In French, the word "chez" loosely translates to "at the home of." In Little Haiti's Chez Le Bebe, the homestyle treat is the goat's head stew ($10), served in limited quantities — only weekend mornings. The crowds flood in for this one, as did the Travel Channel's Andrew Zimmern. The rest of the week, you can get your griot and oxtail fix, but on days off, it's the roasted head, spicy and bubbling in a cauldron of vegetables and potatoes. Weekdays, Chez Le Bebe is a reliable spot for heaping containers of crunchy plantains and the crisp fried pork chunks called griot ($4) or oxtail ($10) in a rich gravy that doubles as an excellent sauce for the accompanying pile of rice and pigeon peas.

Readers' choice: Tap Tap

Miami Shores is not quite Paris, and the medical/office building on NE Second Avenue that houses Côte Gourmet doesn't much resemble the iconic Hausmann architecture of the City of Lights. But get beyond that and you'll discover a quaint, authentic bistro run by a French husband-and-wife team. Evelyn toils in the kitchen while Yvan tends to the front of the house. The service at times is slow, but charming touches such as red ribbons tied around the dinner napkins and a solid, well-priced wine selection make up for it. Try the soups, which rotate daily. Made from fresh vegetables, they're wonderful, satisfying, and not at all salty. Escargots ($11) are delicious, especially with fresh bread, and the smoked salmon crepe ($16.95) is a great meal when you don't want to weigh yourself down with a heavy steak. French food is supposed to be all about comfort, and at Côte Gourmet, you can experience a meal like the French do — one that's simple, well prepared, reasonably priced.

We're not sure whether Tony Soprano is still alive. After all, that last scene in The Sopranos' series finale was mighty ambiguous. But if he were to visit South Beach, he'd take his goombahs to Il Mulino. The restaurant has locations in New York, Atlantic City, and Sunny Isles Beach, to name a few, but the South Beach outpost looks like it stepped out of Italian Vogue. The dining room is all white — so much so that you think maybe you should order white wine and something without marinara. Fuhgeddaboutit! You're about to eat like a don! For starters, you'll be offered freshly baked bread with carved parmigiano — just a nibble while you peruse the menu. Pasta dishes come in full or half portions. A fettuccine with rustic lamb ragu is fragrant, spicy, and a touch gamey. Get the half, because you want room for one of the West Third Street favorites — like the fall-off-the-bone osso bucco ($58), a generous veal shank slow-roasted in a red-wine-and-porcini-mushroom sauce and served with risotto. It's hearty, yet it's like butter. Chef Artie at the fictional Vesuvio couldn't make a better dinner himself.

Perhaps you're the fortuitous progeny of no-nonsense Italians who would rather be nailed to a cross than served dried pasta. If you're not that lucky, head to Española Way. Yes, Española Way. There, Sicilian-born chef GianPaolo Ferrera plies guests with more than a half-dozen handmade pastas that could entice anyone to re-embrace gluten and carbs like two long-lost cousins. There are also lovable red-sauce classics like chicken Parmigiana ($18), pounded thin and fried up crisp. The hefty lamb shank ($29), which takes a long, slow braise in red wine before it collapses into a delicious mess, is also a fine choice. Then there's the wine. A dozen options by the glass, all for $8 or less, have been culled from all over Italy's boot. Bottles of reds and whites from France and Italy are offered for under $30. Meanwhile, the only pasta that crests the $20 mark is the ravioli filled with ricotta and Parmesan and then sprinkled with a flurry of black truffle. Otherwise, it's a wonderland of tagliatelle, cavatelli, gnocchi, and fiocchetti. They pair best with stretchy pants.

The Indian food most Americans know comes from that country's north, in a region today called the Punjab. It was the seat of British imperialism in India and thus its cuisine migrated back to the United Kingdom and eventually America. At Imlee, brothers Manoj and Paresh Bhatti offer pristine interpretations of many well-known and loved Punjabi classics. There are vegetarian favorites like dal makhani ($14.95), featuring a variety of lentils in a fragrant blend of spices and shocked with a pad of butter before being served. Paneer, a wildly popular homemade cheese, is slathered in a rich, creamy almond sauce ($15.95) or covered in a forest-green sauce made from spinach and hefty doses of garam masala, turmeric, and cumin. There are, of course, more exotic choices such as lamb do pyaza ($24.95). The thick, onion-tinged gravy offers sweet notes that pair perfectly with the meat's gaminess. There's also an escape to India's south with a Goan fish curry ($19.95) that douses firm-fleshed whitefish in a spicy, intoxicating coconut mixture.

Just because you can't go to Mykonos doesn't mean you can't go to Mykonos, in Miami that is. We're referring to the decades-old restaurant on Coral Way that serves authentic Greek fare at affordable prices. The gyros — available on a platter ($11.95) or individually ($7.95) — are the most popular items, and for good reason. Mykonos Greek Restaurant knows how to make the lamb perfectly tender and proffers some of the finest tzatziki in town. If you think tzatziki makes everything better, you're right. Other favorites include the aromatic chicken and lemon soup ($4.95) and the vegetarian moussaka ($9.95). Cap it all off with some Greek wine and baklava ($3.50). You'll forget you haven't actually left the 305.

As soon as you eye your bento box, there's a problem. Where to start? This is the only option proffered by chef Kevin Cory, so you'd better be smart. A dozen little compartments carefully hold uni, tofu — is that battera? You're dizzy, right? Take a moment to breathe. Hold on, take it slow. Think while you savor lobster and avocado. Take a sip of corn miso, then seaweed with shiso. It's all followed up by nutty rice with bamboo. Next, move to kingfish, steamed and quite light. Follow with pork jowl, a meaty little bite. Now you think you're done, and you're sad. But then sweetened rice dumplings appear with whatever fruit happens to be in season. Douse them with matcha, an earthy green tea, then pause to realize you now know what lunch should be.

Try to sound it out slowly: Phuket Thongsodchaveondee ("poo-ket tong-so-cha-ven-dee"). Got it? Good. Now you know who's saving Miami from peanut-buttery pad thais and so-called curries containing little more than jarred paste and canned coconut milk. Thongsodchaveondee's tiny Biscayne Boulevard spot is covered with ads for superhero movies ripped out of Thai magazines. The offerings scribbled on a chalkboard menu demand a double take. There's branzino in orange curry ($25); fresh, flat noodles with grilled pork shoulder in a thick, savory miso broth ($10); and fried rice studded with chunks of fermented pork sausage ($9). The cook, who formerly worked at Bal Harbour's famed Makoto, learned much of his art from his father, who once owned a hotel in Phuket Province, known for its azure waters. Perhaps Miami's similarly stunning beaches are what drew Thongsodchaveondee to the Magic City. Whatever happened, we're glad he brought the flavors of home with him.

West Miami-Dade's Lung Gong Restaurant has long been adored for its blue menu, which proffers palate-searing Sichuan-style cuisine. While the squeamish can dine on all the General Tso's chicken they like, enthusiasts can select from plates of shredded pig ear in black bean sauce ($12.95) and claypot pork braised with chestnuts ($13.95). The place recently got a new owner, but don't fret. Manager Jim Liu, husband of owner Yingxi Wang, says longtime favorites such as whole snapper cooked in a numbing combination of dried peppers and Sichuan peppercorns ($16.98) will stick around.

Readers' choice: Tropical Chinese

Speedily spirit your Shanghai soup dumplings ($7.99) away from Dumpling King. The aim is to get them home once they've cooled just a bit. When you're safely away from judging eyes, you can pierce the little pouches, releasing their glossy broth for your sipping enjoyment. You're at home, so feel free to slurp as loudly as you like. Nor must you contain the pain of an inevitable burn. Then move on to little fried purses filled with pork and pak choi ($6.99) or a bowl of scalding-hot mapo tofu ($6.99). If you're smart, you remembered to bring home sweet taro bubble tea ($4) to cool things down.