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Photo credit: Sunda Chicago

Catching a glimpse of a famous face while you’re grabbing a drink or a bite to eat can turn an everyday activity into a star-studded event for tourists and locals alike, but the trick lies in knowing where to go to increase your odds of a celebrity sighting. Cities like Los Angeles and New York City are known celebrity-hubs, but A-listers also regularly pop up in restaurants in Miami, Las Vegas, Austin and Chicago.

Urbanspoon scoured the latest headlines, hottest stories, and juiciest gossip to pinpoint the 50 best bets for spotting a movie star, sports hero, or reality starlet du jour across the country. Depending on your dining or travel plans, you can try celeb-spotting at the hottest hotel restaurants, pop into paparazzi-frequented “See and Be Seen” eateries, or go off the beaten path to some “Hidden Gems and Locals Only” cafés, delis, and pubs.

Local Favorites and Hidden Gems

Hoards of famous faces call Los Angeles home, but where do they go to grab a quick bite around town? Local chain Jerry’s Famous Deli has been a longtime casual favorite of major A-listers including Adam Sandler, Will Smith, and Jerry Seinfeld – go figure! Stars have favorite relaxed spots when they’re off-duty too. Beyoncé is known to make a stop at Cheeseburger Baby whenever she’s in Miami. Check out these and other “Local Favorites and Hidden Gems” that are off the paparazzi’s oft-beaten path.

• Bar Food (LA)
• Cheeseburger Baby (Miami)
• Crazy Fish (LA)
• Chickie’s & Pete’s (Philadelphia)
• Du Pars (LA)
• Guero’s Taco Bar (Austin)
• Hugo’s (LA)
• Jerry’s Famous Deli (LA)
• Jo’s on Second (Austin)
• Kingfish Café (Seattle)
• Kuma’s Corner (Chicago)
• La Descarga (LA)
• Le Panier (Seattle)
• Mr. Beef (Chicago)
• Mr. Lucky’s at Hard Rock Hotel (Las Vegas)
• Pick Me Up Café (Chicago)
• Sabrina’s Café (Philadelphia)
• Shady Grove (Austin)
• The Roger Room (LA)
• Tropicalia Brazilian Grill (LA)

Hotel Hotspots

Traveling in style for the rich and famous also means dining in style. If you’d like to see A-listers like Britney Spears, who celebrated her recent engagement at Sugar Factory at Paris Las Vegas, or Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, who love the privacy offered by the huge surrounding hedge at Casa Tua in Miami, aim for these “Hotel Hotspots.” You may have missed your window to spot Lindsay Lohan at Château Marmont in LA though; recent reports say the star is banned from what has been her home-away-from-home for the past few years. Don’t worry, it still remains a top choice for other rich and famous faces.

• Casa Tua (Miami)
• Château Marmont (LA)
• CUT at the Beverly Wilshire (LA)
• La Côte at Fontainebleau Hotel (Miami)
• Laconda Verde at The Greenwich Hotel (NYC)
• Livello at L’Ermitage in Beverly Hills (LA)
• N9NE Steakhouse at The Palms (Las Vegas)
• Polo Lounge at The Beverly Hills Hotel (LA)
• Red Fin Japanese Restaurant and Sushi Bar at the Hotel Max (Seattle)
• Six Seven at Edgewater Hotel (Seattle)
• Sugar Factory at Paris Las Vegas (Las Vegas)
• TAO Restaurant (Las Vegas)
• TRIO at the Four Seasons (Austin)

See and Be Seen Spots

Like it or not, being famous often means being recognized wherever you go – but at these star studded “See and Be Seen Spots,” celebrities like Lady Gaga and Gwyneth Paltrow are definitely not expecting to fly under the radar. The Waverly Inn in NYC is a long-time favorite of the stars, regularly playing host to everyone from President Obama to Kate Hudson to Robert De Niro. The Ivy in Los Angeles, marked by a non-descript storefront in the middle of Robertson Boulevard, has a salad Jennifer Aniston loves, something fellow super-fit starlets like Jessica Alba and Jessica Biel may also have enjoyed during their visits last month. And we can’t mention hot celebrity scene haunts without mentioning everyone’s favorite sushi joint. The bicoastal outposts of Nobu have been the backdrop for many celebrity couplings, including a date of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes in happier times and Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield more recently.

• Babbo (NYC)
• Girl & The Goat (Chicago)
• Madeo (LA)
• Mercadito (Miami)
• Minetta Tavern (NYC)
• Mr. Chow (LA)
• Nobu (multiple locations)
• Pizano’s Pizza & Pasta (Chicago)
• Prime One Twelve (Miami)
• Saxon + Parole (NYC)
• Spiaggia (Chicago)
• Stephanie on Newbury (Boston)
• Sunda (Chicago)
• The Ivy (LA)
• The Palm (LA)
• The Spotted Pig (NYC)
• Wahlburgers (Boston)
• Waverly Inn (NYC)

Be sure to check out the Urbanspoon.com blog for a city-by-city breakdown on the full Top 50 list.

*This post is a press release shared by UrbanSpoon with Momma Cuisine.