In a renovated 19th-century historical setting in Charleston, S.C., playfulness and high refinement coalesce in the imagination of celebrated chef Nate Whiting.

Website: 492king.com
Number of seats: 96, plus 20 more outside
Average per-person check: $50
Popular dishes: Burnt whole wheat tonnarelli pasta with egg yolk, Holy Smoke olive oil and breadcrumbs; day boat scallops with pecans, plums and charred onion; beet tartare served New York deli-style with pastrami spice on rye.
What people come for: Distinctive cocktails with savory flavors, unique craft beers, exhibition kitchen, produce from rooftop garden
Address: 492 King St., Charleston, S.C.
Phone number: 843-203-6338

Beef tartare

Banquet room

In Bethesda, Md., chef Jeff Tunks — chef of Passion Food Hospitality — replicated his beloved seafood spot in Reston, Va., and made it a hit again in a spacious, inviting, dynamic eatery for Bethesda Row.

Website: passionfishbethesda.com
Number of seats: 150, plus 42 at the bar and 30 on the patio
Average per-person check: $40
Popular dishes: Passionfish roll with salmon, tuna, shrimp, hamachi, masago roe and mustard soy dressing; red snapper Veracruzano with sofrito vegetables, manzanilla olives, capers and pickled jalapeños; red Thai curry lobster “claypot” with golden pineapple, jasmine rice and kaffir lime.
What people come for: Sushi at lunch, eclectic selection of old- and new-world wines
Address: 7187 Woodmont Ave., Bethesda, Md.
Phone number: 301-358-6116

Red Snapper Veracruzzano

A view of the dining room

A repurposed 19th-century Creole townhouse provides the setting for this smart, stylish throwback to times when New Orleans was establishing itself as a teeming port city.

Website: balisenola.com
Number of seats: 130
Average per-person check: $40
Popular dishes: Baked rigatoni with beef cheek ragout and Fontina Fontal cheese; braised lamb with oyster mushrooms, pistachios, kale, acorn squash, white beans, rosemary and juniper jus; beef tartare with pumpernickel, horseradish, buttermilk and dill.
What people come for: Pre-prohibition cocktails, wines from boutique producers
Address: 640 Carondelet St., New Orleans
Phone number: 504-459-4449

Chicken wings with fried peanuts

A cocktail at Balise

Stationed in Charlotte, N.C.’s Le Meridien hotel, this sleek, distinctively designed eatery proffers an idea for a sort of steakhouse of the future.

Website: evokerestaurant.com
Number of seats: 90, plus 18 in private dining room
Average per-person check: $48
Popular dishes: Yellowfin tuna crudo with daikon miso aïoli, quail egg and unagi sauce; gnocchi with smoked pancetta, jumbo lump crab and bottarga; cowboy rib eye steak.
What people come for: Boutique small-batch whiskeys, extensive wine list
Address: 555 South McDowell St., Charlotte, N.C.
Phone number: 980-237-5354

Yellowfin tuna

A view of the interior

Northern New Mexican cuisine, including the less-than-totally-urbane Frito pie, gets reimagined and recalibrated in an upscale fashion at chef John Rivera Sedlar’s distinguished addition to the dining scene in Santa Fe.

Website: eloisarestaurant.com
Number of seats: 80, plus 40 on the patio
Average per-person check: $60
Popular dishes: Pastrami tacos with sauerkraut, pickled Serrano peppers and ballpark mustard in crisp blue corn tortillas; dayboat scallops wrapped in shoestring potatoes and served with diced cactus, curried salsa verde and oven-dried lime; Carne Adobada: Sous-vide kurobuta pork chop, chimayo chiles, frijoles blancos and quelites.
What people come for: Craft cocktails, Spanish-influenced wine list.
Address: 228 East Palace Ave., Santa Fe, N.M.
Phone number: 505-983-0883

A taco dish

A view of the bar

This St. Louis eatery identifies as 'an American kitchen' and makes a point of it with intensely sourced, creatively prepared farm-to-table fare.

Website: jmcarthurs.com
Number of seats: 45, plus 50 on the patio
Average per-person check: $53
Popular dishes: Cast-iron skillet seared diver scallops with Todd Geisert farms corn, English peas, confit Thies Family Farm potatoes, smoked corn bisque and Claverach Farms pea shoot pesto; Thies Family farm beet salad, goat cheese, fennel, orange vinaigrette, bacon and pea shoots; Pastry Chef Jorden’s Beignets with strawberry jam, blueberry marmalade and powdered sugar.
What people come for: New menu items weekly, special wine dinners
Address: 3500 Watson Road, St. Louis
Phone number: 314-353-9463

Beet salad

A scallop dish

This imaginative and artful bistro in a suburb of Buffalo, N.Y., summons the competing spirits of a country farmhouse and a Brooklyn boîte with its smartly sourced seasonal food and discerning elixirs.

Website: blackironbystro.com
Number of seats: 50
Average per-person check: $25
Popular dishes: Cider-brined pork belly & scallops with sticky black rice, sweet pea purée and local greens; jerk shrimp nachos with Krista's "jerkalicious" Jamaican jerk marinade, smoked shrimp, warm black bean con queso, lime sour cream and pickled vegetables over warm, crisp corn tortillas; ahi poke:
sushi grade yellowfin tuna marinated in sesame oil, soy, grated ginger, toasted sesame seeds, sliced red onion and scallions, sticky rice and ginger pickled bean sprouts.
What people come for: Open kitchen view, craft cocktails, craft beer, barrel-aged sodas
Address: 3648 South Park Ave., Blasdell, N.Y.
Phone number: 716-240-9830

Cooking in the open kitchen

A view of the interior

In the small town of Warren, near Providence, R.I., Bywater mixes bounties from the sea, as it’s near a working waterfront, and hearty American cuisine crafted by a refined aesthetic sense.

Website: bywaterrestaurant.com
Number of seats: 32
Average per-person check: $38
Popular dishes: Low country pickled shrimp; beef tartare served Pittsburgh rare (charred on the outside and raw on the inside) with pepper vinegar and egg yolk; shellfish panzanella with lobster & littleneck clams over cornbread with house sausage, tomato and leeks.
What people come for: Craft cocktails, discerning list of smaller-producer and low-intervention wines, and $1 oysters every Monday.
Address: 54 State St., Warren, R.I.
Phone number: 401-694-0727

Bread at Bywater

A cocktail at Bywater

A wood-fired grill is the star at this hearty, elemental home in Burlington, Vt., for meat and flame as well as other offerings with a farmhouse sort of vibe.

Website: guildtavern.com
Number of seats: 200
Average per-person check: $35
Popular dishes: Wood-grilled rib eye for two with choice of side; fennel & farm beets with house ricotta, candied hazelnuts and fig vinegar; rock crab gratin with red hen crostini.
What people come for: Craft cocktails, wood grill, and Northeastern oysters.
Address: 1633 Williston Rd., South Burlington, Vt.
Phone number: 802-497-1207

Assorted dishes

A view of the bar

This rustic trattoria in Cincinnati is the latest move by chef David Falk of the Boca Restaurant Group, who does Italian otherwise at the beloved Boca, as well as Mexican at the equally celebrated Nada.

Website: sottocincinnati.com
Number of seats: 165
Average per-person check: $30
Popular dishes: Oil-packed tuna bruschetta with hard egg, chile oil and caper aïoli; grilled octopus with white bean, shishito ragù and breadcrumbs; short rib cappellacci with shallot, Amish butter and thyme; ricotta donuts with three sauces.
What people come for: All-Italian wine list, pastries and gelato
Address: 118 E. 6th St., Cincinnati
Phone number: 513-977-6886

Short rib cappellacci

An exterior facade