The days of Houstonians crying woe is me and complaining about the city's place on various lists are over.
When Travel+Leisure polled its readers to determine their favorite cities for dining, Houston emerged as a surprising winner among the 20 top cities ranked. San Francisco (19), Dallas (17) and New Orleans (15), which topped a similar poll conducted by Thrillist last year, finished far back. Even Austin, usually beloved by national mags and their readers, finished a disappointing 12th.
The list was part of the magazine's America's Favorite Cities survey.
Just to keep people guessing, there's no mention of Oxheart or Underbelly.
Readers rated cities in 10 different food related categories both high and low like street food, coffee, gourmet markets and fine dining. Houstonians will not be surprised to learn that the city placed first in burgers, brunch and specialty food shops. Just ask anyone who's tried to walk into Hugo's on a Sunday or stood in line at Hubcap Grill. The Bayou City also earns a strong third in wine.
Recently opened Korean fried chicken joint Dak & Bop earns a shout out for its blackberry chili margaritas, as does Little Bigs for pairing sliders with a quality wine list. Just to keep people guessing, there's no mention of Oxheart or Underbelly in the tidy blurb.
The mag concedes that the results, which placed Providence, Rhode Island second and Kansas City third in America, may have been "perhaps boosted in the polls by their enthusiastic locals," but still, a win is a win. In your face, Austin.
The city ranked tops in brunch thanks to places like Hugo's.
