If you travel often enough to the same city, you will probably find at least one favorite restaurant. At that restaurant, you will probably have a favorite meal. My question is — do you stick with a favorite or do you try new places/meals?

I am pretty conservative. I like sure bets and I stick with them. When I go to Minneapolis, I always dine at Bellanotte. In Houston, I hit any of the Goode Company Barbeque locations and Kenny & Ziggy’s (Two spots also loved by my brother-in-law Scott and nephew Matt Parker). In Cleveland, I never miss Mallorca. In Detroit, my choice is Ciao. In St. Louis, I enjoy Pueblo Solis.

Every year, I promise myself that I will try a new restaurant in each town. It’s not that I am tired of any of these restaurants. I just think I should try new places. My problem is that I love these places. Even at my chosen restaurants, I almost always choose the same meal.

A lot of my trips are one or two days. I don’t want to skip my favorite restaurant and risk a meal at another place. On the other hand, I always think I should venture out of this comfort zone. If the trips are longer, I could hit my favorite one day and venture out to the others (at least until I have developed more favorites, thus creating the same problem.)

I also have this dilemma in my hometown of Chicago. I have my favorites on the south side and downtown, places I don’t go too often. Last summer, I made a promise (I think I even blogged it here), that I would try new restaurants. The results were mixed. I did find a few new options, but I also had several duds.

I would love to know about your dining choices in frequently visited cities. Do you always make sure to hit a certain favorite spot or do you try new places for new experiences? I am not asking for your favorite restaurants (although feel free to name them if you’d like) while on trips. I’d just like to know how many of you have this same struggle.

While I am waiting for your responses, I will be heading to Detroit. I swear I will try something new there. Then again, Ciao’s mushroom and asiago soup is awfully good!

— John Wroblewski, distribution specialist