TedE

How is Trusty's? I rode by it a couple of days ago. The location seems to be a bit of a gamble.

It's actually pretty cool. I wouldn't exactly call it a dive, but it's definitely going for that vibe. The aforementioned mason jars, cheap beer on draft (but they keep some good stuff hidden from view ), interesting decor, a fair amount of locals mixed in with the game crowd.

We've hit it a couple times after Nats games; only about a mile walk from RFK. I don't think the stretch between the stadium and the bar is sketchy at all, but I guess that depends on your frame of reference.

Popeyes?!?

Tom's expressed his love for the Popeye's chicken on many an occasion. I just wanna know when we'll see the review

Someone tell me why are dive bars cool again?  Just cuz you're lacking coinage or don't feel like sweating out the Eurotrash bars doesn't mean you have to suffer poor service, unsanitary conditions, sticky seats, bad music and painfully bad drinks.

Because sometimes you get tired of dealing with the amateurs and want to go hang out with the pros

I have not been to Old Dominion, and will be happy to try it sometime when I can make it out there.  (It's just past Indiana, right?)  My Cap City experience is from the branch at 11th and H.  I've only been to the Union Station one a couple of times, perhaps most recently was 8 - 10 months ago.  Does Cap City serve cask now?  They never had to my knowledge.  And the beers I was used to drinking all had the exact same mouthfeel.  If I drank their beer blindfolded I'd get flavor differences, but their dark and light beers all have the exact same mouthfeel, body and carbonation.  To me, that's boring, and Harvard's excels beyond that.

The brewer at Union Station has started doing casks during Thursday HH. One firkin only on the patio. Reports from other beer geeks have been positive. They had an IIPA a couple weeks back, oatmeal stout last week, a Wit yesterday, and a cask of Double Amber Waves next week (which I will miss, again , but only because Brew at the Zoo is that night). It's the same beer they are featuring for their 1000th brew celebration in Shirlington.

I found one nugget from the article just plain depressing:

I understand that in some cases, chains and fast food are better options than the locally owned greasy spoon on the corner.  But three-quarters of all restaurant visits?  Who are these people, and what are they doing in my country?

They are the people who live in pretty much every small-to-mid sized town in this country. When I used to travel for business I was shocked at how many times my only option for literally MILES in any direction was a chain: Applebees, Red Rooster, Bennigans, etc. etc. Take out was a different story, but not what you are normally looking for. Once in awhile you could find the odd tavern with good food, or the little mom n' pop joint that served something good, but often the chains were the best bet. And until I was forced to do it, I would never have imagined myself saying that. Part of it had to do with the fact that chains are attracted to hotels that in turn attract business travelers. And when you ask the locals where to eat and they reach the end of their list of chains, that's it. Seriously. Finding good food became a part time job!

Of course this wasn't true in every town, but in a lot of them.

As for the beer, I continue to believe there is nothing better in the area (offhand, this includes Gordon Biersch, District Chophouse, Cap City Brewing, Founders, that dreadful Hops chain, and perhaps one or two more I'm forgetting).  I had threatened to make fun of anyone who disagreed with my claims about the beer.    No one disagreed with me.

Ooh, ooh, I'll disagree!

I don't find JH very noteworthy at all. Totally meh in my opinion. And this seems to extend to all of the branches I've visited (including the original which admittedly was the best of the lot since they strayed more from the corporate recipe book; lots of specials and one-offs on tap).

Old Dominion is the best of the local bunch by a long shot; too bad it's way out in the middle of nowhere. I'd take Cap City second, if only for a handful of their offerings, not the usual lineup. Most any place can put together a string of "regular" beers satisfactorily; it's the specials that will keep me coming back. Had a great IIPA at the Cap City Union Station a couple months back. I've been trying my hardest to get there for Thursday happy hours this month when their brewer has had a firkin on the patio, but work has held me up. Every. Single. Time. And last night they had a Wit on cask. Damn.

In the end, what this means at Per Se is that the cooks are getting a raise and the waiters are getting a cut in pay.

Hmm, then in a competitive market like NYC I would be surprised if they were able to attract top notch waitstaff. I could see how this may backfire in the long run: require 20% on top of the bill to be split with BOH, lose great servers who know they can make gobs more money elsewhere, service starts to decline, patrons start bitching more and more about the required 20%. Sort of a self fulfilling prophecy

both of which are BYO food, which is illegal in DC, I believe

I don't this is true, but it may be a licensing peculiarity that I'm not aware of. Aroma in Cleveland Park allows you to bring in your own food. I think the issue is that there are precious few "bars" in D.C. that don't have some minimum food receipts clause in their license. If a place is required to serve its own food it's highly unlikely that they would allow you to BYO.

What I want to know is whether that 20% is charged on the very expensive wine that is on Per Se's wine list.

From what I understand this is the case (20% on the total bill). This is the only place that would have problems with such a policy. Does a waiter really earn that $400 for opening a $2,000 bottle of wine? On top of that does the restaurant deserve that extra $400 on top of the already astronomical profit margin built into the price of the bottle? But this is an entirely different discussion

Joseph's was awesome.  Everything in Arlington is turning into a crappy pseudo Irish pub. 

At least there's still Jay's Saloon on 10th street.

And Dremo's, but it is not long for this world. I will shed a tear when that place closes down. It's not often you get a superb dive atmosphere ("Now with leaky roof and drip buckets!") AND a stellar selection of micros. ON TAP.

I guess I fall in the "What's the incentive for good service if there's no tip" category. But I'd love to hear the other side argued.

Honestly, if this was almost anywhere besides Per Se I think I would be in your camp. But when you are in that stratosphere of the dining world you have to assume a certain caliber of waitstaff, real pros. I can't imagine anyone would survive very long if they were not very, very good. Not that there wouldn't be slip ups, but I would trust that the establishment would address them satisfactorily. To put it another way, how many diners at Per Se would NOT tip 20% anyway (aside from serial 15%-and-not-a-dime-more crowd which Per Se I'm sure is willing to lose. It's not as if they are hurting for business).

Speaking of Fox and Hounds, as much as I adore the place, can a REAL dive bar have a patio and waitstaff?

I still think that Dan's is the ultimate dive bar in the city. If you didn't know it was there you would assume it was a boarded up abandoned building that formerly housed some grubby bar with a hand-painted sign.

In Alexandria the Bayou Room (under 219) was my high school dive bar.  Not sure if its been spruced up.

I can assure you it hasn't. When I lived in Alexandria I LOVED that place. It was a serious refuge from the tourists. Fun to watch fanny-packed groups walk in, mutter amongst themselves, and walk right out. The bartenders spun some good tunes, too.

I'll nominate the Common Share at 18th and U. The bay window in front adds too much natural light to the downstairs, but in every other respect it's a classic dive. A recent attempt to spruce the place up hasn't managed to scrub away the dive patina, and you no longer need to worry about getting scabies from the grubby couches that were removed from the upstairs. Bonus points for actually advertising themselves as a chicken 'n waffle joint.

Not sure about the menu being online, but I get take-out all the time as I rarely have time to eat out...and it is definitely worth it! (They also have several daily specials that you won't find printed)

Sold! Might have to try it out for my (very) late lunch. Thanks!

Stupid question: does this place do take-out? Menu online? It takes some powerful food magnetism to pull me away from the lure of Greek Deli, but it sounds like this place has the goods. Usually take back to my desk though ...

where did he say that?

I think he meant "THE other source" specifically, not "SOME other source" generically. Semantics, people!

Tom is setting aside his writing career to personally mediate every petty, insignificant dispute that arises between restauranteurs and their customers through his chat. It's a full time job. In his spare time he will be waging a public service campaign to encourage spineless diners to bring up issues as they occur during the dining experience. Once that is successful participation in his chats will drop to historically low levels allowing him to return to reviewing new joints.

Who ARE these people?

I'm assuming people whose idea of romance includes gettin' busy to the lingering scent of burning oil and melted cheese. Mind you I'm not discounting this as a turn on for a significant portion of the populace.

My biggest memory from my only visit to a Melting Pot was not the food but the adherence of eau de fondue to my jacket, one that persisted for days. Four hours in a smoke-filled dive bar ain't got nothin' on 2 hours surrounded by various forms of grease in vapor form.

In case you guys think I'm just messing with you, I'm not (well maybe I am a little bit). But I'm waiting for one of two things to happen:

1) The story needs to break from "the other source"

Well, I was thinking it might be something that is normally found in this space, but I guess not. At least I hope not

Cannon's has gone spectacularly downhill in my opinion.

Yikes, good to know. I confess I haven't been there in about 5 years. What's slipped? Freshness? Selection? Both?!

JoeH?  This should be good.

Why is he not a member here?  So he can defend himself....

Read the article. It is illustrative. As someone who followed along with the drama from afar it was good to get background on the behind-the-boards action.

Why do I feel like the Mother of All Letters to the Editor is nigh?

Your gut would be correct!

Maybe Black Salt?

Would be my bet, too, but it's not Metro-accessible (Metro+bus-accessible though). Maybe Cannon's in Georgetown? Not too far from Foggy Bottom, and an easy bus ride from many points across the city

Then there's always fun with meat at someone else's expense:

The StinkyMeat Project

Warning: Do not view if you are eating lunch. Especially if you were planning on having steak.

Great article, confirmed most of what I already suspected. I didn't quite know the reach of the Phillip's galactic crab empire though.

It really is depressing to see food of my childhood go totally down the tubes. This year may be the first that I don't throw down for a crab feast in the summer. Watermen I talked to say that they expect a better harvest later this year. A drop in prices combined with a drop in demand after Labor Day may bring prices down to reasonable levels. The $250+ bushels I saw when I was thinking of getting some friends together last month made my jaw drop.

A bit off topic, but does anybody know if the crab guy at the Dupont market on Sundays will bring live bushels on order? I've been meaning to ask him but haven't been in town the past few weekends. At least then I'd know they were local ...

What really galls me is the quick hit ethnic roundup.

"Oh, yeah, we definitely need a Thai place and an Indian joint. How about something Mediterranean? Greek? Sure. Oh, and I hear D.C. has some good Ethiopian food. Why don't we throw Zed's in there so they don't have to walk too far to the undisclosed ice cream parlors in Georgetown."