A carpenter as well as a chef, Aldo Vitale crafted this restaurant's intricate woodwork, including the mahogany bar. The menu features seasonal ingredients such as Italian white truffles from Alba. Vitale's home-cured pancetta and soppressata, pickled vegetables and hand-picked herbs lend a personal touch. Diners are welcome to tour the wine cellar and the cheese cave.

A carpenter as well as a chef, Aldo Vitale crafted this restaurant's intricate woodwork, including the mahogany bar. The menu features seasonal ingredients such as Italian white truffles from Alba. Vitale's home-cured pancetta and soppressata, pickled vegetables and hand-picked herbs lend a personal touch. Diners are welcome to tour the wine cellar and the cheese cave.

A curve of stylish wooden booths curls alongside enormous windows in this sleek affair inside the Four Seasons Hotel. The upscale eatery serves sushi, steaks and omakase (chef's selection), with fresh seafood flown in from Tokyo's Tsukiji Fish Market, accompanied by a selection of sake and traditional Japanese desserts.

A curve of stylish wooden booths curls alongside enormous windows in this sleek affair inside the Four Seasons Hotel. The upscale eatery serves sushi, steaks and omakase (chef's selection), with fresh seafood flown in from Tokyo's Tsukiji Fish Market, accompanied by a selection of sake and traditional Japanese desserts.

If you're going to try the local speciality, it makes sense to go where the locals go to eat it. So if steamed crab is in your sights, you'll be in good company here. Fat, spicy crabs are served up to a mixed crowd in a waterfront setting overlooking a busy marina.

If you're going to try the local speciality, it makes sense to go where the locals go to eat it. So if steamed crab is in your sights, you'll be in good company here. Fat, spicy crabs are served up to a mixed crowd in a waterfront setting overlooking a busy marina.

Inventive small plates draw crowds to this laid-back Locust Point eatery. Pull up a stool at the long wooden bar or share a window booth (and food) with friends. Try a pork belly and Granny Smith apple corn dog, slurp duck noodle soup or crunch crispy octopus with chickpea salad.

Inventive small plates draw crowds to this laid-back Locust Point eatery. Pull up a stool at the long wooden bar or share a window booth (and food) with friends. Try a pork belly and Granny Smith apple corn dog, slurp duck noodle soup or crunch crispy octopus with chickpea salad.

Named after celebrity chef John Shields' grandmother, who first introduced him to the delights of cooking, this bistro prides itself on serving the freshest local ingredients - with lobster and crab topping the menu. Try single-fry oysters, dusted in cornmeal, with a tangy sauce. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlook a sculpture garden and, in warmer weather, there's terrace seating.

Named after celebrity chef John Shields' grandmother, who first introduced him to the delights of cooking, this bistro prides itself on serving the freshest local ingredients - with lobster and crab topping the menu. Try single-fry oysters, dusted in cornmeal, with a tangy sauce. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlook a sculpture garden and, in warmer weather, there's terrace seating.

Enduringly popular, this charming bistro adjoins the Charles Theatre, making it a handy pre-show venue. There's certainly a buzz about the place. Arrive with an appetite for the paella, accompanied by a pitcher of sangria. Alternatively, sample and share lamb chops, sausages and veggie dishes.

Enduringly popular, this charming bistro adjoins the Charles Theatre, making it a handy pre-show venue. There's certainly a buzz about the place. Arrive with an appetite for the paella, accompanied by a pitcher of sangria. Alternatively, sample and share lamb chops, sausages and veggie dishes.

A 19th-century Mount Vernon townhouse is the venue for an eclectic café menu. Red velvet drapes and high ceilings frame the banquettes, and the marble columns add a further touch of sophistication. Munch a portobello mushroom and goat cheese panini or fill up on crab cake sliders with a mound of coleslaw and fries. Lunch only.

A 19th-century Mount Vernon townhouse is the venue for an eclectic café menu. Red velvet drapes and high ceilings frame the banquettes, and the marble columns add a further touch of sophistication. Munch a portobello mushroom and goat cheese panini or fill up on crab cake sliders with a mound of coleslaw and fries. Lunch only.

Warm filled buns and pastries are created in every shape and size imaginable at this popular late-night Mount Vernon hangout. Flavours come from around the globe, so you might chomp your way through an empanada, chew on a pork bun or sink your teeth into a cinnamon roll. There's a second shop downtown at 22 Light Street.

Warm filled buns and pastries are created in every shape and size imaginable at this popular late-night Mount Vernon hangout. Flavours come from around the globe, so you might chomp your way through an empanada, chew on a pork bun or sink your teeth into a cinnamon roll. There's a second shop downtown at 22 Light Street.

Skip the paninis and salads and head straight for dessert at this Little Italy pastry institution. From cream puffs slathered with hot fudge to crispy sfogliatelle (pastries filled with baked ricotta and citron), there's plenty to sate any sweet tooth. The cannoli and, of course, gelato, are something to save room for.

Skip the paninis and salads and head straight for dessert at this Little Italy pastry institution. From cream puffs slathered with hot fudge to crispy sfogliatelle (pastries filled with baked ricotta and citron), there's plenty to sate any sweet tooth. The cannoli and, of course, gelato, are something to save room for.