Rose's Luxury, Chef Aaron Silverman's Modern-American Phenomenon on 8th and G Street in Barracks Row

[turbogrrl]

Nick braved the elements and stood in line so we could celebrate me getting older with some tasty food and drink, and a lovely present it was. Started dinner with a brown butter bourbon, the pork and lychee salad, the grilled avocado with tomatillo, poblano, and cotija cheese. We also ordered a plate of the cacio e pepe off-menu.  Next up was ricotta stuffed gnocchi with crispy sunchokes and mushroom butter (they made it without dill for me), followed by a miso-glazed pork blade steak with sauerkraut. (and here I thought I hated sauerkraut...)

The pork and the gnocchi were both outstanding, but I'm not sure anything could dethrone the pork+lychee and the cacio e pepe for me. They are both just perfect.

Nick ordered a second cacio for dessert. I chose the pea-cake (I'd had it before or might have been scared off), and they also brought a dish of avocado ice cream with a small candle in it for me. Beautiful and delicious evening. Love this place.

[darkstar965]

Nick braved the elements and stood in line so we could celebrate me getting older with some tasty food and drink, and a lovely present it was. Started dinner with a brown butter bourbon, the pork and lychee salad, the grilled avocado with tomatillo, poblano, and cotija cheese. We also ordered a plate of the cacio e pepe off-menu.  Next up was ricotta stuffed gnocchi with crispy sunchokes and mushroom butter (they made it without dill for me), followed by a miso-glazed pork blade steak with sauerkraut. (and here I thought I hated sauerkraut...)

The pork and the gnocchi were both outstanding, but I'm not sure anything could dethrone the pork+lychee and the cacio e pepe for me. They are both just perfect.

Nick ordered a second cacio for dessert. I chose the pea-cake (I'd had it before or might have been scared off), and they also brought a dish of avocado ice cream with a small candle in it for me. Beautiful and delicious evening. Love this place.

As a fellow big fan of Rose's, just wanted to say: Hang on to that Nick guy. He sounds like a keeper. :-)

[Simul Parikh]

I love how much joy this place is bringing to people that live work play in DC. Every review is awesome.

We have a winner. Everyone should go here before it goes Dave Matthews ("i went here before everybody else did")

Aaron is the man. There isnt a better non divey, non ethnic place In the area - it's the best restaurant in DC and at that, the best higher end place for the value. They take care of you. You will eat amazing delights. You won't be rushed out of here. You will have weird english desserts. You'll feel like someone

Get here before it's Dave Matthews...

[darkstar965]

I love how much joy this place is bringing to people that live work play in DC. Every review is awesome.

We have a winner. Everyone should go here before it goes Dave Matthews ("i went here before everybody else did")

Aaron is the man. There isnt a better non divey, non ethnic place In the area - it's the best restaurant in DC and at that, the best higher end place for the value. They take care of you. You will eat amazing delights. You won't be rushed out of here. You will have weird english desserts. You'll feel like someone

Get here before it's Dave Matthews...

"...it's the best restaurant in DC..."

At least one major publication went as far to say it was the "best (new) restaurant in (the country"

Not sure that has ever happened before for a DC restaurant but think they may have been on to something. :-)

[Bart]

In case anyone gets a wild hair and thinks of beating the snowed in crowds, Rose's is closed tonight.  (Heard via twitter)

[darkstar965]

With a few friends in town two nights ago who'd never been, we headed for Rose's at their request. As a quick aside, being named "Best New Restaurant in America" by a national magazine seems to have a steroid-like impact on a place for an extended duration. :-) Line was about 30 or so an hour prior and well more than 100 at the 5:00 open.

Putting this in the most clichéd and hackneyed terms possible, I think maybe the bloom is off the rose just a bit. No Big Problems, awful dishes or anything of the sort but, with the run Rose's has had and the stratospheric heights to which it has risen, guess some flattening of the trajectory was inevitable.

The uber-professional yet impossibly sincere, friendly/casual service is a bit more mechanized now. Our server was fine but we did have to search for her a few times and her comportment was more perfunctory than the profoundly warm and engaging profile to which we'd become accustomed. Also, this was my first visit to Rose's where I felt the searing eyes of staff motivated to turn a table. We weren't oblivious to the crowd or extending our stay beyond any reasonable norm. But, being asked a few times if we were "still working" on dishes not yet emptied and with cutlery in hand got a little annoying. Our half-dozen fried oysters arrived as four crowded into one quarter of the dish with just one more across from the cluster. The servers' befuddled reaction when we asked about the missing sixth mollusk evidenced careless, versus creative, plating.

 

Foodwise, I recommended my friends get the famed lychee sausage salad since, to me, that dish had exemplified Rose's knack for innovation without weirdness. A poster child for discovery and utter deliciousness. We ordered two. I can't identify a change in terms of its components but it just didn't prompt expected wows for my first-timer friends and was a bit too familiar (even, maybe, boring?) for me.

We shared everything. A newer take on a pork blade steak, while interesting, was a bit too minimalist and distracting from the meat with its adornments. The brisket was the same as I remembered from previous visits; excellent. The peacake dessert more interesting than deliciously memorable. Our friends proclaimed the meal a success and enjoyed it. But the raves of visits past weren't there.

I've been a huge Rose's fan on this website and stand by all my previous posts. And, at the somewhat moderate prices still characterizing the Rose's menu, I continue to think it very worthwhile for first-timer or visitors. But, between the long lines, some dog-earing of the overall model, and the explosion of omnipresent new options around the District, we probably won't visit as frequently as we have. More when guests or friends ask than self prompted.

Edited to add:

The bread was a fresh-from-the-oven and toasty warm challah, served with a black sesame seed honey butter.  This was the best part of the meal.  A+

The quote is from Pat in post #252 upthread.  I'd neglected to mention the bread but agree 150% with how Pat characterized it.

[turbogrrl]

I've been twice in the last month. The second time there was a new-to-me server that was, yes, more mechanized. No inclination to chat or banter. Which for me, just goes to show that it is most definitely the whole package that makes Rose's what it is. The time before we had one of our favorite servers, and everything was just a little bit... more. More special, more flavorful, more enjoyable. The food, though? was just as excellent the second time. I just wasn't as over the moon about it.

On the excellent front, we got the (off menu, but usually available) cacio e pepe. a brisket sandwich, rather than going for an entire family-style entree. everyone got their own pork-and-lychee salad since we share so badly. There was a tasty catfish. Grilled avocado. It was lovely. Standing in line can be amusing if you have good company or luck out in the people near you in line. Would I want to do it *every* month? No. But there is still magic going on here.

[MSPB3434]

My wife and I had our first experience at Rose's Luxury yesterday, and it taught me to better keep up with DonRockwell.  I was expecting impeccable service from all the early reports, but received something more mechanical, and even borderline poor.  Our waiter did not exude warmth or offer any additional commentary than the bare minimum to respond to our requests/questions, we had to ask for bread, and it took quite some time before I could get his attention to order a second cocktail.  But worst of all, when we asked him to describe the Rigatoni "Sausage and Peppers," he failed to mention that the sausage was veal, which is HUGE deal for two Hindu diners.  It may have just been our waiter, as it seemed tables with other waiters near us got much better service and the people bringing out the food, clearing the table, and refilling water were all very good.

As for the food, we really enjoyed the pork and lychee salad and the Vietnamese pate.  I thought the pate in particular was standout, and it made for some of the best little banh mi's I've had.  I liked the grilled avocado a lot, but my wife found it too salty.  The pasta dishes we got were disappointing.  The rigatoni was decent, though a bit too sweet, and it was hard to forgive it for unexpectedly coming with veal sausage.  We also got the fettucine with pea shoots, which neither of us thought was any good.  The flavors were flat and dull.  Lastly, I wouldn't order either of the 2 rye based cocktails I got again.

Since we ended on the pasta dishes, we left feeling disappointed.  Had we stopped after our first 3 dishes, we probably would have thought the food was good, the service decent, but overall not worth the hour and 15 minute wait to get a table.  But after the pasta dishes, the best we could say is that we were glad we went once, but never again.

[Kev29]

[turbogrrl]

 But worst of all, when we asked him to describe the Rigatoni "Sausage and Peppers," he failed to mention that the sausage was veal, which is HUGE deal for two Hindu diners.

If diners have dietary restrictions (or allergies), they should always mention them upfront; Rose's handles this the best I have ever seen a restaurant handle it. They will take the menu to the chef with the restriction marked on it and they will return it to you, marked up clearly to identify what you can have, what you can have if altered, and what you cannot have.

That way there is no worry that a waiter has forgotten the particulars of a specific dish, or diners trying to recall what they can't have when they want to order one more dish. Also it means I have no guilt over taking the menu home to remember what I had; that menu with dill allergy scribbling all over it is all mine to keep. (and i have a stack of them)

I'm very sorry that happened, however.

[MSPB3434]

They will take the menu to the chef with the restriction marked on it and they will return it to you, marked up clearly to identify what you can have, what you can have if altered, and what you cannot have.

Is that true?  I couldn't imagine our waiter doing this, since he asked about food allergies as a sort of afterthought after we already placed our order.  But if so, that is a great service.

I certainly hear your point about being upfront about restrictions, and while it's true that the waiter asked if we had any food allergies, I don't typically interpret allergies to mean religious or cultural objections.  I will do so from now on.  But my point was more about the quality of service at a restaurant that has been lauded for its service.  Had we not asked specifically about the dish, and it just showed up with veal, I would have solely blamed us for not inquiring.

[turbogrrl]

[DonRocks]

If diners have dietary restrictions (or allergies), they should always mention them upfront; Rose's handles this the best I have ever seen a restaurant handle it. They will take the menu to the chef with the restriction marked on it and they will return it to you, marked up clearly to identify what you can have, what you can have if altered, and what you cannot have.

That way there is no worry that a waiter has forgotten the particulars of a specific dish, or diners trying to recall what they can't have when they want to order one more dish. Also it means I have no guilt over taking the menu home to remember what I had; that menu with dill allergy scribbling all over it is all mine to keep.

This is fantastic customer service!

(MSPB3434, stick around - our members are great, and always there to help you when you need it (we may be calling on you one day as well))

[darkstar965]

Is that true? I couldn't imagine our waiter doing this, since he asked about food allergies as a sort of afterthought after we already placed our order. But if so, that is a great service.

I certainly hear your point about being upfront about restrictions, and while it's true that the waiter asked if we had any food allergies, I don't typically interpret allergies to mean religious or cultural objections. I will do so from now on. But my point was more about the quality of service at a restaurant that has been lauded for its service. Had we not asked specifically about the dish, and it just showed up with veal, I would have solely blamed us for not inquiring.

Totally true as we've had the same experience on several previous visits. That, the unexpected but systematically delivered freebies and a sincere, hospitable friendliness have been Rose's innovative service hallmarks. Bon Appetit wrote about all of it last fall. Less clear whether they still are firing on all cylinders to the same degree based only on a few recent visits in the ten or so preceding posts, including one of mine.

[B.A.R.]

If diners have dietary restrictions (or allergies), they should always mention them upfront; Rose's handles this the best I have ever seen a restaurant handle it. They will take the menu to the chef with the restriction marked on it and they will return it to you, marked up clearly to identify what you can have, what you can have if altered, and what you cannot have.

So simple. So brilliant.

[turbogrrl]

So simple. So brilliant.

to be fair, this only easily works when you have a menu of ~15 dishes. I suppose for a larger menu it *could* be a fun software development exercise, if you could have a database of all the ingredients in each dish, then you could just print off a new menu of safe dishes with a simple database query. But in a larger enterprise it would be a lot harder to keep track of one-off requests, and also sub-ingredents-- for example, it turns out people with shellfish allergies should not have worstershire sauce. etc.

[Pat]

Random note:  I walked past at 3:15 today and there were about half a dozen people outside who looked like they might be queued up for the 5 PM open.  I really hope they weren't, since it was a gorgeous day with plenty of opportunities for doing stuff, and 1:45 wait time seems insane even to me.  End random note.

[Robert Rymarz]

Random note:  I walked past at 3:15 today and there were about half a dozen people outside who looked like they might be queued up for the 5 PM open.  I really hope they weren't, since it was a gorgeous day with plenty of opportunities for doing stuff, and 1:45 wait time seems insane even to me.  End random note.

Some people spent big bucks on some form of entertainment in Vegas last week. Its all so mindbogglingly subjective.

[jsfairfax]

Went to Rose's Luxury for first time 2 weekends ago, it was one of the 2 best meals I have had in DC (the other being Blue Duck Tavern).  Everything was excellent from the food to the service.  It is well worth the wait to stand in line (4 hours from time we got into line to the time we were seated - Weather was great so that might be the cause for the long wait).  To start with we had the famous Pork sausage, Habanero & Lychee Salad - it was excellent.  We also had the Grilled Avacado with Tomatillo, Poblano & Cotua Cheese & Smoked Trout Mousse - very good - but nothing compared to the previous Pork Sausage.  For Dinner we shared the Smoked Brisket - the best brisket I have ever had - not much of a Brisket fan but this was amazing.  Overall, a truly memorable night - well worth the wait in line.

[lekkerwijn]

Torrential rain couldn't keep us away from our rooftop table on Saturday night. Kudos to the Rose's team and their extraordinary good humor and flowing drinks while we waited out the storm.  This was our second time dining on the roof and it seems like their is much more structure to the process than there was last summer. The meal was fantastic and the wine recommendations excellent including but not limited to a 2007 Monleale and 2011 Domaine Lucci Gris Noir (so funky, so awesome).

We had such an incredibly fun time. We will be back!

Photos are up on Instagram @mmusikerrd

[bettyjoan]

Jason and I went to Rose's on a whim on Saturday night - the benefit of having been there many times before AND living nearby is that we can stroll over and check things out, and then go somewhere else if we don't want to wait.  We got there around 7:30, and we waited about an hour to get two seats at the bar - but it was a comfortable wait, upstairs on the sofa, and with wine/cocktails in hand (far superior to the outdoor line, especially in this weather).

Service was great at the bar - they asked about allergies right away, and thankfully there were only a couple of things I had to avoid.  We tried all new stuff - hamachi tacos (yum), grilled asparagus with pineapple and fried jalapenos (double yum), soft-shell crab with shaved asparagus salad (probably my favorite dish of the night), and pork blade with miso and sauerkraut (cooked perfectly and full of flavor).  Strangely, I didn't even have room to delve into the pastas - but the strawberry one is back on the menu for now.

Jason had room for dessert, so he chose the sweet pea cake with mint custard, buttermilk, and pea tendrils.  Wow, what a wonderfully strange dish!  The peas were so sweet that they made perfect sense in a dessert, but the freshness of the mint and the tang of the buttermilk kept things from getting overwhelming.  One of the most unique things I've had at Rose's - and I think that is saying something!

Lots of fun and deliciousness.

[Bart]

If anyone here follows Rose's on twitter or instagram, you already know that he/they (chef/staff) are in Japan touring around. I wonder if that means we'll see more of an Asian/Japanese influence at Rose's or maybe at the new place?

[hillvalley]

Jason had room for dessert, so he chose the sweet pea cake with mint custard, buttermilk, and pea tendrils.  Wow, what a wonderfully strange dish!  The peas were so sweet that they made perfect sense in a dessert, but the freshness of the mint and the tang of the buttermilk kept things from getting overwhelming.  One of the most unique things I've had at Rose's - and I think that is saying something!

Every dessert I have there from here on out will be compared to this dish.  This dish makes up for having to be Rose's neighbor.

[Robert Rymarz]

Recently visited Roses Luxury for the fifth time. That adds up to 4000 road miles and its worth every mile to me. I can't say enough about the restaurant, simply one of my all time favorites . 

[turbogrrl]

If anyone here follows Rose's on twitter or instagram, you already know that he/they (chef/staff) are in Japan touring around. I wonder if that means we'll see more of an Asian/Japanese influence at Rose's or maybe at the new place?

There is definitely more of an asian influence going on up on the roof at the moment.

[Simul Parikh]

What else can be said about this place? Well, I will say it. It's still fan-freaking-tastic.

Went there with my from out of town date. We got in line about 510. "Is it always like this? It's a Wednesday." Yes, it's always like this. Got to the front at about 540p, and they said it would be between 1.5 and 2.5 hours for "first available" (meaning it could be side by side at the kitchen spots). Not unreasonable. Went over to show her POV at the W, with the most interesting view of the snipers on top of the eastern aspect of the White House in the city. We got our text in exactly 2 hours and hustled back over. We were lucky to have the last table outside, and the weather was perfect. Bread and whipped garlic butter was baller, per usual. She got a peach bourbon cocktail (peaches were macerated in bourbon... or is the bourbon that was macerated in peaches? I don't really know) and that was like peach whiskey punch. I got the campari + grapefruit + IPA (Founder's All Day). Three of my favorite flavors all in one, and it worked well. Much heavier on the Campari.

They now do the lychee salad with Morningstar veg crumbles (look, you purists, she is a vegetarian, but I did not want her to miss the dish of the city) and we got that. We got the vegetable panzanella (tomato and bread salad, with some other vegetables). And the griled avocado with tomatillo, poblano, cotilla cheese, and cilantro stems. That was really good, it was sort of like avocado salsa verde and the cotilla reminded me of Mexico City street corn.

For pastas, we got the whole wheat reginetti and the spaghetti w/strawberry sauce and ricotta, and one of each Rose, because that's what real gangsters drink in the summer. That second one sounds really strange, but it works out well. It is sweet-ish, but not dessert like. This is when things started to get out of hand. We were full already, and Thea, our divine and all knowing waitress brought out a cacio e pepe on the house. I didn't love it the last time, but I really liked it this time. Then, another server brought out another pasta - again, on the house. I know it's only 12 hours ago, but for the life of me I can't remember it, though half of it is in my fridge. For two people that try to limit carbs, but love them, this was too tempting.

We were too full for dessert, so we didn't ask for the menu, but then Thea comes out with the vegan coconut ice cream. Awesome. Just awesome.

$133 + tip.

This place is just head and shoulders in terms of what they bring to the table, literally and metaphorically.

-S

[Bart]

We were lucky to have the last table outside, and the weather was perfect.

I didn't even know they had outside tables.

Where are they? On the street in front? How many are there?

[Simul Parikh]

In front of the restaurant. Just a few small tables. 

[pras]

"Swelter for Hours  in Line to Eat at the Acclaimed Rose's Luxury? People Do It Every Day"  by Joe Helm on washingtonpost.com

[Escoffier]

The next new "great thing" will be along in a few minutes.  Please wait quietly in queue, please.

[B.A.R.]

I have had outstanding meals at Rose's Luxury and I love the Tony Kornheiser show.

This mornings show opened with Tony RAVING about the meal he had last night, at a restaurant on Capitol Hill. Just gushing. This is an unusual occurrence for a regular listener, as Tony always eats at 1) The Palm and 2) never raves about anything. So I was wondering where he ate, and Garrison immediately popped into my mind. You see, Tony went out to dinner with Bill Simmons and another friend, and you could not imagine that any of them would stand online to get into Rose's Luxury at 7:30. It's really inconceivable.

But it was Rose's, and for a brief moment I was amazed that someone in his party actually queued up for dinner. I was wrong.

So, as Tony is gushing, he says that there are no reservations, and that a cottage industry has grown that you can now PAY people to wait online for you, to eat at Rose's Luxury. I am all for free market, blah, blah, blah, but this has me....upset...angry...disappointed?

If one of the ideas behind the "no reservations" policy was to have a fabulous neighborhood restaurant that is accessible to all - and this is happening - then that part of the policy is a failure.Go ahead and charge people to make reservations, increase your cash flow, and dispense with the pretense, because the market does not care about Rose's good intentions. But if they want to KEEP the noble idea behind the policy, maybe do something like this.

Or maybe I'm the only one that sees this as a problem. It's been known to happen.

[mnnchas]

Part of me wants to be upset about this, but I just don't feel it.  I have never been to Rose's, mostly because I have no desire to arrange for a sitter and then wait in line for a chance to have dinner there.  Potentially being able to pay someone to hold a place in line has me intrigued, but I have to wonder what is the going rate for these people?

Now, can I raise a practical question...are we going to do Stonehenge tomorrow?

[DonRocks]

Part of me wants to be upset about this, but I just don't feel it.  I have never been to Rose's, mostly because I have no desire to arrange for a sitter and then wait in line for a chance to have dinner there.  Potentially being able to pay someone to hold a place in line has me intrigued, but I have to wonder what is the going rate for these people?

Now, can I raise a practical question...are we going to do Stonehenge tomorrow?

My first impression agreed with you (I only gave Brian's post a quick read) - Rose's can't be responsible for what happens on the sidewalk outside their restaurant.

Or can they? This is arguably the most successful restaurant in the history of Washington, DC (which, in and of itself, is mind-bending), and new ground has been broken.

Maybe Rose's could take reservations if people can prove they're handicapped? I know of 5-10 people on this website (and those are only the ones I know of!) that physically could not make the wait.

Would President Obama, *should* President Obama, be required to wait in line?

[Ericandblueboy]

Tony's a cranky old orange man. For him to rave about something, it must be special.

I've been to Rose's twice. Standing is generally good for you. Also, most people enjoy long relaxing dinners. So why is standing in line with your dining companion that bad (think of it as a part of your dining experience)?   Conversation with others waiting in line and the gawkers passing by can be quite fun.

I understand some people are frail and standing is impossible (however, you only need one person in your party to stand the entire time).

[Tweaked]

Line standing is a DC cottage industry, very common on The Hill for getting into congressional hearings. SCOTUS just ruled they are banning the practice for the lawyer line at the Supreme Court. Only makes sense that it would become a thing for restaurant lines. Some people get up to $50/hour to stand.

[reedm]

Now, can I raise a practical question...are we going to do Stonehenge tomorrow?

Great Spinal Tap reference by mnnchas...one of my favorite movies.

If Rose's is contemplating a ban on line standing (and I think it should), they need to look beyond a measly Supreme Court ruling. Perhaps this is a better example:

"Franklin Barbecue Bans All Line Holders" by Nadia Chaudhury on austin.eater.com

Like it or not, POTUS is in a unique category, and cannot wait in a line.

Edited for grammar.

[cheezepowder]

Would President Obama, *should* President Obama, be required to wait in line?

He didn't wait in line.

[Bart]

Warning:  Long incoherent post below!

SCOTUS just ruled they are banning the practice for the lawyer line at the Supreme Court. Only makes sense that it would become a thing for restaurant lines. Some people get up to $50/hour to stand.

I know nothing of this story but that's not going to stop me from commenting on it!! What a hypocritical crock! I thought money equaled speech?!??! So it's ok for the billionaire class to exercise their "right to free speech" by buying our politicians and basically laying the ground work for our democracy to become an oligarchy, but it's not ok for some lawyer to exercise his free speech by having someone stand in line?!?!? Makes perfect sense.


But back to Rose's - - I'm sort of surprised there hasn't been some backlash against the place. On the one hand they serve great food and give great service and do nice little treats like give random people a free dish during their meal, and everything I've read about the chef himself, and being an employee, sounds like it's operating on a whole different level than most places - I mean every few months they close the restaurant and the entire staff does some fun thing like goes bowling together! They also raised $20K for charity (to feed hungry children around the world) by donating 25 cents per meal served.

On the other hand, the menu is VERY small. There are only 12 items on it!! Looking at it now, there are only a couple items that'd I'd really want to eat and probably the only one that would get me to deal with the hassle is the "CHILLED VADOUVAN CURRY W/ MACADAMIA NUTS & CARAMELIZED BANANA". This sounds like the best dish by far!, (it was nearly life changing) that I had on my rooftop dinner a few months ago (which was also my least enjoyable Rose's experience by far). I'd love to have that again and of course the Lychee/Pork/Habanero thing too, but the menu is so small that I don't have any real motivation to endure the ordeal of the line.

On the other, other hand, I understand that they're keeping the quality consistent and high, by keeping the menu small.

On the other, other, other hand, they remove beloved dishes to make room for others only to taunt and tease you with the VERY limited return of the original beloved dish. Let me explain.

I never had their fried chicken, but my understanding is that it was very popular and was a "must have" dish of the time. It was written up in the Bon Appetite article and got all the appropriate oohs and ahs, but at some point the chef decided it was time to move on, so he took it off the menu. But if you follow them on Twitter or Instagram, you know that in celebration of their two year anniversary, they brought the chicken back for one night and one night only. When I read it on Twitter (about a day after the even occurred, because I'm always hours or days behind), my first reactions was "Wow! Another cool move that sets this place apart". My second reaction was anger or annoyance! "You're only serving it for one meal?!!??" "And you tell us that morning that you're doing it?!?!" "How do you expect people with lives, and jobs, and kids, and commitments, and hobbies, and plans to deal with this?!?!?" "Am I supposed to monitor Twitter every morning and rearrange my life to wait in line at 3 pm later that day to eat a special dish?!?!?

I felt all those things and I never even had the damn fried chicken to begin with! If I had, and I loved it, and I missed its brief return, I'd probably apoplectic!!!

On the other, other, other, other hand, this is not life and death. I understand they're a hugely popular place that's just trying to have fun, serve good food, make people happy, and do fun little one offs like the fried chicken, but I'm also surprised there's been no backlash.

[Tujague]

Tom Sietsema's Number One favorite restaurant for 2015--plus four stars--so don't look for things to get better.

[Simul Parikh]

That was an awesome post! I agree with missing the chicken that I'd never even tasted.

Must be really tough to please everyone. The line thing pisses people off (those with limited time), but makes other people happy (with no limits on time). But, for something scarce like this, if they don't change up a bit, secondary markets are going to form (for those people with money >>> time). And the people that get the money from that transaction aren't the good people that work at Rose's. On a side note, economists are baffled that restaurants set a fixed price no matter the demand. Even if a place is popular, the prices stay the same. Even if a place has dead time, the prices are the same. No dynamic pricing at all, supply and demand don't meet and there is so much deadweight loss. The economist in me loses his mind everything he sees queuing at a restaurant. It's completely irrational!

The small menu makes some people happy (like me, that feel a restaurant should just do a few things really well), or unhappy (people that want more choice and options). Doubt they will ever open it up and have a book like Cheesecake Factory, but maybe they should expand just a bit.. It is super limited.

I hate the fact that celebrities and VIPs get "special" treatment, especially at a place that values "democratization" of a finer dining experience. I understand the demands of BO's job and the security concerns, but Silverman, et al. are going to lose some fans if more people are getting special treatment. I used to hate being told as a resident physician that "a VIP patient was coming and had to give them VIP treatment". They are all VIPs in my book, from the CEO of the hospital to the homeless guy down the street. Not going to change treatment based on the size of their VIP-ness (Say that out loud, ha!).

Can't wait to go there again, though...

S

[B.A.R.]

By no means am I  upset with Rose's, or intimate that they don't "walk the walk"but this just seems"¦"¦unseemly to me. I wonder if this is a DC thing, or are there paid placeholders at, say, Mission Chinese? Rose's has no reason to change any policy because of this development, but it reeks of elitism and privilege, which seems to go against what Rose's is about.

Must be really tough to please everyone. The line thing pisses people off (those with limited time), but makes other people happy (with no limits on time). But, for something scarce like this, if they don't change up a bit, secondary markets are going to form (for those people with money >>> time). And the people that get the money from that transaction aren't the good people that work at Rose's. On a side note, economists are baffled that restaurants set a fixed price no matter the demand. Even if a place is popular, the prices stay the same. Even if a place has dead time, the prices are the same. No dynamic pricing at all, supply and demand don't meet and there is so much deadweight loss. The economist in me loses his mind everything he sees queuing at a restaurant. It's completely irrational!

Would I pay $50 for a table at Rose's on Friday night at 7:30? Maybe, but I'd actually feel a lot better paying that to Rose's. It seems something like Nick Kokonas' Tock could not solve the problem, because Rose's does not strictly offer a tasting menu with more predictable table turn times.

[Bart]

I hate the fact that celebrities and VIPs get "special" treatment, especially at a place that values "democratization" of a finer dining experience. I understand the demands of BO's job and the security concerns, but Silverman, et al. are going to lose some fans if more people are getting special treatment.

Do VIPs get special treatment?? I'm not talking about the President - he's in a different category from the rest of us.

I've always read that there is no special treatment, even for Silverman's parents. They have to wait in line too. I think that's nuts, BTW, but that's what they say.

[Simul Parikh]

Don't know, that was just rampant speculation, maybe the policy is "President's and their spouses" only? If it's only POTUS/FLOTUS, but his mom and dad have to wait... I don't know how I feel about that! 

[Tweaked]

Sorry I fucked up the quote thing, Simul:

"On a side note, economists are baffled that restaurants set a fixed price no matter the demand. Even if a place is popular, the prices stay the same. Even if a place has dead time, the prices are the same. No dynamic pricing at all, supply and demand don't meet and there is so much deadweight loss. The economist in me loses his mind everything he sees queuing at a restaurant. It's completely irrational!"

I get what you are getting at Simul, but don't restaurants seek to address this with happy hours, early bird specials, late night menus, half priced bottle of wine on Mondays etc.  There are numerous ways you can eat at restaurants during off-hours at discounted prices.

[Simul Parikh]

Totally! You're right, people address parts of the problem at sports bars or some neighborhood diners and other more casual places to get people in the door or get rid of some ingredients/wine that need to go. But, not at nicer places with high demand/not enough supply. Rose's, Little Serow, Izkaya Seki, Le Diplomate, Red Hen  ... If there are lines out the door and people that want to eat don't get to eat or they have to wait months for a reservation, seems like something isn't working in the market. It's like concert tickets that completely sell out and then are getting scalped for 5x the price. Market failure, artists/promoters/restaurants get screwed, some wily guy with too much time on their hands hitting refresh on Ticketmaster or a guy who makes an app to secure reservations makes money instead ... Anyway, I'm sure someone in or out of the industry would say, "That's just the way it is" and "You don't get restaurants" ... but, there is not enough supply, too much demand, prices are too low, market failure... seems fixable. Maybe not. Wonder if anyone's tried it in earnest at a busy place.

Edit .. Sounds like the biggest problem is pissing off customers when prices rise, and the idea of somebody paying more for the same exact entree as someone else, just based on timing. I guess the peak reservation surcharge would be something to consider ... $10-$50/person at peak times. It's definitely interesting and tricky.

https://www.quora.com/Why-dont-restaurants-use-dynamic-pricing

[B.A.R.]

 Wonder if anyone's tried it in earnest at a busy place. 

Nick Kokonas has, and started a company with a a few restaurateurs and techies called Tock

[Tweaked]

Totally! You're right, people address parts of the problem at sports bars or some neighborhood diners and other more casual places to get people in the door or get rid of some ingredients/wine that need to go. But, not at nicer places with high demand/not enough supply. Rose's, Little Serow, Izkaya Seki, Le Diplomate, Red Hen  ... If there are lines out the door and people that want to eat don't get to eat or they have to wait months for a reservation, seems like something isn't working in the market. It's like concert tickets that completely sell out and then are getting scalped for 5x the price. Market failure, artists/promoters/restaurants get screwed, some wily guy with too much time on their hands hitting refresh on Ticketmaster or a guy who makes an app to secure reservations makes money instead ... Anyway, I'm sure someone in or out of the industry would say, "That's just the way it is" and "You don't get restaurants" ... but, there is not enough supply, too much demand, prices are too low, market failure... seems fixable. Maybe not. Wonder if anyone's tried it in earnest at a busy place.

Edit .. Sounds like the biggest problem is pissing off customers when prices rise, and the idea of somebody paying more for the same exact entree as someone else, just based on timing. I guess the peak reservation surcharge would be something to consider ... $10-$50/person at peak times. It's definitely interesting and tricky.

https://www.quora.com/Why-dont-restaurants-use-dynamic-pricing

But the thing is for places like Rose's, Little Serow, Red Hen there really isn't dead time for them to fill seats, these places are pretty much full from the time the door opens until they close.  So they are going to be the restaurant that price gouges customers during the prime 7pm - 9pm slot?  Probably not the best reputation for a restaurant.

[cheezepowder]

In his chat today, Tom Sietsema says he used a line standing service twice to get into Rose's Luxury.  He said:

It all depends on the time and the day and the weather. If cost isn't an object, you should consider a line-sitter from  TaskRabbit, a great service that I've used twice this year --- after having waited in LOTS of lines over the years, I should point out. In both cases, the clock was ticking and I was on deadline.

He also goes on to mention he sat next to two women who lucked out and got into Rose's without waiting.

[jasonc]

Line-sitter sounds like a great job for someone looking for a better job or someone without any other marketable skills. I'm glad they are getting these chances!

[Simul Parikh]

So, people are paying a premium via line standees ..rather Silverman collect that fetty, rather than some random dude exploiting the system... Guess it's just a matter of opinion. I'd pay the restaurant to avoid waiting, and I guess now I'll just use a Task Rabbit, like TS did.