sheldman

Really very good dinner at Eatonville, and in my opinion an extremely good value for a DC restaurant. Fried green tomatoes as an appetizer split among us - the tomatoes battered somewhat more thickly than I am used to, but still they didn't turn out too heavy, and they have a nice corn salsa that complements them well. A salad with added fried oysters makes a very reasonably priced, substantial, and tasty entree. Catfish with grits and collards - yum, and nice to see the avoidance of the "shrimp and grits" that is everyone's only idea around here of what you're supposed to do with grits. Vegetarian 'meat'-loaf made of mushrooms, with mashed potatoes, tomatoes, beans. Really all very good, recognizably southern but none of it cliched or too simplistic. Totally amazing challah bread pudding. And an extremely nice waiter and other staff. I know that there are those who think that the Busboys empire isn't made of delicious food and good service. But really, this was a very nice dinner, in a welcoming environment at a very reasonable price. I hope that next time is this good too.

I am starting to believe, based on the ambivalence that I've read here and elsewhere about Art and Soul, that it's hard for many people to "get" southern food in a relatively expensive restaurant. But I am impressed by many of the dishes here that manage to be a hybrid of homey/traditional and "refined." I have not had any of the meat/poultry dishes, or eaten with anyone who has, so I can't speak to those. (I am informed, though, that the reputedly-awesome fried chicken is only a lunch and Sunday thing, and that on other nights the chicken is roasted at dinner.) And last night, I experienced some uninspiring and inattentive service, but the place was busy so that's excusable. Things that I have especially enjoyed include a salad with buttermilk pepper dressing and pickled vegetables, a soft-shell crab and crabcake entree, fried green tomatoes, "baby cakes" (a sampler of cute little cakes, all delicious) and bourbon pecan pie. All good southern food - then made "fancy" for a high-end restaurant not by overloading the dishes with richness (southern food already has enough of that!) or making the portion too huge (ditto), but by making them somewhat more delicate than they have traditionally been. Not that it's diet food of course, but it's not all about getting to the "o lord I'm stuffed with butter and porkfat" point. So put on your Art Smith, loving-southern-teddy-bear attitude, and check it out.

I do understand that it's tv, and that the editors have great control over how people and things appear - but having said that, Mike from Zaytinya sure did seem like he was going out of his way to create a public perception that he is a jerk (and sexist jerk at that), and I sure would rather watch 60 year old chefs cook well and be nice to each other, than to watch 20-40 year olds play games with each other.

Great dinner at the bar at New Heights last night. The food is easily as good as any you might get at Palena cafe, for instance, and the drinks are better. Delicious cold squash/melon/basil soup. Perfect risotto balls, and scallops. Drinks made with fruit purees that are tasty, and not too sweet. And a friendly atmosphere. Can't be beat. Next time you're thinking of Palena, get off the train one stop earlier and try this instead.

Toscana Green is a lovely place. (It is at 2300 Clarendon - if you're looking at Velocity Five, go around to the left.) Very welcoming people, in a colorful and modern but peaceful environment. Since it's been open just a few days there are still some pacing issues (i.e., slow), but the food that we had was very good. The menu is vegan- and veg-focused, much more than the average restaurant, but also has meat and seafood dishes. We had some little spicy crostini and fried zucchini appetizers, then some fake-meat pasta dishes and a pizza. The food is somewhat simple in its conception and preparation, in the sense that there is nothing mind-blowing about the sauces or the execution or whatnot. But it is very tasty, and the place and the staff are great. In a way it's sort of the anti-2 Amys (this being on my mind since we ate there for the millionth time a couple of days ago). 2 Amys continues to do great business, despite the uncomfortable chairs and ridiculous noise and staff who act like they don't care and tables too small to fit all your little plates when they all come out at once, because in the right moment the food ingredients and preparation can be sublime, and then you go home and wonder how you possibly ate so much olive oil. Toscana Green is a place where they welcome you and feed you nice food that does you good, even if it does not blow your mind. I hope it does good business too. We will go back. Try it.

I apologize if there's already a topic on this market, but I don't think there is. A new, not-too-huge but very nice, Saturday morning market in the Hardy Middle School parking lot, across from the Safeway that's being redone. A few stands selling nice variety of summer fruits and vegetables. Hondo Coffee Co, which seems to be a roaster in Manassas, selling beans and ground coffee. A very friendly woman selling her awesome pound cakes. Other stuff too. Definitely worth checking out. link

I'm afraid you might have a harder time now that the NYT is on the case. NYT article

The "specials" board these days tends to have a banana flower and baby clam salad. It is great. Then again, most things with fried shallots and fish sauce are great. But this really is.

I am thinking, based on all this recent activity, that maybe the President is an obsessive but slightly incompetent or underinformed Mark Slater groupie, desperately trying to find him but not quite up to speed on when/where to go.

Hadn't been to Perry's for maybe 10 years or so, but - probably because of the post just before this one - decided to give it a try tonight when looking for an early dinner spot. We enjoyed it, and will go back. The online menu at http://www.perrysadamsmorgan.com/ suggests that there are big plates in addition to small ones and sushi, but if they were there on the paper menu I didn't see them. Maybe I was being unobservant or bourbon-soaked. But on the other hand there were more small plates in real life than on the online menu. So we ate small plates and sushi, and enjoyed them. Some really nicely cooked scallops with a pureed romanesco sauce, good risotto, tuna tartar, beet salad etc etc. And the place is very pretty and comfortable these days, and the staff was nice. Not mind-blowing, and some portions seemed a little small, but it was certainly a good experience overall. And it only took 10 minutes to find a parking space in Adams Morgan! Sweet. Bottom line: when I want to go to a bar-like place to eat small plates I'll still be thinking of Bar Pilar first, but when my kid says "let's go to the place that has the sofas and the sushi too" I'll say "ok" sometimes.

A few little zucchinis this morning - must be spring! Sure is nice and uncrowded at the market when it's early and just a little rainy.

While I am not a certified pho expert, I had a really nice bowl of soup today at Pho 14 in Columbia Heights (14xx Park Road NW) - 9 dollars for a huge bowl that was very tasty. About 20 different options for pho or non-pho soups, as well as various vermicelli dishes and some nice looking banh mi. And a pretty atmosphere and nice server. Can't beat that. Maybe there is a separate thread on this place already, but I find myself stumped when trying to search a 3-letter word or the phrase "pho 14." Anyway, a lovely place for lunch and I will go back soon.

I think the right place to go for good Americanized Chinese food in Woodley Park - for delivery or takeout that is, since I don't even know if they have seats - is Eddie's Cafe, right next to New Heights. Mr. Chen blah. Eddie's - pretty good, especially for delivery food in DC. Had some kung pao tofu, broccoli with garlic sauce, and spinach the other day that was good for dinner, breakfast and lunch. Of course these things can go up and down rapidly.

The new expanded menu at Enology is very nice - a great improvement over the old small menu. As has probably been said above, it's all about smallish-mediumish-sized plates. We had five and all were quite good: salad (w blue cheese, dried cherries and whatnot), beet carpaccio, tuna burger 'sliders', spice-rubbed salmon with bok choy and caramelized onions, and awesome little french fries. Really really awesome herbed french fries, and everything else was good enough to eat every bite of, too. This is definitely worth a trip - not for atmosphere or energy necessarily (at least not in early evening) but for good food and drink. Menu, with more elaborate descriptions than mine, at http://www.enologydc.com/

Went to Present for the first time last night - extremely good food, very pretty place inside. Friendly service, if a little slow at some points. Eggplant with fish sauce was fantastic - a grilled smoky flavor, fried shallots, yum. Whole steamed rockfish with ginger, etc. - perfectly done. Tuna with mango - not as wonderful but still very good. Wine only (maybe beer, I don't know - but no full bar).