Where I've Been Eating

• The Passenger
A fun place to drink, the Passenger is also a fun place is eat. Salted marcona almonds sit on the bar, and while my friends like the Italian panini, I'm partial to the vegetable panini, pressed with vegetables like squash and asparagus. At $11, it's pricey for a panini, but served with Route 11 chips it's a tasty bar bite.

• Firefly
I've always enjoyed my visits to Firefly in Dupont Circle, but the dinner I had here in December was especially delicious. Favorites included the Alaskan king crab carbonara and red wine poached octopus for starters, and the pork tenderloin with squash dumplings and brussels sprouts for an entree. The seckle pear and ginger crisp was a nice end to the meal. One of the main reasons I like Firefly is for Alice Gaber's cocktails, and on this visit I had the Opal, with 10 cane rum infused with chai tea spices and shaken with cream.

• Radius
I checked out the newly revamped spot in Mt. Pleasant in December and was amazed to find short rib and foie gras ravioli in my neighborhood. The winter pizza was also delicious, as was the white bean soup. The owners are warm and friendly, and it's a great spot to have near my house.

• Birch and Barley
I had a delicious dinner at Birch and Barley recently, beginning with charred octopus and the crispy duck egg with pork belly, and seguing into the fun and tasty brat burger topped with emmenthaler, and fininshing with marvelous desserts, like sorbets, french toast (with bacon caramel!), the peanut butter tart with an addictive whiskey vanilla shake and a plate of lots of little desserts.