Why cold Cleveland is suddenly a hot, cool place to visit CLEVELAND from K1

Increasingly in the national and international spotlight, Cleveland has received growing attention for its burgeoning culinary scene. Last year a group of travel editors toured the city on a "Quirky Cleveland tour" hosted by Positively Cleveland. The group headed to the West Side Market, the Christmas Story house, Happy Dog saloon (shown here, one of the writers photographing toppings on one of the restaurant's signature hot dogs) and Big Fun, Lakeview Cemetery and more.

(Joshua Gunter, The Plain Dealer)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- In its list of "America's Best Food Cities" for 2015, Time magazine subsidiary, Time.com, ranks Cleveland in seventh place.

For good measure, "The Best Location" edged out perennial dining destinations such as San Francisco (No. 19), New Orleans (No. 15), New York City (No. 10) and Portland, Oregon (No. 8).

Based on a poll among readers of Travel & Leisure magazine, who were invited to rank 38 U.S. cities "for qualities like walkable streets, historic appeal and art galleries -- which, for some travelers, are just pleasant time-killers between meals" respondents also ranked "the 10 most crave-worthy features of a city, from the relatively low-cost indulgences of street food, coffee and bakeries to specialty gourmet markets, wine bars and high-end, chef-driven restaurants."

Of Cleveland, the editors noted:

"The rust belt city offers some old-fashioned, even old world charms. Readers ranked it at No. 5 for its rich food halls, like West Side Market -- with spices, baked goods and delis -- which dates back to 1912, when it when it catered primarily to the city's immigrants. Today, you can also tuck into great Polish cuisine, like chicken paprikash, bratwurst, pirogues, and stuffed cabbage -- at Sokolowski's University Inn, a James Beard American Classic award-winner now in its third generation of family ownership. Still, you don't get into the top 10 by living completely in the past; Cleveland also delighted readers with its trendy street food and bars (like Happy Dog, where hot dogs come with vodka sauerkraut or Bloody Mary ketchup) or upscale, New-American spots, like Lola Bistro, run by Iron Chef Michael Symon."

Other cities edging out Cleveland included:

No. 6: Albuquerque, New Mexico.

No. 5: Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota

No. 4: Atlanta, Georgia

No. 3: Kansas City, Missouri

No. 2: Providence, Rhode Island

No. 1: Houston, Texas.