Food and Drink Restaurants These Are the 50 Best Southern Restaurants in the U.S., According to OpenTable By Andrea Romano Andrea Romano Twitter Website Andrea Romano is a writer and editor in New York City. For the last eight years, she has been a lifestyle journalist for Mashable, Brit+Co, Reviewed, Bustle, and Travel + Leisure. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines Published on July 31, 2018 Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Scott Martin Southerners know what to serve to comfort and satisfy your cravings. Fried chicken, crab cakes, and shrimp and grits are the kinds of food that do much more than just solve hunger. And according to a new ranking, you don’t always have to go directly to the South to get the best Southern food. OpenTable on Tuesday released its list of the 50 Best Southern Restaurants in America for 2018. The reservation platform determined the list based on diner reviews for more than 27,000 restaurants in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. All restaurants in the “Southern” cuisine category with a minimum “overall” score and number of qualifying reviews were included for consideration. Qualifying restaurants were then scored and sorted according to their overall food rating. The top 50 restaurants — listed alphabetically below — can be found in 14 states and Washington D.C. Courtesy of Mr. B's Bistro Louisiana tops the list with the most restaurants. Texas and North Carolina came in second, followed by Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, and Georgia which all tied for third. While Southern states claim the most restaurants on the list, you can also find some of the top-ranked establishments in states like New York, Philadelphia, and Illinois. 50 Best Southern Restaurants in the U.S. Abel Brown – Augusta, Georgia Acadiana – Washington, D.C. Acre – Auburn, Alabama Alligator Soul – Savannah, Georgia Anson – Charleston, South Carolina Antebellum – Flowery Branch, Georgia Atchafalaya Restaurant – New Orleans, Louisiana The Boil Waverly – New York, New York Boucherie – New Orleans, Louisiana Brennan’s of Houston – Houston, Texas Cafe Dupont – Birmingham, Alabama Carrollton Market – New Orleans, Louisiana Circa 1886 – Charleston, South Carolina Cured – San Antonio, Texas Cypress Restaurant – Tallahassee, Florida Distilled at The Sire Hotel – Lexington, Kentucky Dogwood Southern Table & Bar – Charlotte, North Carolina Fixe – Austin, Texas High Street Caffe & Vudu Lounge – West Chester, Pennsylvania Highball & Harvest – Orlando, Florida Highlands Bar & Grill – Birmingham, Alabama Hot and Hot Fish Club – Birmingham, Alabama Ida Claire – Addison, Texas Kitchen Notes – Omni Nashville – Nashville, Tennessee The King’s Kitchen – Charlotte, North Carolina Langdon’s Restaurant – Mount Pleasant, South Carolina Madison’s – Highlands, North Carolina Mandolin – Raleigh, North Carolina Maple Tree Inn – Blue Island, Illinois Merrick Inn – Lexington, Kentucky Midtown Cafe – Nashville, Tennessee Mozelle’s Fresh Southern Bistro – Winston-Salem, North Carolina Mr. B’s Bistro – New Orleans, Louisiana Muriel’s Jackson Square – New Orleans, Louisiana The Olde Pink House Restaurant – Savannah, Georgia Preserved Restaurant – St. Augustine, Florida Rapscallion – Dallas, Texas Restaurant IRON – Pensacola, Florida Restaurant R’evolution – New Orleans, Louisiana Restaurant Rebirth – New Orleans, Louisiana Root & Bone – New York, New York RT’s Restaurant – Alexandria, Virginia Rx Restaurant – Wilmington, North Carolina South City Kitchen – Multiple locations State of Grace – Houston, Texas Stella’s Bistro – Simpsonville, South Carolina Toutant – Buffalo, New York Urban Grub – Nashville, Tennessee Willa Jean – New Orleans, Louisiana Yardbird Southern Table & Bar – Multiple locations Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit