DPop

On 2/22/2020 at 11:14 PM, DonRocks said:

I'm glad the lawsuit is over, and hope that Frank and Aggie got paid what they were owed.

Now, I really hope Annabelle can concentrate on putting out a product that's commensurate with the Ruta name.

You didn't like it?  It was a little mixed when we went (I wasn't enamored by the gnocchi), but I thought the Consumme, Duck Breast, and Chicken were all outstanding.  What did you get?

Great post as usual, Pool Boy, I think you might be an even bigger Frank fanboy than Don 😋

Can't wait to give this place a try.

Excited to try this.  Thanks for the pics, the food looks great

Who went this past weekend?

I gotta say, I look at the menu again every time I read a good comment or review about the place, and none of the food appeals to me.  Seems like people are trying to mimic the success that Orsa & Winston has had in LA, but when I ate there it felt much more like a Japanese restaurant that simply borrowed some Italian ingredients, as opposed to here where they are really trying to mash things up and it just doesn't sound right. 

Has anyone else found the coating on the fried chicken to be excessively thick?  I thought it put a bit of a damper on an otherwise lovely dish.

Kinda.  I'm not sure that thing will be the same if it's not coming out of the precise kitchen that Frank runs.

Can't wait for Annabelle to open up, I've been devoid of a high end celebration place in DC since he left Mirabelle

FYI they stopped free corkage here and are now charging $50/bottle, making this a considerably more expensive experience for someone who prefers to bring their own bottle in like myself.

On 9/22/2019 at 9:22 PM, Ericandblueboy said:

We love brunching here.  Steak & egg, monkey bread, salmon collar, grilled broccoli.  All delicious, well prepared.  The salmon is damn near raw in the middle but I guess that's just how they do it - I'm getting used to it now.

I love that they do the salmon medium rare, to be honest, its how I prepare it at home. 

St Anselm's continues to be one of our favorite regular spots.

Where will Frank Ruta be cooking next is the real question.....

On 8/2/2019 at 7:52 PM, DonRocks said:

Where did I dine? (NB - Two pieces were removed before this photo was taken.)

 <--- This shouldn't be that difficult; it has offered some of the best hot wings in the area for many years now.

This is driving me nuts because I have eaten those wings a number times (years ago) and remember that sauce distinctly, but can't place where it is

I loved the Miami location when I went in 2015, it was the kind of experience that I"m always hoping to get when I go to Southern, fried chicken joints but rarely get.  Hopefully they can bring some of that magic and this franchise doesn't overexpand itself into mediocrity like so many have.....

On 5/9/2019 at 12:17 PM, funkyfood said:

Short review:  really enjoyed this place, but kind of over tasting menus and don't feel any desire to go back in the near future.  The cooking is good, but I just felt...constrained by the small menu and lack of choices. 

Amen.  Add prix fixe to the top of the trite list for 2019.  

Great pics.  I feel like these two have really fallen off since basically a year after Top Chef.  I had one really good meal at VOLT, one solid meal at Range, and a great meal at Ink back many years now but everything since has been absolutely middling.  I'll wait to read more reviews before shelling out for this place, the Voltaggios need to earn my trust back..... 😏

I can't understand why the landlord wouldn't be up for that idea, it would have to be better than the $0 they have collected for that space since Palena closed 6 or 7 years ago....

On 4/16/2019 at 6:12 PM, Marty L. said:

A very nice comeback story.  I haven't been to K&K because I try to avoid the Wharf.  I can attest, however, that the cheesesteak place in Union Market is really great. What worries me:  He dreams of running “a bajillion restaurants.”  Never a good idea.  

I'm surprised to read this.  I ordered takeout from there a couple months back and we must have ordered different menu items.  I found the wings to be gloppy and fried to complete submission and the cheesesteak greasy and odd in that the steak was a whole piece rather than the lovely chopped steaks you find at Jim's or Tony Luke's back in the day.  I have always been of the mind that when you are eating something greasy/unhealthy, it should be good enough that it is hard to not eat every single bite.  I left half of my cheesesteak and had just 2 wings.

I have never gotten the Kwame food hype; he seems like a great guy and definitely the ambitious young chef that you would like to see succeed, but in the restaurant business you must yield results, and I'm just not seeing them here or the Wing Fry.

To get back to the food, my wife and I returned on Saturday and the duck was even better this round.  I retract my previous statement; I remember the late Mark Kuller (RIP) once tell me when I was complaining about the food prices at The Source that you could boil down most things in life to their simplest form (clothing, wine, art, etc) and pick any luxury thing apart as not being worth the things that made it up, but that's not what you're paying for at the top end; you're paying for the talent of the person creating it.  We all know this, but it's good to remind yourself of it sometimes, and the thought, effort, and creativity combined with ingredient costs are certainly worth every penny of the $100 that you pay for it.  The skin is tacky from the beet juice and licorice that the duck is brined in, giving it a lovely stick to go with that fatty and unctuous flavor that we enjoy so much.  The medium rare (bordering on rare) meat on the breast is brimming with flavor, bolstered by the nice layer of fat surrounding it.  This combined with the 96 Volnay that we brought were enough to leave smiles plastered on our faces on a cold, wet night.

The other dishes that we had, however, did not hit on the same notes.  The Mushroom dish didn't resonate at all with me, it was somewhat devoid of flavor outside of a hint of smoke and sweetness of the egg yolk "fudge".  I didn't get the appeal or thinking behind this dish, and the same went for the Beef Tartare, which was nicely chopped and plated but the whole dish was overwhelmed by the farro tamari sauce that was dotted throughout the plate, again sweet and not to my taste.

I have been twice now, and while I love chatting with Johnny and really enjoy the vibe at the counter, I can't say that I have loved any of the other dishes I have tried apart from the duck.

The Duck really is very good, but about $30 more than it should be given what you get. 

I really liked this place overall, especially the free corkage on the first bottle of wine.  Definitely rooting for Johnny here, I think this place will do well.

Btw I saw the Tortilla come out and someone would have to explain to me why it was $150.  Same with the $100 steak. 

I'm going on Saturday, I'm buying into the hype.  Agree that the menu does look startlingly simple/boring, but the Palena Cafe menu back in the day did as well, and you know how everyone felt about that place....

I see that the whole duck is now $68.  Is it worth it?

Anyone been since the chef turnover?

On 1/24/2019 at 10:26 AM, silentbob said:

In terms of places within reasonable driving distance of the DC area, ZZQ is best and it's not really close IMO.

Is driving 3 hours to Richmond for BBQ really reasonable, though?  If I'm ever down there or driving through, sure, but I can't see making a special trip that far for some brisket and pulled pork..... 

Sad, so many good memories at that place.

I'm with Eric here.  I went today and got the 3 meat platter and went with the brisket, pork belly, and spare ribs.  I'm always amazed when people can take fatty meat and make it relatively flavorless.  The brisket was impossibly dry; it had the texture of something that sat out for an hour after cooking. Only a very thin ring of fat around the outside, and no discernible seasoning or flavor outside of black pepper.  Where is the smoke?  The ribs were better and definitely the best thing on the platter, very moist but again no smoke and too light on the seasoning.  The pork belly was incredibly moist, but completely devoid of flavor and needed to be dipped in the spicy barbecue sauce they had on the table for any taste.  It was unbelievable that a place that only does barbecue would not season their meats before or after cooking them, but that clearly happened here.