Blog
The official dish on Zagat news and views
The Best of Houston
April 28, 2015
From the upscale “almost like being in Italy” Houston staple,
Da Marco
, to eateries like B
ernie’s Burger Bus
that serves up “absolutely wonderful” burgers out of a retrofitted school bus, today Zagat celebrates over 450 of Houston’s best restaurants. Based on the opinions of 2,071 avid local diners, new ratings and reviews of Houston restaurants are available today at zagat.com/houston and on Google Search and Maps.
Big hits include chef Tyson Cole’s “music in your mouth” sushi outpost,
Uchi
(Best Food), and the long-time fine-dining favorite, Brennan’s (Best Service, Best Decor), boasting “knock you off your barstool” cocktails and a “holy trinity of turtle soup, eggs Benedict and bananas Foster."
Second on the Best Food list is
Chama Gaúcha Brazilian Steakhouse
, followed by
Brennan’s
,
Da Marco
, and
Vic & Anthony’s
.
When it comes to this year’s Most Popular restaurants, diners say their favorite eateries are:
1.
Fadi’s Mediterranean Grill
2.
Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar
3.
Niko Niko’s
4.
Vic & Anthony’s
5.
Gaidos
While Italian and Seafood are tied as the favorite cuisine (both 18%), Houston restaurants can all agree that diners still love their meat. What they can’t agree on is how to spell barbecue. This year’s top five barbecue joints spell the word four different ways. Serving up brisket diners call “smoked to textbook perfection”, a “religious experience”, and “beautiful”, this year’s Best for BBQ restaurants are:
1.
Gatlin’s BBQ
(re-opening soon)
2.
Killen’s Barbecue
3.
CorkScrew Barbecue
4.
Pizzitola’s Bar-B-Cue
5.
Goode Company Barbeque
According to our National Dining Trends poll, Houston’s avid diners eat out a total of 4.8 times per week for a combined lunch and dinner, more than the national average, 4.5 times per week. The average spend per person for dinner out is $36.49, which is below the $39.40 national figure. After the meal, diners leave a reported 18.4% gratuity (vs. 19.3% nationally.)
Houston diners cited Service as the biggest dining irritant (30%), followed by Noise (17%) Prices (15%), Crowds (13%), Parking (10%), Food (7%), Traffic (4%), and Other (4%). The biggest service complaints were 1. Slow service 2. Inattentive staff and 3. Inadequate training. Feast on the entire list of Houston’s 50 Best Restaurants at
www.zagat.com/best-restaurants/houston
.
Posted by Jamie Tredwell, Zagat
San Diego’s Top Restaurants
April 21, 2015
Today Zagat is revealing new ratings and reviews for nearly 400 of the best restaurants in San Diego - all based on the collective opinions of 2,157 avid local diners. New reviews are available today at
zagat.com/san-diego
and integrated throughout Google Search and Maps.
Photo: Mille Fleur
This year’s big winners include La Jolla’s
Marine Room
(Best Decor), boasting "magnificent" ocean views, the "classic" favorite
In-N-Out Burger
, sweeping the Most Popular category, and the “crème de la crème” of San Diego dining,
Mille Fleurs
, taking honors for both Best Food and Best Service. Following behind Mille Fleurs on the Best Food list are
A.R. Valentien
,
Sushi Ota
,
MARKET Restaurant + Bar
and
Carnitas’ Snack Shack
, proving that diners are just as excited about haute cuisine as they are for budget-friendly Triple-Threat Pork Sandwiches.
San Diego’s avid diners eat out 4.8 times per week (combined lunch and dinner), which is more than the 4.5 times per week nationally. The average spend per person for dinner out is $34.10, below the $39.40 national figure. And once the meal ends, diners leave a reported 18.5% gratuity (vs. 19.3% nationally).
Italian is the No.1 cuisine (according to 19%) and the recent openings of pizza places, spanning fast casual spots like the Irvine-based chain
Blaze Pizza
, to mid-priced restaurants like
Double Standard
and
Stella Public House
, show that locals are hungry for a slice. This year’s best pizza places are:
1.
Buona Forchetta
2.
urbn
3.
Bronx Pizza
4.
Napizza
5.
Lefty’s Chicago Pizzeria
It’s no secret that tacos are another local staple. In score order, here are the restaurants serving up the best tacos in town:
1.
TJ Oyster Bar
2.
City Tacos
3.
El Indio
4.
El Zarape
5.
Puesto
When asked about dining irritants, locals cited Service (31%), followed by Parking (19%), Noise (16%), Prices (15%), Crowds and Food (both 7%), Traffic (4%) and Other (1%). The biggest complaints relating to service were 1. Inattentive staff 2. Slow service and 3. Rude staff.
Restaurant habits: A whopping 93% of San Diego diners - the largest percentage nationally - say they have sent a dish back to the kitchen while 81% admit to having eavesdropped on a conversation at the next table. 47% of diners say they are less inclined to dine at a restaurant with a cash-only policy and 32% feel it’s rude and inappropriate for children to use tablets/phones at the table, while 19% say it’s perfectly acceptable.
For a look at this year’s 50 Best Restaurants in San Diego, be sure to check out
www.zagat.com/best-restaurants/san-diego.
Posted by: Tiffany Herklots, Zagat
Labels
30 under 30
latlong
mobile
Product announcement
survey results launch post
valentine's day
Archive
2018
Jan
2017
May
Apr
Feb
2016
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
May
Jan
2015
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jun
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2014
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Feb
2013
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Feed
Google
on
Follow @zagat
Follow