For The Love Of Port

Definitely some surprises here. For my local market, I am a bit surprised, but even looking at several other cities that I know well, there are some in the list that were really shocking.

What do you think of your own slice of the dining scene? I am glad they gave a little bit of an explanation about the parameters that went into creating this list. Seems like they did their homework.

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Nothing within 100 miles of here in that last. I'm not impressed!

I'm happy to see one of our all time favorites - Carnevino in LV, NV - on the list.

Every Chicago list has to have Alinea and Next. No easy tables at either place, anyway. Someday. I was surprised to see Fogo de Chao on the list, and a lot of others. I love the meats there, don't get me wrong, but the wine is such a ripoff. Anybody who marks at up to four times what I would pay at Costco isn't going to get me to buy a bottle anytime soon. A glass of 2007 Dow VP is $34 or so at Fogo. Yikes. "It was rated 100 points, sir..." That said, in Chicago, it is easy to do better than Fogo, anyway. This city has a lot of great food, and settling on a chain like Fogo just doesn't seem right here. A top 10 list in Chicago could be debated for hours. I am disappointed to see that Tru and Spiaggia are not on that list, anyway.

I have yet to try Carnevino in Vegas. I am very aware of Mesa Grill and Bouchon, though. When we are in Vegas, we make it a point to eat every breakfast/brunch at Bouchon.

Up in Milwaukee, Sanford was one of the best meals we ever had. Roots is excellent, also.

The only NYC place we have tried from that list is Gramercy Tavern. That was a great meal. Someday we will try a Momofuku place.

Brian C. wrote: I have yet to try Carnevino in Vegas.

If you go to Carnevino, I have a couple of suggestions: First, ask to be seated in Gary's section - he's a very experienced and attentive server. Some of the younger servers are not so hot. Second, ask to be seated in the Wine Room (it has another, Italian name, but they'll know what you mean).

Brian C. wrote:I am very aware of Mesa Grill and Bouchon, though. When we are in Vegas, we make it a point to eat every breakfast/brunch at Bouchon.

We tend to do Bouchon for breakfast and Postrio for lunch - it's a regular tradition for us now. Doesn't hurt that they're both good! Although Bouchon has a hard time properly cooking an over-medium egg! What would Thomas Keller think if he knew? (Turns out, we recently learned that we know someone who knows someone who knows TK - maybe if Bouchon still hasn't learned to cook eggs by the next time we're there, TK will hear about it...)

Only one for Denver, and very heavy on the Brazilian and steakhouses everywhere. At least I've covered most of the NOLA restaurants, as it is one of my favorite cities for dining.

Seems like a paid advertisement for Boston. Only one listed is really popular and I haven't even heard of a few on the list.

Seems like a very suspect list to me. Los Angeles has only 2, while Milwaukee (no offense) has 9 of the top 250?

I'm with Steve on this one. A number of restaurants listed are large operations with large followings. It just seems to me that a number of restaurants that would normally be expected on the list are nowhere to be seen. In the Los Angeles area I would have expected to have seen Michael's, Capo and AOC on the list...

Just seeing all the Fogo locations on this list does make it suspect, but this is supposed to be a list of most popular, and not an approximation of a Zagat or Michelin guide.

I've been to four of the restaurants on the Milwaukee list. Sanford is the big fish in the small pond. It would compete on any city's list (certainly Chicago), and it has won James Beard recognition in the past. As I said, Roots is pretty strong as well, but Sanford is clearly the best of the four I have been to. I have also been to the Bartalotta's Lake Park Bistro. Anything in the Bartolotta's stable is worth a look. There are a number of them around the Milwaukee area (and they do have a place at the Wynn in Vegas). Harbor House and Bacchus are also part of that group. Milwaukee plays big for such a small place. We go up there a few times a year, and there is always a restaurant worth trying. I can't speak to what LA is like, but anybody who discounts what Milwaukee has to offer will be happily eating their words after sampling a few of the better places.

Then again, as Brian mentioned, this is based on popularity, and popularity is not necessarily a good indicator of quality. Port and Madeira, though obviously well regarded and coveted by this crowd, are far from "popular" with the masses.