Best of 2016 - Food

Last year I ate out over 250 times. This year it was more like 300.

I'm not qualified to be a food critic, but I did eat a lot of food and I do have opinions. So here are my top 10 favorites, the ones that are accessible, affordable *and* delicious enough that I went there numerous times during the year. My list of favorites is mostly down to how many times I went there, with a little fudging.

Favorites:

1. Chi'Lantro
2. Jack Allen's Kitchen
3. Shake Shack
4. Mod Pizza
5. Chuy's
6. Deckhand Oyster Bar
7. Hopdoddy's
8. Michi Ramen
9. New Fortune Chinese
10. Lucy's Fried Chicken

I also kept track of where I ate lunch this year, and these are my favorites, based on how often I ate there. It's not just quality of food, here, but also closeness to work, where I'm usually eating lunch.

Lunch Favorites:

1. Popeye's ( at least 1/month)
2. Torchy's Tacos
3. Wendy's
4. Fuddrucker's
5. Vera Cruz All Natural Tacos
6. Hoodie's Subs
7. Brooklyn Pie Company

Then there were the places that I ate at once or twice, due to either it's location (downtown especially) or price. This list is purely down to my favorites, where I'd eat if location and price were no object.

Rare Treats:

1. Franklin Barbecue
2. Gus's Fried Chicken
3. Terry Black's BBQ
4. Peached Tortilla
5. Haymaker
6. Black Star Co-Op
7. Fogo de Chao
8. Lucy's Fried Chicken
9. Noble Sandwich
10. Salt & Time
11. 24 Diner
12. Thai Kun

French Quarter Grille, Odd Duck, TNT Tacos & Tequila were all on last year's list but I didn't get a chance to eat there this year.

In addition, while I ate out a lot this year, I also tried to cook more, and added several new recipes to my repertoire.

New Recipes:

1. White Chicken Chili
2. Chicken, Asparagus & Mushroom Stir Fry
3. Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings
4. Shrimp & Cheesy Grits
5. Sweet & Salty Chicken Thighs
6. Panko Breaded Asparagus
7. Skillet Green Beans
8. Fried Rice
9. Beef & Potato Stew