“Where should we eat tonight?”

The question, we’re happy to say, has more good answers than ever. That said, it makes our job of selecting the area’s top 100 restaurants a toughie.

Just think of the caliber of openings this past year, which included Christian Irabién’s long-awaited Amparo Fondita, already a top destination for tacos on heirloom-corn tortillas; Dabney chef Jeremiah Langhorne’s leisurely French cafe in Shaw; and Beloved BBQ, the Japanese steakhouse inside DC’s singular all-Japanese food hall, Love, Makoto.

And that’s just in the District proper. Some of the year’s coolest spots—Joon in Tysons, Ellie Bird in Falls Church, Kirby Club in Fairfax—debuted in the Virginia suburbs.

Yes, service fees are still confusing and tabs are still often sky-high. (Watch those $24 cocktails!) You may dine out less, and be choosier about where you book a table. But let us persuade you: These are 100 really, really great reasons you should go out to dinner tonight.