Known for its high-class ambiance, Dragonfly restaurant, located in Dallas's Hotel ZaZa, serves modern American cuisine for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If you just want to dip your toe in the luxe decor, Rachael recommends ordering something modest like an appetizer or dessert.

On Food Network's $40 a Day, Rachael Ray grabs a quick bite from Laffite's, in Corpus Christi, TX, serving a juicy Jerk Pork Sandwich and many more BBQ dishes.

To locals, you can rely on Water Street Seafood Co. for fresh seafood, with the daily fish specials and waterside location to prove it. Many dishes draw on the rich, comforting flavors of nearby Mexico and Louisiana. After sifting through the huge menu, Rachael went for the Seafood Pasta Jambalaya.

Located on Beale Street where Memphis locals come to ''rock around the clock,'' the Rum Boogie Cafe offers delicious food, specialty cocktails and ''some of Memphis' best live blues.'' Rachael sipped her Blueberry Hill cocktail while she ''boogied down'' at the longest-running bar on Beale Street.

With one of the best breakfasts in Memphis, Tenn., Brother Juniper's has been serving up hearty dishes including waffles, omelets and baked goods made from scratch since the 1960s. Rachael recommends the open-faced San Diegan Omelet with cheesy grits and the bakery's special 5 grain struan bread.

Pat and Gina bring their authentic barbecue to New York City with Neely's Barbecue Parlor. The space is elegant yet homey, much like a traditional Southern home. You'll find plenty of barbecue, as well as fried-green tomatoes, fried pickles, cedar-plank salmon and award-worthy fried chicken.

Get your groove on with live music, great drinks and a spin on the dance floor at Legend's Corner, one of Nashville's favorite country bars. Check out the music-themed memorabilia on the walls and order up, as Rachael did, a Honky Tonk Lemonade, which locals call "the best drink in town."

Rachael Ray dines at F. Scott's, in Nashville, TN, for a late-supper of contemporary American cuisine and live Jazz bar, on Food Network's $40 a Day.

A popular hangout for students, musicians and artists, Bongo Java became world famous with its 1996 discovery of "The Nun Bun," a cinnamon bun that looks like Mother Teresa. Locals and tourists alike have been coming back ever since for the all-day breakfast and java, which Rachael calls delicious.

Andy's Kitchen is "a friendly place," serving a downhome menu of made-from-scratch meals since 1951. Though it offers all the usual breakfasts, Andy's adds a Tex-Mex twist by using tortillas and ranchero sauce. Do as the loyal regulars do: snag a booth, sip a coffee and relish the reasonable prices.

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On $40 a Day, Rachael called The Sea Shack one of the best kept secrets of Hilton Head, S.C., and it’s easy to see why — almost all of the fish and seafood is caught locally. One specialty is the Jerk Grouper, complete with hush puppies and a side of black-bean chutney.

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What better way to admire the sunset at Hilton Head, S.C., than with a sunset martini from the Old Fort Pub? When Rachael tried this beautiful drink on $40 a Day, she thought it was ''heaven.'' This tavern is also well known for its she-crab soup, which many consider the best soup in the area.

When Rachael couldn't decide on what to have at Hudson's on the Docks on $40 a Day, she found the perfect dish — the Can't Decide, a plate with five appetizers, including oysters rockefeller, oysters hudson, scallops, crab cakes and stuffed mushrooms. Try the hush puppies, a local favorite.