Noriega Hotel, Bakersfield, CA 

Dinner at this former Basque boardinghouse—once used by California sheepherders—is served as it always has been: family-style, promptly at 7. Diners sit at the long communal tables for the parade of dishes, starting with soup, pickled tongue, herbed cottage cheese, spaghetti, and bread. Then come the mains, like lamb stew and prime rib on Wednesdays, or oxtail stew and fried chicken on Saturdays. $20; 525 Sumner St.; noriegahotel.com