With the new year upon us, we asked some of our Seattle Weekly Food Panelists to weigh in on the best and the worst of Seattle’s food scene in 2014, and to share what they’re most hopeful for in 2015. Here, their thoughtful answers:

The Food Panel Weighs In …

Austin Dienst Board Member of the Market Foundation

What was your favorite new Seattle restaurant of 2014?Red Cow. It’s an awesome little bistro in one of my favorite neighborhoods and gives me one more excuse to spend more time in Madrona. What food trend do you want to go away? Which do you love?Love: Homemade noodles. From from chow mein to tajarin, from ramen to percatelli, chefs all over the city are making noodles by hand, every day, and it is awesome! Hate: Truffle oil. It’s not truffles. Stop floating it on soup, putting it on popcorn, and ruining otherwise perfectly good food.What is your favorite dining neighborhood?Capitol Hill. It’s got everything… and it’s all within walking distance of my house, so I don’t need to worry about parking.What’s your favorite new drinking establishment?Mezcaleria Oaxaca in Capitol Hill. Super strong margaritas, delicious guacamole, and a roof deck… what more could you want? And don’t say parking, you shouldn’t be driving after drinking here anyway.

If you could only choose one restaurant to send a friend from out of town, which would it be?Sitka & Spruce. It never fails to deliver on the best qualities of Seattle dining: it’s homey and intimate, features local ingredients, and everything on the menu is prepared with the utmost care. Plus, Melrose Market is an awesome place to take out-of-towners, because it’s just so dang Seattle.What are you looking forward to the most in Seattle’s culinary scene in 2015, or would do you most wish would happen?I’m really looking forward to the transformation of the Harvard Exit. I was sad to see the theater close, but I think it’s an incredible space and I’m really excited to see if they can turn it into something as exciting as Melrose Market.What restaurant(s) did you think were overrated/underrated?

Overrated: Loulay, TanakaSan, and Old Sage. I love the folks behind these restaurants, but I just don’t think they deliver the way they have with their other spots. I want them to be successful, but they have some room for improvement. Underrated: Bar Cotto, Shibumi, and Boat Street Cafe. Bar Cotto is making the best pizza in the city and I’m all about that crust. Shibumi is killing it on the ramen front and has an excellent sake selection. Then there’s Boat Street, which seems to get overlooked when people think about Renee Erickson, but it is every bit as good as Whale Wins, Barnacle, and The Walrus and the Carpenter.

Sheri WetherellCo-Founder and CEO of Foodista.com

What was your favorite new Seattle restaurant of 2014?

It’s tough to pick just one as we have so many stars in Seattle. But I love going to Taylor Shellfish on Occidental in Pioneer Square. The team there is great and I love nothing more than to cozy up to the bar for a glass of bubbly and a few dozen oysters on the half shell. What food trend do you want to go away? Which do you love?

Food trends never bother me because, at the end of the day, it’s those trends that get us talking about food. You may not like it, but someone somewhere does and that’s special. I love that vegetables are getting increasingly more popular and booting meat off the plate, and I love that mushrooms of all varieties are basking in the spotlight. So many interesting things are being done with veggies and fungus and that’s exciting.What is your favorite dining neighborhood?

Old Town Ballard. Charming, romantic, great food and great drinks. The shopping is fun, too!What’s your favorite new drinking establishment?

Schooner Exact Brewing Co. They make amazing brews (we are eagerly awaiting the release of their new sour beers), have great food, and are kid-friendly. I love a place where you can linger over a cold brew while your kid plays happily in the kiddy corner. If you could only choose one restaurant to send a friend from out of town, which would it be?

There are still so many on my own list to visit, but I love Boat Street Kitchen. It’s so charming at night with its twinkling lights and there’s always something unique and stunning on the menu. What are you looking forward to the most in Seattle’s culinary scene in 2015, or would do you most wish would happen?

I would love to see Seattle featured more than Portland in national print publications. Yes, they have great cuisine, but our local chefs ROCK it too, and being right on the water we have some of the best and freshest seafood, amazing farmers, incredible micro-distillers and winemakers, etc…. Seems like every time I see a Western city featured for their cuisine it’s Portland. Let’s make it Seattle! What restaurant(s) did you think were overrated/underrated?

The Asian scene is underrated. And I’m not talking about the places in the heart of the ID. Ask any Vietnamese where they go to eat and I guarantee you will have an amazing meal, and it will be some off the beaten path place you never would have found on your own. There are also a number of fabulous Ethiopian hole in the wall places that are simply brilliant! Be bold and ask them to bring you whatever they think are the best dishes. In Japanese that’s known as omakase, or leaving it up to the chef. That’s when you truly discover dishes that haven’t been Americanized.

Kuo-Yu LiangWriter, The Hungry Traveler

What was your favorite new Seattle restaurant of 2014?Loulay. Always loved [Thierry Rautureau’s] food. Had my pre-wedding dinner with best friends at Rovers, and I’m pleased the magic is still there.What food trend do you want to go away? Which do you love?Go away: Fake southern/soul food.Love: Simply having more attention being paid to good eating is good for me.What is your favorite dining neighborhood?Pike Place Market. Amid the tourists are plenty of quirky gems frequented by local cops.

What’s your favorite new drinking establishment?None. I have a kid & I don’t go out drinking!

If you could only choose one restaurant to send a friend from out of town, which would it be? Salumi. Incredibly local & fun. All my out of town friends still talk about it.

What are you looking forward to the most in Seattle’s culinary scene in 2015, or would do you most wish would happen?More hot pot restaurants. Two new ones opened in the International District this year. We can’t have enough hot pot restaurants.

What restaurant(s) did you think were overrated/underrated?

Overrated: Revel. For me the food lacks the soul of true Korean cooking, and the creativity of fusion, and thus the worst of both worlds.

Kathleen FlinnNYT best-selling author, fearless cook

What was your favorite new Seattle restaurant of 2014?Jack’s BBQ down in Sodo. (In a disclosure moment, I need to confess that my husband owns 1/48th of the restaurant.) The brisket is the piece de resistance there, but my favorite item is the smoked chicken; its slathered first in mayonnaise and then slowly wood smoked. My other favorite openings this year include the Taylor Shellfish outpost in Pioneer Square, Thierry Rautureau’s elegant Loulay, and the pizza-by-the-kilo at Pizzeria Gabbiano.What food trend do you want to go away? Which do you love?I’m completely over cupcakes. Although I love it, I fear that pie may soon jump the shark. I’m a fan of anything smoked or pickled and I think we’ll see loads of variations on both in the next two years.What is your favorite dining neighborhood?I live in the north Broadway area of Capitol Hill and my writing office is at Richard Hugo House, so all my usual haunts are in the area. I used to live in a loft in Pioneer Square, so I’m pretty psyched to see all the activity happening there, such as the new Taylor Shellfish eatery, London Plane, the extension of Il Terrazzo Carmine and Brgr Bar and in the summer, I found myself there all the time.What’s your favorite new drinking establishment?Does juice count? I’m all over Juicebox on Capitol Hill.If you could only choose one restaurant to send a friend from out of town, which would it be?

Matt’s in the Market. It’s kind of got it all. It’s at the market, it’s got a great view, terrific food and a taste of the northwest… although Westward on north Lake Union offers a strong alternative in the summer.What are you looking forward to the most in Seattle’s culinary scene in 2015, or would do you most wish would happen?I’d like to see the state and city relax their draconian liquor laws to allow for more temporary outdoor seating in the summer. Are semi-permanent barricades on a sidewalk necessary in a state where people can walk by smoking legalized marijuana? What restaurant(s) did you think were overrated/underrated?

I’m going for something more sweeping. This past year, I kept finding myself in Columbia City, an area too often overlooked as a great food neighborhood. There’s a terrific farmer’s market, plus wonderful eateries such as Island Soul, La Medusa, Fana’s Cuisine, Geraldine’s Counter, Flying Squirrel Pizza and the Columbia City Ale House. I’m looking forward to the new transit line if for only one reason: an excuse to explore restaurants along the line… !