With the set of tripped switches used as a candidate solution， some virtual tripped nodes are defined and incorporated at the end of the terminal nodes or by the source nodes. The neighborhood search is committed by moving a tripped switch to the adjacent node upstream or downstream. The electrical limitations， the allowable voltage range and the required topology are used as constraints. With the minimum interruption cost as the objective， a novel Tabu search approach is put forward to solve the problem of restoration for large area blackout of the distribution network. The switches to be operated are divided into two classes， based on which， an approach to forming the switching operation sequence for both the restoration process and return-to-normal process is suggested. The loads with larger loss costs are given a higher priority to restoration. The overload of feeders and loop in topology are avoided in the process as well. The results of an analysis of a typical example show the feasibility of the approach proposed.