4 Best Restaurants in Cape Cod, Massachusetts

Northern Italian and Mediterranean cooking distinguish this upscale, popular place. Make sure to come hungry—portions of classic favorites here are huge. Live music adds to the festive vibe on Sunday afternoons year-round. An excellent wine list pairs perfectly with the food.

Once a clam shack, this bistro has found new life and won legions of fans in this seaside town selling just-baked breads and succulent pastries—by early morning (even in off-season) the line snakes into the parking lot. There's outdoor and indoor seating for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; the latter is a three-course prix-fixe meal ($95) that changes with the seasons, featuring locally sourced produce that highlights the finer flavors of this French kitchen. Sunday brunch is also popular.

It's notoriously difficult to snag a table here in the summertime, but it's worth the wait as their wood-fired flatbreads are positively toothsome, made with organic four, local sea salt, and tasty toppings like braised beef short rib, butternut squash, and linguica sourced from a Massachusetts farm. Pasta dishes are a good option, too, and salads are fresh and creative, not an afterthought. Eat here or wrap it up and head to nearby Craigville Beach. Can't wait? They operate a take-out shop, Crisp Too, across the street.

Settle in for a proper afternoon tea, with tiered trays of finger sandwiches and diminutive desserts, at this English-style tea room set in a 1920s vintage carriage house overlooking Shawme Pond. A full tea service is offered all day, along with an à la carte lunch service and Sunday brunch (think lobster eggs Benedict and duck confit hash) and desserts are baked in-house.