and the lunch-menu club sandwich, featuring shaved turkey and ham, generous bacon slices and thick, crunchy lettuce.
In business since the early 1900s and a throwback to the North Beach of old, this bakery has display cases full of Italian pastries (although most hard-core Italian food experts would disapprove of them), traditional holiday cookies, and buttercream-based cakes.
Victrola is one of the most loved of Capitol Hill's many coffeehouses, and it's easy to see why: the sizable space is pleasant and the walls are hung with artwork by local painters and photographers. The coffee is fantastic, the baristas are skillful, and everyone, from soccer moms to indie rockers, is made to feel like this neighborhood spot exists just for them. If 15th Avenue East is too far off the beaten path for you, there are also branches at 310 East Pike Street, between Melrose and Bellevue, as well as in Beacon Hill and Downtown.
In a state sorely lacking in notable Latin restaurants, this airy contemporary space south of downtown stands out for the ambitious modern Mexican cuisine, which depends heavily on locally sourced ingredients, of chef--owner and James Beard award–nominated chef David Vargas. Several kinds of street-food-style tacos are offered, including barbacoa and pork belly, along with a tangy goat cheese version of queso fundido and sous vide short rib with pistachio salsa macha.
The Phanthavong family has long served the soulful cuisine of its native Laos to the West Philly community, starting with a spartan street tent that blossomed into this homey, friendly BYOB restaurant. Don't miss the truly heartwarming Lao soups—the King's soup being a winner—or the house-made pork sausages and yellow curry fried rice. The Laotian scene has increased, especially in South Philly, but Vientiane infuses Thai flavors as well. Still cash-only, they also have a location in Kensington.
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