LauraB

This place was one of Nancy Reagan's favorite spots to meet up with her 'ladies who lunch' friends back in the '80s. Enough said.

For those of you who have been here, do they have any savory offerings, or is it all sweets and pastries?

Boneless chicken breasts sautéed in coconut oil Roasted cauliflower with cumin seeds, topped with salted yogurt, mint and pomegranate seeds Kale sautéed with garlic

I'm not suggesting that the restaurant should be geared toward pre-theater diners. That would be folly. I'm merely stating why we went there.

I agree with you. And I can tell you from personal experience, those guests were not receiving that 'decent' meal over the past few months at Sou'Wester. It was like the restaurant just completely gave up on both food and service. As far as why a local might find themselves there, it's very convenient as a dining location before seeing a play at Arena Stage, especially given the dearth of other venues in the area.

Anyone stop by there today?

I don't have any predictions for how the new 'concept' will fare. However, they had to make a change. Sou'wester had declined significantly. Our last visit there a month ago was appalling. At least the new Asian theme will be in line with the Asian origins of the hotel.

YES I DO! BWI was my preferred airport from the mid-80s to late 90s, while living in Maryland. It was simply great -- easy access, not huge crowds (of course, this was before TSA). Unfortunately, that changed. The last time I flew from BWI was in early 2007, after many years of flying out of other airports. I was stunned at the growth at BWI and the accompanying inconvenience. It was *almost* as bad as Dulles!

On Wednesday, October 30th, walking back from the Van Gogh exhibit at the Phillips, we passed by the line at Little Serow right about 5:00 pm. (Yes, unbeknownst to Mr.B, I purposely steered us in that direction ) I counted perhaps 18 people in line and thought we'd have a good chance of being seated in the first seating, so we joined the line. This was our first visit, not for lack of desire, but for lack of time and opportunity. It was a gorgeous late afternoon and soon we struck up a conversation with the fellow in line ahead of us. He turned out to be DR.com member, AlexC, owner of the GrapeCrate, about which he has written here. We had a delightful conversation and the 30 minutes we spent in line just flew by. We were indeed seated shortly after the 5:30 opening and what an incredibly wonderful experience we had after that! As I mentioned above, this was our first visit to LS, so I cannot compare the quality of the experience with anything prior to now. I can say that, in our experience on this particular evening, they were operating on as high a level as I expected. The service was akin to that we've come to know at Komi: friendly, extremely knowledgeable, and enthusiastic about the food. I requested a white wine recommendation and the server brought me a taste of her first recommendation and I didn't particularly care for it. She then brought me a taste of a Sicilian wine that was just fantastic and paired very well with the food. And, speaking of the food: I love Thai food, but my experience is purely through Thai restaurants, I have never been to Thailand. This food experience was a universe away from any Thai restaurant I've ever experienced. The menu that night: nam prik num finger chilies/shallots/bla rah tom kha pla muk krachai/galangal/dried squid yum het khai khem mushroom/salted duck egg/rice powder laap khway buffalo/long pepper/lemongrass khao tang gapi salted prawn/cilantro root/peanut phat fak thong pumpkin/shrimp paste/egg si krong muu pork ribs/mekhong whiskey/dill I have read here, and elsewhere, that people find the spicy heat too much in some of the dishes. We did not experience that. We love spicy, and many dishes were plenty spicy, but not overwhelming to our palates. The plate of fresh-cut vegetables with romaine lettuces, cabbage, cucumbers, watermelon radishes, etc., that was replenished in a timely fashion, helped to offset the heat. With the exception of the starter dish, nam prik num, I loved every dish we were served. (I didn't dislike it, it was just fairly neutral for me.) My favorite dish of the night was the tom kha pla muk: this is related to the tom kha soups you can find at other Thai restaurants, but on a level so much more refined that I'll never be able to order that soup anywhere else again. When it was set down on the table the aroma wafting from the bowl was intoxicating. I was happy when the next course was served and my husband went to work on that while I hoarded the remaining soup! My memory has faded somewhat about the specifics of the other dishes, although I can say that the si krong muu are not your father's pork ribs. This was the most delicately-sauced pork rib dish I've ever encountered -- it was not especially spicy but the silkiness of the sauce was elegant and absolutely delicious. We left Little Serow on a high, feeling that we'd just had one of the greatest dining experiences we've had in a long time -- and all for $45 per person!

Pat, maybe if you move the applicable replies to the Dinner Party thread, you won't need to leave the original post here?

Thanks, Rhone1998. Your report is really helpful and it sounds like it is definitely worth our paying a visit.

That was my thought upon reading it as well. I couldn't imagine having the time and the presence of mind at 5:18 pm on the day of to post anything, let alone such detail. Hats off to hungry prof. Would love it if more people posted detailed dinner party menus -- it's inspiring.

Addie's is our favorite of the Black Group's restaurants (or, at least tied with BlackSalt). So sad to hear it's closing. From our experience, it was reliably consistent in providing good food and a cozy ambience. The patio was really nice -- after awhile, you didn't even hear the traffic on the Pike. And, it was the perfect spot before an event at the Strathmore. What a gem. Hope the Blacks make good on their promise to reopen somewhere else. Of course, the atmosphere won't be the same without that funky old house.

Thanks to Brian's recommendation, I went to see Dr. Dunn after moving into DC this summer. I was attracted by the fact that Brian's description of Dr. Dunn's practice was reminiscent of my former doctor, Dr. Kevin Gil in Rockville. My experience with Dr. Dunn was exactly as Brian described and I was very pleased. We had a lengthy conversation in his office following the physical exam and I learned that Dr. Dunn is interested in good food and restaurants and apparently has quite a number of chefs as patients. Laura Belden

Thank you, Greg, for recommending Saida Cunningham. Based on your reference, I went to see Saida for a stubborn muscle spasm that had not responded to chiropractic or acupuncture. I have been to see her 3 times now and I have seen the most progress with her treatment. Saida is truly gifted. I have been to many massage therapists over the years and I would rank her up there with one other as the very best. I went to her for treatment, not a relaxing massage, and that is what I have received. Saida can dig down into those muscle spasms like no one I've ever known. It is not relaxing, it is painful, in a good way. I am certain that Saida can provide a relaxing massage, but that is not what I asked her for. Her fees are remarkably inexpensive. $75 for an hour. In addition to her professional talent, Saida is a lovely person with a great sense of humor and a calming presence. I recommend her highly. Laura Belden

Not to mention that it's only $20 less than CityZen's tasting menu! And, having just had dinner at Little Serow earlier this week for the incredible price of $45/pp, I'd stand in line at Little Serow anytime before risking $70 on an unknown experience. We live within walking distance of Mandalay, but they won't be seeing us until we hear that this price is justified, or they change their menu/pricing structure.

We've had Thanksgiving at the Ashby Inn for the past 3 years and every year it was just fabulous. The ambiance at the Ashby is absolutely perfect for Thanksgiving. And, of course, Tarver was the chef during those years, so the food was incredible. Haven't been out there since the new chef started, so I can't say how it might be now. Four years ago, we had Thanksgiving at 1789. Again, the ambiance is perfect for the holiday and the food was quite good. This year, we've decided to have Thanksgiving at Corduroy. The décor won't evoke an early-American atmosphere, but the food will be outstanding, and we can walk there.

@darkstar: I'm not sure what the purpose of your list is, and you do acknowledge that it's not complete. Still, you're missing 4 of the best relatively new additions to 14th Street: from south to north: B Too Etto Ghibellina Kapnos

I'm not Zora. However, I've been using All-Clad stainless cookware since about 1998. I can't say enough good things about it. I use mine almost daily and have always cleaned it in the dishwasher, with no ill effects at all.

Does anyone know if the Malgudi on P St is the same quality as the one in Glover Park? I'm asking because the GP location is included in Sietsema's Fall Dining Guide, but the P St location is a whole lot closer to home.

Four of us had lunch at Pizzeria Vetri the Saturday before last. We had tickets to the Barnes Foundation in the early afternoon and this seemed to be a perfect location to have lunch beforehand, given that's it's literally almost across the street from the Barnes. Arriving shortly after the restaurant opened, we easily found seats at a communal table. The seating is exclusively communal "“ there are two large communal tables, each seating between 12 and 16. There is also a bar overlooking the kitchen with maybe 6 seats, and a window bar with a few seats as well. Service was friendly and efficient. During the time we were there, it was busy but never crowded, but we were there early, so can't say what it's like later on. We ordered 3 pizzas: the Margherita, the Melanzana, and the Salsiccia and 2 salads: the Arugula (coal-roasted potatoes, pesto and taggiasca olives) and the Wood Oven (roasted corn, chanterelles, green beans, prosciutto cotto, ricotta salata). The pizzas were perfect: thin crusts, nice char, excellent ingredients and flavors. I really enjoyed the arugula salad; I didn't sample the Wood Oven, but it was devoured by my dining companions. Pizzeria Vetri is a nice option to enjoy a casual meal before or after a visit to the Barnes Foundation. And, I can't say enough about the Barnes "“ the building alone is worth the visit.

We love the pizza at Ghibellina. We've been to Ghibellina several times and to Etto several times and we prefer Ghibellina's pizza. Ghibellina's pizza competes with Puppatella's for best in the DC area, in our view. Every other dish we've had at Ghibellina, mostly brunch and salad dishes, have been excellent as well.

Don, your post has made a difference to me. I had only been to WK once before, for Sunday brunch almost 2 years ago. Normally, I don't like to judge a restaurant's merit based solely on brunch, but this place had been so hyped that it was impossible not to feel disappointed by our experience there. I left underwhelmed and hadn't really wanted to make the trip back to Baltimore to give it another go. After reading your review, I'm motivated to return for dinner and think it might be the perfect venue to celebrate my husband's birthday next month.

Hello Nizam, Echoing dcandohio's question above, I am wondering how you have experienced the recent renaissance in the U-Street and 14th Street area. Has the growth in the number of new restaurants affected Ben's positively or negatively?

I hope he hires some copy editors. The quality of the grammar in recent years has been truly embarrassing.