The stars in our personal charts:
TOP 40 RESTAURANTS IN THE U.S.

A place may be hip, but what's on the plate? These 40 restaurants are the places to invest in serious and breathtaking adventures in food and wine. While we've listed our selections by restaurant, we're highlighting chefs because, to us, food always comes first. Naturally, many good chefs have been omitted, and we apologize for that. Simply put, these are the restaurants that suit our tastes!

Hawaii, Atlanta, New York...
REGIONAL CHEFS

Inspired by an abundance of local produce and driven to serve food brimming with flavor, the following five chefs wave flags for their regions when they sit down to write their menus.

These fab five are taking America by storm:
RISING CHEFS

These five culinary stars-in-the-making have seen their mojo rising in the past few years. Among them, Linton Hopkins has contributed to Atlanta's status as a top dining destination; Eric Klein has revived the Beverly Hills icon, Maple Drive; and Koren Grieveson has taught diners the bliss of a house-made salami.

Sweet dreams are made of these...
PASTRY MASTERS

Gone are the days of the molten center chocolate cake. See what these five can do for your sweet tooth with popcorn, peanut foam or chile gelée. Desserts have never been this creative...

Where are they going, where have they been?
RESTAURANTS TO WATCH

The rarefied world of fine dining experiences the occasional hiccup. This year was no exception, from the culinary tremor in Los Angeles when Alain Giraud exited Bastide to Sirio Maccioni's pronouncement in New York that he would relocate Le Cirque 2000.

La New Cuisine...
EXTREME CUISINE

Here in the states, several young chefs are making noise. Their cuisines are not for the faint of palate, but for those who like to dine on the edge, here's the new culinary vanguard.