jca76

Seriously. He rated Mirabelle as the best new restaurant in the Spring Dining Guide (cost notwithstanding); he was obviously well disposed to giving it a stellar review. I found it particularly telling that he didn't rate it higher after his excellent initial view. I agree with the sentiment that his reviews can be inconsistent with my personal preferences/impressions -- I disagree heartily with him about as often as I completely agree -- but Mirabelle clearly had the makings of a place that he would love. We had our first dinner there last night, and it turns out I'm in agreement with Sietsema's rating this time. I arrived before the rest of our group, so I enjoyed an excellent Le Papillon cocktail, with mezcal, Cocchi Americano, Yellow Chartreuse -- boozy but balanced, complex and herbal. We started well with an enjoyable amuse of salmon triangles (cured?) topped with a thin layer salmon mousse (a bit weird in texture) with ceps sliced and diced (and pickled?). Pleasant brininess and good acid. The bf and I agreed that our favorite appetizer (probably our favorite dish of the meal) was the salad of northern neck beans (soft cooked hen egg, Marcona almonds, shaved Lagoto truffle and pickled cherry tomatoes). A lovely salad: appropriately lightly dressed, good acid, a bit of richness from the egg and earthiness from the truffle (all too often I find truffles to be disappointingly flavorless, but not here). (But the bf thought it felt like dishes we'd enjoyed at prior Ruta meals. There's nothing wrong with playing to your strengths and keeping your classics on the menu, but personally, I like a little more surprise out of my special occasion meals.) Sadly, they were out of the soft shell crab that had been my first choice (and which Sietsema loved). I liked the slow cooked ora king salmon (zucchini, roasted corn and small variety tomato fondue) more than the bf; I like the texture of sous vide salmon and the vegetables were a nice last gasp of summer. He preferred the veloute of locally foraged chanterelles and pennsylvania zucchini (herb blossoms, small variety tomatoes and pickled chanterelles), but while I liked it (especially the chanterelles), overall it tasted just a bit flat (not enough salt for my taste?). The navarin of Block Island cod (little neck clam and Bouchot mussel broth, new potato and sweet garlic confit, brandade) was surprisingly bland. Much better was the striped bass (pan roasted with anise hyssop stewed filet beans with savory and figs, sauce xeres); the sauce was buttery and sweet-acidic from the sherry and very tasty. It was just a little too classically French to really wow me. (Of course, the fish was very well cooked.) The one classical French touch that never tires me is a cheese course, and Mirabelle's list is deliciously varied. For dessert we had the plum & coconut "vacherin" (plum sorbet, labneh ice cream, black pepper meringue, coconut) and figgy pudding (goat cheese sponge cake, fresh and cooked figs, pistachio ice cream). I quite liked the meringue curls broken up into what quickly turned into a plum soup, and the fig and pistachio combo was delicious (although I found the cake a bit dry and not as cheesy as I'd have liked), but neither dessert tasted "new" to me. Pool Boy is right that we have to decide for ourselves: for me, I liked (but did not love) Mirabelle, and it isn't worth it. Everything was beautiful and other than the cod, I enjoyed it all. But I walked away thinking that while dinner was tasty, I won't remember anything specific for very long, and likely won't be back. (My favorite restaurants are my favorites because I still think longingly of dishes I ate years ago.) There's already been a lot of talk upthread about the cost and corresponding expectations. "Value" is inherently subjective. I know that quality ingredients and skilled staff to prepare them and lovely spaces in which to serve them are all expensive. I know plenty of people who (perfectly reasonably) value refined service and impeccable classicism more than I do. I am more than willing to spend on meals amounts that would horrify many people (including my dad!); in exchange, I hope to be surprised and maybe challenged and definitely tempted to lick my plate. (But I'm a lady, and a lady doesn't lick her plate; she licks the fingers that she ran over the plate, obviously.) That didn't happen last night.

2.5 stars from Sietsema. Going for the first time tomorrow (at the request of visiting friends), so I guess I'll get to see for myself.

why is that ridiculous? (i'm sincerely wondering. i basically never use cash, and wouldn't think twice about paying for a small purchase like that with a card. it's convenient for me and faster for the clerk. i am likely to use cash at a tiny independent merchant, like a farmers market stall, where the credit card fee might be nontrivial to the vendor, but that's obviously not a concern here.) and now i'm craving a rad thai.

The bf and I had the same "this will make it a lot harder for us to get a table" conversation when we saw the (well-deserved) news. And then yesterday, Bon Appetit put them on their list of 50 best new restaurants (along with P&P and Himitsu neighbor Timber). (Fingers crossed for their performance in the top ten.) The wait for two last night ended up being a bit over an hour when we left a name around 8:15 (frustratingly, much exceeding the 30-45 minutes we were quoted), but we were told (when we asked) that they aren't sure yet to what extent the accolades are extending waits. We tried three new dishes last night, all of which were excellent: Thanks to my love for the simple-yet-excellent bibb lettuce and blue cheese dressing salad at 2 Amys (which I'd never have ordered had Kirsten, one of my favorite 2 Amys staffers, not insisted on it ages ago), I was excited to try the wedge salad (iceberg, herb buttermilk ranch, everything furikake, grated egg yolk, black pepper), hoping for another boring-sounding classic made novel. Himitsu delivered: creamy, rich but not too heavy, salty, herby, crunchy from the lettuce, and sprinkled liberally with the furikake blend (think an everything bagel with added seaweed) -- just great. The corn in yellow squash elote (roasted squash, crema, cotija cheese, chili flakes, cilantro) was popped and dusted with chili powder; the dish is basically the fanciest, most delicious cheese popcorn you could imagine. (The yellow squash didn't add much beyond texture/a base for popcorn and crema, but I was glad to have it for that purpose.) Our favorite may have been the kanpachi + coconut (hawaiian amberjack, red onion, coconut milk, cured squash, lime + peanuts), which was very evocative of the Rose's Luxury lychee salad given the coconut, red onion, and peanuts, but with fish instead of sausage (a very worthwhile trade-off, as far as this pescatarian is concerned). Loved the rich coconut milk sauce, which made me consider asking for a spoon (or picking up the bowl to slurp up the dregs), but I restrained myself. And we repeated the heirloom tomatoes + strawberries (parsley-taragon puree, pickled strawberries, crispy quinoa, black pepper + shiso), a lovely seasonal dish that had me dredging the last bits of micro shiso through the vibrantly green puree.

the biggest travesty of the dc michelin guide was that monis and his wonderful teams got shut out. however, little serow wasn't eligible for a bib gourmand, which i believe requires that the diner can get two courses and a glass of wine or dessert for $40 or less. obviously little serow is a much better food value than a lot of the bib gourmand recipients (many of which are probably getting credit for two small plates as individual courses, and can easily get much more expensive than $40), but their $49 price tag excludes them.

all these things are so relative, given expectations and experience. in general i think of copenhagen's higher end dining scene as being reasonably priced for how good it is (especially compared with other european cities); noma could jack up their price significantly (although hopefully they won't when they reopen) and still be booked solid and cheaper than a lot of french restaurants. (to be clear: i'm not saying copenhagen isn't expensive, just that its best places are relatively reasonably priced compared to peer restaurants in other countries.) but era ora was one of the most disappointing meals of our trip last summer, and very expensive for what it is (perfectly fine but not notable italian food). geist's best quality is that it's serviceable and open on sundays, when most nicer places are closed. we couldn't fit kiin kiin in on our last trip, due to time constraints and traveling with a picky vegetarian (who quite liked era ora), but sounds like we would have enjoyed it more than geist or era ora. indeed. hija de sanchez serves excellent tacos and the best paletas (popsicles) i've ever had.

that dish is the vegetarian entree.

Hmm, the meal I'm thinking of also would have been in May, but we weren't there on the 13th -- 20th or 31st.

Either we were there on the same night, or she's been back -- she was leaving as we were sitting down a few weeks ago! (Given that three of those posts are mine, I'm in firm agreement with you on how great Himitsu is.)

The wait for four last Saturday night was about 35 minutes when I left a name around 7:25; we were quoted 30-45, so a very accurate estimate. Carlie did mention that the wait time would have been longer for a two-top, FYI. I'm not sure if the holiday weekend made things quieter (we generally go on weeknights), although we have found that the increased capacity with the patio has improved wait times a lot. And there are plenty of good drinking options on the block, with Fridays and Saturdays offering the added bonus of Chantal Tseng's literary themed cocktails in the Petworth Citizen Reading Room after 7:00. I've been loving the cabbage e pepe -- a play on cacio e pepe with cooked cabbage instead of pasta -- on my last few visits, and a new salad of heirloom tomatoes and pickled strawberries is a delightfully balanced, sweet-and-acidic summer dish. (You generally can't go wrong with any of their cold plates, although I don't love radicchio in general, so their grilled radicchio wasn't for me.) And the awesome biscuits that used to come with the duck now come with the karaage (which they'll let you do half vegetarian, half chicken, to the delight of my carnivorous friends who otherwise would have been forced into the tofu version).

I may be unfairly advantaged, given how often we eat there and how much I love that green sauce. It pushes us to order the deviled eggs more than we might otherwise, and we also ask for a side of it whenever we get the salt cod croquettes.

2 Amys? That looks like their green sauce.

when the bf suggests ripple for dinner, i often demur in favor of 2 amys/tail up goat/the dabney/little serow/whatever favorite i am craving at the moment. (although there's something to be said for a place where you can get a last-minute reservation rather than risking an hour+ wait when you show up.) and yet, whenever we do go, i am always reminded "oh yeah, i actually really like this place!" last night was just one of those dinners. (the bf would say that i should just remember this reaction when debating when to return, but the point of cravings isn't to rationally consider past experiences!) while we were waiting for our cocktails, gm/wine director jose, with whom we'd had a very nice chat on our last dinner a few months ago (and who remembered our wine order!) stopped by with a complementary glass of a lovely rose cremant that had a surprisingly interesting finish. a great service interaction like that at the beginning of a meal always sets a good mood. and our cocktails were excellent: the farmersonly.com -- a name that made me giggle thanks to the dating website's ridiculous commercials -- was a frothy gin-based drink with a springy balance of yuzu and beet. the spanish eyes was a sort of bamboo variant, with hazelnut syrup softening the sharpness of sherry and dry vermouth. (the bf would have preferred less sweetness, but i think he'd really just have preferred a traditional bamboo; i thought it was well balanced and less sweet than i'd worried it might be.) a two-bite mushroom tartlet from the snacks category had mushroom "flour" in the crust, was topped with grapes, and was surprisingly sweet (in an interesting, kind of good way). i'm not sure i'd order it again (a bit expensive at $9 or thereabouts), but the bf's comment, with which i agreed, was that we would have been suitably pleased had it appeared as an early course in a tasting menu. (and if it were reworked to tilt slightly more sweet and then presented as a dessert, i think i might find it ingenious. i'm a sucker for using vegetables in desserts.) the ocean trout crudo (black lime, salsa verde, radish, chile sofrito) was the only repeat from our prior meal; as previously mentioned, it's expensive for its small portion, but quite tasty. the dutch asparagus (quail egg, green olive, egg vinaigrette, farm greens) was the standout of a strong dinner; the egg was hard boiled, the asparagus suitably firm, the entire dish was springy and salty and acidic in the best way. (no suggested edits or critiques from either of us, which is pretty hard to manage given how analytical -- and judgy -- we tend to be about food.) the hen egg (potato espuma, burnt onion, cured yolk, herb oil), which we ordered without the sweetbreads as the menu offers as a possibility, was decadent without being too heavy. you can't go wrong with the classic combination of potato puree, sweet onion, and poached egg; it won't surprise you, but it will be eminently satisfying and delicious. spring nettle agnolotti (snap peas, turnip, green garlic, baby kale) was almost outstanding -- pillowly pasta, crisp slices of snap pea, etc. -- but slices of pickled ramp (or possibly green garlic, now that i've looked back at the menu) added distracting sweetness rather than pops of acidity. (a tweak in the brine could correct this easily.) nicely seared but undersalted halibut (green asparagus, black garlic, mussel emulsion, wild ramps) sat on a bed of craving-a-spoon-worthy sauce. i often don't agree with sietsema's taste -- we have very different biases/preferences in dining -- but ripple's complimentary write-up in his spring dining guide is well-deserved. now i just have to remind myself to go back more frequently.

I love those crostini. The bf accidentally ordered two orders when we did Postmates delivery a few weeks ago, not realizing that unlike most of their crostini, these come two pieces to an order -- best ordering mistake ever. They've had a number of delightfully springy dishes recently: a pizza with ramps and an egg; roasted eggplant with ramps and ricotta; grilled scallions with romesco; shaved artichoke salad with cheese, olive oil, and lemon; minted favas and radishes as a meat accompaniment; a dessert of ice cream, wonderfully sweet strawberries, and gragnano poured over top. (Now I'm making myself hungry. We've averaged going there twice a week over the last month, and I would happily go back tonight!)

She's making great, creative, literary-themed cocktails out of the Petworth Citizen Reading Room every weekend.

And . . . wow. I'm genuinely unsure of whether this post is supposed to be a defense or a slam or just assorted musings. Somehow I managed to feel slightly offended on behalf of both the people who are excited to dine at Mirabelle and the "young people" whose preferred style of dining this is not.

at the suggestion of a vegan friend, she, the bf, and i had brunch this past sunday at equinox. she seemed happy enough overall, but i was disappointed. the tofu scramble was premade (contrary to the online menu's advertising made-to-order), and included black-eyed peas, an unpleasantly starchy addition to an otherwise technically well-executed tofu scramble. (despite eating more dairy in general than is probably good for me, amy's tofu scramble is one of my favorite frozen foods in the world, so i had high hopes. vegan friend was even more disappointed that it was premade.) the best thing on the buffet was the pancakes with pineapple compote; a little denser than non-vegan pancakes, but moist and very tasty. cauliflower and asparagus tempura was satisfying. a parsnip (i think?) and apple soup and rigatoni with asparagus were both fine but unmemorable. overall, nothing on the hot buffet felt more complicated than what a competent home cook could make, and the dishes skewed more heavily to the lunch side of brunch than i'd prefer. (it would be so easy to make delicious vegan breakfast potatoes to go with the tofu scramble!) the bread and dessert stations were more impressive-looking, and i enjoyed a glazed cinnamon roll. (less so a mini cheesecake given the odd texture, but i have no basis for comparison on vegan cheesecake texture.) the chef was circulating with small dishes -- a mini tempeh burger (pretty good) and a cookies-and-cream affogato (which i skipped because i don't like coffee, but my companions enjoyed) -- and was very nice when he stopped at our table. we hadn't realized that it would be easter when we picked the date, although i realized in time to ask the person who called to confirm our reservation whether they would be doing the normal vegan brunch buffet despite the holiday (yes). annoyingly, the reservationist didn't tell me that the brunch -- which wasn't any more elaborate as far as i could tell -- would be $43 instead of the normal $35. (i had assumed that asking about the regular menu would be understood as asking whether they were raising prices. my mistake for not explicitly asking the awkward pricing question?) as a result, brunch was $50 before tip with two coffees for the table and no alcohol. i'm unlikely to return at the normal price, but definitely wouldn't return for a holiday. i applaud the concept of hosting a vegan brunch, but there are too many restaurants willing to accommodate dietary restrictions these days to settle for a lackluster buffet.

totally agree. unless i'm mistaken, only turbogrrl has actually eaten at mirabelle, where she had the ham sandwich and the yuzu crepe dessert, both of which sounded satisfying without being revelatory (too much ham, not enough butter, not enough yuzu). obviously it will take a lot more dining experiences/reviews thereof to really form a view on mirabelle -- on both whether the chef is doing justice to his talents, and whether there is a sufficient "value" (however subjective) to justify the cost. i can't wait to hear people's opinions on the first question. an observation to the second question: yes, fine(r) dining has higher costs for ingredients and labor, but it was also a conscious choice to set up shop in this area, presumably with an eye toward taking advantage of the downtown power broker price insensitivity. it will be interesting to see what effect that choice, and the resulting prices, has on mirabelle's draw for those without that sweet, sweet expense account money. chef ruta understandably has a lot of goodwill in this town that earns him a number of defenders on mirabelle's pricing who have not yet eaten mirabelle's food. (compare the tone of this thread with the tone of the shaw bijou thread before its opening.) experience and resulting credibility should matter, but they shouldn't mean that we can't ultimately make judgments about relative value. (although i don't actually know, i'd read gadarene's initial comment on veneration to be expressing a similar feeling.)

Somehow I'd missed Sietsema's review, but now that I've read it -- yup, definitely sounds like it.

Thank you! (I've thought the same when reading some of your posts in the past. Discussing with other like-minded -- or like-tasting? -- folks is one of the pleasures of DR.)

Some friends and I had dinner at Mike Isabella's cavernous new restaurant in the Marriott Marquis downtown a few nights ago. There are a number of restaurants around town that I call my happy places -- 2 Amys, The Dabney, TUG, Himitsu, etc. -- where the food is often fantastic and is at minimum quite enjoyable, and we can sidle up to the bar for a relaxed, friendly atmosphere. Arroz's vibe is about as opposite of that as you'll find without having something notably "wrong" with it. The space itself is as nice as could be expected given its size and location, which pops of pretty cobalt (plenty of photos online). We made the mistake of entering through the hotel; walking through that massive, sterile, vaguely chemical-smelling lobby is always a bit off-putting, and the feeling lingers in the mostly empty restaurant. Our server, while competent and very nice, had the sort of overly familiar, intrusive style that I'd bet -- pardon the gross stereotyping -- middle aged ladies and tourists will enjoy, but I can't stand. Think explaining relatively common menu terms (like espuma) unprompted, asking whether we were "loving" every dish that was brought to the table (a formulation that doesn't admit the possibility of not loving something, which rankles more if I don't love it), and describing every dessert on the menu in such excruciating detail (before handing over menus or asking whether we were interested in dessert) that we immediately asked for the check to avoid more engagement. These complaints feel mean-spirited, and to his credit, he did the technical aspects of serving well: cheerfully moving us to a booth when we asked, thoughtfully bringing extra flat bread so that everyone got his or her own piece, conscientiously accommodating requests for certain ingredients on the side in some dishes, etc. He just utterly failed to read his audience's interest in his spiels. But the net result is that I enjoyed the dinner less than I might have on the food's own merits. So, the food and drink: overall, I was pleasantly surprised. The cocktails were all excellent. A particular table favorite -- we all tried each other's -- was my order of the classic from the sherry category, which a light, floral, not-too-boozy combination of manzanilla, dry vermouth, and yellow chartreuse. The roasted carrot in the sour made the drink interesting without veering too sweet or savory. The abogado was a very slightly peaty old fashioned. The cobbler was a bit sweet for dinner, but would have done well on a hot summer day. The somm steered us to a lovely, slightly oxidated white blend (that was a bit cheaper than the white rioja that we'd asked about as a starting point for the conversation). The big eye tuna crudo (green apple, cucumber, smoked serrano broth, wild herbs) was light and very enjoyable, although I wished the tuna was a little firmer and the broth a little punchier. (Perhaps a hit more salt? This was something I wondered about in a number of dishes, which didn't taste particularly undersalted but just a bit shy of fully flavored.) A fantastic dip of burnt eggplant (moroccan flat bread, za'atar, pine nut, black garlic) had a smokey depth of flavor, and the accompanying flat bread delightfully evoked Komi's pancakesque pita (although not quite as good in texture, with a bit more of a bisquick-y note). Fried spanish red prawns (seaweed salt & lemon) were well seasoned and crispy, with the heads separated into a little dish of aioli, which had the complementary effects of flagging for the inexperienced diner that they were to be eaten but allowing the heads to be ignored by the squeamish. (I'm actually not sure whether the body shells were intended to be eaten. They were slit for easy peeling, but crispy enough to just eat whole. Our table ran the gamut on how we dealt with them. I ate everything but the tail.) But at over $8/prawn, this dish wasn't exactly a great value. (If you want whole fried shrimp, head to Himitsu for their superior and cheaper iteration.) A pretty salad of spring vegetables (carrot tahini, garlic streusel, charred baby beets, kalamansi vinaigrette) was as you'd expect, although the garlic streusel added nice bite; I'd have happily taken more of it. Even without the chorizo (which we got on the side), I enjoyed the smokey asparagus (marinated chorizo, egg yolk, san simon, chile emulsion), which had a bit more kick than the muted tuna dish. The most disappointing dishes were the saffron fideo noodles (cockles, razor clams, linguica sausage, sea urchin espuma) and the lobster soupy rice (mussels sea urchin, black bass, tomato escabeche, seaweed montadillo). The noodles were mushy-soft (which was particularly disappointing as I was expecting, perhaps unfairly, a slightly crisped noodle dish like the rossejat at Jaleo) and overwhelmed by a tasty but one-note creamy tomato sauce; urchin or other briny seafood flavors were muted. (I again didn't eat the sausage, but the meat eaters seemed even less impressed by this dish than I was. One technical service fail: after we ordered the sausage on the side, our server didn't think to mention that the dish came with duck fat breadcrumbs, although they did come segregated on a razor clam shell.) The seafood in the soupy rice was very well cooked, the lobster itself nicely tender, which can be a feat in these sorts of seafood variety stews -- but the tomato broth itself was disappointingly flat. The seaweed montadillo was a surprisingly light and delicious slice of dark bread adorned with lemony aioli, lobster, and urchin (enough pieces for us each to have one, which may have been another good service touch by our waiter). But our waiter's suggestion to combine it with the soupy rice to make a sort of "lobster roll" just resulted in burying the best part of the dish with the lackluster flavor of the escabeche. (At $62, this dish made me wish we'd ordered a more servings of the eggplant and pocketed the savings.) Better of the large plates was the maryland crab bomba (fried soft shells, baby squid, preserved tomato, crab fat aioli), which we ordered in a half-portion for $31 or $32 (the full order is $60, so a reasonable option). The slightly crisped-on-the-bottom rice was very satisfying with the more acidic tomatoes (as compared to the other tomato dishes) and fatty aioli, but the soft shells over-battered. (I don't think it's a coincidence that the bf, who didn't have any soft shell, liked this dish better than I did.) At these prices, and with this atmosphere, I'm not rushing back. Our meal was comparable in price to much better experiences at places like TUG, Little Serow, and Himitsu, and significantly more expensive than favorites like 2 Amys or Etto. But if someone else wanted to go, particularly for drinks, I wouldn't mind (although I would avoid the large plates in favor of the small). I'm guessing the size of the restaurant will make getting reservations relatively easy, and therefore Arroz would be a good option for large parties, especially of out-of-town family members who might get a thrill out of proximity to a Top Chef alum. (Isabella was in the restaurant, although his casual attire -- sporting a t-shirt with his name on it -- suggested perhaps not in the kitchen. We saw him chatting with Jeremiah Langhorne and his companions at a nearby table.)

anyone have a report from tulum more recently? we're headed for a long weekend in early may.

seasonality obviously plays a part (as it does with pretty much any coveted culinary ingredient), but ramps, with their green leaves, white stems, and more delicate flavor, are more versatile than scallions (which i also love, don't get me wrong). like scallions, they take well to the grill, but like scapes, they are mellow enough that you don't have to cook them or use them sparingly. give ramps a quick grill/saute and they make a stellar pesto with just some salt, lemon juice, and olive oil, which is great on bread or pasta (which freezes well for winter use). the white parts can be pickled and used in all sorts of preparations for a hit of allium and acid.

You're so right; the tingling from the Sichuan peppercorn really comes through as compared to other versions I've had.

Do you want to try it straight or in a dish? For the former, any high-quality sushi restaurant will have it (I'd recommend going with nigiri over sashimi if you have both options, as the soft texture and rich flavor are balanced by the rice). Sushi Ogawa had Maine, California, and Japanese uni on a visit a few months ago, which would be a good way to side-by-side the geographical differences (I tend to prefer California uni to Maine, as I find it sweeter/creamier.) To try it as part of a composed dish, you're likely going for Japanese or Italian. Izakaya Seki's uni with quail is an unctuous delight. Himitsu has it atop chawanmushi (which I haven't tried, but sounds delicious, and they're good at pretty much everything) or as nigiri/sashimi. Morini's bucatini has uni, crab, and tomato and has been very good (and is basically always available), and I believe that Fiola Mare sometimes does an uni bucatini as well (although the uni is more of an accent than the star in most pasta dishes). (I believe the District Fishwife in Union Market sometimes sells it as well, if you're inclined to take it home.) When I first started eating uni, I found the texture to be off-putting; if you're texturally sensitive, a composed dish may be the way to go.