Bring your appetite, sense of adventure, and an empty stomach to any one (or more, if your travel habits are gastronomically-driven) of these cities over the course of the next few months for an excellent culinary opportunity known as Restaurant Week. For a lower price than usual in many of these markets you can get some of the best food the city has to offer and menus created especially for these promotions. The prices, unless otherwise noted, do not reflect beverages, taxes, and gratuities -- just food. Many of the participating restaurants accept reservations through Open Table (www.opentable.com), a free online service. But if you book directly with the restaurant, it's a good idea that you're reserving in conjunction with restaurant week; most, if not all places create special menus for this event.
Atlanta
Organized by the Central Atlanta Progress and Atlanta Downtown Improvement District, Atlanta's fifth annual restaurant week includes a bit of a twist: no lunch is involved, and you can choose fine dining (what we've listed below) or casual dining. Only some restaurants are making a casual dining menu available, where two people can dine for $26. Atlantans are buzzing about getting their very own B.E.D. (tel. 404/222-7992; https://atl.bedrestaurants.com), the pillow-loving restaurant with locations in Miami and New York. Located in the recently renovated Glenn Hotel downtown, B.E.D. opened in January and features an open-air rooftop bar -- the first of its kind for this city.
Where: Atlanta
What: Downtown Atlanta Restaurant week
When: July 24-30
How Much: $26 three-course, prix fixe dinner
Information: www.atlantadowntown.com/HavingFun_RestaurantWeek.asp
Boston
The sixth summer incarnation of Restaurant Week in Boston is now two weeks instead of one, with more than 100 restaurants signed up. At press time, not all the participating restaurants were announced; listings and menus will be posted on July 13. Past participants include Todd English's rustic Olives, the flagship location of this Iron Chef's seemingly ubiquitous restaurant. This summer, La Morra (tel. 617/739-0007; www.lamorra.com) in Brookline will offer four courses of an Italian meal instead of three, and Chef Jody Adams at Rialto (tel. 617/661-5050; www.rialto-restaurant.com) will serve a potato and faro ravioli with wild mushrooms and Parmesan cheese, and a roasted brine pork loin, among other offerings.
Where: Boston
What: Restaurant Week Boston
When: August 13-18; August 20-25
How Much: 20.06 lunch, $30.06 dinner
Information: www.bostonusa.com
Chicago
The city of big shoulders, as poet Carl Sandburg described it, is running its 26th annual Taste of Chicago in Grand Park. Though it's not a restaurant week per se -- it takes place outside, more than 70 restaurants with 300 menu items will participate. Brought to you by the Mayor's Office of Special Events, entertainment and music (the O'Jays, Macy Gray, city native Liz Phair) and activities are also planned, making the event truly an outdoor festival. Although admission is free, if you want to eat anything -- and with Chicago's finest delicacies on display, you'll need to buy tickets. Do not miss out on a beloved festival tradition: On July 1, Eli's slices a giant cheesecake, with plenty to go around.
Where: Chicago
What: Taste of Chicago
When: June 30-July 9
How Much: Free admission; $7 for 11 tickets redeemable for food and beverages
For more information: www.tasteofchicago.us
Miami
Miami's event is called Miami Spice Restaurant Month, although it is a bit of a misnomer, as the fifth annual celebration runs in August through September. About fifty restaurants will participate, and meals will be available anywhere from 25-65 percent off their regular prices as a result of the promotion. As a corporate sponsor American Express donates some of its proceeds to fight hunger. New this year to the promotion is the buzz-generating Afterglo (tel. 305/695-1717; www.afterglo-restaurant.com), which is all about beauty, and the top-rated Argentine steakhouse Novecento (tel. 305/531-0900; www.novecentomiami.com), which has locations in four other cities.
Where: Miami
What: Miami Spice 2006
When: August-September
How Much: $20.06 lunch, $30.06 dinner
Information: www.miamirestaurantmonth.com
New York City
The 15th annual New York City Restaurant Week is actually not quite a week -- it's more like two -- and it operates Monday-Friday. The sooner you make reservations, the better off you will be. Nearly 200 restaurants from all five boroughs will participate, and new adds include Etcetera Etcetera (tel. 212/399-4141; www.etcrestaurant.com), serving Mediterranean-Italia fare in a sleek, modern environment in, oddly, the theater district. It's worth a reminder that restaurants from some of the country's top chefs are participating, including Charlie Palmer's Aureole (lunch only) and Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill (lunch and dinner). For a spectacular view of Central Park, reserve a table at Asiate (tel. 212/805-8800; www.mandarinoriental.com/hotel/532000039.asp) in the Mandarin Oriental hotel, where chef Noriyuki Sugie prepares inventive French-Japanese cuisine.
Where: New York City
What: Restaurant Week
When: July 10-14; July 17-21
How Much: Prix fixe lunch $24.07, three-course dinner $35
Information: www.nycvisit.com
New Orleans
The cuisine of New Orleans is, if you'll allow me to indulge in the obvious metaphor, a veritable jambalaya of tastes, textures and influences. The second annual COOLinary New Orleans takes place over the course of three months -- last year it spanned just the month of August -- at 33 restaurants whose cuisine spans American to Cajun to Creole to Indian, Italian and Mediterranean. New additions this year to the line-up include Bayona (tel. 504/525-4455; www.bayona.com), run by chef-owner Susan Spicer and known for its international fare, and Café Giovanni (tel. 504/629-2154; www.cafegiovanni.com) offering Italian food and opera singing waiters.
What: COOLinary New Orleans
Where: New Orleans
When: July 1-September 30
How Much: Three-course lunch $20.06 or less; Three-course dinner $30.06 or less
Information: www.coolinaryneworleans.com
Philadelphia
I've long contended that Philadelphia is a great place if you happen to love good food, and a great place if you happen to get sick, as it's chockablock with both award-winning restaurants and hospitals. If you don't believe me, why else would the city export one of its finest, the uber-trendy Asian restaurant Buddakan, to New York City? Unfortunately, it's not participating in the Center City Restaurant Week, but there are plenty of worthy destinations. Some noteworthy new additions include Estia (tel. 215/735-7700; www.estiarestaurant.com), a Greek/Mediterranean establishment that opened earlier this year; a new tapas place called Amada (tel. 215/625-2450; www.amadarestaurant.com), located in Olde City; and Fork, which serves inventive bistro comfort food (tel. 215/625-9425; www.forkrestaurant.com) and happily, offers no fewer than five types of starches on its sides menu. Although you'll have to wait until fall to eat, sample menus are up on the web site now, and some places are already accepting reservations online.
Where: Philadelphia
What: Center City Restaurant Week
When: September 10-15
How Much: $30 for a minimum of three courses; some will serve four or five
Information: www.centercityphila.org/restaurantweek
Toronto
In what's perhaps the goofily named gastronomic celebration among those listed here, Toronto's offering Summerlicious, with 130 restaurants participating and kicking off in conjunction with the city's Celebrate Toronto Street Festival. The site started taking reservations online on June 2; the restaurant listing is particularly helpful for vegetarians, where a carrot indicates suitable cuisine for non-meateaters. A popular brunch spot, Xacutti, (tel. 416/323-3957; www.xacutti.com) serves beautifully prepared Indian fusion food. But if you want the most bang for your buck, head to North 44 (tel. 416/487-4897; www.north44restaurant.com), with an international menu.
Where: Toronto
What: Summerlicious
When: July 7-23
How Much: $15 or $20 lunch; $25 or $35 dinner
Information: www.toronto.ca/special_events/streetfest/summerlicious.htm
Dallas-Ft.Worth
The 8th-annual KLRD Restaurant Week in Dallas-Ft.Worth area is an exercise not only in good tastes but community outreach: $7 per meal will be donated to either the North Texas Food Bank, or if the restaurant is located in Ft. Worth, the Lena Pope Home. Over 90 restaurants will participate and serve three-course meals, and presenting sponsor Central Market offers a certificate redeemable for a fourth course at participating restaurants. In 2005, nearly $350,000 was raised. Reserve early and directly with restaurants, including Stephan Pyles (tel. 214/580-7000; www.stephanpyles.com), a chef has more than done his part to reinvent Southwestern cuisine, or another outpost of the stellar Nobu (tel. 214/252-7000; www.noburestaurants.com), which opened last year.
Where: Dallas-Ft. Worth
What: KRLD Restaurant Week
When: August 14-20
How Much: $35 dinner
Information: www.ntxfoodbank.org
Multi-City Dine Out Program for Charity
Later in the fall, select restaurants in Chicago, San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, and more will help fight childhood hunger in America with the fifth annual San Pellegrino-sponsored a Dine Out program. A dollar from each meal will be donated to the non-profit organization Share our Strength. The list of participating restaurants has not been posted yet, but you can check through the Dine Out website and Open Table for updates.
Where: Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco
What: San Pellegrino Dine Out
When: September 18-22; 25-29
How Much: $20 lunch, $35 dinner
Information: www.usadineout.com/public.aspx
DiRoNA Week, Also for Charity
Across North America, many five-star, fine dining restaurants will take part in Distinguished Restaurants of North America (DiRoNA) Week, the second annual event aimed at ending childhood hunger raising money for the nonprofit organization Share Our Strength. Last year, 100 restaurants took part and donated approximately 10 percent of their profits. Currently, 27 restaurants from Alaska to Florida have signed up, but check the web site frequently because the list will grow as the event approaches. The prices below vary widely because the restaurants are located in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and not every place will make both lunch and dinner seatings available.
Where: Select cities across North America
What: DiRoNA Week
When: August 21-25
How Much: Varies per restaurant; $30-$90
Information: www.dirona.com/dironaweek.html
Talk with fellow Frommer's travelers on our Message Boards.