27 replies to this topic

[mdjordy]

A joint venture between Cava and Mama Lucias in Park Potomac. Was at a preview party tonight.... 800 degree oven,good pizza's.- not quite orso or pupatello...but much better thah matchbox. And no corporate board driving the food. Had some spicy pork sliders, among other tastes.

Should do great and a welcome addition to the wasteland of food in Potomac!

[hm212]

Is that in the space next to Founding Farmers? I thought it looked like something was close to opening last week.

Any chance they are doing a soft openning this weekend?

[DanielK]

Went to the (comp) pre-opening tonight, and was very pleased - this place is going to be a hit in Potomac. As noted above, this is from the people behind Cava partnering with the Mamma Lucia team, and it shows. Small plate menu with a lot of ingredient overlap with Cava, but presented from an Italian perspective rather than Greek. Harold, yes, the space between FF and Zoe's Kitchen.

By my count, there are 25 seats outside, 75 at tables inside, and 25 and 10 seats at the two bars. There's a lot of standing room by the bars as well, and the hard floors, tiled walls, marble bars, exposed ceilings, and cloth-free wood tables and chairs means it's going to get very loud in there when the place gets full, which I expect to happen all the time.

Pizzas from the wood-and-gas oven were pretty good - nice char on the crust, a simple crushed tomato sauce, fresh basil, and splotches of mozzarella that probably needed a few more seconds to melt. A second pizza of carmelized onions, goat cheese, and truffle oil was equally successful. Pizzas on the draft menu were around $12, or a couple more for buffalo mozz.

The sample menu also has sections for fresh pastas ($5-$12), a little bit of charcuterie and cheese, meatballs (chicken, veal, or spicy pork over polenta or sauce $8, or on a slider $10), and then sections of cold and hot appetizers ($6-$16). Since we were just getting individual bites, no clue as to what the portion sizes will be. If it's anything like Cava, 3 dishes per person will make a nice meal.

Some of the items being passed tonight were:

• Veal slider (basil/garlic/sauce/parm) - good balance between meatball, bread, and accompaniments.
• Green eggs and ham (deviled egg/crispy pancetta/truffle and basil oils) - OK, so deviled eggs are trite, but pancetta and truffle oil is good by me.
• Smoked salmon (lentils) - The crunchy lentils as a replacement for the traditional capers is an inspired pairing. Highly recommend.
• Arancini (crispy breaded risotto/mozzarella/marinara) - Exceptionally crispy. Would love to see these with a filling as well.
• Pan seared octopus (chianti braised/tomato/carmelized onions) - One of the dishes that has a counterpart at Cava. Tender octopus complemented rather than drowned out by the sauce.
• Seared scallops (smoky corn/pancetta reduction) - The smoky corn is a great pair with the scallops - think clam chowder with scallops instead of clams.

They were all very good, and all will definitely be on the list to consider ordering when I go next. Since it's about a mile from my house, I expect to be there fairly frequently.

Opens to the public on Wednesday. Website will be http://eatsugo.com/, but it's not up yet, though they have a semi-active facebook page.

[porcupine]

Well, Daniel beat me to it, and did a much better job than I could have, anyway. So I'll just add that his observations are spot-on (mostly; tastes do vary). I'll also add that there's only one toilet in the ladies' room, but it's a very nice-looking ladies' room.

[DanielK]

Good point on the bathrooms, porcupine. Since the capacity of this is clearly over 150 (plus a 20+ person staff), how can they get away with only having one toilet for each bathroom?

[hm212]

Had a nice dinner here Thursday night, There were some hits and misses - Wow not a PERFECT restaurant on their second night but damn good meal with very enthusiastic owners that will have a nice destination restaurant (and a mile from my house).

Everything is tapas style or pizza;

Prosciutto - Forgettable sliced prosciutto, not bad for any reason but missing punch

Pork Belly in a cherry sauce - Standout item that melted nicely in my mouith, cherry's had nice sweetness to offset without being sicky sweet

Gnocci in truffle parmesan cream sauce - The gnocci was a little overcooked and gummy but the sauce was the standout here!!! - Truffle flavor of just the right amount would really like to see this sauce with some homemade pasta or even a baguette dip,

Short Ribs - Major Highlight item - SPOT ON perfectly cooked with the flavor having an incredible punch, nice beef flavor and more tender than butter.

Pizza - Margharita - some nice charing on the outside but a little soupy in the middle. Felt like it was missing something (more salt?)

Dessert - In the interest of full disclosure dessert was comped - above average cheesecake with chocolate sauce and salted caramel popcorn on top. I don't think these were blending well together. The chocolate cheesecake part was well above average and creamy.

Service felt a little disorganized and clumsy. I think they will get this part together in the coming weeks. Not bad service, certain items took a while to come out and waiters seemed to have some confustion (asked what the risotto was and got the answer - "I forgot" and never came back to tell me) he was very nice and definitely everyone was really trying but no one had the "system down" I don't think many restaurant staff have everything firing on all cylinders on night two.

Welcome to the neighborhood and I am betting we will see a lot of each other.

[Cuddlyone]

We also ate at Sugo night two. Agree about the service; a little rough, but I guess that's to be expected. As to the pizza,I'm all about the crust. We had the pizza with sauce and mozzarella (not buffalo). Not soupy at all. The problem with buffalo mozzarella is that it releases a lot of liquid when it melts, resulting in "soupy" pizza. Our crust was crisp, with a good bite, a little salty, great crumb. However, there was way too much sauce. With a crust this good, they need to dial the sauce way back. My advice is to order the "oven baked bread. " it's the pizza crust with a little olive oil, salt, and rosemary. We loved it.

[Cuddlyone]

What makes this place Venetian? I just browsed the menu and found it lacking in Venetian specialties.

I'm not sure they're claiming to be a Venetian restaurant. I think they might have taken some liberties with their name and were going for a broader "small plates" vibe. BTW, I think their doing pretty good so far.

[Ericandblueboy]

According to their website, cicchetti are "small snacks or side dishes, typically served in traditional cicchetti bars in Italy."

According to Wikipedia, cicchetti are "small snacks or side dishes, typically served in traditional "bàcari" (cicchetti bars or osterie) in Venice, Italy."

I think they plagiarized from Wikipedia and then changed the definition to suit their needs. I am disappointed that they don't actually serve cicchetti and their abuse of another's language.

[jandres374]

I think we are splitting hairs here, also from Wikipedia:

Common cicchetti include tiny sandwiches, plates of olives or other vegetables, halved hard boiled eggs, small servings of a combination of one or more of seafood, meat and vegetable ingredients laid on top of a slice of bread or polenta[1], and very small servings of typical full-course plates.

It appears to me that this is what they are serving, not sure what your beef is here.

[DonRocks]

It appears to me that this is what they are serving, not sure what your beef is here.

Neither do I. This is no different than calling Boqueria a tapas restaurant.

[Michael Landrum]

According to Wikipedia, cicchetti are "small snacks or side dishes, typically served in traditional "bàcari" (cicchetti bars or osterie) in Venice, Italy."

I think they plagiarized from Wikipedia and then changed the definition to suit their needs. I am disappointed that they don't actually serve cicchetti and their abuse of another's language.

Perhaps this is not a case of plagiarism, but simply an homage:



(Warning, unless you want to see a naked Julie Christie in a bathtub, do not click on to the "John's Theme" video, where apparently things are EXACTLY what they seem).

[Ericandblueboy]

I think we are splitting hairs here, also from Wikipedia:

Common cicchetti include tiny sandwiches, plates of olives or other vegetables, halved hard boiled eggs, small servings of a combination of one or more of seafood, meat and vegetable ingredients laid on top of a slice of bread or polenta[1], and very small servings of typical full-course plates.

It appears to me that this is what they are serving, not sure what your beef is here.

Only Venetian small plates are called cicchetti. Let me give you an example, a deviled egg is half a hard boiled egg but it's not cicchetti. Just like dim sum isn't all Chinese small plates. There is in fact a Chinese term for small plates - strangely enough, it translates into small eats. My beef is they say they're serving cicchetti when they're not.

[jandres374]

Got it. Thanks for clearing it up. My kids will be disappointed when I tell them we can no longer go here because they are not serving cicchetti.

[DonRocks]

[Points made on both sides. Eric, unless you'd like to initiate a class-action lawsuit on behalf of our members, let's let this one die. Please.]

Maybe we should ask Dr. Cicchetti for his opinion.]

[schulju]

First visit to SUGO last night. Let's call this what it is..small plates..aka "chick food". Not a bad thing by any means, I love small plate restaurants as does the girlfriend I dined with last night. We both agreed that we could never bring our husbands here. (I think Daniel K is more evolved than most of the husbands I know and Dan, you've met my husband, so you know exactly what I'm talking about).

We arrived at 5pm and the place was mostly empty. By 6 the bar was fairly full (I believe last night was the kick-off of their Happy Hour), but the dining room still only had a handful of tables. The lack of tables equated to great service for us. I will say the bar was slow and the time between ordering a cocktail and having it arrive at the table seemed longer than it should have been. The drinks themselves were definitely a highlight for us. We tried two different mojitos (order the cucumber one..it's amazing). I've tried most of the specialty cocktails next door at Founding Farmers, and I'd say the bar at SUGO is generally serving a better cocktail.

On to the food:

• Charcuterie Board - included coppa, sopressata, speck and prosciutto along with some parm. I agree with HM212 above, everything on this plate was fresh and tasty, but nothing memorable. I wouldn't order it again.
• Scallops - these were excellent and our favorite dish of the night.
• Roasted Beet Salad - the beets were nicely roasted, but this dish was sort of "one note". I would chose a different salad next time.
• UOVO Pizza - sausage, mozzarella and a cooked (white cooked, yolk still runny) egg on top. This was excellent. There was a nice amount of char to the crust, which was chewy and nicely flavored. Would definitely order this pizza again.
• Cannoli - we finished by sharing the cannoli plate (2 to a plate). Clearly filled to order, these were surprisingly good.

Overall a really nice experience I'm looking forward to repeating again soon. Our bill with tax and tip came to about $110. But given almost half was the bar bill..it was overall very reasonable.

[foodobsessed6]

I dined at Sugo Cichetti a couple of weeks ago (on my own dime). I really enjoyed the “Onion Love” pizza with caramelized onions, shallots, goat cheese, and truffle oil. The crust is nicely charred and perfectly crisped. I'm also a fan of the seared scallops. I would have gladly eaten a few more of these. The gnocchi were a highlight as well, filled with cheese, truffle creme, and basil. They are light and fluffy, and the sauce is flavorful without being overwhelming. I'm not sure why so many people have a problem with small plates. The answer is....order more food! This can definitely add up on a tab, but there's no reason to leave hungry.

[stockwatch]

When I have went with the family of four, we get the grilled bread, 3 pizzas (mozzarella and basil and I agree, nice char and on par with what we get at Mia's), chicken sliders (very tasty), and a pasta (usually just the linguini with marinara; my only complaint is that the pasta can be gummy at times). Sometimes we mix it up and add a salad or the shrimp dish (I forget the name for it). All have been excellent except for the aforementioned pasta at times. Also like the Fat Tire on tap. Still haven't figured out why this place isn't packed but I am not complaining because it is rare to be able to walk into a place with good food that doesn't take reservations and get seated.

[ol_ironstomach]

A few misses, but mostly promising tonight. My favorite part: I would suggest that the margherita pizza ($13 for approx 10", precut into four slices) is better than it has any right to be; the style is basically Neapolitan, and their dough is surprisingly good even though the bake isn't quite right. Still, it had okay spring and a bit of char, the cheese worked, the basil was generous, and the tomato sauce popped. I'd never have imagined this after all those New York-esque Mamma Lucia's pizzas years ago. It's not ready to challenge for top-tier status, but suddenly both ends of Montrose Road have a good pizza option. Also winning, a minty fennel and orange salad ($6).

I rather liked the tender braised lamb shank ($16) despite its stark simplicity and restrained seasoning; Gubeen thought it could have used some creative herbing, and a dash of salt to bring out the flavors. The value pick of the evening was probably the duck ragout with mushrooms over housemade pappardelle ($8), although I thought they might have dried the pappardelle a bit too much after cutting. It was still cooked perfectly al dente, but didn't have the residual tenderness I associate with fresh pasta. (Contrast Bertram Chemel's pasta at 2941, which I think is actually too tender and would benefit from that chew that a bit of air drying brings.)

Sadly, the arancini ($5 for one) was disappointing. The frying was fine, but the base risotto was overcooked to the point of glueyness, and the pool of tomato sauce was merely lukewarm instead of piping hot. Ditto the cheesecake ($8, and presently Nutella flavored), which was a sugar bomb mess that didn't really benefit from the texture of the popcorn on top.

Bottles of wine were half-price tonight, which sounded like it might be a regular feature on Mondays. Perhaps their website will be updated soon.

[foodobsessed6]

While I enjoyed my first visit to Sugo, I went again this evening and was disappointed. We had a special pasta with corn and brown butter, which was soggy and tasteless.

We also had cauliflower with tomato, parmesan, and goat cheese. We ordered two portions to share between five people and still ended up with two tiny bites per person. The toppings were not distributed evenly on the cauliflower so some bites had little flavor, while others were a bit better. But overall the flavor was sorely lacking.

Service was also somewhat disjointed. We attempted to stretch things out rather than order all our dishes at once, but our server returned to the table every couple of minutes to see if we were ready to order more food, which became exceedingly annoying.. While he hovered in one respect, in another he was completely absent, i.e. making sure we had enough plates and the right utensils. (we didn't)

The redeeming part of the meal at Sugo was the pizza. We had the Onion Love again, which I enjoyed just as much as the first time. We also had the Uovo with fennel pork sausage, farm egg, and mozzarella. Nice flavors and I love the char.

We ended the meal with cannoli, which was really meh and coffee that was not drinkable.

I was excited to bring some friends here after a very satisfying first impression. Unfortunately, Sugo didn't really impress any of us tonight.If I return, it will be for another taste of Onion Love.

[jayandstacey]

The redeeming part of the meal at Sugo was the pizza. We had the Onion Love again, which I enjoyed just as much as the first time. We also had the Uovo with fennel pork sausage, farm egg, and mozzarella. Nice flavors and I love the char.

We went this weekend for the Onion Love (among other things) and wasn't wowed. The crust and goat cheese were delicious, but there simply weren't that many onions. Maybe a thin ring or two per slice in a 4-slice pizza .

I guess I'm spoiled by the caramelized onion pizza at Laurienzo's in Mount Airy - where the onion is plentiful and really sweet while the pizza is a very nice brick-oven style. (is there a thread for Laurienzo's? There ought to be.)

We enjoyed the diced eggplant with pine nuts and one of the pasta frittatas. The place is nice - they might get better/more umbrellas for the outside for summer lunch - and the service was pretty good.

We'll return, but I don't think this is the same kind of standout as Cava. Maybe they need to find their own inner lollipop chicken or disco fries, and I bet they will. I can't help thinking...didn't italian restaurants invent tapas 75 years ago when they first offered pizza by the slice?

[schulju]

Second visit to SUGO last night. Another cucumber mojito for me, and three glasses of wine for my companion resulted in yet another 50/50 split between food and beverage on our $100 tab.

Three of the five items we ordered were excellent and I would definitely recommend them. The scallops are some of the best I've had. The duck confit was wonderful, moist meat with crispy skin, highly recommended. The gnocchi were perfectly cooked, fluffy clouds of pasta with a very rich sauce..just the right amount of truffle. We also ordered the cauliflower which I didn't taste (although my companion seemed to enjoy it) and the buffalo mozzarella which is the only thing that I felt was not worth the price and would definitely not recommend. It wasn't bad, just a very laughably small serving for $11.

At 5pm we had the place to ourselves, by 7 when we were leaving it was pretty full.

[DanielK]

I was there with a group of friends last week - at 6:30 on a weeknight it was busy the entire time, though I don't think there was ever a wait for a table more than a couple of minutes.

We were all pleasantly surprised - only a couple of months in, and things are humming along pretty well. I would say they're at an equivalent quality, price, and taste point to Cava, which was probably their goal. Really thrilled that this is 5 minutes from me!

The online menu is quite different from what we saw last week, so I'll call out a few things we really enjoyed.

Smoked Salmon w/Lentils - I love the crunch of the chilled lentils with the salmon in place of capers. Great pairing.
Pan Seared Octopus - Always the concern that this will be rubbery, but cooked perfectly tender.
Sugo Balls - we had the spicy pork (a little kick) and veal. Both were very good.
Uovo pizza - The egg, cooked to where the yolk is just barely runny, makes this pizza.

There were also some salads, vegetables, a steak special, and a bunch of other things my mind has obviously let slip. Really, no misses.Total, including one alcoholic drink per person, dessert, tax, and tip, and 6 very full and satisfied diners, was an even $50pp.

[stockwatch]

Dinner there tonight. My fifth time there. Food and service continue to be good (not great) and service is consistent. My only major complaint is that the food is brought too quickly. We were in and out of there in 30 minutes.

Margherita pizza. 8/10. Crust continue to have a nice crispy burn to it. Some may complain that the cheese tends to be sparse but I am not a big fan of an overly cheesed pizza.

Chicken sliders - 6/10. In the past these have been much better. Tonight's had markings of being too home made - slices of the outer an onion. Obviously they need to pay more attention to the detail of makings these. I also think they could us more sauce. The bread is soft and tasty.

Crab cakes - 7/10. They looked good but were mushy (a but like the balls) but had a taste of fresh crab.

Spaghetti - 5/10. Still tends to be gummy but sauce is very good.

Shrimp - 8/10. Sauce and polenta were light with a bit of kick from the red chiles. Shrimp are good but you can tell they were frozen.

Fat Tire - 10/10. I continue to be thankful for its arrival to the dc area.

[Kibbee Nayee]

I can only chime in with positive comments. This place is a welcome addition to the Potomac food scene.

Six of us had about a dozen or so plates, of which I tasted the pasta bolognese (very good), sauteed cauliflower (even better), calamarati de mare (the best of the ones I tasted) and grilled calamari. I couldn't find a flaw, and I can't wait to return and give this menu a more thorough run-through.

Some of the pasta dishes may be called small plates and may be priced like small plates, but the portion size is not all that small. However, dishes like the grilled calamari or sauteed cauliflower are indeed appetizer or mezze portions.

[schulju]

It doesn't appear that anyone has chimed in yet on the SUGO brunch experience.  I had brunch with a girlfriend this past Sunday.  The restaurant was basically empty when we arrived at 11, but full when we left around 12:30.  Let me start by saying that we ate an enormous amount of food...enormous, to the point that I'm embarrassed to let you all in on just how much we ate.   Let me also say that at $30 for all you can eat and drink (mimosas only), if you are capable of putting away the amount of food we did..this is a damn good deal.

 

The mimosas come in traditional orange, or pink grapefruit.  I don't know why it's never dawned on me to mix sparkling wine and grapefruit juice before, but I'm hooked...and while they're not strong, they are generously sized.  (I still managed to down three of them.)

 

The dishes are all small plates.  We ordered, in no particular order: (since the menu is online, I won't bother describing the dishes)

Sugo Frittata, Hangover Potatoes, Applewood Bacon, Brioche Benedict, Grilled Cheese, Hash and Eggs, Chicken and Waffle, Poached Egg Carbonara and the Nutella Waffle.  The poached egg carbonara was so rich and creamy, it probably would have been enough for a normal appetite.  The grilled cheese was perfectly browned on the outside and gooey on the inside.  The nutella waffle (and the waffle that came with the chicken) were both really, really great.  And as it was quite sweet, certainly the last dish you want to order.  The rest of the dishes were all good to really good, except for the bacon.  I generally like my bacon crispy, but the bacon yesterday was overcooked even for my tastes.  Any applwood flavor was lost.  

 

I don't know if the team at SUGO plan to make the bottomless deal permanent or not.  I know the special has run the last two weekends.  Get down there before they change their minds...this is seriously good food at a seriously good value.  

 

The only problem with a bottomless brunch at 11 am is the inability to be productive the rest of the day...

[DonRocks]

I don't know if the team at SUGO plan to make the bottomless deal permanent or not.  I know the special has run the last two weekends.  Get down there before they change their minds...this is seriously good food at a seriously good value.  

 

The first weekend was successful enough to create the second, so while maybe not "permanent," it's a go for now.

[Marks]

Totally agree about the brunch.  When our sailing plans were cancelled yesterday because of a small craft advisory, we needed to switch plans and brunch.  I called Sugo and was told they had walk in at the bar and an hour wait for a table.  We sailed into the bar at 11:30 and stayed till 1:15.

 

We took part in the endless brunch and it was great.  We tried almost everything except for the breakfeast pizza(it looked huge) and have two order of the devilled eggs.  Once we placed our initial order of 6 plates we were able to pace ordering more as new dishes came out and based upon what we saw others were eating.  The steak and eggs was really good, as was the fritatta.  And yes the bottomless mimosas.  We save our french toast for dessert as it was really sweet.

 

I do wish they had an option of salad or fruit at the brunch but this is a solid brunch and a great value if you come hungry.