Top Ten Undiscovered Cities For Local Food (PHOTOS)

We here at HuffPost Green were so inspired by our readers' response to our 10 Best US Cities for Local Food piece that we decided to host another round, made up of awesome locations you've told us about. We love both the chance to branch out from the big metropolises and the good-natured competition among our readers to prove their town is the best. So check out our slideshow of restaurants that we heard about straight from the locals who love them and don't forget to vote on your favorite!

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Local Food Restaurants

 

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Asheville, NC

Dubbed the Foodtopian Society, Asheville boasts an incredible array of locavore cuisine at its 135 restaurants, 17 farmers markets, 7 microbreweries and 11 annual food festivals.



Best Green Eats:

Fig Bistro is celebrated for its green menu made of local ingredients from nearby farms.

The Laughing Seed Café (pictured), a vegetarian eatery, offers an array of organic dishes.

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Comments

[travismmorrison]

02:48 PM on 08/20/2009

Athens GA... just because of the Grit.

[gilbot]

04:35 PM on 08/19/2009

Ashelantis for-evah!

[entopticon]

07:58 PM on 08/29/2009

I concur ;)

[LemonMeringue]

12:16 PM on 08/19/2009

Jackson, Wyoming

[forpeace]

09:22 PM on 08/18/2009

Number 1 and 5 .........

They both look good and I think they taste good too ........ by looking at the picture!

Yummy.

[HarryHamil]

10:53 AM on 08/18/2009

As someone who has worked for 14 years expanding the availability of local food for local people, I find your emphasis on restaurants astonishingly incomplete. It is great that a significant number of restaurants are biw emphasizing local food but most of us want to feast daily on local food and we can't do that in restaurants. Fortunate, it can be done year-round in the Asheville area because of the number of stores that sell locally grown food. This includes co-ops, local supermarkets, natural food stores and even large regional supermarkets. Best of all, a few could rightly be called "stores for local food NOT local food stores." Add to this the in season farmers tailgate markets, community gardens, CSAs and even one winter farmers market and you have truly, widely available local food--a footopia!

Also, you fail to mention how much variety is available locally. When I visited the huge Santa Barbara(CA) Farmers Market, I was stunned to see how little variety there was. I'm pretty certain that, during August, our little Black Mountain Tailgate Market has more variety than Santa Barbara does. Furthermore, our growers know a lot more about the individual varieties they are selling and happily answer even detailed questions..

Finally, Asheville is actually a fairly small city and gets a lot of credit for what is actually near but outside of it. A much better heading would be Buncombe County, NC.

[erinns]

09:39 AM on 08/18/2009

As for Burlington VT, Smokejacks is long gone, closed shop. The Penny Cluse is the place to go for awesome food with a good chunk being local.

[entopticon]

10:58 PM on 08/17/2009

For Asheville, I was surprised not to see the Early Girl mentioned too, as well as Over Easy, and Rosetta's Kitchen.

And the Marketplace, which focusses on local food with a great chef, and Bar 100 (in the Marketplace) which sells a bar menu made from ingredients coming from within 100 miles.

And Tupelo Honey, which has its own farm for the restaurant, and Sunnypoint Cafe, which augments its menu with their large, attached veggie garden, and Hector Diaz's restaurants (Salsa'a, Chorizo, Modesto) which make amazing, creative dishes out of many local meats and vegetables.

And Table, which specializes in "farm to table" cuisine.

And even the Chocolate lounge (so good) which serves local artisanal cheeses and chutneys along with locally made beers and locally made ice cream.

And so many more....

[eemilla]

10:43 PM on 08/20/2009

The Seed has its own farm, and it has been around for almost fifteen years. Unlike THC, the Seed also has healthcare for its employees without trying to guilt customers into buying branded junk. I don't think Bar 100 is still open, and yes The Marketplace is a great example of a local restaurant emphasizing local food, but it is also one of the most overpriced and overrated restaurants in our little mountain town. Table is another restaurant that features overrated and overpriced meals. With the wages here, local people cannot afford to eat at either of those restaurants. Concerning the French Broad Chocolate Lounge, it is five stars all the way, but for a cheaper dessert check out either The Hop or better yet Two Spoons.

[entopticon]

08:06 PM on 08/29/2009

Hey there Amelia, I agree that some of those places are expensive, but I've actually had pretty good experiences at them. I have had good experiences at the laughing seed as well, but I certainly don't find them to be inexpensive either. We are definitely fortunate to have a range of possibilities. I'm certainly a Two Spoons fan as well.

[StoryTime]

10:08 PM on 08/17/2009

Can't believe Santa Cruz is not on the list, talk about local heaven!!
We grow almost everything around Santa Cruz...but I guess 10 is 10!

[hellboundtrain]

05:41 AM on 08/18/2009

Well, that's alright You can be the not-so-secret secret. I'd be happy to discover you all next time I'm in the area.

[praxitas]

08:48 PM on 08/17/2009

love asheville for food too!!! when i saw the title, it came to mind instantly and guess what? its the first in the slide show.

[Marcus Woollen]

06:33 PM on 08/17/2009

Undiscovered Cities? How about Queens County, NY....with a population of 2.3 million, it would be the 4th largest city in the country if not incorporated into NYC.

And yet restaurant reviews, magazine writers, NYC foodie fashionistas won't set foot in Queens, but the extraordinary diversity of cuisines in the nation's most ethnically diverse county is mind-boggling. And very, very tasty.

[adamhood]

05:59 PM on 08/17/2009

Rosetta's Kitchen in Asheville is uh-mazing! :P

[entopticon]

10:45 PM on 08/17/2009

It certainly is a great asset to Asheville.

[berrycooda]

05:01 PM on 08/17/2009

Now you are making me hungry.

Too far to go to Asheville or other places so I
will go as far as the fridge for some left overs.

[darr]

04:38 PM on 08/17/2009

They all look yummy!! But once again Pittsburgh is missing. Permanti Brothers, Wholly's Fish Market. Nobody makes a sammich like Permanti's!
Da' Burgh is known far and wide for it's varied and unique ethnic dishes you can't find any other place.

[jamesmiller]

03:46 PM on 08/17/2009

"Undiscovered" by whom exactly? Columbus? Could I have a side of condescension with that, please?.

[Knowbetter]

03:16 PM on 08/17/2009

Austin wasn't mentioned.

Sssshhhhh!!!

[AirViceMarshalPark]

03:25 AM on 08/18/2009

Austin had good stuff to eat 30 years ago; now, it is all Yuppie food.