FranklinDubya

It's never crowded when I go - but Sen Khao and Laowhich seem to consistently have people eating in line at both lunch and dinner.

On 11/23/2019 at 6:23 PM, Ericandblueboy said:

This place will be a winner, similar to Rose's Luxury.  Great, seemingly creative food that's really not, served at hipster prices for those who have disposable income, who rather stay in the city instead of venturing out into the burbs for authentic food.

Eric I thought this review was shockingly positive for this kind of place from you until this line 🤣.  The pork steak description did surprise me during the menu preview for the exact reason you said - even by the chef's admission you can get the same thing at Eden Center - they just use a more expensive cut here (but it doesn't sound like it tasted particularly better).

I feel like Federalist Pig does a really good job - they're just super limited by only having a gas smoker.  The beef short ribs they do on Thursdays are nice (if a bit pricey).

On 10/18/2019 at 7:37 PM, KMango said:

Any recent reports?  I'll be heading there in the near future and welcome any highlights.

If anything I feel like Centrolina get's slightly better every time I go.  I've yet to try any of the "mains" just because I tend to fill up on apps and then a pasta.  Photos from last time I went - in particular I was a huge fan of the squid  ink tuna sausage pasta:

Elle should 1000% be Bib Gourmand.  Sfoglina still being on BG seems ridiculous (I'm hard pressed as to how you'd eat there and be full even without wine for under $80 which is well over the BG limit).

On 6/15/2019 at 5:06 PM, DonRocks said:

Just as a matching example, Bourbon Steak's Lobster Pot Pie was $68 over five-years ago, and it contained a single lobster.

Does Fiola / Fiola Mare's use a single lobster per order?  I remember the ravioli being pretty plump but didn't know if it was that amount in the whole dish.

On 6/13/2019 at 1:31 PM, Ericandblueboy said:

For Mother's Day, Fiola Mare offered a 3 course brunch for $75.  One of the entree options is the Lobster Ravioli, listed at $62.  I had to confirm that there's no supplement for ordering the Lobster Ravioli.  I can't see myself ever actually paying $62 for just the Lobster Ravioli.

Even as an extremely non-frugal person the pricing at the Trabocchi places always frustrate / baffle me.  I know lobster prices have gone up across the board but that still seems absurd.

Very recent review from Andy Hayler

As a side note I'd recommend checking out Andy's recent reviews from the DC area - these should probably go into the individual restaurant threads so I won't give a synopsis of them all, but on a relevant note here he gave Rasika a better score than Kinship which certainly runs counter to popular opinion on this board.

3 hours ago, Ericandblueboy said:

You can't search for availability based on time on Resy.  They'd show lunch openings when you're looking for dinner openings.  You also can't prioritize based on rating.  More importantly, I simply hate having to do multiple searches.  

At least on the Resy app you can sort by Lunch and then Early/Late/Prime for Dinner (maybe on non mobile they don't have this which would be crappy).  I agree on the multiple searches thing but it's gotten to the point where I feel like Resy has more of the places I want to eat overall and less of ones that I don't.  Often times now I just go the website of places I like then follow the reservations link to wherever it happens to take me (Kinship recently switched to Tock from OT, and Tail Up Goat recently switched to Resy from something random for instance).

*Getting a little off topic here but I vastly prefer Resy to OpenTable from a user experience standpoint plus it seems to be better for the restaurants themselves money wise AND the selection of restaurants is more curated than OpenTable.

I did a week-long trip to SF entirely for eating purposes with a focus on hitting a bunch of the notable tasting menus.  Ate at Manresa, Quince, Californios, and Benu.  Some general observations / thoughts as someone visiting from DC.

• The produce to me really stands out compared to the east coast.
• I felt like I better understand when people talk about a disparity between US versus Europe in terms of what Michelin stars mean because I definitely felt something similar just comparing SF to DC (and even a lot of the food I've had in NY).  All 3 of the 3 stars completely outclassed Inn at Little Washington and the two star (Californios) I thought was better than any of the DC tasting menus.
• I'm not sure I could've more thoroughly enjoyed myself.

All of those meals were very expensive - one thing I'd be interested to see if have some of the more wine knowledgeable people weight in on how much the wine pairings (which I did at every place listed above) is worth the value.  *As a non expert I thought they all featured some incredible wines but I certainly don't know enough to comment on value in this case.

I'm thinking of going to 2Amys for dinner tomorrow night (Saturday) for the first time and since a lot of y'all seem to have eaten here a lot I wanted to ask a few questions:

• It seems like almost everything is good but for a first time patron what would be the must orders?  *Seems like anchovies for sure from this thread, specials generally seem strong and I definitely want to try two pies.
• Does it make a difference sitting at the wine bar versus the main dining area?
• How long is the wait typically on a Saturday?  I'm thinking of going on the earlier side and maybe having a drink nearby while waiting. 

On 3/15/2019 at 3:15 PM, Keithstg said:

Fair enough. That said, I'd hope that the current staff could function well enough in his absence to produce consistent meals, if not ones to inspire the wild hyperbole upthread.

Also totally fair.  I haven't posted in this thread but I've had overall great experiences at Bresca but I will say the experience tends to be more of like 3 or 4 out of 5 dishes are great with 1/2 being underwhelming, but the highs for me have been superlative (the various foie dishes, duck a la presse, chestnut agnolotti on the original menu, beef tartarlets come to mind) which makes up for the lows (for me) especially since they're very creative.  However I'd definitely be a little more "whelmed" on the whole if the dud dishes were entrees, which is always unfortunate.

5 hours ago, Keithstg said:

Overall: Very nice and accommodating service. Well priced, interesting menu and great atmosphere. I found the food somewhat at odds with the glowing reviews above - there was a definite lack of finesse in the mains at odds with the nuance found in the small plates. Seems like better QC is needed.

Worth noting - head chef Ryan Ratino is currently off on a research trip in Japan which could certainly contribute to that. 

@Reedm

How much was the wine pairing?  I would never call myself an expert but those look nice to me (much better than the Inn's wine pairings at least).  The one thing that caught my eye on there was the Chateauneuf-du-Pape being third on there because if I follow correctly that means it would've been paired with the black bass course.  If that is correct I'd be interested in hearing what the Sommelier's reasoning was for that one (my guess is maybe it goes super well the harissa but not sure).

Anyway thank you for the super detailed post (again)!

I was about to write up a post but I realized I got the exact same order as Rovers ^ and had mostly the same opinion of everything.  I'd note that I thought the beef tartare with the oyster sauce was great but if you got too much of the black garlic sauce in a bite it overwhelmed everything else.  

The only difference was we got a burger to split after the amazing duck - we were starving going into dinner and both have big appetites so this was somehow feasible fullness wise.  This was the best burger I've had in a while - the beef patty is made from trimmings from the aged dairy cow ribeye used in their large format steak course so it had a ton of flavor on it's own, and it was really well balanced with the quality cheddar, miso brined pickles and whatever the special sauce was (was a little tipsy at this point).  The duck would be my most recommended item but I enjoyed everything I tasted minus the mushrooms which weren't bad but underwhelming.  Will add my Instagram post pictures once I have that ready.

On 2/14/2019 at 5:24 PM, Bob Wells said:

I'll say it's a good read. Sample: "Activities that may not pair well with Nashville hot chicken include a road trip, a long flight, a first date, work, sleep, and your wedding. First-timers have been advised to prepare for hot chicken by putting a roll of toilet paper in the freezer at home."

I ordered Prince's "Hot" level the first time I was in Nashville.  Personally thought it tasted amazing the level of euphoria I experienced from the heat was beyond anything I'd ever felt before... less enjoyable was the rest of the day, I went to a nice restaurant for dinner but didn't really get to enjoy it and was instead busy googling "foods that help with acid reflux".  It's worth it to me provided you are able to clear out a whole day.

Certainly interested in trying this place out (and ordering something around whatever medium is).

The tortilla price at $150 seems pretty insane to me - I guess partially because Uni is not something I'd wanna pay extra for even though I really like it in certain specific contexts.  I'd get it more if it came with a bunch of caviar but the online menu says paddlefish roe which is still tasty but hard to justify the price to me *as someone who tends to not overly care about most DC restaurant prices.

I do really wanna go and get the duck though as that's one of my favorite things to order.   Would like to see how it compares to Bresca's amazing Duck a la presse.

On 2/9/2019 at 4:14 PM, reedm said:

I chose the "Out of the Blue" seafood menu, while my wife opted for "The Good Earth" vegetarian selection, substituting a couple of vegetarian dishes for selections from the other menus. Each menu is $238.

Reedm : thank you for the super detailed post!   One question about the above - how many different menus did they have available?  On their website they show the "classics", gastronauts, and good earth menus but this is the first I've heard of the seafood menu.  *I'm headed here in two weeks and trying to get a lay of the menu situation since the online ones aren't updated regularly.

Went to Rice Paper last Thursday night for the first time and was really impressed with the duck curry soup special I got.  They actually had a number of duck dishes on special that evening which I would be interested in trying if they're available again.  We also got spring rolls which were good but I'm generally indifferent towards as an appetizer and then the "Imperial Autumn Roll" which on the menu is described as: "Crispy rice thread wrapper filled with marinated minced prawn, crab, taro, and yam combined with added spices and wrapped into rolls" which I really liked.  Next time I'd definitely like to try the quails which I saw come out and looked beautiful.

Last week I attended the special "Dairy Cow Dinner" Tail up Goat hosted where every course featured beef from dairy cow/cows from "Earth n Eats".  As with the other Tail up Goat event dinners I've been to this awesome, with the main featured giant steak brought out reminding me a Komi final meat course meets (meats) a high end steak house.  Was certainly stuffed by the end from the courses plus the wine pairings but no complaints on my end.  Pictures and further descriptions from my IG:

I'm happy it's moving to a better location.  I had a really good meal there this fall - not perfect but the best dishes I thought were truly excellent along with some other very good ones. The tuna crudo and the branzino were genuinely fantastic.  The interior though definitely felt a bit hotel-y and unbefitting of a lot of the creative cooking that's on the menu.  I'll be excited to see it in a new space - hopefully that plus the Michelin star will equate to it being more popular.

I think one of the (many) problems with Isabella Eatery was it was really poorly suited for lunch traffic since it operated more like a sitdown restaurant with moderately high prices.  Donburi I think will be appealing to people working nearby looking for an alternative to Sweetgreen, and hopefully the Thip Khao branch will be able to gain followers quickly after people try the food.  I work down the street for T1 and am way more inclined to go over to T2 for those two options alone than I ever was for Isabella Eatery even before the whole sexual harassment stuff came to light (after which I never went).

13 hours ago, DonRocks said:

I have no doubt that this $1.50 item is wonderful, but this just reiterates Michelin's "Lost in the Woods" posture when it comes to rating many Asian cuisines. By no means is this an insult to the restaurant (remember - I go to 2 Amys *all the time*, and could easily see them getting a star as well). If a kiosk made a consistenty amazing Chicken in Soy Sauce, and served it as their only dish? Well, why not? Well, Michelin's traditional standards is why not - I suspect Michelin hasn't "opened their eyes," so much as they're "just walking around, confused." Again, this is absolutely *not* a slam at the restaurant, whose chicken may be world-class and fantastic.

It also seems like an obvious headline grabber for a guide that was sponsored by a tourism board.  

***All in all I really like the Michelin Guide as a resource - I feel like for US cities I have a pretty clear guide of what their rankings do and don't mean, it does seem like it has varying levels of quality / consistency / meaning from area to area.