Search results with location information

When someone searches for a topic like a restaurant in Atlanta, Google displays the usual paid Adsense ads and the usual natural results but there is also a block of search returns that display with location information, star ratings and are listed with little balloons marked A, B, C, D etc.
What are these blocks of results? Where do they obtain the listings and can the position of "A" be achieved through some influence similar to increasing backlinks for influencing natural search results…
Search results with location information

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