kirite

My wife and I had an excellent Thanksgiving dinner at The Oval Room. It has a three course menu with starter, main, and dessert. Our server happened to overhear me tell my wife that inasmuch as I hate sweets, it would be great if I could have two starters and a main. She told us that although she couldn't promise anything, she would talk to the chef. A few minutes later she assured me that I could substitute an appetizer for dessert. We really appreciated the kitchen's flexibility.

Well, your world-weary cynicism is quite the contribution to world philosophy, Waitman. Maybe you recall Wittgenstein's proposition: "Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent."

I attended a lecture by Ayn Rand in November 1965. Yes 1965. I don't remember much about the lecture, but she had a young man seated near her who took the audience questions and then passed them to Rand. I can't remember his name. And, no, she was not dressed for yoga.

How was it?

It was very good. Sleek decor, professional yet friendly wait staff. My seared tuna was melt in the mouth tender that came with smears of whipped avocado. I also ordered the onion carbonara after watching Michel Richard prepare it on YouTube. So I was disappointed that the version served at Michel came without the salmon caviar. My wife's lobster burger was dense and flavorful and arrived with three thin slices of potato chips. She thought that her crab spring roll with ginger sauce was exceptionally well balanced. Neither of us ordered dessert. Overall, a pricey but very satisfying experience.

We'll be staying for a week in Mt. Vernon Square and would like to walk to dinner. Sotto Sopra, Helmand, Akbar. Are these good choices?

Thanks

Adding some hummus and pita chips, and a cheese and cracker plate, as each of my kids is now bringing a friend.

Bringing cous cous and quinoa from Nourish Market. Plan to arrive around 1:00.

Terribly funny. I saw this as I was finishing work tonight at 9:00. I think my job is safe.

Kliman's chats are usually really boring! I find the TS conversations much more interesting, mostly because he gets more interesting questions. Your matrix was a breath of fresh air, and he clearly appreciated it.

The steak was good, the chicken was great, the frites were acceptable, the oysters were addictive, the waitress was sweet, the manager was helpful, and the wine was an excellent value (Woop Woop Shiraz).

The interior was so grim that I will never go back.

No one patronizes a Ray's joint for the interior design, but a space less welcoming than a decent college dining hall is not a space I care to pay to occupy again, unless my inter-city bus is arriving soon.

What's the catch with Ray's the Catch? He keeps postponing his pescatorium, and I can't eat steak.

Exceptional dinner again tonight. An imaginative autumn salad with seriously shaved pear, parsnip, carrot, and pumpkin garnished with walnuts, black raisins, and dried cranberries. Blackened bluefish with carmelized kohlrabi, okra, tomato, and puffs of bacon fat (I think). This is another place that turns out excellent food but flies under the radar. Living in the shadow of CityZen doesn't help its visibility. Staff was welcoming and very professional as usual. We dine here every three months or so.

Wow--TS was very harsh on BLZ. Reminds me of what he wrote about Mussel Bar when it first opened but I was more onboard with that one. Like GiantShrimp, I've only been to BLZ once, didn't order what TS ordered and didn't have the problems TS seems to have had. My experience detailed here. I do recall it having some noise but not at all to the level of not allowing me to talk with my dining companions.

His Fall Dining Guide is out, and it runs the gamut from gas stations to gastrodomes.

In search of 5 or 6 places in Clarendon that have carry-out. Found out that Rabbit does not. Looking for other than pizza and burgers.

Does Rabbit offer carryout?

After going to Nostos tonight, and witnessing it deteriorate from being a really, really good restaurant into a cesspool of mediocrity, I call into question the value of ANY review, by anyone, including me.

Nostos, Graffiato, and America Eats Tavern 2.5 stars, and Bistrot Le Zinc 1 star? Really? Really??

You know what? It's just not worth fighting for anymore. The idiots have won. It's a Rhombus of Idiocy: Supply, Demand, Publicity, and Critique. They're all in bed with each other, grabbing whatever they can, the room is pitch black, everyone is intertwined, and nobody has a clue as to what's going on.

Say it ain't so, Joe! We're going back to Nostos for a third time next week, but for the first time since the 2 1/2 star review. Does everyting now suck?

We went to the Clarendon outpost tonight not expecting much but were pleasantly surprised. I had an all vegetarian meal starting with a Caesar salad that had very fresh romaine, lots of parmesan, and a light dressing. The vegan paella was a bit on the dry side but quite tasty with bulgur, chickpeas, English peas, capers, and scallions. It was an enormous portion, part of which I took home. I also ordered the vegetable sampler with honey glazed carrots, beets, and roasted mushrooms. Very nicely prepared and presented. My spouse had an entree consisting of three scallops, corn, and spinach. A bit skimpy but she liked it. We skipped dessert. The service was OK, nothing special. The room was about 1/4 full. We don't plan to return soon, but the place is worth another look.

I'd appreciate some recommendations for Sarasota, especially seafood restaurants.

That reliever was Henry Rodriguez, aka HRod or HotRod!

Well whatever gets named after HRod will obviously have to be FAST food.

Planning on lunch there tomorrow. Is there anything that shouldn't be missed?

I've only been there for Sunday brunch, but you should try and snag a front window seat on the upper level.

I would wholeheartedly second this assessment. I work in Tysons and occasionally, but not often enough, drive over for carryout lunch from the counter in the back of the store. Last week as I waited for my sandwich to be prepared, I browsed the rest of the store and was struck that the place is like a mini version of whole foods. Things are pricey but thougtfully sourced and they make it easy to eat a healthy meal. The prepared food area is awesome though. As the prior post details, the salad selection is fantastic. I had the wheatberry salad last week and am blanking on the other ingredients but it was really good. I had a tofu sandwich too with all the toppings and quite enjoyed it, if it was a bit messy. I should have ordered it on a roll or some more substantial vessel as the multigrain bread I ordered it on kinda fell apart on me. The flavors were good, though the tofu could have used more texture (maybe a quick sear to give it a crust).

Anyway, this place is unique and even though it is admittedly out of the way, I think it's worth the detour as they are trying their best to give consumers good, healthy choices.

Among other things that I can't identify, the wheatberry salad has macadamia nuts and golden raisins. I like their harvarti dill sandwich with sundried tomatoes, cucumbers, red oinion, and carrots on multigrain bread. The sandwich maker is very nice and will make a sandwich to your specifications.

I apologize for my ignorance, but is there a thread for Mala Tang?

Turkey thigh burger w red onions and tzatziki

Sylvester's succatash w fresh pole lima beans and herbs

Honeycrisp apple

Grilled swordfish with lemon pepper seasoning and olive oil cooked three minutes on each side

Brussel sprouts in a mixture of shallots, fresh dill, lemon juice, whole grain mustard, and olive oil

Tabbouleh from Nourish Market

I hope this place can stay in business. I especially like thier tasty and unadulterated side dishes like tabbouleh, cous cous, orzo, wheatberry salad, quinoa, beets, lentils with apple slices, and mixed vegetables. They also make an interesting variety of sandwiches. But the store is almost always empty. Location may be the problem. It's in a small strip mall on Old Dominion Drive closer to Great Falls than McLean.

I have raved about Seasons 52 in this and several other threads. Not because it is a great restaurant but rather because I have really enjoyed it as a very good place to have dinner while travelling on business. Especially sitting at the bar which can be very social. I've been to the original on Sand Lake road in Orlando, their north Orlando location and Perimeter Mall outside of Atlanta. All of these are freestanding buildings.

Tysons Corner is not. The entire front of Seasons 52 is open to the mall.

I don't like it. So much so that I haven't eaten there yet. I believe that Seasons 52 needs the escapist supper club ambience found by walking through a door and closing it behind you. The parking lot, garage and shopping mall are left behind.

But not at Tysons.

I have a trade show in Orlando in a month. I'll probably go to the Sand Lake road location three times while I'm there. Twice for business dinners and once on my own to sit at the bar.

I still won't have been to Tysons. For me someone made a very bad decision to leave the front of this restaurant open to the mall. It absolutely ruins the ambience.

I've been to both Tyson's and Rockville, and Rockville is superior for the reasons Joe H. gives. Plus the Rockville location has free valet parking.

Now here's a restaurant that seems to have fallen off the radar. We hadn't been there since Shaggy left. We both ordered the romaine salad and ravioli. The romaine featured goat cheese and snap peas in a green goddess dressing. We liked it but the romaine was less than fresh. The ravioli was light and tasty and came with a nice ratatouille with zucchini, eggplant, and a subtle tomato sauce. But the real stars of the evening were the buttermilk biscuits with parmesan and a wonderful side of succotash served in a little red baking dish which arrived with corn, of course, but also black-eyed peas and crunchy green fava beans. An all vegetarian and excellent meal. Oh, and the Old Vine Malbec by the glass was not overly dry or dense.

TS has given Nostos a richly deserved 2 1/2 stars. We've been there twice and especialy enjoyed the grilled octopus, the grilled chicken and salmon entrees, and the sides of spinach/rice pilaf and roasted beets.

Had the vegetable soup and chile relleno the other day. Both were really very very good. The vegetable soup had very fresh flavors and wasn't too chunky, but also not mushy. It just tasted very satisfying now that it has gotten cool. Like the vegetable soup you can yourself. The chile was huge. It was stuffed with chicken and goat cheese and had polenta triangles. The pica de gallo was super fresh. The flavors and textures between the creamy goat cheese and the outside of the polenta being alittle crisp all went well together. It was a much bigger portion than I expected, especially for the price. I thought the interior was a little dark during the day, but really liked the food.

We've been there several times and thought it was very good. For our most recent visit, I made a reservation through Open Table and mentioned that one of us is allergic to nuts. I also asked about low sodium options. As soon as we were seated we were handed a low sodium menu and our server asked who was allergic to nuts. Very impressive. BTW, most of their items are sodium bombs. Do they add lots of salt to keep their low calorie menu tasty?

Azami's fridge-cleaning scramble: eggs, leftover roast pork, half a jalapeno, and mushrooms on corn tortillas with cheddar. Mmm.

Bite size shredded wheat, lots of blueberries, and organic skim milk. Wonderful.