Restaurant recommendations and hot tips on under-the-radar eateries are surely one of the things Chowhounds like most about the platform. Be it for a trip to an unfamiliar city or to suss out the very best spots in your own town, the chatter around restaurants and restaurant culture is a pulsing vein in the Chowhound community.
Chowhounds are famous for posting robust travel threads, like this one on four days in Venice or simply shining a light on hidden gemsand cheap eats in Paris. If you yourself are planning a trip or are thinking of splurging on the 3-Michelin star meal and want some expert opinions, there are few places to get better crowd-sourced help in deciding.
Related: Hounds Share the Best & Most Memorable Threads Ever
Speaking with a few longtime Chowhounds, we pressed them for the very best restaurant recommendations they ever got from the community boards.
Here’s what they said…
“That has to be Ai due Platani in Parma Italy (thanks Parmasam!). A few years ago I started asking the chowhound community for feedback on where to eat, and this trip to Northern Italy in 2018 was very memorable because I got tips from people actually living in the area. I even met someone through chowhound in Parma making pasta together at her home!” See the full thread here, and my trip report here.”
View this post on Instagram. Trattoria ai Due Platani, Coloreto di Parma
uno dei ristoranti che Gualtiero Marchesi frequenta di più. “Mi sento come a casa. In questa trattoria fuori porta, che prende nome dai due platani davanti al locale, fanno una cucina tradizionale tecnicamente ineccepibile, senza squilibri”, dice. “Qui chiedo sempre la stessa cosa, i tortelli di zucca, il mio piatto prediletto.” #gualtieromarchesi
uno dei ristoranti che Gualtiero Marchesi frequenta di più. “Mi sento come a casa. In questa trattoria fuori porta, che prende nome dai due platani davanti al locale, fanno una cucina tradizionale tecnicamente ineccepibile, senza squilibri”, dice. “Qui chiedo sempre la stessa cosa, i tortelli di zucca, il mio piatto prediletto.” #gualtieromarchesi 
. . . #sunday #italianfood #igersfood #foodgasm #tortellidizucca #onmytable #minimal #igersparma #parma #italianelpiatto“Eating & Sleeping Outside of Paris” – Started by Mangeur, and contributed to by many France Board regulars, collecting favorite Chambre d’Hotes in the smaller cities and countryside of France. This thread included a lot of practical advice but also was enjoyable even if you are only an armchair traveler to France.
“Over the years, I have obtained good resto tips on Chowhound. I will not limit it to only one, but among the best were…
Temporis, in Chicago, recommended by Gonzo70…
…and Le Montrachet, in Puligny-Montrachet (France), recommended by PhilD about 11 years ago
“For Downeast Maine, Tracey’s for lobster rolls in Sullivan, Maine and Finelli’s for NY-style pizza in Ellsworth, Maine—both recommended by Passadumkeg on multiple threads about 10 years ago.”
“My most recent trip to San Sebastian and Bordeaux has also been helped by numerous suggestions including from maribel (Spain) and ptipois (France). Finally, I want to highlight the very active Paris board, which actually has made me want to go to Paris more often because of it.”
Related Reading: Chowhounds Share the Best Cooking Tips They Every Got
“My specialty restaurant recommendation is definitely Pasty Kitchen in Los Alamitos, CA.”
“Undoubtedly, the best recommendations were for N7 in New Orleans…
…and Les Arlots in Paris’ 9th.”
“SusanCinSF once turned me on to a food truck in Merced that I really enjoyed and somebody recommended an Indonesian chicken place in Diamond Bar called Merry’s House of Chicken that I really liked.”
“I learned about ABC Cocina via a Chowhound thread before a trip to New York and now I go every time I visit.”
View this post on Instagramnew menu favorite: sweet pea soup, manchego and oregano
