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« May 2005 | Main | July 2005 »
Jun 29, 2005
The Perfect Pita
While I was walking around downtown last Friday, I saw the most beautiful sight I've ever seen. The Perfect Pita now has a location at 1015 20th Street -- I'm so happy to see that they're expanding from their two Alexandria locations. When I worked in Alexandria, I was located across the street from one of these heavenly eateries and frequented them almost every other day. Their pita sandwiches are reasonably priced and make me drool just thinking about them. The pita bread is baked fresh on location and the sandwiches can have ground beef, lamb or chicken in them if I remember correctly. You can top them with various Mediterranean style toppings like hummus, cucumber, and yogurt sauce. I would usually just order the beef pita as is, which came with ground beef, cucumber, onion and yogurt sauce. Ah the good old days! Someone has to go and let me know if they're still as good as I remember.
The Perfect Pita
1015 20th St NW
Washington, DC 20036
Map
1640 King St
Alexandria, VA 22314
Map
951 N Fairfax St
Alexandria, VA 22314
Map
Categories: Alexandria, Downtown
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Restaurant Week
Washington.org posted the complete list of restaurants participating in Restaurant Week in August. There has been some confusion about when Restaurant Week actually is, but the Washington, DC Convention and Tourism Corporation still has the dates as August 1st through 7th.
Categories: DC Restaurant Week
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Galileo Grill
Just an FYI for those of you that aren't on the mailing list. Galileo Grill is open today and tomorrow Friday for lunch. I actually made it when it was open last Friday, and man was it packed. Most people were saying it had never been that crowded, and I attribute the crowd to the fact that it was Friday, but the line stretched all through the Laboratorio to the patio out back. Lucky and unlucky for me, I ordered my food ahead of time, which allowed me to skip the line, but also didn't let me order in line and chat with Roberto Donna who was preparing the food. The other bad thing was that they got my order wrong: the pork shoulder sandwich had peppers and onions in it, Amy's homemade hot dog had relish and mustard on it (and she hates mustard) and they forgot to give me the extra bread I ordered. I actually enjoyed the pork shoulder sandwich a lot, but there was an intense garlic flavor in the sandwich that stayed with me for the rest of the day and I'm sure I killed a couple vampires just by walking past them. If I were to go back, I'd probably get there exactly at 11:45 AM to beat the crowd, and wait in line instead of ordering ahead -- you'll be able to order it in person, make sure they get it right, and see Roberto Donna.
In case you're wondering, the menu this week is the same as in my last post about Galileo Grill and everything still works the same.
Categories: Just Because
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Jun 24, 2005
Weekend Food Events
In case you missed everyone talking about it...the Smithsonian Folklife Festival is going on right now. The full schedule of events can be found here.
9th Annual Old Dominion Beer Festival in Ashburn, VA will be occurring all weekend featuring more than 50 of the finest breweries in the country, as well as local restaurants, vendors and craftspeople. $12 entry fee includes festival glass. Beers are $1.00 per 6oz. serving. Full details here.
National Capital Barbecue Battle is going on Saturday and Sunday on Pennsylvania Ave between 9th and 14th streets. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children.
Categories: Events
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Jun 23, 2005
Thursday Review Rundown
I would have posted this last night, but I was too busy eating my birthday dinner at Citronelle. I'm sure you want to hear all about it, and I'm currently in progress of writing my review, so stay tuned.
Todd Kliman cracks me up with his review of Hollywood East in Wheaton.
"I like good; I’m a fan of good."
Me too, Todd. Me too. It sounds like the dim sum is worth going for, but otherwise, you might want to skip it.
That's all I have this week. It's sad I know, but everyone was either writing reviews of places in Annapolis or the middle of bumblef*ck Maryland. Nope, no coverage for that here. This blog is called DCfoodies...well, and maybe its immediate suburbs.
Categories: This Week In Reviews
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Jun 21, 2005
Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar - First Impressions
I figured with all the hype that's behind Sonoma, I'd might was well try it out and let everyone know what I thought about it. I was debating all week about whether or not I'd try Sonoma or if I'd go to one of my usual hangouts, but I decided after receiving a few emails from readers asking about it, that I'd give it a try.
I've read mixed things about it. On DR.com, people said the staff was inexperienced, but the food was yummy depending on what you ordered. I have to admit, looking at their menu online, I was fairly intrigued. The appetizers reminded me of the wine bar at 2Amys, with the cheese and meat, but with a better selection. For cheeses, you have many choices of blue, cow, goat, and sheep's cheeses. Your meat selections, or charcuterie, are typical for a sliced meat menu with speck, prosciutto, and capicola and chicken liver pate. I could eat an entire meal at Sonoma and only order off the charcuterie and cheese menus -- and of course I'd order a bottle of wine as well.
I actually tried a French goat cheese, which kind of kicked my ass. I made the mistake of eating a large chunk of it at once, and it was a little more than I could handle because the cheese had a strong, smoky flavor, almost like that of a blue or feta cheese, and it was fairly "stinky". This combination had me drinking large amounts of water to calm down the powerful flavor. My recommendation: if you order the French goat cheese, spread it thinly on the bread they give you. We also had a Spanish sheep's cheese which was fairly mild and pleasant -- a welcome change after the French goat. I also had some of the chicken liver pate which I enjoyed, but the bread that came with the cheese and pate was almost too complex and flavorful. Seriously, all I need is half of a French baguette to enjoy some pate -- not some fancy thick whole-wheat pita bread with rosemary (EDIT: Thanks to Richard for pointing out to me that the "fancy thick whole-wheat pita" is actually Italian flat bread with rosemary). I ended up tasting the bread too much instead of the cheese or pate.
Moving past the cheese and meat courses, you have salads, with an arugula and fennel salad topped with shaved Parmesan, lemon and olive oil, leading the way. I like how simple this salad sounds, and I'll be ordering it when I return, but I skipped it for the pasta courses I'll describe later. Amy ordered one of the other salads, with wood-grilled apples, watercress, pistachio, Gorgonzola and red wine vinaigrette, which I very quickly found out sounded better than it actually tasted. I think the texture of the apples was what did it for me because the grilling left the apples a little less than crisp (perhaps they were overcooked a bit this time). I think if I go back, I might try the venison carpaccio or grilled cuttlefish apps.
I saw many people around me ordering pizza, and they seemed to be enjoying it. There aren't any "prebuilt" pizzas and the toppings are all a la carte ranging from $3 to $5 each. You start with your crust and red tomato-based, green pesto or white olive-oil-based sauces. On top of that, you have your choice of cheeses and then your toppings. The cheapest combination if toppings is a plain cheese pizza for $8. You can easily build a pretty expensive pizza by choosing a couple $5 toppings like morel mushrooms, bottarga (tuna roe), or Vermont buffalo mozzarella. Seeing other people order the pizzas, I wasn't overly impressed with the way they looked, but I'll reserve judgment until I can actually try one.
For my entree, I ordered a double portion of the bucatini with the house-made wild boar sausage, summer squash and pesto. If you're unfamiliar with what bucatini is, it's a thick, hollow spaghetti and it's probably one of my favorite kinds of pasta. I used to order this bucatini dish with sausage and a creme sauce that blew my mind at Il Pizzico and Spezie. Unfortunately, Sonoma's bucatini wasn't nearly as good -- plain and simple. Not that it was bad, but seriously, not even in the same ball park. The bucatini was cooked perfectly al dente, but the homemade wild boar sausage was dry and crumbly which was not a good combination with the pesto sauce, and the summer squash didn't add much flavor. Perhaps when I return, I'll skip the pasta dishes and go straight for the Wagyu beef burger, which is very obviously on the menu to compete with Palena's $10 cheeseburger (a welcome addition since you know I'm not all that crazy about Palena's cheeseburger). Sonoma's version comes with some potatoes on the side and you have the option of adding some toppings like fontina cheese, pancetta or speck.
The high point of the meal for us was definitely dessert. That evening, Sonoma was featuring a smooth, creamy yet fluffy chocolate pudding, and my wife, being the pregnant pudding fiend that she is lately, could not resist. I have to admit that I'm not usually a pudding-type-of-person, but I did fall in love with this after my first taste. It had a very rich bitter chocolate flavor and it wasn't overly sweet like puddings tend to be. I hope it's on the menu again when we return.
In summary, I'd say that (at least right now) Sonoma is a great place to hang out, have some wine, cheese and salads after work. I could spend all night eating a flight of cheese and sampling different wines, then top it off with that chocolate pudding and you can call it a night. I'll reserve my final judgement on the rest of the menu, though, until I can return again and try some of their entrees.
Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar
223 Pennsylvania Ave. SE
Washington, DC
(202) 544-8088
Website
Map
Hours:
lunch: 11am - 3pm (Monday - Friday)
dinner: 4:30pm - 10pm (Monday - Saturday)
brunch: 10:30am - 2pm (Saturday/Sunday only)
late night menu is available Thursday-Saturday nights 10pm - midnight
Sunday supper 5:30-10:00pm
Dress Code: Casual to dress casual. Sonoma's web site says that they are upscale casual, but when we went, there were people in shorts there.
Parking: I've no clue what the parking situation is at Capitol Hill. We took a cab.
Reservations: Taken and recommended. It should be easier to get a seat once they finish remodeling the upstairs.
Smoking: I didn't ask if smoking was allowed. Damn.
Nearest Metro: Capitol Hill Metro South.
Amy's Bathroom Report: The bathrooms were kept clean, but they had yet to remodel them like the last place. Everything was pretty old.
Categories: Capitol Hill, Italian, New American, Restaurant Reviews, Wine Bar
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Jun 17, 2005
Weekend Food Events
Saturday June 18th
The 15th annual Reston Taste of Town is from 12 to 10:30 PM. Tastes will cost $1 to $5 and there will be live music and givaways as well. Look here for the full event information.
TasteDC hosts the "Hot New Chef's Series" of cooking classes with Executive Chef Christophe Poteaux of Aquarelle Restaurant from 11:30AM to 2:30 PM. Tickets are $70. Get the full details here.
Sunday June 19th
TasteDC hosts the Introduction to Indian Cooking at Heritage India. Tickets are $65 and a four-dish tasting lunch with wine pairing is included. You'll learn to cook Subz Shahi Korma (A mild mixed fresh vegetable curry), Dum Ka Murgh (cubes of chicken marinated in sesame and poppy seeds delicately stewed in its own juices), Yakhani Gosht (cubes of lamb simmered in yogurt and saffron),
and Gulab Jamoon (Soft milk dumplings soaked in rose flavored sugar syrup). Buy tickets and learn more here.
McCormick and Shmicks will be donating a portion of the days sales to cancer research at The Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University Medical Center. The restaurants will donate a portion of sales from a specially created health menu. A list of participating restaurants and full details is here.
Categories: Events
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Jun 16, 2005
Thursday Review Rundown
Tom S invades Petworth's Domku.
A pink slab of smooth pate, ringed in gently sweet aspic, would look at home on an elegant buffet; a couple of plump browned sausages on carrot-laced sauerkraut prove homey and strapping. Of the sandwiches, I'm most drawn to crawfish, fennel and bell peppers bound in lemony mayonnaise and tucked inside a baguette.
Todd Kliman praises Leopolds, but I wonder just how good the food is that it makes it worth some of the service problems he mentions.
The Austrian dishes, for all their innate heartiness, are no less finely wrought. The veal schnitzel, a winter dish if ever there was one, comes across as the very embodiment of spring, lightly breaded and quickly fried and bedded atop lemony field greens. There’s no sense in trying to lighten up a crock of spaetzle, and the kitchen doesn’t try; but it does create more than the usual cheesy, gooey interest by caramelizing the thick, nubby noodles, scenting the dish with a generous pinch of nutmeg, and applying a finishing crunch of crispy fried shallots. And the oxtail soup is constructed from a clear broth that somehow sacrifices none of the richness of the Old World original.
I wish I could write sentences like that.
Categories: This Week In Reviews
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Jun 14, 2005
Smithsonian Folklife Festival - Update
I just wanted to give everyone an update on the Smithsonian Folklife Festival and Food Culture USA...
I told you all I'd post again when I knew what events would be happening after the festival and here you have it. Go here for all of the information you need. There is even a full calendar of the festival and what chefs will be "performing" and where. Events include:
June 13 - July 4
A rice tasting at Bankok Joe's
June 23
Honey dinner tasting manu at Zola. Executive Chef Frank Morales of the award-winning Zola welcomes guests to come experience a special tasting menu featuring five courses, each with a different honey from Beeraw honey. $120 per person.
Wine Dinner at Charlie Palmer Steak House. The event will be a multi-course wine dinner featuring Chef Charlie Palmer's private label, personally blended wines - International Sommelier Conspiracy. Artisanal cheeses from around the country will also be featured. Call 202-547-8100 for pricing and reservations.
June 24
Chef Janos Wilder will join Chef Brian Kenny as guest chef for the evening at Red Sage. Chef Janos Wilder was the James Beard Award winner for Best Chef Southwest. Price for the dinner will be $120 all-inclusive.
June 26th
Fresh from the Family Farm - A Family Picnic to Benefit Farm Aid at Equinox. A family picnic dinner will feature farm-fresh dishes prepared by celebrated DC chefs including Gray, Cathal Armstrong of Restaurant Eve, Cesare Lanfranconi of Tosca, Fabio Trabocchi of Maestro, Roberto Donna of Galileo and more. Adults $75. Children $25.
June 27th
Fresh! Local! Sustainable! Dinner at Poste Moderne Brasserie. The dinner will be a five-course menu paired with wines featuring locally grown, raised, and harvested ingredients. $70 per person.
Dinner with José & Friends: Guest Chef Dinner. Executive Chef José Andrés and Chef de Cuisine Katsuya Fukushima will be joined by guest chefs include Douglas Rodriguez from Ola in Miami and Guillermo Pernot from ¡Pasion! in Philadelphia. $150 per person includes tax, tip and wine.
June 30
Slow Food at the Smithsonian Dinner at Restaurant Nora. $75 a person, tax, tip, and three course dinner included. $65 a person for Slow Food members.
July 2
Suvir Saran of Devi and Ashok Bajaj of the Bombay Club. Suvir Saran, from the critically-acclaimed 75-seat Dévi restaurant in New York City, will join the Bombay Club’s chefs to prepare a tasting menu showcasing his regional Indian cooking. Guests will meet Saran and be treated to an autographed copy of his cookbook, Indian Home Cooking: A Fresh Introduction to Indian Food, with More Than 150 Recipes. $90 per person including paired wines and his cookbook (gratuity and tax not included).
Go to the Washington.org web site for full event details.
Categories: Events
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Jun 13, 2005
Bistrot Lepic
On Thursday night, after returning home from work, I came to the ghastly conclusion that there was absolutely nothing in our kitchen to cook for dinner. Rather than go down the street to the Usual Suspects (2 Amys, Cafe Ole, Cafe Deluxe, etc.), Amy and I decided that we needed a change of pace. The plan was to go down to Glover Park (or North Georgetown if you like) and go to either the wine bar at Bistrot Lepic or Cafe Divan for a quick dinner and then hit the grocery store afterward.
Upon arriving in Glover Park and parking easily on the wide-open 34th Street behind Cafe Divan, we decided to go with French food rather than Turkish. Besides, we had just been to Cafe Divan a couple weekends ago, when my parents had visited, and it's been forever since we've had French food. Rather than dine downstairs like our last trip to Bistrot Lepic, we went up the stairs to the wine bar and where there are a bunch of cozy, short little tables. When you reach the top of the stairs, you're standing facing the small bar at the one end of the room and to your left is the small dining area. There were a few couples sitting already with a group of four people in the corner. Overall, I'd say that the entire room can seat about 25 people maximum.
One thing to keep in mind is that smoking is allowed in the wine bar, so if you are really sensitive to smoke, this place is probably not for you. However, they do have ceiling fans blowing the air around and we barely noticed that the people two tables over from us were smoking. There was only a single waitress covering the entire room and she was scurrying around trying to get people their food and drinks. There was also a runner that was bringing dishes up from the kitchen downstairs.
The full menu is available at Bistrot Lepic's wine bar as well as their "Appeteasers" menu, which has a bunch of interesting small plates that you can order when you just feel like a small salad or plate of paté with a glass of wine. The small plates all looked fairly appetizing, but the country paté sounded especially good to me. Paté and a glass of wine always makes for a good meal. (I chickened out, though. I had a perfect opportunity to try snails and conquer one of my food phobias, but I ordered the paté instead. Oh well, maybe next time I'll grow some balls.) Amy decided to get two of the small plates rather than order a whole entree -- one of the special salads which was mixed greens with goat cheese and roasted red peppers, followed by the onion tart with bacon in soft pastry. All of the appetizers sounded (and looked, from what we could see on other tables) intriguing. There was also a plethora of specials. I ended up ordering one myself -- the hangar steak with frites (pronounced freet not fright. Amy is constantly correcting me when I pronounce that word incorrectly). As far as prices go, appetizers and salads range from $7 to $14. Entrees are a bit more expensive, ranging from $17 to $27. Specials can run a little more.
The wine menu has an average number of wines available by the glass. Now that Amy isn't drinking, I'm forced to order off of the limited selection of wines available by the glass rather than order a whole bottle. Not to sound too much like an ignoramus, but ordering wine in a French restaurant can be quite intimidating, with all of those French names that I just know I'll mispronounce. I think I need to take a French language class.
We found that the wine bar seemed especially conducive to good conversation, and I'm not sure why. I don't know how long it was until the food came out -- it didn't seem like we waited very long, maybe it was because I was enjoying the atmosphere and good conversation with Amy. My paté came with a very fresh side salad with a light but tasty vinaigrette. The paté was a country paté with a prune and armagnac filling. I wouldn't say it was worlds better than other patés I've had, but overall I was pretty satisfied with the dish I'd chickened out with. At first Amy wasn't so happy with her mixed green salad, but as she ate it, she grew increasingly fond of it.
Our second course came out not too long after we were done with our first. My steak, which I had ordered medium-rare, was more on the very rare side, but I didn't mind -- I'd rather my steak was undercooked than overcooked. The hangar steak was very lean and tender. On the side was a mixture of dijon mustard and very finely sliced onions that complimented the steak very well. Like the paté, the steak came with a salad on the side. It was a nice palate cleanser when I was done eating the steak and gave me a more satisfied feeling than if I'd eaten a side of mashed potatoes. I didn't get a chance to try Amy's onion tart, and quite honestly, I was really surprised that Amy ordered an onion tart. I mean, ever since she's been pregnant, she's hasn't been able to go near onions.
I wasn't especially hungry when we were done with our second course,but the desserts sounded so good that we couldn't help but order some. Amy went with the almond tarte and I, like last time, went with the pear tarte. I'm such a sucker for pears. I think the one of the reasons I've started gaining so much weight since Amy's been pregnant is because she won't share a dessert with me. Oh well, I'll lose the weight when I have to chase around a little 2-year-old all day. I didn't get a chance to try Amy's almond tarte, because I was too enthralled in my pear tarte. Do you get that I thought it was scrumptious? Amy wasn't too happy with her almond tarte and she wished she had ordered the chocolate tarte.
I'm not sure why I was expecting something else, but the check came to close to $120 -- not your average mid-week night out. What was meant to be a quick dinner out before hitting the grocery store ended up being an expensive 2-hour dinner -- and we never got to the grocery store. Mission un-accomplished.
Bistrot Lepic
1736 Wisconsin Ave. NW
Washington, DC
(202) 333-0111
Map
Lunch:
Tue-Sun 11:30 am-2:30 pm
Dinner:
Tue-Thu 5-10 pm
Fri-Sat 5-10:30 pm
Sun 5-9:30 pm
Closed Mondays.
Dress Code: Casual for the Wine Bar and business casual for the regular restaurant downstairs
Parking: none. Park at 34th and Wisconsin, there is usually parking down 34th St.
Reservations: Taken and recommended for the regular restaurant. Wine bar is first-come first-serve.
Smoking: Allowed in the wine bar
Nearest Metro: It's a very long walk from the nearest metro at Foggy Bottom. Take a cab or drive. The Pennsylvania Ave. bus line (bus numbers 30, 32, 34, 35, 36) will get you there too.
Amy's Bathroom Report: They are clean and kept respectable, plus you get to check out the wine cellar nearby.
Categories: French, Georgetown, Glover Park, Restaurant Reviews
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Jun 08, 2005
Galileo Grill
I thought it was about time I posted about this. It's one of the best things a foodie can do in this city and of course I haven't been able to try it yet, but I figured I shouldn't hold out on everyone just because of that. Galileo Grill is Chef Roberto Donna's little experiment, where he cooks lunch at Galileo a couple days a week. The way it works is this. First, you sign up on Roberto Donna's web site or by sending an email to info@galileodc.com asking to be added to the mailing list. Then each week, an email annoucement is sent out, telling you the days that The Grill will be open what the menu will be. If you like what you see, you call (202) 293-7191 to order the morning you plan to go (or you can just show up and hope they have some extra food), and at about 11 AM or so, Roberto starts cooking. At 11:45 AM, the doors open, you pick up your food at the bar, and you can eat your food out front on the patio or in one of the back private rooms.
This week, The Grill is open Tomorrow (Thursday) and Friday. Below is the menu this week. I hear the pork shoulder sandwich is escpecially good.
Homemade Hot Dogs $3.50
Grilled Chicken Sandwich $5
Pork Shoulder Sandwich $5
Pork Sausage Sandwich $5
Pork Ribs $5
Pizza $5
Meatballs $6
Soup of the Day $3
Sodas $1
Sweet Ricotta Cannoli $2.50
Italian Country Bread $3
Add to your sandwich:
Provolone $1
Broccoli Rabe $2
Other Sandwich Toppings:
Green Peppers and Onions
Mustard
Green Sauce
BBQ Sauce
Lettuce
Homemade Ketchup
Sauerkraut
Galileo
1110 21st St NW
Washington, DC 20036
Map
Categories: Events
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Jun 05, 2005
Q&A
I've been receiving many emails looking for advice in the last couple weeks, so I thought I would do a little Q&A post this week.
I was looking at your site, and I would like some restaurant advice. I'm having a wedding anniversary soon and I want to take my wife somewhere really nice. We love to dine outside. Do you happen to know the any restaurants that have a terrace overlooking the DC mall. I have pictures in movies, but I can't seem to find them on the net. If there is a website for it,
that would also be great. I appreciate your time into this matter. Thanks and have a great day.
Well, I have to say right off that I haven't eaten at any place that overlooks the mall or downtown DC. But after some quick searching on Google, here's what I found:
JW's View Steak House at the Key Bridge Marriot on Arlington
Hotel Washington
You might also want to try a dinner cruise on the Potomac
http://www.dandydinnerboat.com/
http://www.spiritcitycruises.com/WashDC/index.html
http://www.odysseycruises.com/dc/indy/index.html
But quite honestly, I can't vouch for any of the food at these places because I've never eaten at any of them. In my opinion, you're better off going somewhere you know the service and food are going to be excellent like Komi, Corduroy, Laboratorio del Galileo, Palena, CityZen, Citronelle, etc. Views are cool, but they don't do much to improve mediocre food.
My husband and I just moved to the area. Do you know of any dining/cooking clubs. In MN, I have heard of cooking clubs where once a month each couple takes a turn cooking fine/upscale meals. IS there anything like that in the DC area?
Not that I know of...perhaps some of my readers can help out? The best places I know of to find people interesting in something like this would be on DonRockwell.com or eGullet.com.
Hello, Pizza in my country tastes bad. I have a plan to take pizza fast food joint to a new level in Nigeria this has to be done by an international company coming into my country that means i get an opportunity of having my fast food joint in every state and city of the country to make that happen i need help. i would like a volunteer to come down to nigeria and help by teaching by teaching cooks how to make different types of pizza. I also want to know how long the teaching will last and how much you will collect for your services. I will be anticipating your prompt response.
LOL. Any volunteers out there looking to get conned?
Where in Washington
D.C. can I find a place that has a steak eating challenge where I can eat for
free if I eat the whole thing...?
Uummmmm...I hope to God that there's no place in DC like that.
First let me compliment you on the web-site, a wealth of
information. My husband and I are working in DC this coming weekend and wanted a
recommendation on a restaurant. We are staying at the St. Regis and they
recommended IndeBleu. I read the reviews and I am skeptical. We are
looking for Indian with atmosphere, a trendy Tandoori. Any thoughts would
be appreciated.
Well, IndeBleu is definitely trendy and the food there is pretty good, but it is considered French-Indian fusion. If you are looking for good Indian food, you want to try either of the Heritage India locations. The one on Connecticut Ave will be more convenient for you than the one on Wisconson Ave. On top of their usual menu, they have excellent tapas-style dishes and they don't "dumb it down" by making their dishes less spicy. I hope you enjoy your trip to DC.
Categories: Advice
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Jun 04, 2005
Soft Shell Crabs
Last night, I returned to Four Sisters again with a bunch of friends. Of course our meal was excellent, but what stood out was the soft shell crabs that I ordered. I've been on a mission to try everything that I normally wouldn't eat. I'm sure you'll be amazed when I say this, but it was the first time I'd eaten soft shell crabs and I didn't realize what I was missing. For some reason, I'd always imagined that I'd have a real problem with the texture, as if the "shell" would be crunchy or chewy in some manner. Plus, I'd always thought that there just has to be something in the crab that you're not supposed to eat. I mean, seriously, you're supposed to eat the whole thing?
Anyway, all those misconceptions went away last night when I took my first bite of the soft shell crab, which was lightly breaded and fried. Prior to frying, the soft shell crabs were salted and baked, which left them with a slightly salty flavor and really brought out the flavor of the crab. On the side, I was brought a small plate of salt, pepper, and limes with which I was instructed to squeeze the limes into the salt and pepper, mix them together to make a sauce, and then dip the crab in it. Our waiter was extremely helpful throughout the night, in fact, it was probably the best service I've received at Four Sisters. He helped us choose dishes that we'd like and explained how to properly eat each dish, which is really helpful when your entree consists of three different plates with different ingredients on them.
Other stars for the night would be the caramelized pork spare ribs which were very tender and flavorful. We had the lean strips of beef salad again, which went over well with everyone. Oh, and we also had a couple orders of the pork spring rolls which had to be the best damn spring rolls I've ever had. All in all, the dinner for the six of us was extremely reasonable considering the amount of food we ordered at about $50 a couple. I'm sure we'll be going back again.
So now I can cross soft shell crabs off the list of foods I've never eaten. Still to go are:
Squid or octopus or any sea creature with tentacle like appendages (Cuttlefish is a good example)
Sardines
Frogs legs
Snails or escargot
Any kind of animal tongue
Insects of any kind (thank you JS)
Anything with the word "Blood" in it, like blood sausage.
Plain steamed cauliflower - the smell just turns my stomach
My grandmothers pizza - seriously, she used to put wheat germ in the pizza sauce.
I'm sure there are lots of things that I've never eaten that I could list here, but these are the things that I know I've had a chance to eat and I've shyed away from them because I thought they looked or sounded gross.
Categories: Just Because
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Jun 01, 2005
Tosca
I had another incredibly busy week. This last week flew by so fast that when Friday came and I still hadn't made any plans for Friday night, I shrugged my shoulders and said, "Eh. What else is new?" It was about 6:30 PM and I opened up OpenTable to see who still had reservations left. Luckily, it was Memorial Day weekend and everyone seemed to have turned tail and left the city (except for the tourists of course), so there were a bunch of places with reservations left in the 7 to 8:30 PM range. I decided to go with Tosca because I remembered I didn't get a chance to go there last Restaurant Week and I've been wanting to try their Northern Italian food ever since. I made a reservation for 8:30 PM.
When I got home, we were kind of in a rush to get ready and out the door. I noted when I made the reservation, that Tosca does indeed have valet parking for $5 (far cheaper than a $12 taxi ride both ways) so we had some extra time because I wouldn't have to add in time to flag down a cab. I was debating what to wear. I checked out Tosca's web site, The Post, Washingtonian, AOL, Google...nothing about what the dress code was for Tosca. I was thinking about wearing some nice jeans, but then my intuition told me I should wear a pair of dress slacks. Lucky for me my intuition is accurate. Amy was wearing a casual halter dress, but she's very obviously pregnant now, so it doesn't matter much. I mean, she could wear shorts to Citronelle and no one would dare say anything to her. When we arrived, we realized very quickly that Tosca was pretty dressy. Many of the men were wearing sport coats -- women in cocktail dresses. There wasn't a single pair of jeans in the dining room. "Glad I decided not to wear the jeans!" I said to Amy. "Yeah, me too!" she replied.
If you're looking for typical Italian American fare, Tosca is not the place for you. Tosca features Northern Italian creations, by chef and owner Cesare Lanfranconi, so you won't find your run-of-the-mill spaghetti and meatballs. Cesare also changes up the menu quite often, which is always up to date on ToscaDC.com, using fresh, seasonal ingredients. I really like it when a restaurant keeps their online menu up-to-date because that means I won't feel like I got a bait and switch.
For appetizers, you have a wide variety, with the obvious salad choice being the radicchio salad with Bartlett pears, imported Gorgonzola cheese terrine, and toasted walnuts, or for the more adventurous, a breaded Mediterranean cuttlefish with fava beans, artichokes and pancetta ragout, roasted garlic and black ink sauce. Amy and I skipped the salads even though they sounded and looked very appetizing from our quick glances at what other tables were ordering, but instead, we opted to go with soup and pasta as a first and second course. The special soup was the Italian bread soup which I've had many times and anywhere that I've had it, I loved it, so I figured it would be a good dish to order as a comparison. Amy ordered a soup as well -- the sweet yellow pepper soup. I also decided to get a second course with a half portion of the homemade buckwheat papardelle with pheasant, porcini mushrooms, and tomato ragout, mainly because it just sounded so good. Beside that though, I wasn't overly impressed with the pasta choices, which were slightly boring in comparison with what you can get somewhere like Spezie. But I got the impression, at least from looking at the menu, that Cesare doesn't like to focus as much on the pasta as much as his entrees.
Entrees are fairly expensive and in the price range of those at Galileo, ranging from $23 for the porcini-crusted pork filet to $40 for the Kobe beef. There were an abundance of specials including several fish and a couple meat dishes -- too many for me to remember, but basically you have a choice of many different kinds of fish, the most expensive being a Mediterranean dorado (which was $40). I thought the Kobe beef sounded interesting -- it's served with fava beans, baby fennel, pecorino cheese and aged balsamic vinegar sauce. (I don't know what it is, but ever since I had the crostini with fava bean puree and pecorino cheese at 2 Amys, I've been on a real fava bean kick.) However, none of the entrees on the menu really stood out to make me say, "Yeah, that dish sounds like it will be really outstanding!"
The wine list was...extensive, with many different choices in all categories of Italian wine. If you can see from the Tosca web site, it's not exactly moderately-priced by any means and If you turn towards the back of the wine menu, you'll see all of the more expensive wines, some priced up to $1,600. Ouch! I stayed towards the front and ordered a smooth, yet spicy Rosso Piceno for $50.
It wasn't too long after we ordered that the food started coming out. My Italian bread soup was thick, almost more like a sauce than a broth, but it tasted very good. I mean, it was probably some of the best Italian bread soup I've ever had, with fresh basil, tomatoes, and the fresh double cream mozzarella that I mixed into the broth with my spoon. Amy really liked the sweet yellow pepper soup -- a lot. Overall, I'd say that the first course was an overwhelming success. The success continued as I ate my half-pasta second course. As expected, the buckwheat pasta was cooked perfectly and I especially enjoyed the pheasant, tomato and porcini mushroom ragout. It was very similar to a dish I had once at Osteria Del Galileo -- a chicken and chicken liver papardelle which I recall I enjoyed just as much.
Our entrees weren't quite as impressive as the first and second courses, but they weren't anything to shrug at either. Amy thought her pasta, an agnolotti stuffed with imported truffled double cream mozzarella and sweet peas in a light tomato sauce, sounded better on the menu than it actually tasted. She and I both agreed that the sweet flavor of the peas needed a little balance with some red pepper or garlic -- that's just a matter of taste though -- I'm sure many people really enjoy this pasta dish and other people around us that we saw ordering it seemed to be.
The Kobe beef was cooked medium rare (actually almost rare -- I was testing it as I cut the meat to check that it was warm in the middle) and I'd purposely asked for the beef to be cooked the way the chef likes it. As I cut the beef, I could see the marbled fat, which was more like butter than fat. Every once in a while though, there was some stringy, tough fat that was difficult to cut and chew through which made me especially careful when cutting pieces of the meat to eat. The meat was seared and cut into small strips and then topped with the aged balsamic vinegar. On the side, it came with the fennel, fava beans and pecorino, all arranged in a neat, circular tower.
No desserts were ordered, even though I wish I had. We were far too full (especially me after the three courses). I especially wish I'd had the room to eat the poppyseed semi-freddo with warm rhubarb compote, pine nuts, fresh strawberries. I do so love strawberries - they're my favorite fruit. Oh well, maybe next time.
I do want to comment on the service which was extra friendly the entire time we were there. Our server was especially patient while I toiled over my decision of what to order and throughout our entire meal, he was attentive and made sure our glasses were full and our entrees came out in proper timing. One thing to keep in mind is that Tosca is one of those restaurants where you have to ask for your check, so you never feel rushed out.
When we were done with our meal, we were fairly happy with our meal and how it turned out. Once I got the check however, I started to wonder if it was worth it. At $160, I thought it was a bit on the pricey side, since neither of our entrees really stood out. I mean, the ingredients were of a high quality, but just because you use high-quality ingredients, doesn't mean it's necesarily better tasting. I reserve judgement though, because this was our first trip to Tosca, and the menu the next time we go could be very different.
Ristorante Tosca
1112 F Street NW
Washington, DC 20004
map
(202) 367-1990
Hours:
Lunch: M-F 11:30 am - 2:30 pm
Dinner: M-Th, 5:30 - 10:30 pm
F & Sat: 5:30 - 11:00 pm
Sun: 5:30 pm - 10:30 pm
Closed on major holidays & Sundays during July and August
Dress Code: Dressy (Sportcoats not out of place)
Parking: Valet $5
Reservations: Taken
Smoking: Not allowed
Nearest Metro: Metro Center
Amy's Bathroom Report: They were very nice and kept very clean.
Categories: Chinatown/MCI Center/Verizon Center, Italian, Restaurant Reviews
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