[tomhoward]

This is unnecessarily inflammatory. Several cities around the world are having an impact. I've spent plenty of time in SF (some of it with my partner who has been a semi-professional food reviewer for 10+ years) and yes, it's great. But Melbourne and Sydney in Australia – which are similarly cosmopolitan to SF – would have to count as rivals and also have a strong influence internationally, as do cities in Asia and Europe. There's no need to argue that one particular city is leading the world "by a fair margin". It's a subjective claim that is impossible to prove and thus only leads to futile arguments.

[rsync]

I didn't mean to be inflammatory.

I am not a CA native and I don't live in SF (although I do live in Marin). I do, however, travel all over the United States and the world and I see that there has been a global, emergent food culture (perhaps a monoculture ?) and it seems clear to me that San Francisco is the root stock - from the ambience and the lighting to the food sourcing and the coffee list.

I'm sure it's a repeat of "American Food" before it and "French Cuisine" before that. It won't last forever.