Evans Street Station

The restaurant’s philosophy is slow and local. If that sounds pretty fashionable these days, note that chef and co-owner Alan Merhar is surrounded by farmers, making it easy to make the most of them for his in season produce. His relationship with Mike Prochaska of Prochaska Farms, for instance (it’s four miles away), is such that each winter the two pore over seed catalogs and decide what to plant and then serve. The resulting dishes are fancy in the sense that sophisticated measures have been taken, but (mostly) all-American if you look at the ingredients. Not everything’s local, obviously: Scottish salmon, scallops, certified Black Angus steaks. But many of the side dishes will be, come summer. Desserts are made in-house and include a rich cappuccino crème brûlée, pumpkin pound cake, tiramisu, Key lime cheesecake, and blood-orange or lime-ginger sorbets.