collije

Hearing that McCloud left before the Holidays, so new Chef hunting is in the works. 

Aaron produced some very good food in his time there. Best of luck to Cedar mgmt in finding a quality replacement.

Had yet another nice meal tonight with my dinner group. And here I spy Mark Medley (of the missed Mark & Orlando in Dupont) slinging drinks and handling our table with ease.

Chatting him up after the event. He's been working with Regina / Pesce for some time. Bartending Tues and Fridays (occasional Sundays). also think he helped out with Chef Wright leaving as well.

DR NEWS TIP - Mark is getting back into the Restaurant ownership biz! New partner, 8th & H St NE (Atlas), think he signed papers and had been searching for some time. To paraphrase Mark, envisioning a jazzed-up Mark and Orlandos (sans Orlando, he's working Corp with a Hotel). OMG did I leak a story before others lol?

Are you talking about Michael himself hand-cutting meat behind the counter? I have never been convinced that this was anything more than show. The sheer numbers of hamburgers sold (sometimes near 1,000 a day) negate the possibility of this being representative.

Saw him once and I believe I saw someone else another time (think afternoon timeframes). But based on volume business I'd have to agree with you.

I see no issues with more businesses opening up capital needs to the small investor (or fans of their local establishment if that's existing). The public gets a chance to decide whether to do or not. I'd rather have the independent vs a corporation-backed endeavors.

Thanks, I just recall being in HellBurger in Year 1 and watching the meat being transported and ground there (that was awesome to see). I'm usually going crazy with the toppings too (The Dogcatcher is awesome isn't it?) but have not gotten in some time. Just an excuse for me to do a build your own, more basic version sometime soon.

When I visit Rays to the Third I'm usually getting the Steak N Cheesy Nice N Greasy haha.

Question, has the lofty high burger (talking about the meat pirmarily) quality been maintained since opening in your opinions? I discussed with someone recently that felt it fell off a bit (not the same remnants from steaks as it was in the beginning), their opinion..

Sad indeed. I liked them being close to Chinatown area.

This sounds great Jeff

This place should get more love. Nice update Rocks.

My dinner group had a great large (24) party dinner at 8407 last Friday. Many folks were 1st timers to the restaurant.

Food on the whole was getting nice complements. Highlights were especially the Crispy Confit Pork Belly (starter -- loved the light vinegar to contrast the richness), Duck Duo and the desserts (special comments on the Ginger Cheesecake). There was some notable comments on the pastas though. The Squid Ink Taglietelle w/ Sauteed Carolina Shrimp & Saffron Crème was thought to be quite understated in flavor overall. I had this dish and thought that, along with another diner at another table who felt similarly. The other pasta in question was with the Gnocchi with Butternut Squash. The squash to one diner felt was not fully cooked to their expectation. To be fair they chose to not send the dish back nor asked the server for clarification on that dish. But as I said, food overall was well-received and factoring a 24-person party they did a great job. Service was excellent, nicely paced with being attentive but not overly so.

Excellent post-event comments, definitely a successful outing. I'm looking forward to seeing how the menu evolves this winter.

Stopped in to Chevy Chase Pavillion the other day and saw some signage indicating that Lunchbox would be opening up on the lowest level of the complex.  In related news, it seems like the Frederick location has closed (http://www.voltlunchbox.com/).

That should be nice for the workers in the area and customers not looking for a more-expensive sitdown lunch (which is a lot of the Friendship Heights options)

Love Lagunitas as well. If you ever make the trip to SF add to your agenda a short trip to the brewery.

Called today to see if Anthony was working pizza today, and was told that he no longer works there :-(

I didn't see the Channel Grease listed as available on the menu about 2 weeks ago. Asked the staff in the bar area, they told me they don't do that anymore.

A little bummed, any chance that info may have been inaccurate?

It's a damn good sammy. My favorite Steak N Cheese version in the area.

Sad indeed 

On the note of pastas being available as 1/2 portions, it's actually closer to 3/4 portion at 3/4 pricing. That's how Fiola handles it too.

Very happy for Elliot and Nick, well deserved. Nicely done Michael.

Philly Roast Pork should have the Rabe well-mixed with everything else imo. Pricing for the Rabe regardless of sammy size does seem a bit strange too.

Hmmm, me has to stop by here sometime (maybe late night post-drinking noshing when I'm not thinking about calories lol).

Sorry, I had additional details that I forgot too add.

Talking with Anthony that night, Pilla is only making pizza from what I understand (but he's making the in-house mozzarella & meats used like speck and tasso). Also, Urbana is trying to promote his pizza (e.g. making complementary flatbreads for hotel guests each day I believe, that's a nice touch). Didn't get to inquire about how they're handling the departure of Critchley.

He's off Monday & Tuesday, and does have 2 non-pizzaiolo staff helping out. Myself, I'm calling ahead if I want pizza there

Sounds suspect to me too. Fiola is right by Pennsylvania & 7th St NW. There's ton of cabs driving around there.

On a tip from someone I met while noshing at Hogo, I heard very good pizza 'made with passion' was recently experienced over at happy hour at Urbana.

I stopped by today at found pizzaiolo Anthony Pilla (formerly of Seventh Hill pizza) heading the gas-fired pizza area. Now it makes sense just doing a search & the Post noted this back in early Feb.

The pizza list has an interesting selection, including a Market version that's basically pizzaiolo's choice. And during happy hour pizzas are $8.

I tried tonight's Market pizza. Anthony described the pizza as 2-flour white wine-infused dough with a 72-hour raise, in-house tasso, cherry tomatoes, in-house made mozzarella, goat cheese, rapini and lemon juice drizzled on top for some brightness. Nice flavor to the dough and good chew. Nice amount of char on bottom as well.

You get a show with the 10 or so seats directly in front of the pizza oven while Anthony makes your pizza & chats you up. I might have to add this to HH rotation once in awhile.

I've still never been to Birchrunville Store Cafe. This reminds me to add to my personal bucket list

@Rieux: My list is currently in email format (with Google Map attachments) for easy access. It'd be easier to email ya (vs. reformatting), shoot me a PM with email contact & I'll hook ya up. (EDIT: Check your PM)

Props for bringing up my hometown Philly

Amada is quite nice (it's upscale take on Spanish tapas) as is Zahav (Mesibah tasting menu, whole roasted leg of lamb w/ pomegranate & chickpeas I heart). If in the mood for Italian, Le Virtu and Vetri (they moved to pricey tasting menu only though) are great, but there's plenty of great Italian in this city. For French I love Bibou.

If you're willing to do a weekend overnight and stay downtown, happy to provide you a Philly walking / noshing foodie tour I've come up with (I do this for friends a few times each year) that incorporates local Philly sammies, gelato, brunch options if applicable, etc.

I didn't say they were anything but good, it just didn't blow me away - unlike the Hawaiian food or the Jewish food which made me go "OMG this is great!"

But that's just me. I know it was quite popular with some of my friends, and others had opinions more like mine; none of us have the exact same tastes.

Ah then my apologies SeanMike. I focused too much on 'wow' (which admittedly I'm hard giving that out personally), then saw 'Suna' which I put in a different category of eatery / expectation set.

True, it's all about appreciating individual tastes