In ranking our 10 Best Restaurants we asked: What experiences, as a whole, were most memorable? It's not only about the food, but the full dining experience: the food, drinks, service and setting. We expect this list to change a lot in the next few years, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Columbus is a dining scene on the rise. Stay tuned.

We all remember certain meals, and certain dishes, throughout our lives. This year, it was a chilled corn soup with blackberry "caviar" from Veritas Tavern that captivated our senses. In ranking our 10 Best Restaurants we asked: What experiences, as a whole, were most memorable? It's not only about the food, but the full dining experience: the food, drinks, service and setting. We expect this list to change a lot in the next few years, as icons such as Kihachi and Alana's go on the market and ambitious new restaurants open, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Columbus is a dining scene on the rise. Stay tuned.

How our rankings are determined(or how the artisanal list-sausage gets made)

Lists are opinions. It's only natural to wonder how we ended up with ours. Here's the key: Our rankings are not based on food alone. We take the full dining experience into account and break it down using four criteria–food, drinks, service and atmosphere.

Previous 10 Best lists are, of course, a good starting point, but not a given. We make note of other contenders throughout the year and make anonymous visits to both veterans and shiny new things. We have discussions with food writers and insiders, and end up with a basic data set. There's math involved. And in the end, we ask: Which dining experiences were the most memorable this year and why?

We expect some readers to disagree with our 10 Best. That's not a bad thing, either. We'd love to hear your Top 10. Share it with us at letters@columbusmonthly.com.