The 100 Best Restaurants in America: OpenTable Releases Its 2017 List

OpenTable—the online restaurant reservations system—just released its “100 Best Restaurants in America” list for 2017.

It’s one of the rosters that I look out for every year. Why? Because I would like to think that it’s as democratic as restaurant reviews can get. There are no rankings, no special awards, no titles, and no distinctive mentions. No singular chef, bartender, pastry chef, or restaurateur gets a “prize.” There are zero stealth critics dropping by anonymously and unannounced. There are no professional (or unprofessional) diners doling out profoundly subjective insights. There are no pretenses and no gimmicks—just good food and admirable service that regular people love. And thank God for that.

This is not The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, Michelin, or the James Beard Awards.

Instead, this is a list for the people by the people. The restaurants on this alphabetically–arranged list were culled from 12 million user–generated (and verified) reviews that involved more than 26,000 restaurants in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

So yes, it’s refreshing to see what (and where) the citizens of America like to eat—versus where one percenters go to drop four–figure sums on a meal for two. It’s also nice that places like Raoul’s (New York), Bones (Atlanta), Zahav (Philadelphia), and Girl & the Goat (Chicago) are on the list. It restores my faith in the American palate. However, I do have to wonder about the lack of New Orleans establishments, considering that it is one of the country’s great food cities.

As for the restaurants, all 100 honorees hail from 24 states and Washington D.C., where the coastal states of New York and California dominate the list, each boasting 19 restaurants—followed by Illinois and Pennsylvania with eight. Washington D.C. has seven and Texas has five. Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Ohio, and South Carolina all have three honorees each. And Hawaii, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Virginia each have two.

To view the full list, click here.

OPENTABLE'S 100 BEST RESTAURANTS IN AMERICA 2017

1770 House (East Hampton, New York)

Arethusa al Tavolo (Bantam, Connecticut)

Atera (New York, New York)

Barclay Prime (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Barrique Venice (Venice, California)

Bavette's (Chicago, Illinois)

Benu (San Francisco, California)

Bida Manda Restaurant and Bar (Raleigh, North Carolina)

Bones (Atlanta, Georgia)

Buccan (Palm Beach, Florida)

Café Monarch (Scottsdale, Arizona)

Cafe Provence (Prairie Village, Kansas)

Charleston (Baltimore, Maryland)

Charleston Grill (Charleston, South Carolina)

Chez Billy Sud (Washington, D.C. )

Coppa (Boston, Massachusetts)

CRUST (Miami, Florida)

Daniel (New York, New York)

Del Posto (New York, New York)

Double Knot (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Fishing With Dynamite (Manhattan Beach, California)

Frances (San Francisco, California)

Gabriel Kreuther (New York, New York)

Geronimo (Santa Fe, New Mexico)

Girl & the Goat (Chicago, Illinois)

Giulia Restaurant (Cambridge, Massachusetts)

Gramercy Tavern (New York, New York)

The Grill at The Ritz-Carlton, Naples (Naples, Florida)

Halls Chophouse (Charleston, South Carolina)

Harold Black (Washington, D.C. )

Heirloom Cafe (San Francisco, California)

Hersh's (Baltimore, Maryland)

Highlands Bar & Grill (Birmingham, Alabama)

The Inn at Little Washington (Washington, Virginia)

Jungsik (New York, New York)

Kinship (Washington, D.C. )

Koi (West Hollywood, California)

Kokkari Estiatorio (San Francisco, California)

L'Auberge Chez Francois  (Great Falls, Virginia)

La Grotta (Atlanta, Georgia)

Lahaina Grill (Lahaina, Hawaii)

L’Artusi (New York, New York)

Le Coucou (New York, New York)

Le Diplomate (Washington, D.C. )

Le Vallauris (Palm Springs, California)

Linwoods (Owings Mills, Maryland)

Mama's Fish House (Paia, Hawaii)

Marc Forgione (New York, New York)

Marcel's by Robert Wiedmaier (Washington, D.C. )

Marea (New York, New York)

Market Restaurant and Bar (Del Mar, California)

The Modern, Bar Room and Dining Room (New York, New York)

Momofuku Ko (New York, New York)

Neighborhood Services (Dallas, Texas)

Orchids at Palm Court (Cincinnati, Ohio)

Oriole (Chicago, Illinois)

Parc (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Per Se (New York, New York)

The Polo Bar (New York, New York)

Quince (San Francisco, California)

Raoul's (New York, New York)

Rasika (Washington, D.C.)

Restaurant L (Cincinnati, Ohio)

Riccardo Enoteca (Chicago, Illinois)

Rich Table (San Francisco, California)

RL Restaurant (Chicago, Illinois)

Rudy & Paco Restaurant & Bar (Galveston, Texas)

The Saddle River Inn (Saddle River, New Jersey)

Saint Jacques French Cuisine (Raleigh, North Carolina)

Shinsei Restaurant (Dallas, Texas)

Sotto (Cincinnati, Ohio)

Spinasse (Seattle, Washington)

St. Francis Winery & Vineyards (Santa Rosa, California)

Steve & Cookie's By the Bay (Margate, New Jersey)

Stonehouse at San Ysidro Ranch (Santa Barbara, California)

Sushi Nakazawa (New York, New York)

The Table at Season To Taste (Cambridge, Massachusetts)

Talula’s Garden (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

The Metro Wine Bar & Bistro (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)

Toscana (Los Angeles, California)

Townsend (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

True Food Kitchen, Chicago (Chicago, Illinois)

Uchi, Dallas (Dallas, Texas)

UMI (Atlanta, Georgia)

Upland (New York, New York)

Vernick Food & Drink (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Vetri Cucina (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Yvonne's (Boston, Massachusetts)

Zahav (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Zero Restaurant + Bar (Charleston, South Carolina)