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I had two meals at Galileo III recently. I'm not a defender of Roberto Donna, because his past behavior is not something I can defend. But I was willing to give his prior actions a pass and eat at his restaurant for a couple of reasons. First, it's a pretty safe bet that he's not the only person in the industry in DC who has violated legal or ethical standards, and it seemed somewhat silly to boycott his restaurant when I'm quite sure I've spent my money in places where far more serious criminal behavior has simply managed to avoid notice. Second, and more importantly, there are legal procedures for addressing this kind of behavior, and action is being taken in more than one jurisdiction. If punishment, and redress, are in progress at the direction of the courts, then I'm comfortable leaving it up to people who are more knowledgeable about the facts and the law, and whose job it is to oversee such things. To me, there's a big difference between someone actively getting away with scummy behavior, and someone who is being held accountable for his actions. The recent court rulings are, to me, a positive thing, a first step towards resolution. Paying the money back is the next step, and how well that will work out is still unclear, but I'm willing to let the system work, if it looks like it is working. So I went, I ate, and I enjoyed, without guilt. But now, after Michael's and Don's comments, I'll have to reconsider. If some of the same crap is happening again, if Donna - or anyone else involved in the management of this restaurant - is screwing employees again, then the system is not working, and I'll take my money elsewhere. But I'll miss the food.

Nobody can tell you whether Roberto Donna meets the standard you have set for him, since nobody but you knows exactly what that standard is, or what it would take on the plate to meet it. Here's what I know. For $55, you can have an appetizer (or pasta, or risotto), an entree, and dessert. Most of the reviews so far have said that your meal is likely to be at least very good (my experience was much more than that). So if your budget allows it, forget about former glory, just make a reservation and go have a nice dinner. If your budget is tight, try a simple lunchtime pasta, or check out the bar menu.

There were only three of us for dinner, so instead of cooking we went to The Oval Room. Fabulous food, excellent service, and great wine pairings. HIGHLY recommended (for next year).

I posted my thoughts on our first visit back on page 3, and don't see much point in repeating my words. Repeating the special offer was, however, well worth it. To put it simply, dinner was excellent last time. Tonight, it was even better. Both the kitchen and front of house are stronger and more settled, and it's clearly one of the best restaurants in the city. Considering the generosity of this week's offer, why was the dining room not full? I'd go back tomorrow, except I don't think I'll be hungry again until turkey day.

Is the deal still going to be offered Thanksgiving week? If so, what days?

Website.

Since your post this morning specifically referenced fine dining restaurants, I would say it's the chef whose name is on the menu, the website, the door... whoever is taking credit for the food on the plate.

I know what he's complaining about, but the focus should be on the bad food. Let the chefs worry about the technique.

Sorry, but I don't get the anti-sous-vide thing. It's not about the technique, it's about the food. Does it appear on your plate with good flavor, texture and appearance? Eat it and enjoy! Is the flavor off? Texture mushy? Is it colorless and unappealing to the eye? Send it back, complain to the chef, or simply take your business elsewhere. That's true whether it's cooked sous-vide, in a pan, in the oven, or on a grill. OK, so maybe you've had a bunch of bad meals cooked sous-vide. I'm sure you've had some pretty crappy pan-fried food, too. Are you going to campaign against pans? Focus on the food on the plate. Let the kitchen worry about how it gets there. If chefs hear, often enough, that the stuff coming out of their sous-vide bags sucks, they'll move on to something else.

You're putting too much stock in the Dining Guide. Sietsema has repeatedly said that it's not a "best of" list, it's just a selection of restaurants he thinks people should try. Some of the best restaurants around - in his own opinion - get left off in favor of lesser places simply because he doesn't really have anything new to say about them. Which, in my own opinion - makes it worthless as a "dining guide".

Just got back from a fantastic early birthday dinner at Evening Star Cafe. "BLT" mac and cheese, braised pork belly, pumpkin ravioli w/braised kale & bacon and sweet cream sauce, mussels in Roquefort & Chardonnay sauce, grilled pork chop w/sweet potato & andouille hash, apple crisp w/rum raisin ice cream. Yes, three of those dishes were shared - I didn't eat all of it myself. NQD and I were joined by my mother and my aunt. So add roasted beet, grilled watermelon and poached pear salads, stuffed chicken breast, and salmon over butternut squash polenta (full details here). I'd love to go into long descriptions of everything, but I'm just way too full and my brain is shutting down. That seems to be how I always leave this place. Thank you, Will, for another great meal.

Ribs from Costco. The rub: 1/2 cup kosher salt 1/2 cup loosely packed brown sugar 1/2 cup paprika 2 tablespoons black pepper I swapped out 1 tablespoon paprika for ground chipotle, then added a little white sugar to balance out the heat. The ribs sat in the rub for four hours, then were smoked in my Orion cooker with apple wood. They were finished on a grill with my ridiculously easy sauce, based on a recipe from one of Steven Raichlen's books: 1 bottle Sweet Baby Ray's barbecue sauce (40 oz) 1 jar ChiChi's thick and chunky salsa (24 oz) 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar Ground pepper to taste

That just completely and utterly ruined my day. I love oysters. I love roast pig enough to roast one or two a year myself. Putting these two wonderful things together sounds like a pretty good approximation of heaven. To top it off, you're doing it on my birthday, just a few minutes away from my home. And I'm going to be spending the day about 75 miles further south. Excuse me, I'm going to go cry now.

Three of us had an excellent meal at Galileo III last night. As NQD and I arrived more than 15 minutes early, Chef Donna was at the front door, getting a bit of fresh air. He seemed very happy and enthusiastic about the restaurant, and welcomed us warmly. The staff inside were equally welcoming and gracious, as was his wife. Service was generally quite good, with minor quibbles that can easily be worked out with time - mistakes about who got which dish, unfamiliarity with the cocktail list, etc. Minor stuff, and partially due to having people pitching in who normally don't do service. I won't bother to repeat descriptions of the food - most of what we had has been talked about already. Nearly uniformly delicious; desserts the only real weak point, and they certainly weren't bad. Someone mentioned undercooked risotto. Ours was not; it was pretty close to perfect. Each grain of rice firm, distinct, slightly al dente, but without a hint of graininess in the center; completely cooked through but not a moment longer. I would have preferred a slightly softer, creamier risotto, but that's personal preference - I believe this was perfect execution of an ideal that's just a tiny bit different from mine. Cocktails were delicious; a bottle of wine (I don't remember the name) was recommended and thoroughly enjoyed. Overall, a very, very good dinner. No, it wasn't at the same level as our one meal at Laboratorio, but it was probably the best Italian meal I've had since Maestro closed. At $55, a great deal (with alcohol and tax it was a little over $100/person). At the normal price of $89, it would be expensive but absolutely worth it. Two courses (at the normal price of $55) might not be enough food for normal appetites on a normal night; I would recommend three courses at $72 (plus dessert) and a full four courses for big eaters or special occasions.

Four courses plus dessert. Excellent so far - dessert still to come. This has been a wonderful meal to this point. At the special price @chef Donna is offering, this is way too good to pass up. Make reservations now. Don't wait.

That's across the street from my office! Maybe the beginning of the end of the wasteland

I thought I'd find an existing topic - if I missed it, please delete. http://dcra.dc.gov/DC/DCRA/For+Business/2010+Curbside+Cookoff

I'm not feeling particularly inspired meat-wise. Since pulled pork and brisket are already on the menu, I'll just do some baby back ribs.

NotQuickDraw and I are coming. We haven't decided what we're bringing; most likely some form of roasted or smoked meat.

The good news is, labs are easy, at least when it comes to food. We have a little white maltese/poodle mix - basically, this thing was bred to be spoiled, finicky and manipulative. We've never found a commercial food that he'll eat longer than a few weeks, maybe a couple of months, tops. We tried making healthy meals for him, occasionally hitting on something he enjoys, but it never lasts. We tried not giving in, just giving him a decent quality commercial food and leaving it up to him to eat whenever his hunger overcame his fussiness, but for a while he was suffering from severe digestive problems that were triggered by not eating, so he'd snub a couple of meals in a row and we'd all suffer. Now, he's going through chemo for bladder cancer, so just keeping his calories up is important. Right now, eggs seem to be a favorite (but we have to watch his fat intake), and he's fond of ham and cheese sandwiches, if I cut them up into very small pieces. He did enjoy a big meatball last night, but he's less enthusiastic about chicken then he used to be.

Four of us had dinner here on Saturday night, post-theater, at about 11:30. It was mostly empty, but looks like a huge space. Food is very definitely served family-style. Spaghetti bolognese and rigatoni with sausage were enough to feed four with leftovers. Our server indicated that portion sizes do vary, so ask when ordering, but you can easily satisfy 3-4 normal appetites on one appetizer, one entree and one dessert. That makes the prices quite reasonable, if not downright cheap. With a limited look at the menu I can't really judge the kitchen - especially at 11:30 - but what we had was decent (if a bit greasy). Do not expect high-end cuisine. Do not expect to be transported to Italy. But if you lived in a northeast urban center with a large Italian population (NY, Philly), you've had this food, and you liked it. Italian-American, not Italian, heavy, comforting and filling, and whether that's good or bad is up to you. Do not come here on a date - quiet and intimate it's not. Do come with a group or a family, stop by going to or from the Verizon Center, do send tourists who are not foodies. Service was very friendly and accomodating, especially considering the time.

We got dinner here (delivery) a few nights ago. The food came quickly, which is a plus. Since it was our first time trying it, we ordered conservatively. Satay - meh. Tasted like one of those store-bought sauces, the chicken just OK. Charbroiled Marinated Pork was decent, nothing special. Spring rolls not bad. Pad Thai was perfectly acceptable, but again, nothing special. Drunken noodles continued the trend - OK, not great - but with some heat. I didn't exactly break out in a sweat, but my sinuses cleared a bit. More than I expected for something that wasn't marked with a chili pepper on the menu. Perfectly respectable overall, but Crystal Thai remains our preferred Thai delivery option.

We're in.

I'll be in Denver this weekend. Unfortunately, my time will be limited, and food options will be severely restricted by my fellow diners. That's OK, the company is far more important than the food, but I'd still like to have a decent meal. So, are there any recommendations in or near the Highlands Ranch / Littleton area for reasonably priced steak, barbecue, or other heavy proteins, preferably with good beer? I have no idea yet how many people (could be five, could be twenty-five), but it will be mostly very large, powerfully built men who have spent the day working up a large appetite (imagine an NFL team at their 20-year reunion - only one of these guys actually played pro football, but the others look like they did).

There are several brands out there marketing to the health food crowd and the fitness crowd. The ones I've tried are expensive, and often "flavored" with some pretty nasty tasting stuff. Or you can spend 99 cents a can for Goya's version - sold mostly to people who have been drinking the stuff for generations. They have two versions, one with pure coconut water, the second with a little sugar and some pulp added, in very similar packaging so check carefully. Any store with a decent selection of Goya products should have it.