Heather

A beef patty, and Raspberry Ice Crystal Light.

Excellent, thanks! I'm assuming you have a bar - Mr Shorter doesn't do opera so I will be dining solo occasionally.

Thanks for the reminder. I have two subscriptions this year, so I will defintely check out Notte Bianchi. Is NB open late enough to stop by post-performance, say at 9:30-10?

OMG. The cravings have started again.

I have been dealing with recalcitrant school administration all day and could use a drink or 2.

I happened in June, because we had dinner at Corduroy on 6/18 and they had just switched to Breadline's breads as a result. There was an article about this in the Washington Post food section, with quotes from Mark Furstenberg and everything. And it did mention that all of their offerings are now outsourced, not just bread. I'll see if it's still linkable.

New in Slate Magazine: Why Is Ranch Dressing So Popular?

Is the bread still from Breadline? I liked it, but that was a couple of months ago. And I always buy unsalted butter, then salt my bread after buttering. Unsalted butter is fresher, and I like the crunch.

Pizza from CPK (I was at the mall to buy a baby gift and both kids wanted pizza ). Goat cheese, roasted red pepper & eggplant, and surprisingly good bacon. Just wish the sauce and crust weren't so sweet. With a San Pellegrino Aranciata.

I was surprised that the guy who wanted a pub in Silver Spring wasn't told to check out the Quarryhouse.

I would get the beet salad, the scallops, and the chocolate tart.

This is not entirely on topic, but I have two tickets for the Dodgers-Nationals game tonight (baseline box) I'm not using and would be happy to get rid of if anyone is interested. I am going, so would be happy to meet whoever wants them at RFK to hand them over. So (more on topic) if you've been looking for an excuse to try Sonoma or Belga this might be a opportunity to have a nice meal on the way to the ball game. Of course, if any DR.com folks are already going to be there I'd be happy to meet up at RFK for a beer before or during the game. And, I might be willing to go somewhere after the game - or even leave early if the Dodgers are getting spanked - to drown my sorrows. Probably BdC since it is a.) open late and b.) close to Metro.

Toasted everything bagel (from Bagel City), cream cheese, smoked wild salmon, slices of tomato and vidalia. Very bad coffee. Our coffeemaker poured water all over our counter and shorted out this morning. Might be time for a new one.

Busara in Tyson's had good Pad Thai, but it's been a few years since I've been there. My favorite is my homemade, but we order from Tara Asia sometimes..

Bill that looks delicious. Last night: Skirt steak and chicken breasts marinated in olive oil, lime juice ground cumin & coriander, chile powder and garlic. Grilled and served with hot tortillas. Avocado salsa. White and yellow corn on the cob with lime/chile butter. Tomato salad (7 varieties, very pretty) lightly dressed with olive oil, champagne vinegar, salt & pepper, and basil that Mrs B brought me on Saturday. Guests brought a chocolate cake, so we did not grill the peaches from the market.

Today at Dupont: Wheatland tomatoes (finally!) corn nectarines and peaches from Toigo struan bread from Atwater beets and Sungold tomatoes from New Morning The peaches will be halved, grilled, and filled with a small scoop of apricot/ginger goat cheese from Fire Fly farms. Mmm.

Nope. Just curious.

Yum. I'm eating a couple of squares of dark chocolate (72%) and drinking wine. Just what I needed.

Isn't everyone going to sit in the rain at Wolf Trap tonight?

I might give Dino a try tonight. As early as possible.

Rock on!

Yes, it was fun and a big thanks to Michael, and his staff. They have a good thing going, 90 minute time limit and all. They will be seeing a lot of us once they're open in Silver Spring.

This is the kind of place everyone wants in their neighborhood. Seriously good food in an unstuffy atmosphere, with an owner that clearly cares about what he's doing. We started with a little seafood sampler on the house: grilled calamari stuffed with clams casino, seared (Cajun?) scallop, and shrimp diablo. Apps were a green salad for Scott and a little cup of onion soup for me. The onion soup was beefy, rich and not overly cheesy. Scott had onglet, I had the "House Special" strip with mushroom sauce and blue cheese. Both were seriously good meat, mine cooked medium rare as requested. Next time I will order my steak naked because while the sauce and cheese were good, they were definitely gilding the lily. Scott thought his onglet was a little to the rare side but we agreed that under- is better than overcooked. We drank the '01 Beaune-Cote du Roi with dinner. Total including wine tax and tip was $160 - a serious bargain considering the wine alone was $65. Service was friendly and personable, the key lime pie kicks ass, and it was nice to chat with Mr Landrum a bit as we were leaving. It was a dinner worth crossing the river for and we'll be back.

Benjarong used to be one of the better Thai restaurants in MoCo, not as good as Ruan Thai or Dusit in Wheaton but better than Tara Thai or Tara Asia. Judging by our meal last weekend, they have slipped badly. What I prize in Thai cuisine is the exquisite balance of hot, sour, salty and sweet - the initial palate explosion of fresh herbs and chilies, with the preserved spices and flavorings providing a bass note to round and deepen the flavors. There was none of that happening at Benjarong. These are standard dishes for us and how we judge an unfamiliar place: Tom Yam Goong was a thin broth with a multitude of button mushrooms, cilantro, and two overcooked tasteless shrimp. There was no discernable flavor other than dried chili: no citrus, lemongrass, lime leaf, or even fish sauce. Pad Thai was overly sweet and loaded with bean curd and tasteless shreds of egg, with no discernable peanut flavor and no citrus to squeeze on top. I am hardly an expert Thai chef but my pad thai is 100 times better than that. Pad Prik King Muu is one of our benchmark dishes - a spicy dry curry of pork and green beans, aromatic with wild lime leaf, green peppercorns and holy basil. Benjarong's version disappointed in every way. Tough morsels of pork with undercooked, unpleasantly chewy green beans in a soupy sauce tasting of nothing but chili. The kid's order of chicken with vegetables in oyster sauce was a thin soupy mix of baby corn, cabbage, and tough tasteless carrot slices with a few chicken pieces mixed in. One scant cup of cooked rice was provided with each entree.

Sigh. Trying unsuccesfully to get through to confirm our res for tomorrow night.