Home Base: The Downtown Grille 
Accolades: 2025 OpenTable Diners’ Choice

Best ethnic food: La Botana for true Mexican food. New Sichuan for Dan Dan noodles and other authentic, spicy Szechuan-style dishes. 

Favorite indulgence: Pistachio cream croissant at Bobby Boy Bakeshop. 

Favorite date night: Mission Pizza. Try the tasting menu. 

Don’t leave town without trying: We’ve got two of the best bakeries in the state right here, both just outside downtown; Bobby Boy's and Louie and Honey’s Kitchen. 

Best fine dining: Ryan’s Restaurant is just a classic. You know you’re going to get a well-prepared steak and a classic sauce done right. 

Best place for a drink: Single Brothers Bar. 

Best breakfast: Midtown Cafe & Dessertery or Mama Zoe’s. Go for the shrimp & grits omelet at Zoe’s. 

Foodie tip: The pop-up scene has grown here, with chefs like Jordan Rainbolt at Native Root. I think we’ll see more of that trend over the next couple of years. 

What he loves about the food scene: We’ve been fortunate in the way restaurants are evolving, focusing more on food quality and craft, not just the bottom line. 

About Downtown Grille: A polished yet approachable fine-dining restaurant in the heart of downtown, known for refined Southern cooking, handmade pastas, and expertly prepared steaks. The seasonal menu highlights local ingredients, and the dining room balances elegance with an easygoing feel.

Home Base: Co-owner, Bobby Boy Bakeshop 
Accolades: 2024 James Beard Semifinalist (Best Bakery); Southern Living ‘Top 16 Bakery in the South’

Best ethnic food: Taco Rico. Their costillas de puerco are a go-to. It’s a soulful, solid meal every time. 

Favorite indulgence: Going to a local coffee shop, like Sayso or Camino. All the coffee shops here have their own vibe. 

Don’t leave town without trying: Hole-in-the-wall fried chicken spots. My 7-year-old and I love J&J Food Mart for quarter dark meat with collard greens, mac and cheese, and potato salad. 

Best place for a drink: Fair Witness for cocktails. Easy Tiger for a light beer. 

Best breakfast: I’m usually here when it’s time for breakfast. I tend toward savory, like a quiche or the ham and cheese croissant. 

Foodie tip: Pick a neighborhood, park your car, hang out for a while. That’s how you find the treasures. 

On the James Beard nod: “It took us completely by surprise. When you’re a young chef, you think, ‘One day I’d love to get a James Beard Award,’ but at some point your focus is on the work, and awards go on the back burner.” 

What he loves about the food scene: There aren’t many cities where chefs collaborate, know each other, and do events together. There’s also room to bring back traditional processes like fermentation. 

About Bobby Boy Bakeshop: Known for European-style pastries and breads, Bobby Boy blends classic technique with creative seasonal twists. With two locations just outside town—the original bakery off Reynolda Road, and its new location in the Salem Bottleworks complex, it’s a cornerstone of Winston-Salem’s modern baking scene.

Home Base: Forsyth Seafood Market & Café 
Accolades: Eater Carolina’s 18 Essential Restaurants in Winston-Salem; Heinz x Lee Grant Recipient

Best ethnic food: Nawab’s chicken vindaloo with jasmine rice and garlic naan. 

Favorite indulgence: Louie and Honey’s brown butter rice crispy treat. 

Favorite date night: Downtown Grille. The menu is always changing to reflect local flavors, the handmade pasta is consistently great, and the dining room is beautiful. 

Best coffee: BYGood Coffee. 

Where to get a drink: I like that Joyner’s pays homage to classic craft cocktails. 

Best breakfast: Midtown Cafe. 

What she loves about the food scene: We have notable chefs who love local flavors and experimenting with dishes you’d expect to find in a larger city. 

About Forsyth Seafood Café: A longtime East Winston staple known for comforting, no-frills seafood plates and classic sides. It’s casual, welcoming, and deeply rooted in community tradition.

Home Base: Mission Pizza Napoletana 
Accolades: James Beard Semifinalist 2023; Top-ranked pizzeria in North Carolina (#21 nationally) 

Best coffee: “I start my day with a cortadito at West Salem Public House.” 

Best fine dining: “I love what they’re doing at Downtown Grille. The food that Harrison (profiled above) has a real point of view and it’s high-level and consistent.” 

Best ethnic food: Taco Rico on East Sprague (In Winston-Salem’s Southside area). It’s buzzy, delicious, simple, and inexpensive. Antojitos Las Delicias in East Winston is also a great taco stand. 

What continues driving him: “The science of making pizza continues to fascinate me. Neapolitan-style is the hardest way to make pizza, and that complexity is what keeps it interesting.” 

What he loves about the food scene: “There’s a handful of creative operators doing their own thing in an honest and authentic way.” 

Most popular items at Mission Pizza: (paraphrased): The Diavola and Diego Marinara are favorites. He also recommends trying a pasta dish, especially the Bucatini all’Amatriciana. 

About Mission Pizza: Nationally recognized for meticulous Neapolitan-style pizza, the pizzeria/osteria pairs amazingly delicious crusts with carefully sourced ingredients and Italian-inspired pastas in a casual but intentional downtown setting.

Home Base: Mozelle’s + Betty on Burke 
Accolades: OpenTable’s 50 Best Southern Restaurants in the U.S. 

Don’t miss: Bobby Boy Bakeshop and The Caviste wine shop. They’re in the same building and collaborate on wine-tasting dinners. 

Where to get a drink: Lesser-Known Beer Co. in West Salem for European-style beers with an old-school, low-key vibe. 

Best breakfast: Bagel sandwiches from Bagel Station, made fresh on premises. 

Best ethnic food: Thai Harmony. The food is delicious, and the service is welcoming and unpretentious. 

Foodie tip: Make your own progressive dinner by walking Trade Street and letting curiosity guide you. 

Best food scene: Cobblestone Farmers Market on Saturday mornings, where farms and small food artisans come together. 

About Mozelle’s Fresh Southern: A downtown favorite serving Southern-inspired comfort food with global touches in a warm, intimate space. It’s approachable, polished, and reliably satisfying. It’s popularity inspiration the Mozelle’s team to open a new restaurant, Betty on Burke, just steps away.

Home Base: Heff’s Burger Club 
Accolades: James Beard Best Restaurant Semifinalist 2023; Food Network’s “Chopped” runner-up. 

What he loves about Winston-Salem: “I’ve been here since I was five, and watching the city evolve has been awesome. We used to be a meat-and-potatoes town, but now we’re broadening our horizons.” 

Best ethnic food: Kuya Bear food truck for traditional Filipino dishes. 

Best fine dining: Mozelle’s. 

What people love about Heff’s: “We’re unapologetically ourselves. Loud punk music, cartoons on TV, funky art. If you’re cool and kind, you’ll have a great experience.” 

What to order at Heff’s (for first-timers): “The Ladykiller is our magnum opus; it’s essentially an elevated Whopper. But the Piggy Wiggy is another go-to. It’s simple —bacon, griddled onions, cheese, spicy ketchup, and mayo — but it hits the spot.” 

About Heff’s Burger Club: A downtown burger joint known for bold flavors, punk energy, and a divey, unapologetic vibe. It’s chef-driven comfort food with personality.

Local culinary leader; founder of Second Harvest Food Bank’s landmark culinary training programs 
Accolades: Winner, 2024 Eat. Drink. Triad Restaurant Week 

Best ethnic food: El Rancho Taqueria for carnitas tacos. 

Favorite indulgence: A big steak and old-school she crab soup at Ryan’s Steakhouse. 

Don’t leave town without trying: The ricotta and preserved lemon pizza at Mission Pizza. 

Best place for a drink: Joyner’s. 

Best breakfast: Young Cardinal. Best huevos rancheros I’ve ever had. 

Foodie tip: Start downtown and branch out to the surrounding neighborhoods. Downtown has range, but some of the best food lives on the outskirts. 

What he loves about the food scene: We have a unified culinary community. Competition is healthy, but when someone needs help, people show up. 

About Chef Jeff Bacon: A defining force in Winston-Salem’s modern food culture, Bacon built innovative culinary training and food access programs designed to endure and grow. His work blends craft, workforce development, and community impact.

Cookbook author and culinary icon; former owner of Sweet Potatoes 
Accolades: James Beard Best Chef Semifinalist 2022 and 2023 

Best ethnic food: Oh’ Calcutta for Indian food. For Mexican, Tulum is top notch. 

Favorite indulgence: BYGood Coffee and Cheesecakes by Alex. 

Favorite date night: Di Lisio’s Italian on Brookstown. 

Don’t leave town without: A Moravian cookie in Old Salem or a Krispy Kreme doughnut. [For meals], Forsyth Seafood on the east side is also essential. My grandmother loved it. 

What she loves about the food scene: “I grew up here and I’m proud of how the city has embraced change and diversity. We’re a city that takes care of each other.” 

About Chef Stephanie Tyson: A culinary icon who helped transform downtown dining through Sweet Potatoes, an Arts District staple for more than 20 years. Though the restaurant closed in 2025, Tyson remains active locally and continues to shape Winston-Salem’s food culture.

Editor’s note: Excerpts from this story appeared in the Winston-Salem Visitor Guide, with interviews originally conducted in early 2025.  Find more fantastic dining content, including insider tips, hidden gems, and guides to local wineries, breweries, and more, in our 2026 Visitor Guide, available for free. Click here!