Liam LaCivita

Bar Civita in Woodley park has half price bottles, off of our list every Tuesday.  

Wow, time certainly flies, thanks Don for reminding me of the days in Bethesda! I remember reading that article because I just opened LT. 

I have been off the forum for too long, so it is great to be back. I can assure you that we strive each hour of the day to get our place where we feel we need to be and we have been making great progress since our opening on April 28th. Consistency is the hallmark of a great restaurant, and that is what we strive to become, a solid fixture not only for Woodley Park, but for DC in general.

On a side note..

We have some fun and interesting events coming up that I will post here as soon as we get it finalized. Thanks!

LYON HALL in Clarendon is seeking a sous chef. Submit your resume via email to liam.lacivita@thelibertytavern.com or andyb21@gmail.com.

Lyon Hall is a fast paced French/Alsatian Brasserie in the heart of Clarendon where we make everything in house. A great learning environment and a great opportunity for advancement for the right individual.

Lyon Hall

3100 Washington Blvd

Clarendon, VA 22201

703-741-7636

Looking for highly motivated individuals for a new Modern American restaurant in Arlington. The Liberty Tavern will open in early Spring 07 , and we are looking for quality line cooks with a great potential for advancement. Contact Liam LaCivita at

liam.lacivita@thelibertytavern.com for more info.

we'll have white truffles at Centro starting November 7, also Stone crabs for those of you having a craving.

Centro hiring for experienced cooks, busy fast paced environment, attention to detail a must, good organizational skills a plus. plenty of room for growth.

Gah! Even though I'm trapped in my over-warm office at the moment, I'm looking forward to spring, outdoor dining, and trying some new dishes.

Does anyone have some scoop on new menus, new drink menus, etc. for Spring 2006? Maybe some of our "insiders" can help out with this thread.

Thanks!

At Centro we are introducing our early spring menu on Thursday. Things to look out for are first of the season fava beans with snapper, some nice looking wild Alaskan Halibut, beautiful steelhead salmon with microcress and asparagus sauce, and a sardinian grilled flatbread with spring veg caponata and caciocavallo cheese. Those are just a few....we are tired of braising, so we are starting a few days early...Hope that helps!!!

danielk, thanks for the report.

What I remember most from my last (a year or so ago) was a dessert called sfoglietelle: filo filled with mascarpone and candied orange.  liamvino, is that still on the menu?  'Cause if it is I will be there right quick...

Right now it is not... but our pastry chef is constantly changing the dessert menu so it will probably be on there shortly. He is Neapolitan and they are known for their sfogliatella. ciao

I hope liamvino is in residence tonight, as I have a 7pm reservation...

Oh yeah,,, i was in residence last night, and tonight etc.... hope ya enjoyed everything...Salute

Centro modern influenced Italian cuisine is looking for line cooks,,,,grill, saute, pasta......contact Chef LaCivita 301 951 1988. or email liamlacivita@adelphia.net

great opportunities for advancement.

True,,, but we all still have to understand the hardest part about being the "chef" is to teach his cooks how he/she wants them to cook.  His or her style, that in itself is the hardest part of the job!!! You try teaching someone how to cook from a completely different country, let alone teaching them the difference between speck and prosciutto...  Thats where the chef comes in..hahah.. I agree more than 2 days you lose focus, i take 2 days, sometimes 1, after 2 days i cant wait to get back to the stoves, hell thats where im comfortable.  Not doing PR....

....someone has to cook while the chef isnt there...., if the food is consistent than the chef must be doing his job..

Don't paint me as a meanie.  Ask yourself what your wine program would be like if you were gone on a regular basis - it wouldn't be the same.  I'm not saying "don't tinkle," but we all remember the Citronelle in Baltimore...

... actually, we don't.

True,,, but we all still have to understand the hardest part about being the "chef" is to teach his cooks how he/she wants them to cook. His or her style, that in itself is the hardest part of the job!!! You try teaching someone how to cook from a completely different country, let alone teaching them the difference between speck and prosciutto... Thats where the chef comes in..hahah.. I agree more than 2 days you lose focus, i take 2 days, sometimes 1, after 2 days i cant wait to get back to the stoves, hell thats where im comfortable. Not doing PR....

Yeah, the last one was very poorly marketed.  I work in Bethesda and keep up with all the local events, and didn't hear about it until it was over.  Maybe they should try to get the Bethesda Urban Partnership involved as well.

BTW, I went to your restaurant for the first time last month with some clients, and had  a very good lunch.  Great place!

JA

Cheers!! glad you enjoyed it!!

Real-estate appreciation is certainly a factor.

No. The restaurants in DC that opened this year were largely a superficial, sorry lot, with fashion and architecture taking priority over cuisine. The only great restaurant to open in 2005 is Foti's in Culpepper, with Aster in Middleburg being very good, and Dino, Sonoma, Hank's, W Domku, TemptAsian and Notti Bianche continuing the good neighborhood-restaurant trend with their emphasis on quality ingredients, unfussy or interesting fare, great customer service, and/or good wines by the glass.

The last two restaurants of any lasting importance to open in the immediate DC vicinity are Restaurant Eve and CityZen.

Cheers,

Rocks

True, but the dc dining scene has been improving... somewhat, and yes lots restaurants still rest on their laurels. Isnt true the reasons restaurants go out of business so quickly is because they take style and architecture over the cuisine

anyways?? and of course poor management

I had been thinking about two things I read over the weekend about DC and restaurants:  that the population in town between 2000 and 2005 has dropped 3.2% and that 2005 has been noted as a gangbuster year for DC restaurants (in Washingtonian's 100 best and in Nat. Rest. Assn stats). I'm glad, since apparently Zagats informed us last year that we went out to dinner less than the national average.

If the population in the district is dropping, however incrementally, then what factors contribute to a rise in going out to eat averages as well as restaurant sales? Do people make more money?  Are the city demographics changing?  Are the restaurants that opened this year better, and, as a result bumping up stats and optimism?

maybe more and more people moving to the burbs, NoVa, Maryland....also I think people are making more money, the economy has been growing at a pretty steady rate, especially this area. Also the competition in dc and surrounding areas is growing steadily, making dc a more exciting place to eat...thank god! People dont mind spending money, as long as they get what they paid for and more so.

Before reading this, you might enjoy reading "Burgundy Stars" by William Echikson. It covers a year in Loiseau's life as he strives for his third star. The book gives a good look at what goes on behind the scenes in a Michelin-starred operation, as well as insight into Loiseau's personality and that of the people on his staff.

It made for a good read and I was very sad to read of his suicide. To get a perspective on the man and his, some might say, mania for a third star, check this book out.

when i first started out in this crazy profession that was one of the first books i read and was very impressed...!!! definetely a must read!!!

Bethesda restaurant week begins also in January.....I believe 23-29.....so we basically have 2 weeks of inexpensive dining in dc and the burbs....though im not sure which restaurants other than ours is participating....I do know alot more than its first one in July...

The discussion seems to be equal parts "Great job getting that dead weight off the list!" and "How dare you exclude a long-standing favorite from the list!"

Very interesting. Maybe I'll dig up an old issue and compare.

definetely an interesting issue...... look forward to seeing what else is in store for the dc dining scene