Looking back over the year, 2011 was particularly delicious for lovers of cupcakes, Southern-style BBQ, French pastries, wood-oven pizzas, gourmet panini and serious gelato. It was also a great year for the Chowhounds among us in search of unusual culinary treasures from around the world: there was a Balkan Big Mac, a Chinese hamburger, and at long last, Mexican tacos.

These photos are just a few of the outtakes from my year of eating for City Bites, and they still put a smile on my face. Thanks for tuning in to see what we’ve been eating each week. We can’t wait to see what’s on the menu in 2012. Happy New Year Ottawa!