Best of 2024

As usual, we ate a lot of good food last year. Here are some of the highlights. 

January 

This monstrous beef short rib wrapped in laminated brioche dough at Dominique Ansel Workshop in NY was freaking amazing. It was expensive, and I had to eat it standing up at a tiny table in the bakery, but it was so worth the price and inconvenience. Would 100% do it again. 

February

This chicken in milk doesn't look too great, but it was astonishingly delicious. Garlicky, creamy perfection. I am heartbroken that Tbiliso closed in the spring. We had several really great meals there, and I will miss all the various iterations of cheese-filled bread they offered.

March

I've never had a bad meal at La Cuchara. I can't imagine I ever will.

Obligatory Squire's pizza shot. Everything minus green peppers is our standard order. Perfection every time. 

April

The eggplant parm at Cecconi's in Manhattan was pretty pricey, but it came with a salad, was more than enough for two, and even tasted good cold. AND, it was vegan and gluten free. The restaurant seemed fancy, which made my BFF Andree and I feel fancy, too.

I make gazpacho a lot, and sometimes I put shrimp on it. Always great. 

May

I make beans fairly often. These gigante beans stewed with tomatoes and topped with homemade pesto were one of my favorite versions.

This duck confit, on the menu briefly at True Chesapeake, was the best I've ever eaten. 

I was fortunate enough to get some exceptional soft shells a few times this year. These came from Johnny's in Roland Park.

June

I can't get enough of the quesobirria tacos at El Salto.

July

I had the best lobster roll of my life at lunch at The Food Market. It was huge, the meat regularly tumbling out of the roll onto the plate, and it had bacon on it. Bacon.

August

While Neal's birthday dinner at Marta was overall fairly disappointing, this foie gras terrine was outstanding, as was my caprese cocktail. Neal enjoyed his beverage as well. 

Crab-topped gazpacho and crabcake grilled cheese. Yes, I am a genius.

September

Went to Pappas for restaurant week just to get these soft shells. The ones from Johnny's earlier in the year were great, but these were even better. And the pickled beets! Outstanding! 

Farmers' market tomato sandwich with Duke's mayo on Pepperidge Farm white bread. 'Nuff said.

October

Speaking of beets, this beet salad with pistachios from Petit Louis was truly one of the best things I ate all year. 

Cacio i pepe spaghetti squash served in an acorn squash at The Food Market inspired me to make a carbonara dish the following month. Amazing. 

November

For the last several years, our Thanksgiving dinner has looked like the photo above: charcuterie, cheese, olives, lots of booze. This time I used some puff pastry that had been hanging out in the freezer for a while to make tasty pinwheels of goodness, filled with sundried tomato tapenade and Parmesan cheese. I will be making these forevermore. 

I made my own birthday dinner this year - eggplant parm. I haven't found a restaurant version I especially liked--excepting the $28 one at Cecconi's (see above)--so I thought I'd try my hand at it. I used Progresso Italian breadcrumbs, which is what my mom always used, but they weren't quite the same. More salt, less cheese and herbs? Just different. My brother also noticed the difference. Next time, I'll add more basil, oregano, and definitely more parm.

December

I made gluten free gingerbread using a recipe from the blog Cotter Crunch. It was utterly fabulous. I used Mightylicious gluten free flour, which may or may not have been a key element in the success of this treat.

This potato leek soup from Petit Louis may seem simple, but it was smooth, rich, subtle, and far more than the sum of its parts.

I like stopping into Golden West for lunch before my thrice-yearly hair appointment at Brazen. Most recently, I enjoyed their vegan chicken and waffles. The waffle was lightly spiced, which made the dish even more delicious than the usual poultry version.

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Posted on Minxeats.com.