Written by Patrick Clarke, TravelPulse, October 10, 2025
Florida is home to some of the best foodie destinations in the U.S. and Miami stands alone as the number one city for travelers looking to treat their taste buds in 2025.
That’s according to new research from WalletHub.
The personal finance website recently evaluated more than 180 U.S. cities using 28 key indicators of foodie appeal, from the cost of groceries to the affordability and accessibility of high-quality restaurants and even the number of food festivals per capita, among other factors.
The Magic City takes the crown, earning an overall score of 73.58 out of 100, ranking second for diversity, accessibility and quality (70 of 100 points) and 156th for affordability (30 of 100 points).
“In addition to having a lot of dining establishments, Miami also has high-quality choices,” WalletHub points out. “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.”
Elsewhere in the Sunshine State, the Theme Park Capital of the World, Orlando ranks fifth and Tampa also cracks the top 10, coming in seventh.
The West Coast, specifically California, is also well-represented at the top of WalletHub’s rankings, with San Francisco checking in at number 3, followed by Sacramento and San Diego at ninth and 10th, respectively. Portland, Oregon and Seattle also made the top five, with popular destinations like Austin, Texas and Las Vegas finishing out the top 10.
Portland stands out for its lack of food tax, while the Bay Area boasts more than two dozen Michelin-starred restaurants.
10 Best US Food Cities
- Miami, Florida
- Portland, Oregon
- San Francisco, California
- Seattle, Washington
- Orlando, Florida
- Austin, Texas
- Tampa, Florida
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Sacramento, California
- San Diego, California
Some notable cities find themselves at the bottom of WalletHub’s foodie rankings, including Southern staples like Montgomery, Alabama and Jackson, Mississippi. The two cities rank second-to-last and last, respectively, when it comes to the ratio of full-service restaurants to fast-food establishments, WalletHub finds.
These low-performing foodie cities won’t necessarily break the bank, but also aren’t affordable enough to overcome their dismal scores in the all-important diversity, accessibility and quality category.
Last-place Pearl City, Hawaii, boasts the fewest restaurants per capita and is tied with nearby Honolulu for the highest cost of groceries. In terms of restaurants per capita, Pearl City’s mark is 21 times worse than Las Vegas, which has the highest ratio.
Another entry in the bottom 10, Lewiston, Maine, features the third-fewest restaurants per capita and the second-fewest ice cream and frozen yogurt shops per capita.
10 Worst US Food Cities
- Pearl City, Hawaii
- Lewiston, Maine
- Moreno Valley, California
- Montgomery, Alabama
- Jackson, Mississippi
- West Valley City, Utah
- Shreveport, Louisiana
- Rancho Cucamonga, California
- Yonkers, New York
- Columbus, Georgia