Zagat Texas Restaurant Survey 2006

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2008 Zagat Texas Restaurant Survey published March 20, 2008
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ZAGAT TEXAS RESTAURANT SURVEY SUMMARY 2006
Source: Zagat Survey, www.zagat.com

Publish Date: April 6, 2006

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Most Popular Restaurants	Texas Meal Costs by City
Top Food Rankings	Average Ratings & Service Deficit
Best Newcomers	Questions Relating to Dining
Top Restaurants by Cuisine	Top 20 Food Ratings

Number of Restaurants Surveyed: 1,176 Gender:

Number of Surveyors: 5,011 Male: 51%

Total Restaurant Meals per Year: 1,050,000 Female: 49%

Age:

Avg. Meals Out per Week per Surveyor: 4.0 20s: 13%

Avg. Meals per Surveyor per Restaurant: 14.3 30s: 29%

Total Restaurant Meals per Day: 2,900 40s: 24%

Est. # of Meals per Restaurant: 1,330 50s: 22%

60+: 12%

Average Restaurant Meals Per Week: Zagat U.S. Average: 3.2

Bos

DC/Balt

Chi

New Orl

Atl

NYC

San Antonio

Miami/

So. Fl

Austin/Hill Country

Dallas/FW

Houston

2.6

2.7

2.8

2.9

3.0

3.1

3.2

3.3

3.4

3.7

3.7

3.8

4.0

4.2

Average Percent Tip: Zagat U.S. Average: 18.7%

West./HRV

Chi

Miami/

So. Fl

New Orl

NYC

Bos

DC/Balt

Long

Isl.

Atl

Phil

18.3

18.7

18.7

18.8

18.9

19.0

19.1

19.2

Most Popular Restaurants:

Austin/Hill Country:	Dallas/Ft. Worth:	Houston:	San Antonio:
1. Chuy’s	1. Abacus	1. Mark’s American	1. Paesano’s
2. Salt Lick	2. Del Frisco’s	2. Cafe Annie	2. Le Rêve
3. Eddie V’s	3. Mi Cocina	3. Carrabba’s Italian	3. Biga on the Banks
4. Vespaio	4. Mansion/Turtle Creek	4. Pappas Bros.	4. Boudro’s/Riverwalk
5. Uchi	5. Café Pacific	5. Brennan’s	5. P.F. Chang’s
6. Castle Hill	6. Bob’s	6. P.F. Chang’s	6. Liberty Bar
7. Jeffrey’s	7. P.F. Chang’s	7. Américas	7. L’Etoile
8. Z’Tejas	8. French Room	8. Churrascos	8. Las Canarias
9. Fonda San Miguel	9. La Duni Latin	9. Goode Co. Texas BBQ	9. Bistro Vatel
10. Kerbey Lane Café	10. Houston’s	10. Cheesecake Factory	10. Mi Tierra*

* Indicates a tie with the restaurant above.

Top Food Rankings:

Austin/Hill Country:	Dallas/Ft. Worth:	Houston:	San Antonio:
1. Vespaio	1. French Room	1. Mark’s American	1. Le Rêve
2. Wink	2. York Street	2. Da Marco	2. Lodge Rest.
3. Hudson’s	3. Abacus	3. Brennan’s	3. Korean B.B.Q. House
4. Jeffrey’s	4. Aurora	4. Bistro Moderne	4. Biga on the Banks
5. Musashino Sushi	5. Lola	5. Pappas Bros.	5. Bistro Vatel
6. Aquarelle	6. Saint-Emilion	6. Chez Nous	6. L’Etoile
7. Café/Four Seasons	7. Tei Tei Robata Bar	7. Cafe Annie	7. Las Canarias
8. Mirabelle	8. Lonesome Dove	8. Frenchie’s	8. Francesca’s at Sunset
9. Fonda San Miguel	9. Pappas Bros.	9. Indika	9. Fleming’s Prime
10. Driskill Grill	10. Café Pacific	10. Vic & Anthony’s	10. Frederick’s

Best Newcomers:

Austin/Hill Country:	Dallas/Ft. Worth:	Houston:	San Antonio:
*Unrated*	Rated	Unrated	Unrated
Capitol Brasserie	25 – Hibiscus	Armadillo Palace	Bin 555
Enoteca Vespaio	Jasper’s	Black Walnut	Café Europa
Fino	Nobu Dallas	Gravitas	Eclipse Café
NuAge Café	Hattie’s	Kiran’s	Pasión! Latin Bistro
Opal Divine’s	24 – Taverna Pizzeria	Noe	Sandbar Fish House

Top Restaurants By Cuisine:

Austin/Hill Country:
American (New) - Wink	Seafood - Eddie V’s
American (Traditional) - 1886 Café	Southwestern - Roaring Fork
Barbecue - Salt Lick	Steakhouses - Eddie V’s
Italian - Vespaio	Tex-Mex – Vivo
Mexican - Fonda San Miguel	Thai - Madam Mam’s

Dallas/Ft. Worth:
American (New) - York Street	Japanese - Tei Tei Robata Bar
American (Traditional) - French Room	Mediterranean - Bistro Louise
Chinese - Empress of China	Mexican - Esperanza’s
Continental - Hôtel St. Germain	Seafood - Café Pacific
Eclectic - Abacus	Southwestern - Lonesome Dove
French - French Room	Steakhouses - Pappas Bros.
Indian - Roti Grill	Tex-Mex - La Playa Maya
Italian - Mi Piaci	Thai - Royal Thai

Houston:
American (New) - Mark’s American	Japanese - Kubo’s
American (Traditional) - Breakfast Klub	Med./Middle Eastern - Café Lili Lebanese
Barbecue - Goode Co. Texas BBQ	Mexican - Otilia’s
Chinese - Fung’s Kitchen	Seafood - Lynn’s Steak
Eclectic - Shade	Southern/Southwestern - Brennan’s
French - Bistro Moderne	Steakhouses - Pappas Bros.
Hamburgers - Lankford Grocery	Tex-Mex - Goode Co. Hamburgers
Indian - Indika	Thai - Nit Noi
Italian - Da Marco	Vietnamese - Kim Son

San Antonio:
American (New) - Lodge Rest.	Italian - Paesano’s
American (Traditional) - Grey Moss Inn	Japanese - Godai/GoroÑ
Chinese - P.F. Chang’s	Mexican - Rosario’s
Eclectic - Boardwalk Bistro	Seafood - L’Etoile
French - Le Rêve	Steakhouses - Fleming’s Prime

Ñ Low votes/less reliable.

Texas Meal Costs:

City	Average Meal Cost	Average Meal Cost, 20 Most Expensive
Austin/Hill Country	$25.30	$44.10
Dallas/Ft. Worth	$33.36	$64.17
Houston	$27.04	$54.22
San Antonio	$26.57	$48.43

Cost Comparisons To Other Cities:

City	Average Meal Cost	Average Meal Cost, 20 Most Expensive
Tokyo*	$74.46	$204.73
London*	$61.31	$127.56
Paris*	$63.58	$181.71
Palm Beach/Palm Beach Co.	$38.56	$61.49
Las Vegas	$38.38	$80.78
New York	$37.61	$112.49
Long Island	$36.71	$62.92
San Francisco	$35.52	$85.27
Westchester/Hudson Valley	$35.24	$62.39
New Jersey	$35.03	$64.09
Ft. Lauderdale/Broward Co.	$34.85	$54.28
Miami/Dade Co.	$34.41	$65.52
Connecticut	$34.37	$59.44
The Keys/Monroe Co.	$33.97	$46.27
Dallas/Ft. Worth	$33.36	$64.17
Washington, DC	$33.26	$68.94
Baltimore	$31.81	$54.34
Chicago	$31.64	$79.51
Los Angeles	$31.21	$69.29
Philadelphia	$30.91	$65.99
Boston	$28.88	$62.13
Texas Overall	$28.67	$66.20
Houston	$27.04	$54.22
San Antonio	$26.57	$48.43
Seattle	$25.56	$62.12
Austin/Hill Country	$25.30	$44.10
Atlanta	$24.72	$55.70
New Orleans	$24.45	$52.76
Zagat U.S. Average	$32.06	$64.03

*Based on 3/30/2006 exchange rate.

Average Ratings and Service Deficit:

City	Average Rating – Food –	Average Rating – Service –	Service Deficit
San Francisco	21.50	19.04	2.46
New Orleans	20.14	17.74	2.40
Houston	21.67	19.28	2.39^†
New York	20.48	18.27	2.21
Austin/Hill Country	21.62	19.37	2.25^†
Boston	20.88	18.77	2.11
Seattle	20.25	18.20	2.05
Washington, DC	20.82	18.81	2.01
London	20.16	18.17	1.99
New Jersey	21.09	19.12	1.97
Los Angeles	20.52	18.61	1.91
San Antonio	21.13	19.26	1.87^†
Baltimore	21.64	19.80	1.84
Chicago	20.36	18.61	1.75
Long Island	20.42	18.70	1.72
Atlanta	20.61	18.92	1.69
Miami/So. Florida	21.01	19.33	1.68
Dallas/Ft. Worth	22.25	20.63	1.62^†
Philadelphia	20.26	18.67	1.59
Connecticut	20.18	18.67	1.51
Paris	18.88	17.40	1.48
Las Vegas	21.13	19.75	1.38
Westchester/Hudson Valley	19.93	18.59	1.34
Zagat U.S. Average	20.85	18.96	1.89

†Also, 78% Texas complaints relate to service

QUESTIONS

1. What irritates you most about dining out?

Service	78%
Noise	8%
Food	5%
Prices	4%
Smoking	2%
Other	3%

2. Compared to 2 years ago, are you eating out…?

More	38%
The same amount	44%
Less	18%

3. Compared to 2 years ago, are you spending…?

More	63%
The same amount	32%
Less	5%

4. Of 14 possible lunches & dinners in a week, how many do you:

Skip?	0.9
Cook at home?	6.0
Eat out/take out?	7.1
Total meals eat per week:	13.1

% of total meals eat out/take out:	54%

5. Name your favorite cuisine:

Italian	23%
Mexican	20%
American	17%
French	8%
Japanese	8%
Thai	7%
Chinese	6%
Indian	4%
Other	7%

6. Compared to last year, are you eating…?

More healthy	36%
Just as healthy	58%
Less healthy	6%

7. How do you typically make restaurant reservations?

Call directly	74%
On the Internet	3%
Don’t usually reserve	23%

8. When dining out in the evening, do you typically

order wine...?

By the glass	43%
By the bottle	41%
By the carafe (house)	1%
Bring your own	1%
Don’t drink it out	14%

9. What’s the farthest you’d travel (one-way) for a good dinner?

Less than 30 minutes	19%
30 minutes	29%
45 minutes	24%
1 hour	19%
Over 1 hour	9%

10. What’s your favorite barbecue item?

Brisket	36%
Ribs	27%
Pulled pork	11%
Sausage	9%
Chicken	8%
Turkey	7%
Other	2%

11. How do you eat your BBQ?

With sauce	80%
Without sauce	20%

12. How often do you order Texas wines with your meals?

Whenever it’s available	3%
Often	6%
Once in a while	24%
Rarely	33%
Never	34%

13. Should smoking be permitted in restaurants?

Yes	7%
No	93%

14. Should smoking be permitted in bars?

Yes	40%
No	60%

15. If smoking were to be permitted in restaurants,

would you dine out…?

More often	2%
The same amount	34%
Less often	64%

Ñ Low votes/less reliable.

20 Most Expensive

City

Average Meal Cost

London*

Paris*

Long Island

Ft. Lauderdale/Broward Co.

Miami/Dade Co.

Chicago

City

Average Rating

San Francisco

New Orleans

New York

Boston

Washington, DC

London

New Jersey

Los Angeles

Chicago

Long Island

Atlanta

Skip?

Italian

Mexican

Thai

Indian

Other

More often