Al Dente

Why not dine at Poste?

I had this tuna dish tonight. A delicious start to my evening. Where is the Firefly thread? I have some notes on a couple of drinks I enjoyed there. And for that matter, where is the Komi thread? I had my first experience there tonight. And where's my corkscrew?

Congratulations on your Grouperhood! I wasn't so sure about the nut posession status of groupers myself. I can only assume ventworms have nuts due to Mr Rockwell's often-mentioned familiarity and presumed expertise with them. Apparently, they're real delicacies amongst the food snobnoscenti-- expecially when presented atop a generous dollop of Miracle Whip which is often referred to as "fauxni aioli".

Depending on which way the wind is blowing when I get to the top of the Dupont Circle escalator, I may head over to FF4HH.

I just bought myself one of these to make finding a parking spot easier.

Doesn't the context count for anything here? A B&B in rural VA? If Miracle Whip was used in a dish at a serious restaurant, I'd be taken aback, perhaps even angry, but it was just a B&B. The woman who served it up wasn't trying to pull one over on anyone, she was just serving up the recipe her dearly departed aunt Gerty came up with 25 years ago and her whole family enjoys. So what? BFD. In a setting such as this, if you're enjoying it, it's good food. And with that, I'm a ventworm. So you can attribute the above to my newly acquired nuts.

What's the story? My ol' lady and I might wander around Dupont and grab a bite at a few places-- Komi, Hank's, Sette, Firefly, Royal Palace, etc.

Last night-- an enormous pile of spaghetti with Rao's marinara and about 8 lbs of Reggiano grated over it. For shits and giggles I added a quart of Cholula hot sauce. It was one of those days.

Cool site!

Depending on the date, I'd be up for this too!

I got an email from Eli yesterday that said they're polishing up the menu and should be ready in a few days. He said they'd be sure to post the good news on DR as soon as they're set to go.

I'll have to disagree with you on the knife sharpening situation. At least with my one experience, the job they did to my knives was pretty shabby.

One of these doohickeys: Beer Engine Used for a proper hand-pulled ale.

No, it's right next to Gambrills. Wotanon is down the road a far piece. Odenton

I like Canales in Eastern Market. There is always a great looking cut or two of beef there. Be flexible about what you want-- you may be thinking NY Strip, but you may well walk out with ribeye. Also, the chicken vendors there have good organic free range birds. If you're ever in Odenton MD, try a place called My Butcher and More. They don't have a huge selection, but I was impressed last weekend when I asked for a few pounds of ground chuck and they grabbed a steak out of the display case and ground it up right then and there.

I stopped in at Ceiba's bar last night and sampled a number of appetizers. The grilled octopus salad was extraordinary. The octopus was by far the most tender I've ever had and the gazpacho vinaigrette was delicious. I need to figure out how to make a similar vinaigrette at home. The grouper ceviche was simple and satisfying with Manzanilla olives and radish. Their take on nachos with crab and rock shrimp made me feel guilty for ordering so much gooey melted cheese, but I got over that quickly as I scarfed them down. My only complaint is the design of the bar itself. Either the bar is too high, or the seats are too short. If you're under 5' 4'' or so, I'd imagine the bartender would only see you from the neck up. Also, there isn't enough "overhang" at the bar. In order to position yourself close to your plate, you either turn your legs sideways or do a split. Sorry to nitpick, but that drives me nuts. I'll be back for a full dinner sometime soon. Edited to add: Oh, yeah, they have Pyrat XO rum which makes for a fine dessert.

Well done Ms Wing! I've always enjoyed Pearmund. This may be a far out idea, but I wonder what it would cost to rent a tour bus and go on a DR (what do we officially call our events?) wine cruise through VA.

That's a stunning dish. I gotta start working on my pasta skills.

I haven't figured it out yet. Maybe Ceiba?

Wish I could, but it's just too damn far for me. Though I am considering occupying a barstool somewhere tonight.

Just curious, but how does one "shave asparagus"? Seems like it would fall apart.

That cake takes the cake. Freakin brilliant! Looks like it was fun. I'll do my best to be at the next one. Ya'll picked the right day for it. Best Regards, Old Dente

3 of us dined very well for about $115 before tip. The lion's share of the bill was my part of the dinner. I had a few more courses than the other 2. We didn't have Burgundy, but did have a bottle of sake.

I suggest that everyone redouble their efforts to top a line such as this. If you can work an enema and a mouse into..... let me rephrase that..... if you can include the words "enema" and "mouse" into a comment about a culinary travesty, you can do anything.

Dinner at Sushi-Ko last night was a true pleasure. I took our Fearless Leader's advice and put the responsibility for selecting my meal in the hands of Chef Koji Terano. I had the added bonus of being able to watch those hands just a few feet from where I sat. This is someone who obviously loves what he does. He handled that beautiful knife with such intensity yet ease. Everytime I watched him begin a new dish, I hoped it was for me. Many of them were, and many of them were sublime. Those ceviche-like thin slices of sweet shrimp made me feel as if I was eating a whole new never before experienced category of food. Same goes for the half dozen disks of scallop with tiny matchsticks of radish and a smidgen of Sevruga. The flavors, aromas, and textures all came together wonderfully. For such expert preparation and high quality ingredients, the cost of a luxurious dinner at Sushi-Ko is remarkably reasonable. Get yourself over there and savor every bite. You'd be missing out if you didn't.