I'm from upstate NY and love upstate NY, but come on, seriously, you're going to tell me that Syracuse is a jewel of upstate NY. Yeah it's better than Watertown, but it's not as good almost any other upstate city.
Here's how it compares to Albany:
Syracuse, NY
Here's how it compares to Hartford
Syracuse, NY
And to Charleston, SC (which really does feel like a small town)
Syracuse, NY
I'll give you Columbus Bakery they make a good flat, but goodness the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Syracuse can't make the place look good, I'm not sure how you're going to.
Edit: I'm in the middle of an edit so this gives me a little diversion to find mundane facts and figures.