It's not a contest. But Louisiana would nab first place on OpenTable's list of 50 Best Southern Restaurants in America for 2018 if it were a contest. Eight restaurants on the list are from Louisiana -- all in New Orleans.
If you're not living in NOLA or traveling there soon, it's certainly respectable to be a Texan, though, where OpenTable named six notable Southern restaurants. Two of those are in the Dallas area: Ida Claire in Addison and Rapscallion in Dallas' Lowest Greenville.
The list was created from some 12 million reviews on OpenTable of 27,000 restaurants in the United States. The restaurants had to have a Southern category tag and then were ranked according to the restaurant's rating, according to a statement from OpenTable.
It's always a great thing for Dallas restaurants to be included on national lists. Take Grumps Burgers in Granbury, for instance: TripAdvisor reviews recently declared it one of the top burger joints in the country. Not a bad bump for a small-town North Texas restaurant.
But, the data from OpenTable reviews (and other lists like this) don't take into account good places where somehow the numbers didn't add up. Hattie's in Oak Cliff, for instance, is a beloved Southern restaurant. So is Celebration in Dallas. And Fixe Southern House and Buttons Restaurant in Fort Worth. You could consider Whistle Britches, Mama's Daughters' Diner, Norma's Cafe and Pink Magnolia as good contenders, too.
What would be your pick for best Southern restaurant in Dallas?
Ida Claire (pictured above) is a restaurant off of Belt Line Road in Addison that has an Airstream trailer out on the patio and Southern favorites on the menu like fried green tomatoes and chicken in a biscuit. Rapscallion (pictured below) specializes in rotisseried chicken alongside down-home veggies like collard greens and mac and cheese. Wait, macaroni isn't a vegetable. Please, can it be?
Caroline Potter, OpenTable's chief dining officer, gives credit to states like Texas for its many Southern options. "While winning restaurants are sprinkled throughout the nation, spots in southern states rightfully dominate the list, which works as a handy guide for travelers who want to eat their way through the region," she says in a statement.
Peep the entire list below -- a.k.a., where to blow your diet on your next vacation:
50 Best Southern Restaurants in America for 2018, from OpenTable
Abel Brown - Augusta, Georgia
Acadiana - Washington, D.C. Acre - Auburn, Alabama Alligator Soul - Savannah, Georgia Anson - Charleston, South Carolina Antebellum - Flowery Branch, Georgia Atchafalaya Restaurant - New Orleans, Louisiana The Boil Waverly - New York, New York Boucherie - New Orleans, Louisiana Brennan's of Houston - Houston, Texas Cafe Dupont - Birmingham, Alabama Carrollton Market - New Orleans, Louisiana Circa 1886 - Charleston, South Carolina Cured - San Antonio, Texas Cypress Restaurant - Tallahassee, Florida Distilled at The Sire Hotel - Lexington, Kentucky Dogwood Southern Table & Bar - Charlotte, North Carolina Fixe - Austin, Texas High Street Caffe & Vudu Lounge - West Chester, Pennsylvania Highball & Harvest - Orlando, Florida Highlands Bar & Grill - Birmingham, Alabama Hot and Hot Fish Club - Birmingham, Alabama Ida Claire - Addison, Texas Kitchen Notes - Omni Nashville - Nashville, Tennessee The King's Kitchen - Charlotte, North Carolina Langdon's Restaurant - Mount Pleasant, South Carolina Madison's - Highlands, North Carolina Mandolin - Raleigh, North Carolina Maple Tree Inn - Blue Island, Illinois Merrick Inn - Lexington, Kentucky Midtown Cafe - Nashville, Tennessee Mozelle's Fresh Southern Bistro - Winston-Salem, North Carolina Mr. B's Bistro - New Orleans, Louisiana Muriel's Jackson Square - New Orleans, Louisiana The Olde Pink House Restaurant - Savannah, Georgia Preserved Restaurant - St. Augustine, Florida Rapscallion - Dallas, Texas Restaurant IRON - Pensacola, Florida Restaurant R'evolution - New Orleans, Louisiana Restaurant Rebirth - New Orleans, Louisiana Root & Bone - New York, New York RT's Restaurant - Alexandria, Virginia Rx Restaurant - Wilmington, North Carolina South City Kitchen- Multiple locations State of Grace - Houston, Texas Stella's Bistro - Simpsonville - Simpsonville, South Carolina Toutant - Buffalo, New York Urban Grub - Nashville, Tennessee Willa Jean - New Orleans, Louisiana Yardbird Southern Table & Bar - multiple locations