This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Utahns love their burgers, and visitors to the state have taken note.

They ranked Salt Lake City second in the nation behind only Houston for having the nation's best burgers, according to a survey published by Travel + Leisure.

"Locals have lined up in droves ever since the streamlined burgers of In-N-Out have come to town, but otherwise the area's burger personality is quite a bit more decadent—as in, pastrami burgers," according to the magazine's website. "To try a quarter-pound patty piled high with more beef, check out Crown Burger, where they also add Thousand Island dressing, lettuce, onions, and cheese."

The ranking came from Travel + Leisure's annual "America's Favorite Cities" survey, in which it asked readers to identify the best features of 35 cities. Only major cities were in the running for best burger, according to the magazine.

After Houston and Salt Lake City, the other cities in the top five were Providence, R.I., Denver and Austin, Texas.

Of Denver's fourth-place ranking, Travel + Leisure said: "That fresh mountain air works up an appetite ... Locals love the H Burger, in lower downtown Denver, with fresh-ground Angus, Hatch chile pepper, and red pepper-tomato jam. Purists, meanwhile, rave about Bud's Bar in Sedalia, outside the city."