San Jose

San Jose

San Jose is Silicon Valley's anchor city, much bigger than San Francisco by population, and culturally underrated because everyone drives through it on the way somewhere else. The Vietnamese food scene (especially in Little Saigon) is one of the best in the country. The weather is impossibly mild, the Santa Cruz Mountains rise to the west, and the tech money funds a genuinely excellent restaurant scene.

Winston-Salem

Winston-Salem is Moravian cookie traditions, old tobacco wealth (R.J. Reynolds), and Krispy Kreme's hometown (the original hot doughnut sign is still here). Old Salem is a living history Moravian village downtown. The food scene has picked up nicely, the arts scene leans on the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Slower-paced than its Triad neighbors. A little secret.