Simon

On 5/30/2018 at 12:27 PM, Pat said:

At the end of Tom's chat today: 

I'm guessing the margins are higher for Sfoglina's menu.

I had a funny experience at Mirabelle recently at lunch.  After I'm seated, I mention to my server how excited I am to be at Mirabelle for the first time, after being a long-time fan of Frank's cooking at Palena--and I rattled off a list of my old favorites, like the roast chicken and consommé.  The waiter then asks me: "well, do you want me to see if the kitchen can make you the consommé" (which is ordinarily on the dinner menu but is not available at lunch).  I remain noncommittal, wanting to take my time to mull over my choices.  Nothing especially calls out to me, so when he comes back, I tell him -- thinking that, well, if Frank is on the kitchen, I should just leave myself in his hands -- "I don't necessarily need the consommé, but if Chef is here today, could you ask him to choose one starter and one main."  The waiter gives his assent and scurries off.

A minute later, I see him at the waiter's station, putting in an order.  I then hear him conferring with another server: "You like the bouillabaisse, right?  That's my favorite on the menu right now."

And, you guessed it.  For my starter, I get the bisque, and as my main, the bouillabaisse.

In an otherwise sparsely filled dining room (there was only one other party there when I ordered), it's pretty clear what happened.  Why don't restaurants want to admit when the name Chef isn't in the kitchen?  It's like the one Saturday night dinner I had at CityZen eight years ago, when I asked whether Eric would be in the kitchen that night -- and was told he had stepped out but would be back.  And I could clearly see the *freaking open kitchen* working on auto-pilot without him all night long.

The bisque and bouillabaisse were fine, but it's not the way I would have drawn it up (and maybe not Frank, either: two soups?).  But it's mainly my fault for giving up my agency and being too trusting. 

1 hour ago, curiouskitkatt said:

Yes, they have a bar, but getting a seat is very difficult on account its one of the hottest spots in Philly. I recommend trying to go early if you can, like right when service begins. 

Same deal with Vernick, which I highly recommend.  I've had wonderful experiences eating at the bar solo, but you have to get there early, too.

Scene from Restaurant Week: a prep cook in a side room at Sfoglina reviving a sorry looking box of greens, wilted leaf by wilted leaf, using a spray bottle.  

I can forgive many shortcuts during Restaurant Week, such as setting out nine pre-plated orders of salad on the pass, waiting for orders to come in, but clearing plates before everyone in the party has finished a course is poor form at any time.

1 hour ago, funkyfood said:

I've never been to Fiola Mare, but was thinking of going there next weekend for our anniversary.  Is it still great?  Washingtonian suggests it slipped as attention is on Del Mar and Sfoglina

I've only been for brunch and was just there for New Year's, and the cooking was solid and precise as ever. Special shout out for the panna cotta and the lobster ravioli, which has always been wonderful but is getting more and more eye-poppingly pricey if ordered a la carte.  

8 hours ago, naxos said:

Agreed about Paris- had better croissants in the corner bar.

I didn't mean to imply that MK Paris was amazing, just that I'd be shocked if some place around here would clear the bar of Parisian adequacy.

Is the NY Kayser as good as the locations in Paris?  I'd be shocked, but delighted, if so.

I ate here tonight based on Tim Carman's enthusiastic review and was very disappointed (Carman, you've misled for me for the last time...).  

The Akira Ramen (tonkatsu broth, with a couple thin slices of chasu, veggies, fish cake, and half an egg) was deeply mediocre.  The broth, thin and bland, had little discernible pork flavor and mainly served as a carrier for the bitter char of the chasu.  The curly noodles were little to write home about (or wax poetic about in the Post).  Overall, a nothing bowl of ramen.

I ordered the grilled yellowtail collar as an appetizer, was told it'd take 15 to 20 minutes, so asked for it to come out before the ramen.  After about 25 minutes, the ramen came out first, and the yellowtail a few minutes later.  The fish was moist and nicely grilled, but it won't bring me back on its own.

Sitting at the bar, you could see bowls of ramen being plated sluggishly by an inexperienced kitchen staff -- nothing like the well-oiled machine at Daikaya.

You can eat at the bar at Vernick, which opens for drinks at 4:30 and starts serving food at 5:00.  The bar seats do tend to go quickly on the weekends, but it's worth trying: I've had my favorite meals in Philly there.  

9 hours ago, DanielK said:

If you have a party of 4 or more, definitely do the tasting menu with the lamb shoulder. But I've literally not found a miss across the entire menu.

I was able to do the tasting menu with the lamb shoulder as a single diner.  Lots of leftovers.  FWIW, I had a good time but enjoyed Vernick a lot more (they're very different restaurants, though).  

What happened to the mushroom lady?  Is she still around?

On May 9, 2017 at 0:52 PM, silentbob said:

Soft opening is this weekend.  I skimmed through menus and it looks like many items already served at his other restaurants are $3 more at Q.  Lots of unique stuff here though.

What items look most interesting from a first read of the menu?  I remember Chang saying (or someone saying) in the press that he'd be at his flagship regularly because the dishes would be more complex...

19 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

Have you ever heard of Tom Power doing anything like this before? Ever? You haven't, because he's a good person - he was pushed past his limit. I'm not saying it was right, or even close to being right, but this reminds me that I need to rewatch "Straw Dogs."

Well, there was that kerfuffle some years ago with the BYOers from the Robert Parker wine board that got rather heated (I'd link to it, but it's behind a paywall now...)

What is the current lay of the land, KN?

30 minutes ago, squidsdc said:

Well that is no help at all!  Haha. Any other recs on the desserts?

The apple confit is the best dessert I've had anywhere in recent memory.  But sounds like they're doing something different with apples this season?

On June 15, 2016 at 4:42 PM, ktmoomau said:

Don't go to Maryland!

No one got the joke.

For comparison, here are Metier's two wine pairings, which I believe are priced at $100 and $185, respectively.  I'll leave it to Don to do a blow by blow, but looking at the second pairing, it seems like a better value (though, it's six, not seven glasses): aside from the entry-level Champagne (for the cocktail) and Riesling, the other four wines are a class or two above what's being poured here.  

Metier's Wine Pairings

58 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

Regardless, with Prix Fixe menus in upscale restaurants in France, you leave as full as you want - if you want to leave absolutely *stuffed*, you will - there's no requirement to finish your plates if you're a light eater, but to involuntarily leave hungry would *never* happen - or, at least, not anywhere I can think of at the moment.

+1.  Every prix-fixe menu I had in Spain this fall -- Alkimia, Disfrutar, El Celler de Can Roca, DiverXo -- left me more than sated.  You can't let people go hungry for $400+pp, or whatever the tariff is here.

Full Kinship Thanksgiving menu with prices

Kinship Thanksgiving Menu.pdf

10 minutes ago, Gadarene said:

I don't think I've ever heard a single thing about Plume. 

Plume is the worst "high-end" dinner I've had in D.C. ever.  At best bistro-level cooking in fancied-up surroundings.  A colossal waste of money and massively overrated.

8 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

I haven't been to Disfrutar, but I went to the 2-star Abac in Barcelona, and apart from their *very* middling wine list (which itself disqualifies it from being a 2-star restaurant IMO), it's as good as any meal I've had in DC - the closest in style to it was Rogue 24. Even Abac's grandest menu is "only" $200 (tax included), not including wine pairings. I've been charged *far* more than that at Vidalia, which is ridiculous.

Yes, the prices!  NY and DC restaurants seem so overpriced now in comparison (and don't get me started on the wine markups...)  At El Celler de Can Roca, I paid $500 (for two people) for the long tasting menu, plus a few wines by the glass.  And Kwame wants to charge how much?  

And this is reaching further back in my dining history, but I don't know how you can even think about placing any DC restaurant in the same category as Pierre Gagnaire, Ledoyen (in the LeSquer days), L'Astrance...

Just one data point: no restaurant in D.C. I've been to (and I haven't been to P&P yet) approaches the level of the 1-star restaurants I visited in Spain last month (Disfrutar and Alkimia in Barcelona), let alone the 3-star El Celler de Can Roca and DiverXO.

49 minutes ago, Pat said:

CF Folks?

We have a winner!

2 hours ago, DonRocks said:

I assure you that's one of the things throwing everyone off! This is clearly a mid-to-upscale Italian restaurant, and I'm wondering if that's a communal table, but it's not Centrolina.

I edited my post to add the descriptor "slightly chipped counter top."  And it's a counter with bar stools, not a communal table.  And I'd re-think your Italian assumption.

ETA: Don, you've sat at this counter before.  Maybe not recently, but it hasn't changed since you did.

Keeping guessing ... note the slightly chipped counter top