dcandohio
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Everything posted by dcandohio
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As someone who lives in SW, I am glad to have a great but more affordable option so close to me. We needed something between CitiZen and Cantina Marina, and for me, MoZu was just too pricey to be a weekday kind of place. -
This past Sunday we went to Marvin just as the Snowpocalypse was bearing down on DC. The bacon and ale moule frites was quite tasty, but I wish Marvin offered half portions. Especially after a salad, that's a huge portion. But I doubt that we'll go back unless we can make it when the place is not slammed. The noise was almost unbearably loud and I felt like we were sitting in the laps of the two-top next to us. So as they shouted and we shouted it became more and more distracting. I can deal with loud if there's a little bit of real estate between me and the next table. Unless you are in one of those booths next to a divider, there's just no hope of any conversational privacy.
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My recent experience at RTC in the bar was my first, and while I loved the food and was amazed at what a good value we had with the fixed price portion of the menu, we were aggressively rushed. We arrived right as the doors opened, and the bar area did fill up, with perhaps one couple waiting...but we still had wine in our bottle. The waiter suggested "bagging" our wine so we didn't have to finish it at the table. We weren't lollygagging around. We had dutifully worked though each course in an efficient fashion, but one bottle of wine and two people means that you're probably going to run out of food before wine. I don't think we had even been occupying our seats for 50 minutes when the check arrived. I understand the need to be polite to waiting diners, and also to be fair to an owner who is trying to turn tables in a reasonable fashion. But suggesting that we bag our wine is perhaps taking a teensy step over the line.
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Thanks for the update. I enjoyed it so much when it first opened, but have been reluctant to return. Your post might motivate me to put Locanda right back into the rotation!
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Yes, I've eaten at the bar. It get crazy busy in there, so be prepared to be jostled while you nosh.
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I couldn't find a topic for Bombay Club. Does it fly under the radar? Our experience last night was just lovely, from a mango martini with a bracing pepper kick, to the Goan fish curry which was rich and flavorful but not at all heavy. The chat (fried spinach) was divine, and puris as appetizers were bursting with fresh flavor. The only miss was the green chili chicken. We love heat, but this dish tasted of just green chili. Not very complex. The room is soothing, and the piano music is not so loud to prevent normal conversation. Service was attentive and friendly. This would be a very nice special occasion place, and with entree prices that often do not reach $20, it's a bargain for the quality of the experience. I'm sure this is not traditional street food Indian, but when I want to get dressed up AND have a hit of heat with my meal, this will definitely become a go-to. (Mods, if there is a thread I couldn't find, please feel free to put this in the right place. I'm only a clam...I don't know all the nuances of posting).
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I don't think Bar Pilar takes reservations. We usually go early, 6ish, and never have had trouble getting a seat. It's a small place, though, so I wouldn't take a chance at 8:00 on a Saturday night if you're hellbent on eating right away. For the price, it's got to be some of the best food in the district.
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A little alliteration can be a dangerous thing.
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And this is why this is the best blog in America, and possibly in the Universe.
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Word of warning - even though PS7's web site says that "Bar/lounge, and lounge menu, available from 11:30 a.m. until closing..." when I went for HH on a Friday just before 5:00 the lounge was totally unprepared to serve...anything...It appeared as if the bar was being set up or re-stocked and I felt like I was a bother to the staff. We were told we were too early for HH pricing. I couldn't find anything on the web site to indicate the times for HH, so I gave the place the benefit of the doubt. We drank our first round at regular price, and our second round at HH pricing. No big deal, except that a place that touts all day service in the lounge should be welcoming of the business that does walk in at the odd hours.
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MMMM. We were there last weekend. Cheese pupusa. YUM. The tacos are also nice - I had goat and steak - and I thought the green sauce was nice and spicy, but also tangy and fresh-tasting. This is my new favorite cheap eats. And I was also enchanted by the Portuguese grocery store just up the road.
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I've always felt this way, too. It's pleasant to have a meal at the bar while watching Italian soccer, too.
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During my last spell in DC I had lunch in Ceiba. My first experience there at dinner, a few years ago, was underwhelming. Lunch put it back in my rotation. The conch chowder was as good as I've had in the Carribbean. The gazpacho was spicy and gorgeously presented. I stayed safe with the fish tacos. The corn tortillas were really fresh, the fish was light and crispy. Dining partner had a chorizo quesadilla, which provided enough left-overs for lunch the next day...all in all just a very good performance. Oh, and the service was lively and attentive, but not fawning.
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I've been twice within three weeks. The menu had changed after the first visit, I assume to represent the best of what the chef is able to procure. Both times have been excellent. At the price point, I believe Bar Pilar is a winner. Maybe some people are turned off by the bar atmosphere, but I love that I can enjoy such great cuisine even if I'm wearing shorts and a t-shirt.
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Bar Pilar after hitting up the U Street Dog Days sales. Highlights: batatas bravas, goat ragu on papardelle and a rare salmon.
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and I just spit coffee all over my computer!
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Our last experience at the bar was exactly the opposite - we ordered off the bar menu (the mini burgers and the tostadas) and the food was delicious. I had wine but my companions who had martinis and Manhattans were quite pleased with their cocktails. The ambiance was very nice and the bar patrons were well behaved. I guess we got lucky!
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I was underwhelmed by the tacos/empanada from On the Fly. I just thought there was a general lack of flavor, though the price was right. I love the concept and the attempts to be green(er). I've seen other OTFs so maybe other variations have tastier food.
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We finally visited Corduroy last nght. The space is lovely, and what a joy to dine without blaring music (or any music), just the soft hum of conversation. The Peekytoe crab custard soup was sooooo rich, perhaps a bit heavy on the salt but chock full of crab. The sorrel soup was cool and refreshing. The real winner was the scallops. Divine. Great bottle of white grenache. Oh, and that cucumber/thyme gin cocktail to start was perfect. This place is a treasure.
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"Vanilla Reduced Fat Ice Cream: Milk, sugar, cream, nonfat milk solids, corn syrup solids, mono- and diglycerides, guar gum, dextrose, sodium citrate, artificial vanilla flavor, sodium phosphate, carrageenan, disodium phosphate, cellulose gum, vitamin A palmitate. CONTAINS: MILK. Vanilla Syrup: Corn syrup, water, natural flavor (plant source), caramel color, citric acid, pectin, sodium benzoate (preservative), yellow 5, yellow 6. May contain small amounts of other shake flavors served at the restaurant, including egg ingredients when Egg Nog Shakes are available."Here are the list of ingredients in the 12 oz. vanilla "shake" from the Micky D's web site. Sure, there's milk in there, along with so many other yummy ingredients...it should be called a "corn syrup" shake. Yikes.
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For a while LP was a "default" stop for us. Relative coming to town...let's go to Lauriol Plaza! Meeting a group of friends with various tastes...let's go to Lauriol Plaza! Tired and bored and can't make a decision...let's to go Lauriol Plaza! And then we decided that there are far too many superior places in DC to make LP a default. And because of that we wandered into Straits of Malaya, and Mandu, and Regent Thai, and Bar Pilar, and Islander Carribbean, and Simply Home...and lots of places that we just didn't notice or didn't seek out because we fell into a routine.I don't think the food at LP is terrible. I've had good, though rushed service. I've found the crowds to be more diverse than generally described here (though no less impenetrable when the place is jammed). But I think it'll be a very long time before I return, because I want to experience more of what DC has to offer. Like many of you, I suppose, I've sat on the roof deck of Straits of Malaya and looked across at LP and said to my partner, "I'm so glad we're here and not there."
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My experience has been that the servers are dazed and confused, rather than snotty. In any case, the setting and the food (much of it) deserve a more caring wait staff.
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I'm a newbie but I think it's great. I don't sense that the folks on this forum are easily swayed by anything but their own hearts, minds and gullets. No one has to use the inducements. But for those of us who might want to do so, I really appreciate the effort on our behalf!
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When I find myself in Friendship Heights I appreciate that I can get a quick and tasty meal with an adult beverage at Booeymonger. In nice weather, that solarium sort of room is quite nice. Given some of the choices around there, Booeymonger is a good option. The portions are quite large.
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Oh Dear. I hope your experience was a fluke. Bistrot du Coin is also one of our "go to" places and while it never wows us, it always satisfies. At a place like that with so much volume there is no excuse for limp frites! Are the staff still surly, at least?
