Happy 2018. Or should that be a wish for a Happier 2018?

Looking back at the previous year, as one does at this time, it’s noteworthy that over the previous 12 months there were almost twice as many restaurants to close as there were to open, at least in terms of significance.

But look more closely and it isn’t quite as dire as it seems. Some, such as Citrus and Mucho Tequila and Tacos, closed to make way for new concepts, Reyes Mezcalaria and Muddy Waters in these respective cases. Some closed because the owners retired. Some from the usual mismanagement or miscalculations of consumer preferences.

Some just deserved to close.

I suspect that will be the case with 2018, too. Time will tell — and it won’t necessarly take 12 months.

Here’s a re-accounting of the restaurant reviews and news as documented in these pages throughout 2017, plus a look at what to expect this year.