TASTEBUDS CAFE

The menu is American, French and Italian. And we don't mean hamburgers, fries and ketchup.

We mean this: an appetizer of shiitake & spinach fromage. Baked cheese lasagna for the pasta dish. Chicken Jean Pierre for the meat entree (a breast sauteed in butter, garlic, shallots, mushrooms and parsley, topped with provolone and served with Chardonnay cream sauce). Or maybe roasted pork tenderloin (with pine nut and pear honey sauce). The rest of the menu is just as scrumptious. Tastebuds is the yummy side of the Smokies.

Runners-up: The Chop House (Sevierville), The Peddler (Gatlinburg)