beezy

Hi all - I've been out of the restaurant loop for about 18 months, between bed rest and baby and recession, so I'm not sure what's up. I have a nine month old girl, who sits up, can feed herself finger food and with a spoon (moderately tidy) and is blessedly not a fussy eater. We'd like to get her used to eating out, but also don't want to foist our pain on other diners. Since I wouldn't eat at Chili's, Applebees, etc, she won't either. So far, Baby ReverbBeezy has the following rules - come in early for dinner or other meals - immediate removal upon loud behavior - bring small toys etc for amusement - bring some food if what's available isn't to her liking - ask for a larger space than needed, make a reservation noting child, and asking to be seated away from most of the crowd, even if it means taking a less prime seat - tip well -emphasize indoor voice (yes, babies do know what that means) - do not come in during possible meltdown times (naptime, over crowding, etc) We've been pretty successful with the Cafe Luna franchise (seriously fabulous job of serving both families and the bright young things), Liberty Tavern mafia, Harry' Tap Room and Dino. However, our daughter needs to expand her tastes. Clearly, we're not taking her to Vidalia, DC Coast or other high powered restaurants, but what are some suggestions where she can be introduced to good food, learn to act right in public, and have chefs who are happy to help out (serving smaller portions, chopping up stuff, etc)? What have other folks learned about taking out their kids? Chef and owners, what do you think about having young kids in your restaurant? I feel a bit stuck - I know that not everyone wants a side of baby with their dinner (although the meat is terribly tender). On the other hand, if we don't expose her early and often to the environments where we expect good behavior, she won't know what's expected. Plus, geez, we'd like to have a nice time without shelling out for a babysitter. Thanks, all!

Screwtop is down the street, and quite nice overall, although I don't know how serious wine lovers would feel about their list. They have several small snacks and plates, all very nice, but not quite what we're looking for. They're also pretty baby friendly in the early evening, so little ReverbBeezy has been several times. We've got a serious hate on Rustico in Ballston - we went at opening and they acted like they just couldn't be bothered. Not all. As in, we arrived 10 minutes before dinner seating to a completely empty dining room and no line and staff staring into space, and they wouldn't seat us because the dining room wasn't open. Now, I understand there are things to do, but 10 minutes with staff twiddling their thumbs seems silly.

Mrs ReverbBrad here - Key success points would be: - quietish - I often have to yell to be heard at home, and I need a break - excellent service - I spend my days in service of my tiny master, and need fussing over - really good food - we're still eating well, but no half-assed, frozen food, sauce in a can nightmares. - good cost to value - we don't mind paying for a good experience, but it better not be expensive and suck - not too hard to get in and out - this the inaugural date night, and my worried mommy brain is concerned something will be wrong, wrong, wrong - civilized fellow patrons - no yapping on the cell phone, drunken carousing, or other naughty behavior. I have that at home, too.

How is Black's these days? Still as good as everyone posts? Looking for a place in MD for family to go out over the holidays.

Hey folks - The husband is turning 35 in a month, and wants a splendid birthday cake. He likes chocolate, is not so fond of buttercream, loves chocolate mousse cake. His favorite cake of all time was the cake of the day at the old Majestic, but I'm not sure of its source or if you can even get it anymore. Who are likely suspects to turn out the best cake ever? I'm in Arlington, but I'll travel for goodness. Here's my shortlist: - not Cakelove - husband HATES the icing - Pastries by Randolf, but they sometimes seems a little overrefined - Heidelberg, but their cake can be a little dry. thanks!

Foie Gras Burger: more addictive than cigarettes, coffee, and crack. That is all.

Yep, I chatted with the Taxes the last time I was in there, and the truck has gotten too expensive with the price of gas. So, it stays parked til further notice.

I just dined at Enjera (http://www.enjerana.com/menu.html) on 23rd in Crystal City. I have no idea what the difference is between Ethiopian and Eterian is, but I found the food to be different from my usual neighborhood hangout, Lalibela II (which has turned into a huge Ethiopian disco Friday and Sat nights - traffic on Columbia Pike even gets backed up on occaision). Some people have called it bland, but I thought it was a little subtler. There's this weird musky taste to Ethiopian (to my American palate), especially in the yellow lentils that wasn't present at the Enjera. The food overall was milder, and more savory (dear god, I fear the amount of butter I just ate). I think this would be a great starter restaurant to introduce someone to the cuisine of this part of Africa, then go in for the more extreme flavors elsewhere. Plus, this restaurant is just small and lovely, with a nice balcony. Sadly, a lot of Ethiopian places tend to the dumpy and grimy. Plus, $2 beer!

http://www.metafilter.com/73725/OMNOMNOMopoly Sysco : whether it's Wendy's, Applebee's, the local diner, a fancy restaurant, the cafeteria, or Guantanamo Bay, it's what you eat. Serving over 400,000 businesses, the "Wal-Mart of Food Service" has all the bases covered, from "Unique 3-D technology gives you the look and texture of a solid muscle chicken breast, at a fraction of the cost" to more gourmet offerings. [3D technologies? Ewww]

Al's has their fans, but I think the Broiler's meat is a little more substantial, and I don't believe that Al's has chicken.

Hang on kids, I'm going invent a meme: the black toilet restaurant. There's a whole crop of places that wants to be your new neighborhood bar, yet be refined and upscale so they can charge you $8 for a burger. They remind me of a teenager who wants to impress his date. He focuses on wearing a nice tie, presses his shirt, puts on the fancy jeans, but forgets to not wear his gym shoes. Like any teenager, there's maturity problems. Spider has been open two weeks, and cheerfully admits that they're still fine tuning. I see potential, but I'm waiting for another month for a return visit. Places like this try really, really hard, and under it all, they're really nice. They focus a lot on decor, ambiance, and service, and try to be super cool. Spider Kelley's is no exception. It's decorated like a hipster lair, with that slate gray on the walls, fancy sparkly marble tables, galvanized fixtures, irridescent tile, and yes, a black toilet to go with the marble sink. The service is very enthusiastic, and they're bending over backward at the front of the house. Still, it's too dark in the dining room, the music is about 20% too loud, and sometimes, your waiter can disappear. The food is really, really good, except when it is horrible. First the portions are HUGE - sides really will serve 2-3 people; salads are on platters. We started with a lemongrass beef appetizer (wisely deciding to share after seeing it come out of the kitchen). It was a decent 4-5oz cut of nicely cooked medium rare meat, flavored with traditional Vietnamese spices, service with a nice sauce. It reminded me a lot of the departed Cafe Dalat, except more luxurious. Spider's headlines burgers, including the Spider Burger, featuring a chef's mix of meats, including pork fat (YES!). This is one of the items that seriously needed tweaking - way too heavy on the pork fat, which made the whole thing taste like an old pork rind. The bun was stale, the condiments scanty. I can see how this burger is GOING to be a good idea, but wait til they get the kinks out. All burgers come with astoundingly good homemade-tasting spicy pickles worth a visit on their own. Spider Burger was sent back to the kitchen, only to be replaced with the hands-down best mac and cheese in DC. Eff your effeminate lobster mac n cheese - the 'cardiac' is super cheesy, creamy, and not in the least floury (you know who you are), served piping hot (you also know who you are) with a good crust of cheddar on top. I know some Velveeta is involved somewhere, in the best possible way. This places me at the gym for another 45 minutes, but it's all worth it. We also had the fish, which was a mixed bag. It was a generous cut of fish, but a little overcooked and stale tasting. However, it was topped with a really nice lightly pickled asian flavored mix of onions, peppers and cilantro. Grilled asparagus is good quality, fresh produce, grilled in olive oil with salt and pepper, just until tender. Garlic fries are a good first cut, served with cloves of roasted garlic (peels on - ick). The garlic isn't quite mixed in with the flavor of the potatoes, and the fries are a little soggy, but it's still worthy of eating. Other stuff that looked good were the monster half three day chicken, steak, and all the salads. The burgers look pretty anemic and dry as a whole, but I have hope for the chicken burger. The bar is cozy, and has a small but standard collection of good liquors. Spider's has a lot of potential, but needs to mature. In the meantime, you can sure do worse in Clarendon than dropping in for dinner and beer. I'm waiting til they grow up a little more for another visit, though. http://www.spiderkellys.com monday through friday: 5pm to 2am saturday through sunday: 10am to 2am 3181 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Virginia 22201 tel 703.312.8888 | fax 703.312.8884

My neighbor is the original owner of the Broiler - I'll have to ask him about the recipe the next time I see him out walking around. (He's nuts in an excellent old coot way -he explained to us that he knew the building was built in the 20s from the date stamped on the toilet that they thew out. I'm sure he knows what's in it off the top of his head.) Personally, I hate the pizza (if you want that kind of pizza, go visit Salvo's, across Walter Reed from the Drafthouse), but if you want what frozen pizza is supposed to taste like, get yourself over there. The Broiler is a dangerous few blocks from the house, and it has a great chicken or cheese steak, exactly not-gourmet as it should be. Big puffy rolls, lots of mayonaise, greasy, fabulous- half a 6" is plenty for me. I love their frozen crinkly fries - they always fry them so half of them are crispy and half are a little soggy, which is how I like 'em. They also have soft serve in summer - tastes a lot like the Mr. Softee truck that cruises around the neighborhood.

Mr. Beezy and I headed over for early drinks and snacks during Friday's lovely weather. I will return - for drinks and the view only. The bartender has a heavy hand, and a selection of medium-good liquor, accompanied by the absolutely worst food EVER EVER EVER. We had: - clams and fennel - this turned out to be decent, although the clams were like eating sandpaper - grilled naan and hummus - nann! ha! more like a boboli flatbread unevenly run over the broiler and some hummus that i'm pretty sure came from Giant. The bread was lukewarm in spots to cold, did not taste of garlic at all, and was leaden. Hummus - a little gritty, a little pasty, no tahini. Came with some decent olive oil and a grilled tomato - crab sliders - I was uncertain if I was eating crab or cat food. Or perhaps some gefilte fish that was pretending to be crab. It was terribly fishy and old. Clearly, they hoped it would be disguised by the pickle and corn relish, but it really didn't help. Plus, the bun was stale. - shrimp po'boy - Mr. Beezy reports that this was edible. However, it was served with three shrimp skewered on sugar cane, stuck outside the bun (without more shrimp inside). Drink up, don't chow down.

Can we add another variety of selfish jackassery to this list? The placeholders. The people who come to an unreserved seating area, and proceed to drape all their crap all over the place so the mass legions of their party will be able to join them at some unforeseeable point in the future, while the rest of us must stand/cram themselves into small spaces. Last night at the lounge at Zola, crowded pre-hockey game, there were two ladies who had taken six chairs for some party who were coming in '10 minutes'. Another had two ladies taking up two tables and four chairs, for a full 40 minutes until their companions joined them. 40 minutes! What completely steams me about this is that restaurants do not seem to care. Is it ultimately better for business to have two EAs take up table space, or have the six of us who were standing sit down immediately, linger and order more than the glass of wine that I settled on because it was too crowded? I can see being lenient about this during slow periods, but when it's crammed when there is any event at the Verizon, does it seem sensible to permit this kind of thing? Say what you want about not seating parties until they're complete - at least someone ELSE gets a fair shake. I have to say that I'm with the coat-dumper at EatBar - if I saw a set of couches being used as a coat rack in a crowded bar, I'd be mighty tempted to dispose of them myself. Owners and managers: couldja please, please, please install more coathooks and racks in your bars? Or the height of civilization, the coat hook under the bar? There's a place for my purse and coat, and the bar seat is for my fanny only. Everyone's happy. Beezy, about to become one of those drink-spillers

Thanks to everyone who gave me their suggestions! First, eating cheap in Bermuda is a relative term - you will pay $10+ for a sandwich, and expect to pay $30 for dinner. A candy bar is a $1.50; coke can be $2. It's just a fact of life on a place where EVERYTHING is imported. However, you can eat not too bad for dirt cheap at convenience stores and gas stations. Every grocery and gas station has some kind of hot bar, featuring Jamacian food, fried chicken, seafood and some soup. We got a great selection of goat curry, fried chicken, bbq pork ribs, plus rice and peas and veg for $8/pound in a grocery store in St. George. Bermuda also has a great bakery somewhere on the island that distributes scones, muffins, apple cake, fruit cake and other goodies for $1-3.50 apiece. We did eat out twice: Jamaican Grill, Duck Puddle Road - this is a teensy bungalow tucked behind a limestone quarry off of the South Road. It seems to be run by a family of Jamacians, and the only restaurant that every single Bermudian dines in. $8 for a small (a 6X8 carton of food), $13 for a large gets you a great big box of chicken (bbq, curry, jerk, brown sauce), lamb chops, oxtail, or fish plus rice (rice and peas, rice with callalou, rice with saffron) drowned in your choice of gravy, and veg (a mix of cabbage, broccoli and carrot). We had oxtail, which is braised in a thick gravy, jerk pork with peppers and onions, curry chicken (some kind of curry fricasse), and jerk chicken (oh so spicy and succulent, chopped into little bitty pieces). They had a full case of pies and cakes, but we were too full to sample them. Tea at the Fairmont. We were seated on a huge plush settee, overlooking the ocean, surrounded by moneyed British. The tea comes out on a three-tiered rack - we were advised to start at the bottom and eat upward. So, we started with sandwiches (salmon, egg salad, ham, cucumber, cheese, goat cheese), continued onto pastries (eclair, fruit tart, chocolate strawberry) and finished with sweet bread - scones and fruit breads smothered in clotted cream. We went through 3 pots of tea, lingered for three hours, and were treated kindly, even in our sloppy clothes. I highly recommend it.

Three goodies: 1. Applegate Farms at Trader Joe's is reliably tasty and available all year round. 2. Polyface Farms (at Courthouse farmers market Saturday and Dupont Sunday) produces hot dogs seasonally - but dear God, they are the best, juiciest, loveliest things you have EVER had. 3. Springfield Butcher sells Coney Island Reds One baddie: Oh My Dawg Haute Dogs in Adams Morgan just plain sucks. I love the idea, but the dogs are uniformly terrible, the service rude and the cost to value wretched.

We from the East Texas front would argue that West Texans actually eat Mexican food, not Tex Mex. Perhaps it is the petroleum and swamp gas that everyone has been rolling in, but if it's not somehow involving pre-packaged something, we're not having it. Personally, I think you can only have a few things with Tex Mex - a beer (Lone Star or Pearl only - out of a longneck. not in a can or glass, unless you're at home. Never on tap.) - a margarita (the restaurant from my childhood used to have a garter stretched around the glass for added exoticness) - a Coke - iced tea - not Sangria I do remember the Swirl fondly from happy hours during the dotcom boom. It's a lovely technicolor adult slurpee with a sneaky, evil mean streak of closet alcoholism - sort of like Baby Jane in a Mexican wedding dress. A few of those combined with frisky puppy creatives in their 20s can result in an astounding amount of confessional conversation and dubious hookups. *sigh* I miss those days.

I don't think that bread is entirely about craft - it's about comfort and emotion. I appreciate a finely crafted sourdough on an artistic level, knowing the judgment and knowledge that went into developing the recipe and starter. But it just seems like it's showing off a bit much. Forgive me, but it doesn't seem American to be as obsessed with all that stuff. (Yes, it is very French, and somehow appropriate there, like eating continental style, owning small dogs or elaborate smoking, all of which seem ridiculous and affected on everyone else.) I appreciate the lengthy post on the extreme skill and craft to produce truly fine bread. There are people out there who can produce the perfect crispy chewy crust and melty insides that will make even the most extreme Atkins adherent snorf down the entire breadbasket. But, I think restaurants try too hard, and forget that temperature, smell, and freshness are what makes the emotional stirrings of the bread appetite come to life. As well constructed as some of the fine dining establishment's bread baskets as, they tend to be cold, often dry and sometimes a tad stale. It's like chair at Design Within Reach - very lovely for my eyes, finely designed for my sensibilities, and incredibly unpleasant to sit on for my fanny. The love and care that go into the craft of making are not sustainable at a restaurant, who needs to take timing, stability and price into the mix. Bread's bread, kids - getting overwrought over the whole thing ruins the party. Pastry chefs all over town: please do not make me a scone when you are trying to serve me a plain ol' biscuit. No butter - only Crisco. No cream. And stop using so much baking soda - it may be fluffy, but it puts my teeth on edge. Serve it hot - they're not worth a tinker's damn unless they are freshly baked, buttered and consumed within 15 minutes of leaving the oven. Call my gramma on the phone, and she'll tell you the secret: Pioneer biscuit mix, don't handle it too much, and preheat the shortening in the pan in a hot oven. Use buttermilk. Mix with a fork. Southern Biscuit Mix at Harris Teeter is also a fine substitute. Stop being so fussy - it just makes the dough tough. I have yet to eat a decent piece of cornbread for the same reasons. For those who are lazy, Jiffy mixes remain a reliable (but not quite adequate) substitute. Perhaps the only good thing about the dreaded Harry's Crap Room is the little corn muffins they used to serve with brunch. There are some decent bakers out there. Bonaparte does an ok job, but their pain batarde is always a little wet in the middle - if the pain you bought in the AM is worth eating in the PM, they didn't do it right. The Heidelberg has a wide variety of all kinds of stuff, all excessive on one front or another. Sadly, the supermarket bakeries are just that much better than Pepperidge Farm to make most people not want to make the side trip, and many independent bakeries can't keep up with the volume (RIP Brenners, source of the formerly excellent 5 Guys hamburger buns). Me? My guilty pleasure is at the humble Luna Grill, where they bake some kind of light french bread dough constantly, bring it to you super hot, tempting naughty aroma wafting out, with plenty of butter, softening from the heat of the bread. It's not fancy, and I doubt anyone has one teensy bit of baking skills, but it is immensely satisfying, like the ratty recliner I am sitting in right this minute, thinking fondly of the inconceivably incorrect garlic bread they sell in the freezer case at the grocer's.

Hey everyone - Mr. Beezy and I are headed off for a few days in the golf and spa season of Bermuda. We don't know much about it, but the package was cheap, it's sunny, it's only three hours away, and there's an underwater cave at our hotel. From what I read, food in Bermuda is extremely expensive and not in the least tasty. Does anyone have any recommendations for food that we should eat? Food that's not a fortune (could be a pipe dream)? Things we should stay the hell away from? Stuff about us: - We don't want to eat American food [otherwise, we would have stayed in America] - We're of the Anthony Bourdain school of travel eating: we'll eat off a truck, and get a little sick, as long as its tasty and I can't eat it here. - We don't have any dietary restrictions, but we're both partial to seafood I hear that Bermudans love their salt cod, and that tea on a lovely island is a necessity. We're staying right outside of St George, but we're good with buses if it's worth the trip.

Oh Good Lord - Rio Grande is too fancy for my taste - a tortilla machine? fruit on the plate? fancy pants corn cake? FISH on the menu? unheard of! I like all my tortillas corn, grease and crunch, land-based animals only and all my food with a good dose of chili powder.

Oh sweet lord. Corbo's has the best damn everything. We took a little trip to Cleveland over Thanksgiving, and visited there. It has cookies by the pound, all almond paste based, incredibly moist and crispy. Order a pound for yourself! Michael Symon's Lola is the hot ticket in town now that he's an Iron Chef, and I have to say that what I had lived up to the hype (Lolita was closed when I visited). I had the lunch menu, with a fried baloney sandwich topped with cheddar and cheese and a fried egg. Baloney cut steak style a good 3/8 inch thick. The whole thing was an exercise in wretched excess. I will say that while Cleveland is cheaper than here, the prices are creeping up in the trendy areas. We still spent $70 for dinner in a fancy neighborhood - not as big a check as here, but I think it's getting more expensive.

I had a great visit to Hank's Old Town last Friday - I think I like it more than Hank's Dupont. The space is a little less crowded and quieter, and the service is friendlier. The fresh oysters were excellent; the fried clams were light, crispy and delicious. The steamed mussels special had astounding tomato sauce, and were giant sized, tender, and mild. As always, the service was attentive without being intrusive. Can we have a Hank's World Empire?

Former denizens of backwater Texas towns, like me, search for the comforting grease, spice and meatiness of Tex Mex all over town, only to be confronted by tribes of well-meaning El Savadorian families claiming to be Tex Mex. But, no. They try to somehow bend the food of their home country into something that they think might be more palatable for their american audiences. They churn out tamales, carne asada, fish and white rice like crazy, and it's all pretty good. Guajillo, Taqueria National, los Tipos - I hate them. I do. I hate them because they claim to have Tex Mex food. They taunt me with visions of rat trap cheese, tamales without the abhorrent little bits of vegetables stuck in the masa, refried beans the texture of putty, big greasy chimichangas, and a certain exoticness without threat that is reminiscent of Old El Paso products and the Patio burrito, if only it were good. Tex Mex is about Ro-Tel tomatoes, chili powder, pinto beans, and always garnished with a slice of bell pepper. It does not challenge - it is the all-inclusive family resort of ethnic food. It is not threatening, it is tacos, enchiladas, chalupas, and the rare chile relleno. It comforts, its says 'Buenas Dias, y'all' Oh my darlings. I have found the sole outpost of the TexMex family in Restaurant Row. It is not for those of you who crave the authentic experience of other people, but it is soulful, caring, and soothing. It also has margaritas the size of your head - a $10 margarita at La Cantina will come out in a glass the size of a cookie tin, more booze than mix, and nicely salted. It does not care about fresh lime juice or fancy salt - its is all mix out of a bottle. But it is a good quality mix from somewhere, the bartender is kind, and they will call you a cab if you drink too many. Like the TexMex of my youth, they cultivate excess at a bargain price. For $11, I got the Special Combination, which came with a beef taco (greasy, crispy shell, spiced ground beef, cheese, chopped iceberg lettuce and tomato on the top), a tamale (stuffed with shredded beef and not a single damn vegetable in sight), two cheese enchiladas (a good red enchilada sauce, filled with some kind of delicious, yet synthetic cheese), and the ubiquitous bean s and spanish rice (a nice shade of orange. and topped with a slice of bell pepper. As it should be.) Mr. Beezy ordered a chicken chimichanga, lightly fried, and stuffed with a nice quality of chicken. Other tables had fajitas with great big shrimp the size of my thumb (I have great big mitts), with a good ration of meat to vegetable. They even have the not tex-mex option of fried yucca, crispy, light and served with a great slaw and juicy yet crispy fried pork. This is Mexican food that does not care for being authentic food that any self-respecting Mexican would actually eat. This is the cuisine that Bubba heads out to eat on Friday night with a cervezo, letting out a polite burp and sigh of satisfaction before hitching up his belt and waddling out to the car. This is where you can drink margaritas and eat nachos with the girls during happy hour until you are tipsy, without anyone judging or implying that you should be at the gym. It is so greasy and creamy and only mildly spiced, and I love it so. I hope you do too.

Lodge (it ain't fancy, but my gramma uses it) explains it all: http://www.lodgemfg.com/useandcare.asp They say you can season it in a charcoal or gas grill. I've had a similar problem cleaning old stuff, and I'd try burning it off before you get out any kind of abrasive. If that doesn't work, get a small sander with a fine grain paper and go to town. An entry-level dremmel is also a fine choice... In any case, beware abrupt temperature changes - iron can shear, shatter or warp if you take it from cold to hot or hot to cold too quickly.

Lodge (it ain't fancy, but my gramma uses it) explains it all: http://www.lodgemfg.com/useandcare.asp They say you can season it in a charcoal or gas grill. I've had a similar problem cleaning old stuff, and I'd try burning it off before you get out any kind of abrasive. If that doesn't work, get a small sander with a fine grain paper and go to town. An entry-level dremmel is also a fine choice... In any case, beware abrupt temperature changes - iron can shear, shatter or warp if you take it from cold to hot or hot to cold too quickly.