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  1. No, but it's now open, and here are the website and current menus. Note that there's a pop-up window advertising heritage turkey dinners (complete dinners) to go for Thanksgiving this year - they're asking you to order early (note to NRG: That window is showing up every time you click on something on the website - it would be nice if you saw it only once). Dinner: Charcuterie: Beer: Drinks and Wine:
  2. With its nice long bar and large sunny windows, The Vanderbilt is the kind of place you want to go to for an afternoon drink. We enjoyed a glass of the Forstreiter Gruner Veltliner 2013 ($9) and the Aizipurua Getariako Txakolina 2015 ($12). They were serving a limited prix fixe menu because of Mother's Day but we did enjoy our plate of cottage fries ($6). The vibe of The Vanderbilt is more upscale neighborhood restaurant with prices to match. But not a bad place to spend an hour or so on a late Sunday afternoon after wandering around the Brooklyn Museum.
  3. Down an out of the way road in Jessup, a group of friends and I had a fun evening at Blob's Park Bavarian Beer Garden last night. I had heard stories of this place for some time. A few of my childhood friends' parents used to got here for literal buckets of beer and dancing when I was growing up in the area. The space is huge, designed to seat 800 people. We were lucky to have the evening's band be Steve Meisner and his polka band from Madison, WI. There are regulars to this place, their tables marked with wood plaques engraved with their names. There were a lot of families with children running around. We ordered pitchers of Spaten pils and octoberfest to start- no more buckets. Too bad. We then got several appetizers including their pork wings, sausage plates, and very salty Bavarian radishes. I had a weisswurst plate, and then a taste of their German chocolate cake. While the cuisine was not stellar, the atmosphere was the real draw. The polka band started up at 8, and was greeted by a line of regulars who stood in front playing instruments like tambourine and washboards to the first song. Then everyone danced polka or western swing or whatever to the night's sets of music. It felt like night in the Midwest again.
  4. Drove by recently, saw the sign, but can't find anything about it on the internet. Does anyone know anything about it?
  5. My wife and I have adopted the Sunday habit of driving to Leesburg for excellent salads and exemplery soup at Kevin Malone's rustic Tuscarora Mill in Leesburg. The front of this is a tavern that we've enjoyed for a number of years, especially on a cold winter's night. Recently, we learned that he had opened a new restaurant in Purcellville, about 15 miles further out into Loudoun County. Today, with the temperature hovering around 80 we put the top down and drove out to explore. To say that Magnolia is a converted grain silo from the 19th century is an injustice. To say that it sits at the absolute end of the Old Dominion Railroad trail does not capture the ambience of sitting on the patio overlooking the trail. This is a five story high mill that has seen at least several million dollars worth of investment. The result is an absolutely breathtaking wooden cathedral with ceilings approaching a fifth or six floor, planked flooring and brick and stone in every direction. Why Sietsema hasn't been out here yet is absolutely beyond me: it opened two years ago. Our expectation was for the same food that we have found in Leesburg at Tuscarora. Our disappointment was not finding it. This is a very abbreviated "review" since we only scratched the surface of this remarkable restaurant's menu. My hope is that Kevin Malone, the owner, might read it and change a few things before Sietsema or Kliman decide to take a Sunday drive to Purcellville. My wife and I each ordered a soup, one the soup of the day which essentially was chicken broth with a few veggies. The other was a very good version of Rao's Vodka Sauce for pasta. Neither was on par with the excellent half dozen soups we've had over the years at Tuscarora Mill. We each had the salad of the day. What is important about my comment is the size of the "dinner" salad: anemically small. In Leesburg dinner salads are not nearly as large as, say, Houston's or Sweetwater. But they are better, perhaps, much better. And a bit larger. At least twelve bites if not more. This was considerably smaller than what we have found in Leesburg. After eight or nine bites we were finished. I've never measured a salad before by the number of bites but the size of this inspired that consideration-there were so few! When I later received the check I could not believe that these salads could cost as much as they did: approximately a dollar a bite! Even the best flavored lettuce does not warrant this. Entrees being served around the room and on the patio looked delicious: we thought that, maybe, we had ordered wrong which would justify a return. After all, we fell in love with the ambience and the incredible effect that the remodelling of the building had on diners: gorgeous, atmospheric, the fantasy realization of anyone driving through the Virginia countryside looking for a good restaurant with a great deal of "personality" to have dinner at. This was it. But at least a few courses need work. We'll be back soon for the main courses and dessert. Definitely worth the trip, if only for a glass of wine...
  6. After dinner at my fave' Ghibellina, stopped by the new bar Kingfisher, on my way back to my car, b/c I had to park all the way by the Pig. It's down in the basement, true neighborhood bar, not even dealing with the gastropub or any sort of menu options at all, except for free popcorn and some expensive beef jerky. They have a very strong beer draft list, some canned wines, fun cocktails. If you are hungry for other foods, you can order delivery or just bring what you want in. We walked into the beginning of trivia night (they use "Geeks Who Drink") and played a half a game (our group, "Better Late Than Pregnant" were 3rd of 11 at halftime), but I was turning into a pumpkin so we left before the game was over. I love it - very few of these exist any more. Felt like a bunch of friends got together and said, "Let's open a bar that feels like our basement". Very cozy. Reasonable prices. They have bingo night, too. Will see you there! ** Oh - the name has nothing to do with India or the Indian beer. They had a hard time finding a name for a bar, so they figured they'd go for a bird's name. They got a book and saw a really cool looking bird, and said, "Boom! That's what we're calling this joint". They do not serve Kingfisher but b/c of all the questions, they may offer it at some point.
  7. Kingfisher has been open since the summer. I went in shortly after opening, and the guy behind the bar told me that they wanted to build a neighborhood bar on 14th Street, and that they hoped to tune the TVs behind the bar to nerdier things (like Godzilla movies) than muted sporting events. After half a year of it open, I like just about everything but their happy hour: the free popcorn is great, the beer list (cans only, no drafts, like Red Derby) is pretty well-curated, and it's a really nice place to meet people for a drink, but the happy hour offerings (particularly in the way of beer) are pretty meager. Otherwise, it's a really nice place and a very welcome low-key addition to a perhaps overly buzzy neighborhood.
  8. Tonight's meal was brought to you by the letter B as well as S. Bad service , boys & girls, cancels out a great meal everytime. I often equate it to a bad review. I could read 100 reviews ,but that one bad one will sit heavy with me. The Cove in York has one less patron. Let me start off with the good stuff,though. A bowl of cream of crab,by far is the best deal in town at $4.99. Large bits of backfin crab is abundant throughout the savory blend of cream& spices. I asked the surly bartender what he recommended as a restaurant fav, and the service staff jumped at the opportunity to reccomend the Cantina Nachos. The nachos can be topped off with an array of protein options. I chose the brisket. Wow , just wow. I was blown away when the dish was served. A long oblong plate stacked high with fatty goodness. Housemade chips piled high with beef brisket accented by an abundance of jalepenos, black beans, scallions,tomatoes, and gooey cheddar cheese.It would have been made a bit more perfect if a sprinkling of chopped cilantro made an appearance. But thats me.But my dear followers, thats where the perfection ended. I was really trying to give the bartender the benefit of my doubt, but he failed miserably. I watched him reach into a ice bin with a glass tumbler. Irresponsible. But more importantly , he didnt even bother to greet me once I sat down. Whats the average time a bartender greets a patron? He made eye contact, walked away from me to pour a glass of wine. Still no greeting& or acknowledgement. Not off to a good start. The service when downhill from there. Everytime I asked him a question, he acted indifferent,& bothered by my request. I wasn't his only victim of the evening. I watched him give bad service to just about anyone in listening range. I wanted to like this place, I really did, but bad service cancels out great food everytime. disappointed, kat
  9. In honor of Michel Richard, who left California I understand because diners ignored his menu and instead asked for healthy blah food like grilled fish on a bed of lettuce, my first stop in California was for a nice burger. Father's Office definitely delivered, this is a serious burger. According to wikipedia and consistent with my own memory, it is the "Office Burger, a patty of fine dry-aged beef topped with caramelized onions, Gruyère and Maytag cheeses, applewood-smoked bacon compote and arugula served on a soft roll." I also got a side of sweet potato fries, which represented quite well. It was fairly brisk on a Tuesday evening. The place is a bit dark (that's why I couldn't identify everything on the burger) but definitely worth the stop in Santa Monica.
  10. Mythology is now (soft) open at 816 H Street NE. The concept has been in the works for years and comes from former Atlas Room GM (and Mark & Orlando's owner) Mark Medley with his business partner Todd Luongo. Mythology opened quietly last night. With little fanfare, Mythology lined up the talented Chef Joseph Harran (formerly of Woodward Table, Bistro Bis and Vidalia) to operate the kitchen. If you don't know Chef Harran (and I did not), note that our fearless leader DonRocks has described him here as "exceptionally talented" and a "Top 20 Chef in the city." Our preview meal confirmed Don's informed opinion and was quite delicious and well-executed. We particularly enjoyed the blue crab toast appetizer, the scallops and steak (w/bone marrow) entrées, and the playful "coffee and tea" dessert. The second floor lounge area and roof decks of the building and concept remain under construction, but Mythology is open for dinner now and likely to add brunch and the upstairs bar/lounge space in the coming months. Some aspects of the Mythology theme were not to our taste, but we will be back again for another very good meal soon. Mythology is an instant contender on H Street, IMHO -- Chef Harran in back and Mark in front is a very strong combination and elevates the competition for quality dining here in NE DC.
  11. "German Restaurant Takes Signed Trump Photo Down after Barrage of Yelp Complaints" by Ken Meyer on mediaite.com
  12. Good tacos (non-traditional tacos), fantastic beer list, and they serve their entire menu until 1:30 am.
  13. In PA for a wedding this weekend. Looked at us a bit funny as 3 families with kids strolled into a pub for brunch, but frankly not much else was open or looked good...plus all the parents needed a beer. Great draft list. I had a local bitters on cask (Yards ESA, I think). Po-boys were tasty and filling, and the fried green tomato BLT with Benton's bacon hit the hangover helper high points. Definitely a solid brunch/lunch option if you're in that neck of the woods.
  14. Joe Englert, the man behind such dive bars as The Big Hunt, Lucky Bar, Capitol Lounge, and Pour House, strikes again, this time expanding his empire to the H Street, NE Corridor. Viewed by some as the next gentification project around town, Englert is moving in fast and furious with at least 7 projects slated to open on H Street -- the Argonaut Tavern being the first. What can I say, it's a typical Englert dive bar! This time he has struck with a 1800's sea wharf saloon meets pirate rum bootlegger theme. Lots of nautical stuff, pressed tin roof, uneven floor boards, mismatched tables and chairs, a pool table, and flat screen TVs showing sports the modern touch. The beer list was a little small, I had a rather tasty unknown IPA, but unlike many Englert spots the food was actually rather tasty in dive bar way. Despite it being New Year's Day, we went with the fried calamari which was tender, with lots of black pepper in the batter and the Italian sausage sandwich was actually pretty darn good. The winner being the sweet potato fries. Joe's places are what they are, dive bars, but it's a winning formula for him, and I look forward to checking out his other joints on H street in the coming months. Argonaut Tavern
  15. Birroteca, a new restaurant that focuses on pizza, small plates, craft beer, and wine officially opens tonight. A little bit about how the restaurant came to be here and a link to their Facebook page here (they do not appear to have a website up yet). I had the opportunity to go for their soft opening last night with 3 friends. The full menu was available and we were able to choose what we wanted. The menu is split into the following sections: appetizers, salads, pastas (entrees), pizzas, and vegetables, with if I'm remembering correctly about 6-8 choices in each section, plus they have a nightly special. We opted to get a mix of the small plates/apps, pizza, and entrees and share everything. We started with three appetizers, the meatball, calamari, and fried polenta as well as a duck confit salad, all of which were excellent. My favorites were probably the meatball, which was 8 oz (not sure what type of meat is used) and served on top of housemade ricotta with tomato sauce and a little shaved cheese and the calamari, which was cooked a la plancha, resulting in incredibly tender pieces of calamari topped with capers and grilled lemon. The fried polenta was a pleasant surprise, 3 "sticks" of very creamy polenta that was fried to crisp perfection (I really have no idea how they accomplished this) served on top of eggplant ragu. The duck confit salad with a bed of greens with figs and some type of citrus fruit, topped with an entire duck confit leg. The fat was scored and rendered really well and the skin was incredibly crispy - I could eat that leg every day. The salad itself was less appealing to me, everything went nicely together, but there was a bit too much sweetness overall for me to have eaten the entire salad on my own. Next up we shared the duck duck goose pizza, two entries: the papperadelle with wild boar bolognese and the penne with fennel sausage, the mussel appetizer, and the cauliflower from the vegetable section. The pizza came topped with duck confit and a duck egg. It was really rich and tasty, but again there was that sweetness and sadly our duck egg was overcooked so we weren't able to get the benefit of the yolk spreading out over the pizza as you cut into it. However, the crust was perfect for me - the right balance of slight chewiness to overall crispness. The pasta for the bolognese appeared to be housemade and was very tender and the sauce was very good, if not wowing. The fennel sausage was a surprising standout however. Not sure where the sausage is sourced from, but it's incredible and balanced nicely with the tomatoes and the bitterness of the greens in the dish although I don't think the penne is homemade . The (1/2 lb of) mussels would have been underwhelming I think were it not for the croutons in the dish. I will fail miserably at describing these - they were flavorful and incredibly well seasoned and seemed to be soaked with liquid, but they were still crunchy so they added a nice texture and flavor to the dish. By the time I got to the cauliflower, the last item to reach our table, I was getting quite full so I'm not sure I can evaluate it fairly. It was roasted and again had a sweetness to it (fig, balsamic, both?) that for me after having experienced that with both of the duck dishes was too much, but it was tasty otherwise. Desserts were a pumpkin pannacotta that was well liked across the board, as well as a chocolate fig tart (good, but not something I would rush to order again) and the olive oil & sea salt and ricotta ice creams (both tasty - I enjoyed having the sea salt ice cream with the chocolate tart and the ricotta ice cream with the pannacotta). We stuck mostly to by the glass wines, and a couple of people sampled some of the craft beers on tap. They have a really nice selection of (mostly local) beers on tap, I would say about 15 of them (?) from places like Brewer's Art, Stillwater, Flying Dog (was so happy to get to enjoy The Fear on tap), etc. along with a decent cocktail list. I wasn't particularly impressed with any of the wines that we had and I sampled 4 of the reds, but for the price (most tend to run $7/glass) they're fine. They didn't have a dessert wine list yet and were still working on that so hopefully the wine list will evolve as well. For the sake of full disclosure, we were asked to pay for our drinks, but not our food. However, we were presented with the food bill separately (presumably so we could tip accordingly) and for everything that we ate, plus an average of 2-3 drinks/person with tax and tip the meal would have cost us just over $60 per person, which to me is an excellent value as we left stuffed. Across the board I felt the food was very good to excellent, the set up of the menu is really great - a large enough selection with a lot of enticing choices, but not overwhelming (and nice for sharing), the service especially for a soft opening was quite good (there were a few hiccups, but surprisingly few), and I really liked the interior - I think this restaurant will be a promising addition to the Hampden restaurant scene. ETA: You'll have to forgive me if I've forgotten some of the details or gotten things wrong as I'm working completely from memory here.
  16. Funny, I had an Americano (a large comes with four shots - they use a California roaster with a multi-syllabic name beginning with "D") in Del Ray just two days ago, at the pleasant Emma's Espresso and Wine Bar. I didn't try any of the baked goods, but the Americano was very well made, served in a ginormous (that didn't activate the spell-check alert?) mug, and was quite a good cup of coffee. The first few moments of service were addled, but instantly rectified themselves, and the staff there was as pleasant as can be. They have free WiFi, and Emma's is well-worth a visit if you enjoy independent coffee houses. They own the entire house, right off Mount Vernon Avenue, so there's ample parking.
  17. Water Grill is the best seafood restaurant in all of Southern CA. Serious. And, it's in downtown L. A. a couple of blocks from the Bonaventure. Unfortunately, it's not cheap. Probably comparable to Kinkead's in price.
  18. Just went to the Old Stein Inn ... surprisingly pricey ... but oh man what a meal and experience! EVERYTHING we had was top notch. Highly recommend.
  19. If you're a beer drinker, the Wharf Rat on Pratt near Camden Yards fits the bill. Pretty ordinary food, but good Bitter, several TVs, and pretty inexpensive.
  20. We were excited to try Brick and Mortar after Eater named it one its five finalists for Philly 2015 restaurant of the year - along with Aldine, one of our best dining experiences in the city so far. After dining there last night, I can tell you the inclusion on that list does Aldine a great disservice. Brick and Mortar is housed in the first floor of the Goldtex apartment building - it's an oddly shaped, generic space that is really devoid of any character whatsoever. There's an enormous TV that had sports on when we got there although to their credit they did turn it off once the dinner crowd really started to roll in. This restaurant continues an annoying trend of playing loud pop music while you're trying to enjoy dinner. They have a number of crescent-shaped tables that are totally awkward and make you feel like you entire party is sitting on the same side of the table - they tried to jam us into one and then made kind of a big deal about accommodating our request to sit at a regular 4-top. The food is your standard charcuterie, cheese boards, small plates, yada, yada that you see everywhere these days. I would say everything we ate was enjoyable though nothing to write home about. The oysters were just OK, the lamb was pretty nice, as were the rock shrimp. All in all, just not a standout restaurant - there are plenty of better places to go.
  21. We stopped by last night for happy hour and had a great time! We arrived shortly after 5 pm...it was quiet and we took 2 seats at the bar. The long bar is made of poured concrete, and has these uniquely rounded corners that make sitting at the bar with a group of 4 enjoyable. The ceilings are high, and the exposed original woodwork was quite impressive. By the time we left, around 730ish, the place was hopping (but not too noisy for us), standing room only...I was so happy to see this place doing well even on the 2nd night open. We had the house-roasted olives ($5) and the cheese plate ($8 or maybe it was $10, I forget), along with a few glasses of wine. The olive assortment was served piping hot, in a 2x3 enameled casserole, and were roasted with sprigs of thyme, thin slices of lemon peel, and probably other goodies I didn't catch. They were a great bar snack. We also enjoyed the cheese plate (one a cheddar, one a blue, the other I forget it but was semi-firm like a gruyere, but less nutty). The only drawback was the toasts...there were only 2 on the plate, and they were overly toasty and fell apart. We asked for a few more and the bartender quickly brought some for us. But here was our favorite part. After we ate, the bar manager, Steve, asked us how our experience had been thus far...I mentioned the toasts were too few, and too toasty, and he thanked me and said he'd tell the chef because that's exactly the kind of feedback they were looking for. A few minutes later, Steve came back out and said the Chef said thank you...as we were leaving, Dave - who greeted us on our way in - asked how everything was...I mentioned the toasts, and he had already heard! This underscored how thoughtful the service was from start to finish. It was obvious to us that this group pays attention to the details. We'll be back many times, I'm sure.
  22. Matt and I went to Blue Pit BBQ on Saturday night after a few beers at Union with some friends who recommended it. I thought the BBQ was definitely up there, better than anything I have had in the DC area for ribs and pulled pork. I thought the smoke level was good, I liked the rib rub, it was so good you didn't really even need sauce. I wouldn't have minded a spicier bbq sauce for the pork, but I ended up really liking their mustard sauce with the pork actually. Our friends didn't care for the bratwurst, of course they are from Minnesota and their parents make bratwurst so... I liked the sides, the collards tasted like collards, but were cooked down nicely. I wasn't crazy about the potato salad, I thought the potatoes were a bit under cooked, however the flavor was there. I really liked one of the coleslaws, I think it was the MD seasoning one. The cornbread was really good. They also had a great bar selection of whiskeys and bourbons, I had a Frisky Kitty cocktail that was good. A nice can beer list too, Matt had something from San Francisco he really likes, but can't find often. All in all a very good stop, especially after drinking some beer.
  23. I'm shocked that I haven't heard about or seen this place yet, as I walk by the area quite frequently and hadn't seen much activity. It appears that they have worked fast, as the lighting and tables were already out on the floor yesterday with a beehive of activity inside working to get the place ready. For a gastropub the inside looks very appealling, a huge clean looking space that should be very popular with the legions of office drones that work in the near area. The website doesn't give a whole lot of detail and I'd be interested to hear who is involved in this project that is close to home and looks like it will probably be open sooner than a certain bar on 14th Street that I've been waiting and hoping will be my local for the last year and a half.....
  24. Location: 8027 Leesburg Pike (same building that used to house the Tyson's Borders and Filene's Basement. Accessible via elevator to the first floor via free underground parking. Website Happened across this place by accident and just managed to get there tonight. To put it mildly, in case you're not keen on reading what else I have to say, I was impressed but hardly blown away. Let's get into the "impressed" part. First, before going, pre-register for their "Premier Awards" program to get a temporary card. Not only will it earn you either a free handcrafted soda or "Pizookie" (more on that later) on your first visit, it allows you to list food allergies/aversions, and you can 'check in' at the server's station using your number, which is passed to your server to allow them to not only double-check that you won't need an EpiPen if you fail at reading comprehension, but also make sure to credit your account with points for future visits, which saves you from having to remember to give them your card, saving more time. Having been in several eye-rolling dinner situations where someone with a food allergy proceeds to lecture a server (and by extension everyone in their party and those within earshot) about WHY they can't eat something, or whether or not something HAS something that might kill them in it, I consider this a genius move. People who also prefer to eat gluten-free will be pleased at the selection offered, as well. Starting out with the decor, I can say that they certainly went all out for their first East Coast location. It looks like a Clyde's mixed with a Great American Restaurant motif. Sedate yet art deco - it's very much not a sports bar, which is honestly a good thing in my mind. It's adequately lit but not blinding, and nothing stands out garishly save for a Depression/Proletariat propaganda-looking 'farming' mural on the back wall that shows a farmer holding a scythe in a very suggestively portrayed manner. It just seemed an odd choice of decoration for a Tyson's location. The space is also very open (and rather spacious), meaning that if your server walks anywhere near you, you'll be able to see and flag them down. The drink menu takes ample advantage of Virginia's arcane "menu must contain 'x' food items to allow serving of hard liquor" law, as I don't think there's a type of booze you *can't* get here, and the bar is rather nice to look at, even if you'll wonder how the hell they got some of the bottles up so high and if they ever intend on getting them down. Also, unlike some of the GAR restaurants, they aren't afraid to have 'guest beers' on their menu to supplant their 'in-house' choices, which I thought was nice. The problem, and the first criticism, is that the *food* menu is gigantic. You're too spoiled for choice on what you can order, and I recommend doing a recon of it on their website (listed above) before going. I was eating with a recovering alcoholic, so I opted for their 'handcrafted root beer,' and not always being a fan of root beer in general, thought it was pretty damned good. They serve it in a frosted mug (which is replaced with a new one upon each free refill), which is an extra little bonus as you're gifted with little slugs of 'slush' (I'll grant it doesn't sound appetizing when I phrase it like that) with each sip. The appetizer we settled on was the calamari, which was certainly 'appetizing' in the sense that it was cooked and seasoned well, yet questionably measured up in volume and presentation to the example shown in the menu. Expect to feel plenty of guilt when eating here as well, as the menus also list the calorie count for *most* of their items, offering only an "enlightened" menu (<575cal) as respite from the onset of Type 2 Diabetes. The burger I ate contained an entire day's worth of calories, which is good as it was the only substantive thing I'd eaten all day. We played it safe on the main course, and as usual, for my first visit, and because I always consider it a good measure of how well a place can cook by ordering something *easy*, I went with their "Brewhouse Burger," and my friend went with a steak salad. The burger was very well-cooked and *actually* showed signs that there's someone working the grill who isn't afraid to season meat (which should bode well for their steaks). The steak salad, on the other hand, fell prey to the same verdict as the one from my experience at Open Road Icehouse in Merrifield. She enjoyed it until she noticed she had no more protein (which she enjoyed) or starch and nothing but a bed of field greens more suited for a rabbit's consumption than a human's. We got a peek or two at their pizzas (offered in both traditional and deep-dish variety ranging from mini to what-the...), and both types looked rather good. The only thing I'd expressly recommend *not* ordering is their "Atlantic Salmon." In case you didn't know, there *are* no wild Atlantic Salmon anymore - if you see the term "Atlantic" used, it means "farmed," which comes with all the niceties of corralled food like antibiotics and growth hormones (says the guy who ordered the burger ), as well as the delightful coloring methods they use to make it resemble wild-caught. I give them extra points for honesty, but most people don't bother to do their own due diligence. After finishing our entrees...or rather, me finishing mine and my friend pushing away a plate full of rabbit food, we inquired about the 'free Pizookie' for signing up for the Rewards program. *Technically*, the sign-up promises a *mini* Pizookie or a free handcrafted soda like the root beer mentioned above. We were instead offered a 'full-size' one, and found it rather hard to complain or mention otherwise. ... ANYWAY, the "Pizookie" is their ~trademarked~ signature dessert, where a freshly-baked cookie is baked in one of their mini pizza pans (hence the name - Pizza + Cookie ) and then topped with two scoops of vanilla ice cream (or chocolate in the case of one). It's offered in almost every variety of cookie you can think of, including a Red Velvet and Oreo-themed variety, along with a few holiday-themed ones and a few featuring Ghirardelli chocolate. The last little 'nice touch' came with the check. Listed on the ticket were pre-calculated 15 and 20% gratuity figures (computed from the grand total, not subtotal), which saved me a few seconds in fishing out my phone for the calculator. The server also did not try to 'upsell' us, but that might have been because our dessert had been comped. Final verdict? This place is going to do *massive* business going into the cold months, and not only because the food is rather decent. Underground parking coupled with elevator access gives this place a 'plus,' as no one likes parking in an icy/slushy exposed parking lot and risking a sprained ankle to spend 50 bucks on dinner. That being said, one of the location's best advantages is also one of its greatest annoyances - sharing the building with Nordstrom Rack ensures the parking spaces near the elevators on "P1" will always be highly-trafficked, greatly increasing the chance of fender-benders and door scrapes. My advice is to park one floor down on P2 and avoid the retail shoppers like the plague. To my knowledge, however, this place has been open around two weeks. It could still be in the Honeymoon period where everyone's in try-hard mode to acquire and keep customers, though the one Yelp review I read about the servers "hovering" over tables was not the case with our experience. It's definitely worth a try, just don't expect anything exceptional.
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