While speaking at the now-shuttered Olsson’s Books way back in 2007, Anthony Bourdain was asked to name his favorite restaurant. Bourdain sputtered a bit, threw out the names of a few internationally renowned restaurants (El Bulli, The French Laundry), before saying, Look, there is no best. The best food is the food you need right now. And that might be at a fancy, white tablecloth restaurant, but it might also be on a stool in an open-air sidewalk cafe in Vietnam. All of this is to say, dear DCist reader, that we’ve saved the most contentious list of 2013 for last. Eating out is about more than just sustenance: it’s about the company, the occasion, the mood, and all of these things color our opinion of a restaurant. So here is our unscientific, subjective list of favorites in a couple different categories. We’re certain you’ll let us know your (also subjective) favorites in the comments.

Photo by Samer Farha.

BLUE DUCK TAVERN: Chef Sebastien Archambault took over the reigns at the Park Hyatt when Brian McBride left the hotel. He has kept the Tavern at the upper echelon of the D.C. dining scene. A grand doorway leads to the cavernous dining room with the bar and jars of vegetables pickling off to the left, crusty mini deep dish apple pies cooling, and an open kitchen straight ahead overlooking the many turns and sections of the dimly lit space. Blue Duck focuses on seasonal ingredients with a menu highlighting where the food is coming from. The big old braised beef rib falling off its bone and the thick cut potatoes fried in duck fat remain one of Washington’s greatest pleasures for me, especially when preceded by great charcuterie and finished up by sharing one of those pies made à la mode with a scoop of hay ice cream.— Josh Novikoff

Blue Duck Tavern is located at 1201 24th Street NW.

CityZen photo courtesy of the Mandarin Oriental.

CITYZEN: CityZen is almost as off-the-beaten path as the Inn at Little Washington. But instead of trekking 70 miles into the Virginia countryside to get there, you need only poke around briefly in southwest D.C., our pocket square of a quadrant, and find the Mandarin Oriental hotel. Year after year, chef Eric Ziebold sets a gold standard in the local restaurant scene. At the start of 2013, CityZen was one of two area restaurants to take home an AAA Five Diamond Award (the other was Patrick O’Connell at The Inn). This is tasting menu only territory, but not of the endless degustation variety. You can start with four courses for $90 or get the full monte for $120. There’s a six course vegetarian option as well as some of the best crafted cocktails in the city. You generally won’t find Ziebold seeking the media spotlight or offering samples at events across the city. He’s content watching over his staff from the expediter position in his kitchen. Service is flawless, and upon a recent special occasion dinner, our server delivered a greeting card signed by the chef and the entire staff prior to our dinner service.— Josh Novikoff

CityZen is located at 1330 Maryland Avenue SW.

KOMI: I used to have a long-running disagreement with one of my friends about whether cooking was a craft or an art. Having recently binge eaten at a lot of high end restaurants in D.C., everything was starting to look and taste the same. It’s not surprising, then, that I was a staunch defender of cooking as craft — a skill to be mastered but certainly not the stuff of Picasso. Then I ate at Komi. The multi-course tasting menu is inventive, challenging, and playful. Things that look sweet taste savory; flavors that should clash are harmonious; and sometimes a salad is shaped like a bite-sized cube. Think of it as food as art and very self-aware art at that.— Alicia Mazzara

Komi is located at 1509 17th Street NW.

LITTLE SEROW: Chef Johnny Monis’ second restaurant, a send-up to northern Thai flavors, is both wildly different but no less unique of a dining experience. The vibrant teal basement dining room, staffed by a quartet of women who look like they walked straight out of an Anthropologie catalog, eschews reservations and substitutions. The $45 pre fixe menu changes regularly and hardly resembles the pad thai and curries of your typical Thai restaurant. Dishes, like the Mekong whiskey pork spare ribs, are unabashedly fiery, funky, sweet, and sour. It’s authentic Thai food, but elevated into a series of spare but satisfying small courses.— Alicia Mazzara

Little Serow is located at 1511 17th Street NW.

MINTWOOD PLACE: Cedric Maupillier brings one of a few neighborhood restaurants to this distinguished list. Adams Morgan may still be best known for so-so ethnic restaurants and bar hopping, though U and 14th Streets have stolen a bit of the crowds. But Mintwood Place bolstered the nabe as a place for great food when it opened a few doors down from Cashion’s Eat Place a couple of years ago, a position likely to be enhanced when Roofers Union from the folks behind Ripple opens on 18th Street in 2014. Maupillier brings classical French training, a deft touch, and experience leading the kitchens of Michel Richard to create a menu of well-executed bistro classics to Columbia Road. Maupillier knows his way around fish, and diners can also take comfort in dishes like beef bourguignon and a pan-fried half chicken.— Josh Novikoff

Mintwood Place is located at 1813 Columbia Road NW.

OBELISK: If you don’t know where you’re going, you just might miss the tiny unmarked rowhouse on P Street that houses Italian darling Obelisk. A pricey but gut-busting five course menu awaits you inside, teeming with the freshest seasonal ingredients. Glistening milky globes of burrata cheese are split open and drizzled with olive oil before your eyes. Next comes a parade of antipasti — tiny bites of vegetables, luscious meatball — followed by toothsome handmade pasta. Somehow you’ll need to make room for the meat and dessert courses, but by then you’ll be under delicious, delicious Obelisk’s spell.— Alicia Mazzara

Obelisk is located at 2029 P Street NW.

PALENA: Palena Cafe is the more casual side of the restaurant compared to the prix fixe-only Palena Dining Room, but they take the dining experience seriously. Started by former White House chef Frank Ruta, Palena’s menu complements the season and takes food to a new level. Some favorites are the veal meatballs, sweet potato gnocchi (or any pasta really), and award-winning cheeseburger. You’ll also need to leave room for dessert, which includes words like “cocoa nib marshmallow” and “pumpkin bread croutons.” They are all delicious. If I can be weirdly enthusiastic for one more sentence, the things Palena does with flavors is like what Van Gogh did with paint.— Nicole Dubowitz

Palena is located at 3529 Connecticut Avenue NW.

RASIKA: Like Chinese food, Indian food is too often relegated to a lukewarm buffet of mystery sauces. But at Rasika, Indian food gets a new lease on life, one where the flavors are at once familiar but also far more refined. You’ll recognize a lot of names on the menu, from curries to tandoori chicken, palak paneer, and plenty of tender naan. The palak chaat is a riot of textures and eye-popping flavors — creamy sweet yogurt meets puckery tamarind — while the chicken biryani is comforting topped with a spoonful of tangy raita. It’s these well-balanced, articulated dishes that have made Rasika a long-running hit in Penn Quarter and now in the West End neighborhood.— Alicia Mazzara

Rasika is located at 633 D Street NW.

THE SOURCE: Wolfgang Puck has had Scott Drewno at the helm of his Newseum-based restaurant since it opened its doors. Since then, Drewno has carved out and retained a reputation as one of Washington’s best chefs. Hailing from Central New York, he specializes in Asian-inspired flavors like a lacquered duckling and a wok fried whole sea bass with fermented chili bean sauce. Drewno is as comfortable taking home prestigious awards for his cooking at the restaurant as he is local competitions for crab cakes, pork, and whatever else is thrown his way. Trips to China and Thailand over the last several years have enhanced the weekend dim sum brunch.— Josh Novikoff

The Source is located at 575 Pennsylvania Avenue NW.

TABLE: It is rare for a non-vegetarian to say this, but I’m continually impressed with what Table is doing for the humble vegetable. So many fine dining restaurants treat them more like a garnish next to a hulking piece of meat, sort of like that sad piece of parsley that comes with your shrimp at Red Lobster. At Table, they’re integral to the protein, a key part of the conversation rather than a dangling afterthought. It takes a deft hand to upend the usual entree model, but Chef Frederik de Pue is doing it, and doing it very well. The result is dining experience that feels irresistibly fresh and modern.— Alicia Mazzara

Table is located at 903 N Street NW.

CORK: Dark and cozy, Cork is a wine bar but so much more. Owners Diane Gross and Khalid Pitts travel the globe sourcing unusual wines produced on small estates. Daily wine flights allow everyone from the total noob to oneophiles a chance to sip on their latest finds. Meanwhile, shared plates are designed to balance the vino, from melt-in-your-mouth house-made charcuterie and feather-light biscuits to creamy avocado toast dribbled with pistachio oil. — Alicia Mazzara

Cork is located at 1805 14th St NW.

Estadio. Photo by Dracisk.

ESTADIO: We loved this Logan Circle gem for a dinner out with the parents, but Estadio‘s well-rounded menu makes it a strong contender for any occasion. I’ve never had a bad dish on countless visits, with or without the parental units. Bold flavors and pork reign king on Estadio’s menu, from the stunning collection of aged hams hanging from the ceiling to succulent pork loin with crispy kale. But seafood and vegetables are on point as well, from perfectly seared scallops to smokey grilled scallions with romesco sauce. The drink menu is additional icing on the cake: it runs the gamut from classic Spanish sherries to inventive housemade gin tonics and playful slushitos (adult slushies). — Alicia Mazzara

Estadio is located at 1520 14th Street NW.

ZAYTINYA: Of course this category would not be complete without a mention of tapas king himself, José Andrés. Jest as we do, Andrés is successful because of the quality and consistency of his restaurants. This is certainly true of Zaytinya, the kitchen which produced budding restaurant mogul and Top Chef star Mike Isabella. The wide selection of Mediterranean mezze has something for everyone, be they picky or adventurous. Any dish with lamb is sure to be stellar, but don’t underestimate the vegetarian dishes either. Vegetarian options can be slim pickings among higher end restaurants, but Zaytinya is a bright exception here. Pro tip: get the brussels sprouts. You won’t regret it. — Alicia Mazzara

Zaytinya is located at 701 9th St NW.

LE DIPLOMATE: This year’s buzziest restaurant isn’t all hype — the food is pretty darn good, too. Le Diplomate looks, feels, and tastes like it was air-lifted from Paris and plopped down in Logan Circle. The neighborhood has embraced this newcomer, swarming the outdoor patio and gorging themselves on silky foie gras, crisp frites, crackling roast chicken, impossibly buttery mashed potatoes, staggering seafood platters, and plenty of crusty fresh baguettes. — Alicia Mazzara

Le Diplomate is located at 1601 14th St NW.

Photo by LaTur.

IRON GATE: Washington’s longest running restaurant has been resurrected, and if early visits are any indicator, they should be in business for some time to come. The beautifully re-conceptualized space, from the sleek zinc bar to the copious use of candles, is arguably the most romantic new restaurant in town. However, the food is nothing to sneeze at either. Order a la carte at the bar or choose between a four and six course Italian-driven tasting menu in the dining room. A selection of antipasti brings unusual vegetables preparations (cardoons!), luscious globs of burrata, and a gorgeous olive and grape flecked focaccia. Housemade pasta is chewy-tender, while meat and fish are juicy and tender. — Alicia Mazzara

Iron Gate is located at 1734 N St NW.

PANDA GOURMET: Foodies looking for something beyond the usual Cantonese or Szechuan cuisine used to have to go to New York for a taste of Shaanxi street food. Now you can get it on New York Avenue. Panda Gourmet sounds like one of a dozen ordinary Chinese carry-outs and is located inauspiciously in the lobby of a Days Inn. They have a full menu of the usual Chinese fare, and a superior version of the Szechuan comfort food staple Ma Po Tofu, which I only tried after I recently named Sichuan Pavilion’s version one of the best comfort food dishes in town. But the revelation is in the Shaanxi dishes. For less than ten bucks, you can have a filling, spicy lunch of rouga mo, a spicy hot cumin burger, and plate of liang pi, mildly spicy hand-pulled noodles. Maybe it’s not as good as what they serve at Xi’an Famous Foods. But I’ll wave to your Bolt Bus as it passes by while I spend a few hours working my way through everything else on the menu here.— Pat Padua

Panda Gourmet is located at 2700 New York Avenue NE. Use the Bladensberg
Road entrance.

ROSE’S LUXURY: It’s hard to put into words how much I fell in love with Rose’s Luxury the moment I stepped foot into the barely four-month old Capitol Hill restaurant. Between the homey atmosphere and personable staff, Chef Aaron Silverman has crafted a restaurant that is not only inviting but also serves up some terrific comfort food. Whether it’s the inventive popcorn soup or incredibly tender slices of smoked brisket served on a family-style platter, Silverman’s attention to detail of his Barracks Row venue has made this a place that’s not to be missed.— Brett Gellman

Rose’s Luxury is located at 717 8th St SE.

THE RED HEN: Like Rose’s, The Red Hen has its own sense of identity, not only because of its quaint, neighborhood setting, but also because it follows a simple formula: provide excellent food at reasonable prices. In a city littered with overpriced small plates, it’s refreshing to sit back and enjoy a hearty Creste de Gallo, blended with braised duck and wild mushrooms, for an affordable $17. And while Palena’s chicken set the benchmark in District succulence, The Red Hen’s wood-grilled version gives it a run for its money. Bonus points for the Heroes of the Torah glassware served at the bar, too. — Brett Gellman

The Red Hen is located at 1822 First Street NW.