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The Red Hen - Regional Italian in Bloomingdale with Chef-Owner Michael Friedman and GM-Owner Mike-O'Malley


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Say hi next time. :) (we need a DR-member identifier!)

My wife and I were also reservation-less at the Red Hen last night at 6. We intended to get there a little earlier, but didn't and got the same 2 - 2 1/2 hour wait quote you did. She went to the bathroom, I tried to warm up from the walk from the metro and when she returned she noticed a couple at the bar who just got that phone call that their table was ready. We moved in and easily snagged the seats. I was a little worried that it'd be cutthroat and intense to try to get bar seats, but it was pretty easy at that hour. By the time we left, it was cutthroat and intense. A mini skirmish broke out next to us when two different groups were vying for the same seats. We ended up with a young couple parked right behind us for end of the meal and coffee and dessert, but they were very cool and not not giving us the stink eye or anything like that.

I did take a passing glance at the bar, but it already looked like there were couples hovering waiting for seats to open. We actually did try that last time and it was ridiculously cutthroat. With my friend now 6 months pregnant, there was no way we were going to try that again. And frankly I'm glad we didn't since we had such a fabulous meal. We will get to eat at Red Hen eventually, but I suspect it's going to have to be with reservations as I am not up for failed attempt #3.

Just an FYI, I arrived at about 6:05-6:10 this past Saturday to find the wait was 2 - 2 1/2 hours. When I asked the hostess with shock and dismay how this was possible, she told me they've been filling up by 5 pm on weekends. Some day I will eat at Red Hen, some day...

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Awesome! Thanks for the first-hand feed back. The bar stool high chair sounds hilarious and great.

Funny, because the octopus and white beans is exactly the thing I'd order for my 2 year-old son...easy to cut into bite-sized chunks, good for either a fork or fingers, and easy for Dad to steal bites from now and again.

We put the "kids at Red Hen" thing to the test with 2 visits in the past 2 weeks with a 2 year old.  The 1st was an early reservation.  Fantastic service and the little guy loved his pasta (he had the paccheri with lamb sugo).  We noted that the place didn't really seem to fill up until 6:45-7ish, so I took him for a boys night out tonight.  We got there a bit after 6:30.  There was a small wait for tables, but plenty of space at the bar, which was offered to us without a blink of the eye.  They brought out the barstool high chair, and we dined like kings (E dug the octopus and absolutely crushed the rigatoni).  Sebastian stopped by to comment that his wife was responsible for all the furniture, and the high chair was specifically designed for his own toddler.

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March 15, 2015 was a glorious day for me. It started with my football club (in Turkey) taking over the standings with a convincing victory and the day continued with my first visit to the Red Hen. It turns out, I live really close to the Red Hen. I showed up around 04:45 pm, because I read that they save room for walk-ins and they have a bar with the full menu available, but also because I know restaurants with good reputation and great food tends to fill up fast. I sat at the end of the bar, with a perfect view of their open kitchen. First thing I noticed is how excellent their set up and lay out is. The design of their cook line was very straightforward with clear distinction of each stations, and the expediter was really great at setting the tempo. (I dined alone for the first time in a long time, and I was right by their kitchen, so I observed a lot more than I usually do since I didn't have to keep up with conversation nor I wasn't disrupted by my phone.)

I started off with a beet salad, followed by squid ink linguini, and short rib. I finished my evening with the donuts. Everything I ordered was enjoyable but the highlights for me were the squid ink linguini and the donuts with the cinnamon crunch gelato. I wish the linguini was served in a magical plate that kept re-filling itself. Also I like the wines by the glass list, it kept it short and to the point. Two different selections I tried, Vermentino and Corvina, became a great companion to me.

By 05:30 pm tables and the bar were full. The only thing I disliked was the people hovering behind the bar to grab a seat when they became available. By 05:45 there were about 5 people or so standing with a drink and watching people eat, and it felt uneasy. But it didn't change the fact that I enjoyed the food, the space, and the people of the Red Hen. I look forward to returning, on a Sunday, right at opening.

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Tasty dinner at Red Hen last night.  The place was humming.

The grilled Octopus was the best dish of the night for me.  Meaty but not tough or rubbery, nicely grilled but not overly charred, as it often is at other restaurants around town.  Served with a chickpeas, salad greens and tonnato sauce.  It's the type of dish where you keep going back until the plate is licked clean.

Salt cod brandade was rich and runny, but perhaps a touch over salted.  Seemed like the salt cod could have soaked for a little longer.

A special of grilled brushetta with heirloom tomatoes was very seasonal and fresh.

We also enjoyed the rigatoni with sausage ragu, spinach zucca with grilled summer squash, squid ink linguini, and the roman-style gnocchi (which was pretty much like grilled polenta).

Sebastian's Dahlia Rose wine was also very drinkable with dinner.

Perhaps my one complaint was virtually every dish had some rich, buttery, creamy sauce component.  Now don't get me wrong, the sauces were delicious, but when it's 80+ degrees out and entering the height of fresh summer produce season, I would think the dishes would be lighter.  Also, a couple dishes were a little heavy on the salt.  And for the sound adverse, Red Hen is a loud restaurant.

But what do I know, the place was pretty much packed for the two hours we were there on a Wednesday night.

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Went to The Red Hen for date night last night - it was a delicious meal from start to finish.  We started with the salmon crudo and the chicken liver mousse, and both were really tasty.  We split an order of cacio e pepe, and I maintain that it is the best version I've ever had.  The scallops with bacon, peas, and polenta were so good that I practically licked the plate.  The grilled chicken "fra diavolo" wasn't super spicy, but it was tender and full of flavor.  The berry trifle was the perfect dessert - not too sweet, very refreshing, a really wonderful ending to the meal.  I couldn't believe that we sauntered right up to the bar and found two seats at 6:30 PM - it was the least busy I've ever seen it, but still plenty humming.

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According to their online reservations system they don't have any available reservations that night, but they "keep plenty of room for walk-ins." I will try calling them.

Red Hen is one of our go-to's...we've never waited more than half an hour or so. They're cool with you snagging a drink and just chilling there, but sometimes that can get awkward just standing - we often head down the block to Showtime or Boundary Stone. Worth the wait.

Cheers!

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Went to The Red Hen for date night last night - it was a delicious meal from start to finish.  We started with the salmon crudo and the chicken liver mousse, and both were really tasty.  We split an order of cacio e pepe, and I maintain that it is the best version I've ever had.  The scallops with bacon, peas, and polenta were so good that I practically licked the plate.  The grilled chicken "fra diavolo" wasn't super spicy, but it was tender and full of flavor.  The berry trifle was the perfect dessert - not too sweet, very refreshing, a really wonderful ending to the meal.  I couldn't believe that we sauntered right up to the bar and found two seats at 6:30 PM - it was the least busy I've ever seen it, but still plenty humming.

Is the cacio e pepe back on the menu? Checked their online menu and didn't find anything but I guess they might just not have updated it. Or did you order off-menu? I love a good cacio e pepe, so I might have to make a return trip soon.

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Is the cacio e pepe back on the menu? Checked their online menu and didn't find anything but I guess they might just not have updated it. Or did you order off-menu? I love a good cacio e pepe, so I might have to make a return trip soon.

Off menu - on a previous visit, our server brought it to our attention.  So very good.

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I finally had a chance to try The Red Hen last night. (It's too bad I just joined this site a couple of months ago "“  I used to eat out a lot more before my daughter arrived last year.)

My husband and I arrived at about 6:20pm and there was already a 90-minute wait for a table. On a Tuesday. In August. Thankfully we found two seats at the bar right away. (Actually, the very helpful and pleasant hosts helped us find them and even offered to ask people to move down to open up two seats together before noticing the two empty seats on the far side of the bar.)

The bartender (a male; unfortunately his name escapes me) was also very helpful and pleasant. He spoke to us about the cocktails and wine and helped us narrow down our choices on the dinner menu.

We started with the Whipped Ricotta Crostini with Balsamic Brown Butter & Truffle Honey, the Heirloom Tomato & Cucumber Salad with Fried Pita, Radish, Feta, Soft Herbs & Lemon Vinaigrette, and the Burrata with Grilled Asparagus Salad, Salami, Toasted Sesame, Oregano Vinaigrette & Breadcrumbs. My husband chose the tomato and cucumber salad, and I was least excited about that, but it was my favorite of the starters. Fresh and summery with a nice crunch from the fried pita (and the radish?). Maybe a bit too salty for me but otherwise really delicious. I always love burrata, but I was a bit underwhelmed by the asparagus salad and don't remember tasting salami at all. The bartender said lots of people start with the crostini, and I'm a sucker for a cheese and honey combo, but I didn't think this was very interesting. It lacked flavor for me.

As a second course I ordered the Saffron Paccheri with Duck Leg Ragu, Chorizo, Mint, Baby Tomatoes & Parmigiano and my husband ordered the Charred Beef Short Ribs with Shelling Beans "˜alla Romesco,' Smoked Onion Salsa Verde, Feta & Balsamico. Of course I'd read about the rigatoni, but the bartender assured us it's never coming off the menu and I couldn't resist trying a pasta dish with mint in it. This dish was light and delicious and unique in terms of what I've ever eaten. I don't remember any taste of chorizo, though. My husband enjoyed his short ribs (he's a real beef guy and would have ordered a steak were there one on the menu), but from the couple of bites I tried I thought they were kind of dry and blah. The short ribs and the beans were certainly pleasantly smoky and earthy but were otherwise meh for me. I may not have been lucky enough from my particular bites, but I didn't get any flavor of the smoked onion salsa verde, the description of which sounds amazing to me.

I don't think I see either of the desserts we ordered on the menu posted online. My husband had some kind of vanilla ice cream with hot fudge sauce and maybe another ingredient. The hot fudge sauce was delicious, but this dessert was really pedestrian compared to my sweet corn cake with braised cherries, crème fraiche, and bay leaf gelato. Oh my goodness was this delicious. Summery and light, a great (and unique in terms of my eating experience) combination of flavors.

Despite my minor quibbles, I'd go back to The Red Hen in a heartbeat. I definitely want to go back to try that rigatoni "“ hopefully I won't get seduced by another pasta dish next time.

Oh, and we didn't find the restaurant excessively noisy.

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My wife and I celebrated our 3rd (time sure flies) anniversary as well as our first "date night" post the arrival of our daughter at the Red Hen this evening.

Before jumping into the food (short version: it was all delicious), I just have to call out the team for the incredible service.  Whether it was our server Jonathan or Sebastian (who stopped by a number of times to chat about the wine) or Michael (who was expediting a few feet away from us) - they genuinely put on a "how to" course tonight in terms of making a table feel welcome in their restaurant.  My wife and I remarked a number of times on how warm and inviting literally everyone we interacted with was.  As first time visitors, the experience made me want to be a regular - if only it was easier to get to from Arlington!

In terms of what we ordered:

- Ricotta / Honey / Brown Butter crostini - found this to be light - we're suckers for ricotta and honey and the brown butter added a nice nuttiness to the mix.

- Tuscan Liver Mouse / Fig Conserva - I could have eaten 2 orders of this - the fig conserva took a solid rendition of liver mouse up a few levels.  Really nicely done.

- Burrata with Grilled Zucchini / Farro / Mint / Pumpkin Seeds - I normally order burrata wherever I see it on the menu.  However, this version, with the earthy farro contrasting nicely with a tart vinegarette and crunch of the pumpkin seeds was an interesting and delicious take.  My wife really liked all the textural contrasts in the dish.

- Rigatoni with Fennel Sausage Ragu - This has been commented on up and down the thread as a "signature".  We had to restrain ourselves from licking the remaining sauce from the dish - so I'll just leave it at that.

- Scallops (I forget what this was over, b/c my wife was greedily guarding her portion) - again, can't comment on the dish b/c my wife hoarded it.  The small taste I did have showed perfectly cooked, very sweet scallops.

- Suckling Pig Porchetta with Fingerling potatoes, salsa verde, fried capers - this was an awesome dish.  A large slice of porchetta with the tang of the salsa verde balancing out the fattiness of the pork.  I would order this again (and I will dream about how awesome left overs would've been on a sandwich the next day...)

- Maple Custard with Hazelnut Crunch Topping - excellent.  Almost came across like a creme brulee without the brulee.  I'd order this again.

- Apple Crisp with Ginger Gelato - this dish stood out for the ginger gelato.  It really took the fall flavor elements up to another place.  I have to comment on the gelato - whoever makes it in house for Red Hen does an excellent job.  They brought out a complementary scoop of the mint gelato and both it and the ginger version had perfect clean flavors.  The mint tasted like you had just plucked it from your garden.

Wine:

- Cornelisson "Orange" Wine (Mujebel Bianco) - going in, I'd been interested in trying an "orange" wine.  They nicely brought me a taste of one they were serving by the glass before I committed to an entire bottle.  The Cornelisson version was awesome (as are his other wines I've tasted).  Slightly effervescent - the wine was able to balance across the myriad of dishes we enjoyed.  I liked the additional structure the wine had and I'll explore other variants on this style when given the chance I think.

So again -  a great meal with impeccable service.  The folks living in Shaw are extremely lucky.  I also have to laugh - as there was definitely a crowd around the bar / front entrance when we were getting ready to leave around 815.  Ah, I remember those days  :lol: when we didn't think about going out to dinner before 830 or 9.

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So I am planning to make my 3rd attempt to finally eat at Red Hen on my birthday this coming Monday. Since I only decided this right now, there appear to be no rez available though I will call to check. So my question to you is, what's the best plan of attack? I'd like to get our name in, have time for a drink at Boundary Stone (but preferably only one drink in my ideal world) then be able to be seated. And would your answer differ if it was a group of 2-4 versus 6 or even 8? I will be inviting people based on how it will affect my chances as I do not want a 3rd failed attempt. :P

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I went for my birthday on a Tuesday this past August. We arrived at 6:20pm and there was already a 90-minute wait for a table. I thought it would be less busy on a Tuesday in August. Thankfully there were two open seats at the bar when we arrived and my husband and I were happy to sit at the bar. I'm not sure if it's gotten any less crazy since then, but I'd suspect the smaller your party the better off you'll be. Maybe when you call them they can help with strategy.

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So I am planning to make my 3rd attempt to finally eat at Red Hen on my birthday this coming Monday. Since I only decided this right now, there appear to be no rez available though I will call to check. So my question to you is, what's the best plan of attack? I'd like to get our name in, have time for a drink at Boundary Stone (but preferably only one drink in my ideal world) then be able to be seated. And would your answer differ if it was a group of 2-4 versus 6 or even 8? I will be inviting people based on how it will affect my chances as I do not want a 3rd failed attempt. :P

You shouldn't have a problem on Monday if you are willing to go, give them your cell phone number, and wait for 45 minutes or so at Boundary Stone or Crisp and have a couple drinks.  Also, and this goes without saying, you will have a much shorter wait if you show up to put your name on the list either before 6pm or after 8:30pm.  My wife and I do this all the time and have no problem, but we are only 2 people.  I don't think you would have a problem with 4 people either, but getting up to 6 or 8 would probably be an issue, as there simply are not that many tables or the space to move table around to accommodate parties of that size.

Good luck, it's worth cutting down that party size to try the food now before the guys' attention gets divided when All Purpose opens in a couple months....

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Hit up Red Hen on Saturday for an early sup. What can I say that hasn't already been endlessly blogged and commented on? A couple of my hopefully novel personal thoughts:

--This is my 5th or 6th visit since opening. I've never bothered to get a reservation, and always been able to snag a seat (or two) at the bar within 15 minutes. Yes, it requires some hovering, but the bar staff is always accommodating in trying to serve the "2nd row" bar patrons. I've also only rarely seen campers at the bar during a dinner rush - everyone seems to get it.

--Service is surprisingly quick, but not rushed. I wonder if that signals to the bar/walk-ins that they shouldn't linger.

--Quality of dishes, especially the pastas. has never wavered. My friend commented that his rigatoni (my favorite dish) was on the edge of being overseasoned, but that's a knife's edge call. Also had the:

  • Burrata w/ broccolini
  • Cavatelli (w/ something of a carbonara inspired sauce)
  • "Gnocchi" which was actually more of fried polenta squares 

Everything was crave worthy.

 --In the past, they've had their own house label Rose. This time they had an excellent VA cider. Glad to see more places embracing interesting ciders. Both are things I'd happily drink again.

--Despite the crappy weather, even at 6:15 this place was in full dinner rush. We were told 10pm if we actually wanted a table for 2! Of course my plan was the bar all along, and they surprised us by offering us reserved wall counter seating before I finished my first drink.

If you can swing it, my rec is to visit on a Tue/Wed, go early (6ish) and post up at a bar seat. The bartenders are some of the best people there and you get the best view of the big open kitchen.

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What happened to the other (previously existing) Red Hen thread?  When I search the forum, the site tells me there is nothing.  Don, any ideas?

Thank you for pointing this out, Betty - it's always easiest to search the Dining Guide (if you have 10 posts); absent that, if you use the Invision search feature and type in the name of the restaurant, curiously, it appears at the *bottom* of the first page of search results, regardless of how many pages of hits there are. I've noticed this consistently, perhaps even every single time I've tried it.

saxdrop didn't have 10 posts yet, so she didn't have access to the Dining Guide (saxdrop, now you do - please write me and give me some feedback about that piece of hyperbole), and of course, the restaurants are no longer on Google (can you tell how little I care about fame?) :)

Ah, but there's a difference between fame and reputation ...

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Thank you for pointing this out, Betty - it's always easiest to search the Dining Guide (if you have 10 posts); absent that, if you use the Invision search feature and type in the name of the restaurant, curiously, it appears at the *bottom* of the first page of search results, regardless of how many pages of hits there are. I've noticed this consistently, perhaps even every single time I've tried it.

saxdrop didn't have 10 posts yet, so she didn't have access to the Dining Guide (saxdrop, now you do - please write me and give me some feedback about that piece of hyperbole), and of course, the restaurants are no longer on Google (can you tell how little I care about fame?) :)

Ah, but there's a difference between fame and reputation ...

I always forget your tip about the Dining Guide - thanks for reminding me.  I have also noticed the thing about the Invision search and the restaurant showing up at the bottom of the list.  However, this time when I searched "Red Hen," it came back with zero results.  Weird.

saxdrop, we love the bar at Red Hen as well.   :D  Maybe we'll see you there sometime!

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Went last week with a friend and I would venture to say that Red Hen is as good as ever. Friend who lives in the neighborhood says it was one of the best meals he has had at Red Hen.

We started by splitting the chicken liver mousse and the grilled octopus. Both were excellent. Although the chicken liver mousse is a staple of the menu, it really stands out among the many similar options around town. The perfectly grilled octopus was on top of a cauliflower/almond crema with some nduja breadcrumbs which provided a nice crunch. My friend really liked the octopus. 

For our entrees, my friend went with the short ribs while I ordered the scallops with polenta. Scallops were perfectly seared and cooked on top of an incredibly creamy bed of polenta. A little pile of shaved brussels sprouts laid at the center and provided a nice contrast to the richness of the polenta. This is a simple dish but had to be perfectly executed given that scallops have a small-ish margin of error and polenta is not as easy as it seems. Loved the bite of I had of my friend's short ribs.

For dessert we split an order of the donuts with coffee ice cream and some amaro. Perfect ending to a really lovely meal. 

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On 6/26/2013 at 5:00 PM, Josh said:

I'll add to the chorus of glowing reports. The space looks great...love that they didn't cram too many tables in. It felt open and bustling, but not too loud for us to have a normal conversation.

For our mains, we shared the rigatoni with fennel sausage ragu and the grilled scallops over farro with guanciale and peas. I had a glass of the Primitivo, which at $9 was an awesome glass of wine. The pasta was perfect. Nothing to say other than I would happily order that again and again and again. It's nothing complicated, and I'm sure many of us could make something similar at home, but they really made sure each component was perfect.

Forgot to mention I was at Red Hen with a friend about 2-3 weeks ago.  I hadn't been there before.  ...and that is too bad.

It was a terrific all around meal.  I have to add to what Josh said 5 years ago about the rigatoni with sausage.  Thinking about it I have probably cooked something similar well over 500 times.  That isn't an exaggeration.  Could be 2-4 times as much--maybe more. I've been cooking for over 40 years and this type of dish is my go to.  Then on top of that I've eaten dishes like this in old school red sauce type restaurants in NY and Joisy for decades. 

I completely agree with Josh above and almost 5 years after he wrote this, let alone having cooked this..endlessly.  Sometimes with the best quality ingredients, sometimes with more mundane items.

This is a spectacular version and it is the epitome of this type of comfort food.  Bravo!!!!

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What's the wait like here these days? Lady has not been here, and I've been talking it up forever. Thinking of heading there around 630 or so.

Any must gets? Sounds like people like rigatoni, which is still there. Duck ragu? Arancini Cacio e Pepe? Lamb sausage cavatelli? Chicken liver mousse crostini?

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18 hours ago, Simul Parikh said:

What's the wait like here these days? Lady has not been here, and I've been talking it up forever. Thinking of heading there around 630 or so.

Any must gets? Sounds like people like rigatoni, which is still there. Duck ragu? Arancini Cacio e Pepe? Lamb sausage cavatelli? Chicken liver mousse crostini?

It's still a very popular spot that fills up early, but if you don't mind waiting at the bar or eating at the bar, it's probably worth a visit as the food, drink and service remain terrific.  My only complaint is that I wish it was less popular. 

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If I was to design a restaurant this would be it:

1) Rustic interior

2) Neighborhood vibe

3) Central bar

4) Knowledgeable bartenders and servers

5) Seasonal menu

6) Interesting beer and wine list

7) Open (and clean appearing) kitchen

8) Energy / bustle

9) Pride in their food

10) I think lists should end at either 3 or 10, so ... uh ... got nothing.

Last night, got there about 6.30pm. If we wanted a table, 8.30p, so went to the bar. A guy was leaving, we asked two women to move over, and we had two seats by 6.35p. It was incredibly busy, and so the service was a little slow, but of very high quality, as when you were being spoken to, it was not rushed, there was still detailed descriptions of wines, the food, and even friendly banter (we played the 'guess where you're from' game with him). And I should say service in the way that when you may want to order something, you may have to wait for them for a bit, but when you put in the order, the food came out relatively quickly. I would say if eating at the bar, order 1 or 2 things at the time at most if you want to eat leisurely.

Started with a Solace Partly Cloudy DIPA, but knew I wanted a glass of wine during the meal. They have a few orange wines, and he led us to a bottle of Jordi Llorens Macabeu Blend, 2015. $50. Phenomenal if you like funk. I take this as a beer drinker's wine - it's a lot more in your face, like an IPA or something hoppy, not delicate and it's just super fun. It's $25 at most places retail, so 2:1 is a great deal.

For our first set of plates, we got the whipped ricotta crostini and the cacio e pepe arancini. Lady thought the crostini was a little boring, and I did, too, but after a few bites of the arancini, the truffle honey and brown butter on the crostini popped. This was a really good sized portion. Arancini were awesome, very creamy in center, crunchy on outside and basil aioli was subtle and fresh. Then, we got the cauliflower fritto, and this was a nice, homey dish. Was trying to figure out how I could make this at home. Fried and breaded perfectly. A touch salty. 

For our mains, we split two pastas, the squid ink campanelli which has been one of their stars for a long time. I think a little bit more heat would do the trick and make it perfect for me. I could have added crushed red pepper, but I forgot. Then, what the lady was waiting for, the braised duck ragu. It tasted good, but I had some grievances - it had sausage in it, and it far overpowered any duck. If you didn't call it duck, I wouldn't have known it was. The second issue was that the sauce sort of broke, i.e. was watery in the periphery, and I think the best ragus I have had have a consistency and gelatinous element. Finally, the greens - completely unnecessary. Added nothing but stringiness - maybe not wilted enough. And, it makes it sound like I didn't like the dish - I did. It just wasn't what I thought it was going to be.

If you eat off the upper portion of the menu, it's a fairly cheap (for the quality) small plates meal. The pasta dishes are a bit small-ish for the price, but they are high quality, but your meal price goes up substantially, especially if you're hungry. 

$135 for the two of us before tip, and got to take a glass of that wine home. Excellent to meet the delightful Gary (haha, we know it's Fred!) and will return with greater frequency - it has been far too long.

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On 3/27/2020 at 4:22 PM, Ericandblueboy said:

Thought it might give each other ideas based on where and what you're ordering for take-out or delivery.  

Got carry out from red hen this weekend.  Cacio e Pepe, malfalde w mushrooms, cauliflower, and chocolate cake. It was nicely packaged, but the portions seemed smaller than in the restaurant, and the pastas not as good  as when I’ve been there, they’re still good overall.    You  order online, pay upfront, then pick up your order from the bar. Parking in the neighborhood was a bit tight FYI   

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Last night we got delivery from Red Hen for the second time, and both times it was a good experience, and a good splurge meal (last night was my wife's birthday). We got charred octopus with potatoes, Sardinian Fregola Salad, Maloreddus, and cacio e pepe. Delivery was very smooth, and everything was delicious, including the wine pairing. 

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4 of us for dinner at the Red Hen a week and a half ago (Yeah, I am behind). Ate at the bar, arriving right at opening. And it was delicious.

Various cocktails, beers, and wine, all delicious, over the course of the dinner. (It's been too long for me to remember exactly what we all had.)

The boy and I split the liver mousse for an app. We also had the risotto balls, split 4 ways. (one of us is nominally Catholic, and was observing lent, or he would have had liver too.) Then there was a squid ink pasta for one of us. a whole fish for another, and pastas for the other 2 of us that are no longer on the menu and I cannot recall details, only that they were soooooo good.  Dessert was also good - one panna cotta, one chocolate cake, one sticky toffee pudding, and amaro all around.

Service was stellar, and they seemed busy. The bar was full by the time we left. It's been so long since we were there. It's going into the rotation.

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