Best Foodie Cities in America in 2025

Today, the term “foodie” is widely used to describe anyone with a passion for gourmet dining—but foodie culture goes far beyond upscale restaurants. Enthusiasts seek out unique and exciting flavors wherever they can, from home kitchens to hidden gems like street food trucks. For many, eating isn’t just a necessity—it’s a hobby or even a way of life.

While exploring culinary delights can sometimes be costly, many cities across the U.S. offer budget-friendly options that don’t sacrifice quality. These foodie-friendly cities appeal to both home cooks and adventurous eaters eager to sample local flavors. To uncover the top affordable destinations for food lovers, WalletHub evaluated over 180 U.S. cities using 28 key indicators of foodie appeal. Our data set ranges from the cost of groceries to the affordability and accessibility of high-quality restaurants to food festivals per capita.

Main Findings

Best Food Cities in America

Note: With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that city, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that metric category.

Lowest

• 1. Laredo, TX
• T-2. Brownsville, TX
• T-2. Fort Smith, AR
• 4. Amarillo, TX
• 5. Corpus Christi, TX

Highest

• 178. San Francisco, CA
• 179. Anchorage, AK
• 180. Juneau, AK
• T-181. Honolulu, HI
• T-181. Pearl City, HI

Lowest

• 1. Reno, NV
• T-2. Las Vegas, NV
• T-2. Henderson, NV
• T-2. North Las Vegas, NV
• T-5. Kansas City, MO
• T-5. Overland Park, KS

Highest

• 178. Anchorage, AK
• 179. Pittsburgh, PA
• 180. Jersey City, NJ
• 181. Salem, OR
• 182. Philadelphia, PA

Most

• T-1. Las Vegas, NV
• T-1. Miami, FL
• T-1. Orlando, FL
• T-1. San Francisco, CA
• T-1. Houston, TX

Fewest

• 178. North Las Vegas, NV
• 179. West Valley City, UT
• 180. Lewiston, ME
• 181. South Burlington, VT
• 182. Pearl City, HI

Highest

• 1. Cape Coral, FL
• 2. Santa Rosa, CA
• 3. Portland, ME
• 4. Port St. Lucie, FL
• T-5. Seattle, WA
• T-5. Tacoma, WA

Lowest

• 178. Mobile, AL
• 179. Baton Rouge, LA
• 180. Birmingham, AL
• 181. Montgomery, AL
• 182. Jackson, MS

Most

• T-1. Orlando, FL
• T-1. Miami, FL
• T-1. Las Vegas, NV
• T-1. Atlanta, GA
• T-1. Pittsburgh, PA

Fewest

• 178. Pearl City, HI
• 179. Charleston, WV
• 180. Casper, WY
• 181. Lewiston, ME
• 182. South Burlington, VT

Most

• T-1. Santa Rosa, CA
• T-1. Portland, OR
• T-1. Seattle, WA
• T-1. San Diego, CA
• T-1. Portland, ME

Fewest

• 132. Hialeah, FL
• 133. Arlington, TX
• 134. Garland, TX
• 135. Pembroke Pines, FL
• 136. San Bernardino, CA

Most

• T-1. Salt Lake City, UT
• T-1. Spokane, WA
• T-1. Richmond, VA
• T-1. Fort Lauderdale, FL
• T-1. Pittsburgh, PA

Fewest

• 178. West Valley City, UT
• 179. Bridgeport, CT
• 180. New York, NY
• 181. Columbus, GA
• 182. Pearl City, HI

Most

• T-1. St. Louis, MO
• T-1. Cincinnati, OH
• T-1. Orlando, FL
• T-1. Pittsburgh, PA
• T-1. Honolulu, HI

Fewest

• 178. North Las Vegas, NV
• 179. Santa Clarita, CA
• 180. Burlington, VT
• 181. West Valley City, UT
• 182. Pearl City, HI

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In-Depth Look at the Best Cities for Foodies

Miami, FL

Miami is the best city for foodies, leading the country when it comes to the availability of affordable restaurants rated at least 4.5 stars out of 5. It also has an extremely high number of restaurants per capita.

In addition to having a lot of dining establishments, Miami also has high-quality choices. The city has the 12th-most diversity when it comes to the types of restaurants available, and the 11th-best ratio of full-service restaurants to fast-food chains. On top of that, foodies who want to partake in fine dining can choose from 13 Michelin-starred restaurants. One of them, L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, even has two Michelin stars.

Finally, Miami is a great place for foodies who enjoy cooking at home. It has the third-most farmers’ markets, ninth-most gourmet specialty food stores, third-most butcher shops, and the second-most kitchen supply stores per capita.

Portland, OR

Portland, OR, is the second-best foodie city, standing out in terms of the number of craft breweries and wineries, herbs and spices shops, food and wine tours, and food festivals per capita. Like the other top cities, it also has a very high number of restaurant choices, especially ones with at least 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Unfortunately, unlike its top three counterparts, Portland doesn’t currently have any Michelin-starred restaurants. However, the city doesn’t impose any tax on food, be it groceries or prepared meals. So, whether you’re planning a home cookout or treating yourself to a restaurant dinner, you won’t have to spend a dime on tax.

San Francisco, CA

San Francisco is the third-best city for foodies, offering a very high number of restaurants per capita and one of the best selections of affordable restaurants that are rated at least 4.5 out of 5 stars. San Francisco also currently has a staggering 26 restaurants with Michelin stars, including three establishments with three stars apiece: Atelier Crenn, Benu, and Quince.

In addition, the Golden Gate city has the sixth-best diversity of restaurant types in the country, along with the fourth-best access to healthy food options. San Francisco also has a large number of food festivals and cooking schools per capita, allowing foodies to enjoy new culinary experiences.

To top things off, San Francisco is among the leading cities in the country when it comes to herb and spice stores, international grocery stores and craft breweries per capita.

Ask the Experts

Wallet-conscious foodies don’t always have to sacrifice quality for price. For money-saving advice and policy-related tips for improving the local food scene, we asked a panel of experts to weigh in with their thoughts on the following key questions:

1. What tips can you provide to foodies on a tight budget?
2. In evaluating the best foodie cities for your wallet, what are the top five indicators?
3. What are the dining out trends for 2025?
4. What tips can you offer to health-conscious foodies who like to eat out?
5. What role can local authorities play in improving the food scene in their city?

Cassandra D. Chaney
Ph.D. – J. Franklin Bayhi Endowed Professor, Program in Human Development and Family Science (HDFS) in the School of Social Work, College of Human Sciences and Education – Louisiana State University
Read More

Adam Roy
MS, CEC, CCE, CHE – The Dr. Lewis J. & Mrs. Ruth E. Minor Professor of Culinary Business, The School of Hospitality Business, Broad College of Business – Michigan State University
Read More

Lucheng (Ben) Wang
Ph.D. – Lecturer, Horst Schulze School of Hospitality Management, College of Human Science – Auburn University
Read More

Robert Paul Jones
Ph.D. – Chairperson, Shoppers, College of Health and Human Sciences | Hospitality and Retail Management – Texas Tech University
Read More

Madhavi Menon
Ph.D. – Professor of Psychology, Department of Psychology & Neuroscience – Nova Southeastern University
Read More

Dr. M. H. Raza
Creator of MCEM Programs, Associate Professor, School of Teaching, Learning, and Developmental Sciences – Missouri State University
Read More

More Experts

Methodology

In order to determine the best and cheapest local foodie scenes, WalletHub compared 182 cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across two key dimensions, “Affordability” and “Diversity, Accessibility & Quality.”

We evaluated those dimensions using 28 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions and costs for foodies. For metrics marked with an asterisk (*), we used the square root of the population to calculate the population size in order to avoid overcompensating for minor differences across cities.

Finally, we determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order the cities in our sample. In determining our sample, we considered only the “city proper” in each case and excluded surrounding cities in the metro area.

Affordability – Total Points: 30

• Cost of Groceries: Double Weight (~7.50 Points)
• Accessibility & Affordability of High-Quality Restaurants: Full Weight (~3.75 Points)
  Note: This metric measures the prevalence of affordable restaurants with ratings of at least 4.5 stars.
• Restaurant Meal Cost: Double Weight (~7.50 Points)
• Sales Tax: Full Weight (~3.75 Points)
• Food Tax: Full Weight (~3.75 Points)
• Average Beer & Wine Price: Full Weight (~3.75 Points)
  Note: “Average Beer Price” refers to the average price, excluding any deposit, of a six-pack of 12-ounce Heineken containers, and “Average Wine Price” refers to the average price of a 1.5-liter bottle of Chablis or Chenin Blanc or any white table wine.

Diversity, Accessibility & Quality – Total Points: 70

• Restaurants per Capita*: Triple Weight (~8.08 Points)
• Ratio of Full-Service Restaurants to Fast-Food Establishments: Triple Weight (~8.08 Points)
• Growth in Number of Full Service Restaurants (2022 vs 2017): Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Restaurant Diversity: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Presence of Michelin-Starred Restaurants: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Average Ranking of Restaurants on Yelp’s “Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S.” List: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Food Trucks per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Access to Healthy Food Options: Double Weight (~5.38 Points)
• Farmers Markets & CSA Programs per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
  Note: “CSA” refers to community-supported agriculture.
• Food Freshness: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
  Note: The share of workers involved in agricultural activities was used as a proxy for this metric.
• Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Shops per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Craft Breweries & Wine Bars per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Coffee & Tea Shops per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Gourmet Specialty-Food Stores per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
  Note: “Gourmet Specialty-Food Stores” includes, among others, candy stores, chocolatiers and cheese shops.
• Grocery Stores per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• International Grocery Stores per Capita*: Half Weight (~1.35 Points)
• Butcher Shops per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Herbs & Spices Stores per Capita*: Half Weight (~1.35 Points)
• Kitchen Supplies Stores per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Food Festivals per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Cooking Schools per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)
• Food & Wine Tours per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.69 Points)

 
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected as of September 1, 2025 from the U.S. Census Bureau, Council for Community and Economic Research, Federation of Tax Administrators, Tax Foundation, County Health Rankings, Avalara, Wikipedia, Numbeo, TripAdvisor and Yelp.

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