It takes a lot for me to go out to dinner and order a steak. DC is over-populated by steakhouses and the snobbery that goes along with it. If I wanted to wear a tie to dinner I would start crashing weddings or bring back those bolo things. This is part of the reason that I absolutely love Ray's The Steaks and one of the reasons I loved my recent trip to Lost Society over at 14th and U.
The scene here is pretty classy while maintaining a laid-back comfortable feel. The second-floor dining room (the first floor is a Subway...easily the WORST "restaurant" in the nation) is almost entirely hardwood and exposed, an underground feel despite being upstairs. Another thing that I immediately liked about the place was the eclectic mix of people...old white dudes, hipsters, bro bruhs, and everything in between. Is there anything more boring than going out or eating at a place where everyone looks like you? Barf. Ok, now the food.
The menu here is pretty straight forward, but they do have a few interesting takes on fish dishes and some different apps. We decided to try a couple different appetizers to start out with. She wanted the crispy pork belly and I wanted to try the bone marrow because I had never had it. Honestly, the pork belly was pretty hard to eat. I took a steak knife to that thing and was still strugglin' to get through the fried pork skin on the outside. However, the struggle was worth it. It was salty enough, but still had a little bit of sweetness to it along with being extremely tender. The serving size for this 10 dollar app was about the size of a filet. Pretty legit. The bone marrow was fantastic. This was easily the best bone marrow I had ever tasted lol. It is served with kosher salt, grilled slices of baguette, and two large pieces of bone that you spoon out onto the bread (http://www.parlafood.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/marrow.jpg). This was such a rich little snack and may have been my favorite dish there. Next time I may get super gluttonous and just spread this stuff all over my steak. Speaking of steak, this is what this place hangs their hat on. This is a steakhouse that doesn't scream at the top of its lungs that it's a steakhouse. For her entree she ordered the roasted grouper served with succotash, brown butter, smoked bacon, and chili aioli. I had a bite or two of this and I love grouper so it was pretty solid. The chili sauce had a little spice, but wasn't overwhelming. Spice on fish is always a plus in my opinion. I went with the extremely large 14oz bone-in new york strip. This was topped with maytag blue-cheese and served with a side of mushroom cognac sauce. Blue cheese on a steak can be risky. I've had it some places where it ruined the steak, but Lost Society prepared it perfectly and the cognac sauce was a great counter to the strength of the blue cheese. The steak went well with the glass of red that our waitress suggested based on the fact that I know zilch about vino. I couldn't believe it, but we actually ordered dessert after all of that along with a couple glasses of wine. Ruth almost fell out of her chair when I said I had never had nutella so we went with the Nutella Smore. This thing was straight up badass. I don't know how they torched the entire thing to get it melted & still served it chilled, but it was deeelicious. Haha, I still don't know which part of that thing was the nutella, but I'll get on board.
Lost Society has a certain feel to it... like you are behind an an invisible velvet rope (to steal a certain company's lingo). You feel like you are in your favorite neighborhood bar and they happen to serve some fantastic dinner options. This is something DC needs more of; casual eateries with great food. Thanks a lot to Chatty Cathy Savage for turning me on to this place.
Overall: A/A+
Highlights: Bone Marrow, Smores
Lowlights: Our waitress was super nervous and made it a tad uncomfortable for everyone lol.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Monday, August 29, 2011
Graffiato - 707 6th St NW
Big ol' Top Chef fan here. I've seen all the seasons, have favorite chefs, and favorite episodes. Spike has a few places in DC; a pizza place, a burger joint, but nothing with a comprehensive menu. I don't blame him for that since you can make boatloads of money slingin' burgers a pizzas, but when I heard Isabella was opening a restaurant in DC I was pretty excited. On top of that, a couple of friends are chefs there so that led to more excitement.
A friend and I went to Graffiato last week, both for the first time, and I was not disappointed. Its a casual place with great food that won't cost you 60 bucks a person. The first floor of this place had a pretty big open kitchen, but we sat upstairs in the quieter section of the restaurant. The lunch menu is not too extensive which prevents asian-menu-syndrome where folks like myself panic over choosing 1 out of 179 possible options.
The first thing that we ordered was the sweet corn agnolotti. This was a small plate (they all are here) with agnolotti pasta, chanterelles, and pine nuts. This dish was really rich, but the portion was such that it was not going to ruin the rest of our meal. I could have easily eaten an entire plate of this, but we had two other orders to polish off as well. Next we had the chicken thighs with pepperoni sauce and grape tomatoes. This sauce almost won Top Chef All-Stars for Mike Isabelle and is probably the most talked-about thing on the menu for people who have not dined here yet. I didn't wanna be the guy ordering the most popular thing on the menu, but I had to try it. The chicken was good, don't get me wrong, but it would probably rank at the bottom of the things we tried. It could use more of the pepperoni sauce (thats the highlight of the dish right??) and more tomatoes too. in my opinion, chicken is pretty boring so if you have something that makes it not boring...pile that shit on. The third thing e ordered was my favorite by far. The forager pizza has no tomato sauce and no mozzarella, but it is a GREAT pizza. Goat cheese, sauteed mushrooms, and dates make a phenomenal combination and this was the highlight of my experience there. We had two types of gelatto for dessert. I insisted we try the watermelon while I was told the peach would be much better. We tried both. The peach was MUCH better than the watermelon. I walked to Dolcezza the next day to see if their peach was as good...but it wasn't.
Graffiato is cheap enough that you can go on a whim and not have to plan a week around it. At the same time, the food is exciting enough that it could make your week.
Overall: A-
Highlights: Forager and Peach gelatto
Lowlights: Gimme more pep sauce pimps!
Sidenote: Great waitstaff
A friend and I went to Graffiato last week, both for the first time, and I was not disappointed. Its a casual place with great food that won't cost you 60 bucks a person. The first floor of this place had a pretty big open kitchen, but we sat upstairs in the quieter section of the restaurant. The lunch menu is not too extensive which prevents asian-menu-syndrome where folks like myself panic over choosing 1 out of 179 possible options.
The first thing that we ordered was the sweet corn agnolotti. This was a small plate (they all are here) with agnolotti pasta, chanterelles, and pine nuts. This dish was really rich, but the portion was such that it was not going to ruin the rest of our meal. I could have easily eaten an entire plate of this, but we had two other orders to polish off as well. Next we had the chicken thighs with pepperoni sauce and grape tomatoes. This sauce almost won Top Chef All-Stars for Mike Isabelle and is probably the most talked-about thing on the menu for people who have not dined here yet. I didn't wanna be the guy ordering the most popular thing on the menu, but I had to try it. The chicken was good, don't get me wrong, but it would probably rank at the bottom of the things we tried. It could use more of the pepperoni sauce (thats the highlight of the dish right??) and more tomatoes too. in my opinion, chicken is pretty boring so if you have something that makes it not boring...pile that shit on. The third thing e ordered was my favorite by far. The forager pizza has no tomato sauce and no mozzarella, but it is a GREAT pizza. Goat cheese, sauteed mushrooms, and dates make a phenomenal combination and this was the highlight of my experience there. We had two types of gelatto for dessert. I insisted we try the watermelon while I was told the peach would be much better. We tried both. The peach was MUCH better than the watermelon. I walked to Dolcezza the next day to see if their peach was as good...but it wasn't.
Graffiato is cheap enough that you can go on a whim and not have to plan a week around it. At the same time, the food is exciting enough that it could make your week.
Overall: A-
Highlights: Forager and Peach gelatto
Lowlights: Gimme more pep sauce pimps!
Sidenote: Great waitstaff
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Ardeo/Bardeo - 3311 Connecticut Ave. NW
Sometimes last minute plans end up being the most fun. My buddy Lawrence and I decided to go to Ardeo, spur of the moment, to try out their new menu and visit a good friend/former co-worker. Cleveland Park has a different sort of neighborhood vibe when compared to the rest of D.C. I'll say it lacks a certain smugness and that is a welcome change of pace. Ardeo/Bardeo is in the middle of that neighborhood and the restaurant follows that same type of vibe. No loud house playing while you eat here (I'm looking @ you Zengo). Bardeo seems to have its regulars...like the 3 martini after work guy. Ardeo is going to be where you want to take your date for a nice, sit-down meal.
After we were seated, Lawrence and I each got a beer off the limited list. However, I love Kona beer so that worked out fine. The appetizers we chose were: 1) Steak w/ horseradish creme fraiche, fingerling potatoes 2) Suckling pork belly, pineapple, ham and 3) Crispy onion straws with what I'm going to call super sauce because I think if I put that on a burger I could become a millionaire. The onion straws are kind of hard to dip in the sauce, but just stick your whole damn hand in there because its worth it. The other two apps were also very delicious, but I liked the horseradish creme fraiche on the steak the best. For my entree I chose the Seven hour braised leg of suckling pig. You read that right; and yes it was awesome. Being from Atlanta had me appreciating this dish on all sorts of levels. Babe came with cheddar grits, blackeyed peas, redeye gravy, & peanuts. When I go back to restaurants I almost always get something new, but when I come back to Ardeo I'm getting this...no way around it. The other two entrees were 1) Smoked duck breast (w/ hush puppies, napa cabbage slaw, barbeque sauce) and 2) Pork cacciatore, black pepper fettuccini, house pancetta. Both of these dishes got rave reviews along with plates being completely cleaned. We all briefly entertained the idea of dessert, but we were on beers 3 or 4 of what would be around 9 so ya know what goes better with beer than ice cream? Fuc*in' bacon pizza, that's what. This was just as good as any entree we ordered and was crushed in a matter of like 4 minutes. This pizza was just as good, if not better, than any I have had at Two Amy's or Matchbox. The bacon pizza comes with House bacon, aged cheddar, grilled corn, basil. The grilled corn is what makes this one stand out and I really enjoyed it as a topping. All of this and a few beers each totaled like 45 bucks each, before tip, which is not bad at all.
This is a neighborhood place that's worth coming to from another neighborhood.
Overall: A
Highlights: Cheddar grits and the bacon pizza
Lowlights: The service left a little to be desired, but was still friendly and timely.
After we were seated, Lawrence and I each got a beer off the limited list. However, I love Kona beer so that worked out fine. The appetizers we chose were: 1) Steak w/ horseradish creme fraiche, fingerling potatoes 2) Suckling pork belly, pineapple, ham and 3) Crispy onion straws with what I'm going to call super sauce because I think if I put that on a burger I could become a millionaire. The onion straws are kind of hard to dip in the sauce, but just stick your whole damn hand in there because its worth it. The other two apps were also very delicious, but I liked the horseradish creme fraiche on the steak the best. For my entree I chose the Seven hour braised leg of suckling pig. You read that right; and yes it was awesome. Being from Atlanta had me appreciating this dish on all sorts of levels. Babe came with cheddar grits, blackeyed peas, redeye gravy, & peanuts. When I go back to restaurants I almost always get something new, but when I come back to Ardeo I'm getting this...no way around it. The other two entrees were 1) Smoked duck breast (w/ hush puppies, napa cabbage slaw, barbeque sauce) and 2) Pork cacciatore, black pepper fettuccini, house pancetta. Both of these dishes got rave reviews along with plates being completely cleaned. We all briefly entertained the idea of dessert, but we were on beers 3 or 4 of what would be around 9 so ya know what goes better with beer than ice cream? Fuc*in' bacon pizza, that's what. This was just as good as any entree we ordered and was crushed in a matter of like 4 minutes. This pizza was just as good, if not better, than any I have had at Two Amy's or Matchbox. The bacon pizza comes with House bacon, aged cheddar, grilled corn, basil. The grilled corn is what makes this one stand out and I really enjoyed it as a topping. All of this and a few beers each totaled like 45 bucks each, before tip, which is not bad at all.
This is a neighborhood place that's worth coming to from another neighborhood.
Overall: A
Highlights: Cheddar grits and the bacon pizza
Lowlights: The service left a little to be desired, but was still friendly and timely.
Saturday, June 4, 2011
TAP - 1180 Peachtree St (Atlanta)
I still need to write a review or 6 on some of the restaurants I visited while in San Fransisco, but that is going to be somewhat of a project. So, first up on the out of town review list is where we ate for my birthday while I was in Atlanta. TAP is in midtown Atlanta and has all the makings of a turn n' burn establishment so I really was not expecting anything more than good company and some decent beer. I left pleasantly surprised.
The hostess immediately started busting my balls when we came inside since I never returned her phone call confirming the reservation. She wasn't serious so no harm no foul, but this was kind of a precursor to the service for the rest of the meal. Most of us were just focused on pre-gaming a little bit so we decided to just get some appetizers to start off with. For our shares we chose the buffalo calamari (tossed with bleu cheese and celery), fried pickles served with jalapeno cream sauce, and braised octopus (served chilled tossed in a basil vinaigrette). Two of those sounds like pretty standard issue bar grub, but all three were outstanding. The calamari wasnt drenched in hot sauce and bleu cheese, but was just lightly dusted with both and had cheese crumbles in there as well, which was nice. The fried pickles were sweet pickles which is a change of pace from the usual sour kind that are fried. The jalapeno sauce that came with the pickles was not overpowering, but instead served as a good counter to the sweetness of the pickle. My favorite was the octopus. Not everyone tried this, but the people that did liked it. I think most of the time when people do not want to try a "weird" food like this it is mostly based on texture than the actual taste. The texture was straight up gummy bear, but the taste was fantastic and very refreshing. The octopus was a great lead in to what I ordered next. After our apps most of the table was pretty full so people shared burgers, salads, etc. All of these got pretty good reviews. I just ended up getting another appetizer and chose the Tuna Tataki (sesame seared tuna, avocado dressing, sun dried tomatoes, mixed greens, and orange oil). This was another surprising dish. Sun dried tomatoes with my tuna? Seriously? How is this going to work? Well, it did work and it went great with the avocado dressing. Another good summer dish that was very refreshing and probably not something that would not be difficult to do at home. There wasn't too much pepper on the tuna either. So many time I have come across this seared tuna dish with TONS of pepper on it. I love pepper too, but people can go crazy. I could have had a little bigger portion, but it was an appetizer so I didn't expect it.
TAP is a pretty solid spot. I think if I went back it would be for a happy hr or something so I could just try more of their appetizers (seemed like that was the strong part of the menu). Glorified bar food is how I would categorize it if I had to. There wasn't too much negative going on while we were there, but if I had to choose something I would say that they need to fix the bathroom situation (climb three stories to take a leak? not cool). That and our waitress was a joke and could not have cared less. All in all a pretty chill place though. Great beer list, great food, and plenty of room to crush both. Tom top it off, Lorin picked up my tab. Thanks!
Overall - B+
Highlights - Octopus, beer list, and the space
Lowlights - Service
The hostess immediately started busting my balls when we came inside since I never returned her phone call confirming the reservation. She wasn't serious so no harm no foul, but this was kind of a precursor to the service for the rest of the meal. Most of us were just focused on pre-gaming a little bit so we decided to just get some appetizers to start off with. For our shares we chose the buffalo calamari (tossed with bleu cheese and celery), fried pickles served with jalapeno cream sauce, and braised octopus (served chilled tossed in a basil vinaigrette). Two of those sounds like pretty standard issue bar grub, but all three were outstanding. The calamari wasnt drenched in hot sauce and bleu cheese, but was just lightly dusted with both and had cheese crumbles in there as well, which was nice. The fried pickles were sweet pickles which is a change of pace from the usual sour kind that are fried. The jalapeno sauce that came with the pickles was not overpowering, but instead served as a good counter to the sweetness of the pickle. My favorite was the octopus. Not everyone tried this, but the people that did liked it. I think most of the time when people do not want to try a "weird" food like this it is mostly based on texture than the actual taste. The texture was straight up gummy bear, but the taste was fantastic and very refreshing. The octopus was a great lead in to what I ordered next. After our apps most of the table was pretty full so people shared burgers, salads, etc. All of these got pretty good reviews. I just ended up getting another appetizer and chose the Tuna Tataki (sesame seared tuna, avocado dressing, sun dried tomatoes, mixed greens, and orange oil). This was another surprising dish. Sun dried tomatoes with my tuna? Seriously? How is this going to work? Well, it did work and it went great with the avocado dressing. Another good summer dish that was very refreshing and probably not something that would not be difficult to do at home. There wasn't too much pepper on the tuna either. So many time I have come across this seared tuna dish with TONS of pepper on it. I love pepper too, but people can go crazy. I could have had a little bigger portion, but it was an appetizer so I didn't expect it.
TAP is a pretty solid spot. I think if I went back it would be for a happy hr or something so I could just try more of their appetizers (seemed like that was the strong part of the menu). Glorified bar food is how I would categorize it if I had to. There wasn't too much negative going on while we were there, but if I had to choose something I would say that they need to fix the bathroom situation (climb three stories to take a leak? not cool). That and our waitress was a joke and could not have cared less. All in all a pretty chill place though. Great beer list, great food, and plenty of room to crush both. Tom top it off, Lorin picked up my tab. Thanks!
Overall - B+
Highlights - Octopus, beer list, and the space
Lowlights - Service
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Granville Moores - 1238 H Street NE
Man, I haven't frequented the NE part of town for some time. They used to be my old stomping grounds when I lived near Eastern Market, but its been a while. Anyways, over the past year or so they have done some major restructuring...along with that has come a slew of new restaurants. Since this was my first time in NE in a long time I decided to try out a DC classic that I had yet to experience.
Granville Moores is consistently ranked as one of the best places to get mussels in the city. I enjoy mussels, they aren't my favorite, but I enjoy them and I was excited to try the place out. The neighborhood is shady. I know, I know "oh its unique", "no no its culturally diverse", ummm no, its freaking shady. My friend was wearing a semi-short dress, the sun was down, and the creepers were creepin'. The entrance of the restaurant matches the neighborhood, old and unassuming. Once you are inside the place though, its a pretty cool set up. It feels like a neighborhood bar, which it is, and you are treated like you live in the neighborhood, which I do not, but she does.
The beer list is very impressive. I wasn't drinking, but she had a couple different belgian beers that both looked good haha. For an appetizer we had the tuna tartar that came with hoemade chips (odd), preserved lemons, and topped with a caper vinaigrette that was delicious. The serving size was a little small for two people, but this really was a great dish. For our entrees: she had the classic white wine, garlic, butter mussels and I had the "Diablo Del Mar" (littleneck clams, baby shrimp, pappardelle, spicy fennel-saffron broth). I've had different variations on the classic white wine mussels at a few different places around the city and I still think the classic is the way to go. Mine was spicy and pretty good, but the shrimp seamed out of place and there were some tomatoes in there that were not very good. Again, the white wine mussels were spot on. The best part of all this is that you get to use the bread to sop up all of the leftover broth. We also split a large order of frites that were nice n' crunchy and came with a side of truffle mayonnaise. I feel like there is a Tommy Boy "I can actually hear you getting fatter" joke in there somewhere. The frites were perfect and so was the dipping sauce.
I always end up leaving these restaurants and saying that I want to go back and I need to try so and so. I very rarely end up doing so, but I really think I will go back to Granville Moore's to try out the chicken and waffles and get some more of that tuna. Plus, the price for dinner for two, including tip, was well under a 100 bucks. Steal.
Overall: B+
Highlight: Tuna Tartar
Lowlight: Service was a little slow. Other than that, nothing.
Granville Moores is consistently ranked as one of the best places to get mussels in the city. I enjoy mussels, they aren't my favorite, but I enjoy them and I was excited to try the place out. The neighborhood is shady. I know, I know "oh its unique", "no no its culturally diverse", ummm no, its freaking shady. My friend was wearing a semi-short dress, the sun was down, and the creepers were creepin'. The entrance of the restaurant matches the neighborhood, old and unassuming. Once you are inside the place though, its a pretty cool set up. It feels like a neighborhood bar, which it is, and you are treated like you live in the neighborhood, which I do not, but she does.
The beer list is very impressive. I wasn't drinking, but she had a couple different belgian beers that both looked good haha. For an appetizer we had the tuna tartar that came with hoemade chips (odd), preserved lemons, and topped with a caper vinaigrette that was delicious. The serving size was a little small for two people, but this really was a great dish. For our entrees: she had the classic white wine, garlic, butter mussels and I had the "Diablo Del Mar" (littleneck clams, baby shrimp, pappardelle, spicy fennel-saffron broth). I've had different variations on the classic white wine mussels at a few different places around the city and I still think the classic is the way to go. Mine was spicy and pretty good, but the shrimp seamed out of place and there were some tomatoes in there that were not very good. Again, the white wine mussels were spot on. The best part of all this is that you get to use the bread to sop up all of the leftover broth. We also split a large order of frites that were nice n' crunchy and came with a side of truffle mayonnaise. I feel like there is a Tommy Boy "I can actually hear you getting fatter" joke in there somewhere. The frites were perfect and so was the dipping sauce.
I always end up leaving these restaurants and saying that I want to go back and I need to try so and so. I very rarely end up doing so, but I really think I will go back to Granville Moore's to try out the chicken and waffles and get some more of that tuna. Plus, the price for dinner for two, including tip, was well under a 100 bucks. Steal.
Overall: B+
Highlight: Tuna Tartar
Lowlight: Service was a little slow. Other than that, nothing.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Oya - 777 9th Street NW
Sunday funday. For most this conjours up images of a little day drinking, maybe a mimosa, and perhaps some eggs benedict. Working on most Sundays keeps me from doing most of this stuff. Rather than going to eat brunch, a friend of mine and I went to Oya for dinner to kick off Sunday Funight. I had not been to Oya in some time so I was pretty excited to see if they had anything new on the menu.
Walking into Oya can be kind of intimidating on a Friday or Saturday because it is always POPPIN, the entire restaurant is white and gold, and there are mirrors everywhere...am I in Miami circa 1983? Anyways, we went on a Sunday night, before rendezvousing with other work folk, and the environment was pretty chill.
The first decision that needed to be made was whether or not we were going to go strictly sushi or try some of the entrees as well. We both wanted to try and stick to sushi. She ordered the: 1) Fruit Roll Up - avocado | crab |strawberries | kiwi | yuzu mango, 2) Mucho Bonito - spicy tuna | tempura flakes | avocado | sweet aioli | bonito flakes | ponzu. I ordered the: 1) Rock n' Roll - grilled eel | avocado | cucumber , 2)Spicy Crunchy Salmon - salmon | tempura flakes, and 3) and the Godzilla roll - I don't even remember what all was on this one except for alligator. All of the rolls were solid, but there was definitely an obvious favorite and that was the rock n roll, roll haha. The sauce that came with all of the rolls was good as well. It was about the consistency of fish sauce, but not nearly as sweet. The drinks at Oya are a step about the average cocktail. The same can be said for their sister restaurant, Sei, as well. I had the dark and stormier and she had a cilantro daiquiri. I couldn't drink more than one of either or these, but they went great with what we were eating.
The service at Oya leaves something to be desired, but the ambiance and fair prices more than make up for it. If you wanna party hit it up on the weekends, but if you are looking for an exciting place to go during the week or to round out the weekend...don't count this place out.
Overall: B+
Highlight: cocktails and the rock n roll, roll
Lowlight: the service
Walking into Oya can be kind of intimidating on a Friday or Saturday because it is always POPPIN, the entire restaurant is white and gold, and there are mirrors everywhere...am I in Miami circa 1983? Anyways, we went on a Sunday night, before rendezvousing with other work folk, and the environment was pretty chill.
The first decision that needed to be made was whether or not we were going to go strictly sushi or try some of the entrees as well. We both wanted to try and stick to sushi. She ordered the: 1) Fruit Roll Up - avocado | crab |strawberries | kiwi | yuzu mango, 2) Mucho Bonito - spicy tuna | tempura flakes | avocado | sweet aioli | bonito flakes | ponzu. I ordered the: 1) Rock n' Roll - grilled eel | avocado | cucumber , 2)Spicy Crunchy Salmon - salmon | tempura flakes, and 3) and the Godzilla roll - I don't even remember what all was on this one except for alligator. All of the rolls were solid, but there was definitely an obvious favorite and that was the rock n roll, roll haha. The sauce that came with all of the rolls was good as well. It was about the consistency of fish sauce, but not nearly as sweet. The drinks at Oya are a step about the average cocktail. The same can be said for their sister restaurant, Sei, as well. I had the dark and stormier and she had a cilantro daiquiri. I couldn't drink more than one of either or these, but they went great with what we were eating.
The service at Oya leaves something to be desired, but the ambiance and fair prices more than make up for it. If you wanna party hit it up on the weekends, but if you are looking for an exciting place to go during the week or to round out the weekend...don't count this place out.
Overall: B+
Highlight: cocktails and the rock n roll, roll
Lowlight: the service
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Central - 1001 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Looking back on my meal on Central I find it hard to believe that it took me almost three years to eat here. I know plenty of people who have dined there and loved it, but I never pulled the trigger. Well, I did a few weeks ago and it was worth it. The first thing that grabbed my attention while perusing the menu online was the fact that you could eat cheap here if you wanted to. I love the idea of going to a restaurant and being able to dine cheap or go big. This also makes it a lot easier to eat with a group.
Central is one of famed chef Michel Richard's D.C. establishments. When you walk into the penn quarter restaurant it gives off the vibe of a happy hour spot that turns into fine dining after 7. Danielle and I got the inside scoop on what the best items on the menu were from a friend who used to be a chef there. Some of the mentioned items were: Pork Belly Confit, Frisee Salad with poached egg, Filet Tartare, Loup de Mar, and the Lobster burger. We started with a couple beers and the Asian style Tuna Carpaccio. This was DELICIOUS! The tuna was sushi grade and cut very thin with minced ginger and some spice on top. The bread it came with was a little tough for the tuna, but it didn't change the dish too much. For entrees...She had the Frisee Salad with poached egg and I had the Loup de Mar (Sea Bass). This was the entire fish from head to tail and was minimally seasoned which I enjoyed. The lime vinegrette that came with the side salad was also good. The fish was HUGE and covered with grilled mushrooms which is one of my favorite toppings (on anything). I had never heard of poached egg on a salad before, but I had a bite or two and it was interesting...but not stellar. I was really full after this, but Central is pretty much known for their desserts so we ordered a couple. We decided on the Michel Candy Bar and the Bread Pudding. The candy bar was his take on a kit kat and was pretty cool. I wish it was a reeses or something though because Kit Kats aren't all that. The bread pudding was sooo rich. Personally, I like the bread pudding at Old Ebbit better. However, we got both of the desserts for free since we knew someone who worked there so no love lost there.
After being there once I definitely see what all the hype is about. Central is somewhere where people on a budget can eat like they aren't on one. I need to get back for happy hour to try some of those cocktails too. Shout out to Ayesha, our waitress, for the stellar service too.
Overall - A-
Highlights - Asian Tuna Carpaccio
Lowlights - We were stuffed in a corner booth since the restaurant was filled with actual ballers lol
Central is one of famed chef Michel Richard's D.C. establishments. When you walk into the penn quarter restaurant it gives off the vibe of a happy hour spot that turns into fine dining after 7. Danielle and I got the inside scoop on what the best items on the menu were from a friend who used to be a chef there. Some of the mentioned items were: Pork Belly Confit, Frisee Salad with poached egg, Filet Tartare, Loup de Mar, and the Lobster burger. We started with a couple beers and the Asian style Tuna Carpaccio. This was DELICIOUS! The tuna was sushi grade and cut very thin with minced ginger and some spice on top. The bread it came with was a little tough for the tuna, but it didn't change the dish too much. For entrees...She had the Frisee Salad with poached egg and I had the Loup de Mar (Sea Bass). This was the entire fish from head to tail and was minimally seasoned which I enjoyed. The lime vinegrette that came with the side salad was also good. The fish was HUGE and covered with grilled mushrooms which is one of my favorite toppings (on anything). I had never heard of poached egg on a salad before, but I had a bite or two and it was interesting...but not stellar. I was really full after this, but Central is pretty much known for their desserts so we ordered a couple. We decided on the Michel Candy Bar and the Bread Pudding. The candy bar was his take on a kit kat and was pretty cool. I wish it was a reeses or something though because Kit Kats aren't all that. The bread pudding was sooo rich. Personally, I like the bread pudding at Old Ebbit better. However, we got both of the desserts for free since we knew someone who worked there so no love lost there.
After being there once I definitely see what all the hype is about. Central is somewhere where people on a budget can eat like they aren't on one. I need to get back for happy hour to try some of those cocktails too. Shout out to Ayesha, our waitress, for the stellar service too.
Overall - A-
Highlights - Asian Tuna Carpaccio
Lowlights - We were stuffed in a corner booth since the restaurant was filled with actual ballers lol
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Sushi Sushi - 3714 Macomb Street NW
I am writing this review in memoriam. I've been to/ordered from Sushi Sushi at least 30 times. Danielle introduced me to this hole in the wall almost two years ago and I think it was some of the best sushi in the district. Well, Sushi Sushi is no more (as of about a month ago) and I wish I had gone there one last time and broke the bank.
Sushi Sushi probably got a lot of its business from overflow of 2 Amy's and Cactus Cantina. The space was pretty small and had a huge mural of the ocean on the interior. The service was always great and they delivered for free. Since I've been there so many times I thought I would just highlight a few of my menu favorites.
The seaweed salad here was a great starter. It was chilled and just enough food for an appetizer. There were 3-4 types of seaweed in the dish. This was a perfect dish to make you feel a little better about what you did the entire weekend. SS also had a great miso soup for like 2 bucks. Thats 2 bucks cheaper than most other places.
The best part of the restaurant was the "special" sushi rolls. All of the rolls were made with high quality fish, but each was done in a different way. What made sushi sushi great was the fact that these rolls were 5-8 bucks as opposed to 15-18 bucks at high-end sushi spots. The Macomb roll was far and away the best (california roll inside topped with red snapper and spicy mayo, served grilled). Since sushi sushi has been gone I have been ordering spicy mayo with my other sushi orders, but it just aint the same. My second favorite roll was the Ocean roll (battered yellow tail, salmon and red snapper inside topped by crabmeat and chef's special sweet sauce). Both of these rolls are huge! Easily twice the size of normal sushi rolls. The most unique thing that they offered was called "the smokey boat" (half avocado filled with crab stick topped with shrimp and home made spicy mayo and baked. served with a touch of chef's sweet sauce). This was kind of pricey compared to the rest of the menu, but it was well worth it the few times I ordered it.
Highlights - Macomb roll and free delivery
Lowlights - Its F'IN closed!
Rating - Solid A babay
Sushi Sushi probably got a lot of its business from overflow of 2 Amy's and Cactus Cantina. The space was pretty small and had a huge mural of the ocean on the interior. The service was always great and they delivered for free. Since I've been there so many times I thought I would just highlight a few of my menu favorites.
The seaweed salad here was a great starter. It was chilled and just enough food for an appetizer. There were 3-4 types of seaweed in the dish. This was a perfect dish to make you feel a little better about what you did the entire weekend. SS also had a great miso soup for like 2 bucks. Thats 2 bucks cheaper than most other places.
The best part of the restaurant was the "special" sushi rolls. All of the rolls were made with high quality fish, but each was done in a different way. What made sushi sushi great was the fact that these rolls were 5-8 bucks as opposed to 15-18 bucks at high-end sushi spots. The Macomb roll was far and away the best (california roll inside topped with red snapper and spicy mayo, served grilled). Since sushi sushi has been gone I have been ordering spicy mayo with my other sushi orders, but it just aint the same. My second favorite roll was the Ocean roll (battered yellow tail, salmon and red snapper inside topped by crabmeat and chef's special sweet sauce). Both of these rolls are huge! Easily twice the size of normal sushi rolls. The most unique thing that they offered was called "the smokey boat" (half avocado filled with crab stick topped with shrimp and home made spicy mayo and baked. served with a touch of chef's sweet sauce). This was kind of pricey compared to the rest of the menu, but it was well worth it the few times I ordered it.
Highlights - Macomb roll and free delivery
Lowlights - Its F'IN closed!
Rating - Solid A babay
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Zengo - 781 7th Street NW
Being a first-time living social user is what drove me to Zengo. Normally I would not go to a place that can seat 500 comfortably, for dinner. I'm glad I did though because it was a nice surprise and a great meal. Zengo is japanese for "give and take" and is an uber-trendy happy hour spot in Chinatown. The menu is split between latin and asian influences which sounds nasty, but ends up working. We walked in and there was house music playing as the happy hour crowd was in full swing. After about a 5 minute wait we were seated upstairs. The seating upstairs is a lot quieter, but very very close together.
Our waitress came over and took our drink order while explaining that the food came out as it was ready rather than all at once; this encourages sharing. I had a caipirinha and Danielle had the Yuzu Fresa which is vodka with fresh strawberries and lemon. Both drinks were great, but the Fresa was better. The 5 tapas that we ordered were: The tuna tacos (sushi rice / mango salsa / guacamole), the duck tacos (curried apple / orange-coriander sauce), the veggie sushi roll (grilled asparagus / red pepper / avocado / mushroom / lemon-sake aioli), the kobe beef roll (self explanatory), and the thai chicken empanchile poblano / oaxaca cheese / mango-curry salsa adas).
The tuna tacos came out first and I think they were my favorite of the 5 things ordered. Sushi rice in a taco is such a good idea! It held all of the ingredients together when you took a bite and made the taco crunchy and chewy. The guacamole was yummy, the tuna was seared and spicy, and mango salsa is just fun to say. "A" for that dish. Everything else came out second. The duck tacos were also pretty good, but were a little sloppy for my liking. The apples in the duck tacos were a nice touch though. Between the sushi I think I liked the veggie roll best because it had a little more variety and the kobe roll was a tad chewy. The empanadas were also great, but I still think some of the best empanadas I've had were at the bar at Clyde's (is that wrong?).
The scene here is what draws a crowd, but the food is worth sticking around for. I really like the idea of everything coming out at different times because it makes you feel like you get a lot of bang for your buck (and Zengo can get pricey). Props to LivingSocial for getting me to try a place that I normally would have walked right past.
Lowlights: proximity to next table, dessert sucked
Highlights: Yuzu Fresa and the tuna tacos
Overall grade: A-
Our waitress came over and took our drink order while explaining that the food came out as it was ready rather than all at once; this encourages sharing. I had a caipirinha and Danielle had the Yuzu Fresa which is vodka with fresh strawberries and lemon. Both drinks were great, but the Fresa was better. The 5 tapas that we ordered were: The tuna tacos (sushi rice / mango salsa / guacamole), the duck tacos (curried apple / orange-coriander sauce), the veggie sushi roll (grilled asparagus / red pepper / avocado / mushroom / lemon-sake aioli), the kobe beef roll (self explanatory), and the thai chicken empanchile poblano / oaxaca cheese / mango-curry salsa adas).
The tuna tacos came out first and I think they were my favorite of the 5 things ordered. Sushi rice in a taco is such a good idea! It held all of the ingredients together when you took a bite and made the taco crunchy and chewy. The guacamole was yummy, the tuna was seared and spicy, and mango salsa is just fun to say. "A" for that dish. Everything else came out second. The duck tacos were also pretty good, but were a little sloppy for my liking. The apples in the duck tacos were a nice touch though. Between the sushi I think I liked the veggie roll best because it had a little more variety and the kobe roll was a tad chewy. The empanadas were also great, but I still think some of the best empanadas I've had were at the bar at Clyde's (is that wrong?).
The scene here is what draws a crowd, but the food is worth sticking around for. I really like the idea of everything coming out at different times because it makes you feel like you get a lot of bang for your buck (and Zengo can get pricey). Props to LivingSocial for getting me to try a place that I normally would have walked right past.
Lowlights: proximity to next table, dessert sucked
Highlights: Yuzu Fresa and the tuna tacos
Overall grade: A-
Siroc - 915 15th St, NW
Eating in downtown D.C....do you want Cosi or BLT Steak? Do you want to spend 8 bucks or 200 on dinner? That is basically what it boils "down" to. Danielle's "new"(ish) apartment is in downtown DC and we often find ourself looking for somewhere easy, relatively cheap, and most importantly, good, to eat for dinner.
Siroc is owned by a couple of brothers that put out "lighter" Italian food. You might assume that this means less flavor, but just because they aren't piling on butter and creme does not mean it doesn't taste good. The inside of the restaurant has about 20 tables and is a very romantic setting. The noise level is minimal.
As far as our dishes. For our appetizer we had a composed tower of avocado, mango and roasted shrimp with basil oil and crispy parma prosciutto. This came out looking beautiful, but ended up being one of those menu items that you poke once and the whole thing falls apart like jenga. However, it did taste pretty good. It could have used a little more salt to go with all of the sweet, but it was alright. In the battle of the entrees, Danielle's ended up being much better than mine. She had the house-made black pepper tagliatelle with garlic, olive oil, red pepper flakes and seared scallops. This pasta was very very rich in flavor, but was not a belly-bomb that sent you directly into a coma. The scallops were done perfectly and were not too small. The red pepper flakes gave it a little bit of spice, but they did not dominate the dish. I was only shared one bite of the pasta if that gives you an idea of how good it was. The bite I had was excellent and you could really tell that everything was fresh and home-made. My entree order was the pan seared Muscovy duck breast served with a turnip and taleggio cheese torte, roasted pear and a star anise sauce. Unfortunately my duck was not as good. I ordered it medium and it came out pretty rare. The highlight of the dish was the roasted pear. I could have eaten a bowl of the pears without the duck. Normally I really love duck and this was one of the first times I wished I had not ordered it. The pears and the cheese torte far outshined the duck. Next time I eat at Siroc, and there will be a next time, I will stick with the pastas. For dessert...we had gelato. The three that came out were mango, passion fruit, and rasberry. Each of these were so creamy and tart that it was a nice ending to a very savory meal.
Siroc offers great italian food for around 20 bucks an entree. The setting is romantic and the service is average. They arent gonna knock you out with the best meal of your life, but its good for what it is.
Overall Rating: B+
Lowlight - undercooked duck
Highlight - a GREAT martini and perfectly cooked scallops
Siroc is owned by a couple of brothers that put out "lighter" Italian food. You might assume that this means less flavor, but just because they aren't piling on butter and creme does not mean it doesn't taste good. The inside of the restaurant has about 20 tables and is a very romantic setting. The noise level is minimal.
As far as our dishes. For our appetizer we had a composed tower of avocado, mango and roasted shrimp with basil oil and crispy parma prosciutto. This came out looking beautiful, but ended up being one of those menu items that you poke once and the whole thing falls apart like jenga. However, it did taste pretty good. It could have used a little more salt to go with all of the sweet, but it was alright. In the battle of the entrees, Danielle's ended up being much better than mine. She had the house-made black pepper tagliatelle with garlic, olive oil, red pepper flakes and seared scallops. This pasta was very very rich in flavor, but was not a belly-bomb that sent you directly into a coma. The scallops were done perfectly and were not too small. The red pepper flakes gave it a little bit of spice, but they did not dominate the dish. I was only shared one bite of the pasta if that gives you an idea of how good it was. The bite I had was excellent and you could really tell that everything was fresh and home-made. My entree order was the pan seared Muscovy duck breast served with a turnip and taleggio cheese torte, roasted pear and a star anise sauce. Unfortunately my duck was not as good. I ordered it medium and it came out pretty rare. The highlight of the dish was the roasted pear. I could have eaten a bowl of the pears without the duck. Normally I really love duck and this was one of the first times I wished I had not ordered it. The pears and the cheese torte far outshined the duck. Next time I eat at Siroc, and there will be a next time, I will stick with the pastas. For dessert...we had gelato. The three that came out were mango, passion fruit, and rasberry. Each of these were so creamy and tart that it was a nice ending to a very savory meal.
Siroc offers great italian food for around 20 bucks an entree. The setting is romantic and the service is average. They arent gonna knock you out with the best meal of your life, but its good for what it is.
Overall Rating: B+
Lowlight - undercooked duck
Highlight - a GREAT martini and perfectly cooked scallops
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