Every December, as the year winds down and people take stock of their experiences of the past 12 months, magazines and television shows announce their annual Top 10-types of proclamations. This year is no different: Travel & Leisure has published its “50 Best New Restaurants of 2009.” That’s quite a lot of best new restaurants in North America, isn’t it? This list can be a handy guide for the culinary traveler.
Travel & Leisure’s Best New Restaurants of 2009
Atlanta: Holeman and Finch Public House, a British pub with Mediterranean and Southern flair
Atlantic City, NJ: Izakaya at the Borgata, small plates of Asian food
Boston: Sportello, a sleek modern spot with Italian dishes
Cambridge, MA: Hungry Mother, comfortable eatery with well-done comfort food
Dallas: Tei/An, Japanese soba restaurant in a modern setting
Glendale, CA: Palate Food + Wine, friendly joint appealing to everyone Chicago: L20, a “neo-Modernist seafood temple.”
Chicago: Urbanbelly, a tiny noodle and dumpling nook
Chicago: Perennial, standard American fare with Asian and European influences
Chicago: The Publican, rustic Teutonic beer hall with German food
New York City: Corton, high-end and classy restaurant from Drew Nieporent
New York City: Soto, sushi heaven
New York City: Convivo, pasta and other Italian favorites near the UN building
New York City: Scarpetta, best southern Italian standards
New York City: Co., a simple name for simply perfect pizza in Chelsea
New York City: Txikito, Basque restaurant with emphasis on seafood
New York City: Gottino, Italian food and a wine cellar open through late at night
New York City: Terroir, a very small wine cellar with appropriate small plates
New York City: Dovetail, run by Fench Laundry-trained John Fraser
San Francisco: Moss Room, paean to the 100-mile rule in the California Academy of Sciences
San Francisco: Academy Cafe, fun self-serve upstairs from the Moss Room
San Francisco: La Mar, Peruvian fare with bay views
San Francisco: Spruce, bar menu extraordinaire
San Francisco; Brenda’s French Soul Food, as homey and comfortable as soul food should be
San Francisco: Sentinel. small sandwich shop that elevates the simple lunch sandwich
San Francisco; Blue Bottle Cafe, best new coffee house with three daily roasts
San Francisco: Dynamo Donuts and Coffee, and yes, there are bacon-maple donuts
Houston: Feast, bringing English fare to Texas in a large arts-and-crafts house
Houston: Textile, run by former “Best new Chef” (Food & Wine) Scott Tycer
Houston: Reef, big airy space with global approach and Southern specialties
Houston: Voice, elegant dining in former bank lobby
Seattle: Quinn’s, Locally grown produce creatively prepared
Seattle: Pike Street Fish Fry, a fish-n-chips joint done right
Seattle: Spring Hill, Both creative and comfort food presented beautifully
Seattle: Joule, small cafe style restaurant with multiculti blended entrees
Seattle: How to Cook a Wolf, with no wolves on the Italian menu
Seattle: Poppy, a large space with small plates on the menu (think creative tapas)
Seattle: Corson Building, Simple local fare on a prix fixe menu
Las Vegas: Raku, small Japanese restaurant off the busy Strip and worth the trip
Los Angeles: The Bazaar by Jose Andres, best new Spanish style entrees in LA
Miami: Scarpetta, a Florida turn on the famed NY Scarpetta by Scott Conant
Minneapolis: Heidi’s Minneapolis, affordable romance in a dining experience
Napa Valley: Ubuntu, a modern setting with healthy vegetarian fare
New Orleans: Cochon Butcher, Cured meat done New Orleans-style
Oakland: Camino, locavore’s country food, Alice Waters-style
Peoria Heights, Ill: June, locally-grown produce for hearty farm meals
Philadelphia: Zahav, Middle-Eastern favorites like felafel and hummus
Portland OR: Beast, chalkboard walls, communal seating, and farm-grown entrees
Raleigh: The Pit, best new barbeque joint, North Carolina-style
Washington DC: Founding Fathers, modern style meets American classics
Now, any foodie can tell you that the restaurant business is cutthroat. It’s especially hard to stay afloat these days, what with budget concerns and more people dining at home. These best new restaurants of 2009 are on top today, but which will still be popular in ten years? Hopefully, all of them. Only time will tell.