America's Top Cities for Dining Out

[Alex Rosenfeld]

I'm curious if anyone has encountered any relatively recent rankings of the best cities in the United States (or North America) for dining out. I don't have any particular criteria or format in mind - I'm more curious to see what opinions and information are out there on the premier restaurant markets in the country, whether the sources are subjective articles (e.g. http://bit.ly/15Tm3p, http://bit.ly/7b1Oh1) or objective research or anything in between.

Personal opinions are welcome, as well...

Thanks in advance,

Alex

[Aloha Steve]

New York City......without a doubt in the USA.

Don't they have the most Michelin Stared restaurants ?

[Busboy]

New York City......without a doubt in the USA.

Don't they have the most Michelin Stared restaurants ?

Given that Michelin only surveys New York and California, that's perhaps not the benchmark I'd choose. Not dissing new York, mind you.

[jsmeeker]

Las Vegas, too. But I think that gets rolled up into the California guide.

In any case, New York City is a strong contender for the top spot no matter what measures you want to use.

[KD1191]

New York will, and should, win almost any poll...it does everything well. The caveat being that if you're looking for the absolute best in some particular types of cuisine/experiences, there may be better examples in some areas than the best available in New York. For example, if you're looking for inventive/modern/scientific cuisine ("molecular gastronomy"), NYC's best can't beat Chicago.

Edited December 28, 2009 by KD1191 (log)

[tomdarch]

When you add categories to the list of "things that NYC isn't best at" such as: Mexican, barbecue (of any style), "best dining under us$100 per person", etc. doesn't that lead you to question if NYC is actually the "best" overall? Sure, if you want to blow as much money as possible regardless of the actual quality of the food to show off then NY might beat LA and Las Vegas. Also, NYC clearly has the best NY style pizza in the world. Overall, as the center of media in the US, the NY scene is certainly the best scene in the US at telling everyone (including themselves) how great their own scene is. But, uh, does that really make NYC the best dining city in the US? If your definition of "best dining city" is "biggest variety of restaurants at any price point" then, yes, I'll give you NYC as "best."

But there's more to the story about Alinea, Moto, etc. being in Chicago. It isn't just about "molecular gastronomy". Along with Alinea, Charlie Trotter's, Topolobombo and a bunch of other amazing restaurants were "incubated" in Chicago. For financial and "hype" reasons, Achatz, Trotter, Bayless and others couldn't have gotten started in NY, and there aren't many other communities in the US that would support the various kinds of sophisticated cuisines that they developed. At the same time, you'll notice that Spago came and went here, and that there are no pop-media-"chef" restaurants here (e.g. Bobby Flay). I'd argue that Chicago rewards quality and turns it's nose up at bull... er, baloney.

Whether Chicago or NYC is at the top of the list would be a long, drawn out, not terribly useful argument. Regardless, we have the top 2 spots on this "top 10 list" filled. I'm a big fan of Toronto. San Francisco (and environs) would have to rank pretty high. Where else?

[Joe Gerard]

When you add categories to the list of "things that NYC isn't best at" such as: Mexican, barbecue (of any style), "best dining under us$100 per person", etc. doesn't that lead you to question if NYC is actually the "best" overall? Sure, if you want to blow as much money as possible regardless of the actual quality of the food to show off then NY might beat LA and Las Vegas. Also, NYC clearly has the best NY style pizza in the world. Overall, as the center of media in the US, the NY scene is certainly the best scene in the US at telling everyone (including themselves) how great their own scene is. But, uh, does that really make NYC the best dining city in the US? If your definition of "best dining city" is "biggest variety of restaurants at any price point" then, yes, I'll give you NYC as "best."

But there's more to the story about Alinea, Moto, etc. being in Chicago. It isn't just about "molecular gastronomy". Along with Alinea, Charlie Trotter's, Topolobombo and a bunch of other amazing restaurants were "incubated" in Chicago. For financial and "hype" reasons, Achatz, Trotter, Bayless and others couldn't have gotten started in NY, and there aren't many other communities in the US that would support the various kinds of sophisticated cuisines that they developed. At the same time, you'll notice that Spago came and went here, and that there are no pop-media-"chef" restaurants here (e.g. Bobby Flay). I'd argue that Chicago rewards quality and turns it's nose up at bull... er, baloney.

Whether Chicago or NYC is at the top of the list would be a long, drawn out, not terribly useful argument. Regardless, we have the top 2 spots on this "top 10 list" filled. I'm a big fan of Toronto. San Francisco (and environs) would have to rank pretty high. Where else?

I sense some second city-itis in your post, but that's ok. The categories that you mention are really niches. The fact that LA has the best Mexican or Lockhart, TX the best barbecue doesn't make them contenders to be the best food city in the U.S. New York is clearly at the top due to its sheer size and the resulting breath and scope of its dining scene. There are more solid to excellent restaurants here than anywhere else in the U.S., and not only for big spenders. San Francisco and Chicago would be next. While I have had spectacular experiences in Chicago (Topolobampo, Alinea, Spiaggia), I have also had duds, even at the very top of the chain (Trotter, Tru, the former Avenues). I love Chicago, and think it is a great place to eat, but this becomes a numbers game when you really think about it. The argument would not be terribly long or drawn out.

[KatieLoeb]

Philadelphia. For both interesting higher end dining as well as excellent examples of all manner of ethnic cuisines and a sandwich culture that is second to none.

[Shalmanese]

Here's how I would classify:

Top Tier: Undisputed top culinary destination

New York

Second Tier: Large number of world class, distinctive restaurants, a broad base of different cuisines & an enthusiastic & knowledgeable dining audience

Chicago

San Francisco

Las Vegas

New Orleans

Third Tier: Solid, competent food cities with a few standout restaurants.

Seattle

LA

Boston

Washington DC

Philadelphia

& more

[TarteTatin]

Philadelphia is in the 2nd tier, Shalmanese.

Really.

It's not just because I'm from here.

I follow food internationally constantly, its what I do.

It's not a few standout restaurants, we have a lot...

We're there.

[KD1191]

I don't think any accounting would put Chicago in the same class as New Orleans (or Philly, either). Las Vegas is a stretch. Chicago is the best in the nation for some genres (molecular, fine Mexican) and arguably #1 in several others (traditional Mexican, head-to-tail/offal) and doesn't significantly lag NYC in any category. New York's size more-or-less guarantees it the first spot, but I don't see any other city except maybe the greater San Francisco area making the types of advances on NYC's dominance that Chicago has in the last 10 years.

[kayb]

Forgive me for being a homer, but I've always thought Memphis is a fine restaurant town. Not up to New York, Chicago or Philly, certainly, but a wide variety of cuisines and a lot of good food in all price ranges.

And of course, there's the barbecue...

[Jaymes]

Houston is the fourth-largest city in the US and has a spectacular array of ethnicities. And a resultingly spectacular food scene.

[Boy R D]

I think my home of Portland OR is moving along nicely on the culinary front especially if your fond of organic free range vegetables.

[rlibkind]

Everyone's got their favs . . . and bones of contention here!

I'll twist Alex's original question a little bit, interpreting it not as "which city has the best restaurants" but, as he originally put it, "the best cities for dining out".

To find an answer to that question which has at least a little bit of quantitative analysis along with the qualitative, you've got to look at the relative populations, i.e., how many good restaurants per capita.

On that basis, I'd wager NYC wouldn't do nearly as well as many other cities. I've visited a couple smaller Midwestern cities and university towns in the east and midwest that have far more excellent restaurants than you would think they would warrant based on population.

Obviously, the per capita approach is no less flawed than any other, especially when dealing in matters of taste. The larger the city, the more quality restaurants it can support. But a city of 100,000 that can support half a dozen excellent restaurants is a "top city for dining" in my book.

[eSkillet.com]

Having done Philadelphia, New York, Chicago and Boston all recently my conclusion is Boston for the best city.

Of course New York on shear volume of restaurants is going to be a favorite but how many restaurants just are not very good?

We didn't have a bad meal in Boston but had very mediocre meals in the other cities. Probably just lucky but perception is reality I guess.