plunk

I'm looking for bar/lounge recommendations on or near the strip. I'm looking for two types of places. The first should be classy and elegant, but not overly hip and trendy. I'd like to drink a martini or a nice glass of wine at this place. The second should be old-school vegas, divey, cheesy, campy or some combination of these. I'd like to drink a beer or a rail drink here. Can anybody help me?

It's refreshing, not sweet

It's the extra dry treat

I cannot think of that song without thinking of sitting by the radio listening to Mets games years and years ago. I should add that Rheingold did have a brief rebirth in the late 80's early 90's. (Same jingle too!). Although I'm unsure about the nature of it's brewing or ownership at that time, I do remember putting down a good many six-packs while mowing the lawn each summer.

Rheingold and the Mets (and Bob Murphy on the radio) certainly go hand in hand. I used to pick some up on visits to NY, but haven't seen any in the last few years. Perhaps its finally over...

My wife and I enjoyed a very nice dinner at Viridian last night before catching "The Pillowman" at the Studio Theater. We both went with the $32 prix fixe, which is a great value. All told, we shared the chicken salad and mushroom/spinach lasagne for appetizers; the snapper and tuna for dinner; and the cheese plate and apple tatin for dessert. A glass of wine and a cup of coffee ticked the tab up to about $73 before tax and tip. It was well worth it.

I agree with jm chen that the flavors in nearly all the dishes were very bold. The jalapeño coriander sauce which accompanied the snapper was bright and fresh, but didn't overpower the fish (which had a delightful crispiness to the skin). And the slight sweetness of the raisin au poivre glaze with the tuna (seared just right to leave the center perfectly rare) was almost like a high-end, delicious bbq sauce. The tomato confit in the lasagna app made me wish it was summer.

We had excellent service, as well. Servers were polite, quick and knowledgable.

I have a Webber Genesis Silver and love it: sturdy construction; thick, solid grates; thermometer. My only complaint is that the front to back placement of the three burners (rather than side to side) can make indirect cooking a bit difficult in certain circumstances.

In our house, we say (well, OK, I say), "put the bags in the bag bag." One bag is the bag bag, and all the other bags go into the bag bag until it's full, then make a knot with the handles and drop it off at Whole Foods or Safeway.

And what do they do with it?

Does anybody know how the $32 Prix Fixe works? Is it a separate menu, or are you simply allowed to order off the full menu?

I am thinking we may do Capital Grill. Danny is right, there are many tables in th ebar area there. Or maybe the bar area at Ruth Chris. (I am still stuck on the steakhouse theme, apparently.) Luckily, the game is at 6:00 so I can be the first one in the door for restaurants that open at 5:30 and I can just steak out the bar before the Saturday night masses descend.

Indeed.

Specious argument. There are many residents who don't particularly care about schools, drug counselling, parking near the new stadium, the existing Eastern Market, the Georgetown Waterfront etc. whose tax dollars go to fund them.

Exactly. Are these public expenditures a "benefit" to DC? It depends on who you ask is all I'm saying.

Would DC benefit from a place like Reading Terminal Market (in Philadelphia) or Chelsea Market in NYC?

Of course, it depends on who in DC you are talking about and what you mean by "benefit." Would you propose that tax dollars be used to produce such a venue? If so, I don't think it would be a benefit to those residents who are forced to pay taxes but don't care about such a marketplace.

Eco-Friendly is Bev Eggleston's outfit--local, grass-fed, humanely raised meat, which is sold at the Dupont Circle farmer's market. As many restaurant menus do, I sometimes name the source of an ingredient I use, if it is special and significant to the outcome of the dish. In this case, the lamb was fresh, not frozen, and not shipped halfway around the world from Australia or New Zealand, as is much of the lamb that is available around here.

Thanks for the clarification.

Marinated French lentil salad with roasted red peppers, roasted beets, homemade chevre on a bed of frisee with lemon vinaigrette,

Charcoal grilled, spice rubbed Eco-Friendly lamb leg chops

Basmati rice

Braised kale

2005 Henry's Drive Pillar Box Red

What do you mean by "eco-friendly"? Is that just the brand name?

Personally, I'm not that sure my palate is cosmopolitan enough to discern a difference. Recently I made a beef ragu with a bottle of opened wine that had been sitting on the counter (corked, mind you) for a couple of weeks. It didn't taste so hot but I tossed it in the ragu and I thought the finished product was really good. So I'm inclined to agree with the article and not feel utter shame for stocking my pantry with the individual screw topped bottles of Glen Ellen.

I'm open to any and all ridicule

I agree: I'm not sure I could tell a difference, either. For what its worth, I've heard Alton Brown say that it is OK to cook with a wine you wouldn't normally drink.

Sounds good. What sort of prices are we looking at here? Also, is this sort of a neighborhoody, casual type place?

Can't we just be friends with all the animals?

I like this show. The thing that I like best is that he does not let politeness or political correctness invade his reviews. If he doesn't like something (like the rotted "mystery" meat breakfast in Morocco), he lets the viewer know it.

Am I crazy? Someone on chowhound posted that she thought the 40 minute wait on a Tuesday night for a 6 top was too long...In a 46 seat restaurant? Is she on crack or am I? See the thread here: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/380574

While I don't think a 40 minute wait is too long considering the circumstances the chowhounder describes, she specifically says that it was too long for her. It is all subjective.

The wanna-be economist in me agrees with JohnB on this one...

Don't get me wrong, I love the traditional corned beef and cabbage and boiled potatoes for my St. Patrick's Day dinner. But being that I've got some more time this year, I was hoping to make something a bit more elegant. Any suggestions?

hmm. I saw a "Throwdown" episode that involved barbequed ribs, but it took place in NJ, not Richmond. I don't think the guy's name was Buz, either (though he certainly looked like a "Buz").

Just to qualify my earlier post after reading some more discussion on kids in the Colorado kitchen string, I think an owner or manager of a restaurant does have every right to project their feelings on etiquette to other people. It is their place, their four walls, their customers, their food and their tables and chairs. They can require people to behave anyway they please while in their "home".

...but they cannot permit them to smoke (in D.C., anyway).

I don't like carraway seeds.

Not a fan of watermelon.

Up until a few months ago, I used to not like olives. Don't know how I "cured" myself. Perhaps I actually started eating quality olives, instead of the crappy kind that appears on frozen pizzas. Much like JPW's assertion above.

Admittedly, I have been turned off a bit by the door encounter at the PX. Through no fault of the employees, I do think there is a bit of awkwardness inherent in the whole "window in the door" thing. Plus, the fact that the prospective customer usually has to stand on the steps in a subordinate position to the host/hostess can create some natural discomfort. And when it is full, I have yet to figure out a way to pull off my retreat in an undorky fashion.

This doesn't keep me from going back, though. When you can get in - and get a seat at the bar - the PX is great.

Roasted deviled chicken thighs

Pan-fried Polenta cake

Vegetable melange (brocolli, corn, red peppers) w/ mustard-parmesan butter

Sounds great. How do you prepare these? I've got some thighs at home and I have not decided how I am going to cook them, yet.

Fired up the grill last night and set aflame the first couple of pounds of deckel.

Lesson Learned #1 - Do NOT attempt to fire up the charcoal grill when winds are blowing at 45 mph. Within seconds of lighting the chimney starter, I had charcoal embers flying all over my deck, backyard, and the neighbour's backyard. It's not fun grilling in the cold, especially when you're sitting there with a fire extinguisher hoping you won't set the house on fire.

Lesson Learned #2 - 45 mph winds GREATLY facilitate heat transfer, especially from my nice hot grill to the cold air outside. It was a bitch trying to keep the grill hot.

Lesson Learned #3 - Deckel is DELICIOUS when tossed straight on blazing hot natural hardwood charcoal. My steaks were about an inch thick but once the muscle fibres contracted, it got much thicker. I got a great sear on the outside while the inside stayed rare. The one mistake I made was not giving the steak enough time to come to room temperature so the first quarter inch was a little too medium for my taste.

Anyhow, at $6.99/lb, I think I've got a damn fine deal. This, along with skirt and hanger, will be my "go to" cut through the summer.

Assuming I don't burn down the house.

Just for clarification: you cooked it directly on the coals, with no grill/grate? Like some do with skirt steak?

I don't know if this is the right place or if I should just start a new thread but anyway....

How reliable are restaurant websites? These days I'm trying to pay attention to whether or not certain items are available on the menu before I choose restaurants and don't know how confident I feel about relying on the menus posted on web sites. If I make a bad choice it means not being able to eat at the restaurant at all

My wife and I ordered take out recently and used the restaurant's on line menu. Little did we know that the menu was 2 or 3 years old, and the prices of the dishes had increased about $2 from the prices reflected on the on line menu. Doesn't seem like much, but we ordered a bunch of different items to try, and the new prices added up to a lot more than we were expecting.