Pineapple & Pearls is Tom Sietsema's Favorite New Restaurant

Washington Post critic Tom Sietsema's spring dining guide is here. It's both a revisiting and re-reviewing of several restaurants he's previously written about, and a guide to the best of what's new in town. The critic offers a top ten list of his favorite debuts alongside the set of revisited restaurant reviews.

Aaron Silverman's high-end Pineapple & Pearls tops the list of new restaurants for the critic. His top ten (not all are given starred ratings, including the top choice) reads as follows:

1. Pineapple & Pearls
2. Kinship
3. Convivial
4. Bad Saint
5. Masseria
6. Espita Mezcaleria
7. Tail Up Goat
8. The Dabney
9. Nazca Mochica
10. Hank's Pasta Bar

But the guide also takes a hard look at several longtime restaurants. Frequent critical target Ben's Chili Bowl snags a mere star from the critic, despite its history, and Boss Shepherd's, Mon Ami Gabi, and Brasserie Beck also sink to one-star destinations. But the original Fiola gets 3.5 stars, and there is high praise for such varied places as The Prime Rib and Osteria Morini as well.