Prince's Hot Chicken - Nashville, TN
She won a James Beard award. She makes Nashville's only truly unique contribution to the culinary world. It's fried in a cast iron skillet made to order, so sometimes you have to wait up to 40 minutes. It's well worth it. And it's HOT. It's a sandwich, which means you get a piece of hot chicken (mild, medium, hot, or extra hot) still on the bone, on a slice of white bread, with pickle on top. The bread catches all the flavor (grease) on the way down. It makes a wonderful dessert.
Restaurant Fernando (Macau)
I wrote about Fernando in my Macau post - so I'll spare the repeat pictures... cash only, Portuguese home cooking. Spectacular. Worth a trip to Macau just for dinner.Kuma's Corner (Chicago, IL)
Best Burger in the world. The first place I know of to start the Pretzel bun trend. Atmosphere is a little weird - they have loud heavy metal playing, morbid artwork, often slasher movies on the tv's - don't ever ask them to put on sports. Waits can be insane, although they recently opened a lincoln park outpost that has shorter lines. For a similar burger, the Lockdown in west town is also good.Blacow's (Tokyo, Japan)
Esquire's pick for best burger in the world. It's really good... but not the best.Pizza Strada (Tokyo, Japan)
Pics in my Tokyo post. Really the best pizza I've ever had. The owner of this Azubujuban pizzeria studied with a master in Naples. His English is very good and he enjoys American visitors. He makes every pizza himself.Franks & Dawgs (Chicago, IL)
With Hot Doug's closing in the near future, I worry this lesser known mecca of gourmet sausage making will become just as crowded. As it stands now, you can usually get service in a reasonable amount of time. The quality of the sausage and creativity of the sandwiches are just as good as its better known competition up north, minus the duck-fat fries which made Doug S. famous during the great foie gras ban in the early 2000s. Rather than a number to identify your table, you get a picture of an infamous disgraced celebrity - former Governor Rod Blagojevic, Donald Trump, Michael Richards, and others.Fifty/50 (Chicago, IL)
My favorite wings in Chicago. Gigantic, breaded, in a very spicy, barbecue-based sauce. 8 is more than enough for a complete meal, and they offer some sides that are actual vegetables to balance your diet a bit.Lao Sze Chuan (Chicago, IL)
So - I've never been to Guandong - but I've eaten some damn good Sichuan food in my day, and Tony Hu's food stands up to all of it. Unapologetically "ma la" - that special kind of numbing spicy that is only found when you mix sichuan peppercorns with dried red chilis - filled with variety, flavor, and love. Tony is the mayor of Chicago's Chinatown, with an empire that includes many great restaurants, but this is the best by far. Don't miss the house special dried chili chicken, mapo dofu, and hot and sour soup.St. Paul Fish Company (Milwaukee Public Market)
Just a counter inside the market - fresh fish, oysters, homemade seafood soups - I've eaten 3 meals there in the same weekend. The prices are great and the food is so good!Bob Chinn's (Wheeling, IL)
Not cheap, but a wonderful value. Non-nonsense, no-pretense fresh fish. Lots of unique preparations of Kona Crab and other shellfish and fishes. Exotics like Australian spiny lobster, occasionally albino snow crab, King crab, and some awesome steaks as well. No reservations, so plan to get there early, or drink a lot of Mai Tais while you wait.
Ippudo Ramen (New York, NY, Tokyo, Hong Kong)
In Chicago, there are very few places to get a good bowl of Ramen. It's not as tough in NYC, however you'll have to wait for it. Ippudo, as a chain, seems to have two levels. The HK locations tend to be of the lower level, but the NYC and Tokyo locations are fantastic. In NY, you'll have to wait. But they take Amex and have more seats than TOTO Ramen, which is in Hell's Kitchen and cash only.Din Tai Fung (Tai Pei, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Arcadia, CA)
Simply the best. Xiao Long Bao at Din Tai Fung are light, strong, and full of flavor. From CA to HK to Tai Pei, to Sydney they are all great. In HK, competitor Crystal Jade has the better La Mein noodles, but the dumplings are much better at Din Tai Fung. I even like them better than Nanjing Dumplings at the Ye Garden in Shanghai.Lotus of Siam (Las Vegas, NV)
One of the most famous off-strip restaurants in Vegas. A tremendous value. James Beard award-winning Thai cuisine from all regions of Thailand. Not shy about the spice, so be conservative when you order.Sala Thai (Detroit, MI)
The menu at Sala Thai is not as extensive as Lotus of Siam, and it has not received nearly as much acclaim, but I think it's just as good or better. They really capture the flavors and spice of all the classic thai dishes.Jim's Steaks (Philadelphia, PA)
Pat's and Geno's get all the press, but Jim's is every bit as good. In fact, they've been busted for selling drugs a few times, and I'm not sure they aren't using some of them to make the steaks so addictive. Forget all the stuff you see on TV. Order with confidence and you can get the steak the way you want it without dirty looks. Wiz is for tourists and suckers. Provolone is the way to go. I like mushrooms sometimes, or a steak hoagie, which has lettuce and tomato.The Redhead Bar (New York, NY)
I found this east village gem by googling "best fried chicken NYC". Not sure if it's the absolute best in such a big city, but it's the best I've had. And they have great beers, and other good southern fare. Friendly staff, but small and no reservations unless you have a very large party. It's worth the wait.Rudy's BBQ (San Antonio, TX)
You need to walk through a gas station to get to the restaurant. You order meats and sides by the pound, and they are served on white butcher paper. There are shelves of white bread to take along with your food. It's really, really good. So, the atmosphere leaves something to be desired, especially in some of the other locations where they try to re-make the gas station vibe.. but the food speaks for itself.Ben's Chili Bowl (Washington, DC)
It's very famous. It's very good. There's Chili everywhere, and it's probably all very good, but Ben's always has a line, and it's worth waiting in it.Pollo Rico (Washington, DC)
Peruvian marinated rotisserie chicken. A large wall of hundreds of spits... Spicy Green Sauce. Plantains and other sides. More food than you can eat for under $20.Portillo's (Chicago, IL)
It's a little commercial compared to some of the other options for Chicago style hot dogs and Italian beef, but it's great.Ono Hawaiian Foods (Honolulu, HA)
"Get the salt-meat watercress, it's the F-ing winner" - told to me by the "beach boys" who teach surfing on Waikiki beach. Ono is a very small, homey storefront with a few tables. And if "haoles" like the food, they get pretty excited. Obv. the Kalua pork is a must. Eat the poi with whatever else you are eating, not on its own or it will seem very bitter. The haupia is fantastic. And the salt meat watercress is really amazing. I've tried to do it at home.. not easy.The Ugly Oyster (Reading, PA)
They pour one of the best pints of Guiness in the USA... wings, cheese steaks, fish and chips, and other bar fare are top notch. And the service is fantastic too.
Patsy's Pizza (New York, NY)
Not related to the famed Patsy's Italian restaurant where Old Blue Eyes was reputedly a regular. Very good coal-fired pizza, and fantastic lunch specials ($10 meatball or chicken parm hoagie with a side salad).
The Nancy Whiskey Pub (New York, NY)
I stumbled into this bar after a dinner at Tribeca Grill. It's my home away from home in NYC. I'm friends with the staff, love the wings, the crowd, the juke box, and especially the bumper shuffleboard table. It's small, and a little dingy.. but they pour a great Guinness.
Union Street (Detroit, MI)
Two words... Rasta Wings. This is a very affordable, creative restaurant on the Wayne State University campus. They have a number of great dishes including balsamic spinach salad with tenderloin of beef, some good fish entrees, pastas, etc... but the rasta wings are the best. They are on-fire hot. They don't come in different levels of heat.. it's take it or leave it. So complex. So tasty. It's hard to describe, but it's wonderfully unique and worth a trip if you're in the area.
Donnely's Shamrock (Peoria, IL)
This place makes truly wonderful wings. They're not for everyone, mostly because they are not a true "Buffalo" style hot wing. They're breaded, and have a sweet and spicy sauce with a bbq base. Friendly service, independently owned... not bad for southern IL.
Arthur's Steakhouse (Peoria, IL)
It's awesome. You cook your own steak. On a giant grill, with lots of texas toast, seasoning, melted butter, etc. at your disposal. Can't complain if it isn't done to your liking... or you can pay an extra $2 and they'll cook it for you, but you still get to select and season your own cut if you like. Sadly, the salad bar is also a little "do it yourself"... it would be nice if they cut things like carrots. It's also the first place I ever had a skillet cookie. They are everywhere now... but I'm pretty sure Arthur's did it first.
St. Paul Fish Company (Milwaukee, WI)
It's a fish store with a service counter in a farmer's market. Nuff said. The oysters are a good price and super fresh. Gumbo, fish and chips, whatever you get you'll be happy. I ate there 3 times in a weekend last time I was in Milwaukee.
Thurman Cafe (Columbus, OH)
After spending 5 of my best years in Columbus, you'd think I'd have more places I really miss. Katzinger's deli is great, despite being not nearly as famous as Zingermann's at that school up north. C-bus was the home of the original Buffalo Wild Wings (when it was still called BW3 or Buffalo Wild Wings and Weck because they served all sandwiches on kimmelweck bread). There are the Cameron Mitchell restaurants (which really took over the city and closed down so many other) and there's Graeter's and Skyline which are both really Cincinnati foods.
And then there is Thurman's - home of the Thurman Burger. A pound and a half or so of meat, grease, and absolute tastiness. I know I said Kuma's is the best burger in the world... this might be number 2.
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