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Trummer's on Main, Clifton - Chef Austin Fausett, who Replaced Cory Lambert, has Departed


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Had dinner there last night. Let's start with the minor complaints. They have two parking lots but both were full (but not with patrons - so the parking situation is just weird). They do a tasting menu of 5 dishes but the precise items were not disclosed - even though we asked. The good - service was friendly, knowledgeable and never tardy. The food was precisely cooked and seasoned. The first course was the chef's interpretation of Greek salad - grilled eggplants and vacuum sealed cucumber. The second dish was mussels, shrimp and ciabatta bread in a yellow sauce (saffron, curry? I forget, it wasn't particularly pungent). The third was slow cooked chicken rolled in pasta, thus it was called cannelloni. The fourth dish was a steak (cooked on the bone to medium rare) with potato pancake and grilled romaine. While I enjoyed the food, I probably wouldn't have ordered a steak at Trummer's (I rarely eat steak, and never at a fine dining restaurant that isn't a steakhouse). I also would've likely avoided the shellfish because I'm trying to reduce my cholesterol. My wife simply doesn't like mussels so she left those on her plate. Some restaurants have printed tasting menus while others don't - I prefer knowing them in advance especially if the tasting consists only of 5 to 7 dishes. There was a pre-dessert and a dessert, both were sorbets.

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My wife and I had dinner this past Friday evening at Trummer's. The meal was, in a word, superb. The two best courses, I think, were the Mulligatawny Soup I had for the First Plate; and the 12 hour roasted Pork that my wife had for her Main Plate. When Trummer's first opened there were some complaints about the service. Based on our experience on Friday, those problems have been fixed.

If you haven't been to Trummer's you are missing one of the best dining experiences in the Washington area.

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The short ribs will more than likely be sous vide. And the turkey is equally delicious, so you can't really go wrong.

Unfortunately, my solo thanksgiving trip to Trummers on Main had very mixed results. The oyster stew appetizer was very tasty though lukewarm. I had chosen the fish for my entree, which may have been my undoing. After a decent 30-40 minute wait, the fish came out and it was cold. The brussels sprouts leaves were overly salty as well. I was a little under the weather and could not bring myself to make a fuss over the entree on Thanksgiving. However, I must say that the pumpkin pudding cake was absolutely delicious.

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I went to Trummers last night for the first time (living in the district makes the trip difficult during the week) and like the review before me it was a mixed experience.

After we sat down I asked for the wine list and ordered a bottle of Champagne which stays in ice next to our table for a while before we asked to be served (the waiter said it needed to chill)

The Champagne was on ice without water then the waiter served my make friend before the two ladys!!! he also poured the champagne to the top of the glass.

Then we sere served the (underbaked) bread which had almost no color.

We got our appetizers which were good but not great.The best being a main course scallops dish that we split, it says U8 on the menu but last night it was not U8, they were too small for that.

For main course we had two snappers which were excellent (the fish was a little overcooked) a pork which was good and I had the lamb which was served not lukewarm but cold. The garnish looked like it came from the refrigerator; I even asked my friend to taste the vegetables.

The waiter did a good job and took the plate back and the manager came to apologize; I understand that a problem can happen.

My comment overall is the lack of vegetables on the main courses. there are side dishes but we are not in a steak house and the dishes should have a better balance.I had a big piece of lamb and few parisienne balls of vegetables.

The dessert were disappointing and with a recurring of chopped garnish or powdered garnish, the portion of ice-cream are really small!!!!

I hope the management read this review, it is intended for them to improve and becoming better; I am sure they can.

At this point they are good but not worth the trip from the district with more attention to details maybe they will in the future.

BY the way I had a good time, I understand how difficult it is to run a restaurant.

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I hope the management read this review, it is intended for them to improve and becoming better; I am sure they can.

At this point they are good but not worth the trip from the district with more attention to details maybe they will in the future.

Had a booking here for last week we ended up having to cancel but will continue to monitor progress (or lack thereof) on dr.com for a possible reschedule. The above quote resonated with me. Just took a trip to Boston and visited a bunch of their star spots. Really interesting how most restaurants (maybe just my impression?) don't systematically monitor online feedback. I'm reminded of this when chefs and owners post here and also on the rare occasions that one receives a response to thoughtful and constructive feedback. Given the inconsistency cited here about Trummers, I'm guessing they don't monitor the key boards serving the DC area. Really a shame if true.

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Have been wanting to try Trummer's for awhile and finally made it here last week. The appetizers were the high point: an excellent Black Trumpet Risotto and Beef Tartare with Ketchup Sorbet. The ketchup sorbet was a bit too sweet, but really did work well with the tartare-- an inspired idea. The entrees were disappointing. The Roasted Red Snapper was a bit overcooked. It came with a bit of duck confit and oysters underneath it. Nothing wrong with those ingredients (favorites of mine), but not a dish I'd order again. The 12 Hour Oven Roasted & Honey Glazed Pork Shoulder was a solid slab of pork that required some sawing with a knife to get through. It wasn't exactly tough, but was fairly dry and lean-- a chore to eat. If it was cooked for 12 hours, the cooking temp was off.

The dessert were disappointing and with a recurring of chopped garnish or powdered garnish

Still a bit puzzled by dessert. The menu was divided into two sections: "Churned" (ice creams, sorbets and such) and "Pastry". We decided to try the "Pistachio" dessert from the pastry side. It turned out to be... pistachio ice cream. I asked the server why this dessert was in the "Pastry" section and she said she didn't really know, but that was the pastry chef's signature style: an ice cream or sorbet along with something crumbled (in this case, oreos). So the entire dessert menu, with the exception of the chocolate cake and possibly the "Cranberry" dessert is either ice creams or sorbets.

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Dinner was well along when the threat came. My wife was a few bites into her beef shortribs when she put her fork and knife down, looked at me, and said, "This is my new benchmark for ribs. If you cook ribs, they have to be at least this good." I didn't dare ask what the "or else" part of the threat was, but by then she'd gone back to making the beef disappear.

But in reality, this story of dinner at Trummer's on Main starts back in May. That was the day when a few friends and I were taking advantage of Trummer's half-price wine night and enjoying their house Cabernet, the freshly fried potato chips and some other snacks. I was talking to Victoria Trummer who had stopped by the table to bring more chips. I told her how much I enjoyed the restaurant, but I lamented that while I could hear the trains that went by just on the other side of the parking lot, I could never see them. Yes, I admit that I'm a train buff. Victoria said that they did have a table that had a window that overlooked the tracks, but that it was best enjoyed in the winter.

So Friday night we visited for a Restaurant Week meal, and were immediately escorted to a very cozy corner next to the fireplace, and also next to a window with a view of the rails. I was delighted. When Victoria stopped by the table a few minutes later to say hello, I expressed my surprise that she'd remembered our discussion. "It's just coincidence," she replied. I'm not sure I believe that, since I'm convinced that they keep track of every conceivable customer preference. They remembered how my wife likes her Brandy Alexander. They remembered how I like my martini. They remembered our names. I'm impressed that they go to this much trouble, even if they're just keeping notes tucked away in their computer system.

Anyway, on to dinner. The Restaurant Week menu was short but well chosen. My wife chose a spinach salad for her appetizer, I chose a country pork terrine with French prunes and whole grain mustard. The spinach salad was served with a warm dressing and a slice of bacon on top. My wife reported that it was the best salad she's ever had. Ever. She refused to share.

The pork terrine reminded me of a similar dish I'd had once in Cannes, although the whole grain mustard added a flavor note that the earlier dish was missing. It was a classical French country terrine preparation, and was essentially perfect. The prunes complemented the rich saltiness of the pork, and the mustard brightened the flavors.

We had finished our cocktails by then, and as I pondered the wine list, I noticed that there was a good selection of remarkably inexpensive Rhone reds. When I asked the waiter about them, versus a couple of domestic choices including the Trummer's house Cabernet, he offered some thoughts, pointing out that the vineyards producing the Rhone wines were virtually neighbors. But he said there were differences. To illustrate, he set us up with a tasting of several wines so we could decide which would go best with the beef we'd ordered. The Rhone wines were a little young, but the Trummer's house wine was fine, so we chose that.

We both ordered the beef short ribs which were served on a base of cheese grits. According to the menu, these ribs are slowly braised in red wine until tender. One of the staffers reported that they were cooked at a very low temperature for about 72 hours. The meat was the ideal of what slow cooked ribs should be. It was tender without being mushy, the red wine braise infused flavor throughout the meat. Most of the fat that you usually see on ribs had melted away leaving meat that seemed to simply melt when eaten. Thus the reason for the previously mentioned threat. Clearly I'm going to have to find a way to run the ol' smoker at an even lower temperature, and cook my next set of ribs even lower, and even slower. Meanwhile I'm feeling inadequate.

Dessert was Praline Semi-Fredo which is semisweet sorbet about the size and shape of a hockey puck served on a bed of crushed Oreo cookies and hazelnuts. There were other choices including ice cream and cake as well as a cheese plate but the Praline got my attention. It was just light enough to follow a rich meal, and just flavorful enough to make you feel like you finished off dinner with something that completed the experience.

The restaurant was crowded, the bar was packed, the parking lot was full, so we had to park across the street. The service was attentive and perfectly timed. I don't think I could have asked for a better dinner experience. I think that Trummer's has really gotten its act together.

But there was one regret. Despite having a perfect view of the tracks, Amtrak and Norfolk Southern found ways to keep from running any trains for the entire two hour duration of our dinner. I guess I'll have to try again.

Wayne Rash

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Anyone have a good estimate as to how long it would take to go from Bethesda to Trummer's on a Saturday night? Never beeen to Clifton. Google maps estimates 44 minutes door-to-door but I don't always believe those estimates. If it's around 45 minutes, we could go here in a few weeks; it can take us 45 minutes to get to DC restaurants depending on weekend traffic and/or metroing. Thanks for the advice.

Pax,

Brian

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Anyone have a good estimate as to how long it would take to go from Bethesda to Trummer's on a Saturday night? Never beeen to Clifton. Google maps estimates 44 minutes door-to-door but I don't always believe those estimates. If it's around 45 minutes, we could go here in a few weeks; it can take us 45 minutes to get to DC restaurants depending on weekend traffic and/or metroing. Thanks for the advice.

Pax,

Brian

We drove there from Rockville in early December on a Saturday night (perfect weather evening i.e., no rain, no snow) and it took us slightly over an hour. However, because of the nature of the roads, it *seemed* much longer. And, sadly, we did not have a good experience there, so the drive added salt to the wound.

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Went to Trummer's on Main for brunch. And while the wait staff was professional and the food was outstanding, there were a few hiccups.

First off there were several items on the cocktail menu not available. I understand this happens, busy nights, things get ordered, but as there were only 4-5 options, it would have been nice to have offered a substitution or something. Then the drinks were slow to come, as was my iced tea, and subsequent refills on it and waters.

Everyone at the table really enjoyed the bread basket and I think a lot of thought was put into the scones and biscuits offered. The Fried Green Tomato starter was exceptional, I loved the fried encasing, which was light but stood firm and didn't get soggy. The tomato compote, goat cheese and reductions all melded so well so that you had the slightly sour tomato, sweet tomato compote, goat cheese and balsamic all balancing nicely. With a lot of nice textures. Hubby scarfed down his smoked salmon, so it must have been good.

The shrimp and grits entree was equally good. Very fresh and well cooked shrimp, excellent creamy and flavorful grits, nice sauce, it was just so good, and not too fancy or modern for my Southern heart. But really well executed. Again Hubby's steak and eggs looked good, he scarfed them down. (Our friends had our same two entrees and starters) I love the space and there was a decent crowd, but shouldn't have been overwhelming. I would go back in a heartbeat, but hope they get the service really down, because food like that should not be let down by lack of easy service things like water and ice tea and beverages being brought. Our waiter though was very pleasant and nice.

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I don't think there is a much better setting for Sunday brunch than Trummer's. For starters, it is only a 15 minute drive from my house, so that is great. More seriously, you drive down Clifton Road, past a bunch of trees and gated houses, and come across the tiny little town of Clifton. One of the first buildings you come across is this beautifully renovated inn, which is now Trummer's, and you get seated in a wonderfully lit room with huge windows. Light wood throughout, vaulted ceilings, nice landscaping outside, just a really good setting for brunch with your friends.

Then you move onto great service while sipping on a wonderful gin and sage concoction that the bartender just made for you at 11:00 AM. The room has kids, but they are not running around the table trying to murder each other. Your conversation flows, you read the menu, which looks great, and you are simply enjoying every moment so far.

What is missing?

I have been to Trummer's on three occasions before our brunch yesterday, twice for drinks/snacks at the bar and once for a full blown dinner. All three times that I dined there I felt that it was wonderful. So, how does a place that holds all of these great memories, and is starting to create another new one, literally fall to pieces?

The food was a major disappointment. I am not sure if this is a brunch thing or if things are going downhill (it has been a few years since I have been there) or if it was an off day, but the food that we were served was pretty inexcusable for a restaurant with this pedigree.

The bread basket had banana bread that was no better than something you get at a school bake sale. The small cream puffs lacked any real flavor. The biscuits with bacon were better, but the maple butter that was served with the basket was way too sweet to use on anything. The sweet tones carried over to our first course when my wife ordered the oatmeal brulee. I think that she expected it to be somewhat sweet, but nothing like what she was served. Too much sugar all around, especially when you got a chunk of pineapple on your spoon, and froth on top as far as the eye could see. My first course, fried green tomato, was better, but still not very good. One slice didn't make for a very hearty portion and the accompaniments (tomato jam, goat cheese) were much better than the tomato itself. For our main courses, the duck confit and oyster hash had a well cooked egg on top, but the hash was lifeless. The only pieces of duck were far too fatty and the oysters didn't fit into the dish (huge and whole while everything else was diced finely). Then again, I considered myself lucky because I didn't order the fried chicken and virginia toast. I give them some credit for the toast, we liked it, but the fried chicken was inedible. I'm not sure what they were going for, but the fry job was way too light which just caused the chicken to be chewy (in a bad way) and the skin to be a big, fatty mess. Our friends had a better experience with some of their dishes - yogurt parfait, shrimp and grits - but they had some disappointing dishes as well.

Granted, I was SHOCKED when we walked out of there at 1:00 PM. For $190, including tax and tip, four of us ate a below average brunch with a few outstanding alcoholic beverages on the side. I am willing to give Trummer's the benefit of the doubt, maybe someone highjacked the kitchen for the night, but I will be very wary on returning after that performance yesterday.

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GF really surprised me with dinner at Trummers tonight for my birthday. She refused to tell me where we were going and just to drive...wasn't until I was on 123 and realized the only thing that way would be Clifton and Trummers...so was very happy, as its on my list of places to go. Thought we might be initially going to French Hound or Ashby Inn, but did'nt even consider Trummers. Arrived at 7;30 and was promply seated...then forgotten about for roughly 13 minutes. Finally approached by an apolegetic server who offered us water and menus. There were about 30 other guests in the dining room. Then , a gentleman approched the table dressed in a suit ( servers dressed in Jeans, White shirts and Vests...which I really like) and asks if we are ready to order. Turns out he is the Gm and Somm...There is only a $39 Prix Fixe on Sundays and they offer "bucket Wine" for $5 a glass...any and all open bottles from the night/day before for $5.00 a glass....so some very fun and good juice can be had if you desire. Ordered 2 cocktails, then our order in full plus a bottle of Orin Swift Prisoner $86 ( good Value) . Gf ordered Mussel Soup/Roasted Pork Loin/Cheese Plate...I ordered Escargot/Soft shell crab verbal special/Vanilla ice cream

Complaints- Initail wait for any acknowledment and then after ordering cocktails they forgot about them and it took a total of 15 mins to get them. B)

Other than those 2 time consuming snafus I loved the food and the place..reminds you of Napat..big, open, airy, great seats and tables.

Girlfriend also said it would be a perfect place to have a wedding reception....I just kept eating my bread and water while waiting for the Lost Cocktails and mentioned that the world didnt end :D

Another server told me that they are usually dead on Sundays with just a smattering of locals here and there, but they were swamped today and were running out of things....luckily we got some bread but then they ran out :)

I would def go back and would like to...will probably take the motorcycle up that way next time and eat at Trummers again and also try the General Store in Clifton also. $200 for dinner before tip

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I have a recurring dream where I travel southwesterly from my house. The specifics are always different, but the gist is the same: just a few minutes in that direction is something magical. Mountains that rise up tall as the Rockies, a wonderful steampunk city with entire blocks of model train stores, a stellar observatory run by a wizard, a place where gravity goes in the wrong direction.

It turns out that these dreams were just prescient metaphors for the magic happening at Trummer's on Main, which is literally fifteen minutes southwest of my house.

I'm not even sure where to start, mostly because much of the evening was a blur thanks to the generous pours in the Paradise Springs Winery tasting room. With a five course tasting menu, plus cocktails, plus wine pairings, plus the various amuses and palate cleansers, plus tax and tip, our bill for two came to just under $300. Please note that the tasting menu is no where on the website - I think it was $70-something per person.

The tasting menu was advertised to us as utterly unique. Literally. The chef gets a chance to really push the limit and explore, with every tasting menu being different for each table! As near I can remember it, given my blurry memory:

Deconstructed Greek salad. I always say the mark of a great chef/cook is one who can cook an ingredient that someone doesn't like but work with such stellar ingredients and with such skill that the person becomes a convert. Well, my wife hates cucumbers and any sort of goat cheese or feta. Not anymore!

Softshell crab.

Some kind of fish on some kind of eggplant.

Lamb leg with peas and ramps. This was the highlight. It was a definite holy shit moment. I believe my exact words on the first bite were, "it's like eating Spring!"

Cinnamon ice cream with graham cracker crumbles.

Chocolate ganache cake-thing with nuts and mint ice cream. This was mint ice cream unlike anything I've ever had.

Chocolate chip cookies.

...

I really need to start bringing a notepad or something.

I've been eating a lot of fine dining lately where the dishes are technically flawless but lack passion. Think a robotic violinist. The food at Trummer's was like Joshua Bell playing a Stradivarius, except Joshua Bell's brain, talent, and passion were put into a genetically-engineered í¼berfrau with the body of Christina Hendricks and the face of January Jones.

This was absolutely the best meal I've had since Komi. Oh, and the service was impeccable, balancing the line between professional dignity and friendly rapport, much as Christina Hendrick's breasts balance perfectly on either side of her cleavage. The space is as beautiful as the food: modern without being tacky, traditional and classic without being old-fashioned, all those things without being trite; much like Christina Hendrick's breasts.

Frequent visitors to DR.com know that I'm always lamenting the lack of fine dining in this part of NoVA, my only balm up to this point being American Flatbread and Passionfish. But now I say to you, residents living west of Tyson's Corner, you are blessed! And to everyone else: it's worth the trip.

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I've always liked how they define three Michelin stars as being a restaurant that's "worthy of a special journey."

I give this place three Michelin stars. Make the drive.

I'd love to tell you that I'm bestowing that honor because I had another killer prix-fixe dinner, but no. We've just been hitting up the bar from time to time.

The $5 bar bites have been (5pm-7pm Tue-Fri in August) as good or better than anything we had at Komi, Palena, Vidalia, or Cityzen. Delicious, perfect, memorable.

Seared tuna that's redder than Santa's suit and that tastes like steak, a soup with mussels and a hunk of grilled ciabatta crouton the size of my fist, gazpacho with tuna crudo, a deeply savory burger served on an English muffin, a sage cocktail that smells like an herb garden in summertime, frozen banana mousse that might have been the best dessert ever...

And never a check over $100 for the two of us.

Get thee to Clifton.

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I've been going to Trummers a lot, but only ever during the week, really.

Can anyone give me a sense of what the bar/lounge would be like on a Saturday night, say around 7:30? Any trouble getting a seat?

My guess is that people making the drive to Clifton would sit upstairs (or on the patio, hint hint), whereas people that live in (or near) Clifton would tend to gravitate towards the bar on a Saturday. If I were you, I'd call and ask the manager for a gut feel.

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My guess is that people making the drive to Clifton would sit upstairs (or on the patio, hint hint), whereas people that live in (or near) Clifton would tend to gravitate towards the bar on a Saturday. If I were you, I'd call and ask the manager for a gut feel.

Well, we generally go just on Saturday's (used to be Sundays, but no bar menu on Sundays). It has been sparse to packed. Getting a seat at the Bar can be a problem due to limited seats, but I've never had a problem at the banquettes.

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This is our new go-to place for "fuck it, I don't feel like cooking and I need a goddamn drink" nights. During the week there's always ample seating at the bar, and while there are always new, inventive, and highly seasonal cocktails coming along, my favorite remains the refreshing, signature Titanic ($8 on Tuesdays).

Anything with an "SA" (as in, sick-ass) is a menu staple, and worth getting. From the burger served on an english muffin to their warm chocolate sundae. Be sure to order some smoked (or curried) mayo to go with your fries.

If we're there and the Caps are playing that night, be prepared for my wife to be yelling at the TV...

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I finally made it out to Clifton for brunch at Trummers last Sunday. I had the mushroom omelet and it was easily the best omelet I've ever eaten. The texture was perfect, very light but still a little gooey inside. Loved it. The bloody mary was pretty good (could have used a tad more salt, but that's just my personal taste I think) -- really enjoyed the garnish on the bloody mary of pickled green tomatoes!

Short post, but everyone at the table enjoyed their cocktails and meals. Wish I lived closer! Great coffee and great service as well.

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I've been delinquent about posting here. New EIC gig keeps me swamped. We ate at Trummers for my birthday, and the next day I left for Europe. The meal was flawless, the food superb. They've started carrying Russian Standard vodka for my martinis. This is partly because I asked, and partly because I'd been complaining about having to import my own every time I went to Russia. The fact that they would carry this just because I asked is very cool. Fortunately the martinis were also very very cool, or more accurately, downright cold. This is as it should be.

I'd have provided a more detailed description of the dinner but my food sense was muddled by a catastrphe that was so horrifying that it almost defies description. But I'll try. My favorite sausage vendor in Germany was replaced by (God, give me strength to say this). My favorite sausage vendor, the place that had the stand in the Hannover train station where they sold their own house-made sausages and sold the local beer was closed and replaced by a Burger King. There, I've said it.

I'm still trying to erase my food memories from that part of March. I was supposed to go back, but all I can think of is that Burger King sign, so I cancelled the trip.

Sigh.

Wayne Rash

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I don't know who was in the kitchen a week and a half ago on Saturday night, but whoever it was is worth keeping. All of the food was excellent, actually better than our last couple of visits. Service was good and it's nice to know this is worth keeping on our list.

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Finally got to Trummer's tonight for our anniversary dinner. I've been wanting to go here for a while and will absolutely be returning.

Service: Perfect from the host stand to the clearing of plates. Every staff member (host, bartender, bussers, runners, server, manager) were on-fucking-point and the service is the main reason we really want to get back there. Genuinely great staff. Ask for Daniel to be your server. He was perfect. Genuinely nice guy and his interactions with us were charming, efficient and smart.

Apps: Chimichurri Risotto with Snails--flavors were good but when I think of chimichurri, I want noticable acid and herbs. This was a very savory dish with not much acid and the rice was very al dente...probably a turnoff for most, but hell, it was my anniversary dinner and wouldn't even think about complaining. It was totally edible (not totally hard...just cooked to where the outer shell of the rice had to be "broken" instead of "chewed"...does that make sense?) and the snails were cooked perfectly. My wife had the "eggs and bacon" ravioli. She loved it and I didn't get to taste the dish.

Entrees: On an never-before-seen-in-our-years-together (seriously...never done before but the entree selections were very limited) move, we both ordered the halibut entree. It was promised with Hawaiian ogo, quinoa and "flavors of the ocean"--or something like that. The ogo was minimal, the quinoa was bland and the tableside-poured broth was just...I don't know...stinky of the ocean and not awesome to eat. The halibut was very overcooked to boot. The dish wasn't inedible, but it was a severely weak dish in such an awesome setting. This dish needed an editor...badly.

Dessert: I had the Popcorn Ice Cream. Fucking killer. My wife had the cheese plate and she dug it.

Drinks: The Titanic is a great cocktail (a bit on the sweet side) and should be ordered by all new first-timers to TOM. Killer deal alert to follow though!!!!!!!!!

Killer Deal: Trummer's takes all of its leftover "by the glass" (and perfectly drinkable) wines from earlier in the week and prices them at $5 a glass for Sunday dinner service. So we had nice wines from Joel Gott, Sass and Baileyana for frigging $5 per generous pour.

Summation: I think it was an off night for the halbut dish. The room, the decor, the killer service and the other two courses have made me a fan. The wine deal is kick-ass.

P.S. The drive to Clifton is insanely charming. Go there if only just for the drive and a beer at their bar. (It feels like Mayberry without Barney Fife.)

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Impromptu dinner on Thursday night. Dinner was much better than brunch I had a few years ago, but not as good as when they first opened. I think that they have settled somewhere in the middle, which is still good, especially for this area.

Food (impressed with the rabbit ragout and sweetbreads) was better than the drinks (I had a laughable sazerac at the bar). Wine list is still solid. Setting is beautiful, but there are a few chinks in the armor (fluorescent lettering on black boards announcing drink specials in the bar). Service was mostly very good, a few upsell attempts made it less than perfect though.

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TrummerFest!

From September 17th to October 31st, the intimate third floor Gallery of Trummer's on Main will be transformed into an Austrian wine & beer tavern for an event playfully namedTrummerFest. Owner and Mixologist Stefan Trummer grew up in Austria, and his roots will be on full display as the restaurant serves up remarkably traditional Austrian fare like his mother's apple cake, traditional Austrian dishes, and unique sausages in honor of Oktoberfest.

 

Info here...http://trummersonmain.com/events/trummerfest-pop-up-restaurant/

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Originally we were going to have our anniversary dinner in Paris, but alas more surgery as a result of that tractor-trailer back in 2010 meant no airplane flights fo me. So I dropped a note to Victoria Trummer and asked if we could go there for dinner instead of going to Paris. When we arrived at the restaurant, there was a tiny sparkly Eiffel Tower waiting on our table so that it might feel a little like dinner on the Seine.

But I don't think they serve braised short ribs like that in Paris. They were prepared using sous vide, and were wonderfully tender and tasty. Everything else was likewise superb. The martini wasn't as cold as it wasn the previous time, but then on our previous visit Stefan Trummer came to the table with a bottle of Russian Standard vodka and a dewer of liquid nitrogen, explaining that he was going to make my martini so cold that I'd stop complaining. He did. This is the first and only time I've had a vodka martini, with olive, frozen into a martini-glass shaped cone. Stefan laughed while he was doing this, clearly delighted to pull one over on me. Once it thawed out, the martini was just fine.

This time, Stefan was away and another bartender made the drinks. Very nice, but without that sort of flair that only Stefan can deliver.

If possible, the dinner has improved above its previous high level. Just be careful - you might actually get what you're asking for.

Wayne Rash

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Trummer's is running a pop-up Seafood Shack located at their Clifton restaurant. It runs through early August and is open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

Also, I read that they are looking into opening a Gainesville location called Trummer's Coffee and Wine Bar.

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Four of us had dinner at Trummer's on Main last night, and it was a delicious meal all around. It was our first visit, even though we live in northern Virginia, and Clifton isn't that far away. This is a beautiful venue for a nice meal.

The menu was organized in columns -- Appalachian, Vegetarian, Specialties, To Share....each column had a couple of appetizers and a couple of main dishes. My eyes were bouncing all over the place, trying to nail down an appetizer and a main that stood out from the rest. Not easy with this menu.

We voted against the tasting menu, because we wanted to sample the entire menu and because the tasting menu is intended for everyone at a particular table. Our four starters were all wonderful -- rabbit ragout, half-dozen Rappahannock River oysters, chicken fried oyster Appalachian style, and kale Caesar salad with grilled octopus. We tasted around the table and declared them all winners. The two that barely didn't make our list were the sweetbreads and the charcuterie platter. The fired oysters landed in front of me, and they were sitting on a "gravy" that was spicy and filled with bits of andouille sausage. That dish was a hit. Lady KN's oysters were on the small side, but fresh and oyster-y.

Our mains were braised short ribs, grilled salmon, grilled monkfish and braised duck. My braised short ribs came on a bed of fried spinach and carmelized onions. I normally don't like carmelized onions because they aren't done right and end up too sweet. These were perfect, and the short ribs themselves were fall-off-the-fork tender. I never had so much umami on a plate. It was spectacular. The Duck, Monkfish and Salmon were also executed flawlessly.

Service was pleasant and precise. Prices were on the high side, but we came to a reasonable $100 per person all in, with cocktails, wine, tax and tip. I already have plans for a return visit.

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I'm sure someone will challenge me on this, but I declare Chef Austin Fausett to be the best thing to happen to Fairfax County dining since Maestro closed its doors. Chef Fausett has brought his impressive resume, including the position of sous chef at The Inn At Little Washington,  to Clifton, and has created a menu template that reflects food that is fresh and in season, and source locally as much as possible. He featured fresh Chanterelles from Fairfax County.

Trummer's On Main has become one of our very favorite restaurants in the DC Metro area, and it's barely 20 minutes from home. Yes, the parking is funky, because the lots serve the entire downtown Clifton area--all 5 square blocks of it. If there are events in the town, the lots are liable to be full, and one might have to park and walk a block or even two. I think it's worth that effort.

One of the best-kept secrets (and I wish it would stay that way, so please don't tell anyone) is the Sunday Night Dinner: Three courses for $38, and what they call their "Bucket List" of wines by the glass from already open bottles until they are gone. Whites are currently $5/glass, and reds are $7/glass. You may, of course, order off the wine list if you prefer, but that's a real deal on excellent wines. The waitstaff are extremely familiar with the wines they have, thanks to a training program that encourages them to take home any leftover open bottles at the end of service Sunday night (the restaurant is closed on Mondays). Sommolier Diana Roderique is usually available for recommendations, if needed.

Our most recent Sunday dinner was a week ago, and it was marvelous, as usual. My husband started with the Nibble Farms rabbit ragu with morel duxelles tortellini. He couldn't say enough good things about it. I had the Honey ricotta-stuffed squash blossoms on arugula salad with cherry moustarda and pine nuts. Chef adapted the recipe to make it gluten-free for me by using only rice flour in the tempura batter (he usually mixes rice and wheat flours).

My husband's main was the Cocoa & coffee encrusted short rib with two different types of onions cooked in two different ales or beers (I don't have the menu in front of me), and said he would happily order it again. My Berkshire porchetta was a perfectly seasoned and cooked slice of roulade of pork loin and belly, crispy on one side and unctuous from the belly fat (unsaturated), on a bed of pickled cabbage, black-eyed peas and peach butter. I've had porchetta elsewhere recently, but this is the best one of all.

Although we're not usually dessert eaters, we do enjoy the desserts at Trummer's. My favorite to date is the Popcorn ice cream topped with caramel popcorn. Husband's dessert last Sunday was called the Grasshopper, with a green mint dome and chocolate crumbles (I don't know the details).

The service here is attentive, and everyone involved in bringing food to our table always knows that I cannot have wheat gluten and double checks the plates put before me.

For those with celiac disease or gluten intolerance: I have dined here frequently enough that the hostesses know me on sight, and I have never had a problem or a reaction to anything I've eaten here. The pastry chef even provides gluten-free bread (I note the need on my reservations), which varies from one visit to the next but is always tasty. I'd say it's the best house-made gluten-free bread I've had anywhere locally.

I do have pictures, and when I figure out how to add them, I'll come back and edit this post.

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[Kibbee and Scottee, I alerted Victoria Trummer to your reviews. She is ecstatic, and is going to read them tomorrow at the staff meeting. Whenever there is something substantive like these two were, I alert restaurants, and they will often read the reviews to the staff - everyone please keep that in mind: You really are making a huge, direct difference, not just to consumers, but also to the morale of the workers themselves!]

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And they are now running their "pop-up" TrummerFest in the third floor area. We went last year and enjoyed it and will be returning in the next couple of weeks.

Very good dinner last night with a good sized group so we go to try much of the menu. Here are some of the highlights, full menu is below.

Jägerteller - meat and cheese board with some knockwurst, Landjäger, speck, pan seared liverwurst, and Ementaller, with chicken liver mousse and mustard condiments.

The Goulash mit Spätzle and Weiner Schnitzel were my favorite dishes of the night. Oh and if you go don't forget a pretzel or the apple tart for dessert.

TrummersFall2014Menu.pdf

TrummerFestMenuFall2014.pdf

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Trummers is now open for lunch on Friday and Saturday. The menu includes a reuben sandwich with house-made corned beef, house-made everything else except the rye bread. There's also their Farmers Burger, their house-made beer sausage and a falafel burger. The menu includes several snacks and appetizers, as well as some main plates from the dinner menu. I've had lunch on Friday a couple of times and had the reuben and the chicken-fried oysters as well as the vidalia onion chips and the fries. The botted beer selection is fairly small but well chosen. This is my new favorite place to have all those PR people go when they insist on taking me to lunch. It's close and I know it'll be great. Now, of they would only open on more days of the week for lunch. Here's a link to the lunch menu:

Trummers Lunch Mar2015.pdf

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Trummers is now open for lunch on Friday and Saturday. The menu includes a reuben sandwich with house-made corned beef, house-made everything else except the rye bread. There's also their Farmers Burger, their house-made beer sausage and a falafel burger. The menu includes several snacks and appetizers, as well as some main plates from the dinner menu. I've had lunch on Friday a couple of times and had the reuben and the chicken-fried oysters as well as the vidalia onion chips and the fries. The botted beer selection is fairly small but well chosen. This is my new favorite place to have all those PR people go when they insist on taking me to lunch. It's close and I know it'll be great. Now, of they would only open on more days of the week for lunch. Here's a link to the lunch menu:

attachicon.gifTrummers Lunch Mar2015.pdf

I can vouch for both the reuben and the vidalia onion dip. The reuben has an absolutely perfect bread-to-meat ratio (sorry, NYC) and the dip isn't just sour cream with onion powder: it's sweet and savory honest-to-gosh onions. And it's delish.

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Trummer's on Main is still the beautiful building it was, and the last few miles of the drive down Chapel Road are as nice as any in the area. The bar itself remains absolutely stunning, and was nearly empty on a Sunday night, even though the parking lot was full and upstairs was undoubtedly packed.

My bartender has been at Trummer's for quite awhile, but he's not going to be there much longer, as he'll be seeking a new lot in life within the next couple of weeks - and I wish him the absolute best in his journey. I ended my drive out to Clifton with an Elliot Ness Amber Lager ($6) by Great Lakes Brewing Company in Cleveland - I love this beer, and whenever I travel to the midwest, I keep an eye out for offerings by Great Lakes Brewing Company. Although Trummer's is best known for their cocktails, they have a few really nice beers on their menu as well, and for some reason, I don't seem to mind paying triple-retail for a $6 beer as much as I mind paying triple-retail for a glass of wine, or $12 for a cocktail (Trummer's excellent cocktails, which I've enjoyed in the past, are $12).

Bar-Menu-Absinthe-12.8.15-copy.pdf

Under Chef Austin Fausett, the menu at Trummer's has really changed, and I ordered two dishes which sounded interesting to me - note that these are from the regular Dinner Menu, and not from the Bar Menu. I began with the Sweetbread & Chorizo ($15) appetizer with chimichuri mayo and plantains. I don't like taking pictures of dishes, but it would have been much easier to simply show you what this looked like with a photo. It came out kabob-style, in a line, alternating sweetbread, chorizo, plantain, sweetbread, chorizo, plantain, etc., the entire line fixed to the dish by a very thin scraping of chimichuri mayo underneath. Off to the side, there were also three dots of the chimichuri mayo in case you wanted a tiny amount of extra dunking. The sweetbreads were lightly breaded and seemingly deep-fried, but were not hot when they arrived, the chorizo was like no chorizo I've ever eaten, and I wouldn't have guessed it was chorizo - it was also seemingly lightly breaded and deep-fried, but I'm not quite sure how it was cooked. Nevertheless, it had excellent flavors, and was much more mild than what I was expecting, so it didn't overwhelm the sweetbreads. The crispy slices of plaintain served as separators as much as anything, and if you ate from one-side-to-the-other (as I suspect most people do), it provides a textural crunch in one-third of the bites - the plantains were mild, and not unlike what you'd buy in a health-food store. Everything was bite-sized, although I cut each of my meats in two to make the dish last longer. The kabob-like line itself was perhaps eight inches long, so there wasn't a huge amount of food here. The flavors didn't really "mesh" so much as they "didn't clash," and the temperature was just not hot enough to make this a great dish - it *must* have been fried earlier, although I can't say for sure. The one thing missing from this dish, as trite as it may sound, was love - this was just a presentation of food, and while both meats were quite good, cut properly, and seasoned well, it just didn't integrate, and the only way I'll remember it a year from now is to refer back to this note.

With my main course I got a glass of the NV Trummer's House Label Cabernet Sauvignon ($10), which was a couple dollars less expensive than the name wines. This came from Barboursville, Virginia, and my bartender confirmed that it came from Barboursville Vineyards. A Chardonnay is also on offer for $8, and when I asked my bartender how the wine was, he said it was light, done in stainless steel instead of oak ("Buddy, you're talking to me like I'm your best friend!") My guess is that since it's non-vintage, Barboursville sells off young-vines wine, and wouldn't hesitate to marry different vintages in one cuvée, which is fine. What isn't fine is that the wine was resting atop the counter of the bar, and was, simply put, one of the warmest red wines I have ever been served in a restaurant - and that's saying something. My guess is somewhere in the mid-70's - the room itself felt perfectly comfortable, but it must have been slightly hotter behind the bar because this was absolutely warmer than 72 degrees. It ruined an otherwise "pleasant" table wine, which has seen very little bottle age, and was dominated by fruit-forward flavors, but not astringent tannins and (blessedly) no oak. Nevertheless, the wine was ruined, and it was poured right when my entrée arrived, so there was none of this "Could you stick it in the freezer for ten minutes?" tactic available to use - I choked it down, but Trummer's should have paid *me* ten dollars to drink this otherwise-pleasant quaffer.

I ordered the House Cabernet because I asked my bartender how well he knew the menu ("Fairly well"), and asked his opinion between the Cheshire Pork Loin Wrapped in Mustard Greens and the Local Angus Beef Flank Steak ($29) with dandelion greens, olive yogurt, asparagus, and lemon-anchovy butter - he said hands-down the Steak, explaining that it was really special. I said "A medium-rare flank steak sounds pretty good to me right about now," and he replied, "Yes, they're all medium-rare." *CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!* "Is it cooked sous-vide, then seared?" I asked. "No, it's seared first, then cooked sous-vide for three-and-a-half hours," he replied. Given that we just had a dust-up about sous-vide cooking here, I went with the steak, yet again preparing to be open-minded.

This was an unusually presented flank steak (I'm used to a big, long thing flopping off the plate; this was sliced, with a little of the butter melting atop, the greens spread throughout, and the yogurt resting at the base of the plate). Sigh, let's get this out of the way. First of all, it wasn't medium-rare, it was - at best - medium, but closer to medium-well in terms of color. The texture of the steak was all wrong - despite being long cooked, it was both tough and flavorless, bordering on being dry. I'm not familiar with searing steaks *before* giving them a bath, but you should consider this a cautionary tale should you ever hear of such a thing again. It wasn't "bad," mind you, and this is *exactly* why I think sous-vide is such a revolutionary technique for places like jails or hospitals who can keep their costs down by not having chefs - you can put out a decent-tasting plate of food that even a fool couldn't foul up, but the upper-limits of the quality aren't very upper. I finished the dish - it was fine - but I'll never order it again, that's for sure. Twenty-nine dollars for this plate of food? No thank you.

I hadn't eaten all day, and had worked out, so I knew I'd be hungry later if I didn't drink eat something else. I asked my bartender what types of Bourbon they had, and he pointed out the list on the dessert menu. I noticed a Wild Turkey for $8, and just to make sure, I asked if it was the 101 (it was) - let me tell you something, folks, there's *nothing wrong* with Wild Turkey 101, and it's often better and cheaper than most bourbons on a restaurant list. As a daily-drinking Bourbon, I'll take this anytime, and you should file that away for future reference. Once again, I asked my bartender about recommendations, this time for dessert, and he said, without hesitation, the beignets. "Stefan and Victoria scoured New Orleans, trying every beignet they could find," he said, so I ordered the Cinnamon Sugar Beignets ($12), which were served freshly fried, and with a side-cup of piping-hot chocolate and whipped cream for dipping. My plate consisted of five very large beignets, each the size of a plum - now granted, these were not cheap, but they were delicious, and so massive that I ended up eating two, drinking the final gulp of hot chocolate, and taking three home wrapped in a paper napkin to have with my coffee the next morning (and it was a good call, too). I can gladly recommend that you order these if you come here - they really are good.

Trummer's on Main is maintained in Italic, and if you're in the Clifton area, is worth a visit, but do not order blindly - ask questions, and if you don't like what you hear, keep asking. It's a wonderful institution that has seen better days in the kitchen, but it remains very good in the grand scheme of things. Will I have cravings to hop in the car and drive out to Clifton? No, but I wouldn't avoid it, either. Over the years, I've been here probably between five and ten times, and I will be back in the future to see what they're up to. I have this little voice in the back of my head telling me the chef is better than what I experienced on this Sunday evening.

post-2-0-76125300-1459884189_thumb.jpgpost-2-0-41079600-1459884222_thumb.jpg

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Don,

As the person who nominated Trummer's, I was happy to see that it had the most votes (apparently I'm not the only one who's curious), and I am very grateful to you for having written the review.  As you know, we've been living in southern Fairfax county for awhile and Trummer's is one of the very few fine dining restaurants near us.  We and several others went there for Thanksgiving dinner and found it to be just ok.  (Certainly nowhere near as fine as our previous Thanksgiving dinners at Corduroy and Ashby Inn).  I was surprised to see Austrian wines on the menu and I mentioned that to our server.  He told me that the chef was from Austria.  It turns out the chef spent some time in Austria, but he's not actually Austrian.

We subsequently went there for brunch in January and it was pretty good, but I don't ever judge a restaurant based on brunch or a holiday meal.  So, I'm very happy to have your expert review of an evening meal there.  I'd describe your review as lukewarm, so I'm not in a real hurry to book a dinner meal at Trummer's.  Although, I might go to the bar and order that $8 Wild Turkey.  I agree that their bar area is very nice.

Thanks again, Don!

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