Jump to content

Kliman Online, Todd Kliman's Chog - Tuesdays 11-12 AM on Washingtonian.com


Meaghan

Recommended Posts

That may be true, but he sure did a lot of suburban restaurant reviews in odd places, like Greenbelt, White Oak, Wheaton, etc.  Hardly the DC crowd.  I think he lives out somewhere around Takoma Park, which if accurate probably explains why those spots.

True, but also think of the demographics of the City Paper readership. Much younger, "hipper", and poorer than Sietsema's target audience. Much more likely to say "Hey, let's jump in the car and go grab cheap authentic (insert your own nationality) food". Not so likely to head off to Maestro or Citronelle.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Washingtonian's newest wine columnist is........

The challenge in writing about wine, even more than in writing about food, is to inform and instruct as lightly as you can -- to convey great sophistication without coming across as a bore or a snob. If you take a look at the debut column from Don Rockwell -- the December issue should be out in about a week -- I think you'll see what I'm talking about. It's informed, incisive, witty and a great read even if you're not a wine geek.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

A "martini straight up" is a martini without ice, not without vermouth. That would be a vodka straight up, with olives. Thank goodness my parents raised me right.

And a martini with olives is well, a martini with olives. Olives, usually on a toothpick set in or atop the drink. Not in a cocktail napkin.

It sounds like the bartender made the right drink in the first place, but the napkin in hand was tacky.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kudos to Rocks!

Thanks! I want to stress that nothing at all is going to change with this website. I'm here, I'm not going anywhere (well maybe a few days of vacation in the near future), and this will continue to be your kind, loving and nurturing home-away-from-home.

Can I come out now and say just how highly I think of Todd? :lol::P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

sorry, i don't totally get the heritage rant. is the complainer implying that the reservation wasn't honored because the restaurant would have to donate 15% to earthquake relief? and there aren't enough details to totally make sense of what happened. this sounds like it must have been the dupont circle location, where i have never been; wisconsin ave. normally wouldn't be that crowded on a tuesday night at that time. in any event, i can only assume that todd was typing too fast when he characterized the service as "at best gruff and pushy." in my experience that would be the service at heritage at its very worst. and, yes, it shouldn't happen, but you can get vodka in your martini if you don't specify gin. and if you drink enough martinis you will even start to see the restaurant's often unfairly maligned servers start to smile, especially when you ask for a small bowl of ghee to dip your olives in.

looks like i am finally going to have to break down and start buying the washingtonian for information on wine. i am told that looking for high alcohol content is not always the best way to judge a bottle.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

sorry, i don't totally get the heritage rant. is the complainer implying that the reservation wasn't honored because the restaurant would have to donate 15% to earthquake relief? and there aren't enough details to totally make sense of what happened. this sounds like it must have been the dupont circle location, where i have never been; wisconsin ave. normally wouldn't be that crowded on a tuesday night at that time. in any event, i can only assume that todd was typing too fast when he characterized the service as "at best gruff and pushy." in my experience that would be the service at heritage at its very worst. and, yes, it shouldn't happen, but you can get vodka in your martini if you don't specify gin. and if you drink enough martinis you will even start to see the restaurant's often unfairly maligned servers start to smile, especially when you ask for a small bowl of ghee to dip your olives in.

looks like i am finally going to have to break down and start buying the washingtonian for information on wine. i am told that looking for high alcohol content is not always the best way to judge a bottle.

My experience (an my son's, whose prom-night dinner was pushed back more than an hour) with the Heritage Wisconsin location leads me to believe that every word in the rant was true. There isn't, in my experience, a top restaurant in the city whose service is as bad as Heritage. I would, however, upgrade them to merely "sloppy" at their best, rather than "gruff and pushy."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"otherwise known to white Westerners as 'Four Sisters'"

I always enjoy these type of trite gratuitous comments they are so unbecoming of a writer/speaker. It is also strange to me since it was recommended to me as "Four Sisters" by a black westerner.

Edited by Sthitch
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nitpicky comment:

Zengo is so not a good choice for avoiding expensive meals. It's festive and has pretty good drinks, but at $10 a pop and up, drinks alone are expensive, forget food.

washington, dc: Hi Todd--

Once a month, my group of girl friends meets up at a restaurant for dinner. We are all in our early to mid twenties so can't afford somewhere too expensive. We like places that don't mind noise (10 girls can get kind of loud) and offer a young/trendy atmosphere, fun drinks, and good food. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Todd Kliman: The big, round table with the lazy susan at Zaytinya is a safe--if obvious--bet.

Can't vouch for the food, but Zengo would seem to fit the bill too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

offer a young/trendy atmosphere, fun drinks, and good food. Any suggestions?

Questions like this make me want to poke someone in the eye with a stick. poke2.gif I hated the word trendy, and find it to be more of an insult to someone or something than a positive attribute.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"otherwise known to white Westerners as 'Four Sisters'"

I always enjoy these type of trite gratuitous comments they are so unbecoming of a writer/speaker. It is also strange to me since it was recommended to me as "Four Sisters" by a black westerner.

Bad news for you: this 'black westerner' didn't say "Huong Que"; he called you a honky.

Fleeing,
Rocks.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hm, the link takes me right there. It's awfully short this week, though... no, wait, now it's longer. How odd.

Previously, this was the last line of the chat, and it made me laugh out loud:

The Internet is great for trying to pass an opinion off as the voice of the people while all the while remaining anonymous and unaccountable.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Todd Kliman: What my friend -- he's the food critic at The Village Voice, by the way -- is saying, is that, for the Westerner who may be unfamilar with African restaurants, it's probably best to modify your expectations.

Did anyone else think this whole line of thinking awfully narrow, especially for DC? Seems like he assumes that everyone asking after good African restaurants has faulty expectations, but among my friends, at least, a good deal of us would actually like some African rec's.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Washington, DC: Hi Todd- Since so many restaurants that were previously on the best 100 list did not make it this year I agree that the readers and the restaurants themselves deserve some type of explantion as to the criteria. I am sure some of the restaurants were shocked to be dropped. How do they get back on the list? If a restaurant was consistently on the list for say 10 years in a row don't they and the readers deserve an explanation as to why they are suddenly not on the list? Thanks!

Todd Kliman: They can get back on it by cooking great food and by taking care of their customers as though they were family and loved ones. That's how.

Again, a lot of places have been coasting for years, and my predecessors, to be honest with you, were inclined to coddle them, to apologize for their deficiencies, to rationalize their weaknesses.

Brass balls.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Todd Kliman: They can get back on it by cooking great food and by taking care of their customers as though they were family and loved ones. That's how.

Again, a lot of places have been coasting for years, and my predecessors, to be honest with you, were inclined to coddle them, to apologize for their deficiencies, to rationalize their weaknesses.

Interesting, though - as some of his "predecessors" are now working for him, this doesn't seem a good way to boost staff morale. There must have been some pretty contentious discussions there, which he merely hints at ...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...