City: Chicago, IL

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (312) 573-4000

Address: 52 W. Elm St.

Description: The Windy City is a long way away from Mississippi, the Carolinas, and Georgia, but that doesn’t stop chef Art Smith from channeling them here at his Gold Coast restaurant. Well known for being the personal chef to Oprah Winfrey, a local favorite of President Obama, and for authoring numerous cookbooks, Smith keeps it low-key at this petite restaurant that looks and feels like a cozy bed-and-breakfast with its glowing tin ceiling and butter-yellow walls. Pre-meal freebies of buttermilk–goat cheese biscuits and deviled eggs start things off on the right foot. Keep that howdy y’all feeling going with fried green tomatoes, cornmeal-crusted catfish, and pecan pie. If reservations are hard to come by, opt for one of the five seats at the bar. Open daily for dinner and a new Sunday Southern brunch.