Alan Wong’s Restaurant
Wong goes all-out in his attempt to give diners an authentic Hawaiian experience, sourcing his ingredients from a long list of island farmers and ranchers. And in true Hawaiian fashion, he mixes and matches culinary cultures—powering his sashimi of farm-raised moi with Japanese myoga, mitsuba, and wasabi oil, for example, and topping his Maui beef with a black bean and foie gras purée. Wong’s new pastry chef, Michelle Karr, does stunning work with chocolate made from Hawaii-grown cacao beans, and the last sips of the evening are of carefully chosen local coffees. 1857 S. King St., Honolulu (808-949-2526)
Blue Hill at Stone Barns
Ensconced on a former Rockefeller estate in the impossibly sylvan rolling countryside about an hour north of New York City, Blue Hill at Stone Barns is as much a classroom as it is a restaurant. Chef and co-owner Dan Barber delights in bounding around the property showing visitors the hogs penned in rotating areas of the woods, explaining the way the sheep and the chickens each perform their function in “rolling pasturage,” or plucking the first squash and tomatoes from their vines. But the proof, as always, is on the plate. And when you taste an egg gathered that morning, perfectly poached, draped with lardo from one of the Stone Barns Center’s own pigs, and perched on a medley of beans and greens grown on the property, you’ll know that this place is not just about theory. It’s about really delicious food. 630 Bedford Rd., Pocantico Hills, NY (914-366-9600)
Chez Panisse
When many of the chefs who worship at the local, seasonal altar were still sitting in their high chairs, Alice Waters was out in the country begging farmers to grow special produce to use in her restaurant. Today, Chez Panisse continues to serve a single, ever-changing prix fixe menu every night that is entirely determined by what is being harvested at this moment. From the start, her menu cautioned, “If available,” reminding patrons of the vagaries of the market. It still does. 1517 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, CA (510-548-5525)
Greens
When Greens opened in 1979, vegetarian restaurants got no respect in America. Greens changed that by proving how sophisticated a meatless meal could be. Connected to the Zen Center and its Green Gulch farms, this bayside restaurant has always seemed geared to the pure of heart. Building A, Fort Mason Center, San Francisco (415-771-6222)
Henrietta’s Table
At Henrietta’s Table, in The Charles Hotel, diners can take home “baseball” cards that bear the likenesses of area farmers. Dishes like soufflé-light Maine rock crab cake and a wedge of iceberg lettuce drizzled with creamy Massachusetts blue cheese dressing reflect chef Peter Davis’s longtime commitment to New England cooking. Whitewashed wooden walls decorated with farm photographs and tools create a countrified retreat in the middle of busy Harvard Square. The Charles Hotel, 1 Bennett St., Cambridge, MA (617-661-5005)
The Herbfarm
A forager’s food fantasy or Disneyesque dinner theater? Step right up, folks, to this fabled country cottage in wine-centric Woodinville, where the evening’s entertainment is orchestrated and narrated by owners Carrie Van Dyck and Ron Zimmerman and produced by chef Jerry Traunfeld and a chorus of culinarians. Their tour begins with a gambol through the herb garden, moves into the doily-dappled dining room, and finishes with nine courses of edible extravagance—with five matched wines plus a vintage sweetie (perhaps a century-old Madeira from a cellar that’s 24,000 bottles strong). Each course is a chapter in a seasonally themed book, built with a bonanza of intensely flavored ingredients: basilwood-smoked mussels, goat-cheese-stuffed morels, Douglas fir sorbet, leek-wrapped Columbia River sturgeon. 14590 N.E. 145th St., Woodinville, WA (425-485-5300)
Higgins Restaurant & Bar
The Northwest is known for salmon, and Higgins definitely has fantastic fish. But this is a place where the porcine overrules the piscine, as is conspicuously evidenced by the house-cured prosciutto that sometimes hangs above the cooks’ heads in the open kitchen. It’s silky and sweet—as complex as anything in Higgins’s vast repertoire of charcuterie, all of it made from locally raised pigs. The porky pleasure reaches its height in February, during choucroute garnie season, when you can get dishes of knockout sauerkraut heaped with a battery of sausages and a smoked pork loin so good it’ll make your head swim. 1239 S.W. Broadway, Portland, OR (503-222-9070)
The Inn at Little Washington
For almost 30 years, The Inn at Little Washington has attracted the best ingredients to its back door: Through the years, The Inn has inspired a web of nearby cottage industries, whose riches chef Patrick O’Connell transforms into creative dishes with traditional American flavors. His lobster with grapefruit, pizza with morels and country ham, and pecan-crusted soft-shelled crabs have become Virginia classics. And the service—there are more employees than guests—is legendary. Middle and Main Sts., Washington, VA (540-675-3800)
Lucia’s Restaurant and Wine Bar
When Lucia’s began promoting local and organic fare 22 years ago, Minnesotans thought it was bold, innovative—and a bit strange. These days, chef-owner Lucia Watson is considered a pioneer, and her empire includes a wine bar and a take-out spot. The menu, which changes weekly, showcases superior ingredients prepared with midwestern restraint. The bison pot roast with spring-garlic mashed potatoes may be the best comfort food in town, and nowhere in the Twin Cities can you get a better a fruit crisp or pie. 1432 W. 31st St., Minneapolis (612-825-1572)
Merriman’s
Twenty years ago, tourists went to Hawaii, loved the beaches, and lamented the food. Peter Merriman was one of the pioneers who changed that. Back then, his restaurant was an oasis of simplicity and sanity on the Big Island. It still is, helmed by a recent transplant from New York City, Neil Murphy. He turns whole lambs from a local rancher into chops and roasts and simply grills fresh Hawaiian fish. Vegetables don’t take a backseat, either—you’ll find ruby-red beets with goat cheese, fresh sautéed spinach, and corn so sweet it’s sometimes served raw. 65-1227 ’Opelo Rd., Waimea, Big Island (808-885-6822)
Savoy
Over nearly two decades, the once-funky Savoy has quietly grown up in scary-turned-chic SoHo. But as the fickle glitterati have begun to spurn the neighborhood for being “so over,” Savoy has only gotten more mature and self-assured. You’ll want to live in the dining room, all warm woods, fireplace, and natural light. Peter Hoffman’s cooking is straightforward, showcasing his farmers, but can still surprise. A bite of black lentils under squares of crisp pork belly may reveal a burst of tarragon, or a dollop of pesto on a fabulous tomato may turn out to be an icy celery granita. And what could be passé about that? 70 Prince St., New York City (212-219-8570)
Zingerman’s Roadhouse
Sprawling and lively, Zingerman’s is a mecca for locally sourced American food. They bake their own breads, cakes, and cookies and produce cream cheese, fresh goat cheese, and gelato. But the nine-page tabloid menu doesn’t stop there—there’s lake perch and walleye caught nearby, and beef brisket smoked out back. “Really good American food has to start with really good American ingredients,” says the menu, and no restaurant is working harder to prove that point. 2501 Jackson Rd., Ann Arbor, MI (734-663-3663)