Neither Chicago nor San Francisco have takedown restaurant cultures, and both have relatively spectacular restaurant scenes.<p>Some of this gets to what you&#x27;re looking for from a restaurant. If you&#x27;re looking at food as an art form, and only want to spend time getting exposure to the very best of it, NYC may indeed be a better filter for you. If what you want is a Great Neighborhood Restaurant, which is perhaps Great in ways that make it distinctive regionally or even nationally, I think Chicago is a better bet than LA.