How to winnow the abundance that was 2010 in restaurants into a Top Five? Really…it’s tough this year, folks. And that means times are getting less tough.

The biggest and most hopeful trend of the year saw old favorite restaurateurs expanding or relocating into bright new spaces, from Tom Douglas’s new Seatown Seabar and Rotisserie to Ethan Stowell’s Staple and Fancy Mercantile; Renee Erickson’s The Walrus and the Carpenter to Thierry Rautureau’s Luc; Kevin Davis’s Blueacre Seafood to Matt Janke’s Lecosho.

Rigorously local and seasonal fare was given the attention it deserves in newbies like Emmer and Rye and the tiny Nettletown, the latter of which is practically Portlandesque in its low-overhead/high-freshness business plan.

Even Pioneer Square came to a little—for lunch anyway—with three new destination joints that elevate the humble sandwich into realms worth finding parking for: Delicatus, the big relocated Tat’s Delicatessen, and the oh-so-fine BuiltBurger.

But such was the greatness of 2010 that none of these even cracked our Top Five. And now, in alphabetical order, the envelope, please…

Bisato. In a master recasting of his high-ticket bastion of pretension Lampreia, Seattle’s most exacting culinary artiste Scott Carsberg showed he can work his particular magic on small plates; adjusting to the times but sacrificing none of the exquisite minimalist excellence. Best reason to keep going to Belltown.

Book Bindery. Sure chef Shaun McCrain came with a resume—which includes New York’s Per Se, among other notables—but such is the nature of this gorgeous collaboration on the banks of the ship canal that his spectacular comfort-tinged Northwest fare isn’t the only reason to go. The loveliness of the place harks back to a more formal age of restaurant dining, without a whisper of stuffiness.

Din Tai Fung. Diners aren’t waiting two hours in line for nothin’, folks. This fall Bellevue’s Lincoln Square scored the only Northwest outpost of this internationally heralded upscale-creamy Taiwan chain, and the reason is its soup dumplings, laboriously handmade (by 17 chefs in the corner window) and unutterably delectable. A thrilling taste of China.

Sitka and Spruce. Chef and owner Matt Dillon is a local treasure; a simplicity savant who forges local bounty into bold combinations of flavor that push the envelope on invention. That used to be reason enough to visit the diminutive Sitka on Eastlake (now Nettletown), but now that he’s moved the place to Capitol Hill’s raw-timbered foodie nirvana Melrose Market you’ll enjoy some soaring, sun-drenched farmhouse atmo along with your meal.

Sushi Kappo Tamura. If there’s a successor to Shiro Kashiba for inspired sushi in this town, it’s Taichi Kitamura, whose beloved Chiso and Kappo in Fremont reopened this summer as a single sleek Eastlake storefront with flawlessly sourced raw fish and cooked Japanese food. Taichi-san’s demeanor at the bar is dynamic, approachable, and smart—a killer combo.