jaimetown

My wife and I went to the Arlington location last night and had an amazing meal. Had 7:30 reservations and were seated a little after our slot - the service was efficient and friendly and did not feel rushed. Ordered the blackened scallops and the crab bisque for starters and they were superb. The steaks (Diablo and Flat Iron) were so flavorful, tender and seasoned well. Key lime pie to share for dessert and along with a few glasses of the house right bank Bordeaux and a cherry soda - all under 80 bucks including tax. Possibly the best dining value in NoVA, and flat out great food, we'll be back again very soon!

We had left overs to take home and when I opened the containers to put into gladware, I noticed our server had topped off our spinach and mashed potatoes. Who does that? Just amazing.

Ah yes, grower champagnes - good stuff.

Thanks for the suggestions - I think I went to Ozio many years ago and thought it was just as you said! I think Aroma and Shelly's sound promising - thank you both for the tips.

Feels a little like a case of "when you care more about the wine than the company" - I would rather drink crappy wine with great friends, than great wines with crappy friends. I was once at a wine dinner where tons of good Italian wines were served like Giacosa etc., and I could distinctively remember feeling, these people don't really care about being with each other, they just want to drink good wine.

I looked across the restaurant where I dined not too long ago at a table where good friends and I shared a humble bottle of Valpolicella off the list-- and longed for that kind of an evening.

BTW, Stitch, what is an RM champagne?

The smoking ban in VA reminded me that I've been meaning to go have a cigar and a drink with a buddy of mine - are there any places you can still do this in DC? I'm not looking for a trendy place where techno music thumps your brain. Just a classy place where I can order a drink or two and catch up with my friend. Or are we relegated to my backyard in December, where we're smoking with our fleeces on, and cradling our port glasses from freezing over?

Thanks!

Sebastian, I need to stop by sometime and order your sablefish and have a glass of wine (or two or three) from your list - it's been too long!

I've had nothing but good to great meals at Duangrat's over the last two years. Not sure I can tell Americanized Thai vs. non-Americanized, but the food has always been very good.

For example, the simple Penang Curry has good quality chicken (dark meat, braised well), rather than the simple, strip-cut white meat you see in so many of the Thai restaurants around here. Also, I've had good success with ordering whole fish there (Rockfish, flounder to name a few) - always very good quality and flavorful. Noodle dishes like Pad See Ewe and Pad Thai have been better than most of the places I've tried (though Thai Pilin in Tysons has been pretty good too).

I've never ordered any of the dishes that Don ordered so YMMV. And yeah, it is on the expensive side, but we've enjoyed our meals here a lot.

Had a very good cassoulet at Brasserie Beck this weekend. Three of us ordered it and it came out in a dutch oven which the server portioned out at the table. Generous portions of duck confit, sausage (veal?), and pork belly, along with savory beans. Recommended!

I'm with Soup - I still prefer Pho 75 to Pho Hot. The quantity is huge at Pho Hot (and Pho 75 is just right IMO) when I order a large bowl, and the quality of the noodles is slightly better than Pho 75, but the broth at Pho 75 is still superior.

Plus on several occasions, I've felt I got a mild case of the Chinese Restaurant Syndrome after dining at Pho Hot. Just one man's view.

We had dinner here on Saturday and enjoyed it a lot. It was pretty strong from beginning to end for us:

Small plates for starters were very good:

- The burrata was fresh and delicious

- The veal/pork meatballs were seasoned well and moist

- The salad of maitaake mushrooms and celery leaf was nice and fresh. Very aromatic flavors.

- a duck/goose liver pate (I think) was smooth, rich and not heavy.

- Salmon croquettes were nice, but took a backseat to the other bites

And the breadsticks were so tasty, I could not stop eating them!

1st course was the best course:

- The Tagliatelle with Chanterelle mushrooms were divine, and the best course of the night

- My wife's gnocchi with goat ragout was very good as well

For the main course, we split a veal chop (for two). It was good, except it was a little rare (odd they didn't ask for our preference on doneness).

Dessert was also of good quality. I had a pear tart with vanilla ice cream (yum) and my wife had something chocolatey, but I was nearing a food coma so I cannot recall!

The cookies and the lemon gum drop at the end was nice. It was a lot of food for the two of us! Service was very nice and unobtrusive.

Watch out for Mark's Duck House in Falls Church, VA - a waitress there was too friendly with our then 8-month old daughter. She even tried to pick her up without our consent!

congrats on four great years Dean - I hope Dino is around for a very, very long time!

Ah, I've never enjoyed Pho more than I enjoyed it last night at 10:17 PM. Pho 75 serves takeout for 50-cents extra, and a tub of plain broth (no meat, no noodles, no condiments) is only $2.50. The broth last night was awesome. Paired with a red Burgundy it was even better.

If I was having surgery, and was required to be on a clear-liquid diet the day before, I'd cheat and have Pho broth and red Burgundy. Okay so it's not clear but it's clear enough, and it beats the living snot out of a bouillon cube and a glass of Hi-C.

Cheers,

Rocks.

Sounds awesome! A good Beaune 1er Cru and Pho sounds heavenly!

We had this recently and enjoyed it a lot - the drumsticks were fantastic (both mild and spicy).

I miss Franz's wine columns and his chats. These two have gone the way of the Food Network (i.e. dumbed down lowest-common-denominator)...

Took my wife there for her birthday recently and I was disappointed. Our apps were ok, but tasted very similar to each other(I had the bay scallops, my wife had the artichoke ravioli) - maybe I didn't read the menu correctly but too many flavors were too similar. Our mains were better - her halibut was perfectly cooked and delicious, but my lamb was cooked well the first time (sent it back, came back and medium+, rather than medium rare and by then I was too annoyed to send it back again). We foolishly ordered a side of roasted potatoes for $7 (which I could have made at home quite easily, I don't know what my wife was thinking). All the while I was there I kept thinking I should have gone to Palena, Corduroy or Komi etc. , but we wanted to try somewhere new and you know sometimes you just swing and miss.

The service was very nice and the staff seemed very professional. Nice space too, just the food did not do anything for me.

I had lunch there today and am wondering is there a better lunch for $8 (plus tax and tip) around here? Nice hot bowl of yuk-gae-jang (not too spicy, just right) with a generous spread of banchan... yum yum.

CA wine kick:

Paul Hobbs 2002 Cabernet

Littorai 2002 Thieriot Pinot

Radio-Coteau 2006 Syrah Las Colinas

All very good.

Thanks for the info - my wife and I were bemoaning the lack of good pizza around here - this is worth a trip for a takeout run.

I can't wait for the move as that will place it 5 minutes from our house!

That 1996 Cuvee Elizabeth is divine stuff.

Had lunch at PHO HOT today and I was happy. Being a Pho 75 regular (Falls Church) I haven't really ventured out in a while but this thread got me curious. Ordered the well done brisket and eye of round steak, and the quality of meat was very good. Lots of noodles in the bowl, and the basil was very fresh too. As for the broth, it was excellent - while Pho 75 has a deeper, richer flavor, the broth here was satisfying with its clarity. Thinking of it in wine terms, you could taste the components (beef bone, star anise etc) in a pure, unmuddled way. I'll be back.

Congrats to you and Kay - when our newborn baby is a little older, my wife and I'll have to find a sitter and drop by for another great meal!

Sorin is nice (the Terra Amata bottling I think), as is Dom. d'Eole. Both around $12 I think. One of the better rose I had last summer was by Chateâu Miraval Côtes de Provence Rosé (2006 last year) - purchased for $17 at Whole Foods Vienna. Really good - it smoked the Tempier a few weeks before it.

Good to know about the pyong yang naeng myun at WLO - had food there once many years ago and have not gone back since. This might be worth trying.

I would also give a nod to the bi bim naeng myun (spicy brothless noodles) at Choe's Garden in Fairfax as also pretty good.