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Smith Public Trust, Chef Mercedes Delgado's Tavern Owned by Smith Commons on 12th and Monroe Street NE in Brookland


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And I am once again starting a new thread about a Brookland restaurant! :P

Smith Public Trust (in the space that used to be The Library, Kitty O'Shea's, and something else?), is in soft opening mode in Brookland right now on 12th St between Monroe and Newton. It's a sister restaurant to Smith Commons on H. I believe the soft opening runs through the World Cup and they have a limited menu available (I've been told the menu will be about 3 times as large upon full opening).

The space is pretty interesting (see pics in the link above), with exposed brick, unfinished floors, murals, mismatched vintage furniture, etc. But they do have high chairs!

I went during last week's USA vs Germany game for lunch and again last night for dinner with mixed results. Service has not been great either time. The servers and the GM have been very nice, but not necessarily the most attentive.

Of the food I tried, my favorites have been the Edamame Hummus, the Nachos, and the Duck Spring Rolls. The Burger looked pretty good, but I didn't taste it. It's served with super thin cut matchstick fries that were pleasantly salty and crunchy. The bite I had of the Tacos tasted good, but there was way too much liquid (the tortillas fell apart and the plate was covered with a layer of juice at the end). My friend did not care for the Ramen (although he admitted Toki and Daikaya have spoiled him). The Fried Chicken and Red Velvet Waffle were ok (the chicken was piping hot and well seasoned, but the waffle was not hot...and I would've preferred some variety instead of two drumsticks).

I'm unsure if they will expand their drink menu later. They have a good selection of beers on draft and in cans, but only 4 wines to choose from, and the two whites were chardonnay and riesling (meh).

At this point I don't plan to rush back, but would like to return once the full menu is unveiled.

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We visited tonight after hearing/reading a lot of great reviews.  The beer list is great, and the cocktail I had (with gin, muddled cucumbers and basil, and elderflower syrup) was tasty.  We tried the edamame hummus, which I absolutely LOVED, and the duck spring rolls, which were also very tasty.  However, service was a major issue.  The bar is HUGE, and unfortunately there was really only one person doing any work back there (there were a couple of people who lit candles and/or replaced glasses/napkins, but they didn't seem to make themselves useful other than that).  So, it often took a while to get the bartender's attention.  Our food took nearly 40 minutes (we were told there was a printer malfunction), and hubby had to get up and walk to the other side of the bar to ask to cash out.  We probably would have ordered more to eat and drink, had it not taken so long.  The bartender seemed to feel bad about the issues, and he actually only charged us for a round of drinks (comping one beer and both food items), but I feel like Saturday night service is something that needs to be worked out, and fast.  The food was delicious, so it deserves some matching service.

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As a follow-up:

Someone from the restaurant (a manager, I would assume, but I can't be sure) followed up with both me and my husband about our experience.  Though I was initially a bit weirded out at how they tracked us down (they found me on Twitter and also called my husband), I definitely appreciate that they wanted to get some feedback.  I told them about the issues we encountered, and they certainly seemed like they took things seriously and wanted to improve and train their folks for next time.

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As a follow-up:

Someone from the restaurant (a manager, I would assume, but I can't be sure) followed up with both me and my husband about our experience.  Though I was initially a bit weirded out at how they tracked us down (they found me on Twitter and also called my husband), I definitely appreciate that they wanted to get some feedback.  I told them about the issues we encountered, and they certainly seemed like they took things seriously and wanted to improve and train their folks for next time.

My initial take on this is that, despite it having an initially odd vibe, it was an earnest attempt to get ahold of you and right a wrong.

[Note to restaurateurs: If you ever need to get in touch with a member, write me. I can't give you their identities, but I can write *them*, and have them get in touch with you.]

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