Jeff Heineman
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Everything posted by Jeff Heineman
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here is a half hour of Heston Blumenthal of the Fat Duck 'Perfecting " chili con carne. No doubt it tastes good and has the layers of flavor I think are the trademark of great chili, but there seems to be a few blasphemous things going on here. if you have a 1/2 hour, dig in. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xndw1x_in-search-of-perfection-s2e6-chili-con-carne_lifestyle#.UToduRyKKSo
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Also, I just wrote a menu for a Seifried wine dinner we are doing next Thursday. They are some really nice wines from New Zealand. I will not post the menu here so there is no confusion, so PM me, and i will send you the menu. It is a steel for $55 you get 6 wines and 4 courses of food. I think we only have 6 spaces left. Someone from the winery is treating it like a class so there will be a lot going on. Again PM me if you want the menu. Jeff -
Thanks for the kind words above. I'd like to point out that I am NOT related to jaltman, as far as I know. We have a lot of people who work hard at Grapeseed and they care, for the restaurant and our guests. I am very lucky. Two of them, Jason and Steve, wrote this week's Tasting Menu, (last week's too BTW) The usual deal will apply, $25 off for DR.com members, half price wine pairings. please mention that you are DR.com and doing the menu when you reserve. 301-986-9592 Amuse Bouche Scallop & Shrimp Ceviche Granbazan – Rias Baixs, Spain (Alariño) Chioggia Beet Salad Cherry Glen Farm Goat Cheese, Baby Greens Left Coast Cellars Cali’s Cuvee – Willamette, Oregon (Pinot Noir) Grilled Lobster Truffled Mac & Cheese, Pimenton De La Vera Hartford Court – Russian River Valley, California (Chardonnay) Housemade Ice Cream, Sugar Cookie
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Snowquester: Who's Open Today?
Jeff Heineman replied to Ericandblueboy's topic in Events and Gatherings
Grapeseed will open at 5. We have a party of 20 who guaranteed, so that should make up for the usual thin skinned Bethesdans who cancel at the forecast of flurries. So, open at 5, with our usual special wine happy hour today. -
Don, you have class oozing out of every pore, lately.
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Did he say a Presidente or a Gran Corona? I guess I should be flattered either way
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It is for tonight and tomorrow night. We will do a new menu for next Friday and Saturday. We had some problems in the past accommodating walklins on Saturday night for these menus because we order on Friday night for Saturday based on how many have reserved plus 20%. Fridays are usually less of a problem since we do prep most stuff to try and cover Friday and Saturday, Saturday's fish delivery has to be based on something to not have much left over. And yes, Saturday and Monday's family meal is usually quite good because of this. ETA - I have a good feeling about my revision surgery, and I have a first class scar. Chris Cunningham thinks my leg looks like a hoagie.
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Jen, I just put in the menu that we serve an Amuse, we always have, I just didn't list it. Don, I am feeling a magnitude (that's 10x, per your other post ) better, than with the last surgery, I have more stringent restrictions right now, but more hopeful
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Well after quite an extended hiatus we have dusted off our Tasting Menus again. We had to break for Restaurant Weeks and Valentines Weeks and Invasive Surgery weeks and other sundry things, but we are on once again. We will also do the DR.com special again. Instead of the dinner being $55 without wine it will be $30 (that's like $25 off. Wine pairings are 1/2 price either by the taste or the glass. it is a good deal. please mention you will be doing the tasting menu when you reserve, 301.986.9592, since we need a clear idea in order to purchase for this menu. lot's of fish for lent this week Amuse Bouche Spicy Tuna Tataki,Wasabi, Wakame Schramsberg Mirabelle Brut Rose – North Coast Mache Salad,Cucumber, Salmon Roe, Greek Yogurt Vinaigrette Captûre Tradition – Lake & Sonoma Counties, California (Sauvignon Blanc) American Red Snapper, Grilled Peashoots, Cashew Picada, Orange-Saffron Emulsion Jean-Paul Paquet – Pouilly-Fuisse, Burgundy, France (Chardonnay) Dessert Duo - Chocolate Cremeaux & Greek Yogurt Cheesecake $55 for the food Wine Pairings Available Three Tastes $20.50 Three Glasses $41.00
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there will be no DR.com special menu this weekend or next since we are doing Restaurant Week until Feb 2nd, and the whole menu is on sale to everyone. We have added some stuff to the lunch menu for RW and beyond. I will be giving out samples of on of these new things at Happy Hour tonight. Our version of Indiana's Pork Cutlet Sandwich. So wait out what will probably be a horsesh*t rush hour and have some wine or beer , A free slice of pork on a bun and maybe stay for a $33 dinner. Jeff
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Black Hog BBQ in Frederick and Urbana is quite good. A little too much reliance on dried spices that come through as raw*. good texture and complexity however. the portion was okay, unlike their side portions which tend toward laughably small. I think they should charge more for their sides and give me enough to eat, instead of just taste. But the chili had a heat that really mounted on me until the end of the bowl until it was very spicy. The chili at The Dogfish Head brewpub in Gaithersburg was a pedestrian bowl of slightly seasoned ground beef. Not much to go for it, except it is served with the really good sausages Don mentioned , somewhere. Burton Baton is a great beer. * for anyone who adjust their spice seasoning at the end of the chili cooking process, you will end up with a very raw taste. The essential oils in most of the spices dissolves much more readily in fats, so you would be better served to add all of your spices at the beginning of the cooking process. If spices are needed at the end bloom your spices in oil and add the aromatic/cooked result to your pot. much better
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We've got a new tasting menu for this week and the DR.com special is on but we will only be doing this menu on Friday this week, since we have Inauguration parties on Saturday and Sunday. So it is $30 and paired wines are half price. It is pretty tasty this week please join us. 301.986.9592 for resos. Amuse Bouche Smoked Trout Tartare, Sticky Rice, Grapes, Salmon Roe Black Pepper Crab Toast, Oyster Sauce, Lime Short Rib Lancashire Hot Pot Gascogne- style Apple Croustade, Walnut Ice Cream See you Friday, i hope
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Royal's Bagels are pretty good. Their attitude can be down right New York, if you inadvertently slow down the system on a busy morning. I am from NY and that is a good thing in my opinion. So the bagels are good to very good. I usually judge Bagel shops by the quality of their whitefish, however. (I like Royal's, and Bagel City does decent whitefish)
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Since the old adage is "if you don't have anything nice to say..." let me just say that the chili at Carterque in Mt. Airy has corn in it.
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Methinks your opinion of coffee has clouded your general acumen. According to what I assume is your Bible, The World of Caffeine: The Science and Culture of the World's Most Popular Drug by Bennett Alan Weinberg and Bonnie K. Bealer, Historian Anthony Wood and Oxford Diarist John Evelyn reported that the first coffee was brewed in England, at Oxford, by a Nathaniel Conopios, a Greek new to Oxford in 1637. Although Conopios was soon expelled, his brief tenure initiated coffee's use there and in the rest of England. Or did you not read to page 150?? I also think one could certainly live a longer, healthier life on chili alone, than coffee, due to its obvious nutritional benefits. I am off to Carterque in Mt Airy, their menu makes the dubious "award winning chili" reference. Cheers
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Perhaps not chili, but I feel pretty confident that, Beethoven at least, enjoyed a piping hot Goulash from time to time. Same pot, different culture, I might argue. Also, the first coffee house in England was opened in 1652, a good 36 years after Shakespeare's death. So, unless he really sought it out, I doubt he shared your passion for coffee. However, in Shakespeare's lifetime, boiled meat was common, tomatoes were available from the New World and the spice trade was up and running, so an enterprising young chef at the Globe might have whipped up a bowl of red once in a while.
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The chili at Urban BBQ is really heading in the right direction. Nice sauciness, good heat that grows as you work through the bowl, good, well developed flavor with a fair amount of layers. Some tomato, well integrated into the sauce. No over reliance on dried spices. Very nice and heading toward the competition type chili I seek. It does have a lot of beans and I understand how that might be a necessity from a business perspective. Good bowl to get if you are in that part of Rockville, as I don't know if the recipe applies to the other locations.
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The DR.com tasting Menu Discount is "on like Donkey Kong" as my kid says. $30 for you all, please mention you will be menuing when you reserve, it helps for ordering. Paired Wines are 1/2 price, too, for DR folks: 301.986.9592 Amuse bouche Crunchy Royal Red Florida Shrimp, Chipotle aioli, Jicama Salad Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Nduja Sausage, Smashed Yukons Coq au Vin Shepherd’s Pie Cherry, Dark Chocolate & Pistachio Ice Cream, Pistachio Cookie. For what it is worth: we have wifi, just ask for the password. Free food at the bar this Friday is a wee bite of Fish and Chips. (I give away free food every Friday, if anyone cares) --- Tweeters, this is Don Rockwell. Get off your asses and reserve this ridiculous bargain! Call and mention the DonRockwell special when you reserve. Yes, in addition to these 5 courses (okay, 4 courses plus amuse-bouche), you'll also get half-price wine. Hello? Is anyone home? Call it ... sanity. Call it ... competition. Call it ... a fucking amazing bargain for you, with NOTHING in it for me. You're CRAZY not to take advantage of this offer. Do it! Do it, man, do it! Cheers, Rocks
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Sounds interesting. Might have to work around the pesky Food Borne illness thing to appease the Health Lady, but interesting nonetheless.
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A week ago I had a lovely, snowy drive to Emmitsburg to partake of the Chubby's bowl. It was very nice to chat with Tom for over an hour as the snow fell. Good to hear about how the business is evolving out there near PA. The chili had a lot of well cooked flavors, nice color and a long simmered flavor with a good meat to sauce ratio (to my taste). No beans, A bit of tomato. Too much reliance on dried spices, and unfortunately a batch that was about to be replaced with a newer one, so the meat chunks were shredded. Seems this will be a problem; the reheating of chili develops the flavor more fully, but the texture declines with each reheating. It will be interesting to see how different restaurants handle this conundrum. A very nice bowl, especially to add to a meal of the cue if you are nearby (Grotto visit, anyone?). Andrew Evans' BBQ Joint in Easton has a Bowl of Red is as completely different as can be. Lots of beans, multiple types even, Lots of tomato, not nearly as long cooking. Kind of like a fresh, quick cooked alternative. Broth was thin and much less rich. Not the resolved rich one I seek, but with some salt it was satisfying in a chili soup kind of way. The fatty Brisket however is off the hook. Really good. Lots of people should stop here to eat it on their way to the shore. Jeff
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After a one week hiatus we will be bringing back both our tasting menu option this week, and the DR.com special. $30 for people from here, normally $55. Lots of Lobster this week. Please mention the menu when you reserve because i do have a finite number of portions of this menu. 301.986.9592 Amuse Bouche Lobster and Arugula Salad, Tangerine Aioli Lobster Risotto, White Truffle Oil Cotecchino Spiced Grilled Lobster, Grilled Broccolini, Lentils de Puy Fudge Brownie, Toasted Marshmallow Ice Cream, Graham Cracker Sauce. By the way, although we would rather do this menu for the entire party, we can (not too begrudgingly) do this menu for some of your party and a la carte for others. We can figure out the timing. I think restaurants tend to make too big a deal out of the "whole table must get this menu" stuff. So, if some of your party don't want lots of lobster for $30, you can still come in. Jeff
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Restaurants with WiFi
Jeff Heineman replied to hillvalley's topic in Washington DC Restaurants and Dining
Thank you in advance for not coming to Grapeseed and flirting with my wife -
I had a bowl of the Venison chili at Family Meal and although well made, it was not satisfying, due to its dry crumbly texture. I may be waaaay off base, but I crave something with viscosity, and a more satisfying moist mouth feel. I think the dry, crumbly ones should be relegated to hot dogs and frito pies, which surely have their merits. All of the photos I see of competition chilis are always wet and appear to flow with moisture. Is this the ideal, I am new with this obsession. Moisture seems to add to the satisfaction potential. We should talk about spicy heat level later. I am off to Chubby's for a bowl, then probably to Urban BBQ, I should be ready for work then. After eating 4 different chilis (including my own at the bar last night) in 24 hours, I am starting to feel the way Darkstar965 does about coffee. Edited to add: I found these characteristics for Red Chili from the International Chili Society: TASTE Taste, above all else is the most important factor. The taste should consist of the combination of the meat, peppers, spices, etc, with no particular ingredient being dominant, but rather a blend of the flavors. CONSISTENCY Chili must have a good ratio between sauce and meat. It should not be dry, watery, grainy, lumpy, or greasy. AROMA Chili should smell good. This also indicates what is in store when you taste it. COLOR Chili should look appetizing. Reddish brown is generally accepted as good. Chili is not yellow or green. BITE Bite or after taste is the heat created by the various type of chili peppers and chili spices.
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I just read Alexandra Greeley's not particularly positive review of Family Meal where one the few real positives is her mention of the venison chili. I am going to go there when I head to work in a few minutes. I also cannot think of a time when I have read a non-glowing review in any Gazette newspaper. I had always figured this was because the reviews were told to review positively so the ad sales people could follow up the next week and get a sale. Maybe this is changing Due to this the" Free Food" at the Grapeseed Bar will be a sample of a chili I made when I got home last night. Quality late night (sober) chili cookin luv. 5-6:30
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This recent crappy weather had me craving chili. I stopped at Hard times on the way home hoping to get lucky (chili-wise). everything about the stop (Hard Times Germantown, btw) was as bad as could be. The bartender sucked, the drink sucked, and the chili sucked, but I digress. It led me to ask: Is there any really good chili in this town? including suburbs. Rich, complex,spicy, layered and beefy. Anything worth a trip? Do not mention Ben's unless you want to fight. I figure not, given that the last post here is 2 1/2 years old there appears to be not much interest. Don't a lot of other cities have a much more advanced chili culture? Since, theoretically, chili is such an all american dish shouldn't we as the capital of this America (U.S. of, (I once dated an Argentine who took great umbrage with our use of plain "America")) have some major representation in the chili wars. Who wins that DC101 thing? Do they sell it? Please help. I am Jonesing hard and am willing to travel. -Heineman
