There are the James Beard Awards. There are Michelin stars. There are Zagat reviews, Fodor's recommendations, and "best ever" lists created by informal Internet polls. And then there are Yelp and UrbanSpoon and TripAdvisor and, look, all of these opinions matter to some extent. But sometimes, when you're a guy who's just looking for a good place to eat, you just want to know two things: if the menu is good and the setting is comfortable.

After the launch of last year's first-ever Manliest Restaurants in America competition, the question that people asked us the most was, "What makes a restaurant manly?" Do men really dine differently than women? When men go out to eat, we're not looking to be seen. We don't care if the restaurant we've chosen is trendy, if the lighting will make us look good, or if the seating if comfy. We'll gladly eat standing over a diner counter if we're too busy to sit. We don't care if the burger-slinger behind the bar doesn't have time to cater to our every need. An extensive dessert menu? That's fine. But how's your beer list?

The list of 2012’s Manliest Restaurants in America nominees reflects this thinking. Each restaurant, collected from reader and editor recommendation, embodies what it means to eat as a man, whether it's a taco shack that has all the charm of a gas station, a barbecue spot that actually is a gas station, or greatest  place for a strip on The Strip. Now, gentlemen, is the time to vote for the best of those restaurants. The spots you select in each of this year's nine food categories will go on to be featured in and upcoming Travel Channel special (air date TBD) and in the December issue of Men's Health, where we will crown one restaurant the Manliest Restaurant in America.

Who deserves the honor? Click here to vote for the Manliest Restaurants in America. Voting ends July 31, 2012 at midnight. 

Via: VOTE For The Manliest Restaurants In America 2012!