The D.C.-area food scene has been delighting Washingtonians for years now, and WAMU staffers are no exception. Many of us spent 2023 making up for lost COVID pandemic time at local restaurants. And in what was still a somewhat tumultuous year, we found ourselves ordering comfort food: be it lasagna, fluffy cinnamon rolls, or a piping hot curry. Here are some of our staff’s favorite food memories from this past year: 

BALLIN’ BRUNCH: Ok, this is going to sound boring, but truly the best thing I ate in D.C. was the all-you-can-eat Sunday brunch at Farmers Fishers Bakers on the Georgetown waterfront. Sure, I’ve had more unique meals locally in the past year — but I can’t stop dreaming about their complimentary homemade cinnamon bun served in a mini skillet and their bountiful breakfast spread. I don’t know what their dinner options are like, but we took my wife’s aunt there for her birthday, and the prices were reasonable, the food was delicious, and the service was great. There’s something comforting about a filling, consistent brunch option in D.C. Reservations are recommended because it gets busy! -Elliot Williams, arts reporter

LAYERS ON LAYERS: Hearing the words “40-Layer Lasagna” is a little daunting…I mean, who can actually eat a piece of lasagna that size?! Well, if it’s L’Ardente’s 40-Layer Lasagna, you can. Their lasagna is easily the favorite thing I ate this year. The short rib sugo is melt in your mouth, and the sottocenere cheese just makes the dish. Leaving anything on your plate feels like a crime, so you just keep eating. Just talking about it (and looking at the picture!) makes me want to run out and get some! -Carly Cloud, assistant director, communications and media relations

CALLING FOR CURRY:  my most memorable meals this year were probably in Spain, where my husband and I vacationed in September. But locally, the one that I can’t stop thinking about is a yellow curry from Padaek, the Lao and Thai restaurant that just opened in Arlington not far from where I live. The curry is made with a beautifully warming and flavorful house-made curry paste and coconut milk. We ordered it among several other dishes when we had family in town, and after they left, we were so disappointed there were no leftovers, that we ordered it again the next day. -Rebecca Cooper, arts and food editor

MALAYSIAN AT MAKAN: It’s a trek from Arlington to Columbia Heights, but Makan — a Malaysian restaurant and a favorite of Malaysian embassy staffers — makes it worth it. My partner and I are always in search of pungent, spicy, sour, bittersweet, or aromatic food: we want flavors and textures that make us look at each other and say, “Oh, wow, not sure I’ve ever tasted something like this,” or “What do you think is in that?” Nearly every dish and drink we tried at Makan was just such a conversation-starter, from the pickled lime and prune condiment to a fried chicken dish doused in a creamy, spicy sauce with pickled chili and salted duck yolk. The mango salad was another pickly, spicy favorite that we couldn’t get enough of. I’d take that Metro ride across the Potomac again in a heartbeat. — Margaret Barthel, Northern Virginia reporter

SUMMER IN A BOWL: A friend introduced me to Dolcezza gelato this year and inspired me to try a combination of mascarpone & berries and blueberry lavender. It was heavenly. Then I discovered that they sell pints of Dolcezza at my nearest grocery store. I thought I wasn’t much of a strawberry ice cream person, but one day I was in a state of Barbie-induced euphoria and couldn’t resist the idea of having my own pint of pink gelato. Now when I think about summer, that strawberry gelato comes to mind –- along with peaches and watermelon. -Sarah Y. Kim, general assignment reporter

BRUNCH WITH A VIEW: My favorite food moment of the year is probably the brunch board at Bluemont Vineyard. I got to go for my birthday with all my close friends and it was such a good way to kick off the day and the perfect accompaniment to a day of wine! -Abbey Monsour, audience producer

NOODLES MADE WITH LOVE:  Late last January, I found myself in Chinatown for an assignment about our local Chinese-American community. Just a few days before, a mass shooter killed 11 people who were celebrating Lunar New Year in California. Around the country, and here in the D.C. region, many were heartbroken, especially with reports of rising anti-Asian sentiment and violent incidents in the wake of the pandemic.

I had spent that morning interviewing locals, some who had been physically attacked themselves and others who worried for their children at school. It was also cold and gray that day. And I had skipped out on breakfast and lunch. So when I walked past the iconic windows of Chinatown Express – with its golden Peking ducks and the words “FRESH NOODLE MADE ON THE SPOT” – I turned right around and ordered a warm bowl of roast duck noodle soup.

Indeed, the noodles were fresh. The duck was rich and roasted, and the broth was a delicious elixir. Sitting there satisfied, I thought about the history of D.C.’s Chinatown and the immigrants who shaped it so many years ago; the hardships they might have faced, but the optimism they might have had too. Then, I remembered the folks I had interviewed earlier and how each one carried a similar hope that they wanted to share with me just as much as their concerns.

I’m grateful for this memory because it is a reminder that a food dish is more than the ingredients in front of you. People and their stories are more than just one thing. -Héctor Alejandro Arzate, immigrant communities reporter

NEIGHBORHOOD FAVORITE: A lot of my favorite meal moments this year are thanks to Nido Wine Shop + Market in Mount Pleasant. When my mom visited me, and we gabbed for hours, it was at Nido over a couple of glasses of wine and tortilla española. When I celebrated a moment, or simply needed a pick me up, I ran to Nido for its delicious, airy Basque Burnt cheesecake. And on Fridays, on the evenings I had no plans but wanted out of the house, I went to the weekly wine tasting. The staff is what makes Nido sing. When I became obsessed with eating and drinking flowers, owner and wine queen Thea Merl showed me the ways of flower wine. One of my favorite wines to this day is Bulle De Flore Red Poppy Skin Contact Natural Wine. –Amanda Michelle Gomez, general assignment reporter