erikv

Somebody please tell me what I'm missing here. I think about what Don and Sally Schmitt, and later, Thomas Keller, did with an old rundown, overgrown laundry house out in the middle of nowheresville California. Then I think about this place. It's hardly in a dicey neighborhood - Potomac is affluent, crying for places to eat. It's scenic, it's quaint, it has history, it's got plenty of patio space and parking and a romatic fireplace in the lounge ... so why, oh why, with all the wonderful chefs in this region, can't one of them (Eric Ziebold are you reading this???) find the backing to turn Old Angler's into a world-class destination?

Amen to that.

I'm not. Keep driving. It's awful.

willing to be proven wrong, though. It would be nice to have a good restaurant nearby.

While not entirely awful, the restaurant wasn't nearly as good as the prices would suggest. However, the patio does provide a nice, relaxing atmosphere for some drinks.

Particularly disappointing was the tomato salad. I was expecting fresh heirlooms and got what appeared to be thin slices of barely edible tomato leftover from sandwhich toppings during the lunch shift. the "salad" was a terrible dissapointment.

The Rockfish entree was fresh, well executed, and did not disappoint. I would definately be willing to try it again, but only if it was slightly more affordable.

My overall impression was that the location/atmosphere is great, but the food was hit or miss, and overpriced. I will likely be back, but just for some wine/cocktails.

To be honest, I was just a little bit disappointed in the somewhat smallish piece of cod I received (though this could be because it tasted so good and I just wanted more). Though its been some time since I crossed the Atlantic for fish and chips, I seem to recall newspaper-bursting amounts of fish with my orders. Of course, I was probably paying $30 for those orders...

I would agree, but if you order the batter sausage in addition to the cod, you will leave feeling satiated.

I know this is fairly last minute, but I am headed to Old Angler's Inn and was wondering if anyone had any recommendations?

Is that HUGE "house" next to it Dan Snyder's new abode?

I have to say I was wondering how you all knew to show up there, however. The thread about the joint talks about the place opening soon and then all of a sudden there is a DR. com event happening there wth a bunch of you all reporting on how great it was.

I mean I am glad you all went and reported back the greatness of the joint, but it did seem a little strange. Did you all get invited because you all spend tons of scratch at Eve? I have no problem with that or anything, mind you. Good for you to be rewarded for being such good customers.

There was no invite, and the only scratch I've spent at Eve has been during a grand total of 2 lickity split lunches. I read about Eamonn's being open from a post here, went to Old Town last night, saw people eating inside, went in, was welcomed, ordered, ate, and enjoyed. Had they said they were closed to the public, I would have gladly left. I had a nice talk with Cathal about the space and the previous tenant. It was all very cordial, and I will definately be back.

Hmm, should I, or shouldn't I...

Do it, Do it, Do it

Congratulations indeed!!!

Loved the laid back, yet somehow also familiar design of the place. Very friendly staff (although they might get tired of explaining the different sauces to each person who walks in....but they did it with a smile).

Thanks be to Cod! It was impecably fresh, and wasn't too heavily battered or fried. The chips were perhaps the best I've had in recent memory, both crispy and tender on the insides, and went perfectly with both the curry and chili sauces. Delicious.

However, I was still curious and decided to go with a Round 2 with the menu: batter sausage and a deep fried snickers. The batter sausage was incredible, delightfully thin, crispy exterior hiding a moist and delicious sausage. i dont really know how else to explain it. if you are a fan of sausages, just get one(or two).

Does anyone know if they make the sausage on site?

The deep fried snickers blew away my expectations. So simply, so tasty....so knowingly terrible for you. But I'll be back for more. The sprinkled sugar coating was a great addition to it.

I can't wait to go back and wash all the great food down with some pints!

At both Ray's The Steaks and Ray's The Classics vegetarians dine very well. Chef Michael Hartzer has a fantastic, creative, composed vegetatian dish which features grilled eggplant and is very much in the spirit and style of his other grilled specialty items.

My (+1) can attest to the grilled eggplant at Ray's the Classics. She loved the excellent taste, creativity and presentation of the dish....so much so that she did not share any with me. From her experience, vegetarians should not fear to dine at either of Michael's restaurants as Chef Hartzer does a great job with vegetarian dishes that keep the general theme of the other dishes (read: no steamed veggie "entree" as a vegetarian substitute).

Last night was my first trip back to RTC since the preview dinner as I was lucky enough to get my parents to come out from the VA suburbs and take me and my fiance there. Here are some highlights (in addition to the gracious, attentive service and hospitality, of course)

Wild Yeast Bread: A great way to start the evening. The choices of spreads escape me, but were all a delicious substitute for butter.

Sausage Biscuits: One word, Incredible. Do yourself a favor and order these glorious creations. I could eat these every day for the rest of my life and never tire of them.

Mini-Crabcake: The quality of the crab was superb! Great bite-size morsels with a flaky crust that explodes with moist crab chunks.

Dandelion Salad w/ Bacon Vinagrette Dressing: Simple, elegant green goodness with a bacon-y finish.

Veal Chop "Oscar": Ever since having a single bite of this at the preview dinner, I have had my sights on this dish. This is bar none the best veal I've ever tasted and the crab is an excellent treat to top the dish.

Cocunut Cake: Usually I am not a cake guy at all...nor a fan of cocunut....but I been converted thanks to this delicious, moist concoction.

Everyone at the table was equally thrilled by the food, service, and ambiance. You know it was a good dinner when you keep replaying the meal in your head....and I will continue to do just that until my next visit.

Funny you should ask.

We are in the process of starting one. It probably won't be implimented until around Labor Day, but I'm hopefull. When it gets implimented, I'll make an announcement here. We want customers to be able to sign up online.

WooHoo. I can't wait. Thanks!

I have been introduced to tons of great deals from Arrowine's email list and I was wondering if there are other good local/national wine email lists to subscribe to?

Here in the provinces, a dauphin, when not a tator tot, is a one-eyed king and, blind to the difference, demands "apres moi" standards from cafes. (Twain, Borges, HG Wells, The Sun King and the recent Palena thread all in one sentence of sixteen words--beat that Farci!).

I think my mind just exploded....

It's been about 5 yrs since I've participated in beer can chicken. Does anyone use a drip can for the beer seepage or do you just move the coals to the sides and let it drip?

I used a friend's gas grill and placed a throw-away aluminum tray to catch drippage. I also only turned on one set of the burners and placed the chicken on the other side of the grill so it would use indirect heat (preventing any burn). I cant wait to try this out on a charcoal grill...mmm

The results are in at Best Bets 2006

Did the beer-can chicken with some standard bbq rub and an amstel light can (was hoping to find something like Dale's Pale Ale, but couldn't) . It came out exceptionally well and everyone at my dinner party raved about it. So needless to say, I will be adding the beer can chicken to my small arsenal of recipes.

For those who have never done this, do not be intimidated (I was at first). It is VERY easy and delicious. Thanks for everyone's help!

Isn't calling tuna "sushi grade" nothing more than a salesman's pitch? My understanding is that the FDA/USDA/FCC/FTC/DHS/FBI etc do not have any grading process for calling something sushi grade. Kind of like manufacturers who pitch their products as being made with "space age technology." It's b.s. Buy the freshest fish you can, sushi grade or not.

I was actually told by the fishmonger at Whole Foods that they cannot label their tuna as "sushi grade" because it must be flash frozen within a specific amount of time after catching. Whole Foods labels their tuna as "fresh"....now whether or not it actually is.....

Oldies, but goodies.

Outstanding column today! Those stories make me appreciate everyone in the restaurant industry even moreso! Thanks!

So somehow I've got it in my mind that I'm going to try cooking Beer Can Chicken for the first time this weekend and would appreciate any and all advice/tips I could get. I've never done it before, but love beer and chicken, so I figure it's hard to go wrong....thanks

I've been a fan since they opened the Bethesda location many moons ago. The food is consistantly great for fast food, and blows away Chipotle and Baja Fresh in my opinion. Any other fans out there? Favorite burrito? I've been rotating between the Blackened Chicken Caesar and the Spicy Sunset lately....

Grew up with terrible home cooking by my parents (although my grandmothers were both good). I started eating most of my dinners out once I had the means, and developed a love for food of all kinds. Never really even attempted to cook anything that couldnt go in the microwave until I started dating my Fiance. Her father is a very good, self-taught cook, and after both commenting on how much he enjoys cooking, we decided to teach ourselves. We were beyond attrocious when we started out, and over 2 years later we have a few dishes I am proud to serve others, but still consider myself a beginner.

Iron City. (aka Iron Shitty or just plain Ahrn)

One of the nastiest brews around, but every time I'm back home in Pittsburgh I have to drink one.

I recently spotted single bottles of Iron City at the Whole Foods in Clarendon......

A previous "taco bell guilty pleasure" post inspired this:

While I do enjoy "good" beer, one of my guilty pleasures while traveling (in the States) is sampling the local or regional swill beer. This is beer that makes Miller Lite taste like a Guinness, and doesn't have the PBR "hipster" appeal. Of course its more the novelty of the whole thing, as I get the most pleasure out of finding those brews (1) whose name is inherently funny; (2) whose first gulp makes me look like I just drank a gallon of paint. Its interesting to me that a handful of crappy beers couldn't satisfy the whole nation, and beers like Old Style, Blatz, and Natty Bo still have their followers. Anybody else enjoy these regional crappy brews? What other lesser-known crap beers are out there?

Black Label, Olympia, Bohemian.....although these taste more like water than a gallon of paint....

I will be happy to rave incessantly to anyone who cares to listen about Buenos Aires. It is, perhaps, one of the finest cities on the planet that I have ever visited. It is a paradise for food lovers, particularly those on a budget and couldn't agree more that you'll dine in restaurants with all the panache of NY or DC for a mere pittance of a peso. Not to mention loads of mom and pop restaurants with delicious food that is not sourced from agribusiness. Pescaterians will do fine in Argentina. Vegetarians will have more trouble.

When the pound and euro started making Europe less affordable, I paid a visit to Buenos Aires as an alternative. Now, I keep going back and, except for urgent needs for English ale, I will be perfectly content on skipping Europe just to wine, dine and pass the time in beautiful Argentina. It is an amazing country.

Is knowing Spanish a prerequisite for enjoying a trip to Argentina? I unfortunately wasted 6 years of my life taking Latin.....

I am sick of the over-priced and mediocre quality tuna I have been getting from my local Whole Foods and want to pick up some GREAT quality tuna. Does anyone have any recent experience with picking any up from Blacksalt, Slavin, River Falls, etc? I am definately willing to travel within the greater DC area to pick up anything exceptional. Thanks

What took me so long to get to Palena and have a cheeseburger and Palena fries?! I should be punished for having procrastinated for so long. wow.