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Tel'veh Cafe & Wine Bar, Chef Dimos Kolouas' Mediterranean Cafe at 401 Mass. Ave. NW - Closed


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Has anyone been? I have a reservation for Friday, and I can't find anything on DR.com about this place. I would be very grateful for feedback from anyone who have information. And dear mods, if there is a topic already, feel free to move this post and delete the duplicate. Cheers.

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I went, so you don't have to...

Tel'Veh is housed in one of those massive new apartment buildings on Mass. Ave. Looking at the web site you could be convinced that it is a serious wine bar with a good raw bar, so I was really curious. It's been open since May, so lack of any posting made me wonder...hidden gem? In short, no.

Positives: Excellent greeting by the friendly hostess. She started the evening off by creating very high expectations. Large windows offering views of the world passing by. Generous space between tables. Happy hour ($1 oysters, drink specials, a few food items) runs till 7:30 and is available at tables as well as the bar. We did have a $5 Sauvignon Blanc which was just fine.

Mixed: The room is pleasant, with a very high ceiling and interesting "new build" faux-industrial details. It's like a high end hotel lobby. But there is an incongruous rustic rope railing that runs along the upper part of the room. I don't know if that is supposed to evoke the sea (oysters, a menu that leans toward Greece), but it seemed out of character. They've made some obvious attempts to dampen sound, such as padding under the tables. It's a bit too obvious. The mealy grey pad is clearly visible under some tables and it was so thick under our table that my knees brushed up against it. We decided that those things would have to be replaced regularly. They're going to get filthy and beat up pretty soon.

Not so good: Our server was robotic. He didn't know what variety of oyster was on special for happy hour. When I asked about the oyster's place of origin, he had to ask someone else. OK, not a good sign for a place that touts its oysters. He seemed ro be rushing us, even though the place was not full and not one table turned while we were there. The oysters were fine, but were served in one of those sloping oval bowls (back higher than front) often used for mussels. Huh? Why not a platter? The baked camembert was fine, but a "sharing" portion was served with three measly slices of toast. This just bugs me. Two people should receive at least 4 slices...you know...to share. The $10.50 shrimp saganaki portion was TWO shrimp. One was firm, sweet and delicious, and one was soft and mealy and horrible. And it was served with five pieces of toast...which would have been nice with the cheese. I felt the portion was stingy. I don't have a big appetite, but I was really annoyed by the portion. My partner had anchovy rolls (again, 2) which were small pieces of anchovy rolled up and some sort of salad. It was tiny. Wine prices outside of happy hour were steep.

I believe Tel'Veh serves as a convenient and pleasant, albeit pricey, living room for the tenants of the apartments and condos above and near-by. It is definitely not a place to seek out, and we see no reason to return.

We walked to Acadiana after for a drink, and I saw food being delivered to the bar and almost cried. Everything looked and smelled so good! I must make a point to go there soon.

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