Teresa here. Another one joining after the Post article.
Went to Paradise Springs vineyard a couple of weeks ago. They only opened in January -- I was impressed by the wines. Turns out Chris Pearmund is the winemaker. (This may all be old hat -- I didn't even look to see if there was a thread about wineries!).
Anyway, followed the tasting with lunch at 2941. It was spectacular. I was disappointed by lunch there in the spring, and maybe my lowered expectations had something to do with it but it knocked my socks off -- and even more importantly, impressed my friend who was treating me. I started with butternut squash soup and just kept saying, "Mmmm, mmm," with each spoonful. Followed with crisp chicken with polenta logs and a "shaved" salad. Very luscious. And much more generous portions than I remember there.
On Saturday I took a friend to Redwood in Bethesda for a thank-you lunch. I'd never been but seem to have been reading in Tom Sietsema's chats that the place has gotten good. Well, I was underwhelmed. Had steak frites, so maybe I should have been more adventurous. The fries were good but the steak was ho-hum. My friend had salmon with squash hash and said it was good. Maybe part of it was, the place didn't feel as posh as I was expecting. I'd read it was such a beautiful place. Well, nice enough, but wish I had taken my friend to 2941 instead. Will be interesting to search on here about Redwood and see if I would have been steered away from it if I had only checked here first.
Teresa
