Dining at its best is a process of discovery, of finding new tastes in new places. Most everyone has had the thrill of checking out a restaurant for the first time, be it a brand-new opening or just being late to the party for some old standbys one has heard about for years.
It takes a special kind of talent to survive fickle tastes and changing times in the restaurant business. As unforgiving and cutthroat a business as they come, eateries featuring skillful chefs and delicious food go out of business every day after all. Those that survive over the long haul offer that special intangible that one knows when one tastes it but struggles to put words to.
This year, AY’s Readers’ Restaurant Poll is again chock-full of restaurants that have, by a pinch here and a dash there, continued to thrive during challenging times and look good doing it. They are the old reliables and proudly so, the places patrons return to again and again, in some cases over the course of multiple generations.
During an era of instant gratification and blink-quick changes in the marketplace, these spots offer a timeless experience, a satisfying meal and the kind of satiation that transcends mere sustenance. Here’s to the winners with a few scars and burns to show for it and the moments they have given us.
Delucas (Photo by Jamie Lee)
AY‘s Burger Winner – Deluca’s Pizza
People who are puzzled about the best burger in Arkansas coming out of the most decorated pizzeria the Natural State has ever seen do not know Anthony Valinoti very well. After all, the native New Yorker has made a 13-year habit out of producing excellent food that many so-called experts insist cannot happen in this part of the world.
Valinoti turned the pizza world on its head with Deluca’s Pizza in Hot Springs, churning out artisan pies that quickly landed on multiple “Best Pizza in U.S.” rankings and was eventually anointed as a master by Dave Portnoy of Barstool’s viral One Bite Pizza Reviews.
“Spectacular pizza,” was how the awestruck Portnoy put it. “It’s the real deal.”
As if making Spa City a must-visit in the pizza universe was not accomplishment enough, Valinoti followed that up a few years back with his cheeseburger, a confoundingly delicious creation cooked in the restaurant’s pizza oven, that lays serious claim to the unofficial state appetizer. The burger became an overnight sensation and now rivals the pizza itself as the main draw at Deluca’s, which has since expanded to a Little Rock location.
“I think people still come in for pizza more so than anything, but we sell a ridiculous number of hamburgers. I can’t remember what the record was — 50 hamburgers in a day or something. I mean, that’s impossible,” Valinoti said.
“It’s not easy because they all have to be made individually in the pizza oven. You’ve got to heat the skillet up. You’ve got to get the right temperature. It takes a lot for those kids in the kitchen to really keep up with it.”
The reaction of first-timers to the burger is almost always the same, somewhere between shock and utter disbelief. From an observational perspective, it is not hard to see why: In addition to coming out of a pizza kitchen, the burger is kept incredibly simple to allow each of the three elements — meat, bun and cheese — to play their part as intended (OK, four parts if you add the pickles that arrive sidecar).
As the saying goes, something can be simple, but it ain’t easy, and that is the method to Valinoti’s madness. He scoured the country for the right meat blend and was so picky about the bun, he originally had them FedEx’d from the east coast because he could not get them in Arkansas. There are no postcook frills to the sandwich, either — no foie gras, no bacon jam, no tower of toppings.
“Doing something that simple is hard because there’s nowhere to hide,” he said.
The creation routinely wows food bloggers and podcasters and was recently featured in Garden & Gun magazine, which proclaimed it, in headline type, “The Best Cheeseburger in Arkansas.” For Deluca’s loyalists, even that proclamation falls short; they believe it the best in the South if not the country.
“It makes me elated, you know? I’m so happy that people just like it that much,” Valinoti said. “I couldn’t be any luckier to be where I am and to have people support us. It really, really warms my heart.”
Deluca’s Pizza
originaldelucas.com
833 Central Ave., Hot Springs
501-609-9002
Thursday: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. (Bar open until 9 p.m.); Friday and Saturday: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. (Bar open until 10 p.m.); Sunday: Noon to 7 p.m.; Monday through Wednesday: Closed
10301 N. Rodney Parham Road, Suite C8, Little Rock
501-246-5656
Tuesday through Thursday: 4 to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Monday: Closed
(Photo courtesy of Purple Cow)
AY’s Kid-friendly restaurant Winner – The Purple Cow Restaurant
Everything anyone needs to know about the love Arkansas has for The Purple Cow Restaurant can be seen in the weeks following the 2023 Little Rock tornadoes, which bounced and dragged through a swatch of west Little Rock, eviscerating trees, levelling homes and damaging businesses.
One of those businesses, the original Purple Cow on Cantrell Road, was a particularly painful loss for people in the surrounding neighborhoods, many of whom grew up on the tasty, kid-friendly diner fare, got their first jobs there, and brought their children and even their grandchildren there. Locals were concerned the neighborhood staple, which had to be bulldozed, would not return, and while it was not the only location in Arkansas, being the original gave it a special status in that part of the city.
Leslie Cotton, director of operations, said company leadership understood that, which is why there was never any doubt over rebuilding.
“[Rebuilding] was so important to us, and it’s probably one of the reasons why it took so long to get reopened,” she said. “We were trying to make sure we kept that same feel everybody loved while also making it a little more functional for the guest experience, as well as the team members. It was so important to make sure it still felt like home.”
The same neighborhood spirit is one of the elements that makes The Purple Cow such a hit with families, even as the Arkansas chain has grown to multiple locations. No matter where it operates, the same themes repeat themselves, from the decor to the menu, and for one simple reason: They work.
“Just seeing a kid, when you bring a purple vanilla milkshake to the table, nobody gets tired of experiencing that,” Cotton said. “We have a lot of team members and managers in our company who genuinely love making sure a kid has a memorable experience and gets a little bit of that joy out of it.
“We stay focused with our kids’ menu to keep that interactive and keep them busy with the crayons at the table. We’ve also started to have more consistent ways to display their artwork via a coloring page display area where they can pin up their stuff and be proud of it and, when they come back, maybe see it again. That creates memories. It’s the small things that we really hope make a lasting impression.”
The real genius of the Purple Cow formula is that it does not focus just on children but strives to please all the members of the family, from the youngsters through the merely young at heart.
“Our tagline is, ‘We’re for the young of all ages,’” Cotton said. “The original concept of Purple Cow was meant to be family friendly but also a place for adults to come and have a childlike sense of enjoyment and happiness and joyfulness. We strive for that. That’s part of our core values we teach all of our new team members. It’s part of our principles to have fun and keep the environment fun. There’s nothing better than that.”
Purple Cow
8026 Cantrell Road, Little Rock
501-221-3555
ilovepurplecow.com
Sunday through Thursday: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday: 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Additional restaurants in Little Rock, Conway, Hot Springs, North Little Rock,
Benton and coming soon to Rogers. Visit website for hours by location.
(Photo courtesy of David’s Burgers)
AY‘s Chain Restaurant Winner – David’s Burgers
It is the height of irony that beloved burger outfit David’s Burgers would land “Best Chain Restaurant” in this year’s AY Readers’ Restaurant Poll, considering the Arkansas-born and based company’s very success is rooted in a philosophy to be as antichain as possible. It is what has led its growth into nine locations with a 10th coming soon as the company looks to spread the good word of magnificently cooked burgers and hand-cut French fries to as wide a section of the Natural State as possible.
“Our leadership team, Alan and Jessica Bubbus and David Bubbus, always push for the little things,” said Ryan Rooney, the company’s creative director. “The big things tend to take care of themselves, so we focus on the little things and make them important, and we don’t let them get away from us.
“We’re in a growth pattern, and for a lot of companies, they find ways to cut here and there as they grow. We did the opposite; the more we’ve grown, the more we’ve looked to provide quality.”
Aside from the fact that the savory patties are round and served on a bun, there is little to compare David’s Burgers with average hamburger restaurant fare. The beef used is always fresh, hand-cut in the company’s own processing facility in North Little Rock from U.S. Choice chuck and ground for that day’s use, a practice unheard of in the quick-service world.
The restaurant’s singular focus of doing the little things right is reflected in the menu. Burgers and chicken sandwiches represent 95 percent of the fare. Only a grilled cheese sandwich and a couple of salad options lending variety. The company philosophy — less is more when less is done exceptionally well — has stood the test of time.
Another distinguishing feature is the ambiance: a bright red-and-white color scheme gives off a retro diner vibe, while poster-sized blowups of Bubbus family photos grin from the walls. It is a setting as familial as they come and, combined with the staff’s legendary customer service, sets a tone of hospitality that is undeniable.
“We’re a burger place. We’re a place where families are supposed to come and have a good time and not have to worry about things,’ Rooney said. “What we try to instill in our staff is to go out there and have fun, as well. You’re not going to have fun if you’re just standing around not paying attention, so that’s why we push the engagement aspect. When our staff is engaged, their self-esteem goes up, they get a little spring in their step.
“By encouraging that, we bring people out of their shells, and the second they do that, they’re having a blast. That translates into the atmosphere that our customers notice. It’s something we train on, something that comes from leadership on down, and if I had to point to one thing that sets our team apart, it’s that they’re just having a lot more fun with it. Once that happens, things kind of take care of themselves.”
David’s Burgers
200 S. Bowman Road, Little Rock
501-227-8333
davidsburgers.com
Monday through Saturday: 10:45 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sunday: Closed
Additional restaurants in Mabelvale, Hot Springs, Bryant, North Little Rock, Cabot, Searcy and Conway. Visit website for hours by location.
(Photo courtesy of Shotgun Dan’s Pizza)
AY‘s Pizza Winner – Shotgun Dan’s Pizza
The best pizza parlors are all about gatherings. Little League teams, college study groups, families on a Friday night — all are drawn to the comfortable, aromatic confines of a favorite pizzeria. Better still are the places where the fare meets the surroundings as something worth sharing.
Arkansas institution Shotgun Dan’s Pizza meets all of those criteria and then some. For nearly five decades, the place has been serving up delicious, toppings-heavy pies in an environment that hearkens to a simpler time.
“The secret sauce to our success is that for almost 50 years, we continue to honor the product the customer expects and employ the staff they deserve,” said Josh Woodard, owner, whose father founded the place. “You have to be as perfect as you can on the food each and every time. That is why we provide our No Skimpin’-style pizza with loads of toppings.
“I also want to stay as true to the original design as we can. I am very cautious to make major changes to our saloon/Western theme. We’ve all seen what can happen when a restaurant brand moves too far from the original concept. My dad wanted the customer to feel a Western theme all those years ago, and it was not mainstream back in the 1970’s or ‘80’s. We have seen excitement in recent years with TV shows about the Western life and ranch life, and we feel like the appeal will always be there.”
For those seeking a more manageable bite, the restaurant’s sandwich menu is another heavy hitter among locals. Beyond that and a couple of appetizers however, the menu has remained as steady as the decor, another nod to Woodard’s firm belief in maintaining identity through consistency, right down to the last pepperoni slice.
“We are still using the same vendors that my father built relationships with during the first decade of business,” he said. “When others are changing their meat or cheese to meet margins, we hold true to the suppliers and ingredients that brought us here today.”
Topping a restaurant poll category as crowded as Best Pizza is a feat for any establishment. Woodard expressed gratefulness for the honor, saying he is proud that the little place his father started is still winning new fans all these years later.
“It is an honor to be recognized by our customers,” he said. “Their support reinforces the efforts our team makes each and every day. I have three managers who celebrated 20 years with me last year and we continue to strive for the best pizza and experience possible.”
Shotgun Dan’s Pizza
10923 W. Markham St., Little Rock
501-224-9519
4020 E. Broadway St., North Little Rock
501-945-0606
4203 E. Kiehl Ave., Sherwood
501-835-0606
shotgundans.com
Monday through Saturday: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sunday: 4 to 9 p.m.
(Photo courtesy of The Oyster Bar)
AY‘s Seafood Winner – The Oyster Bar
In an industry as mercurial as the restaurant game, every winner on the 2026 AY Readers’ Restaurant Poll represents perseverance in the face of long odds and the skill and determination to navigate shifting currents and tastes.
Of all of these, the owners of The Oyster Bar, voted Best Seafood, take arguably the greatest measure of pride in their recognition. After all, the Tanner family heard more than a little grumbling from longtimers after buying the place in 2019 and transforming decades of shabby-yet-warm chic into a bright, sleek, modern restaurant. Add to that the gut-punch of COVID-19, and the family’s venture was far from assured, making the vindication of the 2026 award particularly sweet.
“You could go on social media and look at a post that I did for my parents about the takeover, and this was five years ago,” said General Manager Chris Tanner. “You know, 70 percent of that was love and support, and I’d say the other 30 percent of it was — I hate to use this word — but it was utter disgust. Those people were mad at us. They thought we were going to ruin it or shut it down. It wasn’t going to be the same place.
“We kept a realistic approach. We knew we weren’t going to make everybody happy, but we also knew that as long as the food is good and the service is good, the memories and the experiences will continue on, so yeah, we still get a little bit of that backlash even today, but we just bring that positive experience that they thought was not going to happen. It’s a nice reassurance that we’re continuing the legacy that The Oyster Bar started.”
The restaurant has won over more than its share of doubters on menu alone. Not only does The Oyster Bar still deliver the freshest, meatiest raw oysters in town, but caters to the discerning palate by stocking different varieties from which to choose. The same attention is paid to the other creative seafood dishes featuring an array of ocean delights.
“Both of my parents are very much connoisseurs when it comes to food and wine,” Tanner said. “Growing up, it was never the same thing every night. It was always a learning experience. It was always something new to try. Being able to play with different flavors now is really just a full circle, if you will.”
Asked what being recognized by the readers of AY About You meant to the family, Tanner expressed gratefulness for recognition on this year’s list.
“Honestly, I feel privileged,” he said. “I’m very blessed to have people on my team that really do care about the experience. We inherited a lot of people from the old Oyster Bar, and we like to think we truly embody that spirit. It’s a new shell but the same meat on the inside.”
At this Tanner paused, then indulged in a playful end-zone celebration.
“Hey, winner, winner, catfish and oyster dinner,” he said.
The Oyster Bar
3003 W. Markham St., Little Rock
501-666-7100
lroysterbar.com
Tuesday through Saturday: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sunday and Monday: Closed
READ ALSO: Front of House, Top of List: AY About You Salutes the Best in Hospitality for 2026
