A nearly 40-year-old ocean liner can be a tough ship to steer, but Rick Bayless has entrusted this one to Javauneeka Jacobs (pictured above), a young chef who worked her way up through the kitchen and now helms Frontera with smarts and poise. She has brought back old favorites, such as the crispy skate wing milanesa resting on a bright cabbage slaw, and introduced more vegetable-forward dishes, such as a roasted white sweet potato with spicy Baja crema and enchiladas with maitake mushrooms. When I ate at the counter recently, the barkeep excitedly talked about the dishes that were new or tweaked from previous iterations. Just when this restaurant was quietly growing stagnant, Jacobs has brought a new momentum that reminds us why it matters. 

Price: $$$
Address: 445 N. Clark St.
Website: fronteragrill.com