Now that turkeys by the million have given their all for the holiday season, it's once again time for critics of all stripes to stick our necks out on the chopping block of public opinion. That's right, it's the season of annual "best of" surveys.

Last year was the first time I offered my picks for Best Restaurants in the Triangle. This year, based in part on response to that inaugural list, I've refined the selection process. The Top 20 list represents my choices for the very best restaurants in the Triangle, regardless of price, cuisine or location. These are the restaurants that, in my experience, most consistently deliver the "full package" dining experience of excellent food, attentive service and pleasant atmosphere.

As I did last year, I've singled out a Restaurant of the Year -- a best in show, if you will. This year, I've selected Fins, already among the crème de la crème of area restaurants when it was in North Raleigh. Now that the restaurant has relocated to chic new digs downtown, Fins is better than ever.

In an effort to give fair representation to establishments whose settings are modest but whose food represents excellent value, I'm offering a separate Best Bargains list. I'm also adding a Top Newcomer category to honor the best of the new restaurants I've reviewed in the past year.

There's no shortage of candidates for any of these categories; I wrestled with narrowing each list. I wouldn't be surprised if you can name a worthy restaurant or two that I haven't included. I invite you to tell me what you think of my selections on my blog (http://blogs.newsobserver.com/epicurean/). Feel free to add your own nominations. And while you're at it, what do you think of the new Top 20, Best Bargain and Top Newcomer categories?

Note: You can find my full review of these (and hundreds more) restaurants at http://events.triangle.com/restaurants.

Top 20

Fins - Restaurant of the Year

110 E. Davie St., Raleigh, 834-6963, www.myspace.com/finsrestaurant

Cuisine: Pacific Rim fusion, seafood

For nearly a decade, Fins was North Raleigh's best-kept secret. Then, last year, owner/chef William D'Auvray and his wife, Lisa, pulled up stakes and set out for snazzier, higher profile digs downtown. The new dining room was much larger than the old one, however, and even loyal fans wondered whether the couple had bitten off more than they could chew.

They needn't have worried. The new space is chic and dramatic but warmly inviting, and spacious without feeling cavernous. Service, under Lisa D'Auvray's watchful eye, is attentive but not intrusive. And the food is, if anything, even better now than it was before.

Fins' Pacific Rim fusion menu still leans heavily to seafood and evolves with the daily catch. D'Auvray has wisely kept some of the old favorite presentations in his rotation, too. Regardless of what you order - butter-poached diver scallops, or Thai snapper "Indonesian style," or Marcona almond-crusted turbot draped over a mound of emerald green fava beans - you can count on impeccable freshness and near flawless execution. You won't go wrong, either, with landlubber fare such as red curry baby lamb and Vietnamese style foie gras sandwich.

The sashimi selection would put most sushi bars to shame. Fins is the first restaurant in the area to feature a robatayaki bar, where the chef char-grills small cuts of sashimi-grade fish and other delicacies to order and serves them, sushi bar-style. With advance reservations, D'Auvray will serve a multicourse chef's table-style tasting menu at the robatayaki bar - an experience sure to be memorable.

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