10. San Francisco-Oakland Bay Area
Pictured: Saison's chef-owner Joshua Skenes.
10. San Francisco-Oakland Bay Area
Pictured: Saison's chef-owner Joshua Skenes.
9. Atlanta, Georgia
9. Atlanta, Georgia
8. New Orleans, Louisiana
8. New Orleans, Louisiana
7. Charleston, South Carolina
Pictured: The great hall at Charleston's City Market through a skylight added down the middle.
7. Charleston, South Carolina
Pictured: The great hall at Charleston's City Market through a skylight added down the middle.
6. Washington D.C.
6. Washington D.C.
5. Seattle, Washington.
Serious Pie in Seattle.
5. Seattle, Washington.
Serious Pie in Seattle.
4. Denver, Colorado
The skyline of Denver rises behind the River North Arts district, near Ink! Coffee shop in Denver.
4. Denver, Colorado
The skyline of Denver rises behind the River North Arts district, near Ink! Coffee shop in Denver.
3. Chicago, Illinois
Pictured: A river tour boat chugs between downtown skyscrapers and under the State Street bridge on the Chicago River.
3. Chicago, Illinois
Pictured: A river tour boat chugs between downtown skyscrapers and under the State Street bridge on the Chicago River.
2. Austin, Texas
2. Austin, Texas
1. Los Angeles, California
Pictured: Umbrellas and chairs for dining along Broadway in front of the Grand Central Market in downtown Los Angeles.
1. Los Angeles, California
Pictured: Umbrellas and chairs for dining along Broadway in front of the Grand Central Market in downtown Los Angeles.
San Francisco might not be the American culinary mecca we believe it to be — at least, not according to the editors of Zagat.
The restaurant publication is back with its annual list of the "most exciting" food cities in the country, and the San Francisco Bay Area barely lands on the list.
The Bay Area, which they define as "San Francisco & Bay Area, California," takes the No. 10 position while California's other major city, Los Angeles, takes — sorry, guys — first place.
"The list is curated based on feedback from industry experts and Zagat editors who have tried and tested the best of what the 2017 most exciting food cities have to offer," a press release from Zagat reads.
With 55 Michelin stars awarded to Bay Area restaurants, San Fransisco is a culinary city to look out for!
Media: Buzz 60Perhaps there is one silver lining for San Franciscans: The Bay Area did at least beat out New York City for a place on the list. The East Coast city didn't nab a position on the list at all.
As Food and Wine notes, those low positions for otherwise highly regarded culinary capitals is because of the high cost of operations in such cities.
Alyssa Pereira is an SFGATE staff writer. Email her at apereira@sfchronicle.com or find her on Twitter at @alyspereira.