The only downside to my job is that I don’t get to return to the scene of a dine very often. When I find myself wistfully wishing to go back to a restaurant, I know it was a good spot. Below are some of the highlights of 2011.

Holiest experience: Sitting in a pew, sipping a fine espresso made from a God shot blend of beans roasted on the premises at Saint-Henri Micro-torréfacteur. (3632 Notre-Dame W., 514-507-9696)

Best street food (roving category): Tacos get a new twist and a roving location with the Grumman 78 crew. Their green truck was a beacon to starved festival-goers looking for novel tacos. (grumman78.com)

Best street food (stationary category): Alex and Matt Winnicki, with help from Mama

Kim, brought Singaporean street food to Atwater Market with Satay Brothers. Go for the juicily tender satay and multi-layered flavours in soups. (514-661-6983)

Best fast food: La Belle Bleue offers superlative roast chicken to go, terrific smoky charcoal-grilled chicken kebabs with the kind of garlic mayonnaise you’d smear all over yourself in the right company. (1867 Jean-Talon East; 514-721-3376)

Best condiments and snacks: Drop by La Diabla to browse intriguing salsas and jams. Stay for some gorgeous cardamom-laced Turkish coffee and empanadas. (4615 St-Laurent; 514-348-0336)

Best savoury textural mix: The pajeon, a thick tangle of squid, potato, carrot and

green onion, fried like a giant latke, is a crave-worthy food at the Korean Hwang Kum. (5908 Sherbrooke W.; 514-487-1712)

Best alt-sandwich discovery: At Tasabroso try the cachapa, a coarse corn pancake folded over fillings of your choice. And then raid the freezer to take some of these gluten-free babies home. (7450 St-Hubert; 514-564-4567)

Best date place (low end): Not a typical date spot, but you’d get points for finding excellent Lebanese food on an out-of-the-way block at Garage Beirut. Share smoky roast eggplant, tangy hummus, grilled meats and glossy garlic sauce with your paramour. (1238 Mackay; 514-564-2040)

Best date spot (high end): The sleek Lustucru with its menu of tartares and great wines by the glass makes for a racy night out. (5159 Parc; 514-439-6701)

Best series of little surprises: Melanie Lallouz spreads before you delectable and surprising little salads as lunch appetizers, according to her cooking whims of the day, at Lallouz Café and Kebaberie. (69 St-Zotique E.; 514-439-6969)

Best fancy lunch: Mario Navarrete’s À Table allows a diner to sample top-notch bistro-style cooking with Peruvian hints in a genteel part of Ahuntsic. (124 Fleury West, 514-439-1966)

Best casual lunch: The industrial setting at Café Falco is comfortable, curious and chic. Light lunches can include the Japanese rice triangles onigiri, and you can contemplate ordering a cargo bike from them too. (5605 de Gaspé; 514-272-7766)

Best new ice cream: The owners of Kem CoBa are friendly ice cream experts, even offering artisanal soft serve, such as the popular sweet-tart almond milk-sour cherry. And they’re open for winter too, now selling ice cream Christmas logs. (60 Fairmount W.; 514-419-1699)

Finger-lickingest pastry: The smoothly filled cannoli at Pâtisserie Firenze was the stealth winner in the pastry crawl I did with an expert friend. (5961 Bélanger, 514-259-9008)

Best crunchy sweet: I hit baklava nirvana at Amal Bohsali, where dainty, light baklava allow you to eat many with out feeling logy. (1420 Sauvé W., 514-920-0999)