San Diego ranked No. 5 in study of the best ‘foodie’ cities in America

San Diego’s credibility as a foodie town has long been in the shadow of San Francisco and Los Angeles, but it’s gaining ground. A new study out this month from Rent.com has ranked San Diego No. 5 among the 50 best foodie cities in America.

While San Francisco and LA still outranked San Diego in this data-based study, America’s Finest City is nipping at their heels.

New York City ranked No. 1 in the nation with 84.6 percent of global cuisines represented within its city limits. Chicago followed at No. 2. LA tied for third with San Francisco, but LA claimed the third slot because it has a much larger population. San Diego tied for fifth with Philadelphia, but Philly earned the actual No. 5 slot because it has 100,000 more residents than San Diego’s 1.4 million, according to the study.

The study was reported by Brian Carberry, managing editor of Rent.com, which is an online guide to renting operated by RentPath, a digital marketing company whose searchable databases — including Apartment Guide, Rent.com and Rentals.com — provide residential listings nationwide. In order to help renters find information about cities where they’re planning to relocate, the websites maintain databases and advertising for area restaurants and other attractions in each city.

Carberry said in an email that the study was created by identifying 104 unique dining cuisines among the 8 million business listings in its national database. Then they looked at how many restaurants advertise serving at least one of these cuisines in every US city with 50,000 or more residents, based on 2019 U.S. Census population data. Those cities with the highest concentration of ethnic cuisines were determined to be the best foodie cities.

New York City, which is known for its concentration of global cuisines, had 84.6 percent of the 104 cuisines represented, easily earning it the No. 1 spot. Chicago had 80.7 percent of cuisines. San Francisco and LA both had 79.8 percent of cuisines represented. And San Diego and Philadelphia had 76.9 percent represented.

In addition to the rankings, the study also looked at the most popular cuisines in each city that made the list. In San Diego, the most popular cuisine was American, followed by Mexican and deli. In LA, it was Mexican, American and burgers. In San Francisco, it was American, Asian and New American. And in New York, it was American, deli and Italian.

Rounding out the top 11 cities on the best list were Las Vegas, Washington, D.C., Houston, Seattle and Portland, Ore.

Rent.com also created a bottom 10 list for the worst foodie cities in America. Most were rural and remote cities with 50,000 or more residents.

No. 1 on the list was Herriman, Utah, a Salt Lake City suburb where just 3.8 percent of cuisines are represented. The three California cities that made the worst list were Jurupa Valley, with 6.7 percent of cuisines; and Eastvale and Delano, both with 8.6 percent.

To read the full study, visit rent.com/blog/best-foodie-cities-in-america/.