The best restaurant Thanksgiving dinner in every state

For some of us, eating Thanksgiving dinner at a restaurant is a no-brainer. Why worry about serving raw turkey or gluey mashed potatoes (after spending all day slaving away in the kitchen) when you can just load the family into the minivan and head to your favorite restaurant for all the holiday staples? But for the rest of us, who think of Thanksgiving as a home-cooked meal above all else, it might take some convincing to get out of the house. Well, once you see what restaurants across the country are serving for Thanksgiving, you might change your mind about staying home this Turkey Day.

The Best Restaurant Thanksgiving Dinner in Every State (Slideshow)

There’s a Thanksgiving dinner out there for every taste and every price range. If you’re looking for a big buffet where you can go to town on all the popular Thanksgiving favorites, as well as a wide variety of desserts (and maybe a little prime rib while you’re at it), there are plenty of options. Or if you’d rather make it a romantic evening for two, with a prix-fixe menu of elevated classics paired with fine wines, a surprising number of fine-dining restaurants are doing that as well. And if you want to spend Thanksgiving at your favorite local chain restaurant, you can find 18 chains serving Thanksgiving here; plenty of high-end chains are as well (we’re not including big chains in this listing, however).

If you’ve never spent Thanksgiving dinner away from the home and consider having Thanksgiving dinner at a restaurant to be nothing but a sad alternative, hopefully this can change your mind. More and more restaurants are going above and beyond when it comes to Thanksgiving, and many start serving their Thanksgiving meal in the morning (so you can have turkey for brunch and still have a home-cooked dinner, if you’re so inclined). These restaurants aren’t just going through the motions; they’re serving the absolute best Thanksgiving dinner in every state and Washington, D.C.