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Pineapple and Pearls, Fine Dining Restaurant on Barracks Row by Rose's Luxury, $325 All-Inclusive Including Drinks - $225 (No Drinks) at the Bar


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On May 17, 2016 at 1:08 PM, jca76 said:

The room itself is beautiful; the bf commented that it's like what Kinship should be.  (Perhaps controversially, we don't like the Kinship dining room much.  It feels too monochromatic, kind of cold.  We much prefer Kinship's bar area.)  

I have not been to P&P, so cannot compare, but I like Kinship's dining room (as well as the bar).

So, question to everyone, I see almost universal acclaim here. There are some comments about pacing, and being hungry, but, at the end of the meal, were you full/satisfied?

I am over tasting menus (or so I keep telling myself, as I went to Metier recently), so while P&P solves my problem with Rose's Luxury (problem being no reservations taken), P&P only does tasting menu, right?  TIA

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6 hours ago, Pool Boy said:

So, question to everyone, I see almost universal acclaim here. There are some comments about pacing, and being hungry, but, at the end of the meal, were you full/satisfied?

I am over tasting menus (or so I keep telling myself, as I went to Metier recently), so while P&P solves my problem with Rose's Luxury (problem being no reservations taken), P&P only does tasting menu, right?  TIA

Yes, tasting menu only.  And yes, definitely full/satisfied.  (More like Komi than Minibar on that front).

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On 6/4/2016 at 5:50 PM, Pool Boy said:

I have not been to P&P, so cannot compare, but I like Kinship's dining room (as well as the bar).

So, question to everyone, I see almost universal acclaim here. There are some comments about pacing, and being hungry, but, at the end of the meal, were you full/satisfied?

I am over tasting menus (or so I keep telling myself, as I went to Metier recently), so while P&P solves my problem with Rose's Luxury (problem being no reservations taken), P&P only does tasting menu, right?  TIA

I thought the pacing was quite good.  I was hungry.  My girlfriend was full, having given me some of hers.  Generally, I'd say it was pretty "appropriate" amount of food.  

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We went back to P&P last night (with another couple who had been eager to try it).  I'm not going to go into as much detail on the food (menu below) as I did for my first post, but I just wanted to highlight a couple of things.  

First, they've definitely worked out the minor pacing/service hiccups that we experienced on our first dinner in late April.  (And in typical fashion, the staff were all extremely friendly, maintaining their composure and good humor even when the power went out, taking the a/c with it and forcing them to close Rose's early and cancel the second P&P seating for the night.  Our hearts went out to the entire staff for having to deal with such a frustrating disaster!)  

Second, I applaud the kitchen staff for their creativity and constant innovation: the only duplicates from our first meal were the bonbon (a worthy signature snack), the egg drop soup (marginally different green veg), the chocolate souffle/ice cream, and the doughnuts.  (The doughnut assortment included all the same bitter liquor varieties, and then a strawberry and a pistachio in the mix as well, presumably because we'd ordered two non-alcoholic pairings this time.  Next time, I'll ask in advance to just get all non-alcohol doughnuts as Campari et al. aren't my thing.)  That's an impressive level of menu turnover at a restaurant of this caliber and level of technical skill; it felt less repetitive in under three months than minibar did after two years.  (Aaron says they turn a few dishes every week or two.)  That sort of variety is definitely going to keep me going back.  

As a matter of my personal taste, I slightly preferred the first menu to this one.  I liked the avocado ice cream more than the roasted potato.  The egg drop soup was more green and less parmesany this time around, and I missed not getting to have the second egg.  The fluke "Veronique" was a lovely dish -- I'm a sucker for anything that is heavy on the caramelized onion flavor, which the grapes balanced nicely -- but the Spanish mackerel with ramps was a star.  The most heartbreaking loss was of the pecorino cake -- one of the best desserts I've ever had -- coupled with the addition of a coffee dessert (I'm not a coffee drinker).  But I loved the bite-sized elote and the red curry (infused with aromatics through a coffee siphon) was AMAZING.  And as I said, it's a matter of personal preference: the new fluke and fried chicken/sweetbreads (for which we got the squash blossom, a satisfying veg sub that wasn't quite as satisfying as the white asparagus okonomiyaki) courses were favorites for our friends (one of whom also happily ate my abandoned coffee kakigori).  Even a favorite restaurant is going to have meal-to-meal variance.

The menu was ever-so-slightly shorter (in addition to the solo egg, we got one fewer course), but it was still plenty of food -- we were stuffed by the end.  (The mounting heat -- not their fault, of course! -- didn't help.)  For those complaining about the cost of the non-alcoholic pairing, it's now $25 cheaper than the alcoholic one.  Not a huge difference, but we had some lovely drinks (including an incredible pear cider to start).  Non-drinkers won't feel like an afterthought.  (We also confirmed that there's no corkage in the dining room if you'd like to bring your own wine in addition.)  

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$250, a bargain it is not, but neither does it seem expensive for several courses of delicious and creative cuisine, with drinks, and professional and friendly service to boot.  We sat at the front bar, but Aaron popped out to serve us a couple of times.  He sent his minions to serve others at the bar, so we must be SPECIAL - probably because I put in my reservation note "I'm kind of a big deal."

I'm only going to mention the highlights and a couple of duds.

The second dish of asparagus was over blanched, and the combination with pineapple & ham seemed pretty gross to me.

The baby corn came out in a smoking container, and you eat the husk and all - an interesting play on elote.

Potato ice-cream with chives and sour cream - yup, it tastes like sour cream and chive potato chip.  Fun.

We didn't get the matcha soba, and we didn't see anyone else get it either.  We didn't get the menu until afterwards, and it wasn't until after leaving the restaurant did we realize something was amiss.

I probably would've skipped the pain au lait except it was served with a foie gras spread.  That made me want to eat several of them, except you only get one and I don't really need gout.

Aaron came out and personally dropped the egg bar-side into the soup.  Unfortunately I didn't care for the combination of herbs.  In a Vietnamese restaurant, those herbs all combine nicely....these didn't.

Fish - probably sous-vided but I can't argue with perfectly cooked fish.

Fried chicken stuffed with sweetbread - finger licking good.

Aaron came out again to fire up the curry for us.  It was poured over a perfectly cooked piece of shrimp, two tender mussels, and some raw slices of fish.  The broth wasn't quite hot enough to cook the fish, but they were tasty anyway.  The coconut rice was gritty/undercooked - maybe intentional - I was getting full so I left it alone.

I was just in Belgium, where I had dinner at Michelin 2 star and 1 star restaurants.  P&P was more playful and creative, but every single bite of food I had in the Michelin starred restaurants was cooked perfectly.  If I had to choose though, I'd go back to P&P first.  

P.S. - Aaron was such a nice guy, I almost asked him if we could be BFF - especially if it means I can get a discount at his restaurant.

 

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Thank you to Eric and all who post about this restaurant and others like it in the city. These restaurants aren't in the cards for me at this time, but I really enjoy reading about your experiences. Thank you to all who take the time to post and share.

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Went here last Friday.  Got an 8:45 reservation at the bar, and went with my friend.  Much has been written about the food already, so I'll just say most of the bites were stupendous, while some were only just very good.  I was disappointed we didn't get the beef rib mole, but that's what happens with a changing menu.

I'm writing to give a little tip.  My friend and I each paid $150 without the drinks pairing.  He doesn't drink, but upon arrival I had two mini welcome cocktails, then ordered a great tequila-based cocktail, we each had a really interesting and well-made non-alcoholic cocktail, he had two cappuccinos, I had one (the cappuccinos, by the way, were more like lattes (not much foam), but the coffee was INCREDIBLY flavorful, downright delicious).  At the end of the meal, we received our bill for the drinks...which included only my one cocktail ($14, tax and tip included...no space to add additional tip).  It was quite generous of them to throw everything else in for free and I suspect it wasn't a one-time move by a kind bartender.  Makes the $150 that much more palatable. 

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I went this week and had a decidedly mixed experience.  

On the positive side, the room has a great vibe and the service was terrific. And there were a few memorable dishes -- the fluke Veronique was lovely, the baby elotes were delicious, and the blueberry shortcake & Brillat-Savarin was one of the best desserts I've had in years.

But there were odd shortcomings.

First, I agree with those who say there's not enough food. Our menu was similar to the one above with the substitution of a cold tomato and peach broth for the egg drop soup and an oyster for the caviar.  That means that the savory courses included: (1) four 1-2 bite snacks, (2) a small serving of tomato/peach soup (essentially tomato-peach water), (3) a small-but-delicious piece of fluke, (4) a roll, (5) a sweetbread-stuffed chicken wing (two boneless coins and one section of wing bone with almost no meat, and (6) seafood curry (one shrimp, two mussels, and a couple slices of raw fish). My wife and I were both hungry heading into dessert.

Second, and related to the point above, there was not a single meat or pasta course among the 13 courses listed on our menu but FOUR dessert courses. That felt terribly unbalanced to me. Some tasting menus like Komi build from light dishes to heavy dishes but always include something that feels substantial. Here, you have all these lighter dishes and then they hit you with four desserts? It just feels wrong.

i love Rose's so so much. Maybe that's why this felt somehat disappointing. Hopefully they will adjust.

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Our experience last night was outstanding.  We had bar seats and the stools (with backs) were quite comfortable. Many serving pieces and cutlery doubled as works of art.  The aesthetics have been well thought-out just as they are at Rose's.  They've developed quite a 21st century hospitality model. I'm obviously not saying anything groundbreaking here.

My particular favorites of the courses were the baby elotes, the sweetbread stuffed chicken wing, and the chocolate soufflé with crispy buckwheat and honeycomb ice cream.  Oh, and the bread. Tacky or not, we actually asked if it was possible have a couple more pieces of bread so we could use up the foie gras butter and cherry compote, which we loved as much as the bread and didn't want to go to waste.  They brought us an entirely new box (of course they did!), so we had the same problem all over again.

The whole bunsen burner process with the curry was fun. We chatted a little with Aaron while he was doing that, and it was just cool.  

There were a few gaps between courses that seemed unevenly long, but I didn't have a timer running, so that may have been perception.

We were absolutely stuffed at the end of the meal and so brought the doughnuts home.  The man next to us also gave us his. The boxes do not  seal tightly and I should have put these in the refrigerator. Yes, I should have...And now that I have laboriously scraped all of the ants off the beautiful doughnuts and sealed them in a ziploc bag, are we going to eat them?:blink:

 

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On 8/12/2016 at 3:42 PM, Bart said:

Wowee Zowee!

Totally amazing meal in every way from start to finish at a price that felt like a bargain.  Maybe not a bargain, but probably the best value in DC if you weighed price against quality.  And the quality permeated every aspect of the evening from the food (duh) to the look of the place, to the flatware/glassware/plates, bowls, dishes, to the incredibly knowledgeable and friendly staff (all 50 of them!).

Great write up, Bart! It looks like you and I were there the same night.

I agree with you 100% about this being the best value in DC for a menu of this kind. I think this is the best time to go to Pineapple and Pearls, as I predict it will only be harder to get a reservation here not only as its reputation in DC grows, but it's national reputation. Not to mention that they will be in a (well deserved) position to raise prices in response to greater demand.

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20 hours ago, CapitalGourmand said:

Great write up, Bart! It looks like you and I were there the same night.

Say hi next time!

It's funny you were there.......I actually pulled up your website to show my wife (and myself) who was who in the kitchen.  I knew what Aaron looked like, but not the other two main players.

How about a write up of this visit?!?!?!  ;-)

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Today I finally tried the spicy fried chicken sandwich.  I had a little bit of an issue with the sweetness of the special sauce, the same as I did with the caramelized sauce on the Maketto fried chicken recently, but the P&P sandwich seemed better balanced-out to me with the spiciness vis-a-vis the sweetness than the Maketto chicken. That's possibly just because this is a preassembled sandwich and everything has been brought together --bread, chicken, sauce, lettuce, and onions -- as a package.  It was overall quite satisfying.  I can see that some people might think it's not very big for $9, but if I'm eating a fried chicken sandwich, I don't want anything bigger than this.  I also enjoyed a $2.50 iced coffee that I nursed after finishing the sandwich, while reading a book outside on the front patio.  It's good they've got that seating open now.

I didn't ask if they have another way of packaging the food if you're going to eat it right away, as it seemed a waste to throw out the beautiful box after such a short meal. The trash bin on the patio was full (with boxes, it looked like), so I dumped out the inner wrappings, etc., from the box into a trash can outside Spring Mill bakery at the end of the block and put the box into the recycling can next to that.  I'm not sure if that particular box is recyclable by DC's rules, but it seemed worth the effort.

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On 7/6/2016 at 0:24 PM, jca76 said:

For those complaining about the cost of the non-alcoholic pairing, it's now $25 cheaper than the alcoholic one.  Not a huge difference, but we had some lovely drinks (including an incredible pear cider to start).  Non-drinkers won't feel like an afterthought.  (We also confirmed that there's no corkage in the dining room if you'd like to bring your own wine in addition.)  

How many drinks are there in the non-alcoholic pairing?

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i don't recall exactly, but they match the number in the alcoholic pairing; both have some drinks that bridge more than one dish.  as best as i can recall from a dinner about three weeks ago, there were at least four mocktails and at least two wine-esque juices (pear cider and gewurztraminer juice), but there may have been something that i'm forgetting.  

(fyi, they've replaced the souffle and the doughnuts, neither of which is a huge loss in my opinion.  i know some will disagree on the souffle, which i'd found technically well executed but a bit rich/boring.  the meal ended with a (preferable) trio of petit fours rather than doughnuts, although i would have liked if they still brought those last bites in a little box in case one wanted to take them home, as was an option with the doughnuts.)  

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4 hours ago, cheezepowder said:

Menu from last Tuesday.

I was there the previous Wednesday (the 19th) and I had the same menu except that in the second course we got salmon roe instead of trout roe. I'm attaching a (blurry, unfortunately -- it was gorgeous) photo of the eggplant tart (described on our menu as fairy tale eggplant tart). We were amused by the DC steakhouse course. I wish I could remember more details about it. It involved a popover and creamed greens (not spinach), plus some other stuff, along with steak.

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13 hours ago, Gadarene said:

Pineapple and Pearls is actually one of the best damn bargains in the city, especially if you sit at the bar.

$150 inclusive of tax and tips, plus whatever a la carte drinks you want.  That comes to around $115 for the food (+$11 tax and $24 tip) for a guy who has more than established himself.

Compare that with Shaw Bijou, which is $170 for the food alone, not counting the 20 percent mandatory gratuity and the 10 percent tip (and the mandatory wine pairing, for all I know; who knows if you can order just one glass).

P&P is so much cheaper than Shaw Bijou, it's silly.

I am planing on dining at P&P for my b-day and I plan on sitting at the bar.  $150 is a steal for a two star Michelin restaurant.

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17 hours ago, dracisk said:

I was there the previous Wednesday (the 19th) and I had the same menu except that in the second course we got salmon roe instead of trout roe. I'm attaching a (blurry, unfortunately -- it was gorgeous) photo of the eggplant tart (described on our menu as fairy tale eggplant tart). We were amused by the DC steakhouse course. I wish I could remember more details about it. It involved a popover and creamed greens (not spinach), plus some other stuff, along with steak.

Here's a picture of my eggplant tart, which was very similar to yours.  If I recall correctly, the creamed greens were creamed parsley on my night.

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14 hours ago, dz50 said:

Dinner after April 4 will now be $280 all inclusive.

The article says the price at the bar will also be going up -- to $180.  An extra $60 for two probably isn't a deal breaker--especially for a Michelin 2 starred restaurant-- but I can't see us going more than once a year at that rate. We've got reservations for the bar next month, meaning we'll have gone twice in 6-7 months at the lower price.

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3 hours ago, Pat said:

The article says the price at the bar will also be going up -- to $180.  An extra $60 for two probably isn't a deal breaker--especially for a Michelin 2 starred restaurant-- but I can't see us going more than once a year at that rate. We've got reservations for the bar next month, meaning we'll have gone twice in 6-7 months at the lower price.

Aaron told me they had made the plans 'about a month ago' - I think it's right and fair that they're giving diners two-months' notice.

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2 minutes ago, funkyfood said:

Washingtonian just named it Best Restaurant in the DC area.  Wonder if timing is coincidental--I assume it is. 

Aaron's full message, which he implies he wants me to pass on: "I realized Washingtonian top 100 just got released this morning but I wanted you to also know that we had made a decision to slightly increase our price for a dinner ticket at P&P a month or so ago. And it will take effect on the evening of April 4th. It has been in the works and was released to the press (Wapo and Washingtonian) last night. Just thought I would keep you in the loop as I know your readers have a good bit of interest in these things."

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1 hour ago, DonRocks said:

Aaron told me they had made the plans 'about a month ago' - I think it's right and fair that they're giving diners two-months' notice.

I think it's admirable that they ensure their employees are taken care of, certainly above and beyond what many other restaurants do, and that seems to be the reason for the increase.  There's only so much money in the dining out budget, though.

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9 minutes ago, Pat said:

I think it's admirable that they ensure their employees are taken care of, certainly above and beyond what many other restaurants do, and that seems to be the reason for the increase.  There's only so much money in the dining out budget, though.

No doubt, it's a *lot* of money in absolute terms. 

You know what I'd love? If people dine there, try and remember the details of one particular dish, and write about it here in depth. That way, over time, we can build up a historical base of data about the most interesting work Aaron Silverman is doing (the same can be said for many restaurants - Métier, Minibar, etc.). Having dined at Pineapple and Pearls, I know how overwhelming it is when things come at you in such rapid succession, but it's the only way we're going to develop a historical perspective about this important restaurant that goes deeper than, "it costs such-and-such, or it's open from x to y o'clock." 

(I say this *after* dining here and realizing that I'm going to have one hell of a time deconstructing any given dish in my write-up).

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1 hour ago, Pat said:

I think it's admirable that they ensure their employees are taken care of, certainly above and beyond what many other restaurants do, and that seems to be the reason for the increase.  There's only so much money in the dining out budget, though.

I applaud Chef  Silverman in his decision. In my opinion, $280 all inclusive, is a great value for not only for the food, but the experience of joy to be had by the diner. Not to mention moments that are your, & yours alone in sharing with friends about what an amazing meal that was created by a team that clearly enjoys what they do. I look forward to writing my review of Pineapple& Pearls after my birthday. I just wish it wasn't until May. 

So excited, 

kat

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I didn't succeed in memorizing any one dish from our meal last night, but the science project/"playing with fire" dish this time was a creative cheese toast--"Warm Grayson and Purple Sweet Potato Brioche."  The person presenting this melted the Grayson cheese on a thin rectangular hot plate over a bed of coals that had been ignited with Everclear.  (I think there might have been another ingredient or two mixed in with the fiery coals, but I don't recall what.)  He then scraped the toasty melty cheese onto small rectangles of purple sweet potato brioche.  I could definitely have eaten more than one of these.  This course was one of the highlights of the evening for me.

This was probably my favorite of the bread-type products offered, with the airy cloud of a popover with mushroom sauce that came with the DC Steakhouse course a close second. Bread is one of the things Aaron Silverman and his crew(s) do superbly and I always look forward to seeing what they're experimenting with at any given time. They also did a Perigord Black Truffle Hoecake as one of the initial three snacks that I felt like I should like more than I did. The hoecake was a nice bite, but maybe there was just too much going on in this.  

Ironically,  I found the official "bread course" the least exciting of the breads ("Oaxacan White Mole with Fresh Tortillas"),  The mole gave off a slow burn and was flavorful in and of itself, and the corn tortillas were well made, but I found this somewhat disappointing. Maybe I would have evaluated it differently if it hadn't been presented as the bread course. 

Another oddity: the only part of the DC Steakhouse course I was underwhelmed by was the actual steak.  The sauces (béarnaise and peppercorn) that came with it were delightful. I loved the creamed parsley as a take on creamed spinach. And the 50 layer potato cube was inventive and a perfect whimsical (and workmanlike) little package.  The two slices of steak (from different cuts, I believe a server told people next to us) was presented as from a "retired dairy cow." Given the toughness of the steak, I won't dispute that description. My husband disliked it more than I did, but this was hard to cut with a knife.

My favorite of the sweet courses was the Tangerine and Hibiscus Soda.  I think this may have been presented as a palate cleanser but I'd love this straight up as a dessert on its own merit.  The frozen tangerine had been halved, and the bottom half was filled with tangerine granita and a little scoop of lemon yogurt sorbet. For serving, hibiscus soda was poured over the frozen confections.

My least favorite of all the courses was the Smoked Sturgeon, Alliums, and Beets.  I found this way too salty and my husband finished my portion.  I suppose I could have noted a preference beforehand of not wanting extremely salty foods, but that can be a subjective judgment, and I don't want to miss out on a great dish by being too cautious in advance.  Honorable (or dis-) mention in this category: the Long Life Udon with Jonah Crab.  I had a hard time managing the long doughy strand of Udon and found this awkward to eat. That issue kind of overpowered any other reaction to the components of the dish. My husband had a similar reaction.

I believe the only course that was the same as the last time we ate here 6 months previously was the Fennel Absinthe Bonbon, which offers a distinctive welcome to the meal, a precursor of the creativity to come. Perhaps this is the sausage lychee salad of P + P? 

For the welcome drink, there was a choice of a manhattan and a tequila drink (which may have been the same tequila cocktail on the pairings menu).  I'm not much of a cocktail drinker, but that manhattan knocked my socks off. Bourbon and two kinds of amaro is all I remember. Perhaps I should have asked for a full-size one to drink with the meal. Having done the a la carte beverage option at the bar, I ordered one glass of wine. It was a sparkling wine that I have no record of. I had a taste of it before ordering it and found it had an intriguing sourness to it.  After about half a glass I was less enamored of it.  I loved that manhattan, though. 

Other people around us were getting the drink pairings and some of the glassware used was wild, including rocks glasses that seem to defy some law of gravity.

The experience seemed a little more informal than the last time. We were the most dressed up people I saw and we weren't super dressed up. People got a little more dolled up the last time we were here and that was in the middle of the summer.  

One other thing that struck me was that there was an upsell starting out. We were asked if we wanted a fourth "snack" course.  After a description of an interesting sounding potato ice cream sandwich, we were told it would be $40. We declined.

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23 hours ago, Pat said:

The experience seemed a little more informal than the last time. We were the most dressed up people I saw and we weren't super dressed up. People got a little more dolled up the last time we were here and that was in the middle of the summer.  

Fantastic review. Thanks for your wonderful insight as well as the detailed descriptions. 

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Ossetra Caviar & Roasted Potato Ice Cream Sandwich
"An over the top, luxurious snack inspired by a dish from our opening menu: Potato Ice Cream and Ossetra Caviar. To us, it seemed this dish worked because potatoes and caviar work so well together. What we didn't know is that it would end up tasting exactly like dipping a French fry into a frosty. Since that dish is greatly missed, we thought we would bring it back in a more luxurious form just for fun." 1f366.png?1f35f.png?

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3 hours ago, mtureck said:

I don't care how luxurious it is...there should be no upselling during a $250 meal. 

I was a little surprised by it, since one of the big selling points of the restaurant is that it's all prepaid, except for any drinks ordered a la carte at the bar.  We were sitting at the bar, where the $40 would have been about 1/4 again as much as the price of the entire meal.  If the upcharge had been less, we might have ordered it, despite this being unexpected (i.e., we wouldn't have refused on principle).  

Other than the beverage component, everything is supposed to be the same at the tables, chef's counter, and the bar, so I would figure the same offer was made to all of the other customers too.  I don't know that for sure, though.

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This is the world of Michelin 2-star dining - real caviar is *very* expensive, and I just don't see the harm in having an option to order it (or not) - I'm quite certain they don't care. I see caviar and truffles as supplements all the time, and never order them, but they're generally in the $30-100 range as well, regardless of the price of the restaurant - same with wine pairings, which can run $100 or more. I generally agree with mtureck, but after the meal I had at Pineapple & Pearls for $150, there's no way I would expect a portion of caviar like that included. Upscale restaurants have $1,000+ bottles of wine listed all the time, but they don't expect you to order them - if someone walks in worth $50 million? They'd do it without batting an eye, so why not offer it to them? BTW, Pat, your review *was* fantastic.

PS - I do think that perhaps their *approach* towards the caviar dish might have been a bit of a tease, and maybe they should rethink that. It's fine to have it offered, but I think they should mention the price as the very first thing. "Tonight we're also offering, for a $40 supplement, a decadent ...." and then close by saying something like "It's fine to split, and you'll also have the full experience without it - it's meant for a splurge" or something like that. Or maybe have a little postcard-thing on each table describing it, to be picked up if people don't mention it - that's a more passive approach.

I have to stress, I really think we're in a bubble right now (even though Pineapple & Pearls is a *very good* value), and restaurants are going to keep pushing the envelope until we aren't.

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20 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

This is the world of Michelin 2-star dining - real caviar is *very* expensive, and I just don't see the harm in having an option to order it (or not) - I'm quite certain they don't care. I see caviar and truffles as supplements all the time, and never order them, but they're generally in the $30-100 range as well, regardless of the price of the restaurant - same with wine pairings, which can run $100 or more. I generally agree with mtureck, but after the meal I had at Pineapple & Pearls for $150, there's no way I would expect a portion of caviar like that included. Upscale restaurants have $1,000+ bottles of wine listed all the time, but they don't expect you to order them - if someone walks in worth $50 million? They'd do it without batting an eye, so why not offer it to them? BTW, Pat, your review *was* fantastic.

PS - I do think that perhaps their *approach* towards the caviar dish might have been a bit of a tease, and maybe they should rethink that. It's fine to have it offered, but I think they should mention the price as the very first thing. "Tonight we're also offering, for a $40 supplement, a decadent ...." and then close by saying something like "It's fine to split it, and you'll also have the full experience without it - it's meant for a splurge" or something like that. Or maybe have a little postcard-thing on each table describing it, and not even mention it when talking about the courses - if people want it, they can be instructed to ask for it on the card - that's a more passive approach.

Having something written and offered along with the beverage list might be a way to do it, though do they even hand anything out at tables, since it's all included?  From the description, it was hard to know what was being offered. Our takeaway was that it was a fancy tiny potato ice cream sandwich.  How much caviar was involved could only be deduced from the price, I guess.  I'm sure whatever they are presenting is quite expensive, even for a small amount.

When we went last year there was no supplement offered, so that's why this was a surprise.  But they didn't have their Michelin stars the last time we went there either.

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3 hours ago, Pat said:

When we went last year there was no supplement offered, so that's why this was a surprise.  But they didn't have their Michelin stars the last time we went there either.

Right. One thing I meant to add is that we're pretty spoiled: When we talk about dining at Pineapple & Pearls, Métier, Fiola Mare, etc., we're talking about walking into a Ferrari dealership - this is, outside of places like New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Europe, Tokyo, Hong Kong, etc., as expensive as dining gets, and the wealthiest people in DC (or visiting DC) make an effort to come here. 

We're a smart group, but let's face it: Most of us don't drive a Ferrari (I'm not saying we couldn't, but we don't), and we're discussing almost-cream-of-the-crop restaurants here. (I say "almost" because there are places that are one step higher - Masa, The French Laundry, a Michelin 3-Star in France, etc. - *those* are the Lamborghini and Bugatti dealerships. :) There's a good chance I dined at a top-5 most expensive restaurant-hotel in France last autumn, and I'd almost bet I was *the* least-wealthy person staying there (I had dinner-room-breakfast, and I felt so over-my-head that I was self-conscious the entire time - this was the type of place where you simply cannot tip enough).The prices of the à la carte courses were so outrageous you wouldn't believe it - a lot of patrons arrive here via helicopter or yacht (this is not a humble brag; I'm just telling it like it is). Incidentally, this might have been the only restaurant in 2016 that I would rate above Pinepple & Pearls (for me), but it was also the only French 3-star where I dined last year.

What I'm trying to say is that we're (logically, and not incorrectly) mentioning $40 supplements, but we're dining alongside some *extremely* wealthy people - I suppose the Sultan of Brunei has his own cooks, so people like him don't dine at Pineapple and Pearls (although I heard from an AGM that some Saudi American princes dined at West End Bistro, and were throwing around multiple hundred dollar bills without even blinking). I've seen plenty of people with $10 million salaries dining in restaurants right next to me (I probably saw Steve Case at Citronelle two or three times, for example). 

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On February 12, 2017, Scott Muns, Sam Meoño, Louis Lin, Andrew Rutledge and Andrew Hori from Pineapple and Pearls hosted a taco pop-up at Archipelago.  The BEST TACOs in DC!  SO delicious!  I managed to exercise restraint...I almost went for 12 tacos!

In the first photo below:  Sweetbreads with White Mole (3) + Cactus and Chilis (1) including chips and bean dip.  The white mole is an Oaxacan nut-based mole made with almonds, cashews, and benne seeds.  

In the second photo: Sweetbreads with White Mole (2) + Beef Tongue (2) including chips and bean dip

16602830_10210636253454349_2231967036681861404_n.jpg

16708250_10210636255254394_1883205801807826399_n.jpg

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13 hours ago, DonRocks said:

There is no way that a Stephen Starr restaurant deserves a James Beard Award for "Best New Restaurant" over Pineapple and Pearls.

No way.

No way a Stephen Starr restaurant deserved it, or no way that Le Coucou deserves it?

Have you eaten there?

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We headed back here for our anniversary yesterday.  I didn't reserve right when they went on sale (because we hadn't made any plans at that point) but was able to pick up two still available spots at the bar for 5 PM a little while after the on-sale date.  The caviar supplement was available again, and it did not appear that anyone at our bar seating ordered it. The supplement had an Asian theme to it this time, but I didn't take careful note of the details (beyond bao and nuoc cham).

They seem no longer to have a  bread course:huh:, but the corn taco with white mole they had this time (with veal sweetbreads) was more satisfying than the component-based version last time.  It was one of my favorite courses. Also, no "science experiment" course (my term, alas), which I enjoyed for its creativity and whimsy. 

The welcome drink was a sparkling rose (NV Hush Heath Balfour 1503, Kent UK) that I liked a lot. It was beautifully balanced and perfect for summer. I bought a second glass of it farther along to go with the meal (which showed up on the receipt as 1504, not 1503).  Otherwise, we drank water. Several of the courses--including the first one, which featured gin--had small amounts of alcohol. Simply not ordering an alcoholic pairing here will not result in a alcohol-free meal for anyone for whom that is an issue. Perhaps they inquire of someone ordering the non-alcoholic pairing (or declining the welcome drink) if they want alcohol-free food courses, but it would be prudent to let them know if there is a concern.

With the exception of one tiny service glitch (which was notable because of the absence of any others), the meal went perfectly smoothly. The service was excellent but marked with the warm casual elegant style of Aaron Silverman's restaurants.  That sounds like a PR brochure, but I'm not sure how better to describe the feeling. There is something very comfortable about coming here that almost makes me forget how much it is costing. 

My husband's favorite course, which I also enjoyed quite a bit, was what they called "surf and turf," a beef tartare with caviar and some chili spice among other components.  My least favorite course (which he got most of) was the main dessert: pecorino cake with pesto ice cream. I found the flavors way too strong in this. He adored it.  The lovely miniatures in this course did catch my attention. It was more beautiful to me than it tasted. The cake had a tiny Pecorino frico sticking out of each of its pieces. The cake was also topped with pine nuts.  The other course with fried cheese was a tiny French omelet with summer squash and "crispy mountaineer cheese." The idea was clever but the fried cheese may have been my favorite part.

The interactive course (which I suppose took the place of the science experiment) was the lovage cavatelli, with chanterelle mushrooms (confit of), and "choice of luxury." The luxury options (I see this tying into Rose's) were paddlefish caviar, truffles (I think Australian) and uni. My husband went with the truffles (which the employees said most people did) and I opted for the uni.  We both enjoyed this course greatly. The person who served this to each of us took some of the "luxury" and mixed it into our bowl of pasta and mushrooms so it was thoroughly combined.

The Fluke "Veronique" was also worthy of note.  One course (and I wish I could recall which one) had buckwheat puffs mixed in to give a wonderful crunch).  I took no notes and we don't have smart phones and took no photos.

The final course was "fruit plate": a candied gooseberry, which looked attractive but didn't have much flavor; a sugared piece of dried (or partially-dried) apricot, which gave off an enormous burst of flavor (again, maybe too much for me), and a banana pop covered with chocolate (and maybe coconut).  The latter was my favorite, and the gooseberry (which was cool-looking) was our least favorite.

The take-home bag seems to be shrinking in contents over time. (I think the biggest one I ever got of these was from Rose's rooftop years ago.) Instead of cold-brewed coffee, there was some kind of pasteurized orange juice/soda kind of drink. It seemed to have perhaps an herbal flavor (?). something that stands out. There were small housemade granola bars, one of which we split with breakfast.

It's almost surreal to have a 2 star Michelin restaurant within short walking distance. We even joked about what inning it would be if we decided to head over to the ballpark and continue our anniversary date there. But, in the end, we just walked home and turned the game on tv.

The price has gone up, but P&P is still worth the splurge on the luxury.

 

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Little Pearl should be opening in mid-December in the old Bayou Bakery space at the Old Naval Hospital on Capitol Hill.  Coffee by day and wine by night. Their website is up (more of a placeholder than anything at this stage): littlepearldc.com.  The Instagram is littlepearldc as well, and the most recent post (from yesterday or so) indicates they are still hiring for a few positions. I must say I am looking forward to this. Even though I had my complaints about some things at BB, I had gotten used to it being there and it left a hole when it closed.

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On 12/1/2017 at 2:43 PM, Ericandblueboy said:

Price hike to $325 pp, inclusive of tax and tip.  Ain't cheap but no Michelin 2 star is ever cheap. 

Is there really that much disposable income floating around in this town?  I'm increasingly shocked that D.C. can support as many expensive places as it does today.  Or is the bubble going to burst dramatically in the next year or two?

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