NYT The Restaurant List - The 50 Places in America we're most excited about right now.

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After a fitful and often grueling 19 months, the nation’s restaurants are slowly coming back. So are the pleasures of eating out.

But where to start? The Food desk dispatched critics, reporters and editors around the country to find the 50 most vibrant and delicious restaurants in 2021. They’re not ranked, but together they reflect the rich mosaic of American dining — from the melding of Thai curry and Texas brisket in the Pacific Northwest, to heritage crab rice on the South Carolina coast, to vegan soul food in the East Village.

Some are classics, still great after decades. Others are in their prime, restaurants at their practiced peaks. And still others are newcomers, intrepidly making their way through the roughest stretch the restaurant business is likely to endure. All of them beckon us back to the table.

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AlTayeb Restaurant - Dearborn, Mich.

Archipelago - Seattle

Atomix - New York City

Birdie’s - Austin, Texas

Blood Bros. BBQ - Bellaire, Texas

Brigtsen’s - New Orleans

Cadence - New York City

Cane - Washington, D.C.

Chai Pani - Asheville, N.C.

Chapman’s Eat Market - Columbus, Ohio

Comal Heritage Food Incubator - Denver

Communion - Seattle

Cong Tu Bot - Portland, Maine

Coquine - Portland, Ore.

Dhamaka - New York City

Down North Pizza - Philadelphia

Eem - Portland, Ore.

Ernesto’s - New York City

Fish Lonja - San Antonio

Frasca - Boulder, Colo.

Gage & Tollner - New York City

Hannibal’s Soul Kitchen - Charleston, S.C.

Helena’s Hawaiian Food - Honolulu

Itamae - Miami

Jones’ Bar-B-Q Diner - Marianna, Ark.

Kasama - Chicago

Kindred - Davidson, N.C.

Korshak Bagels - Philadelphia

Laser Wolf - Philadelphia

Lengua Madre - New Orleans

Little Fox - St. Louis

Lyla Lila - Atlanta

Mi Tocaya Antojeria - Chicago

Mini Kabob - Glendale, Calif.

Mr. Jiu’s - San Francisco

Nari - San Francisco

n/naka - Los Angeles

Owamni by the Sioux Chef - Minneapolis

Paju - Seattle

Pearl River Deli - Los Angeles

Roots Southern Table - Farmers Branch, Texas

Sofra Bakery and Cafe - Cambridge, Mass.

Sooki & Mimi - Minneapolis

Southern National - Mobile, Ala.

Sylvia’s - Brownsville, Texas

The Anchovy Bar - San Francisco

The Marshall Store - Marshall, Calif.

Thip Khao - Washington, D.C.

Three Sisters - Walland, Tenn.

Tratto - Phoenix