Yesterday, readers of the Young & Hungry newsletter (hint, hint: sign up at right) got first word on who won the D.C. Dish Hall of Fame. Today, we tell everyone the results of our debut contest, which we launched back in October with the idea of sussing out the dishes that best define the D.C. metro area.

From the very beginning, voters were clear on their favorite. It's the same one that Bill Cosby loves. The same one that puzzled future president Barack Obama. The same one made in Baltimore but rich in D.C. history.

Yep, you know it as the chili half-smoke from Ben's Chili Bowl.

The famous link in the natural casing, topped with the joint's dark signature meat gravy, beat the nearest competitor, the falafel from Amsterdam Falafelshop, by more than 100 votes. In terms of this contest, that's a landslide.

It's a landslide particularly when you consider that Ben's, unlike Amsterdam, did not solicit customers to vote for its dish. Nizam Ali, the youngest son of founders Virginia and the late Ben Ali, says he didn't even know about the Hall of Fame voting until late last week. At that point, he told a handful of friends about it, and even voted himself, but didn't promote the contest at the Bowl.

Who did Nizam Ali vote for? "I voted for us, of course," says Ali, who now runs Ben's with older brother Kamal. "I voted for Horace & Dickie's fried fish and what was the other one? I can't remember now."

"Oh, I think it was 2Amys," he says about the pizzeria's Margherita pie.

Many of the 1,238 voters agreed with Ali's choices. More than 500 of them voted for the chili half-smoke, followed by the falafel at Amsterdam (395 votes), the hamburger at Five Guys (259), the Peruvian chicken at El Pollo Rico (193), and the Margherita pizza at 2Amys (186). These five dishes make up the inaugural class of the D.C. Dish Hall of Fame.

"It is only because of the loyal following of our customers that we could have achieved something like this, and we are honored beyond belief to be included with the likes of true landmarks like Ben's, and true culinary delights like 2Amys," writes Arianne Bennett, co-owner of Amsterdam Falafelshop with husband, Scott.

Bennett's not kidding about the loyal following. Their customers are so loyal, they take orders. Bennett admits that Amsterdam added a note to the bottom of the shop's receipts, urging customers to vote; she also alerted the vegetarian community in an effort to solicit more votes for the only veggie option in the competition. Maybe as a result, many of the comments we received about Amsterdam's falafel were nothing less than gushing.

A sample: "Amsterdam has the Best Falefel ever, I adore them and wish there was one right next to my house!"

Then again, Ben's earned its praise without any prodding from the restaurant. Consider this reader comment: "As much as I enjoy a nice dinner at Central or Cafe Atlantico, nothing beats a half-smoke. And no half-smoke beats one from Ben's. I just moved away from DC after 22 years this fall, and the idea that I won't ever be able to eat a half-smoke unless I'm visiting my parents kills me."

Or consider what chefs think about Ben's half-smoke, despite the fact that it's a commercial sausage produced by Manger Packing Corp. in Baltimore. "I have had the half smoke with chili. I have had the half smoke with a fried egg. I think it's good," says chef R.J. Cooper of Vidalia, where he's been known to make his own sausages. "Is it the quintessential Washington, D.C. food? If anything is it, that would have to be it."

The interesting thing is that both Ben's and Amsterdam — one an institution, the other a budding one — are still formulating or thinking about franchising plans. Could either one (or both) become the next Five Guys, a once (and always) beloved local institution that has spread its seed all over the country?

The question is rather loaded, especially for Nizam Ali and family. Ali said he had read Y&H's recent blog item, in which I wondered whether Five Guys' burger was still Hall of Fame worthy given that the chain's aggressive franchising has (sometimes) hurt the quality of its product (not to mention managers' ability to make sure cooks know how to griddle those patties properly).

"I thought to myself, Hey, if and when or somewhere down the line if the Chili Bowl franchises, would that knock the half-smoke or Ben's out of the running[for a place among D.C.'s iconic dishes]?" Nizam Ali says. "It's an interesting question."

It's an interesting question for the Alis because, for 51 years now, they have prided themselves on their personal touch at Ben's. They've prided themselves on the history that the U Street institution oozes. They've prided themselves, in short, on being a family-run business.

"Because of the history and legacy of the family, we really want to do it our way and kind of want to keep control of it," Nizam Ali says. "The Chili Bowl has been all about family, and we want to keep our family intact. So if I'm running around selling franchises and my brother's running and going to the openings and checking the quality, then we're both divorced...You know what I mean? So what's more important? The running around and opening thousands of stores or making sure that your home life is happy and all that stuff. That's kind of more important to us."

At the same time, the Alis have not ruled out franchising altogether. It's probably impossible to rule out franchising when the family constantly receives calls about it. But here's hoping that Ben's never becomes another Five Guys, no matter how much money they could make from it.

As a final note, I want to thank all of you who participated in our very first D.C. Dish Hall of Fame contest. If you have some thoughts about the results, please e-mail them to me, and I'll publish the best on the blog.

In the meantime, go out and congratulate the winners by visiting their restaurants.

The inaugural class of the D.C. Dish Hall of Fame:

Half-smoke with chili at Ben's Chili Bowl, 502 votes

Falafel at Amsterdam Falafelshop, 395

Hamburger at Five Guys, 259

Peruvian chicken at El Pollo Rico, 193

Margherita pizza at 2Amys, 186

The Five Guys burger in all its unfiltered glory

We're down to the wire on the D.C. Dish Hall of Fame contest. You have only until Friday to cast your vote.

As you likely know by now, the top five dishes will be part of the hall's inaugural class, with more plates to be inducted in the years to come. As it stands, the leaderboard remains virtually the same from last week's, although the falafel from Amsterdam is quietly challenging the half-smoke from Ben's for the top spot. The Falafelshop is probably gaming the system, but, hell, that's the problem with public online contests.

Just as troubling: As the contest winds down, Y&H has been revisiting some of the leading dishes (see, ahem, the above photo) in preparation for writing a recap about this madness. During my visits, I've found myself confronted by some tough questions, such as:

Do we really want the current iteration of the Five Guys burger to serve as D.C.'s calling card? Does a restaurant's longevity automatically make its food worthy of Hall of Fame status?

It's not like we can go back on our promise to induct the winners, although one Y&H reader, Rob, suggested that very idea to me:

I would vote to remove 5 Guys from the list. The chain is not local anymore, even though they started out that way. Should we have McDonalds on the list then?

To be fair, the site of the original McDonald'sin San Bernardino, Calif., has been turned into a museum, which goes way beyond a simple online Hall of Fame vote, but I get your point, Rob. I'd be curious on what the rest of you think. Chime in via e-mail and let me know your thoughts.

Meanwhile, here's the leaderboard:

1. Half-smoke with chili at Ben's Chili Bowl, 399 votes
2. Falafel at Amsterdam Falafelshop, 349
3. Hamburger at Five Guys, 223
4. Peruvian chicken at El Pollo Rico, 161
5. Margherita pizza at 2Amys, 148
6. Burger from Ray's Hell Burger, 125
7. Salty oat cookie at Teaism, 124
8. Pho at Pho 75, 115
9. Palak chaat at Rasika, 112
10. Fried whiting at Horace & Dickie's, 104
11. Atomica pizza at Pizzeria Paradiso, 87
12. Chicken croquetas at Jaleo, 83
13. Cowboy-cut bone-in ribeye at Ray's the Steaks, 71
14. Spit-roasted goat at Komi, 65
15. Lobster burger at Central Michel Richard, 60

Only four more days to go, so get votingif you want to see that leaderboard flip.

The big news this week concerns Amsterdam Falafelshop's dramatic rise to second place on the D.C. Dish Hall of Fame leaderboard.  The falafel's surge was no doubt assisted by promotions like this one on VegDC.com's Facebook page, which of course points out the whole problem with online public surveys: Folks can stuff the ballot box.

And leave comments like this:

"There should be more vegan options on this list!"

Ahem, Y&H desperately needs an international election monitoring group. Or at least experts to supplement the public vote, which is the direction that Y&H's heading.

Here's the current leaderboard:

1. Half-smoke with chili at Ben's Chili Bowl, 363
2. Falafel at Amsterdam Falafelshop, 259
3. Hamburger at Five Guys, 206
4. Peruvian chicken at El Pollo Rico, 142
5. Margherita pizza at 2Amys, 134
6. Burger from Ray's Hell Burger, 111
7. Salty oat cookie at Teaism, 109
8. Pho at Pho 75, 99
9. Palak chaat at Rasika, 99
10. Fried whiting at Horace & Dickie's, 90

There are still two weeks left to vote for the inaugural class in the D.C. Dish Hall of Fame. So get voting!

With only three weeks of voting left in the D.C. Dish Hall of Fame, the leaderboard remains virtually unchanged from last week's, save for a little jockeying at the bottom and 2Amys' suddenly move into a fourth-place tie with the falafel sandwich at Amsterdam.

Remember, only the top five dishes will be part of the Hall's inaugural class. So if you don't like the looks of the list below, get voting.

1. Half-smoke with chili at Ben's Chili Bowl, 334 votes
2. Hamburger at Five Guys, 157
3. Peruvian chicken at El Pollo Rico, 128
4. Margherita pizza at 2Amys, 115
5. Falafel at Amsterdam Falafelshop, 115
6. Burger from Ray's Hell Burger, 99
7. Salty oat cookie at Teaism, 98
8. Palak chaat at Rasika, 89
9. Pho at Pho 75, 88
10. Fried whiting at Horace & Dickie's, 83

The interesting thing is, several high-end dishes are holding their breath just below the surface of the Top 10 list. Check it out:

11. Atomica pizza at Pizzeria Paradiso, 58

12. Lobster burger at Central Michel Richard, 46

13. Cowboy-cut bone-in ribeye at Ray's the Steaks, 45

14. Shrimp and grits at Vidalia, 41

15. Spit-roasted goat at Komi, 41

With a coordinated campaign, any one of these dishes could easily sneak into the rarefied air of the Top 5. So what are you waiting for? Start canvassing for votes!

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

The D.C. Dish Hall of Fame leaderboard remains virtually unchanged after a week of voting, save for the flip-flop of the ninth and tenth place dishes. After a strong surge last week, Horace & Dickie's  fried whiting moves up a notch into ninth place.

But I have to say, I think the list is still missing some great dishes. Plates like Frank Ruta's roast chicken and Michel Richard's lobster burger are nowhere to be seen, meaning they will not, at present, be part of the inaugural class of the D.C. Dish Hall of Fame. A shame that would be, to paraphase a certain elderly sage.

A comment we received this morning, I think, sums up the feelings of a number of voters, who seem to view this contest as an exercise in classism, not a genuine search for D.C.'s finest plates:

like most things in DC, the options show extreme class stratification. I'd love to know the percentage of DC residents who've enjoyed the CityZen Parker House Rolls or Komi's spit roasted goat.

I understand that more people can afford to eat at Ben's Chili Bowl over CityZen. But I don't think you should hold that against a great side like Eric Ziebold's Parker House rolls. It deserves a place among the city's best as much as the chili half-smoke. Well, almost as much.

So, c'mon, let's try to put our prole resentments aside and vote for the best, regardless of price.  You can vote here.

The leaderboard:

1. Half-smoke with chili at Ben's Chili Bowl, 298 votes
2. Hamburger at Five Guys, 142
3. Peruvian chicken at El Pollo Rico, 115
4. Falafel at Amsterdam Falafelshop, 107
5. Margherita pizza at 2Amys, 100
6. Burger from Ray's Hell Burger, 89
7. Salty oat cookie at Teaism, 85
8. Palak chaat at Rasika, 80
9. Fried whiting at Horace & Dickie's, 76
10. Pho at Pho 75, 75

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

Y&H has been promoting the pleasures of fried whiting for years. It's truly one of the District's under-appreciated plates, which is why I was happy to see the whiting at Horace & Dickie's enter this week's leaderboard for the D.C Dish Hall of Fame.

Granted, the dish still doesn't have enough votes to enter the Hall. It needs to be among the top five to earn that honor. But regardless, I'm glad to see it get some love. Maybe you'd like to give it more affection? Vote here.

Speaking of which, the falafel sandwich at Amsterdam Falafelshop also made a strong move last week, adding nearly 30 votes to its total despite the owners', ahem, questionable behavior at the Strathmore. I credit the uptick to a groundswell of vegan/vegetarian voters, who were no doubt spurred by some online petition. How do I know this?

Because Y&H received a number of e-mails like this one from avalon345:

"Not enough vegetarian/vegan choices! Looks like 1950s fare..."

Yeah, sure. Where were you eating palak chaat, pho, and Peruvian chicken in the '50s, avalon345?

The current leaderboard after the jump:

1. Half-smoke with chili at Ben’s Chili Bowl, 250 votes
2. Hamburger at Five Guys, 118
3. Peruvian chicken at El Pollo Rico, 104
4. Falafel at Amsterdam Falafelshop, 92
5. Margherita pizza at 2Amys, 87
6. Burger from Ray’s Hell Burger, 76
7. Salty oat cookie at Teaism, 70
8. Palak chaat at Rasika, 70
9. Pho at Pho 75, 63
10. Fried whiting at Horace & Dickie's, 40

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

The Margherita at 2Amys: Does it make the cut?

Earlier this week, I was noshing on the roast chicken at Palena Cafe, reveling once again in Frank Ruta's ability to add and coax flavors from this generous, succulent portion of breast, wing, and leg meat. That's when the thought struck me: This is, hands-down, one of the area's greatest dishes. It deserves a spot in some sort of local culinary hall of fame.

The roast chicken is an obvious one, but what other dishes would make the cut? I've been pondering this and have drafted a number of nominees. The list is, by no means, complete. It needs your suggestions.

Once we get a solid roster of nominees, we'll put them to a public vote here on the Y&H blog. The top 10 vote getters will go into the City Paper's inaugural D.C. Dish Hall of Fame. Winners will receive everlasting glory.

The working list of nominees:

• Lobster burger at Central
• Half smoke with chili at Ben's Chili Bowl
• Fried whiting at Horace & Dickie's
• Foie-gras lollipops at minibar
• Parker House rolls at CityZen
• Irish BLT at Restaurant Eve
• Shrimp and grits at Vidalia
• Lobster roll at Kinkead's
• Green papaya salad at Four Sisters
• Margherita pizza at 2Amys
• Floating market noodle soup at Nava Thai
• Butter chicken at Heritage India
• Roasted bone marrow at Blue Duck Tavern
• Palak chaat at Rasika
• Roast chicken at El Pollo Rico
• Mac 'n' cheese at Oohhs & Aahhs
• Spare ribs at Mr. P's
• Pho at Pho 75
• Paella at Jaleo
• Hamburger at Five Guys
• Lingonberry linzertorte at Hook
• Salty oat cookie at Teaism
• Lobster "begula" pasta at Citronelle
• Spit roasted goat at Komi