If you’re a foodie, Sacramento is the place for you

For those in the Sacramento area who consider themselves a foodie – someone who has a self-described refined interest in food – according to a recent study, you are in one of the best places nationally.

A survey released this week by personal finance website WalletHub.com of the ranking of 182 American cities showed Sacramento to be the third best for foodies. With its third-place ranking, Sacramento ranked ahead of San Franciso and San Diego, rated fifth and seventh, respectively.

The ranking system looked at two broad categories – affordability, which accounts for 30 percent of the weighing, and 70 percent given to diversity, accessibility, and quality. The diversity category includes 22 items: farmers’ markets, access to fresh food, breweries, and restaurants per capita.

Within the diversity category, Sacramento was rated the seventh best nationally. In the affordability category, Sacramento came in 58th place.

Notwithstanding social issues confronting Sacramento like homelessness, travel and tourist boosters have marketed the region as a farm-to-fork epicenter. To that end, the annual Tower Bridge farm-to-fork dinner has gained national recognition and centerpiece of the recent Farm-to-Fork Festival.

Other regional cities have tried riding Sacramento’s coattails to bolster interest in their culinary scenes, such as they are. Elk Grove has not only sponsored events like the recent Uncorked and Uncapped event in Old Town-Historic Downtown Elk Grove, they are offering incentives to breweries starting operations in the city.

While Sacramento ranked at the top of the list, other California cities did not do as well. Fremont, which typically ranks high in other WalletHub studies, was ranked in 161st place.

If foodie culture is high on your list, the cities of Montgomery, Ala, West Valley City, Ut, Nampa, Id., Shreveport, La., and Pearl City Hi., are probably not for you. Those five are the lowest-rated places for foodies.

Source: WalletHub