Whether you prefer to visit iconic restaurants that serve the classic shore food or check out one of the newer, hipper additions to the restaurant scene, each part of Cape Cod has its own take on local flavor. We’ve created a dining itinerary for each region with our best sampling of must-try dishes.

Upper Cape
Start the day at the award-winning Café Chew in Sandwich, where they specialize in whole and organic foods. Indulge in a healthy gourmet breakfast with such menu items as Pain D ’Avignon brioche French toast, multigrain pancakes topped with Greek yogurt, or one of the many egg dishes made from cage-free eggs.  (4 Merchant's Square Road, Sandwich)

For a classic fried seafood lunch, head to Cooke’s Seafood in Mashpee. A Cape Cod mainstay since 1977, Cooke’s menu includes day boat scallops, local sole, whole belly clams, and Point Judith, RI, calamari, along with broiled platters and excellent burgers. (7 Ryan’s Way, Mashpee)

Anejo Mexican Bistro & Tequila Bar offers a unique take on fresh, authentic Mexican cuisine. Start your dinner with an order of tableside crafted guacamole and one of their specialty margaritas, prepared with organic cane sugar and fresh lime juice. Then sample one of their yummy house specialties, including pork carnitas, carne asada and pescado encornflecado.  (188 Main Street, Falmouth)

For dessert, head down the road to Cupcake Charlie’s, where the cupcakes are so good the owners competed on the Food Network’s “Cupcake Wars.” Their bakery case is filled with artfully decorated cupcakes baked fresh every day, with such tempting flavors as Oreo Delight and Peanut Butter Pleasure. (153 Main Street, Falmouth),

Mid-Cape
Begin your Mid-Cape culinary tour at Box Lunch in Hyannis. Here at the home of the classic “Rollwich,” every sandwich is made to order, so concoct your own delicious combination of flavors. (357 Main Street, Hyannis)  Another option is the Hearth n’ Kettle Restaurant (1225 Iyannough Road/Route 132, Hyannis), where you can feast on such hearty menu selections as the Meat Lovers Potato Frittata and the Florentine Skillet.

After a morning spent shopping on Main Street in Hyannis, head over to the nearby Black Cat Tavern for a waterfront lunch. Watch the boats sail in and out of Hyannis Harbor while dining on one of their seafood specialties like angel hair pasta with white clam sauce or jerk haddock with scallion rice and mango salsa.  (165 Ocean St, Hyannis)

Cape Cod Creamery in South Yarmouth is the perfect stop for a mid-day treat. Order one of their more than 65 flavors of homemade ice cream named for local icons and places, like Nauset Peach, Patti Page Peppermint and Sandy Neck Snickers. Enjoy your ice cream on the old- fashioned front porch or on one of the Adirondack chairs out front.  (1199 Route 28, South Yarmouth)

For dinner, head to the Ebb Tide Restaurant, in Dennisport. The family-run business since 1959 has been a beloved favorite for generations.  Offering traditional New England cuisine in elegant surroundings, house specialties include swordfish topped with lobster, asparagus and béarnaise sauce, scallops Nantucket and the Ebb Tide’s baked lobster pie.  (94 Chase Ave, Dennis Port)

Lower Cape
No matter what you order for breakfast at Bonatt’s Bakery in Harwich Port, you simply must try their famous Melt-A-Ways. A staple on the menu since the 1930s, the flaky, twisted horseshoe-shaped pastry marries the airiness of a croissant with the sweet, crunchy streusel topping of a Danish for a melt-in-your-mouth burst of ambrosia.  (537 Route 28, Harwich Port)

It’s hard to find a better location for lunch on the lower Cape than the Outer Bar & Grille at the Wequassett Resort & Golf Club in Harwich.  Dine in an open-air setting on their spacious deck overlooking Pleasant Bay and enjoy fresh oysters plucked from the very water you are viewing.  Other wonderful lunch choices include a N. E. Family Farms cheeseburger, fish tacos or a crisp, Asian-inspired scallop roll.  (2173 Route 28, Harwich)

For 45 years, the family-owned Lobster Claw in Orleans has been serving up fresh seafood in a fun, nautical atmosphere. As their name implies, lobster figures prominently on the menu with boiled lobster, baked stuff lobster, lobster Newburg and deep-fried lobster as popular choices.  (42 Cranberry Highway, Orleans)

Orleans is full of iconic restaurants, with the Land Ho! topping the list. Long known as a place where you can rub shoulders with local color, the rustic restaurant and bar is the perfect lively spot for an after-dinner drink. As you sip your favorite beverage, be sure to enjoy the vintage signs and license plates hanging above you.  (38 Main Street, Orleans)

Outer Cape
Working your way down to the Outer Cape, a stop for breakfast at The Fairway Restaurant & Pizzeria in North Eastham is a hearty affair, sure to fill your belly before a day at one of the Cape Cod National Seashore’s stunning beaches. Menu items include traditional favorites like homemade biscuits, sausage gravy, potato pancakes and six different styles of eggs benedict.  (4295 State Highway North Eastham)

After such a filling breakfast, lunch can be a lighter affair at Mac’s on the Pier in Wellfleet. A bowl of steamers served with broth and drawn butter is a perfect lunch as you gaze at the boats in Wellfleet Harbor. Other fine choices are Maki sushi rolls, scallop burritos or grilled tuna with wasabi and summer vegetables.  (Wellfleet Town Pier, Wellfleet)

After a healthy lunch, there’s no excuse not to indulge at Chequessett Chocolate in North Truro. They make small-batch, handcrafted chocolate confections using sustainably grown cacao beans. It doesn’t get much better than that for chocolate lovers!  (8 Highland Rd, North Truro)

Save room for dinner at Napi’s in Provincetown, where you can dine surrounded by antique stained glass, carousel horses and the original works of local artists (a nod to Provincetown’s history as a famous art colony). Local celebrity, Chef Napi, and his, wife, Helen offer a diversified menu of their favorite dishes from around the world—everything from Jamaican Jerk Chicken and Thai Chicken & Shrimp to Crisp Duckling served in a brandied Santa Clara Beach plum sauce.  (7 Freeman Street, Provincetown)

Literal Edible Journeys
Rather than dining on the waterfront, Lobster Roll Cruises out of Sesuit Harbor in Dennis allows for dining right out on the water. The cruises operate three times a day, so you can have lunch, an early dinner or a sunset dinner as you journey around Cape Cod Bay. Their specialty? Lobster rolls, of course!  (357 Sesuit Neck Road, East Dennis)

For a moving feast on land, Cape Cod Central Railroad offers lunch and dinner train rides with gourmet fare, and a Sunday brunch train experience that is sure to become a happy vacation memory. Enjoy a soothing culinary experience, complete with romantic music, soft candlelight and scenic views of sand dunes and salt marshes.  (252 Main Street, Hyannis)