Forbes List of Top U.S. Restaurant Cities Includes a Few Surprises
By the All Culinary Schools career research team—Your source for Culinary School news, trends and programs.
The summer travel season is still in gear, and for those who judge a destination by its culinary excellence, Forbes Traveler's John Mariani recommends a handful of American cities that offer the very best restaurant experiences. Though the current economic situation has made it difficult to open new upscale eateries, there's no shortage of variety and excitement at existing restaurants, which offer ever-increasing creativity in their gastronomic offerings.
Whether you're a travel-loving epicurean or a cooking school graduate, Mariani says it's no longer necessary to look solely to traditional food havens such as New York—even in smaller cities such as Naples, Florida and Greenville, South Carolina, good restaurants abound and offer regional diversity to foodies and aspiring chefs alike. One of the bigger surprises on the list for some might be Las Vegas, Nevada, whose restaurant scene has virtually exploded and includes contributions from celebrity chefs such as Emeril Lagasse and Wolfgang Puck.
The well-established restaurant cities remain on the map, of course. New York's more than 23,000 restaurants continue to attract national and international visitors, with offerings that range from upscale French dining rooms to casual steakhouses. Los Angeles provides the "California casual" dining experience at local institutions such as Spago, while San Francisco presents a whirlwind of variety with Alice Waters' revolutionary Chez Panisse as well as a cornucopia of different Asian cuisines. Visit Chicago for fun and innovative experiences such as "molecular cuisine," but don't forget to stop in New Orleans, which has almost as many restaurants now open as it did before Hurricane Katrina hit.
Wherever you travel in the United States, though, a memorable dining experience isn't very far away.
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