The Best Contemporary Restaurants in Massachusetts

Set in a converted historic house in Brewster, Spinnaker Restaurant offers an intimate setting with small, simply decorated dining rooms and pleasant outdoor seating. The kitchen focuses on Italian-inspired dishes, with house-made pastas, local seafood, and slow-cooked meats. Attentive, welcoming service contributes to a relaxed, polished experience, rounded out by thoughtfully prepared desserts such as salted caramel bread pudding.

MIDA offers modern Italian-inspired cuisine with carefully prepared pastas, salads, and small plates such as creamy arancini and pillowy gnocchi cacio e pepe. House-baked breads and thoughtful vegetable dishes, including roasted squash, showcase rich, layered flavors. The light, spacious dining room and attentive, considerate service create an easygoing, welcoming experience.

The Elm presents contemporary American cuisine with a focus on seasonal ingredients and carefully composed plates. Diners highlight refined seafood preparations such as poached lobster, scallops, and crab cakes, praised for their balanced flavors and textures. The setting is lively and intimate, with professional, attentive service and a well-regarded bar for cocktails and wine.

Asta presents contemporary farm-to-table tasting menus that highlight seasonal vegetables in inventive, often unexpected combinations. Diners can choose between multi-course experiences that may feature creative interpretations of seafood, mushrooms, and dessert. Attentive, personable service and bar seating with a view of the open kitchen add to the restaurant’s engaging atmosphere.