No. 20: Farrah Olivia

Cuisine: Fusion at its best and most challenging. Chef Morou Ouattara takes familiar Western ingredients and combinations—a salmon, a Caesar salad—and defamiliarizes them in order to reinvent them. Whether he hits or not—usually he hits—each plate is a conversation piece, boasting powders and foams and wildly inventive sauces (roasted banana and celery heart) in startling arrangements.

Mood: You’d hardly guess what the chef was up to from the serene space on a quiet side street in Old Town. Africa is subtly invoked in the dishes—Morou hails from Ivory Coast—and the dining room follows suit with an iridescent jungle design on one wall. Part of the fun is watching diners with wrinkled brows interrogate the staff—what’s lobster tapioca?

Best for: The food is the focus, and it’s interesting enough to carry an entire meal.

Best dishes: Vanilla-poached lobster atop a creamy lobster tapioca encircled by lobster bisque; “painted soup,” a serving of two soups (black bean, squash) in an artful yin/yang arrangement; “deconstructed” New England clam chowder; chorizo-stuffed roast quail; gnudi, a cousin to gnocchi—light, goat-cheese dumplings with no skins—garnished with white and green asparagus; tender black cod in a Thai-style broth of coconut milk, lemongrass, and chilies; gingerbread-and-pear trifle; dark-chocolate/peanut tart.

Insider tips: Here’s one of the few area restaurants where it’s worth turning your meal over to the chef and ordering a tasting menu. And vegetarians, take note: Morou grew up regarding meat as a seasoning; to him, vegetables aren’t supplements—his soups in particular are exceptional for the flavor coaxed out of simple ingredients without resorting to meat, butter, or cream.

Service: ••

Open Tuesday through Saturday for dinner, Sunday for brunch and dinner.

See all of 2009's 100 Best Restaurants.