Where the bars are: Top U.S. cities for drinkers

Jayne Clark | USA TODAY

Got a hankering for a beer and a slice? Pittsburgh's your place.

The city has 12 bars per 10,000 residents, more per capita than any other city in the nation, according to a new tally by a business data collection group.

As for pizza: Pittsburgh ranks No. 2 in the nation for the number of pizza restaurants per capita, with 9.9 per 10,000 people.

The news comes as a surprise to Steel City boosters. "I thought you were going to say churches and trees," said Visit Pittsburgh spokeswoman Lynne Glover when I relayed the numbers.

The tallies are courtesy of Infogroup Targeting Solutions, which gathers data for sales and marketing people. Cities that rank high in bars also tend to boast more than the average number of pizzerias. And the Rust Belt is well represented on both lists. Overall, seven cities are ranked in the top 10 for both bars and pizza.

A list of the top 10 U.S. bar cities:

1. Pittsburgh (11.8 per 10,000 people)

2. St. Louis (11.6)

3. Cleveland (11.5)

4. Cincinnati (11.5)

5. Milwaukee (9.5)

6. Orlando (9.4)

7. Las Vegas (9.1)

8. Portland, Ore. (8.5)

9. Omaha (7.6)

10. Buffalo (7.1)

And the top cities for pizza restaurants:

1. Orlando (10.3 per 10,000 people)

2. Pittsburgh (9.9)

3. Cincinnati (6.7)

4. Cleveland (6.7)

5. Buffalo (6.5)

6. St. Louis (6.3)

7. Las Vegas (6.3)

8. Tampa, Fla. (6.3)

9. Miami (6)

10. Minneapolis (4.8)

Other tasty factoids:

-- Orlando has the most restaurants per capita with almost 100 eateries for every 10,000 restaurants; followed by Atlanta (95.7); Miami (90.6); Las Vegas (79.7) and St. Louis (77.3).

-- The greatest concentration of seafood restaurants is in Orlando (2.6 for every 10,000 residents), followed by Miami, Atlanta, New Orleans and Virginia Beach, Va.

-- Barbecue joints rule in Atlanta with 3.7 restaurants per 10,000 people. Other spots with lots of places to order 'cue: Birmingham, Ala.; Orlando; Memphis, Tenn.; and Tampa, Fla.