List: Top Foods in 2011

Okay, because I ate so much this year, let's break down my favorites by category, shall we? 

BEST BREAKFAST

This one goes to the Big Nasty chicken biscuit smothered in gravy served at Hominy Grill in Charleston, SC.   Just plain fantastic.  Second place: the red velvet pancakes at The Bongo Room in Chicago.

BEST BRISKET & SAUSAGE

This category makes me realize how much BBQ I ate this year.  Though you can't go wrong with any place in Lockhart, TX for brisket or sausage, my personal favorite was Black's Barbecue.  Brisket perfection.  Sadly, very hard to get to.  Honorable mention: Smitty's Market and Kreuz Market (both in Lockhart, TX) and the surprisingly good Hill Country (New York, NY).

BEST BURGER

Shake Shack (New York, NY) still remains my favorite burger I've eaten this year.  Best place that serves burgers?  The heavy metal themed burger place, Kuma's Corner in Chicago.  Others to note: Duane's Ono-Char Burger (Anahola, Kauai, HI) and Bocado (Atlanta, GA).

BEST BURRITO

The Surfin' California Burrito at Lucha Libre Taco Shop (San Diego, CA).

BEST CUPCAKES
Red velvet cupcakes at Little Cake Bakery (Atlanta, GA).

BEST DONUTS

The glazed donuts are simple, crisp, warm, and perfect at Round Rock Donuts (Round Rock, TX) that it beats out a personal favorite of mine, Doughnut Plant (New York, NY).  Others to note: Dat Donuts (Chicago, IL) and Top Pot Doughnuts (Seattle, WA).

BEST DUCK
Any duck served at Empire State South in Atlanta.  No one is a close second.  (The duck meatballs at Abattoir in Atlanta are worth nothing, though.)

BEST FINE DINING

Le Bernardin (New York, NY).  Perfection from beginning to end.  In a close second is Atlanta's best, Bacchanalia.  Empire State South rounds out my Top 3.
 
BEST FRENCH FRIES
The Burger Joint (New York, NY).  Delicious and can't beat the brown bag presentation.

BEST FRIED CHICKEN
This one's a tie between Frenchy's (Houston, TX) and Gus's (Memphis, TN).  These two places serve the most crispy, tender, and flavorful fried chicken I've ever eaten.  To round out the Top 3 would be Stroud's in Kansas City, an amazing fried chicken place lost amidst a sea of barbecue.

BEST HOT DOG

Hot Doug's (Chicago, IL).  As a New Yorker, it pains me to say that the best hot dogs are in Chicago.  Hot Doug's has the well-known foie gras and sauternes duck sausage dog.  Decadent.  But I thought their Chicago-style dog is their best.  Also fantastic: Superdawg and Portillo's (both in Chicago, IL).

BEST ITEM INVOLVING BACON

Talk about an arbitrary category.  One of the single best things I've had this year was the pimento cheese & bacon marmalade at Empire State South (Atlanta, GA).  Bacon in a spread?  Amazing.  But Atlanta had some other great dishes involving bacon: the angry mussels at JCT Kitchen and bacon cookies at Abattoir.

BEST LOBSTER

The lobster roll at Red's Eats (Wiscasset, ME) is the stand out.  Others deserving mention are the lobster at Street & Co. (Portland, ME) and the lobster roll at The Lobster Shack (Cape Elizabeth, ME).

BEST PIZZA

Nearly magical watching Mr. DeMarco make pizza.  DiFara's (Brooklyn, NY) hands down.  Runner-up: Grimaldi's (Brooklyn, NY).

BEST PULLED PORK OR PIG

As a region, North Carolina is clearly superior.  In my mind, no contest here: Grady's Barbecue (Dudley, NC).  The pulled pork with potato salad and cole slaw was as satisfying a meal as they come.  Second place goes to Allen & Son Bar-B-Que in Chapel Hill, NC for my favorite pulled pork sandwich.  Worth mentioning is The Publican in Chicago, a temple to the pig, with the best chicharron, and 4th & Swift in Atlanta, which serves a dish called the Three Little Piggies: pig served three ways.

BEST RIBS

I loved Charlie Vergos Rendezvous.  Then I went to Jim Neely's Interstate BBQ (Memphis, TN), and that absolutely knocked my socks off.  This is the current gold standard for me.  Other excellent ribs: Danny Edward's and Arthur Bryant's (both in Kansas City, MO) and Dreamland BBQ (Birmingham, AL).  For Chinese style?  Nancy Lee's Pig Heaven in Upper East Side New York.

BEST SCALLOPS

I ordered the scallops from East End Brasserie (Fort Lauderdale, FL) almost every day for nearly a week.  They serve it with porcini mushroom & foie gras.  This was one of the most satisfying things I've eaten all year.  Worth mentioning: Bacchanalia and Cakes & Ale (both in Atlanta, GA) and 555 and Street & Co. (both in Portland, ME).

BEST SOUP

The saimin at Hamura's Saimin (Lihue, Kauai, HI). 

BEST STEAK
The wood-grilled prime New York strip at Bacchanalia.  Second goes to Bone's (Atlanta, GA).

BEST THING I HAD NEVER TRIED BEFORE
Anything I had never tried before that was on the menu at Le Bernardin.  In particular, the turbot was unbelievable.  Worth noting: ahi poke at Wahooo (Kappa, Kauai, HI).

BEST VEGETARIAN
The tasting of vegetables at Restaurant Eugene (Atlanta, GA), featuring saffron-orange turnips, garlic chips, red wine purple cabbage, sweet potato dauphine, sunchoke barigoule, parsnips & honey, strawberry glazed beets, fourth generation peas, and radish salad.  Phenomenal.