Some consider Travel and Leisure Magazine a tad snobbish, but most everyone looks forward to Travel and Leisure’s “Best” ratings. These lists appear in different issues throughout the year and they rank everything travel- related, from the world’s best hotels to the best islands.
Recently, Travel and Leisure Magazine has named its choices for the best cities in America across different specialty food and drink categories. One of these lists happens to be the Best Cities for Microbrewed Beer. Which American cities top the ranks for specialty brew? Here is a list of the top twenty:
- Portland, OR
- Denver
- Seattle
- Providence
- Portland, ME
- Savannah
- Boston
- Austin
- San Francisco
- Nashville
- Kansas City
- Minneapolis/St. Paul
- Charleston
- Chicago
- Anchorage
- New Orleans
- Philadelphia
- San Diego
- Phoenix
- Houston
Portland and Denver top the Travel and Leisure Magazine’s Best Cities for Microbrewed Beer list and to anyone who has traveled in search of beer, this is no surprise. These two cities enjoy dozens of brewpubs, with many of them located a short walk apart.
As the list above indicates, Houston managed to squeeze in at the twentieth position. Given the lethargic number of breweries and brewpubs in a city our size, it is a little surprising that Houston ranked even this high. On the other hand, Houston is home to some excellent craft beer bars such as Flying Saucer Draught Emporium, the Gingerman, and others. The abundance of bars serving a wide selection of craft beer was enough to pull Houston up in the rankings in spite of its brewery deficiencies.
Looking at the rankings in Travel and Leisure Magazine’s other local specialty categories, Houston ranks #5 for barbecue; #23 for coffee bars; and #19 for pizza. In one category, specialty hamburgers, Houston achieved the ranking of best city in the United States. Anyone who has visited Houston will understand fully why Houston ranks number one in this category. Burger lovers can always a find a specialty restaurant in Houston, serving their favorite form of meat in any matter of ways.
As for the beer, well, twentieth place isn’t too bad and Houston does rank higher than in- state rival Dallas/Ft. Worth. A little more emphasis on bringing more brewpubs to Houston and expanding craft brewery operations will easily improve this ranking and if recent business activity is any indicator, Houston should be climbing higher on this Travel and Leisure list in the years to come.
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