Country Inn & Suites By Carlson, Gainesville, FL

GAINESVILLE. Mildred's has built a stellar reputation on sublime food crafted from only the best and freshest local and...

GAINESVILLE. Mildred's has built a stellar reputation on sublime food crafted from only the best and freshest local and organic ingredients. Everything is homemade, and quality and flavor are painstakingly maintained. The menu changes daily, but you can expect dishes like braised rabbit, grilled pork chops, prosciutto-wrapped black grouper, seared duck breast and Black Angus filet mignon. An exceptional wine list promises apt complements to any meal, and topnotch desserts are made in-house. The lunch menu offers gourmet salads and hot and cold sandwiches along with a few main courses. Next door, the New Deal Cafe is great for quick, casual dining, thanks to sandwiches, burgers, salads and scrumptious, one-dish entrees.

Hours: Mon-Thu 11am-3:30pm, 5pm-9pm; Fri-Sat 11am-3:30pm, 5pm-10pm; Sun Noon-3pm, 4pm-8pm

Payment Methods: Visa , Master Card , Discover , American Express , Diner's Club

GAINESVILLE. Located next door to Mildred's Big City Food, the New Deal Cafe offers the same great quality as her sister...

GAINESVILLE. Located next door to Mildred's Big City Food, the New Deal Cafe offers the same great quality as her sister restaurant but with a lighter fare. Check out the 12-oz. burgers that they say are "the best anywhere!" Go with a classic burger, or try the blue cheese and bacon burger to wake up your taste buds. For the vegetarian, a delicious meatless portabella burger is offered. If a burger is not what you have in mind, other scrumptious eats are available as well.

Hours: Mon-Thu 11am-10pm; Fri-Sat 11am-11pm

Payment Methods: Visa , Master Card , Discover , American Express , Diner's Club

GAINESVILLE. Chef-owner Clif Nelson, by all accounts, has a way with food. His insistence on fresh, premium ingredients...

GAINESVILLE. Chef-owner Clif Nelson, by all accounts, has a way with food. His insistence on fresh, premium ingredients and his talent for combining flavors and textures is always spot-on. The inviting, carefully edited dining room lets the menu shine whether you select pan-roasted pork tenderloin with its hint of horseradish or something like an herb-infused rack of lamb. If cheese couscous is available as a side, it's an innovation worth sampling, as are desserts, which get treated to Nelson's creativity and skill in presentation.

Hours: Mon-Thu 11am-2pm, 5pm-9:30pm; Fri 11am-2pm, 5pm-10:30pm; Sat 5pm-10:30pm; Sun 10am-3pm, 5pm-9:30pm

Payment Methods: Visa , Master Card , American Express

GAINESVILLE. Special-occasion dining reigns at Mark's, a top-quality, downtown steakhouse. Wood-grilled USDA Prime beef,...

GAINESVILLE. Special-occasion dining reigns at Mark's, a top-quality, downtown steakhouse. Wood-grilled USDA Prime beef, sizzling and butter-basted, comes in a number of cuts, from an 8-oz. filet to a 20-oz. rib-eye. If that's not to your taste, opt for crab cakes, chicken breast, lobster tail, lamb chops, ahi tuna or pork chops. Family-style, a la carte side dishes include asparagus, mashed potatoes and a classic creamed spinach. For the complete Mark's experience, splurge on a rich dessert, and indulge in a good vintage from the wine list, which exceeds 600 bottles.

Hours: Mon 5pm-9pm; Tue-Sat 5pm-10pm

Payment Methods: Visa , Master Card , American Express

CROSS CREEK. Located near Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' rural home and inspired by her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, this...

CROSS CREEK. Located near Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' rural home and inspired by her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, this appealing restaurant is a wonderful throwback to Florida's early days. Florida Cracker fare, a variation of soul food, capitalizes on local ingredients and the culinary heritage of farming settlers, as evidenced by venison, steamed crawdads, fried catfish, alligator tail and frog legs. They're joined by USDA Prime steaks and a variety of other seafood options and accompanied by hush puppies, turnip greens, cheese grits and the like. Within the knotty pine-paneled restaurant, a fire blazes and memorabilia adds character. Plus, a staff of locals makes sure that everything's authentic, from citrus-tinged desserts to live blues music played by a talented one-man band.

Hours: Thu Noon-9pm; Fri-Sat Noon-10pm; Sun Noon-8:30pm

Payment Methods: Visa , Master Card , Discover