Tables

Where to eat when you’d rather spend on the meal you’ll remember than the markup you won’t. A running list of the tables we’d send a friend to — from a harbour fish shack to a young-chefs’ tasting menu — each one earning its place on the same principle: spend where it counts, skip where it doesn’t.

Cape Town

• The Codfather, Camps Bay — fresh fish cooked to order, no markup for the view.
• Kalky’s, Kalk Bay — cash-only harbour fish and chips.
• Truth Coffee Roasting, City Centre — world-class coffee at an everyday price.
• Protégé, Franschhoek — the smart winelands splurge.
• Kleinsky’s Delicatessen, Sea Point — a New York-style deli and a great cheap lunch.

New England

• Dottie’s Diner, Woodbury CT — a classic diner with some of the best donuts in the country (and a legendary chicken pie).
• The Common Man, Lincoln NH — a beloved White Mountains institution since 1971.
• Arethusa al Tavolo, Bantam CT — a farm-to-table splurge from the Arethusa Farm dairy.
• Rich Farm Ice Cream, Oxford CT — farm-made ice cream that landed on Yelp’s Top 100 in the country.