The Best Places to Eat in Alameda, by the Record

1. The New York Times The Restaurant List
2. Eater The Best New Restaurants in America
3. San Francisco Chronicle #41 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area

A rotisserie spot on the little island of Alameda where the meats get a koji and fermented rice marinade before they go on the spit, which explains the depth of flavor you weren't quite expecting. The room is industrial, the counter faces the kitchen, and the menu wanders happily into Hawaiian and Japanese territory. The Michelin Guide gave it a Bib Gourmand, which tracks for a casual place doing this much with a rotisserie chicken.

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

No sign on the building, a steep staircase to climb, and eight seats at the counter once you get there. This omakase spot in Alameda runs a set menu that moves through composed dishes and precise nigiri, with the cooked courses pulling as much weight as the fish. The Michelin Guide has taken notice. Bring cash, bring patience for the stairs, and don't be surprised if the eggplant is the thing you're still thinking about later.

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

A golden dragon installation anchors the back of this sprawling Alameda dim sum hall, where Lazy Susans spin constantly and the noise level confirms everyone is having a good time. Siu mai and har gow are done right, and the golden shrimp rice rolls, crunchy fried shrimp wrapped in chewy rice noodle sheets, are the kind of thing you keep ordering before the last plate is gone. The San Francisco Chronicle named it among the Bay Area's top dim sum spots.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best dim sum restaurants in the SF Bay Area

Floor-to-ceiling windows face the marina, and the room leans into it with a chandelier big enough to mean business. This is a dim sum hall in Alameda, the check-box slip-and-tray kind, with a menu that mixes traditional and modern. The baked pork puffs, shiny and sesame-flecked, are the thing to track down when the cart comes by. The San Francisco Chronicle named it among the Bay Area's best dim sum.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best dim sum restaurants in the SF Bay Area

The squat brick building on Webb Avenue smells like Thanksgiving every single day, because Sandwich Board roasts its turkey in-house and has been doing so forever. This old-school deli counter is an Alameda institution, and regulars have been known to walk in, say nothing, and walk out with exactly what they wanted. The Dutch crunch sandwiches are the move, loaded with that carved turkey alongside avocado and pepperoncinis.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best sandwich spots in the Bay Area