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MattCraft

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  1. MattCraft
    Now confirmed, from the Mt Vernon Triangle CID Facebook Page: Restaurateur Hakan Ilhan (seen here with MVT CID President & CEO Kenyattah Robinson at this year's Annual Meeting) has announced plans to launch a new restaurant and a gelateria shop in the current L’Hommage Bistro Francais and bakery spaces at 5th and K Streets, NW. L’Hommage and the bakery space will close their doors on Monday, July 3, after operating through the July 1 and 2 weekend.After undergoing a complete redesign and renovation, the L’Hommage space will become a yet-to-be-named Latin American restaurant with a menu offering approachable, moderately-priced foods from Mexico, Spain and other Latin American countries. In the current bakery space adjacent to L’Hommage, Ilhan will open a separate gelateria — already named “Gelateria Dolce Vita” — with delicious #gelato made in-house with the best possible ingredients. This will be the second location for Gelateria Dolce Vita, with the other currently operating on the Georgetown waterfront. Ilhan noted, “We are very excited to bring our new Latin American concept to the Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood. The restaurant menu will provide diners with an array of fresh, house-made options, from small plates to all-you-can-eat offerings, along with an exciting beverage list. Our large restaurant space lends itself well to this new concept. Our gelateria will be the first of its kind in the community and we think it will be a perfect fit for residents, office workers and visitors from around the city.” Both concepts will open in early 2018, joining two other Hakan Ilhan restaurants, Ottoman Taverna and Alba Osteria, as destination restaurants in the MVT CID.
  2. MattCraft
    I'm headed to Nashville this weekend with my father for hockey (Let's Go Caps!) and country music. I've scanned the recommendations above but wanted to check in to see if anyone has any recent recommendations for barbecue. The places I've seen come up in my research are Martin's, Peg Leg Porker and Edley's. Our hotel is around the corner from a Hattie B's so very much looking forward to that too. Thanks!
  3. MattCraft
    I haven't eaten here as much since they stopped serving bacon which means they stopped doing my favorite salad (their version of a Cobb), but when I do go now, from the regular menu, I usually go for the Earth Bowl, swapping in carrots for the corn. It's not the lowest calorie they offer at around 800 calories, but it's one of the most filling.
  4. MattCraft
    I ate lunch at the new DCity for the first time yesterday. My last experience there was when they were serving out of Wicked Bloom and it was terrible - super fatty brisket (and not good melt in your mouth kind of fatty) and bone dry ribs. Had heard pretty good things about the new place, so decided I'd give it another chance. I ordered 1/4 pound pulled pork, 1/4 pound of brisket and half a rack of ribs First, the good: Brisket was excellent, a little tight but moist and a nice peppery rub. The ribs were also a vast improvement over last time. Really liked the rub and cooked to be bite-through but not falling off the bone, with good smoke. Neither had sauce and it was not needed, and thankfully I didn't put any on them before tasting the side of sauce that came with, because... The bad: That side of sauce was so heavy on cumin it tasted like somebody mixed Old El Paso taco seasoning with ketchup. Just not at all appetizing. The pulled pork was also incredibly disappointing. As dry as sawdust with a sauce that tasted of off-brand white vinegar. I only ate a couple bites of the pork and left the rest. Given the quality of the brisket and ribs, I'll probably be back. I want to try the smoked wings as well. Pics attached.
  5. MattCraft
    Had one of the best brunches I've eaten in a long, long time Sunday 2/5 morning. Wm. Mulherin's Sons is at the corner of Master and N. Front St in Fishtown in a historic building that was formerly the offices for a 19th century whiskey manufacturer. We were seated in a room behind the bar with a real (=wood) fireplace that was stoked continuously throughout the morning. Although seating was a little tight (18 inches between two-tops) you could still focus on your companion without too much distraction from the parties on either side of you. My bloody mary was mixed well with fresh horseradish, giving enough of a kick to pull me through my hangover. We started with the warm pound cake with banana, whipped ricotta, dark rum and cinnamon. I took a bite and just stared at it for a minute. My wife had to ask me if I was ok. I was, just stunned at how good it was. Although it had the potential to be treacly, it was the perfect amount of sweet. My wife got the frittata with truffled burrata, smoked pancetta, mushrooms and potato. She raved about the burrata, and the truffle flavor was perfect in its subtleness, unlike so many places where it overwhelms the rest of whatever you are eating. The rest of the fritatta balanced the ingredients nicely in a substantial portion. I ordered the Eggs on Volcano, their version of Uova al Purgatorio. Th two poached eggs come on top of a spicy tomato sauce (the heat coming from long hot peppers), guanciale and creamy polenta. Again, everything was in balance. The heat from the sauce was not insignificant, but also not overwhelming. Break the eggs and mix everything together and enjoy. The service was top-notch, with the whole team of servers responding to requests (more cream for the very good coffee, more water to quell the spice of the tomato sauce). A neighboring table had an infant and some formula leaked from the diaper bag onto the bench and coats of the family. The manager rushed over before the mother looked up, grabbed the coat and rinsed it off, while another server helped clean up the formula leak. They were on top of everything. When we return to Philly, we are definitely going to go back to try dinner. Or maybe bring some friends along for the family-style brunch which consists of a 24oz dry aged porterhouse, potatoes and a dozen eggs (scrambled or over easy).
  6. MattCraft
    Had a really nice meal at The Dandelion Saturday night 2/4. We had a 5:45 reservation, and were glad we planned ahead as it was packed when we walked in. We were led upstairs to a table in what I'll refer to as "the dog room" because there are pictures and knickknacks of canines everywhere. It was dim and cozy, and despite being full we could hear each other fine at normal voice levels. We each started with a cocktail, my wife having a Bright & Windy (Bluecoat Gin, Aperol, egg white, lime, honey and grapefruit), while I had the Iron Lady (Old Overholt rye, Thatchers Apple Ginger, Bitters and Luxardo cherry). Both were very refreshing, but neither let the booze shine. We then shared a half dozen oysters (believe they were from Connecticut), which were briny and plump. Also split the chicken and duck liver parfait, which I would describe as almost airy and light, like a whipped cream cheese. It was our favorite item of the night. It was served with thick slices of buttered toast that we tore off as needed. For our mains, I had the PEI mussels in a standard but flavorful red pepper, tomato and wine sauce. It was a significant portion of good-size mussels, which paired nicely with a bottle of Weyerbacher Merry Monks. She had the branzino with marinated beets and grapefruit, over a cool herbed farro salad. In the bite that I had I thought it would have worked better if the farro was warmed, but the fish was cooked just right and stood well on its own. We didn't have time for dessert, as we were off to see Villanova dismantle St. Johns at the WFC. Overall, I'd echo the sentiment above, that while nothing blew me away, we enjoyed everything we had. I'd definitely be back for a beer and more of the liver parfait.
  7. MattCraft
    My wife and I ate at Conosci last night, a couple of blocks from our condo. Since the above posts, they are now on OpenTable, so we made our reservation there. When they called Monday to confirm our reservation, I asked for a seat at the counter which they said they would try to accommodate. We were on time for our 9:15 PM reservation, but things didn't get off to the best start. We weren't seated until 9:45 and there were no counter seats available. However, they did apologize that they could not seat us there (so at least they acknowledged the request), and gave us a nice corner table for two. Additionally, during our wait to be seated, they bought my wife a glass of Chardonnay at the Alta Strada bar and my first drink in Conosci was comped as well - a perfectly made Nolet Martini, with extra olives. Often, when I ask for extra olives, I get three instead of two - here, they gave me six total, which was a nice touch. There is no written menu for food. Instead, as @funkyfood mentioned above, you have a choice of three tasting menus - $45 for 5 bites, $85 for 9 bites and $115 for 14 bites. Additional bites are $10 each. Since it is Restaurant Week, the $45 menu was marked down to $35. We knew this going in and saw the menu posted online, and it looked good to us, we went with it. The first course was three thin pieces of Arctic Char shashimi with chive oil and a painted line of fermented chili paste on the plate. I think they missed the sea salt on the first of my arctic char pieces, as it was bland, but the other two pieces were excellent, with just a dab of the fermented chili adding nice heat. Second course of red snapper ceviche with purple sweet potato was excellent. At this point, they asked us based on the portion sizes of the first two tastes if we would like to add any. Being particularly hungry because of the wait, we each said we would like one extra taste. I was done with my martini at that point, so asked for a wine recommendation of one glass to "carry me through" the rest of the evening. They poured me a glass of a 2014 Savennieres which by itself was wonderful. The next course (the "extra" one) were three pieces of hamachi with some kind of roe (didn't hear) topped with paddlefish caviar. So fish on fish on fish. Interesting flavors, but when taking a sip of wine afterwards, the fishiness came roaring back and was overwhelming. Course #4 were wild mushrooms, simply prepared with ginger and scallions, and had a nice earthy flavor. We were both looking forward to the fifth course, the crab risotto with sea urchin, as it was called out in both the Post review in the fall and on the Washingtonian mini-review that came with 100 Best list that we received yesterday. However, we were disappointed. While there was plenty of lump crab, the consistency was more of a Maryland Crab Soup (think thin broth) with rice. I couldn't taste the sea urchin in my serving. Dessert was a small, but adequate serving of dark chocolate budino (think pudding) with a layer of salted caramel and some crunchy goodness. It ended the meal on a very high note. In the end, our bill was $130 (plus tax and tip) for 6 tastes and a glass of wine each, the first two drinks being comped. There were some hits and some misses, and after the initial hiccup, the service was excellent throughout. We'll give it another shot, but I admit that I'll be a little wary that had it not been restaurant week, we'd have no clue what we would be eating until it was brought to the table.
  8. MattCraft
    I was also there Saturday night with friends who are regulars at Southside. I had eaten already so just drank from the draft list. They poured a really nice Guinness, and I also sampled the Hardywood Pils. It's about half local drafts out of I think 10 taps, plus Miller Lite, Two Hearted, and the above mentioned Deschutes. Friends are going back for lunch today on the first real opening day. Looking forward to trying the menu. It's a cozy spot and should be good for the neighborhood.
  9. MattCraft
    We want to grab sushi before the Caps game tomorrow. We live in Mount Vernon Triangle and will be walking over so we don't want to go outside of the immediate Penn Quarter/Chinatown area. The only spot we've been to is Momiji and it was mediocre. Any other recommendations? We love Daikaya, both upstairs and downstairs, but they're not a sushi spot. Seeing Sei, Absolute Noodle/Sushi, AOI, Asia Nine, etc. Any favorites or others I am missing? Thank you!
  10. MattCraft
    I work in the building across the street, so I got carryout for lunch today. Started with the pita chips with wasabi edamame hummus. I think they gave me wonton skins instead of pita chips, as they were really thin. The hummus reminded me of trader joe's edamame hummus, which is tasty, but nothing special. The wasabi was almost non-existent. Had I been dining in, I would have asked for more to mix in. I also got the Smoked Korean Brisket Po Boy. It had chili mayo, cucumber and pickled carrots. The french bread it was on was very good and the chili mayo added a muted kick. The meat itself was chopped and flavorful, but I didn't get much smoke. All together it was a decent sandwich, but seems like it should be more than "decent" for $14. I only ate a couple of the potato chips on the side as they were very much in need of salt. I'll be back because of convenience, and I want to try some of the items like the ramen Finatic mentioned above.
  11. MattCraft
    This also happened to us on our visit a couple of weeks ago. I thought they were just short staffed that night, but seems this may be the case regularly. We didn't have nearly as many issues as you did, but it was annoying to flag him down for drink refills, etc. We'll be back because we live across the street from it, but I was underwhelmed by my doner kebab. I've had better at Doner Bistro for half the price. The cold mezze was outstanding, though, so I could see myself posting up at the bar for a platter and some beers regularly.
  12. MattCraft
    Adding on to the positive reviews so far for All Purpose. Went Wednesday 2/18 night. About a 15 minute wait for a table for two around 8:30. Grabbed a drink at the bar and was at a table after two sips. We split everything and loved all of it - olives, fried baby artichokes (savory and smoky), the eggplant parm (which, as mentioned above, was enough for a meal for one person) and a pizza (Duke #7). Service was outstanding and the meal was paced well. My wife went up to Mike Friedman at the end of the meal and told him how much we enjoyed the meal and that he did a great job on Channel 4 that morning. He couldn't have been more gracious and talked to her for a minute even in the middle of a busy dinner service. We'll be going back regularly.
  13. MattCraft
    I walked by F&O yesterday at around 8 PM. It was packed. Boggles the mind.
  14. MattCraft
    I've lived across the street for a year and you're right, it's generally pretty dead except for brunch or if it's really nice out and there are people eating on the wrap around patio. I've been once, for brunch last winter, and had the Sausage Breakfast Pizza. It was fine overall, but the crust was not of the 2 Amy's or even Pizzeria Paradiso caliber. Despite the close location, it's rarely on our radar screen. If I want pizza, I'll go to Wiseguy's. If I want pasta, I'll make it myself. The mid-range Italian restaurant is a tough sell - for me anyway. But I also had the same thought that the ownership group must be doing pretty well if they opened L'Hommage around the corner and are also about to open Ottoman Taverna next door to Alba (progress evident with a myriad of workers and peaking through open doors). I hope if it does turn into a "Sports Bar," it's more along the lines of a Penn Commons and less like Redline or A-Town.
  15. MattCraft
    After a very long day-trip to Pennsylvania for work yesterday, I dropped my rental car off and hopped on the metro in Tysons and texted the wife, simply, "Ramen?". She immediately replied with "YES!!!!!" and we slipped easily back into the routine. She got to Daikaya first, put our name on the list and we met across the street at Penn Commons for a beer ($5 all-night happy hour for any one of 40 draft beers) and waited for the text to come. Normally, we can have two beers each during the wait, but we ended up having to chug the last third of our first as it was only 15 minutes after she put our name in that the phone buzzed. We got seats at the bar at the ramen shop, the best place to sit as you can watch the three cooks perform their dance in a tight space. The wife and I actually don't talk to each other that much when we sit there, as we're transfixed at the ramen assembly. I ordered the shio with extra veggies and the spice bomb, she went with the shoyu with pork belly. I normally get the shoyu, but for whatever reason I didn't feel like as rich of a broth this time. The shio is so nicely balanced, and as the spice bomb dissolved, it became incrementally spicier over time, but never overwhelming. I saw some complaints above about the veggies, but I usually get them and while not always perfectly cooked, I still like them because psychologically I feel like I am being a good boy and eating my veggies... they may not add much flavor wise, but I wouldn't say they detract at all either. The wife earned major bonus points for sharing some of her pork belly. I've never been to Japan, so I couldn't compare how Daikaya stacks up to "real" ramen. What I do know is that in the dozen or so times we've been here in the past couple of years, we leave happy and full (sometimes over-full) for under $50. There are many other places in the city that I can't say that about for twice that price point.
  16. MattCraft
    Had a nice breakfast here this morning. Sausage and Herb Biscuit Sammie with a fried egg. Savory and just the right amount of grease to help with the hangover from the previous night's Christmas parties. Also a slice of fresh baked wheat bread with nutella and sea salt, which seemed odd but went really well together. Wife had the Creme Brulee French Toast, a Sunday-only special, and declared it the "best French Toast she's ever had." I sampled and it was incredibly sweet without being treacly. She also got a cold "Chaider" which is apple cider with chai concentrate, and liked it so much went back to stand in the line out the door for 10 minutes for a not-free refill. We love this always-packed addition to our neighborhood.
  17. MattCraft
    Oh thank God
  18. MattCraft
    This will make me very sad if true. Adams Morgan losing an institution: Readers Report Dan's Cafe Has Closed in Adams Morgan
  19. MattCraft
    I grabbed a Chicken Tikka "Frankie" here yesterday for lunch and it was delicious. Like LF said, made to order, on fresh naan. The chicken had a good amount of kick to it as well. This will be a new go-to spot for me lunch. Also, my receipt said American Tandoor, so it appears to be the to go/quick order sibling to the restaurant next door.
  20. MattCraft
    Interesting video featuring the chef and a look at the kitchen at Convival.
  21. MattCraft
    Had a really nice burger here on Friday night. Cooked medium-rare as medium-rare should be. Hot paprika fries. Great local beer list, including their own Manor Hill brews that the same family owns.
  22. MattCraft
    I need to give a completely biased shout-out and bump to 1905. Biased, because one of the owners, Tony, is a friend. Bump, because we rented the restaurant out for three hours for my rehearsal dinner a few weeks ago, and it was outstanding - food, service, atmosphere, everything. We worked with Tony for a number of months ahead of time to set up the event. I was hoping to hold it here as it has always been a favorite neighborhood spot of mine, but our concern was size. The main (only) dining room seats just 50 people, but we were able to whittle the guest list down to make them fit. When our guests entered, we had three different wines pre-poured, a pre-mixed cocktail available, as well as beer and a full bar if any of the pre-selected items were not of interest to our guests. Garlicky, creamy deviled eggs were being passed, along with hot quinoa crayfish hushpuppies, as hors d'oeuvres. For the first course once we sat down, we had an arugula and wheatberry salad, grilled green tomatoes and homemade parkerhouse rolls and black eyed pea hummus served family style. The rolls and tomatoes were the standouts for the guests, and I devoured my fair share of hummus. Guests could pick one of four entrees: pepper braised short ribs, smoked and grilled pork chops, shrimp and grits and grilled chicken breast. I had tested them all over the previous months and decided on the short rib for my entree, and it was as tender and flavorful as it had been when I ordered it previously. Although they were serving over 40 guests simultanaeously, all of the entrees came out within 10 minutes from first to last, hot and cooked perfectly. We had zero complaints on the food. Dessert was 4 flavors of specialty cupcakes. Again, it my biased opinion, 1905 is a true gem in the Shaw/U St neighborhood. The food is consistent and filling. The service attentive without being obtrusive. Also, it's small size is unique for restaurants of that price point. Add on to that one of the best roof decks in the city (which is heated in the winter) and you have a top neighborhood spot. Tony and his business partner (also owners of El Camino in Bloomingdale) have worked incredibly hard since they took over 1905 to make it a well-deserved success. Stop in and see for yourself.
  23. MattCraft
    The City Vista location was giving away free chicken sandwiches the night before they officially opened. One was brought to me and overall it was a better than your standard Chick-fil-A sandwich. Pretty sure it was the "Monster" and not the "Angry". Big, juicy white meat, lightly breaded and fried. Pickles and a nice little green sauce - not sure exactly what the sauce was. Thought the bun was too big and didn't have a lot of added flavor. Also walked by on Saturday around 4 PM and it was busy, but not crowded. Unfortunately, it is next door to my gym. I'm afraid that I may be "rewarding" myself post-workout pretty often...
  24. MattCraft
    Table for two at Tico at 8 PM on Saturday 10/31/15. Wait-staff and half the patrons dressed in Halloween garb which was fun. Drinks Part of the reason I picked Tico as a surprise birthday dinner location was my fiancee's love of margaritas. We let the waitress know and she recommended the Hibiscus Margarita ($11), which is "on draft." I tasted it and while it was not lacking on the tequila, the only thing to me that indicated that it was not a traditional margarita was the red color - no hibiscus flavor was evident. I ordered the Caju Caipirinha ($11), which is a Caipirinha with Cashew. Similar to the Hibiscus Margraita, I found the caipirinha solid, but any cashew was faint. I also ordered a Mahou ($6 on draft), a Spanish lager, which was refreshing but unspectacular. Food We ordered three small plates and two orders of tacos (two tacos per order) to share between the two of us. Crispy Manchego Cheese with spicy pomegranate honey sauce ($9) - I love Manchego and I love cheese sticks so I had high hopes. Unfortunately the entire plate was devoid of flavor - breading was light, at least, but the liquified cheese lacked any distinct manchego flavor and the spicy pomegranate honey sauce had exactly zero of those flavors - a real disappointment. Fried Oysters with Old Bay romesco ($11) - The oysters were nicely fried, although the breading was a bit too heavy for me. The romesco tasted like romesco, but I couldn't get any of the Old Bay. Roasted Cauliflower with chipotle, crunchy favas and and cotija cheese ($9) - Best of the three small plates. The cauliflower was roasted perfectly and the crunchy fava added a nice texture. Crispy Fish tacos with red jalapeno, cabbage and chipotle ($11) - Very nice, although not as good as you'd find in California (they never are). The fish was fried perfectly and the fresh red jalapeno added some bite. The chipotle sauce was probably the same one that was on the Roasted cauliflower. Duck tacos with charred serranos, mango salsa and duck cracklings ($12) - the duck appeared to be braised and shredded and had that nice fatty duck flavor, and the mango salsa added a cool contrast to the hot duck. The cracklings were minimal and until I went back and looked at the menu, I didn't realized there were charred peppers on there. We had an appetizer at Zaytinya to kill time between church and the reservation so after that and all of this food we were too full for dessert. Service and Atmosphere Excellent. The hostess was welcoming and chatty on the way to the table and our server was prompt, courteous and unobtrusive. And, as mentioned above, all were dressed in costume which some put significant effort into. Items came quickly (as mentioned in another review above) but the table was never crowded. The restaurant was about 80% full and it was loud, but we didn't have to shout to hear each other. Overall, I have to say I was disappointed given that Tico is on the current Eater 38 list and has gotten some decent praise elsewhere. Although the service was great and it was a lively atmosphere, the muted flavors in both the drinks and food left me underwhelmed. Lots of other places to try before I would head back here.
  25. MattCraft
    Hi everyone- Long-timer lurker here. I grew up in Herndon, moved to Arlington for 10 years after college and finally made it all the way into the city in December 2014. Currently live in Mt. Vernon Triangle with my soon-to-be (November 21) wife. Huge sports fan (Caps and DC United season ticket holder), semi-adventurous eater and always searching for places that are "worth it" from both a time and money perspective. Looking forward to being a more active member! Cheers! Matt
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