What was your favorite dish of 2012?
Head-suckin goodness/ Credit: Becky Stein
Earlier this week, Shane over at Best of The Big A published the annual round up of the top dishes of 2012, including the top five as voted on by the BotBA readers, as well as the top dishes selected by the Food & More team. For my favorite dish, I picked one that I’ve gushed about to friends and in print alike, the Salt and Pepper shrimp at Octopus Bar in East Atlanta. Jenny picked the Cherry Ginger Explosion cookie at The Cookie Studio in Decatur, and John crowned the goujonettes of catfish at Watershed on Peachtree his favorite dish of last year.
Among the reader favorites, the resurrected fried chicken at Watershed took top honors, with the Brisket at Grand Champion BBQ, the Lewis Grizzard Special at Spraberry’s, pork belly tacos at Iberian Pig, and the roasted mushrooms over polenta at Local Three rounding out the rest of the top 5.
But, I know that there are more dishes that deserve a mention than made our lists, so I’d like to hear from the Food & More readers on this one. What was your favorite dish that you tried in 2012? And I’ll put a caveat on this: I don’t want to hear about your favorite dish for the last 10 years that you also technically ate in 2012. I’m looking for the best dish that you had for the first time ever last year.
What was the new dish you tried last year that stood out as the best?
-By Jon Watson, Food & More blog
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© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
48 comments Add your comment
Matt H
January 18th, 2013
7:24 am
The Pork Belly BLT sandwich at Heirloom BBQ!
Veteran Observer
January 18th, 2013
8:34 am
Either the sea bass or the osso buco at Stratus Kitchen and Bar on Laurel Canyon Parkway in Canton. Chef Michael Payne is creating incredible nightly specials and the foodie crowd is discovering this incredible restaurant at the Fairways of Canton golf course! Both dishes melt in your mouth and are a perfect compliment to his fresh off the farm vegetables.
Baltisraul.....
January 18th, 2013
8:35 am
Matt H…………I agree w/ you on that pork belly BLT. Best new food I tried for sure this past year. Good call!! Not a real sexy pick but I keep thinkng about that sandwich months later.
Steve
January 18th, 2013
8:56 am
Overall favorite: Tuna Collar @ One Eared Stag
Honorable mentions: Salt and Pepper shrimp@ Octopus Bar, Huevo Con Trufa @ Iberian Pig, Pineapple Upside Down Cake @ Spence
Mmmm....Foood
January 18th, 2013
9:13 am
I just had a great meal at LPC in midtown. The special was beef cheek raviolis. I want to have it again and again!
John
January 18th, 2013
9:25 am
Lidia’s Tamales at Bell Street Burritos (Friday’s only)
Cammi317
January 18th, 2013
9:41 am
The Pumpkin Cheesecake Bar sold at The Cookie Studio during November and December….It was scrumptious!
Robert
January 18th, 2013
10:19 am
Heart of Ribeye @ Rathbun’s. It’s on the menu now.
Paul J
January 18th, 2013
11:01 am
My fav. dish last yr. was Heart of Ribeye at Rathbun’s. Really love it.
PapaDoc
January 18th, 2013
11:13 am
Pork belly BLT at Heirloom was sheer genius. No longer on the menu, by the way.
Fatlanta
January 18th, 2013
11:21 am
Longhorn’s Porterhouse for 2
Amber Fish
January 18th, 2013
12:13 pm
Santa Fe Steakburger at Steak and Shake. So yummy!
OTP
January 18th, 2013
12:20 pm
The lumpia at Rico’s World Kitchen in Buford.
Atlantan
January 18th, 2013
1:08 pm
Summer vegetable plate (especially the fried okra) at Miller Union
kt
January 18th, 2013
1:35 pm
Fish tacos at Bricktops
Otis
January 18th, 2013
2:01 pm
The naked dog at Le Varsity
Daddy Goat
January 18th, 2013
2:13 pm
Looks like there’s a few trolls around.
maya m wilson
January 18th, 2013
3:26 pm
sounds like a plan
moco loco
January 18th, 2013
3:40 pm
The Loco Moco in Hawaii…in so many ways. Where can I get one in Georgia?
Billy Joe Bob
January 18th, 2013
3:42 pm
The Chicken Marsala at Olive Garden. So flavorful , tastes better than homemade.
Darin
January 18th, 2013
3:54 pm
The bratwurst and sauerkraut at The Porter.
PJ
January 18th, 2013
4:20 pm
Fritters at Cypress Street Pint & Plate & the Crab Roll at JCT Kitchen’s Bar
kim
January 18th, 2013
4:23 pm
From “The Optimist”: The Ga White Shrimp A La Plancha and the oh so heavenly know-it-ain’t-good-for-me-but-I’m-gonna-eat-it-anyway-even-of-it-means-an-extra-half-hour-at-the-gym Beignet Style Corn Milk Hushpuppies with homemade butter!
Edward
January 18th, 2013
4:47 pm
The poutine with rotisserie chicken at Bantam & Biddy would be my 2012 best surprise. Very much a comfort food.
FarTrain
January 18th, 2013
5:56 pm
It has to be AJ McCarron’s girlfriend. None other even close. I’m in Brent Musberger’s corner. Stick it, ESPN!
Sweet Melissa
January 19th, 2013
12:22 am
I just don’t see it, Veteran Observer-
Stratus Kitchen and Bar on Laurel Canyon Parkway in Canton seemed kinda yucky. Do you happen to know what their score was by the county Health Inspector?
Also, the veggies tasted more like they were from a can or maybe frozen. I found it very, very bland. I’m not sure why you thought they were straight from the farm…you must of had too many adult beverages before you ate? Wink Wink
David
January 19th, 2013
6:52 am
My favorite Dish, is Directv….Love it…..Have it all the time!
Baltisraul.....
January 19th, 2013
8:47 am
PapaDoc……say it ain’t so!!!! BLT no longer on the menu. Hope they bring it back now!
David…..I tried Directtv, put it in the smoker for 72 hrs, still came out w/ a metalic after-taste. Took it off my neighbors house, so it did not cost me anything.
PapaDoc
January 19th, 2013
4:56 pm
Wish I could Baltisraul but it is gone with the wind, for now. Chef Cody is now pushing a short rib sandwich that I hear is killer. Heirloom’s Korean Fried Chicken, KFC, is only served on Wednesday and rules my world.
Baltisraul.....
January 20th, 2013
8:15 am
Matt…….Who is really the rat in this equation, HMMM?
DayTraveler
January 20th, 2013
8:34 am
Best meal of 2012 is Roasted Vegetable Salad at California Pizza Kitchen. If you are not a vegetarian you can add meat.
gross
January 20th, 2013
8:43 am
If I thought a vegetable salad was the best thing I ate in 2012 I would jump off a bridge. that being said, the best thing I ate was bbp at daddy dz’a.
Grasshopper
January 20th, 2013
9:31 am
Lamb chops with grilled cabbage and crispy squash. Canyon Grill near Cloudland Canyon in northwest Ga. Not far from Chattanooga. Deliciously unexpected.
Jeff Domke
January 20th, 2013
11:21 am
Chicken burrito at Bell Street Burrito. There’s really nothing better.
Baltisraul.....
January 20th, 2013
1:57 pm
Day Traveler………where have you been this past year, in jail? A salad, please!
Marie
January 20th, 2013
7:10 pm
Chicken dinner at Miss Betty’s House of Ribs in EAV, followed by the grilled yellowtail collar at Octopus Bar, because I’m versatile.
Sheriff John Brown
January 20th, 2013
7:36 pm
TDS Hatch Chile Relleno- For the price Eddie Hernandez is the most talented chef for the price in ATL
DayTraveler
January 21st, 2013
7:05 am
Interesting, it seems if a person does not eat dead animals or wheat products then they are not allowed to have a favorite dish. I cannot believe the mindset of some people on this blog. Vegetables are great (raw, roasted & baked), you might want to try them and clear out your system. Also you might want to think about how hard it is to find a TRUE vegetarian/gluten free meal in the Atlanta area, where the chef is not using beef, fish or chicken broth as a base or has not added some type of wheat (starch) products to the dish.
Mary
January 21st, 2013
7:41 am
DayTraveler, I’ve been a vegetarian for 20 years in Atlanta. It really isn’t a problem to find something veg to eat. Even at a steakhouse, I’ve been able to make a meal. Whiney vegetarians give the rest of us a bad name.
Baltisraul.....
January 21st, 2013
8:15 am
Day Traveler, sorry I made you cry!
erin
January 21st, 2013
9:33 am
Chicken and broccoli burrito at Bell Street. Is it lunch time yet?
kevin
January 21st, 2013
11:11 am
1. Green Chili burrito at Bell St. burritos is burrito heaven. Dry beans cooked to absolute perfection.
2. Tuna with charred octopus at The Optimist
3. Vegetable platter and Fish Tibs at Desta Ethiopian Restaurant
Edward
January 21st, 2013
11:33 am
I don’t see any reason to introduce hostility here. It stands to reason that a vegetarian would note a vegetable dish as being his favorite. Why excoriate him for that? One of my all-time favorite dishes is the burrito at Cafe Sunflower, a vegetarian restaurant. Even meat eaters would enjoy it. And as has been noted during the Top Chef introduction challenge, even a master chef like Hugh Acheson values a creative salad as a means of testing the talent of a chef. I think DayTraveler’s opinion is just as valuable as any other here, and at least he communicated maturely, unlike the childish taunts that were leveled at him.
1164mgc
January 21st, 2013
12:13 pm
I share DayTravelers fondness for that veggie salad at CPK. Maybe not the best thing I had in all of 2012, but definitely my favorite salad.
Baltisraul.....
January 22nd, 2013
7:14 am
Edward, come on now, hostility? A little banter on someone who picks a salad as the best dish of the year shoud be expected.
good for Day Traveler to like a good salad He just needs to get out more.
Grasshopper
January 22nd, 2013
8:07 am
Come on Baltisraul. Everyone knows that Edward is the self-appointed ‘Voice Of Consciousness and Defender of the Oppressed’ here on the Food and More blog. And he’s eaten at EVERY restaurant in town too; just try to NOT get his opinion on anything and everything that comes down the pike.
Peter D.
January 22nd, 2013
4:03 pm
Can I get a quick moment of silence and a heartfelt RIP for the mind-blowing tres leches cake from Tierra? The thought of never getting to eat this again makes me shed a tear.
Your Food & More wishlist for 2013 | Food and More with John Kessler
January 25th, 2013
5:32 am
[...] there is nothing wrong with that, a new year is the obvious time to reflect and to look ahead. Last week I asked you for your favorite dishes, and the Food & More community didn’t disappoint, calling out quite a few serious contenders [...]