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RWBooneJr

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Everything posted by RWBooneJr

  1. RWBooneJr
    The placement of Google ads is a function of both the content of the website and what YOU search for. I won't speculate as to the latter, but my current ads include furniture stores (I'm looking for a coffee table), AmEx (I paid my bill recently), Cheerios (no idea), and fashion websites (I just built one that aggregates fashion blogs).
  2. RWBooneJr
    The only way this sandwich could be worse for you would be if they served it with a cigarette on the side.
  3. RWBooneJr
    This part of town (Midtown, to locals "of a certain age") is the epicenter of the workday lunch in DC. It would be hard for someone looking to open a quick serve "concept" to overlook, with Greek Deli, Chipotle, Chopt, and Sweetgreen all commanding long, out-the-door lines from 11:45 to 1:15. As for GRK, the sandwiches are good, though they practically cry out for more vegetables and none are available. I had a pork "yeero" with the traditional tzatziki and really missed the ubiquitous cucumber/tomato/onion mix. It could have used a bit more sauce, too. As for the pita, I can't say whether it's house made, but it's certainly not in the puffy Zaytinya football vein. It's flat and wrapped around the meat, rather than the meat being stuffed inside.
  4. RWBooneJr
    I had the worst service I can recall at Asian Kitchen about six months ago. There were no obvious signs of respiratory distress, so I assume our server was good at breathing, but he was really bad at just about everything else. Although we were one of only two tables on a Saturday night, the only way we were ever able to get any drinks or food delivered was to flag down another waitress and ask her. Even this approach was only partially successful, and we would only receive a part of the order each time. It took about six attempts to flag down someone -- anyone -- and about three hours to get everyone at the table food. We were there for a birthday party and the whole ordeal was so bad that the guest of honor eventually left a $100 bill to cover his $40-$50 tab and walked out on the rest of the party. The food was actually OK (typical "strip mall" sushi), but I can't imagine that any of the twelve people I was with would ever set foot in Asian Kitchen again.
  5. RWBooneJr
    This is interesting.
  6. RWBooneJr
    While I'm sure that smartphones have changed the dynamic in restaurants considerably, I would be shocked to learn that this is anything other than a hoax.
  7. RWBooneJr
    That is correct. We are in the process of transitioning the ads and they've temporarily rolled over to Google. Google gives you what you appear to like. I get a lot of Nats ads. Very few (actually none) about Chinese women. If any restaurateurs out there want to take advantage, I'll make you a deal! ;-)
  8. RWBooneJr
    Green Pig is across the street from my apartment. I stepped in last night just to make a reservation for some guests coming to town. Andrew, the bar manager/cocktail guru/ultimate Nationals fan, greeted me with a beer. Their bacon cheeseburger (which has bacon in it, rather than on it) is also the best burger available in the DC Metro area (the regular cheeseburger is just OK). Unfortunately, in my short time there, the Cubs scored three runs, sealing the Nat's fate. I was, therefore, deemed unlucky and politely asked not to return during future games.
  9. RWBooneJr
    Quite the opposite. Time (i.e. waiting in line or spending hours trying to get a reservation through normal means) is the only thing that equalizes us all. Everybody gets 24 hours in a day. In fact, the "cost" of securing a table under the current system is comparatively less for a low income earner than a high income one, to the extent that the latter (at least theoretically) foregoes more income for the same commitment of time. That comports more with my notion of "fairness" than Cowen's, though that's a political view. I merely stated that the inevitable result of the current "climate" is a secondary market for reservations or restaurants charging for tables according to demand. The restaurants have the power to either accept or reject this development. I hope they resist, but it's all on them.
  10. RWBooneJr
    The essential point remains: how a person views the selling of restaurant reservations boils down to what that person might see as "fair," which is inexorably intertwined with his or her political views. In any event, it would seem to be impossible to stop a secondary market for restaurant reservations from developing unless the restaurants themselves step in and either: (1) police it, by checking IDs against reservations or some similar measure; or (2) obviate it, by themselves charging a fee equal to demand. This brings up a related point: the reason there are consistently long waits for tables at restaurants like Rose's Luxury is that they aren't charging enough. Those situations tend to correct themselves over time as either perceived quality* declines or prices go up. So, what we're really talking about are new, "hot" restaurants that haven't hit their equilibrium yet or a very small number of tables at prime times on weekends where demand across the city is at its peak. *Part of this perception is the restaurant's "buzz," which in almost all cases declines over time.
  11. RWBooneJr
    I'm thinking his appearance on the panel has more to do with his other job as one of the foremost (or at least most famous) libertarian economists. I agree with his point about weighing other "costs" associated with hard to come by reservations, but not his "money as democracy" philosophy. I suspect that a system which guarantees wealthier people more access (based on greater ability to pay) wouldn't comport with most peoples' idea of "democracy."
  12. RWBooneJr
    Yes. The general sales tax in Northern Virginia is 6% (4.3% state, 1% local, .7% transportation). Fairfax City (but not Fairfax County), Arlington, and Alexandria also add a 4% meals tax.
  13. RWBooneJr
    The June 2014 issue is this year's Cheap Eats. It's not yet online.Kliman reviewed Trapezaria in the May issue. He gave it 2.5 stars.
  14. RWBooneJr
    The Crystal City location of Jaleo is listed in Italic, though the review isn't linked. I'm annoying.
  15. RWBooneJr
    I don't understand this. Why would you downgrade every location based on the decision of one, on a single occasion (as far as we know), to offer a more generous portion? In any event, I've always assumed that "Bon Chon" was more of a licensing arrangement than a franchise. The various outlets pay for the use of the name, logo, and recipes, but there's not a uniform distributor from which they all must buy and each operator is therefore given some leeway with the final product.
  16. RWBooneJr
    The outrage (or whatever you'd like to call it) aimed at popular restaurants that don't take reservations is basically of the same species as the resentment of the "popular" kids in high school. People don't like to feel left out. Rose's Luxury is "inaccessible" only to those who choose not to wait for a table. Corduroy is inaccessible to anyone who is in a wheelchair or otherwise can't climb a flight of stairs, yet nobody here complains.
  17. RWBooneJr
    No, it's a totally separate restaurant inside of Range. Oddly, it even has a different draft beer list than the bar you pass on the way in.
  18. RWBooneJr
    NYDiningGuide now has a News Feed! Although based on the same rssFood feed many of you read here, the site provides more complete summaries of each article, with a few of our own stories thrown in for good measure. We think it provides the most comprehensive look at all the day's food news from the nation's culinary capital. If you'd like to keep up with the ins and outs of New York's culinary scene, we hope you give it a look. For even more, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
  19. RWBooneJr
    DCDiningGuide's new intern, Ashlyn Frassinelli, started this week and will be running the website's News Feed this summer. Ashlyn is a journalism major in the class of 2016 at George Washington University. Our prior intern, Kathryn Chou is now running the brand new News Feed on NYDiningGuide.com. Kathryn is a New York native and is off to a great start. Ashlyn and Kathryn were both selected as the best among a large group of applicants for the position, which was quite a long process. Accordingly, we're already beginning our fall planning. If you know of any qualified applicants that might be interested, please have them forward a cover letter and resume to admin@dcdiningguide.com. We're looking for applicants for both the DC and NY positions. Ideally, applicants would be based in either city. However, because our interns work remotely, this is not an absolute requirement.
  20. RWBooneJr
    This is correct.
  21. RWBooneJr
    It's only a matter of time before this becomes the wedding reception song that everyone just wishes would go away.
  22. RWBooneJr
    Alcohol Brand Ambassadors don't sell anything. In fact, because they work for the liquor companies, they typically can't sell anything.
  23. RWBooneJr
    Cityzen is remarkably convenient for the car driver. It has valet parking at the front door. People concerned with the cost of that parking are not exactly the restaurant's target demographic.
  24. RWBooneJr
    You know what's just as expensive as Le Diplomate and often not as good? Every single brasserie in Paris. Le Diplomate, and Parc in Philly from which it was cloned, absolutely nail this genre.
  25. RWBooneJr
    Just go. Make it be a night when you have nothing else to do. Week nights are better. Wait at a nearby bar. When you finally get a table order a bottle. Then order too much food. Talk to the staff, who are cool a sh*t. Why not another bottle? Don't analyze. Don't worry - for a change. Only then can you appreciate this place.
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