How can you compare a restaurant like Alinea, where some of the dishes test our conceptions of the term "food" to a restaurant like Zuni Cafe, which makes wonderful contemporary bistro fare? You really can't, but Gourmet magazine tried to do just that when they put together their list of America's top 50 restaurants for 2006. The two types of food at Alinea and Zuni are almost at the opposites of the dining spectrum, so the reviewers at Gourmet compared the innovation, execution and satisfaction that arose from dining at both of them, as well as every other restaurant on the list below. Since they are subjective assessments, it is safe to say that the order of this list might not be precisely accurate, at least not for your personal tastes, but it is still a list of excellent restaurants, all of which are worth eating at if you have the chance.
1. Alinea – Chicago, IL
2. Chez Panisse – Berkeley, CA
3. The French Laundry/Per Se – Yountville, CA; New York, NY
4. Spago – Beverly Hills, CA
5. Joël Robuchon at the Mansion – Las Vegas, NV
6. La Rêve – San Antonio, TX
7. Masa – New York, NY
8. Alan Wong's Restaurant – Honolulu, HI
9. Daniel – New York, NY
10. Le Bernardin – New York, NY
12. Michel Richard Citronelle – Washington, D.C.
13. Charlie Trotter's – Chicago, IL
14. Arrows – Ogunquit, ME
15. Cyrus – Healdsburg, CA
16. Striped Bass – Philadelphia, PA
17. Babbo – New York, NY
18. Locke-Ober – Boston, MA
19. Canlis – Seattle, WA
20. L'Auberge Carmel – Carmel, CA
21. Bartolotta Ristorante di Mare – Las Vegas, NV
22. Restaurant August – New Orleans, LA
23. The Inn at Little Washington – Washington, VA
24. The Dining Room in the Ritz-Carlton Buckhead – Atlanta, GA
25. Vetri – Philadelphia, PA
26. Fore Street – Portland, ME
27. Jean Georges – New York, NY
28. Higgins – Portland, OR
29. Da Marco – Houston, TX
30. La Belle Vie – Minneapolis, MN
31. Parker's New American Bistro – Cleveland, OH
32. Michy's – Miami, FL
33. Frasca – Boulder, CO
34. Gramercy Tavern – New York, NY
35. Providence – Los Angeles, CA
36. Restaurant Guy Savoy – Las Vegas, NV
37. Zuni Café – San Francisco, CA
38. Urasawa – Beverly Hills, CA
39. Bacchanalia – Atlanta, GA
40. Sanford – Milwaukee, WI
41. York Street – Dallas, TX
42. Manresa – Los Gatos, CA
43. No. 9 Park – Boston, MA
44. Trattoria Nostrani – Santa Fe, NM
45. Cafe Juanita – Kirkland, WA
46. Paley's Place – Portland, OR
47. Lantern Restaurant – Chapel Hill, NC
48. L'Etoile – Madison, WI
49. Herbsaint – New Orleans, LA
50. Nana – Dallas, TX
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