Tujague
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Mercury Traces Found in High Fructose Corn Syrup Studies
Tujague replied to goodeats's topic in News and Media
Did Jeremy Piven secretly fund this study? -
There is no 3-month rule; Sietsema has always said that he waits at least a month before doing an "official" visit for the review (though of course he fudges that with the preview reports in the Wednesday food section). I can't speak to his actual practices, or how that related to his review of PassionFish. But I do know that what's changed in recent years is that the Post magazine has a much shorter editorial lead time than it used to. That shorter gap between deadline and printing means that reviews which formerly didn't appear until at least 3 months after a place opened, now appear more rapidly; articles and other columns are somewhat more up-to-date with current events.
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Bob and I decided to do early dinner at the Capitol Hill Matchbox on Saturday; we got there about 5:45 and it was already slammed with people, but we were told a 20-25 wait, so we took our bingo ball and checked out some of the other Second Saturday specials while we waited. When we got back, 15-20 minutes later, we still had to wait another 15 minutes, and several parties--including us--refused a table near the front door subject to crowding and drafts. Instead, we wound up back by the pizza oven, by the staircase--a good spot to watch the cooking and the bar crowd without being jostled or shouting over others. Started with the mini-trio of two seared scallops, mini crab cakes, and sliders. The scallops were maybe cooked a few seconds long, but were still tasty and not rubbery--our favorite of the trio. Crab cakes were airy and had strong crab taste, but also a noticeable amount of filler--sort of odd. The sliders in this combo are served without buns but with gorgonzola and a small scattering of fried onions; they were a bit dry. Overall, flaws notwithstanding, a good choice of starter, and could make a good small entree as well. We stuck to pizza for this visit--a white prosciutto pie, thin crust with lots of cheese, garlic puree and kalamata olives. I was a bit surprised that the prosciutto is laid on the pizza after it's baked--the meat's flavor was a bit wan, and didn't add much to the much stronger taste of garlic and olive. The crust wasn't as crispy toward the middle as I like--indeed, slightly soggy--but still tasty. Better than the last pizza I had at Matchbox Chinatown, which I vaguely remember as having a much thicker crust. Rogue Stout rounded out the meal. Those criticisms are really minor points, they didn't sink the overall enjoyability of the meal, and everyone there performed admirably under busy conditions early in their tenure. In short, this is a very welcome addition to the Hill. It automatically jumps to the head of the bar/restaurant scene there simply for the design and atmosphere; the decent food and a mostly reasonable price are a bonus. It also looks like it will be popular with families and will be a neighborhood "go-to" place.
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Samphan Thai Cuisine, Eastern Market
Tujague replied to Tweaked's topic in Washington DC Restaurants and Dining
Bob and I went here the week before Thanksgiving and stuck with Thai standards (hell, the whole menu is Thai standards)--pad thai and Penang Chicken. Measured against most of the other Thai restaurants in the District, these were par for the course (tasty but unspectacular), and less sweet than just about anything Old Siam offers. With a dark paint job and some well-selected wall decorations, he space is a vast improvement over Hunan King, but the unprotected front door makes most of the seating vulnerable to drafts, and the lighting is not especially pleasant. I would be inclined to try it for take-out or lunch--certainly over Old Siam--but this isn't breaking any new ground. -
I wandered down to H St. from Lincoln Park today to try Taylor's for the first time, and got the 9th St. Italian sub. My experience was better than Sthich--the provolone didn't overwhelm anything but was only a mild undercurrent to the predominant flavors of the meat, and there was only a trace of vinegar. This was one damn fine sandwich, particularly the much-vaunted Sarcone's bread. I also ordered the fried risotto balls, which had a nice molten core of mozzarella and were virtually greaseless. They really didn't need the spicy marinara sauce served on the side, which made a nice little after-lunch tasting all on its own. I'm not clear if it's a homemade sauce, but it has a good kick to it. Got there just in time to beat the rush and was in and out in about ten minutes. Staff was friendly and appreciative. I'll be back.
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Seriously?? I had the most horrendous breakfast of my life at Marty's a few years back (how do you f*** up toast, fer chrissake?), and have wished for its demise for years. I figured it was too popular to go down, but this is good news, as far as I'm concerned. (Glad to hear about Le Pain Quotidien, too.)
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Belga Cafe on Barracks Row is serving daily brunch this month. Check with them if that also means that they open at their weekend brunch time (10 AM).
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I'll third that. My early meals there were okay to good, and I do like the atmosphere of the rear area (not the loud south dining room). But I've been increasingly disappointed in the food since, and I haven't been back since I had a horribly cloying curry dish there this past summer. I hope the Thai restaurant in the old Hunan King space--if that is indeed what's going in there--is an improvement.
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After being closed for a few years, this place is now known as Level One. I can't speak to the food here, but they served me the most gawdawful martini I've ever had in my life on Friday night. Bob and I had agreed to meet some friends at Cobalt for drinks, but we were surprised to find them sitting on the patio outside, so we ordered our usual Friday night happy hour vodka martinis. The waiter seemed barely of legal age, and terrified at that. It took a good twenty minutes to get two basic martinis, and they arrived served without olives or twist with two small jiggers of what didn't fit in the glass on the side. Everything seemed okay, so we clinked glasses, sipped--and said simultaneously, "This isn't vodka." We tasted the side jiggers--also not vodka. Our friends tasted the martinis and agreed, "That's not vodka." We got the waiter to take them back and said we didn't want them and to just take them off the bill (why wait another twenty minutes to get a lousy martini?). A bit later the manager came out to "apologize," said the bartender told her that they were all vodka and that he hadn't even added vermouth to them, offered again to get us new drinks, and then gave us a card for 10% off a future meal. The waiter came cowering back, stuttered out, "I apologize" (really, we weren't a scary group!), and handed us the bill: They had left the martinis on the tab, discounted by 40%, even though we hadn't drunk them. Paid cash, no tip, and fled--forever. Unbelievable.
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Bonair--Bob and I celebrated our tenth anniversary at CityZen on Thursday night, and your post echoes many of our feelings, particularly about the wonderful service. The food doesn't so much blow you away with big flavors but with the sheer elegance and skill of its execution. I also had the wonderful pork belly, and perhaps that ravioli was the best surprise of the evening (though I loved the fried microgreens on top as well). I opted for the sturgeon aiguillette, and while it was a firmer whitefish than I usually prefer, its relative dullness was offset by the bacon and potato mille feuille, baby beets, and apple garnish. Bob opted for an opener of gouda risotto, perfectly done, and a hearty, fall-like loin of venison with rye berries, collards, and venison sausage. He was so-so about his brown sugar savarin with pear for dessert, but I loved my "dreamsicle." And as Bonair notes, the amuses were delightful--I loved the mushroom; the custard with the red pepper sauce; and the deconstructed s'more (fyi, in the middle was a chocolate sorbet encased in ganache). What would I change? Maybe moving to the center of the room instead of in the quieter side area--nice for a romantic evening, but that banquette actually got kind of uncomfortable. And our Italian wine (name/vintage escapes me) started off nicely rustic, but got sort of boring as the meal went on. Our pre-dinner cocktails were well-made, but nothing special. But for what it's worth, it's good to know that even when gay couples are getting their rights taken away in California, we can still get the same anniversary perks at CityZen as everyone else!
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You're great with meat, Michael, but sometimes a guy just wants a nice tossed salad.
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Dining Near Eastern Market and Barracks Row
Tujague replied to MBK's topic in Washington DC Restaurants and Dining
One of the Hill newspapers reported recently that an "upscale" Japanese restaurant is going into the Hunan King space. -
Dining Near Eastern Market and Barracks Row
Tujague replied to MBK's topic in Washington DC Restaurants and Dining
I heard today that both the Bread and Chocolate and the Ben & Jerry's on Seventh St. SE near Eastern Market will be closing by mid-November. Certainly the former is no great loss, even if it did big weekend business. Does anyone know what might be taking its place? (I wonder if this is where the new location for Rockville's Cava might be, which Sietsema has reported is coming to the Hill.) And as far as B & J's goes, it would be great if Montmartre could expand into the space, maybe create more of a wine bar section or something. -
Stopped in here on Friday night for post-happy hour dinner, sat in the (very noisy) downstairs section. Bob had Negra Modelo, I opted for the rather sweet sangria, and the kitchen gave us a small tostada amuse, the ingredients of which I can't recall. The plantains stuffed with black beans were a nice enough appetizer, though the sweet plantain exterior drowned out what little flavor the filling had. Bob's arrachera tacos--three smallish soft tacos with a beef and vegetable filling struck me as bland, while I went for the pollo relleno with white mole--chicken stuffed with spinach, in a white chocolate-almond sauce. The chicken was sliced in five more or less bite-size pieces, and the sauce was overall quite mild, with just a hint of spice kick. Rice and beans were so-so, and small portions also. Service was fine overall, despite a large birthday gathering just behind us. But overall I found the food surprisingly flavorless and not a particularly good value. This place strikes me as maybe being an underachiever, with a menu that probably sounds better than it tastes--nothing bad, mind you, but just sort of head-scratchingly dull.
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Dining Near Eastern Market and Barracks Row
Tujague replied to MBK's topic in Washington DC Restaurants and Dining
Walking down Pennsylvania Ave SE today, I saw that Hunan King, the Chinese place next to the L'il Pub has closed. It was just okay, but it was still my go-to place for Chinese carry-out. Do any other Hill dwellers have any preferences among the other Chinese carry-out places on the Hill? -
Some interesting changes on the 2008 dining guide--a new 4-star restaurant, and another 4-star demoted. A few restaurants added even though they're in transitions. And at least one that Rocks will take exception to...
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Every time Bob's mother is in town, we try to find a different Filipino restaurant to take her to (she's an 88-yr.-old Filipina). Most of the places we've been to have been to have been mediocre at best but I saw a good notice of Lumpia, Pansit elsewhere so we decided to try it out on Saturday. It's in the Festival Center on Muddy Branch Road in Gaithersburg, just beyond the Grand Mart, and appears to have been a Japanese restaurant earlier (at least, that's what the low tables in the front window area suggests). A brief talk with the owner told us that she used to run a catering business, and opened the restaurant early this year; she seems to have an eye toward offering healthier versions of traditional dishes. Lumpia, Pansit does a weekday buffet ($6.95?) and a more extensive weekend buffet for $12.75, which includes nearly 20 different dishes. They also serve a regular a la carte menu on weekday evenings. While I'm hardly a Filipino food expert, I think this was the best that we have found in the DC area so far. The vegetarian pansit bihon and palabok, were both quite good, as were a chicken curry and escabeche (though in the latter, the fish was a bit dried out). The fresh lumpia were outstanding, as were the two fried versions. Two soups were offered, including a very tangy sinigang; I didn't try the turola. Since I got filled up on those items, I didn't have as much of the other, meatier items, though I enjoyed the bistek and kaldereta; the adobo chicken was a bit too salty (well, everything was). I was too full and not adventurous enough for the kare-kare, dinuguan, menudo, or the pinakbet (I've had it before and didn't care for it). For dessert they had a warm halo-halo, thick with coconut milk and laced with rice balls, jackfruit, and mango. They said this is an "afternoon halo halo," and the traditional icy version is an evening dish. Weirdly, it reminded me of the Norwegian rommegrot that I used to get back in Montana and Minnesota. Overall, it wasn't bad for a buffet, and while the atmosphere is nothing, the staff was nice. I would actually consider going back even without Bob's mom, which is not something I would otherwise say about the other Filipino places we've tried. (FYI, atbp. is Tagalog for etc.)
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Bob's mother Salve (88-yr-old Filipina) pronounced her dinner (clam chowder/crab royale) at RTC "excellent." In Salve World, NOTHING is ever excellent (she called Jaleo "crummy"), so you know it must've been good. Sis went for the scallops and loved them (maybe crab cakes elsewhere next week), the men pursued meat (12 oz. NY strip just the right size). Only oddity was omitting olives from my martini (yay for bar service otherwise!). A good evening. Thanks, Michael!
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Bob has family coming from Portland, OR, tonight. We talked about going to RTC this weekend, but then remembered that his sister really wants to get crab cakes while she's here. I know that Ray's serves crab royale and crab bisque, but does anyone know if they also serve crab cakes?
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Is anyone else as happy as I am that we will no longer have to share restaurant space with this asshat?
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Nice birthday dinner at RTC last night, first time there. Started with the Devilishy Good Eggs, which live up to their name (though we found the finely minced yolks messy to eat). Bob had the ribeye with horseradish cream, huge, perfect sear, lovely medium rare. I had the 10-oz. crab royale, which was excellent, but something I think I would enjoy more as an appetizer than as an entree--Bob's steak looked better and better throughout the meal. We were stuffed at the end, but they comped us a good-size piece of cheesecake as birthday dessert--dense, lightly lemony, not the best I've had but respectable. Excellent service, a nice light shiraz-cab blend complimented it all well. A good night. BTW, we did wind up stopping by Nicaro for drinks beforehand--all cocktails are $6 on Thursdays. We each had pisco sours, nice and lightly tart, made with a locally made pisco. Worth seeking out.
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Thanks, all. I forgot about Ceviche, so we'll probably go there, but may try Nicaro if the weather holds and we get there early enough.
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I'm taking my partner out to Ray's the Classics for his birthday, and looking forward to our visit there. But we were hoping to have cocktails before dinner, and the last I heard, RTC doesn't serve liquor at the bar. Can anyone recommend a place nearby with a nice atmosphere where we might grab a decent drink beforehand? Nicaro and Jackie's are the only places that come to mind, but they're farther away than I want.
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That's right; I think the headline pretty much says it, "Same Menu, New Location." FWIW, same star rating this year for Westend, Et Voila!, La Canela, 2941, Mio, and indebleu--reviews and ratings that went virtually ignored here. Just sayin'...
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Okay, the Capitol Hill HT is growing on me a bit--I'm managing to find some good deals there, though I still think that their average everyday prices are higher than Safeway (though at least they usually have non-green bananas). The staff is generally very friendly and helpful, though I've had a few weird glitches in my last couple of visits. Last week, the clerk rang up my groceries, and then suddenly abandoned her post before completing the transaction to guard a spill in the doorway, even though two other clerks without customers were standing right there--I had to beg them to finish it up. Then today, the clerk gave me the Thursday senior citizen discount without even asking to see my ID--which would have told her I'm a decade away from qualifying. I saved a dollar but I need a hug.