4 Best Restaurants in Cape Cod, Massachusetts

More than 1,000 oysters are eaten here on an average summer weekend, a good deal of them procured near daily from the restaurant's own oyster farm in nearby Barnstable. You'll always find close to two dozen raw and "dressed" oyster dishes; there's also a nice range of nonoyster entrées, salads, and appetizers.

Fanciful cocktails, an intriguing menu, live music, and daily blackboard specials make this a popular Chatham spot. There's also a changing tapas menu for quick bites at the bar.

This always-hopping downtown spot serves commendable dinner fare and draws big crowds for cocktails and appetizers. The bar is long and comfortable, and is a good spot to dine if there are no tables available.

The food and the interior share a penchant for unusual, striking juxtapositions—a classical sculpture in front of an abstract canvas, for instance, or an artful plate of boneless chicken and scallops in Thai peanut sauce arrayed on a bed of lo mein noodles. The art collection on display here is significant, and includes many noted Provincetown artists; the late Napi Van Dereck and his wife Helen collected gems for many, many years.