Just northeast of downtown, chef-owner Fermín Nuñez focuses jointly on Mexico and seafood. From his raw bar, La Seafood Tower is adorned with clams, oysters red-chile marinated shrimp and lobster with drawn butter; it’s served, brilliantly, with tortillas, for $160. The seafood and shellfish selections also extends to fish tacos with masa-battered swordfish, and the popular grilled squid, cut into rings and served on chickpea sesame puree.

Lucky Robot is instantly recognizable for its eclectic decor: faux flowers, Chinese lanterns and disco balls hang from the ceiling. There’s creatively plated, sustainably sourced sushi; Hiramasa Shrimp Battle features tempura shrimp topped with yellowtail, spicy mayo and serranos and lemongrass soy. Chef Jay Huang and his crew serve Tokyo-inspired small plates including karaage chicken, beef skewers and wagyu curry. Along with a fun list of cocktails are whisky flights and sake.

Chef Michael Fojtasek, who also runs Olamaie and Little Ola’s Biscuits, offers shareable appetizers like smoked fish dip served with their signature housemade Ritz crackers that have the flakiness of their namesake snack. For entrees, Maie Day serves up rich 16-oz. steaks and an oversized pork chop that’s too big for a plate. The restaurant also boasts a lively bar with funky cocktails.

At this handsome restaurant with leather booths inside a glass skyscraper, chef-owner Kevin Fink plays with fire. From a 20-foot-long hearth in the open kitchen, he and his team produce surprisingly refined dishes like a smoked crab tart that’s accented with yuzu and nori powder, and entrees such crispy-tender grilled maitake mushroom and a serious 12-oz. Texas ribeye with potato croissant and smoked cheese for $115.

Sammie’s started life as a burger and fried chicken drive-through in the late ’30s. Now it’s an old-school Italian-American restaurant that evokes roughly the same era. In a dining room lined with old family photos, the menu highlights crowd-pleasing dishes like classics like meatballs with whipped ricotta, spaghetti with arrabbiata (the menu notes it “might be too spicy for the NY crowd”), and parmigiana platters from eggplant, to chicken and veal that start at $32.

A back-door entrance leads to this minimalist-styled restaurant. There are a handful of appetizers — chawanmushi with snow crab and a daily changing grilled fish collar with pickled wasabi, a terrific assembly of tempura, from asparagus to shrimp stuffed basil leaves — but sushi dominates the menu. Among the unique nigiri options are cuttlefish with honey miso and pickled shiitake, and scallops with brown butter soy and spicy potatoes, plus all the usual suspects as well as vegetarian options.

Nestled underneath an unassuming apartment complex, this casual spot draws crowds for creative Asian bites. Staying true to its Austin location, this restaurant hosts live music and attracts local celebrities from the city’s mayor Kirk Watson to Elon Musk. On the extensive menu, diners can find pan-Asian dishes like fried tofu with matcha dressing, beef rib pho and fried rice, served in half of a carved-out pineapple.

Tavel Bristol-Joseph runs the show at Canje where the focus is his native Guyana, and the pleasures of Caribbean food and drinks as well. High-energy cocktails include frozen piña coladas with a splash of cold brew and an old fashioned anchored by boar lard-washed rye. On his menu: smoked avocado escabeche, vibrantly spiced jerk chicken and oxtail beef patties.

It’s now standard to see unconventional riffs on Japanese food served at sushi counters, but when Tyson Cole opened Uchi in 2003, it was highly unusual. The menu at the Austin dining room rotates daily but seminal dishes include the hot rock-cooked wagyu with ponzu, and rule-breaking maguro goat, a combo of silky bigeye tuna with goat cheese, and smoked yellowtail with yuca crisps and marcona almonds. Omakase options include a nine-course vegetarian selection and 10-course chef’s tasting.

Within the swanky Commodore Perry estate is this film set of a dining room. Plants cascade from the ceiling and every surface is covered with a tropical print in the Ken Fulk-designed space. The menu feels like a garden party. There’s roasted lettuces with creamy avocado, an epic grand aioli platter replete with vegetable and garlicky dip and market-priced whole roasted black bass with mustard; strawberry soft serve with Texas olive oil tasted like summer.