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Roasting summer-sweet New Jersey beefsteak tomatoes this weekend until they were rich and caramelized (350˚ for three hours with olive oil, garlic and salt) got me thinking about the best restaurants for market-driven menus.

One of my favorite August rituals is dinner at Blue Hill at Stone Barns when produce is at its peak. It’s situated on the gorgeous Rockefeller estate in Pocantico Hills, New York, thirty miles north of Manhattan. Much of the food is grown on the property and the setting is unforgettable.

Of course, the trendsetters for market-driven menus are concentrated on the West Coast. At Seattle’s Dahlia Lounge, chef Tom Douglas seeks out the finest purveyors and changes the menu daily to reflect what’s freshest. (The sampling of local oysters is a must.)

The offerings also change daily at San Francisco hot spot Perbacco. And if you’re dying to try Napa’s impossible-to-get-into French Laundry, click here for a tip on securing a reservation.

For singular settings, it’s hard to top (literally and figuratively) the Cupola at Three on the Bund, in Shanghai. From a private room, you dine on haute cuisine while overlooking a heart-stopping view of Pudong and the river.

Equally unique, but far less haute, is Beijing’s Li Qun Roast Duck, a small family restaurant in a traditional hutong. As author Mark Graham notes, authentic places like this will soon be gone, swept up in the mad rush to modernization.

Other under-the-radar spots from our destination reports include a hidden jewel on the Costa Smeralda where you dine under a pergola gazing at the Mediterranean; a seafood restaurant in a beautiful cove on Ibiza where rock stars and royals regularly anchor; and a great cooking school in Bali.

As a bunch of foodie New Yorkers, the Indagare staff thought we knew about every great restaurant in the city. We were delighted to discover some little-known gems recommended by Dorothy Kalins, former editor of Saveur, including Annisa, in the Village. For Dorothy’s other picks, click here.

And naturally, we have fantastic choices for Parisian three-stars and bistros, L.A. power scenes and Roman trattorias.

Finally, check out our Discussion Boards, where you’ll find members’ suggestions for surprising finds, including a Mexican dive favored by Julia Child. Be sure to post your own favorites.

Bon appetit!

This week in Commentary: Melissa Biggs Bradley on the risks and rewards of shopping in a foreign country.

New destination reports: insider guides to Miami and Oahu.