Restaurants in Carlisle

Although Prudhomme’s Lost Cajun Kitchen occupies a nearly 200-year-old brick hotel and former speakeasy replete with underground tunnels and a reputation for hauntings, the restaurant nevertheless exudes a warm, lively vibe. For 24 years, aromas of fried shrimp and blackened catfish have drifted through the dining room, whose dark wood walls display a jumble of American antiques and artifacts as owners David and Sharon Prudhomme rove around greeting guests.

At MoMo's BBQ and Grill, sauces aren't just a messy byproduct of eating barbecue. Rather, they are spotlight-snatching costars, having pulled in 13 awards of excellence from the National Barbecue Association, highlighted by mango habanero's 2011 distinction as tops in the citrus class. Long before MoMo's gourmet sauces receive a call to action, though, their meaty counterparts are busy getting slow-smoked, in-house, with a combination of applewood and hickory. Seven days per week, finished creations arrive on the tables of diners in the form of Texas beef brisket and "high on the hog" racks of ribs. A selection of more than 100 bottled beers washes over satisfied taste buds, and every Friday, live blues bands infuse meals with passionate riffs and lyrics about the heartbreak of finishing a pulled-pork sandwich.

In the evening, Kugo Steakhouse & Sushi Bar's chefs fire up their hibachi grills and begin to slice chicken and juggle seafood with panache, as nearby sushi chefs wrap fresh ingredients into tasty rolls. Noontime diners can opt for teriyaki lunchboxes or specials that include two or three sushi rolls.

In the mines of northeastern Pennsylvania, workers heave loads of clean-burning anthracite coal and ship them to businesses such as Coal Fire, where chefs scoop the same coal into their 900-degree ovens to bake pizzas and wings. Before baking the pies, the chefs hand-toss the aged dough, then cover it with their signature sauce and thick, house-made mozzarella cheese, as well as toppings such as sun-dried tomatoes and pepperoni procured from local merchants. Outside the kitchen, hardwood floors run past the warm, exposed brick of the ovens while servers slide across the polished floorboards, delivering platters of steaming pizzas and frosty drinks from the full bar.