mbalaver

Dinner last night was great, with the highlight being the deviled pickled eggs, topped with pickled onion and radish garnishes and sitting atop what looked like a large, thin, flat beet base (to keep the eggs from rolling). I don't know if I'll be able to appreciate a regular deviled egg again. We also enjoyed the chicken sausage with sauerkraut and grapes. For a main course, I had the skate wing, which was very good -- the flavor and texture reminded me of scallops --but it was a surprisingly substantial dish (I should have thought of that before starting with eggs and sausage). Given how full I was you'd think I'd have skipped dessert, but we couldn't resist trying the baked Alaska flambe, which was a sight to behold when set alight. I loved the flavor of the fiery liquor on the meringue, though I guess I'm not that into the really cold ice cream you need for the dessert. Our waiter was charming and efficient (for example, he was Johnny- on-the-spot with an offer for a glass of wine with my main course just as I was silently lamenting the end of my first glass), and another waiter who brought the baked Alaska offered to wait until my friend returned from the rest room to light it on fire. Speaking of wine, I wish they had more options for white wine by the glass. (I like red better but, as my grandmother would say, it doesn't like me, so I appreciate when there's more variety among the whites.) I was tempted to try the grilled salmon with lentils, because Central used to have a salmon and lentils dish where the lentils really shined. Maybe next time.

I haven't been to the tapas bar in a while, and I don't know whether they have cocktails (vs. wine), but Taberna del Alabardero is just a block from Farragut West.

Um, nevermind. Thanks for clearing that up! I'll go back to worrying about the election or something.

Thanks to you both! Man, Old Town has everything these days!

There was a mention in Todd Kliman's chat today about Fiola going tasting-menu only. I'd hoped it was a mistake, but their dinner menu now only shows 4 course (for $100) and 5 course (for $115) tasting menu options (plus a $35, three-course pre-theater option). When did this happen? I'm so disappointed. This has become my favorite restaurant in town. The food is outstanding and the service is both warm and professional. I've been there 9 or 10 times since it opened last year (though 3 of those times were jury-duty lunches at the bar), but I don't see me going there for dinner often in the future. (It's not just the cost -- though that's part of it. I also don't want to eat that much food.) Looking on the bright side, at least I can still go there for lunch or a bite at the bar (unlike, say Komi, which has become solely a special occasion place). It's funny how Fiola was initially billed as a (relatively) casual and affordable place. It was never either (except as compared to Maestro), but I thought it was well worth it; now, however, it seems to have swung even further away from what I thought was the chef's initial vision. Just to be clear: I'm not criticizing him for making this decision -- and I'm glad that the restaurant seems to be going strong. I'm just sad that I won't be able to enjoy dinner there very often anymore.

Does anyone know whether you can sample the olive oil? If not, where else in the area can you? I'm looking for a good, fruity olive oil to use in a chocolate dessert. The stuff up in my cabinet just won't work for that.

Tom Sietsema says it's opening on Sunday. @tomsietsema Tom Sietsema Mintwood Place finally opening in Adams Morgan 1/29. Look for frogs legs, snail hush puppies, cassoulet & skate on Cedric Maupillier's menu.

I've been really bummed out about the chainification of Woodley Park -- not that my neighborhood was chock-a-block with great restaurants before, but it seems to have gotten worse lately -- so am very happy at the opening of District Kitchen. My meal last night was really good. I started with the herbed ricotta, served with an enormous clove of roasted garlic and a few slices of grilled bread. My main course was fluke, about 4 thin pieces of seared fish stacked on top of each other and served with greens dressed with an Asian-style vinaigrette and gingered squash puree. It was a fairly light dish, and the components set each other off nicely. I also tasted my friend's "fusilli" small plate, which is described on the menu as "cincinnati style lamb chili, goat cheddar." It was rich and delicious, though I didn't really get the Cincinnati-style description (my parents live in SW Ohio, so I've had my share of Cincinnati chili), though to be fair I only had a bite. (It also didn't seem like fusilli to me, unless there's some sort of long, deconstructed fusilli that's less corkscrewy than I'm used to -- come to think of it, maybe that's what fresh fusilli looks like.) Putting aside the description, though, I could see coming here a lot for this bowl of pasta with a rich lamb ragu, particularly on a cold winter night. I was happy to see some unusual choices among the wines, and enjoyed the vermentino with my fish. My friend and I shared the chocolate pot du creme, which was very good, but even better was the chocolate shortbread alongside it. Service was friendly and efficient -- though given that it was a soft opening night the restaurant was pretty empty. (Thanks to the chef for posting about the discounted soft opening above.) I really like the casual atmosphere and menu, which are just want you want in a restaurant around the corner. And from the aesthetics department, I'm glad to say goodbye to that pink brick facade from the Jandara days. You can find the menu on Washingtonian's best bites blog (though it evidently will change often): http://www.washingtonian.com/blogarticles/restaurants/bestbites/22144.html

I've been so looking forward to this! is the soft opening open to all?

I've got a friend recovering from surgery who's not eating much herself, but would probably appreciate a meal provided that takes care of her husband and three kids without her having to lift a finger. They live in Potomac, and keep kosher. I would like to giver her a gift certificate to a restaurant that delivers. If I went with Takeout Taxi they'd have options, and they do handle Siena's restaurant so there would be at least one kosher choice. Just thought I'd check with you all to see if I'm missing something.

When I was a kid in NJ in the 60s and 70s we would sometimes have a simple crab meat salad, usually on saltines. My mother has no memory of this so maybe we would get it at a deli. I'm assuming it was just crab, mayo, maybe celery, maybe lemon. Any ideas?

Thanks all!

Does anyone have any recommendations for dinner for a crowd at the beach? We will be 10 to 14 people, including 4 kids (I realize 10 is only 1 more than the number of people my mother cooked for every day for more than 20 years, but it seems like a crowd to me), and the house is reasonably well equipped. The first night we always have manicotti (from a recipe in my mother's old McCall's Cooking School cookbook), 2 pans of which are in my freezer right now (the manicotti, not the book) -- there's nothing like having the first night's dinner already made when you arrive but for baking. We tend to do burgers, crab cakes, London broil, pizza, chicken (though that's challenging, since none of us are expert grillers and we usually use boneless skinless). I was thinking fajitas might work well. Any other thoughts? Some of us (including me) love fish, but not everyone will eat it (though maybe we can do hybrid pizza/fish night or something). If it matters, we'll be at Long Beach Island, NJ, my favorite place on earth (okay, Rome is a close second).

Any LBI folks out there? I'm heading there for a couple of weeks, and am wondering if there are any hidden gems of restaurants or markets I should know about (especially south of the causeway). We've been going there since the '60s, so I know the usual suspects, but wonder if there are places I don't know about (or new ones). We cook, mostly, so places to get good fish, meat, and produce are appreciated (the Acme is great for cold cuts and Tastykakes, but I think I was thwarted when I tried to buy lamb there last year). My brothers and sisters with small children could particularly benefit from good restaurant recommendations, since they have so many in-house babysitters at the beach. My sister liked a place called Sweet Vidalia last year, but she said it has closed.

I had lunch here yesterday. I had the crab cake sandwich hold the sandwich, and my friend had a salad with greens, quince vinaigrette, and "ham chips" or something like that (which appeared to be a thin piece of bacon, though I didn't taste it so don't know if it was something different). I enjoyed the crab cake well enough, though the portion was very small. (To be fair, if I hadn't skipped the roll on the crab cake sandwich it would have been more filling -- and it mightn't have been as obvious how small it was.) I liked the fries that came with it -- they were thin and slightly crispy and nicely seasoned. The salad looked more like a side than a main course, which was surprising because as far as I remember the price was in the $11 to $12 range, like the sandwiches. Given the common ownership with Tunnicliff's and Stoney's, I was surprised to read comments on yelp about how attractive and romantic the space is, but they did not exaggerate. It seems surprisingly swanky for the neighborhood. There's also a nice patio. The service was friendly and efficient despite being open such a short time. I work less than a mile away, in a restaurant dead zone, and was able to park easily on the street, so am glad this place is here. And I assume it will become the go-to place for pre-Arena Stage shows. At least at lunch, though, it will pay to ask the server questions about portion sizes to order well.

Was the lunch menu (and prices) the same as the dinner menu?

Does anyone know where I can buy a slice of good coconut cream pie? I have a friend with a birthday coming up who mentioned today that that's her all-time favorite dessert. I need to be able to buy by the slice -- if I buy her a pie she will kill me.

Yes, that's what I was talking about. It's tough leaving work before noon. Thanks for the info.

What time (or day) do you have to go for the LS lunch not to have a wait? A friend of mine and I have gone a couple of times and had to resort to Plan B because the wait at Eve was too long, which is a pain because our time is limited in the first place. (Fortunately, Plan B has been the lunch deal at The Majestic bar -- though I miss the crab cakes!)

There's a sectioned-off bar area, with maybe about a dozen bar stools and room for standing. It's actually, in my opinion, one of the best places around to go for drinks on a nice night, particularly on a Sunday night or early on another night before it gets packed (because it does get packed). I haven't been this spring, so things might have been rejiggered, but that's the way it's been set up for years.

When I was in Paris in 2008 I noticed Pauls all over the place, and that they were very busy, and gave me the impression of a Parisian version of Au Bon Pain. Our last morning we went early to one in St. Germain and ate pastries outside before the rest of the neighborhood woke up. We were kicking ourselves for making do with the hotel's not very good breakfast our previous mornings. I don't remember details about what I had, but my sister remembers she had a long pastry filled with chocolate and custard, and I have a photo of her looking at it with love.

Does anyone have any more recent thoughts on this place? There's one opening in Woodley Park, between Jandara and Debonair cleaners. (I don't know where I've been -- I walked through the neighborhood on Sunday and saw that, and that Sherry's is moving from Calvert to Connecticut, and the rug store is closing. I'd like to hope all these changes will lead to good new dining options, but we don't have a good track record on that front.)

You're making me wish I were in Dublin! One of my favorite restaurants there doesn't have an Irish menu -- it's Dunne and Crescenzi, on S. Frederick Street (just south of Trinity College and a couple of blocks east of Grafton St.). It's basically a wine bar, owned by an Irishwoman and her Italian husband. The menu is nothing novel these days when you can find some version of an Italian wine bar all over DC, but the ingredients are high quality, the menu is now pretty extensive, and the atmosphere is warm and convivial. (Once my family was standing outside on the sidewalk trying to decide how long it would take for a table to open up and a guy who might have been the manager came walking by and started dancing with my Mom. I won't soon forget that (or him -- he jumped into one of my photos and waved). And then he helped us get seated promptly.) It's also next door to my favorite place to stay (Trinity Lodge), so you can't beat that! They've expanded their city center restaurant since I first started going there shortly after it opened, and opened another location in Sandymount, and I hope they'll continue to do well despite the terrible financial situation in Ireland.

foodtrip -- Was that inspired by the recipe in the Washington Post a few weeks ago for orange chicken breasts with baby spinach? I've been meaning to try that.

Thanks -- it's funny, just before I saw your post my sister said "there's always Otto." We had time to kill before the event so went to Otto before rather than after, which was good because it was pretty empty before (at least in the bar), but when we tried to pop in sometime after 9 for dessert it was packed. (We settled for gelato at Grom.) We had 3 vegetable appetizers: caponatina, cauliflower, and white beans with soffritto (which reminded us of Thanksgiving stuffing), at the stand-up tables in the bar. It's a good option for those times you are just popping in for a quick bite. And presumably those tables turn over more quickly.