Rieux

How horrible would it be to try to get a table for 5 people on Saturday? Do they even have 5/6 tops?

Those are patacones/tostones, for sure. Mi Cuba Cafe?

Thanks so much! This is very helpful! There is so much to see that it seems that any trip involves a number of hard choices.

Here is a question - my partner and I are going to Japan for 2.5 weeks in May, just after Golden Week. We arrive to Osaka and fly out of Tokyo. We've got about a week to do Kyoto, Hiroshima, Miyajima, and any other central/southern location, then we head to Tokyo for a week (we have a free apartment to stay in, so figure we will spend the weekend, and then take day trips, or maybe one overnight from Tokyo North.) Any suggestions on must-see places outside the norm (the places above, Fuji, Nara)? Especially interested in great gardens, tea houses, and food!

"As Chair of the Food Policy Council, Spike Mendelsohn Will Spearhead Efforts To Promote The Food Economy" on popville.com Seriously?!

I went to the old location once. Like DanielK, we were squashed 4 to a small table, the food all arrived in 15 minutes (and it was not really that good, some was cold), and there was zero service. I don't plan on going back.

I also like Catocin Creek (which is local). It is subtle, with a slightly sweet undertone.

One of my favorites. Especially in a rye old fashioned

"A Phillippine Restaurant Will Fill The Shuttered Tonic Space In Mount Pleasant" by Holley Simmons on washingtonpost.com Chef is from Citronelle?! Also looks like they ditched the Australian part of the menu in favor of American.

Seventh Street Pizza?

Mi Cuba cafe?

Where is this thing about an argument coming from? No one mentioned an argument.

Our waiter said it was the President, but maybe it was just Michelle.

Wonderful dinner last night (although a little less wonderful than my first time there, mainly because I loved 95% of the menu options the first time, and only about 80% this time). What was really cool, though, is that President Obama was there with a large group. 4 of us ordered all the small plates, and the brisket, a bottle of wine + 3 additional glasses, and 1 dessert and we got out for $77 per person. I cannot think of a better value for money in this city. I can go to a mediocre place on 14th (Etto, I am looking at you) and spend the same. Service was a little off (our server had just started a month ago, and it showed), but all in all a lovely dinner. Best dishes of the night (besides dessert) were the brisket, the smoked ricotta "gnocchi" (which were much more pierogi-ish), the Rose's spicy chicken, the grilled avocado (which I am totally making at home), and the pork leechee salad, as usual. Misses for me were the tofu with spicy fish broth (wayyyy too fishy for me, but others loved it), and the pasta with lemon caper butter and duck egg, which was just boring. Also, I am obsessed with the pea cake dessert here. I would love to get my hands on the recipe somehow.

We had Windows cater our wedding, with many foods from all over the world, and they were fantastic. I was surprised by their low score, so I think the test was not super accurate.

We did and it was lovely, if expensive. The restaurant there was also very good.

According to the ANC, the new Purple Patch place is going to be Filipino/Australian food (the owners are from those two countries). If this is done well, it could be VERY cool.

I'd Google around to see if Yotam Ottolenghi or Sammi Taimmi have published any articles about their favorite places.

This is interesting. I probably was exaggerating when I was saying I felt guilty, but I was questioning things. We decided to sign up for a few weeks to see what we think. We did not get it this week, and we resorted to take out one night already

Goodall's out, Purple Patch in at the old Mt. P Tonic space.

So, I am conflicted. Here is the tale: my husband has a friend who was raving about Hello Fresh, a service that delivers you precise amounts of ingredients for three meals for 2 people once a week for $69. The friend had a coupon so we could try it for free, and husband wanted to try it out. He approached me with trepidation, as I do all the grocery shopping and cooking, and really enjoy sitting down on Saturdays to go through my cookbooks and plan meals for the week. I am also a good cook, who is adventurous. (That said, I usually make a big to-do dinner on Sunday, plan on something else for another weeknight, and, because there are nights I am too tired/late from work, we end up ordering 1-2 times a week.) We probably spend $50-70 a week on take out/delivery. At first I was horrified as I thought this would be a lowest-common-denominator thing, with sysco foods, and recipes geared toward midwestern unadventurous housewives. But, I figured it was free, and why not. We got a box delivered on Tuesday with the makings for three meals - a shrimp cake with arugula, chicken tostadas, and, because it was super bowl week, a southwestern meat chili. Everything came in a Styrofoam cooler, and was waiting at home fresh. Each meal had the component ingredients in a bag, and the proteins were individually sealed. For example, for the tostadas the bag had four tortillas, a can of kidney beans, organic raw chicken breasts, individual portions of the spices, peeled garlic, an avocado, a tomato, etc. Each meal was supposedly between 400-700 calories per person. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of all the ingredients (except the tomato, but they all suck at this time of year). The box also came with recipe cards with photos for each meal. We cooked all three during the following 7 days, and I have to say I kind of liked it. For those nights I would have foraged in the cupboard or ordered Thai it was nice to know that there was something already decided to cook, and that I didn't have to go to the store. I also liked that everything was portioned, i.e. we got exactly as much cilantro as we needed, etc. so there was less waste than if I had gone to the grocery store and bought a whole bunch of cilantro/celery/sour cream. I think the box really got me to cook rather than order out. The recipes were not basic, but not challenging, which was kind of perfect for a weeknight, and, while the chili was a little bland, I was able to doctor it up with some spices I had. For the tostadas, again, you actually cooked. You poached the breasts in broth, baked the tortillas crispy, made an avocado, tomato, garlic salsa, cooked the beans in bloomed spices and mashed them, and assembled everything with a dollop of sour cream on top. I guess I am seeking absolution.... What do people think? Is there a place for these kind of services in the home of good cooks, who like to shop, etc? Am I going to foodie hell if I sign up for this once a week for a while? I mean, I can still make interesting/fancy/more difficult dinners on weekends, and I think it is actually saving me money over my usual grocery bill. Should I feel guilty given that with some more planning and more strategic shopping I could try to achieve the same results (but would inevitably end up with waste of ingredients?) Let's get a discussion going here....

We went to Venice two years ago and followed Dean's recommendations. They were all fabulous. Loved Ala Frasca and Anice Stellato. Also, a climb up the old clocktower on St. Mark's is pretty fun (with great views of the Cathedral, as is a wander around the cemetery on the island in the lagoon.

Risen!

Re-reading these posts now, I have to apologize for some typos and a place where its became it's (I hate bad grammar). I was typing all these on my iPad, and autocorrect and fat fingers made me make some errors!

I went to Istria (and Rovinij) for a while this summer. Write up here: http://www.donrockwell.com/index.php?/topic/40272-istria-and-slovenia/ If you have time, exploring Istria is wonderful. We stayed in a restored farmhouse from Air BnB near Grojznan. Some wonderful food to be found around there. Rovinij was nice (although it rained a lot while we were there) but you don't need more than an hour or two there, especially after being in Venice. I do recommend Brijuni if your mother is active and likes to walk or bike.