Best Midwest Food Towns

Some of us build whole vacations around food. Travel experts call it culinary tourism. We just call it eating well--restaurants with pancakes or prime rib so good you want second helpings on the way home.

Based on editors' extensive travels, we've picked the Midwest's five top food towns. (Since most big cities have strong dining scenes, we skipped metro areas of 1 million or more.) We looked for fresh ingredients, a range of prices and cuisines, farmers markets and neat food shops. Trust us. Visit anywhere on our list, and you won't go home hungry.

The next 10 slides show our finds at our top five towns. To see 60 other restaurants we liked, click on the link below.

Pictured: Grilled chicken with polenta at Gratzi in Ann Arbor, Michigan

(A version of this story appeared in Midwest Living® May/June 2009. Prices and other details can change; please check specifics before making travel plans.)