Our Picks

Really mixed though overall underwhelming restaurant IMHO, and I think overpriced.  For starters, the rice in the maki rolls was poorly done; for $12 - $14 a roll and for the caliber of restaurant they want to be, they need to do better.  The grilled octopus app was good, tender, and shareable (and with some tasty potatoes), all a good thing at $24.  The cioppino on their online menu shows $32, but if I recall, it was quite a bit more than that.  The clams and mussels in the dish were well prepared, and the langoustine was a nice touch (though not particularly meaty).  The halibut in the dish, unfortunately, was  overcooked.  And I don't at all get the oversized croutons in the dish that are virtually impossible to eat; they are too large to eat in one bite, but can't be cut and are so big that they don't even soften up in any reasonable period of time.  Made me wonder whether the chef or anyone at the restaurant had ever tried eating it, because it wasn't even a close call that it didn't make sense.  (You can see a photo of the dish, with the offending croutons, on the Washingtonian article on the restaurant from August.)  The service was pleasant enough, but not polished.  The space is huge, and was mostly empty when we were there.  I always root for new, good dining options in Georgetown.  But I'm a bit skeptical this one makes it for long.  

The problem is you ordered a soup that is Bun Rieu in name only. Bun Rieu is a crab soup with crab broth. The problem is no Vietnamese restaurants in anywhere all over the US offered Bun Rieu the way it's supposed to be made. What they do instead if making up this weird combo of pork broth and MSG laden crab paste from Thailand and doused it with tomato paste to balance it out.  It's like making bun mam broth and call it Pho.  Sea substitute for land vs land substitute for sea. My suggestion: If the bun rieu costs less than $15, it's not bun rieu. It might seem expensive but then how much would a crab cake served with a side of crab broth, noodles and veggies, herbs should cost?

Authentic Bun rieu also must be served with Vietnamese Balm (kinh gioi). The crab broth and Vietnamese Balm go together beautifully. That's the essence of Vietnamese cuisine. Certain herbs must go together with certain dish. 

This thread needs some updating 

closed  zpizza, mango mikes, fudruckers

new:

The Dabney continues to impress, with its lovely decor, roaring hearth, and delicious food.

I'll have to disagree, Don. It's ten times better than it looks! 🙂

 

From lunch today, I was excited to order the Edamame Falafel (6) served with Baba Ganoush, Radish and now served with a side of Bing.  I requested to replace the cucumbers with Sunflower Hozon.  When served, as you can see in the first and second photos, there were 5 tiny Edamame Falafel, fried black on the outside and dry inside.  The 2 smaller pieces were one Falafel cut into 2 pieces.  For comparison, the third photo is from my lunch I posted previously.  When I pointed it out to the manager, she was kind enough to ask if I wanted the kitchen to prepare the dish correctly.  I declined and she removed it from my bill.  I left to get lunch elsewhere.

From lunch today, I was excited to order the Edamame Falafel (6) served with Baba Ganoush, Radish and now served with a side of Bing.  I requested to replace the cucumbers with Sunflower Hozon.  When served, as you can see in the first and second photos, there were 5 tiny Edamame Falafel, fried black on the outside and dry inside.  The 2 smaller pieces were one Falafel cut into 2 pieces.  For comparison, the third photo is from my lunch I posted previously.  When I pointed it out to the manager, she was kind enough to ask if I wanted the kitchen to prepare the dish correctly.  I declined and she removed it from my bill.  I left to get lunch elsewhere.

To my 11 dead neighbors (May your memories be blessings), to the 4 Pgh cops wounded trying to save them, to the Jewish community, to Squirrel Hill - the place where I grew up, to my sister who has let CNN and MSNBC set up in her front yard because she lives across the street from Tree of Life, to everyone, everywhere, still as shook as I am by Saturday's terrorist attack.

I sent these one day and it turns out they aren't allergy-safe so my preschooler got sent back home with it still wrapped! (The daycare is completely nut-free.) Funnily enough, I almost never pack dessert. For my big kid, I pack fruit cups for her dismissal-time snack, per her request (or Pirate Booty, veggie straws, or popcorn, if she had fruit in her lunch)

Tonight they're eating bucatini with turkey pumpkin sauce (redux). Yes, they're eating dinner at 5 ... Sundays are a totally wonky schedule for us, and dinner either ends up super early (for them) or super late (for us). Tonight, a bit of both.

250 g (1/2 lb.) ground beef
350 g (3/4 lb.) ground pork
75 g (1/2 cup) fresh breadcrumbs
75 g grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 tbsp. minced Italian parsley
2 eggs
fine breadcrumbs, for rolling the meatballs
6 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
200 ml (7/8 cup) pinot grigio
salt
black pepper

Depending on your schedule and the show length, you could try booking a late dinner (Vernick, FriSatSun late seatings are around 10:30pm) and pre-game closer to the theatre.

If BYOB is a priority, Russet is very close. I thought it was pleasant enough; Steve R visited more recently and wrote about it somewhere here, maybe in the Help Needed section. Res Ipsa is BYOB too, but it might be a bit far and too much of a time suck for pre-show (if you do the tasting) and what do you do with the leftovers?

Vedge: you'd likely need a booking or go there early for bar seating

Abe Fisher: Jewish-American riffs, might get too heavy for pre-show

Double Knot: would not be my first choice, but it's very popular and more knowledgeable people seem to like it; need to book downstairs main room, or do happy hour upstairs or at Sampan next door

The Safran+Turney group (Barbuzzo, Jamonera, Little Nonna, etc) is not bad for a less "event-" more neighborhood-type meal. 

Possibly dicier options:

I've never been but am curious about Volver inside Kimmel Center - it might be less ambitious now that Garces isn't his own boss.

Oloroso: single visit was somewhat disappointing; too many dishes felt the same and the paella was odd (finished in oven so the crusty part was on top); chef also owns Townsend and A Mano and looks like a cross between Patton Oswalt and Jeremy Renner

Spice Finch: Jen Carroll's newish place inside the same hotel as the Prime Rib; my one meal there was uneven and had a bit of the sameness problem but it hadn't been open very long; desserts were meh, maybe get the kataifi and skip the rest

Visiting philly, and saw a sign for a DT coming soon, on Market St near city hall.  Checked their web site, it won’t be their first Pennsylvania location.  A dc taco chain going national? Kudos to them, wishing them luck!

Ok, so you are close to a number of great places...I don't know what eater has to say, but here's my take:

Dinner:

Takeout dinner from the DC/Chinatown Taco Bamba location last night and my first disappointing visit to this chain: the Sid Vicious taco (crispy cod, malt vinegar salsa macha, mint tomatillo slaw, tartar) was dry and flavorless, despite the various moistening ingredients, and the tortillas were papery and flavorless as well; and, the Taco Bamba (skirt steak, chorizo, grilled guacamole, cotija, pickled onions, pickled fresno, cilantro, + chicharron) was the same story. Both tacos were tough to choke down and made me wonder how a joint turning out the volume of tacos that they do could serve up a couple that seemed to have been made hours in advance and left on a shelf in the corner of the kitchen.  Hey, wait a minute . . . .

Just wanted to post a reminder that this small, oddly-placed spot, although nothing earth-shattering, remains incredibly consistent and probably has the best food to be found in all of Gaithersburg, with the possible exception of Tortacos.  (Am I overlooking anything?)

According to TheBurn.com, Bar Ahso is coming to the new Chefscape Food Hall/Incubator/Commercial Kitchen/Event space at the Village at Leesburg.  I really want Ahso to be successful, and want Bar Ahso to be as well, which is significantly closer to where I live.  That being said, this development seems to be a tough place to thrive in, and this mixed concept doesn't inspire too much confidence.

Las Vegas was its normal shit show.  We were there for less than 24 hours and that was more than enough.

SLS Hotel:  If cell block chic is your style you might appreciate SLS.  Our hotel room have an exposed concrete ceiling.  Trendy? I don't know?  The bed headboard glowed in the dark until we found the dimmer knob.  And the bathroom/sink/shower were behind sliding closet doors which didn't quite slide shut properly.  Frankly, I'd just avoid this hotel all together.  At least the room was inexpensive.

Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill at the MGM Grand:  I've certainly had worse pizzas in my life, but there was nothing remarkable about this one (I've already forgotten what I ordered).  The chicken wings were a mess, kinda Asian-y but not, with a puddle of sauce on the plate and the wings unsauced and basically served plain.

I agree with Eric about the shitty $40+ per night "resort fee."  It seems to be the going rate. 

Plus Vegas traffic at 5pm sucked.

Assaggi doesn't list prices on their website, probably because they're kinda expensive.  A prosciutto and arugula pizza cost $17 ($13 at Pupatella, $13 at Orso, and $16 at Crust but buy 8 get 1 free). 

This brief review will include the restaurants visited on our two most recent trips to Paris. Now that Don is asking for detailed reviews of 3-Mich restaurants, I will start to add more "color" there. If you want to get treated like a fine-dining troglodyte then these are the places to go.  Having had meals in the past 4 years at Guy Savoy, Arpege, Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athenee, Epicure,  Ledoyen, and Astrance the only one that I would happily pay my own money to eat at again is Ledoyen. My vehement POV at this point is that 3-star experiences in Paris are not my preferred way to spend my dining dollars anymore. By far the best meals we have had in Paris recently were at more casual places. 

Had a lovely, long, and leisurely dinner here the other night. A delightful, descriptive wine list. A well put-together cheese and charcuterie plate (man, that ham hock pate). Here again, the cheese menu was very descriptive. Entrees were clams and chorizo with a killer broth and a hanger steak.

This place is great! I love the sign, I love the small space, and I love how when you walk in you just see hundreds of pies right in front of you. What could possibly be a more welcoming sight?

Wife and I had an overall excellent dinner at Siren this past Saturday night. 

Notwithstanding some of the brilliant alcohol laws around the country (in Texas, until 2012, anything over 4% had to be called an ale or a malt liquor.

Hai Duong has opened a branch where Pho 50 used to be, in Loehmann's Plaza/Graham Park Plaza (Rt 50 and Graham Rd).  I had some Bun Bo Hue, which was terribly bland.  

My family's vegetarian pho broth is a bit of a cheat, using vegetable broth, and includes leeks, star anise, five spice powder and soy sauce. 

Andrea Nguyen (author of acclaimed pho cookbook) has a similar recipe from the Pho cookbook as well as a more modern recipe that includes nutritional yeast.