Food Variety Comparison: Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Washington D.C. (size, best)

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by Mutiny77

Why? Houston is the most diverse big city in the country so it only makes sense that it would have a culinary scene that would reflect that diversity, especially being located in a region (Gulf Coast) already known for its food.

And I never said otherwise. My sticking point was the assertion that it is head and shoulders above its' peers in said category, based on nothing but puffery and braggadocio.
I should expect no better from this crew.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by Ebck120

it's so strange you never mention anything when the homerism is about Atlanta but rather chime in as an elite member.. I'm pretty sure more people here on this thread are more embarrassed for you and Atlanta based on your comments...

Well, then, let them speak for themselves. For you to speak for them would be the biggest embarrassment of all.

[DabOnEm]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

And I never said otherwise. My sticking point was the assertion that it is head and shoulders above its' peers in said category, based on nothing but puffery and braggadocio.
I should expect no better from this crew.

Why do you keep saying this when not a single person in this thread has said this? The topic is food diversity, where DC and Houston have a slight lead on the others when taking everything into account. No one is discounting Atlanta and the great eats it has but its simply not as diverse...

[Mr. Clutch]

I think Dallas is about on the same level as Atlanta, which is why its surprising it's not getting many votes. But perhaps, as was said before, Dallas folks are being more realistic than Atlanta folks.

As far as these cities go I'd say:

1. Houston
2. DC
3. Atlanta/Dallas
4. Atlanta/Dallas
5. Miami

This is no knock on Atlanta, Dallas and Miami - they are all excellent food cities. I think Atlanta does Southern and Soul Food the best, and Miami has excellent Latin and European food, among others. As a huge fan of Ethiopian and Korean food, Dallas has the best in Texas by far, and probably the best in the entire South.

With that said, I spend about half the year in both Houston and DC, so I may be biased. Houston has long had a spectacular food scene to me, but DC has improved by leaps and bounds over the last 5 years or so. DC used to be good ethnic restaurants and good upscale restaurants with very little in between, but the food scene has really filled out here - it's much more diverse than it used to be in my opinion.

Oh, and I completely agree with those that say Houston has a distinct lack of European restaurants. Maybe that's primarily cultural? The city has a lower than average number of European-Americans than most large cities, and I think that's part of the explanation. Maybe that's not why, but I can't think of any other reasonable explanation. It's never bothered me because other than Italian and certain German dishes, I'm not all that big on most European cuisines, but that's definitely a hole in the city's culinary scene.

[Ebck120]

Originally Posted by DabOnEm

Why do you keep saying this when not a single person in this thread has said this? The topic is food diversity, where DC and Houston have a slight lead on the others when taking everything into account. No one is discounting Atlanta and the great eats it has but its simply not as diverse...

This is more or less how Atlanta homers are.... Atlanta must be the best or at least top 2 in everything or they will argue and tell you that you lack experience, even if you lived there as you've already witnessed with loveindecater telling anyone that's said Atlanta isn't the best for this topic out of the options listed. You'll see.

[Ebck120]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

And I never said otherwise. My sticking point was the assertion that it is head and shoulders above its' peers in said category, based on nothing but puffery and braggadocio.
I should expect no better from this crew.

Then why respond at all....... as I said earlier, so weird, but at least you're proving my point so thanks I guess

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by Ebck120

Then why respond at all....... as I said earlier, so weird, but at least you're proving my point so thanks I guess

You've proven nothing, except a complete disassociation from reason and accountability.

[Ebck120]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

You've proven nothing, except a complete disassociation from reason and accountability.

Thanks again

[ScubaSteve87]

Originally Posted by waronxmas

Honestly, all of these cities are doing pretty well in the food game. The only real criticism that can be levied on this batch of cities is Miami's severe lack of Asian options compared to the other four.

When it comes to Miami, the most significant blind spot is African cuisines. As I stated somewhere in this thread, I would need to drive all the way to PBC for Ethiopian. And Ethiopian is no longer considered "exotic" lol.

When it comes to Asian cuisines, I can generally find everything just need to look harder. Yes, Miami is significantly behind Houston/DC in her Asian offerings (both quantity and quality). When it comes to Atlanta, I don't think there is a huge difference. When it comes to Desi/Korean offerings, yes Atlanta is ahead of Miami. But Miami has more Thai and Sushi options than Atlanta. Despite having a small Japanese population, Miami is saturated with Sushi places due to a combination of cultural and geographic factors. Not to mention Atlanta is also significantly behind in Latin/European offerings.

Again I'm ignoring Dallas because I just don't have enough experience.

[ParaguaneroSwag]

Actually it is by a landslide. Houston has the highest variety no question. And seems like the poll shows this as Houston has twice the amount of votes as the second place