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