9221 Best Restaurants in USA

Excellent, authentic Vietnamese food is served up in this compact, modern, bamboo-accented restaurant (once inside, it's easy to ignore the fact that it's within one of Albuquerque's ubiquitous strip malls). Consider the popular pho variations, order the tofu (or chicken or shrimp) spring rolls with tangy peanut sauce, dig into the spicy lemongrass with chicken, and all will be well.

A wall of windows provides stunning views of the Great South Bay at this restaurant known for its seasonal, seafood-focused menu and raw bar. Modern small-plate dishes such as Peking duck tacos join traditional favorites like filet mignon and Mantattan clam chowder, and the menus are designed to appeal to a variety of personal tastes and budgets. Sushi (available weekends) has made a splash, and The View has become a favorite Sunday brunch spot. In warm weather patio dining is available, and the happy hour and party crowds swell on weekends, with live bands to entertain them on Saturday. The restaurant is 3½ miles west of Sayville. To be sure of eating here on a weekend, reservations are advisable.

Nestled inside the Mirror Lake Inn, the View warms you instantly with its mahogany paneling and views of Mirror Lake and the mountains and a seasonal menu that leans contemporary and sounds elegant. For example, you might dine on venison loin encrusted with pepper and coffee and served with foie gras and a black-currant reduction.

Connected to the View Hotel through a second-floor breezeway, this airy space comprises a few high-ceilinged rooms with massive plate-glass windows framing mesmerizing views of the valley—in warm weather you can dine outside on a terrace, awed by the same panorama. Navajo rugs and local art hang on the walls above the light-wood tables and chairs, and the tribal visitor center's extensive curio shop is attached. The food has continued to improve over the years as more-experienced chefs have come aboard, adding fresh, local ingredients, Navajo influences, and an artful flourish to typically Southwestern fare (although meals can still be hit-or-miss). Consider green chile stew, burgers, fried chicken, and the like. There's also a smaller self-serve section, where you can grab sandwiches and light snacks.

Note that after 7 pm the restaurant is open to hotel guests only.

Tucked away at the Kona Country Club at the far end of Alii Drive, this hideaway is the place to go for happy hour, appetizers, and ocean breezes. Oh, and did we mention the view? It has a large, open-deck lanai, a kamaaina (old-time) vibe, and decidedly nonfancy decor. While the mains are a bit overpriced, it's a great place to relax, order an appetizer, and maybe talk story with local residents, or perhaps discuss the day's best golf shots.

As its name suggests, it's all about the views of Pikes Peak, which can be appreciated from the floor-to-ceiling windows in the second-story dining room, the rooftop, or the courtyard, where you can play volleyball, bocce, horseshoes, and cornhole. Several bars offer excellent craft beer options that complement the menu's varied offerings. Sushi, sandwiches, tacos, bowls, burgers, and pizza cater to all interests with seasonal changes inspired by the kitchen. Try the Thai peanut chicken bowl or blue-crab enchiladas, and don't forget a Nutella pizza for dessert. 

Views of the legendary Puu Pehe rock and occasional glimpses of frolicking dolphins only enhance the imaginative lunch fare at this open-air golf-club restaurant. Tuck into a Hulopoe Bay prawn BLT, crispy fish-and-chips with Meyer lemon tartar sauce, or any of the tempting salad options.

Restaurateur Roberto Vigilucci's fell in love with San Diego in the '80s and decided to bring Milan to North County with three eateries that are fine-dining experiences without the stuffiness. While each has its own character, Vigilucci's on historic State Street has an authenticity that’s hard to beat, right down to its street-side patio, bustling servers with thick Italian accents, and wine list that will leave you appreciating la bella vita. Roasted artichokes are blanketed in melted mozzarella, and paper-thin carpaccio is topped with a mound of peppery arugula. Edible orchids adorn entrées like the pan-seared scallops in truffle and brandy cream sauce, and fresh ravioli pocketed with homemade ricotta and spinach. Pace yourself for the crème brûlée with vanilla custard and a burnt sugar crust.

Don your Scandinavian sweater for a brisk sleigh ride (pulled by a snowcat rather than reindeer) through wintery pines up to this Nordic hut, built in a mountainous enclave in Park City Mountain Resort. After a hot cup of glogg, tuck into a European-style feast, featuring six hearty courses that might feature braised short ribs, lobster soup, and a traditional cheese course. Warmed by a wood-burning stove and the soft light of solar-powered lanterns, you may find yourself raising a pewter goblet to toast your fellow diners and the pianist.

The Chopra family has been selling excellent chaat (Indian street food snacks) to East Bay diners since 1989. It's part market, part bustling fast-casual restaurant with more substantial meat dishes and daily specials, dosas, and the staple homemade chaat that tend to be crunchy and/or fried (like samosas or puffed puri shells filled with mint water). It's quite a scene—the restaurant estimates that it serves 2,000 meals a day.

It's all about family at Villa Romana, where owners Rinaldo and Franca come in early to make the gnocchi and stick around to greet customers. It's hard to resist filling up on the stracciatella (Italian egg-drop) soup, bruschetta, salad, and rolls (perhaps the best on the Strand) that accompany every meal, but try.

At this little eatery that brings a whole new meaning to gourmet hamburgers, locally raised, grass-fed, hormone-free beef is ground fresh, hand-shaped daily on-site, and grilled to perfection right before your eyes. Top your burger (be it ahi, veal, Kahua Ranch Wagyu beef, Hamakua mushroom, or Waipio taro) with everything from local avocados, baby greens, and chipotle goat cheese to tomato marmalade.

This emporium of Vermont edibles has great sandwiches, cheeses, local beers, and delicious baked goods—perfect for a picnic or for lunch on the go.

A colorful, eclectic, all-day breakfast spot, this café fits in well with quaint, artsy Egg Harbor. Orders are served on Fiestaware plates and bowls. Art on the walls (and for sale) is just as much a morning pick-me-up as the bold coffee. Dishes straddle Midwestern and global influences, such as spicy, Bahamian-style whitefish chowder or French toast stuffed with cheeses and apricot preserves before rolled in granola. If you fall in love with the food, stop by the in-house store. Jars of cherry jam and a signature spice used on french fries are among the culinary finds.

This popular restaurant with pomegranate-color walls and high ceilings has the fillets and pastas, but the reason many locals come is for the herb rotisserie chicken. The beef for the burgers is ground on the spot, and salads consist of locally grown organic vegetables.

If a burger joint is what you've been missing, head to this bustling eatery that serves veggie, salmon, and a few other burger varieties in addition to the usual beef patties. Order at the counter, then take your tray out to the deck, and enjoy your meal under the trees.

Locals craving a Spanish omelet, baked ziti, and other comfort food head for this downtown diner just off Interstate 90. Everything is made from scratch, and seasonal decorations brighten the decor.

Beloved among visitors and locals alike, this storefront eatery in a redbrick town house serves tasty, unfussy food—inexpensive pub grub in one room, updated contemporary American cuisine in the other. Whether you order a cheeseburger or horseradish-and-Parmesan-crusted salmon, you're bound to be pleased.

This bigger-on-the-inside café and lunch joint comes with ample space, especially in the barn-chic back room that serves resting travelers, gaming locals, and conferring coworkers. Keeping them oiled is a menu of organic, non-GMO, locally sourced sandwiches, burgers, soups, and salads.

Locals flock to "the Smithy" for such beloved breakfast items (served daily from 7 am until 2 pm) as scrambles or traditional bacon and eggs. Vegetarians are taken care of with a tasty tofu scramble, fresh spinach and wild mushroom omelets, and deep-fried French toast. Wooden tables are packed into every nook and cranny of this brick building that was once a blacksmith shop.

Head to this North Shore winery and bistro for wine tasting and dining on the terrace overlooking the Spaders Bay section of Lake Chelan. The lunch and dinner menus feature herbs and produce grown in Vin du Lac's own gardens, as well as meats, cheeses, and seafood sourced regionally as much as possible. Southern French and Northern Italian fare stars at this romantic, wine-focused restaurant where the menu changes quarterly to feature what's in season. Families are welcome, and you can even bring your pooch while you dine on the terrace.

Good vino is not hard to find at Vin48, a casual, upscale wine bar in Avon. Enjoying the benefits of Vin48's Enomatic preservation system, you can explore wines by the glass or half glass (with help from an on-staff sommelier) as you go. Choose from a selection of small plates, or sink your teeth into heartier fare that complements the wine. A wall of glass doors folds open in the summer for fresh air, and young and old wine enthusiasts can savor their pours on the outdoor patio.

Palo Alto is filled with Italian restaurants, but the best in town resides in Leland Stanford’s old brick barn (where Stanford's own wines were briefly produced), on the edge of campus. Homemade pastas are served with an idyllic toothsome al dente texture. Not to be outdone, the puffy Neapolitan pizzas are equally notable and any mozzarella starter is worth an order. Since it’s removed from the slightly congested downtown, the restaurant has plenty of outdoor space in a charming courtyard. The bar is a popular post-work hangout for the nearby medical center and stirs one of the finest Negronis around.

Salads are the thing at Vinaigrette, just as they are at owner Erin Wade's popular original outpost in Santa Fe. Fresh, local greens are featured, but heartier add-ons (from seared tuna and panko-crusted goat cheese to hibiscus-cured duck confit and flank steak) will satisfy the hungriest in your party. Soups and a sweet range of desserts, as well as a brief but well-selected wine list, round out the menu. The industrial-style ceiling lends an airy feel—the place brims with natural light—but the unmuffled acoustics that result can make conversation a challenge.

A refreshing alternative to the many Santa Fe restaurants that favor filling (and often fattening) dishes, Vinaigrette is all about the greens. This isn't mere rabbit food, however—the hearty salads make a satisfying meal, especially when you add toppings like grilled flank steak, lemon-herb chicken breast, or griddled tofu. The apple-cheddar chop and classic French frisée salads are among the highlights. There are also fresh, house-made soups and sandwiches, and you can eat on the pleasant patio in the summer. For such a casual space, Vinaigrette is notably spendy, but devotees feel the high-quality ingredients are worth it. There are sister restaurants in Albuquerque and Austin, Texas, and the owners also run Modern General, an adjacent, hipster-approved lifestyle shop and café.

Proprietor Yvette Leeper-Bueno offers a thoughtful menu of Spanish- and Italian-influenced seasonal dishes, along with a welcoming atmosphere and sustainable design. The Mediterranean-focused wine list contains some unique finds and is accessibly priced but carefully curated, complimenting menu highlights including black spaghetti with octopus and scallops, grilled lamb chops with romesco, and spinach-stuffed branzino.

Chef Vincent Guerithault is best known for creating French food with a Southwestern touch. The menu changes daily, and it's all delicious. You can make a meal of his famous appetizers, such as corn ravioli with white-truffle oil or macadamia-crusted scallops with basil beurre blanc. The dessert menu overflows with intoxicating soufflés. The multiroom interior is intimate and elegant, but the service can be gruff. The attached bistro serves dinner, Wednesday through Saturday. 

Husband-and-wife team Terry and Lisa Harwood create casual but sophisticated dishes, and their staff provides exceptional service. Diners can savor daily specials and staples such as steak frites, miso-glazed salmon, and Montauk black bass. Simple yet elegant, the interior features pale walls, exposed beams, white tablecloths, and light streaming in through the large windows. In warm weather you can dine alfresco under tiki lights.

A wide, redbrick accent wall helps give this long-running neighborhood café its cozy Brooklyn feel, which serves quick lattes, muffins, and scones at the front counter. However, if you've got a little more time on your hands, head to the back room, beyond all the images of pineapples, where they serve brunch fare: breakfast sandwiches, paninis, soups, and salads. Wine and cocktails are also available, which continue after 4 pm, when heartier dinner fare is served.