Zagat, the influential restaurant guide, has ranked America’s 30 most exciting food cities.

№1, it may not surprise locals, is Los Angeles.

“This year has been a turning point of sorts,” wrote Zagat’s Lesley Balla. “Out-of-town chefs have been relocating to L.A. for years, but it’s never been as much of a magnet as it is now with high-profile names coming from around the globe in droves.”

Two other California metropolises also earned places in the ranking.

In San Francisco, which placed 10th, Zagat praised restaurants that went with smaller concepts and outsized cooking, citing the Cuban sandwiches at Media Noche and the roast chicken at RT Rotisserie.

And San Diego, ranked 23rd, won plaudits for its diversity of offerings, including a growing presence of Filipino restaurants.

An aperitif at Vespertine. The restaurant’s abstract cuisine may not be for everyone. (Jeff Elstone/Vespertine)

The ranking was created based on input from restaurant industry experts and Zagat editors.

Notably, both Los Angeles and San Francisco outperformed New York City — ranked 13th — which Zagat said had “a quiet year.”

Not so in Los Angeles, which had a number of buzzworthy openings. Among the standouts, the publication said, were Rossoblu, Kismet and Felix.

But the region’s most talked about newcomer in 2017 was Vespertine, whose opening in Culver City in July led to divided reactions.

Jonathan Gold, the L.A. Times restaurant critic, said its throbbing soundtrack, abstract dishes and eye-popping cost weren’t for everyone. Still, he declared it the city’s best restaurant.

Viewed as an artwork, Gold posited, “Vespertine is in its way perfect.”

This article is from the California Sun, a newsletter that delivers California’s most compelling news to your inbox each morning — for free. Sign up here.