Downtown upstarts with fresh moves and fine-dining citadels on the Strip upending their own traditions — 2012 was a year of surprises, mashups and fertile chaos. The gastropub dished up a remix of the artisanal and casual; desserts refused their status as sweet epilogues and rushed the stage; and Vegas culinary institutions strove anew not to just meet a standard, but to forge a new one.

We bet you’ve got quite an appetite right about now. After all, 2011 was a year of hard work, hunkering down, and holding on beneath thundercloud headlines about halting recovery and slow economic comeback.

Friendliest Mom & Pop Joint of the Year: Frank & Fina’s Cocina. It’s a testament to the warmth of Frank & Fina’s Cocina that when it closed its original, more central location on West Charleston Boulevard about three years ago to focus on its larger restaurant near the Beltway on Flamingo Road, regulars followed their favorite Mexican cuisine into the tony ’burbs.

The envelope (and the check), please. It's time for our annual Desert Companion Restaurant Awards.