2 San Diego Co. Eateries Make List Of '100 Hottest Restaurants' In America

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA - Online restaurant reservation site OpenTable today released its list of the 100 "hottest restaurants in America'' for 2016, with San Diego eateries Juniper & Ivy and Kettner Exchange making the cut.

The list reflects the combined opinions of more than 5 million restaurant reviews submitted between March 1, 2015, and Feb. 29 by verified OpenTable diners for more than 20,000 restaurants in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, according to the website.

Juniper & Ivy is located at 2228 Kettner Blvd, San Diego, while Kettner Exchange is at 2001 Kettner, also in San Diego.

The Los Angeles area had the most restaurants on the list -- 17 -- with eight of those located in West Hollywood: E.P.+L.P., .ink, The Ivy, The Nice Guy, Toca Madera, Ysabel, Pump and Sur Lounge. The latter two eateries are
operated by onetime "Dancing With the Stars'' contestant Lisa Vanderpump and husband Ken Todd, who appear on the Bravo series "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills'' and "Vanderpump Rules.''

Bestia, Republique and Perch in Los Angeles made the list, as did Cassia in Santa Monica, Venice eateries Gjelina and the High Rooftop Lounge, Vitello's in Studio City and two South Bay restaurants -- Manhattan Beach Post and Palmilla Cocina Y Tequila in Hermosa Beach.

Three Riverside County restaurants -- all in the Coachella Valley -- were recognized: Eight4Nine and The Tropicale, both in Palm Springs, and The Nest in Indian Wells.

No Orange County restaurants were on the list, which includes honorees in 27 states.

California has 25 restaurants listed, followed by New York with 15, Florida and Illinois with seven each, Texas with five, Colorado and Georgia with four winners apiece, and Louisiana, Massachusetts and Nevada with three
each.

Arizona, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio, and Utah count two winners per state. Connecticut, Iowa, Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Tennessee are also
represented.

More than one-fifth of the restaurants on the list opened their doors in 2015. While American cuisine was quite popular, Asian, global, Italian, Mexican and sushi eateries also made strong showings.

All restaurants with a minimum "overall'' score and number of qualifying reviews were included for consideration, according to OpenTable. Qualifying restaurants were then sorted according to a score calculated from
each eatery's average rating in the "hot spot'' category.

Also see:

• Top California Restaurants: 2016 James Beard Nominees Announced
• Arsenic in California Wine? Whatever Happened to That Lawsuit?

Is there an eatery in San Diego County that you feel was overlooked? Let us know in the comment section ...

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