Washington Post Dining Guide

[Gadarene]

1 hour ago, sandynva said:

 Though I generally don't love Tom, I  really respect him for championing jaleo.  There was a time, maybe 10 or so years ago, when Jaleo seemed old hat, no one talked about it, or really seem to respect it. And then Tom came out with a great  review of it. I remember being shocked when they when the review came out, and then being convinced to go again and then being very pleasantly surprised by what I had. Does anyone else remember this?  I think it took guts to write a rave review of a place that was seen as sort of passé at the time  and more than that, he was totally right. It is great.  I haven't had top us anywhere else in the US, but I definitely think the food is better than estadio, and I think the tapas and gazpacho are as good as what I had in Spain 

I'm going to need to make it back to Jaleo, then.  I remember back when it was one of the first "good" restaurants in the Gallery Place area in the early 2000s, and I definitely remember the phase you're talking about where it just felt tired and touristy and mediocre and I stopped going.  If it truly has experienced a sustained renaissance, it needs to be back on my radar.

(Disclaimer and perhaps unpopular opinion: I like many things on Estadio's menu, but (small voice) I find I like Barcelona better in most respects...other than the perpetual teeming crowds anytime but brunch, of course.  The free bread and olive oil at Barcelona is delicious and, well, free, the portions of ham and cheese are a little more generous (and I think cheaper) than they are at Estadio while being comparable quality, and I'm always surprised at how good their boquerones are -- better than most places I had them in Andalucia or Madrid.  I struggle to remember a bad dish I've had there.  I think Barcelona tends not to get much respect because it's a chain restaurant and overrun by the 14th Street hordes, but it really does have surprisingly good and interesting food and drink (and that brunch bloody mary bar!).)

[Gadarene]

And, to link the Dining Guide discussion and the Bib Gourmand discussion, color me pretty surprised that Boqueria received a Bib Gourmand over either Estadio or Barcelona (or Compass Rose, or etc.).

[jca76]

totally agree on the boqueria surprise.  its defining feature for me is the reasonably priced happy hour/brunch drinking options of unobjectionable quality.  i have fond memories of barcelona locations in greenwich and new haven from years ago, and i enjoyed the one dinner i've had at the d.c. location.  i haven't been back (or dying to go), however, because the crowd (both in size/scene-iness) is more of a deterrent than the meal seemed worth.  re jaleo, i haven't been in almost a year, but it did get a revamp when they did the remodel a few years ago, which corresponded with an uptick in quality, i think.  in particular, their drink menu improved, including an extensive selection of gin & tonic options.  i rarely find it exciting, and i tend to find the cult of andres vibe so prevalent in his restaurants off-putting, but it had been reliably enjoyable in my experience.  it's the sort of place that i would be unlikely to suggest, but would happily go along if someone else suggested.