genericeric

Mediocre sushi, they have the standard dollar per piece happy hour special and the seating is more comfortable than Cafe Asia in case you can't stand CA's "furniture". I actually think their Spider Rolls are pretty good. It does make a guy wonder what that smell is, though.

Despite hearing good things about the Great American chain of restaurants from Siestema and others around, I'd never gone until last night due to a lack of a car in the area. Being one of those guys who occasionally likes some of the facets of a chain, I was really pleased with my first visit to Coastal Flats.

First of all, I know its been said before, but those little fried balls of cheese-filled dough... While the rest of the meal was really good, give me a beer and a basket full of these and I'd be good to go. The crab and shrimp fritters had nicely-sized pieces of seafood inside and a sauce that wasn't too timid with the spice. As for the entree, I had the shrimp and grits. A few moments before my food arrived, a waitress walked by with a plate, and I remarked to my companion "hmmm, I'm glad I didn't order that." Well, it turned out I had. I was expecting a more traditional dish of the "wet" grits, what came was more of a polenta cake-style presentation. Luckily it tasted a lot better than I was expecting, and I turned out to really like it. Add in the chocolate waffle for dessert and very good service, and I think I've found my new chain of choice.

Has anyone been to the CPS brunch? The web site said it was beginning in May and was thinking about going in a few weeks. Its a bit hard to tell if its prix fixe or a buffet. If anyone has any intel please share, 36.00 doesn't seem too bad for Charlie Palmers

A lot of restaurants in the DC area claim to have the "best" crabcakes in the city... IMHO, Oceanaire gives them a pretty good run for their money. The last experience I had here was... lackluster at best, but it was like a totally different restaurant tonight. Crabcakes may not be true Maryland crab, but they were delicious, service was top-notch, and maybe its just me but I really enjoy that they keep hot cookies and milk on the dessert menu. And theres something about being able to get a .95 Dixie Cup for dessert when the check is running 100$ per person that's nice.

As usual Charlie Palmers was shining on Restaurant Week last night. The pecan encrusted pork loin was wonderful even though the pork was just a tad overdone, and the Chocoalate Cave for dessert was also fantastic (I enjoy that the desserts at CPS aren't humongous). I thought the filling of the stuffed Calamari was a bit of an odd textural juxtaposition, but tasted excellent. CPS is a perennial on my Restaurant Week list, and looks to stay that way.

I had the lobster special last Saturday at the Chevy Chase location. For 17.95 (for the single option) it was pretty good, not a huge lobster, but its 18 bucks. I did substitute corn on the cob for the french fries though

Should clarify - it was in the cab on the way home that I noticed the discrepancy while perusing the receipt. I did email the restaurant and will post their response.

Had a fantastic meal at Charlie Palmers for RW last night. With an amuse of salmon tartare, gazpacho with shrimp ceviche, perfectly cooked salmon with asparagus risotto and a light strawberry soup, it was a great bargain for the promotion.

One major gripe - we ordered several wines by the glass and were very specific with which glasses we'd like, yet when the check came we discovered that we'd received a much pricier glass than requested on each occasion. I'd like to hope this was a mistake, but it did happen on each glass, and marred what was otherwise a wonderful meal.

I actually had dinner there last night with a friend. Originally went for RW, but honestly the menu for that was somewhat limited and wasn't any cheaper than ordering off the regular menu.

The mulligatawny soup was delicious. I had the green chili chicken, which, as the menu promised, was not for the faint of heart but had good flavor in addition to being spicey. My companion had the Chicken Korma, which was much more mild and almost reminded me of a Thai peanut chicken dish, it was fantastic.

The pear sorbet for dessert was also excellent, it was refreshing and sweet without being sickeningly/candy sweet.

Fair warning, they do charge 7 bucks for the bread basket, but it is worth it!

Lia's is open as of last night, looks like the outdoor patio might be pleasant, though it does overlook the taxi stand.

Word is that Lia's, a new italian restaurant set to open very soon in Friendship Heights on Willard Avenue, is part of the Chef Geoff's family. The restaurant looks nice from the outside, but a first glance at the menu makes me concerned they are trying to do too much... Good news is though that it looks like they will have a raw bar.

The wings at Lindy's Red Lion on I in Foggy Bottom are pretty decent, especially the Teriyaki, though they are a bit on the pricey side. Not too far from A.M though.

I had the buffet supper last night, and it was delish. Everything was good, but the crown roast of lamb was incredible, and the Warm Grand Marnier Savarin was holding its own.

Just received secondary confirmation, 4pm today!!!!!!!!!!!

There have been many rumors floating around out there about when Cap Lounge will reopen again, the buzz on the hill today is that they will reopen at 4pm today.

I haven't been able to confirm this, but there is furniture inside, beer taps have been reinstalled, and there are now liquor bottles back on the wall. Additionally theres been a flurry of employee activity inside all day.

I'll try and walk by around 4 to see if she's back!

I'd love to hear a restaurant manager weigh in on that one.  I don't know how they'd stay open.

There is a little ad in the Friendship Hts metro station that says the average restaurant profit from a 100$ check is 5$. Not sure if true or not, but seems to fit his math.

The Charleston Perleau and Fried Green Tomatoes make this worthy of a trip by themselves. I'd stay away from the Grouper though, speaking from experience.

Marty's on 8th St. in Eastern Market - Horrible service and even worse food.

Went in on Saturday night out of desperation (couldn't wait for Banana or Belga) with fairly low expectations.

The waitress didn't really have a great grasp of English, which is fine (more so in ethnic restaurants) but you do reach a point where it just isn't working. When asking about drink specials we were given dinner specials. We requested drinks that never came, food not prepared as requested, or dishes completely different from what we ordered altogether.

Cold and soggy french fries, still frozen chicken strips, and a burnt steak later, and we decided the 7-11 would have been a better option!

I was upstairs last night for a private party, and was somewhat surprised to be served warm red wine at a wine bar. The white was the appropriate temperature. Has anyone else noticed this there, or was it a one-time fluke with being upstairs?

Having said that, the crab rangoons were excellent, as was the homemade cocktail sauce served with nice boiled shrimp.

Long time lurker, first time poster...

I'd definately second Tune Inn. Happy hour from 4-7 and half priced burgers from 7-10 Wednesday thru Saturday make this an excellent choice. Plus you gotta love their waitresses (just ask them about their grandkids and they'll love you for life).

Lindy's Red Lion is another classic in Foggy Bottom. An outdoor patio, relatively inexpensive drinks, a pretty good menu, and smarmy staff (plus a better jukebox than Tune Inn) make this a favorite.