bookluvingbabe
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Everything posted by bookluvingbabe
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A slightly underripe necartine from Reid's. ( I thought they were all at the perfect stage but clearly this one snuck in on me.) And it's too cold although it's been sitting in my totebag for 4 1/2 hours.
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Is the charred tomato soup on the menu? It's just wonderful! -
Was it Sunnyside? Right next to Mass Ave? I saw they had silver queen but I didn't think I could remember where I had bought 3 differnt kinds of corn and I really, really wanted to remember for next week.Now can someone help me remember which heirloom tomatoes I buy each week? Mr. BLB is despairing of ever being able to get the same tomato from week to week. They're all good....just some are better. Jennifer
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Corn comparison report: Run, do not walk, to the next farmers market that Toigo will be at and buy their corn. It is heaven on earth! Ambrosia, perfection and paradise in every bite. The corn I bought at Dupont from the West Virginia folks was nice but it suffered mightily next to the Toigo corn. The Toigo corn is the stuff of dreams. Really. Jennifer, plotting a Claredon run on Wednesday before the Nats game...
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My husband and I just had that very conversation. (I was pro-adding more RW to our week.)We've going to Corduroy on Thursday. That's it for now!
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I think it's reasonable to expect at least once choice for RW. I've been a faithful RW person since NY started doing it and have converted many RW lunches and dinners into favorite places that I go back to regularly. If you aren't going to bother to even offer the pretext of choice, then why do RW? And at $30, I think it is a real meal...
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Worked in a late lunch at 2 Amy's on Saturday afternoon. Had the usual margherita with processutio (sp). Very good ! Even when the place is half empty it's too loud! Skipped dessert... Nothing really appealed to us. I need to get there more often! Jennifer
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A nice way to not get my business...
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A second finally on tomatoes from Wheatlands! (Also cilantro and basil...) Nectarines, plums and cherries from Reid's. Smoked mozzerela and regular mozzerela at Blue Ridge Dairy. Watermelon from the stand across from Wheatland. Corn from Toigo and the West Virginia Stand on the the side by Q Street. Rosemary Italian Bread from Atwaters. I'm a happy woman. Breakfast was bacon, tomato, smoked mozzerela and basil on the rosemary italian bread. Plus a little snack of the plums that didn't travel well... Lunch was tomatoes and basil with the regular mozzerela. I just had the most amazing nectarine. I love last July and August. Now I'm worried I didn't buy enough to get through the week! Jennifer
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Oh my! That green stuff on the pork shoulder is amazing. I'm still tasting garlic even with an acid blocker... I thought there was a tad too much meat on there though. It was hard to get the right balance of meat, green stuff and provolone in each bite. Cannolli (sp?) was terrific. Everything was great but a bit too rich. I can't remember the last time I had that much food at lunch. But I'll be back. I want to try one of those hot dogs!
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Too bad they haven't listed it on their website yet....Badly done!
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I'll be there noonish on Friday with a copy of Harry in tow, probably in a St. Louis Cardinals t-shirt. Jennifer
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I'm taking tomorrow off to read Harry Potter. I must however eat lunch at some point. Options-- 1) Lunch grill at Gaileo 2) Pizza at 2 Amy's 3) I failed to have Oysters at Firefly with the in-laws.... Anyone planning to hit any of these establishments Friday between noon and one or so? I promise to put the book down and over come my overwhelming shyness. Jennifer
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Ended up at the Cafe at Palena last night after failing to score a table at Dino's. Hadn't been in ages--mostly because we end up spending tons more than we expected. We had time constraints and the kitchen seemed to be a bit slow--we finally hailed Kate and told her we had to get out and ordered our desserts in advance to go. Also had her box up the burger. She didn't even blink. We started with the house cured duck leg, chorizo and veal tongue. All quite good. I wiped the plate clean with bread. Mr. BLB had the caesar--it's coming with a lightly seared tuna these days. I liked it but he's not a big fan of underdone fish. More for me! Shared the gnocchi-- I didn't think the portion was smaller than before but I don't order it when it has the blue cheeses so I'm not as much of an expert. Seriously yum and once again the bread wiped the plate clean. The blueberry sour cream tart was lovely when we got home and I've got cookies to snack on tomorrow when I stay home to read Harry Potter. Jennifer
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Last night--no desire to cook, needed to be home by 9 for Rock Star: INXS since I failed to progam the VCR. 7:30 at Dino's--30 minute wait. Must go earlier. As Mr. BLB said--very glad they are doing so well but... Ended up at Palena. Will post there shortly.... Jennifer
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We use Schneiders for work events so I often stop there. I've had some good luck with Bell on M Street and the McLean Total Wine. CW makes me nuts--too crowded, too loud, too smelly. But it is right around the corner from home and if I can find someone they usually can find what I'm looking for.
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Dinner with the in-laws at Firefly on Friday night. The good: the food was amazing. Totally blew them away. I think MIL didn't believe me when I said "the online food communities are raving about the lamb." Too bad. Her loss. We had two salads and two of the chilled tomato soup--nice and refreshing. 2 salmons, 1 lamb and one chicken--all were fully enjoyed although I did not share more than a taste of my lamb. The bittersweet panna cotta was a huge hit. The wait staff was great, Derek was wonderful. The so-so: We had a 6:15 reserveration and arrived right on time. Our table was not ready and we were told it wouldn't be for a little while. Would we like to wait at the bar? I smiled and said no and had the in-laws grousing behind me. (The lounge was too loud, too happening...too everything....) We were the first party in the back room that evening. How on earth can the table not be ready forty-five minutes after they opened for dinner? In 2 + years of dining there regularly, I've never had a table not be ready. Ever. Sigh. It was a small glitch and I think the food more than overcame that. I suppose the proof will be in the version of the story I hear from my SIL in a few weeks. Now I have to get back there to have more of that lamb. Wow! Jennifer
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Cranky, cranky, cranky... Family obligations kept me from markets today; family obligations are keeping from Dupont and Takoma tomorrow. When's my next best chance of getting decent nectarines and peaches and what remains of the cherrys? Are there any markets on Monday or Tuesday? A Sunday market that runs past 3 pm? Sigh...
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Interesting... The neighborhood can sure use it--I've gotten increasingly frustrated with the crowds at 2 Amy's... Jennifer
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So glad to hear the new summer menu is getting raves. Taking Mr. BLB's parents on Friday night. I was very tempted to stop in over the weekend to do a dry run since we haven't tried anything on the menu to recomend... Oh well...Winging is good. And I feel fully confident in passing along your raves and reviews. As for me, I'm having the lamb... Jennifer
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We had a lovely, leisurely dinner at Dino's tonight. What a great addition to the neighborhood--and a totally different note from the other Italian places, 2 Amy's and Palena. Dino's isn't going to compete with them--it is going to complement them nicely. We started with the Polipo alla Griglia (baby octopus) and the Prosciutto Crudo. OMG--the octupus was simply amazing. Perfection on a plate and I used half of my bread to wipe up the sauce it was served in. The prosciutto was damned good too. We had the Iron Horse "Rosato of Sangiovese" to start. Very nice for a hot day. Then we tried the Saltimbocca, Calamari Fritti and the Quaglia alla Griglia. I will note that Mr. BLB does not usually like squid and was fighting me for pieces of the calamari. The saltimbocca did nothing for me but he liked it. The quail smelled amazing--I love it when food smells as good as it tastes. Lovely, lovely, lovely food. I lost tracks of the wines at this point--I have them written down but I have no idea what went with what course by now... Justin, formerly of Ray's and Palena, took impeccable care of us and matched the wines just right. Mr. BLB isn't much for wine usually but he was quaffing away too. I love the little glasses and the pricing~! We then tried the small plates of the Pinci al Cinghiale (wild boar) and Bigoi in Salsa (anchovy). Very nice--the boar had great flavor. I thought the bigoi was a little heavy on the onions or perhaps they just needed to be chopped smaller but I really enjoyed both. Dessert-- I had the Gelato Affogatto and Mr. BLB had the panna cotta. (I am not a nutella fan and wish there was more chocolate on the menu.... That is my only complaint!) The gelato was lovely but I thought the panna cotta wasn't sweet enough. Now I suspect in traditional Venetian dining, chocolate isn't big and really sweet desserts aren't the norm but I'm throughly Americanized. I admit it... Service was very nice, especially given that I don't think they expected to be 100% full on day 3! Dean and his wife (?) were stopping at tables to say hello and welcome people. Justin totally made us feel at home and guided our menu choices with aplomb. We'll be back soon! Jennifer
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All the cranky people went on vacation????
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Duck! The begula pasta! The chocolate cherry cup thingy! This was about six weeks ago... Jennifer
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I think Kozy Korner was there.... We used to live across the street and were startled to see it was gone the last time we had dinner at Firefly.Jennifer
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I'm in vacation in Canada, showing the husband the joys of the Stratford Festival. I've been coming here every year since 2000, and have one special place that I adore that I've been coming to since 01. Part of the appeal is the waiter I always sit with --Robert manages to remember what wines I like, what desserts I like, the differing tastes of the friend I travel with and generally makes for an exceptional evening. On par with a night at Citronelle under Mark's care... So when I made the reservation to take the husband, I requested a table with Robert. I quickly got an email back saying that the table was reserved and that they had noted my request. When we arrived, no Robert. He wasn't working that night. Should they have called and warned me???? I would have happily changed the evening we came. We had a nice evening, but it wasn't the same and I feel like I've built up this experience with Mr. BLB and not quite delivered. I'm coming back in August with the usual traveling friend--the same request is on file but I suspect I'll make more of an effort to make sure he's working that night... So... From a diner's perspective--do you have a special waiter you request? From an owner-manger's perspective---do you think you owe a customer a call or email when the waiter requested is unavaible? I'll be back online next week. Thanks in advance for your feedback! Jennifer