Usually the first thing is "what are you trying to do". What kind of music, how loud a band, what kind of budget? Then, what kind of sounds do you like? Drummers who's sound catches your ear (realizing that no acoustic kit sounds like the highly processed sounds on many records). What stuff do you have already?
There are a few starter threads already in action. There are plenty of great drums and cymbals out there from many brands. There really isn't a best. And the very top rank instruments would be very expensive custom made things, so it's unlikely that you really want "the best". You would be talking well in excess of $10,000.
What you want is what is best for you.
After you have worked out what sounds you like, for the kind of music you want to play; then the next question is how much can you afford. And if you don't have anything already and are starting from scratch you should probably split your budget down the middle. Half for drums and half for cymbals. Especially if you are in the lower end of the budget. As has been said many times, good heads and tuning can make mediocre drums sound good (at least usable), but cheap cymbals are best used for covering garbage cans, not playing music.
For a budget constrained set up (and I mean this up to the several thousands of dollars cost no object sets) I look at it from a standpoint of "what objects get hit the most often". Or put another way "what drums contribute most to the music". Unless you're playing prog rock, you probably don't need a million toms. And if it's part of the image for the genre you're playing, you probably don't need top of the line stuff because you won't be using them that much. Most likely, you will be primarilly playing the hi-hat, ride, snare, and kick. Then crash cymbals, then the toms. I saw Steve Jordan last Friday and his drum solo showcase was on a snare, kick, hats and one crash ride. (This is the John Mayer tour where he has two kits, a regular one, and a small jazz kit over to the left. Which is the one he used to solo on). Once you get out of CB700 territory you will probably have a usable sounding kick if you put good heads on it. Most $800+ kits will sound just fine in the kick and toms. The snare may need help. There are tons of threads on snares here. The most common bet is to get a used Ludwig Acrolite for $125. If you have a few hundred to spend, you have a lot more choices. Then it's down to the kind of music you play that will determine shallow or deep, 14" or smaller, metal or wood.
Hi-hats are one of those things that can really affect how you play. And cheap ones just don't sound good. Rides are really personal and like snare drums, many folks either have lots of them, or have gone though lots of them in order to find their keepers. Crashes are also dictated by the type of music you play and how loud. The good brands have been mentioned, but I'm not fond of their cheaper lines. Rather go used. If you like a somewhat trashy old school sound, the Dream and Stagg cymbals from China aren't that bad. I know a guy with a Sabain endorsement who has some Dreams that he rehearses with and occasionaly uses on sessions or lower profile gigs where they are musically appropriate.