Chica Grace

WOW. Its time for the picnic again. Excellent. Thanks to crackers, zaramargolis and goldenticket for organizing. This is always a great event and neat to see familiar faces and meet new ones. So, as for the dish. Gee- if I think COMPETING PIG ROAST, well, that takes me back to my Cuban heritage... therefore, I will bring rice and black beans a la cubana! See you all there

There is nothing wrong with being stuck on tomatoes. They are awesome. I take this time to make different variations of tomato sauce & freeze it for the winter months. So: Tomato Sauce with Citrus, Marinara Sauce, Cream of Tomato, and Tomato Coulis. But for other summer recipes, I love eggplant - roast several with garlic and olive oil. Then marinate with tons of basil and lemon juice. Add pepper to taste. Also - I do a peach and yogurt soup. Its a great starter, or you can have it for dessert, especially after a spicey Asian or Meditterranean Meal. You need 2 lb of peaches, 1.5 cup of peach yogurt, some ginger (1.4 teaspoon), 2 tablespoons of port, nutmeg, and some fresh mint leaves for a garnish. What you do: Blanch the peaches , remove skins, remove pit, slice in smaller pieces. Puree the peaches and stir in yogurt, as well as pther ingredients. Refrigerate for a few hours before serving. Garnish with mint leaves.

Stopped by Trader Joe's this Sunday afternoon - inquiring minds need to be informed! By the way - good parking! There is only one level and you enter on 25th st. I thought the cheese selection was very good, and very classic Trader Joe style : Fabulous sauces to pair with just about anything. Also - don't miss out on the Italian Gelato at 3.99 a quart, which is less than what I paid for a pint the other day. Its great! The same organic milk you can buy at Harris Teeter - for a $1.50 less a quart.

Just finished off a cold cucumber soup made with some buttermilk. Lite dinner tonight

Take one bunch of leftover cilantro & one bunch of Parsley, add white vinegar, cayenne pepper, olive oil, a clove of garlic and voila! you have an awesome chimichurri saurce on your hands, which you can freeze for further consumption. I love chimichurri on meat , chicken, spread on bread. Its excellent.

To DR members: I'm hosting a dinner party and am soliciting input on what wine I should serve with each course. I have some ideas, however more heads are always better than one. Please feel free to suggest. However, I will indicate that: - All wines must be able to be purchase in the Washington DC area, and specifically Calvert/Woodley ( where I shop). - I'm looking to spend uner $20 bucks a bottle. Here is the menu: Snack to Start: Mushroom Pate First Course: Eggplant salad with Basil Second Course: Linguine with homemade Tomato Cream Sauce Third Course: Poached Red Snapper with Butter & Shallot sauce on a bed of Spinach Fourth Course: Profiteroles: stuffed with coffee & vanilla ice cream and lots of chocolate sauce on top Would appreciate the inputs. Chica Grace

Jason: I'm salivating at the descriptions. This is veyr generous and i am more than happy to be your a taster. I wil have to convince my boyfriend to come too and give his input. He is new to the entire "tasting" phenomena, but he is open to trying new things. See you Saturday at 2 pm

My grandmother did most of the cooking when I was growing up in our household. She made everything from memory, and it was all awesome. But she was never into baking for some reason. I used to watch my grandmother in the kitchen and ask a lot of questions. However, its funny, she never wanted to teach my how to cook, because she thought that when I grow up, some man would make me cook all the time & that is all I would ever do. She wanted me to experience other things in life, such as travel and a career. So, she refused to teach me. Then I got to college and gained 10 pounds and I missed all the fabulous dishes from home. So, I too started to experiment in my efficiency apartment trying to recreate masterpieces. But my interest really didn't take off until 10 years ago, when I decided that cooking was going to be & still is a huge way to destress after a day at work, or whatever else. So, I try recipes, I look at on-line boards, I go to restaurants and taste, eat, etc. But mostly, I invite friends over for dinner when I'm trying something new, and I have found - that no one EVER turns me down. You know when you go to parties, and maybe you get there a little late, and there is a huge buffet of food served? I realized I was getting better at cooking, when I have parties - THERE IS NO FOOD LEFT. That is a good sign.

Jason: I was just reading this thread with a mental note that I have to take my boyfriend here and taste some of your cholocates in the future. Then I go to this post! WOW! 750 pieces of chocolate that are less then perfect! I'm there and will try to bring others as well. Thanks for the offer. I love chocolate.

I got the recipe from The Silver Palate cookbook. And yes I used instant oats, which to me are the same as quick-drying. Thanks. Thanks barbara , perrik, and mktye... I knew I could count on don rockwell to help. I will try your suggesstions and let you know how it turns out. For now, the boyfriend gets to eat all the Oatmeal Raisin crumble so I can try the recipe again!

This is great that some local farms got recognition. Personally, I ADORE Paul's Honey Yogurt. Its to die for. It reminds me of a dessert that is served in Greece , which I had in Athens when I visited several years ago - which is a Honey Cheese. Anyway,for all those chees lovers out there - Blue Ridge has great Ricotta and Marscapone. But try the honey yogurt. TO DIE FOR.

I need some input from more professional bakers. I just started to give baking a whirl, primarily inspired by all these recipes I keep reading about on Don Rockwell. So, I took a stab at doing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, because I love the combination. I made them last Friday night. And they came out "crumbly" , meaning they are moist , but the cookie does not stick together long enough to be considered "a cookie". when you pick up the cookie, it kind of goes in pieces. So, it ends up being Oatmeal Raisin "crumble" rather than a cookie. So, I need your help. What did I do wrong? Is there something I need to add or subtract to make these cookies stick together more? Are oatmeal raisin cookies suppose to crumble? Or is there something in the length of time of baking ? I don't know . Need input. This is the recipe. 1.5 sticks of butter .5 cup of granulated sugar 1 cup brown sugar 1 egg ( I did not have eggs, so I used egg beaters in stead) 2 tablespoons of water 1 teaspoon vanilla 2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon cinnamon .5 teaspoon of salt .5 teaspoon baking soda 3 cups quick drying oats 1 cup raisins My first task was to cream together the butter and sugars until fluffy. Put the old KitchenAid to work - and got that done. Then, I added the egg. Then the water and vanilla. Second task was to sift together the remaining dry ingredients - the flour, salt, baking soda. Note: I did not sift, since I do not have a sifter. Another question - is that really necessary to bake? Input needed on this as well. Third task was to add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients. And then I added oats and raisins - mixed it up and maked betweem 15-17 minutes in oven. ?? help ???

David: I don't know who you are , or what role you play in the restaurant business, or specifically, the restaurant Agraria. I, in no way meant to criticize the staff, since everyone in a restaurant tries very hard to please customers . And sometimes customers will not have a good experience. That is a fact. But I, in no way am "Dissing" Agraria, nor am I "dissing the experience" I am merely stating my point of view, and talking about my dining experience on Saturday night. The last time I checked, is still protected under my 1st ammendment rights. Its called freedom of speech. And yes, you are correct - I am not in the restaurant business, and I am not a restaurant critic, instead I am the consumer. I'm the person that has the potential to be a "regular" and recommend the restaurant to everyone I know. I'm the person who ends up going out to her favorite restaurant for Thanksgiving, because why should I cook? I'm the person who will defend a restaurant to death in light of misgivings , errors, bad timing, bad service, if I like the people, and if the food is good. I'm the person who spends a significant portion of her hard-earned money on eating out in DC, and the surroundings Metro area. I'm just sharing my point of view. What I find comical about your response is that even when I gave Agraria kudos, you found it necessary to dissect those sentences into something negative. I stand by my point of view, which, in case you forget - its JUST a point of view. I will continue to post, because this website is to share experiences and ideas. Thank you

Elizabeth" I agree, it is that time of year again. And i am resisting from making my first batch, as whatever type of tomatoes are showing up at the dupont circle farmer's market are looking and tasting pretty good already. I do all the same things as you, but I use red wine vinegar, olive oil, some tomato juice, eggs, cayenne pepper, and then lots of fresh dill. I also use a combination of yellow onions and shallots. Also, I lile my gazpacho kind of chunky, so I forget about the chinon and just use the blender. Let me know how it turns out!

You are making me hungry. Typically, I don't leave the city on weekends, but considering these descriptions. I will make an exception. But sounds like you have to get their early to get any of the good stuff. uuugh! The sacrifices you have to make for the love of food.

Anything under your & Mechelle's direction will be amazing and excellent. I cannot wait to go and taste the fabulous menu. And by the way - Congratulations on getting Food & Wine's honor of "10 best new chefs" in the country. You deserve it.

Last night I went to Agraria, which surprisingly had a table available at 9:00 pm on Saturday night with no reservation. The bar area and dining room are gorgeous. It was a beautiful evening at the Harbor and the open windows from the bar/bistro area onto the patio with a stunning view of the primary fountain at the Georgetown waterfront is amazing. So, for gorgeous seating and people watching - GREAT. However, the only thing that was worth it were the drinks. The sommelier was very cordial and recommended excellent cocktails. I had something called the Cynthia - a lemony martini flavored with Anise, and my dinner companion also had a vodka flavored drink with some shi shi vodka - Hanger 10, with some sort of homemade Tonic. Note: the homemade drinks at Restaurant Eve in Old Town Alexandria surprass Agraria's attempts at uniqueness - that is in terms of taste. Now, for the food. First - its incredibly overpriced for what you get. Second, the wait staff starts the evening noting that the chef will not start working until July 17th, and that after the 17th - there should be more variety & selection. At first, I didn't quite understand why the wait staff was starting off the evening with such a statement. And then I understood when I started tasting the food. I got the Caesar's salad - comes with fresh anchovies & quail eggs and the Pan-Seared Sallops with creme fraiche & caviar. My dinner companion, the watercress salad with citrus ( also has some shaved fennel) & then the Tagiatelle with fresh Pesto and pine nuts. The Caesar's salad was pre-prepared in a refrigerator - so it was not freshly-made. ( you can tell when the plate is served super cold and "sweating" from the condensation). The dressing was sub-par, at best. the only thing that was redeeming of the salad was the fresh anchovies. Those were excellent. The scallops had not been cooked correctly as there was a crusty brown rim on each of them - from sitting underneath a heating window too long. And then the sauces served witht he scallops - too many of them and too many flavors. There was caviar sprinkled on top of the scallops, and then the sauce base was creme fraiche and some type of pesto. Quite frankly, with all these sauces, there was still very little taste to the entire dish. And by the way - the scallop dish alone costs $29. Ridiculous considering it doesn't taste like anything AND the scallops were not cooked correctly. Care to know more about my dinner companion's dishes? The watercress salad started off ok - if Agraria would just stick to one type of citrus. Instead, they insert BOTH mandarin orange, as well as sliced of lime. it also included shaved fennel. The overall dressing did not complement the watercress. It doesn't blend together and it sets the palate to different tastes without enjoying one or the other. Then the Tagiatelle was undercooked. Several of the pasta noodles were not Al dente. And from my perspective - there is no need to top off a pesto dish with pine nuts, since pesto sauce already has pine nuts in it. We did not have dessert. Overall, the service was friendly and up beat. However, I felt rushed, especially since it was easy to get a table. The plates came out way too fast, tining was off - for instance, salads were already on the table before any fresh bread appeared, and the wait staff asked 2-3 times "Are you finished? Can I take that away for you". I hate that. The wait staff, although friendly, needs some lessons in how to serve and not bother people when they are still finishing their plate. And for two drinks, two starters, and two mains, we paid $101. Overpriced . In General - This restaurant has kinks that need to be worked. Most importantly, they need a menu and food that tastes like something. I hope that when the chef shows up - sometime later this month, that I can post something different. But for now, just go for the drinks and the view.

I had the chilled pea soupd tonight. Awesome! I took my boyfriend's parents to Corduroy tonight for two reasones: 1 - the food is always excellent 2 - I know the service & the friends there will make it a special evening. And of course, I was right. I cannot rave enough about the chilled pea soup. I am a soup lover. I love all types of soup. And I've tried ALL of Tom Power's soup's, i have to say I love them all. And this one has the right mix of sweet and with that dollop of cheese he puts in the middle. Just great. an I too had the soft shell crab as my main. Honestly barbara, I could not help myself after the descriptions on this board. I felt kind of rude as I realized I only offered my dinner companions a taste until I was practically done. Well, the rules of proper sharing came back to me...albeit a little late in the dinner. PS: My boyfriend ate every last goat chees ravioli and piece of lamb. on his plate! Did not offer me a bite. You know what his excuse was? You've already had this dish. Yeah, right! Anyway, wonderful food. as always. !

Well, I certainly hope not. First off, there are enough snooty restaurants around, and we don't need another one, at least not in DC . New york is much worse on this issue. The second thing, is I really do not like anyone ordering for me. Then again, I know how to behave in a restaurant and what to eat.

So and JPW were the ones that had all the reservations! MBK and I could not get in until 9 PM! I think I have to call for reservations about 1.5 week in advance now. Anyway - hope you had a good dinner.

Well - wanted to all let you know that Hank's Oyster Bar was hopping last night.. No serving issues and no food issues. I went to dinner with MBK , only to find our very own hillvalley and fabulous "M"" (sorry chica, I forgot your sign name) already sitting down, eating what I thought was the ceviche? Do tell - how was it? Yes - Don Rockwell site had a good representation. This was the first time I had gone to Hank's, and honestly, the atmosphere is terrific. Small, cozy, tables close together and they have opened up the front patio. Very neighborhood-friendly. Anyway, about the food. Of course, our starters were the fried Ipwich Clams and a dozen oysters. Now I am a die-hard oyster fan. I LOVE OYSTERS!!! First time I had the, I was in Acapulco on the beach (13 years old) and a fishing boat came around and seved me a dozen oysters on a fin (the type you use to snorkel). Well, it as heaven for me, and since then I've basically loved them,thinking one day I may be struck down by the raw food Gods for having such an irreverent passion for Oysters. Such is the risk for good food! Since Hank's had about 6 different kinds on the list, we decided to try them all, and get a sampler. All were quite tasty and definitely met my standards. Hank's does not serve oysters with cocktail sauce. It serves with a wonderful light vinaigrette with onions. Excellent. Then for the mains, we went for the daily fish selection. I had the sablefish with soy/balsamic, and MBK had the pan-fried rockfish with grapefruit salsa and walnuts. We shared a side of snow peas with mint. All dishes were quite tasty, came on-time, were fresh, and the right portion-size. I had never had snow peas with mint. It was like they had steamed them, and then made a sauce that had butter and mint. Quite good. Both fish were served on a bed of chicory. For my dish, the contrast of the slightly sweet sauce and chicory was a nice contrast. But the best part is at the end. Hank's gives you large pieces of good dark chocolate at the end of your meal.

Chica - congratulations. I've read all three articles. and I am beginning to see the writer in Nadya that we all know and love. You are holding back on your descriptions aren't you? Go ahead and risk it! Transport us into the house. So many topics to choose from. I love the idea. Great stories. Congrats again

I'm the type the would definitely have to go with a group as Chinese is not my favorite cuisine. But if all of you are saying its good, then informed eaters must give it a try. keep us posted about a $20 Tuesday?

Happened to stop by the Tabard Inn yesterday afternoon 12:30 pm - peak brunch-time. We were in one of those "need to eat" modes, but had made no plans as to "where to eat". So, on a whim, we decided to forge thru the groups of people waiting outside the restaurant for a table )we thought - well - maybe they are on their way out!) "maybe they will take us". Well, Tabard Inn was packed - tons of people, with a long reservation list - and guess what, I, with no reservation, and an incredibly hungy stomach managed to get a table - an a nice one@! The host was most gracious, very accomodating, and incredibly professional. By the way - the patio/Garden is open and on a nice day (yesterday) a meal can be divine. TAbard Inn does not believe in direct sun (good). In the enclosed brick courtyard in the back, they have put a very light canopy across the entire courtyard, resulting in plenty of light and yes - you can still wear your sunglasses a la Hollywood, but you don't have to. Its comfortable. I personally love to dine outside, but so many places in DC just do not do it right. I hate having to sit on asidewalk cafe with cars on the street righ in front of my face. At Tabard Inn - this will not happen. Let's start with the boos - Bloody Mary and Mimosa were ordered. Bloody was spicy, with just the right amount of horserasish. Mimosa - just the right combo of champage and OK. Then - the fabulous bread basket - comes with standard french bread,but also these small muffins in wonderfully sweet taste. I think one was a corn/sage, the other was a walnut/fruit. For starters, we had the summer squash soup. Quite good with the right, smooth, no lumpy consistency. For seconds, I had the crabmeat quiche with veggies . Came with a mixed greens. My dining partner had the poached eggs with smoked salmon. So - first the quiche. First of all - a HUGE portion. Actually - too big. But the crabmeat - this was REAL LUMP JUMBO CRABMEAT. The chunks were large, and went well with the roasted peppers, leeks, and scallions in the Quicke. the mixed green salad - very fresh with a lemon vinaigrette. The poached eggs were interesting. Sort of a new take on the traditional eggs benedict -but without the bread. Tabard served the eggs on a bed of small potato cubes, which were tasty. And the potato cubes had chunks of smoked salmon all over the plate. It was quite good. We were both too stuffed for dessert. But if you have not been - go. Atmosphere is great (get the patio) , Plates were tasty, Service very friendly and professional.

Barbara: I howled at your description of the Reef. Alas, it is a cool place to hang-out an djust drink. The food is rather nasty. And I DO recommend the upstairs on an early weekday. Its quite neat to sit up there.. that is after the 3 or 4 flights of stairs. My thinking is - how can food taste good at all if the wait staff has to haul up those stairs? Must be a nightmare to wait tables there. But hey - its not ABOUT the food. Its about being seen.