The Hersch

The French restaurant was Napoleon, or Napoleon's - I can't remember exactly. 

Hm...that doesn't ring a single bell. Perhaps there has been more than one French restaurant there. The place I'm thinking of would have been in the late 80s to early 90s (I think).

The earlier name for the Tucson Cantina was Tippy's which was part of the national chain when it opened.  I don't think the food changed at all when the name changed-it was never very good.  But Tippy's date to the late '60's or so.

Also, I may be wrong.  There was a liquor store at the corner of Connecticut and Calvert a few doors down from Arbaugh's.  There was another, I think, near where People's was on Connecticut where the street angles in next to where the Sheraton Park used to be (Wardman Park?).  Now that I think of it, was the one on the corner of Calvert called Sherry's or something like that?  I believe you're right about C/W being near where Pearson's is today although I can't exactly picture it.  Sorry for my confusion.

Very interesting. I had no idea that Tucson Cantina had been a Tippy's. Or that Tippy's was a national chain, for that matter. I thought it was a local chain. But yeah, Tucson Cantina was a long-running flop. As for Arbaugh's, I remember it being there but never ate there myself.

Sherry's Liquour was in the space now occupied by Chipotle on the northwest corner of Connecticut and Calvert until a few years ago--6 or 7 I think. They moved across Connecticut into a space facing Calvert Street, where they are still operating. I remember the layout of the old Calvert Woodley, up by Old Europe, but I can't for the life of me remember where it was exactly. Was it in a building torn down to make room for the newish building that once housed Germaine's? And does anyone miss Germaine's? (I'm trying to keep this on topic.) And wasn't there a pretty good little French restaurant further down the block, in what looked like an old, small house? What was that called?

Arbaugh's was a D. C. institution.  The original Calvert Woodley location was nearby also.  Across the street from Arbaugh's was Tippy's Taco House which had live music and later changed its name to something else.

The original Calvert Woodley was in Woodley Park? That is, the Wisconsin Ave. location near Old Europe was not the original? I didn't know that. When was this? And apparently Tippy's Taco in Woodley Park was before my time also. The name it changed to wouldn't be Tucson Cantina, would it? That's an institution I don't miss at all.

DC also had the Junkanoo and Trader Vic's while Bethesda had the Blue Hawaii-all with their own Pu Pu platters.

Does anyone actually miss Trader Vic's?

Dinner for 2 at Palena: $130.

Dinner for 2 at Le Paradou: $110.

Surely that can't be right. Neither restaurant's website shows prices, and of course Palena's website still shows the Winter 2003 menu, and I haven't had the pleasure yet of dining at Le Paradou, but isn't Le Paradou significantly more expensive than Palena?

Paru's.

Heading to Zola tonight.  My last meal there was great, but it has been awhile so I'm curious to know if anyone has recent experiences to report.  If not, I'll be sure to post afterward.

Well? I may be dining at Zola in a couple of weeks and would love your report.

Two collections (18 episodes each) of The French Chef with Julia Child are available on DVD. They're all from the color series. I wish they'd put out all of the French Chef programs, and also the Julia & Company and & More Company, on DVD. Hell, I'd even buy Dinner at Julia's. She was my hero.

Bistro Francais - The fries that come with the Chicken at Brunch are excellent

I was going to chime in with Bistro Français, but you beat me to it. Let me add, though, that the fries come with most of the choices at their excellent brunch, not just the chicken. They are particularly lovely with the Eggs Benedict or Eggs Norwegian, with all that hollandaise and runny egg yolk to dip them in.

several STILL SURVIVE:  Pizza Pantry on Walter Reed Drive in Arlington, Pizza Oven in Rockville near the Court House and Pizza Oven in the East Pines Shopping Center.  This is NOT great pizza, maybe not even good pizza.  But it was a taste that was unique to D. C. and I don't think anywhere else.  I haven't been to the three places mentioned above in about a year or so but my wife (who, like me, was born here) still makes annual pilgrames to Arlington to go to Pizza Pantry.  (Hmm...a pilgramage is due...)

Does Pizza Pantry still survive? I saw THIS saying it had closed, but it's still listed in many directories. I grew up a few blocks from this place, and it was one of two sources of carry-out in my childhood, usually when the parents were going out. The other was a place called the Oriental Carryout Kitchen, on the north side of Columbia Pike, west of Walter Reed. In retrospect, both were pretty dreadful. I have a certain nostalgia for the Pizza Pantry pizza, but it really wasn't very good. I mean, the crust was almost crumbly. The Oriental Carryout Kitchen was the typical American-Cantonese of the day: leaden egg-rolls, sticky-sweet Sweet and Sour Pork with lots of pineapple, fried rice. Actually, I'm feeling nostalgic for that too.

I still miss the original Le Gaulois on Pennsylvania Avenue. There was a time in the mid-70s when it was my favorite restaurant in the whole world. I ate at its reincarnation in Alexandria in the early to mid 90s and boy it wasn't the same.

  I'll always treasure the way the windex at Bistro d'Oc - as they wiped down the other table around us -- added a new layer of experience to their fine french food.

Well, I had dinner there on a Friday evening starting at 7:30, and they did the same thing.

I had never heard of it either until this summer when one of my customers showed up with 10 lbs. of this amazing corned beef

So, they sell their miracle corned beef (and their other goods) by the pound?

Their turkey club sandwich is actually quite good.

Their turkey breast sandwich, always available, was among the most reliable things they had. Real turkey, roasted in house, at a rock-bottom price. I always thought it was a better deal than the club sandwich, which replaced some of the turkey with an extra slice of bread. I'm casting this in the past tense only because it's been so long since I was there. These things may all still be true.

The Trio holds the undoubtedly questionable distinction of being the restaurant in which I have eaten far more times than any other. From the middle of 1981 to the end of 1992, I lived about a five-minute walk away (in three successive apartments), and would have dinner there when I didn't feel like cooking or going somewhere better, which typically ended up being somewhere between two and five times a month. I'd also go occasionally for weekend breakfasts or lunches. I figure I've probably eaten at the Trio at least 350 times, maybe 400 or more. I think the last time I was there, though, was 1994. I gather they've remodeled at least once since then. But is the menu much the same? Dinner comes with an "appetizer" of soup or juice, a main dish with two vegetables (one of which might be macaroni and cheese), a dessert of red jello or another choice such as rice pudding, and tea or coffee? A la carte choices, such as grilled pork chops or half a "golden" fried chicken come with salad and fries?

The Trio could never be mistaken for fine dining, but it used to be entirely possible to eat fairly well there. Things like pot roast, roast turkey, the aforementioned fried chicken--at amazingly low prices--were generally quite palatable. And they used to have some of the best fried onion rings in town. If you stayed away from the watery instant mashed potatoes and all forms of seafood (and the chicken liver dinner they sometimes had and I had the ill judgment to order once; I still see spots), you could do okay. Is it much the same now? Anyone been in the last decade?

There is plenty of smoked ham in Europe:

There is plenty of smoked ham in Europe, and a lot of it is superb. My remark about Virginia ham being smoked referred to the attempt to position it explicitly as an alternative to prosciutto di Parma.

Too bad it's in a terrible location.

I don't think it's in a terrible location. In fact, it's in a rather fine location, within walking distance of some of the most densely populated residential areas in the city, and also an easy walk from Woodley Park Metro and the Woodley Park megahotels. One indicator that the location isn't terrible is that the place has been in operation for decades, formerly as the Calvert Cafe (which was often referred to as Mama Ayesha's). They changed the name formally after Mama Ayesha died. It's certainly far older than many of the restaurants on the "Oldest Restaurants in the Area" list, although I can't find a founding year. I think it may go all the way back to the fifties, but I could be wrong.

for once an interesting article in the Wash Post food section.

Virginia Ham Story

Interesting article, but what are we to make of the central proposition--that "country ham" is equivalent to, or at least a competitive alternative to, prosciutto di Parma or jamon serrano? I'm skeptical of this claim. Don't get me wrong, I love country ham, and often eat it raw. As far as I recall I've never come across the year-old ham the article talks about (but am planning to visit the shop in Fulks Run soon, when I'm in the neighborhood). But it seems to me that country ham being so much saltier than the Italian and Spanish raw hams, and when aged longer the resulting loss of volume would concentrate the saltiness even further, it's unrealistic to suggest that it could be used interchangeably with them (and it's smoked into the bargain). I'm certainly looking forward to sampling Turner Ham House's wares, though.

I heard Chef Gillian Clark on NPR yesterday; I forget what show. She delivered a nice little essay about her work and about taking care of customers. My question is, does she really pronounce her first name with a hard G, as the person introducing her pronounced it? Just curious, as I never heard the name pronounced that way before.

I second the recommendation for this place. I used to have lunch there now and then when I worked nearby, and the food was always tasty, served by a friendly and cheerful staff that made you feel welcome even if you were the only Anglo in the place. But about the siesta: Oh brother, they give you such huge quantities of food you'll need one, even if you don't have a beer.

The Peruvian chicken place in the same strip, Super Chicken (I'm assuming it's still there) is kind of a dump, but the chicken is excellent, as is their salsa verde (although they charge you for extra).

Under $25 for dinner in Paris is very difficult; even under 25 euros is difficult. It might be doable at lunch, in ordinary neighborhood places that have a lunch menu. Some such places will feed you very well indeed for not very much. I remember, for example, having lunch a couple of years ago at a place called Brasserie Solférino on Boulevard St. Germain in the 7th--a very ordinary clattery corner joint. Their lunch special for the day was a beautifully cooked duck breast with a green peppercorn sauce, with pommes forestières and a quarter litre of red wine (and I think a little green salad), and as I recall the bill amounted to less than twenty dollars. And it was good. And then you might have a sandwich at a café for dinner, and with the money you saved that day, splurge on dinner the next.

A restaurant that has good bistrot food and should be a lot of fun for teenagers is Roger la Grenouille in the 6th (metro: Odeon). Inexpensive by Paris standards. Their version of the bistrot classic salad of warm potatoes and herring in oil (which I adore) was probably the best I ever had.

I live in Fairfax, where is this place? And how did you find it?

I've never been, and I don't know how Rocks found it, but you can see the address and read a review by Monica Bhide HERE.

My favorite braising cut of beef is probably brisket. Brown it well, remove from pot, sweat lots of chopped onion, add some chopped garlic, return meat to pan and simmer very slowly with some red wine, bay leaf, salt, pepper.

My current favorite braising cut of pork is belly, usually prepared much the same way. Lately I've been adding some thick slices of cotechino to the braise as well, and that really rocks.

I sometimes use celery and leeks. I usually avoid using carrots as aromatic braising vegetables because I find they add a sweetness that doesn't please me (although they may make an appearance in the finished dish, just cooked through).

My goulash is made in the traditional manner.

I think this is one thing that so far we all agree on. The meat in goulash is not traditionally browned. (Which makes it, in my definition, a stew rather than a braise or fricassee.)