Dogwood Tavern, Broad Street in Falls Church - From the Owners of Ragtime and Rhodeside Grill

[tabindc]

Edan Macquaid, long-time pizzaiolo at 2 Amys, is partnering with the owners of 2941 to open a pizzeria in downtown Falls Church.

Pie Tanza, a pizza joint on Harrison St. in N. Arlington, is also opening up a location on Broad St. Further, something called Dogwood Tavern is taking over the Broad St. Grill location. Or is that the space you are talking about?

[Bob Wells]

Pie Tanza, a pizza joint on Harrison St. in N. Arlington, is also opening up a location on Broad St. Further, something called Dogwood Tavern is taking over the Broad St. Grill location. Or is that the space you are talking about?

I know where the space Rocks is talking about for the new pizza joint is located. It's not the Broad St. Grill space. Where is Pie-Tanza going in?

[DonRocks]

I know where the space Rocks is talking about for the new pizza joint is located. It's not the Broad St. Grill space. Where is Pie-Tanza going in?

Right here.

[SeanMike]

We've gone to Dogwood Tavern a few times now (132 W. Broad St, Falls Church, where "Broad Street Tavern" used to be). I thought I'd post something on it.

The old place there was - well - I didn't like it at all. The new place I actually enjoy.

Tonight was an interesting take on it. It was PACKED - probably partially thanks to the fact that 4P's, across the street, had no power on its traditional Trivia Night (and, indeed, I saw one of their bartenders in Dogwood). Then again, there's been a pretty big crowd each time we've gone, which might be due to the fact that - at least in my opinion - while we have a couple of decent restaurants in the area we could still use more of them.

My brother and I walked there after long days at work and got there right before the rain exploded again. We jumped on the wait list, and I have to say that I do not envy the hostess at all there - she has to deal with people walking in the front and back doors, plus having tables behind and in front of her. She worked her butt off, though, and we sat fairly quickly, grabbing a beer first at the bar.

The bar has been redone since Broad Street and has a lot of dark wood, stone, etc. I had a Bell's wheat beer and my brother a Smuttynose ($5.50), one of his favorites. It took us a few minutes to get a bartender's attention but it was packed two deep for the most part and once we got her we were taken care of while there.

Sitting down, I switched to their microbrew of the month, one of my all-time favorites, Pyramid Hefeweizen ($2.50 a pint from 4-8 PM Monday through Friday in June, $4.50 the rest of the time). We immediately ordered an appetizer of the Honey Pepper Wings ($8.95) which I've had before.

The waitress brought us out some bread while waited which was appreciated. The wings are deep fried, which I do not prefer (I prefer grilled), but all in all I think they're fairly tasty and served with some decent blue cheese dressing. We devoured these in no time.

Our main entrees were a bit more disappointing. My brother got the ribs ($20 for a full slab, which gave two meals worth), which weren't bad, but he's been spoiled by living in Mississippi for three years studying at Ole Miss for law. The biggest complaint was too much sauce, a common problem in Virginia.

I had the Shenandoah Lamb Chops ($23), three small-ish lamb chops with huckleberry dressing. The chops were overdone and there was too much dressing but they weren't that bad, I'm just spoiled by really good ones at other places. I still gnawed the meat off the bones after scraping off some of the huckleberry.

Again, it was crazy crowded tonight, so I expect that if it was a bit slower (and/or more expected) I would've gotten the opportunity to order them how I'd like them (medium rare, not well done).

For sides, Matt thought the cole slaw was okay, but like his taste in ribs, he's been spoiled by mustard slaw. I got a veggie skewer with my plate which was, well, just awful, though if we'd had salt and pepper at our table it might've been salvageable. Both of us eschewed the choice of "baked potato, baked sweet potato, mashed redskin potatoes" for the mac & cheese, which has Virginia ham in it.

Honestly, the mac & cheese is just flat out great, and we both regretted not having just gone with an appetizer order of it plus something else. I've had the raw oysters there before, too, and those were quite good, which is nice to find in a place close by to my house.

In short, I do enjoy Dogwood a lot, though I'd want to see some more consistency before I'd say it's worth going out of your way to enjoy. As a resident of the area, I want it to do well to provide a good counterpoint to our usual array of Clare & Don's and 4P's, and I'm discovering what to order - so far, it's just not been the entrees.

As another note, the bar area IS a smoking area (but not cigars, like 4P's or Argia's). It's a crowded bar with some two person mini-tables, but it's an interesting scene and I've found all the staff at Dogwood to be extremely helpful and nice.

[events3]

Big fan of Dogwood... the guys from Ragtime and Rhodeside are great at creating a comfortable lively neighborhood joint. The food is solid (love the honey pepper wings) and so are the drinks (Bell's Oberon on draft). Also, sweet patio in the back of the restaurant!

[chefgunshow]

Big fan of Dogwood... the guys from Ragtime and Rhodeside are great at creating a comfortable lively neighborhood joint. The food is solid (love the honey pepper wings) and so are the drinks (Bell's Oberon on draft). Also, sweet patio in the back of the restaurant!

I agree. It's a chill place with good food. Just what Falls Church needed.

[SeanMike]

I ate there again last night and it was right on the money. We sat at the bar, and though the bartender we originally ordered from was busy up and down the bar the others right there were very helpful.

I had the Blue Ridge Sliders. The burgers were done medium (a nice surprise as usually sliders end up well) and had caramelized onions and pepper jack cheese on them. The addition of a bit of mayo on them (I can't have a burger WITHOUT mayo, it's a curse) made them quite perfect. I had the appetizer portion of the Virginia mac and cheese with it and that was way too much mac & cheese; the bowl was huge. But as always it was delicious, lots of ham in it.

Marshall got the Chesapeake Sliders (crab cake) which were as gloopy as I remembered but he seemed to like them as much as I did (which was a lot). He had the side order of mac & cheese and a baked sweet potato.

Washed down with a Starr Hill Amber and a Smuttynose brown and it was a darn tasty dinner.

[joycek]

I have to concur with the generally positive reviews here. While it likely won't be winning Beard awards anytime soon, it's on track to be a solid neighborhood place with food, beer, and ambience more than a cut above the area competition. I've been twice now, and got to try the food last night. Had the Surf and Turf slider plate (2 burgers and 2 crab cakes) and was extremely pleased. I usually toss the buns at most places and just go for the filling - but the toasted multi-grain perfectly sized buns were a perfect complement to the meat. Alas, my burgers were more on the well done side, but the onions, cheese, and pickles more than made up for it. I agree that the crab cakes are "gloopy" but in a good way, with a nice crust holding in the juicy goodness. They also had a nice kick of heat. Overall, I'll be back - definitely worth checking out.

[southdenverhoo]

OT but in 1972 the manager of the Newcomb Hall Cafeteria at the University of Virginia decided to "upgrade" the experience by adding a plaque on the wall next to the entrance, denominating the (in every other respect, same old) space "The Dogwood Room".

In less than 24 hours some undergraduate wit had made the signage modification you all probably anticipated a sentence ago, and for the week or so before some tattler clued in the Appropriate Authorities, those of us blessed (or cursed) with a meal pass dined in the now more accurately named "The Dogfood Room".

I know it's the state flower and all, but that experience made it impossible for me to ever name a restaurant anything having to do with Cornus florida, though I'm sure the Dogwood Tavern is a lovely spot and in fact sounds like my kind of joint...

[Seanchai]

Split the surf and turf sliders and the blackened catfish sandwich at the Dogwood Tavern the other day. The mini-burgers were overdone and dry, but the mini-crabcakes and the catfish were delicious, accompanied by some crispy waffle fries. Add washing it down with a couple Red Seal ales and you have a very pleasant pub lunch in old town Falls Church.

[DPop]

I have to throw in a 'No' vote for the gloppy Crab Cake Sliders. I had them the other day and found that each time I would bite into one, all of the runny filling would fall out of the crab cake onto the plate. So, after the first bit, I would have to dip the bun into the remnants of cake laying on my plate and then into the overly sweet, pink (?) tartar sauce. Really not ideal way to eat something like this.

The Mac N Cheese was also a bit of a disappointment. Where is the cheese? The bowl I got had a bit of cheese mixed with some breading, some very good chunks of Virginia ham, and then a few pieces of shredded cheddar melted on top of the whole thing. The plate was also in desperate need of salt, which was easily remedied.

A glass of Bell's Seasonal was quite good, however, and fairly priced at $5.50. I have friends that live in the area, so I will probably be back, but will most likely go with something a little safer than the crab cakes next time.

[dcs]

Had the Tidewater Oyster Po’ Boy for lunch. Oysters breaded and deep fried. Nicely done; not overcooked. Sherry wine sauce was a nice compliment. Although I have nothing against the baguette, which was tasty and nicely toasted, it completely overwhelmed the sandwich. I might suggest smaller portions of baguette, or more oysters per inch. Brooklyn Lager on tap. Nice.

[SeanMike]

Dear waitress:

When we can see what you're doing, your failure to do even basic checks like "is everyone at the table completely out of drinks" when we're watching football makes me sad.

And the excuse "I got stuck in a conversation with a crazy guy who talks to himself" didn't help.

My friends in EFC prefer Dogwood for football game watching - they say the bar has better TV viewing than, say, Ragtime (which is my usual preference) but we're biased on both sides by geographic proximity. It does have overall better sight-lines, but I feel the atmosphere is more conducive at Ragtime in general than what typically is the post-church crowd at Dogwood.

I do wish they'd bring the honey pepper wings from Dogwood to Ragtime, and as one friend pointed out, their side salad is actually fairly decent (lots of extra veggies) compared to some places'.

[DaveO]

After a long day of work, being on my own, I was searching for a sports bar with "good food" beyond burgers and/or sandwiches (okay acceptable) where I could watch a game or two. I so wanted something more than a burger.

Ended up at Dogwood Tavern in Falls Church. Ordered trout almondine with sides of potatoes and sauteed spinach...all at the bar with a lagunitas IPA...with 2 different ball games on.

What a disappointment. I should have known better. While the trout was moist it felt like the kitchen wanted to introduce me to salt...periodically. Some bites were salt free...some tasted as if the salt shaker top had fallen off dumping everything into that smidgen of fish. The spinach was mixed with the potatoes. What gives???

The beer was fine, service was friendly and efficient...and there were two baseball games going on. I got to see the great Mariano Rivera save another game in his long distinguished career, and groaned at the Nats being unable to score a run after loading the bases with only one out #ThisIsNot2012.

Are there any sports bars with good or better than average food beyond burgers and sandwiches??????