starfish

i popped into the bar at cashion's last night for a late evening snack and had a brief but delightful experience. i tucked myself into the corner of the rather crowded bar and started with a very deftly made manhattan. feeling peckish rather than full-on hungry, i had the sweetbreads. i hadn't read barbara's post that mentioned her unfortunate experience with this dish during her april visit. whether her sweetbreads were prepared on an "off-night", or mine were atypically good, i cannot say. but i can tell you that mine were superb. the sweetbreads were lightly fried with just a gently crispness to the crust, and were moist and delicious inside. they were served in a bowl with sauteed spinach, diced apples, and black currents. the flavor combination was a sublime balm for my pallatte. the bar staff, always the strength of the service team at cashion's imho, was professional, knowledgeable, and exceedingly freindly. thank you billy and george. in the interest of full disclosure, i should note that i have long been freinds with ann cashion, and many members of her delightful staff.

more shameless self-promotion... since there are a number of rockwellians stranded in the watergate, i would be happy to put together a "relief" luncheon some friday in the future. anybody interested?

notti bianche, and a bowl of chilled tomato soup with rock shrimp, pine nuts, and basil marscapone, is just around the corner from the watergate.

cafe americano, and one of the biscotti that we give away to people who walk by and read our menu board. breakfast of champions.

circle bistro's weekly wine tasting is on thursday's and is a very good time. the tasting s are led by either Brendan or Will Reintzel, the manager. morton's happy hour is a good time too, but if you have an allergy to self-important political discussions, you may want to avoid the place. i am pretty sure that the complimentary sandwhiches is a monday - friday promotion. i am partial to tuesday night's there with anthony and dino behind the bar. each does a damn fine job with a manhattan.

had not substituted basil for lettuce before today. i had that as a pre-shift snack, i made a few modifications though. grilled soprasota, sliced proscutto, heirloom tomatoes, and fried basil, and a thin layer of garlic agliata on toasted flat bread.

overly fried and overly salted oysters on a bed of ancient arugla, followed by a dried peice of tuna that was served rare - at least they got that part right. oddly it was paired with a poorly executed burre blanc and topped with a "sweet raisin chutney" which did nothing to compliment the flavors - what little there were. the plate was finished with truffled mash potatoes that had neither the hint of truffle or a single crystal of salt. had a meeting at a restaurant and someone orderd for me as i was running late. note to self - be more punctual.

as you all suspected these two were no older than 25. the great thing about experiences like that...ok there is no great thing. but, like, ok, wow, um, like, i have a great story to tell other managers when we all get together to wine and whine about our nights.

we do have a cozy little bar, and it usually is open a little longer than the dining room.

10:40 pm; saturday, restaurant week. phone rings. danny: good evening and thank you for calling notti bianche, this is danny, how may i help you? caller: we, um, have a 10:15 reservation, and we are, like, lost. can you, um, give us directions? danny: it would be my pleasure, where are you right now? caller: um, i don’t know? danny: ok, well what do you see around you? caller: um, there are like, um, big buildings on each corner danny: ok, well do you see any street signs? caller: um, oh yeah, um, 21st and m street. danny: great you are just a few blocks from us. are you on 21st or are you on m street? caller: um, i think we are like on m danny: that’s great, go straight and make the next you left that you can make. that should be 23rd street. you will pass a ritz carlton hotel on the left side of the street. caller: um, ok, um, like i see 23rd, we make a right? danny: no, you need to turn left. caller: oh, um, like we missed it. (repeat the last four minutes – four minutes of my life that i will never get back) danny: where are you right now? caller: um, like, we’re back at 22nd and m. danny: can you safely pull over? caller: um, like, yeah. danny: pull over. what kind of car are you driving? caller: a hyundai elantra danny: great, i will be driving a black convertible. i will be there in two minutes to guide you to notti bianche. caller: ok. danny: my pleasure, i will see you shortly. danny: (to assistant general manager) i will be back in 5 minutes with some lost guests. agm: ok. race to lost guest location. slow down, wave heartily to indicate that their personal sherpa has arrived. drive, slowly, back to notti bianche, lead lost guests to valet parking. leave car in driveway to meet lost guests at the door. meet guests at the door. danny: good evening. we’re happy that you found us. lost guest #1: um, like, yeah, where’s the bar? danny: just through this door, allow me to show you. lost guests #2: tell dude to take it easy on my brakes. danny: absolutely sir. five minutes elapse; guests are seated at the bar. no “thank you” has been offered from either lost guest #1 or lost guest #2. lg#2: (to our female bartender) dude, can i see the menu? bartender: here you are sir. lg#2: (to lg#1) this isn’t french! lg#1: no, this, is like, um spanish. lg#2: wanna go some place else? lg#1: like, yeah. lg#2: (to danny) can you have that dude bring my car back, we’re gonna go someplace else. danny: absolutely, sir. have a good night. lg#2: thanks, champ.

absolutely. currently our last seating is 9:45ish sunday through thursday, and 10:45ish friday and saturday. however, i am looking forward to extending each of those times by an hour once opera/symphony season starts in mid-september. i will, of course, announce the expanded hours here. by the by, if your show runs a little long, just give a call (202.298.8085). if there are still people arriving we have been known to keep the kitchen open a little longer than posted times. i hate letting people go hungry.

thank you to all of the rockwellians that made it over to notti bianche during restaurant week. your presence was a particularly bright spot in our lunch and dinner service. every restaurant professional exists at the pleasure of her/his guests, but it is with added enthusiasm that we serve the guest that has a more keen appreciation for the work that we do, the food that we serve, and the wine that we pour. thank you again and warm regards, danny

chef, i will add my voice to the chorus of thank you’s for taking the time to participate in this chat. the shallow talent pool of staff for the restaurant business in this city is a frequent refrain that is most loudly echoed by senior managers and chefs, and the general dining public as well. my question is three fold. 1. would you agree with the premise that this is a particularly difficult city in which to find qualified and passionate staff? 2. what tools do you use to source candidates, and besides visceral instinct by what measurements do you evaluate perspective employees? 3. would you agree with the concept of hiring more for character than qualification, as the later can be taught and the former must be innate? again, i thank you for your time.

could not agree with you more about bardeo. but i would add that i usually go late in service and have the cheese board and some wine, or just some wine at the bar. additionally bardeo, imho, has a more inviting, and sensual space than her big brother next door.

Tom Sietsema: Recently, I dined at a place where I wasn't sure I was known. The waiter blew it when he showed up with me wine a few minutes late and said, "We chilled it for you, sir." that was most likely notti bianche. what mr. seitsema failed to mention was that we chill all bottles of red wine before being served to bring them to the proper temperature. this raises an interesting point, however. i would guess that seitsema is recognized in most upscale and fine dining places. the first time i saw him (4 years ago) one of my servers brought it to my attention. i then made sure that everyone in the restaurant found a way to sneak a look. this has surely happened in so many places and given the high turnover of this business, his anominity is shot in my mind. i, for one, am tired of playing the "i know who you are but you don't want me to know" game. i wish i could simply introduce myself, welcome him to my restaurant, and give him a table. just as i would for any other person that i recognized but did not know.

For any procrastinators who may have waited too late to book a table at other Restaurant Week locations, Notti Bianche still has some tables available on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday night. We are on OpenTable. We are offering wine specials in addition to our RW menu. A few of the offerings… Turley White Coat, regular price $80/bottle, RW price $50 ZD Abacus, regular price $250/bottle, RW price $150 Chateu Yvonne Suamer Blanc, regular price $50/bottle, RW price $35 And more, might even be coaxed into breaking out some sine qua non as a RW Special. If you want to bring your own, as always, the $15 corkage fee is waived for any rockwellians.

the keys to the killer mojito: the quality of the mint made from scratch each time (pre-making any part of the drink is cheating and the taste will prove it) sugar or sugar cane - not simple syrup (the shaking of the the drink will melt the ice sufficiently, using simple syrup would add too much water) the mint to lime ratio, i would argue that you need two to three lime quarters, and 8-10 clean mint leaves - skip the stems, leaves just taste better. the propper muddling time - at least 60 seconds the propper shake - no lazy weak wristed wiggle, but a proper my-arms-will-be-tired if i keep this up shake by that definition not many places hit the mark. edited for spelling

while they do not use a cart, i recall that ardeo/bardeo has a cheese board that enables you to choose from 20 or so selections. i can't comment on the cheese service as the gm, whose name i never can remember, has always choosen a selection for my party and paired wines as well. i prefer bardeo to ardeo for it's more cozy ambience.

having a rough day/night at the restaurant. anyone up for a late cocktail tonight at ritz carlton? round about 10ish?

oh don't you miss the days about 10 years ago when tom tom was a decent place to grab a brick-oven pizza and a beer. alas, it has gone the way of the gum-chewing, baseball cap to the back college masses without even the pretense of serving good food. but that front ledge was the perfect people watching location. you could easily sit there for hours and stare at people without them knowing.

while i agree that it is an inconvenience for most people, it is sop for me to have desert in another location. the walk or cab ride acts as a digestive for me. i especially prefer walking, because it gives me opportunity to smoke a cigar without bothering anyone in the bar or dining room. but i willfully acknowledge and embrace my weirdness.

i looked at thier "how we pick 'em" link (http://www.fineliving.com/fine/favorite_things_selects/text/0,1663,FINE_8073_8336,00.html) and they claim to receive no financial benefit from the selected venues. restaurants are choosen by "speaking to experts and searching the Web, catalogs and magazines ". at least they don't claim to have actually visited the city in general or restaurants in specific. even with a lazy and obscurely located caveat, reading that list is about as painful as a month of mother's day brunches.

i have not been to la lomita in years. when i lived on the hill it was a regular haunt for me. i have particularly fond memories of sitting on thier deck and enjoying lomo saltado while sucking down a pitcher of very good magaritas. it was never the best food, but it was always good. the service was always extremely warm, and accomodating. thank you for reminding me of another restaurant that needs to get back on my radar screen.

FYI... while i am a big fan of our wine list, if you would like to bring in bottles, the corkage fee is waived for all rockwellians. when making your reservations please indicate that you will be bring bottles of wine and toasting "to rocks" so we know who you are. regards, danny boylen

cream suit w/ tie, will be the on the path to drunk, shaved head is another good identifier. may a suggest an 11pm toast "to rock" by the bar as the gang sign.