mr food

On 4/20/2016 at 10:45 AM, mr food said:

Any recent reports from the Petworth location? 

They called at 530 day of our reservation and said they were closed. We ended up at Fainting Goat which we enjoyed and recommend.

Had a lot of fun meals there. Not great cuisine but a great atmosphere. Another part of older DC closes. I'm feeling old.

Any recent reports from the Petworth location? 

I've lived in Silver Spring for a couple of years now but haven't been to Sergio's yet. How do you think they'd feel about a (usually pretty well behaved) 2-year-old diner?

It's a family place so I don't think there's any issue.

Sergios in the bottom of the Hilton on Colesville  is a nice, reasonable Italian choice. Corkage ok and they have upgraded their stemware.

To me, a good crabcake tastes like crab and not filler so I try to use as little binder as possible. I should add that a little bacon or turkey bacon grease in the skillet along with the butter adds a nice flavor.  I pair my cakes with cornbread also from a cast iron skillet. 

Old bay will overpower the sweet flavor of maryland crab if not used very judiciously. I would apply it afterwards. I use panko crumbs and cook the cakes in a cast iron skillet with a little butter. They also should be chilled for at least two hours before cooking.

Unfortunately, we're now at "maybe" .

Since Ferhat is waving corkage, both he and the staff should be tipped generously for the loss of revenue. He's giving us a gift; let's give him one in return.

beside not bringing anything on the list or cheap, that's a corkage commandment!

Plenty of room, and as Don always says, the price for them to join this special dinner is to join DR!

Unfortunately, they can't make it but I believe she joined, he doesn't do social media. As Ferhat is graciously waiving corkage, I'm eyeing a magnum of Sancerre and possibly a new world pinot.

ok, in and the Head Chef will accompany me thought she may be a bit late but given that it's a la carte, I don't think that will be a problem. I may see if another foodie couple wants to join us.

Might be able to make this. Corkage ok?

I find it hard to believe there are 100 better restaurants than Corduroy but it has been a while since I dined there. 

There's a new British police procedural-Prey-starting this Thursday on BBC-America at 10PM. WSJ review was favorable. We also enjoy Broadchurch.

Many of the hotel loyalty programs such as Marriott rewards and IHG now offer free wifi with membership and, if you have a smart phone, you can use the hot spot feature so not a deal breaker for moi. I generally don't bother with airplane wif as it's slow but I sense speeds will improve.

We enjoyed our dinner the other night. Allen (sp) and his partner whose name I did not catch were friendly, informed servers and decanted the 1er cru burg I brought in. The wine list markups varied from reasonable to absurd and wines btg could benefit from more choices.  We tried the hyped chicken which generally lived up to its billing, my wife thought it over sauced. The cassoulet was good but this is a dish that benefits greatly from a long, slow cooking time. The blue catfish bouillabaisse was ok, fresh seafood but not much pizzazz with the broth.  The starters of duck egg beignet and the fritter were both good. My wife liked the socca salad, no comment from me as I'm not a beet fan. Desserts of key lime pie and the sticky toffee pudding were very flavorful and quickly consumed. My only real complaint was the service of the good bread in a paper bag, whose idea was this??   Noise level pretty high as it was almost full and the fairly spare decor only increases the volume level...sigh. That said, I will look forward to a return visit. 

Glad to see Ferhat is back and we'll be down soon!

There tomorrow tonight for a birthday celebration with our niece. How's the wine list and what's corkage?

1.  Uncomfortable chairs.  Boo hoo, maybe the restaurant doesn't want people to loiter for hours because the chairs are too comfortable.  As far as I'm concerned, if the food is good, I can eat it in a box or with a fox.

Disagree, how can you enjoy anything if you're uncomfortable??

I prefer Bombay Club over Rasika but the two local places near me-Jewel of India and Tiffin-are quite good as well, Jewel better overall, IMO. 

Yes, that's a big word to use at a BBQ joint.

Speaking of cutlets, TJ's eggplant cutlets are a staple for us.

Always a post Warner concert stop for more booze, salty popcorn and an entertaining atmosphere.

a favorite actor of mine. RIP

According to the WSJ, Tuesday is the best day to book air travel. The article is behind a pay wall so I can't post it.