Palena, 2007 James Beard Award Winner Frank Ruta Rocks Cleveland Park - Closed on Apr 26, 2014

[giant shrimp]

Palena is a Washington treasure-especially for the back dining room where its flowering excellence often blooms.

excellence is often blooming even before you get to the back. it is also possible to get flickering candle light, inspired pasta, fish, prepared meats, cake, cookies, pate de fruit and whatever happens to be on the always inventive regular menu in the cafe. the dividing line between the cafe and dining room is a bit thinner than you suggest and i have seen blue jeans heading for the rear. overall, however, i agree that the dining room is a great place to celebrate a special occasion. however, when you run out of special occasions, you can find out how really good they are by spending a little more money in the cafe but not quite as much as in the formal dining room. there's much more demanding to be discovered here than you can find in a single meal. (also, palena is not among the most expensive restaurants in washington; it's a bit more affordable, and less formal, than the places you mention. the cooking here, though, puts it among the best.)

[christopherc]

Does the cafe take reservations?

[mdt]

Does the cafe take reservations?

Nope, it is first come first served.

[Keithstg]

Does the cafe take reservations?

No.

[BookGuy]

No.

I was at the Cafe last night for the first time although I had eaten very well in the back two or three times. One thing that struck me was the limited menu and another was the unwillingness to deviate from it. When the child who was with us wanted more fries, the waiter said we would have to order another dish in order to get them. Otherwise the food, and particularly the desserts, were excellent.

Although it has been mentioned before, the restaurant really needs to update its web site to give prospective guests an idea of what the menu is.

[Al Dente]

One thing that struck me was the limited menu and another was the unwillingness to deviate from it.

Have they changed the policy recently about ordering off the other menu? I've never had problems before.

[giant shrimp]

Have they changed the policy recently about ordering off the other menu? I've never had problems before.

not unless it was in the last couple of days. from the regular menu, i ordered an excellent minty spring soup with fava beans and artichoke, the flavors bouncing off a pillow of german dumpling, tangy with cheese. the cafe menu has been perking up lately with bistro items that could almost make it onto the regular menu, like perfectly cooked sturgeon, served with artichoke. if you wanted fries, however, there were no palena fries listed. the only frites to be found accompanied a pork festival. prices are a bit up (chicken costs $1 more), though they remain more than competitive with the cost of eating at the bistros sprouting up downtown.

[BookGuy]

There was no problem about ordering from the regular menu although I presume that it would escalate the prices for dishes. What I was concerned about was that the fried plate and the hot dog, for example, were not on the menu which minimized the number of dishes available for an eight-year-old.

[cajcaj]

Anyone out there know what the deal is with the disappearing fry plate?? My boyfriend and I went to the cafe about 2 weeks ago and were told they were "out" of the fry plate. My boyfriend went with a friend last night and it wasn't even on the menu anymore.

[cajcaj]

Really? So no one's been in the last week or so and noticed this? Or has the scoop on what's up? As you can tell I'm very curious...

[DonRocks]

Really? So no one's been in the last week or so and noticed this? Or has the scoop on what's up? As you can tell I'm very curious...

Okay, I have the inside scoop. Nobody is supposed to know about this, but I'll break the news here on the website: Frank finally accepted the fact that he was unable to make crispy fries, and gave up.

[cajcaj]

Okay, I have the inside scoop. Nobody is supposed to know about this, but I'll break the news here on the website: Frank finally accepted the fact that he was unable to make crispy fries, and gave up.

Finally! The long awaited answer revealed! I knew I could count on you Don...

[giant shrimp]

Okay, I have the inside scoop. Nobody is supposed to know about this, but I'll break the news here on the website: Frank finally accepted the fact that he was unable to make crispy fries, and gave up.

so what's the inside scoop on the cookie plate?

[DLB]

I actually had the fry plate a few weeks ago (the 1st of April I believe?). I loved the onion rings and the fried lemons. That was my first visit to Palena.

[porcupine]

The fry plate itself may be MIA, but at least one dish is being plated with onion rings, dauphine, and lemon.

[diannesh]

Skip the fries; the best on the plate are the soft potato things, lemons. and onion rings.

[mhberk]

Skip the fries; the best on the plate are the soft potato things....

MMmmm, soft potato things...

[jpschust]

Skip the fries; the best on the plate are the soft potato things, lemons. and onion rings.

With phrases like soft potato things you could be a writer for Rachel Ray "And now get out your EVOO to make soft potato things, they're yummers!"

[DonRocks]

[back on topic please]

[Jacques Gastreaux]

[back on topic please]

Soft potato things, soft potato things, soft potato things!

[JPW]

Soft potato things, soft potato things, soft potato things!

GNOCCHI!

[Al Dente]

GNOCCHI!

I thought they were referring to the dauphine taters.

[JPW]

I'll say it again GNOCCHI! It was really good last night. Perfect texture with a rich sauce given just the right bite by a little blue cheese. I love Frank Ruta's Gnocchi. Why would anyone have the fry plate when those gnocchi are on the menu? I also had the the anitpasto plate - there were some really nice flavors here, but overall the dish was a little bit of a mess with too much going on. I liked it well enough but would probably not order it again. The tagliatelle con polpettini was nicely done fresh pasta with some very tasty small lamb meatballs. The chicken consomme with foie gras and morel mushrooms also received great praise and I could smell its lovely aroma from across the table, alas I will have to wait until my return trip to try that.

It had been way too long since my last visit to Palena, an error that I do not intend to make again.

[cajcaj]

The fry plate itself may be MIA, but at least one dish is being plated with onion rings, dauphine, and lemon.

and pray tell what might this dish be?

[porcupine]

and pray tell what might this dish be?

Cod croquettes.

[JLK]

From Tom's chat:

BITTERSWEET NEWS: Tonight, veteran pastry chef Ann Amernick plans to announce her retirement from day-to-day involvement at her roost for the past seven years -- Palena in Cleveland Park -- at a book party celebrating the publication of her latest creation, The Art of the Dessert.

"I've been doing this since 1976," she told me this morning. "I want to step back on a high note."

Amernick made a name for herself at the late Big Cheese in Georgetown and went on to make sweets for Jean-Louis at the Watergate and the White House, among other well-known addresses. The pastry chef says she will remain a co-owner of Palena, along with chef Frank Ruta, and (whew!) continue to make the buttery caramels that have long been her signature.

[DonRocks]

From Tom's chat:

"I've been doing this since 1976," she told me this morning. "I want to step back on a high note."

We love you Ann! Click

[giant shrimp]

if the chef had only held out one more week, i am sure my wife would have been done with her addiction to the palena fries -- but they are back by popular demand.

ann amernick is gone from the kitchen, but we heard that she might be offering cooking classes and that there might be some changes on the dessert menu.

meanwhile, the ravioli with cuttlefish sauce are ringing in the spring, half of them inky black, swollen with nettles.

[chickenlover]

I'll be visiting Palena for the first time on Friday. Can anyone whose been to the dining room lately tell me what to expect/dishes to look for? Also how's their wine program? Thanks.

[thegourmetpig]

I'll be visiting Palena for the first time on Friday. Can anyone whose been to the dining room lately tell me what to expect/dishes to look for? Also how's their wine program? Thanks.

Are you eating in the cafe or in the restaurant? If in the cafe, definitely try the roast chicken. This is the best chicken you will ever eat, chickenlover. Otherwise, I've rarely eaten anything bad there, so I recommend going with what you feel like. The gnocchi is always good.

As for the wine, it's not the best service in town, but there are some nice little bottles and the bartenders are pretty knowledgeable.

[DonRocks]

http://www.usatoday.com/life/2007-05-07-beard-awards_N.htm

According to USA Today it was a TIE (!) between Ruta (Palena) and Cooper (Vidalia) for best chef Mid Atlantic!

From your mouth to God's ears, Mr. Heflin. Pray that it be true.

[Joe H]

Well.................above USA Today clearly states that BOTH RJ Cooper and Frank Ruta won the award. This is noted in the supplied link. However, this is the link to the Beard website which, when you scroll down, notes that Vidalia with RJ Cooper is the winner.

IF USA Today is wrong OR if the Beard website is wrong it is a tremendous injustice.

This is from USA Today's website @ 12:38AM:

Awards honor the finest American food

Updated 41m ago | Comments 1 | Recommend E-mail | Save | Print | Reprints & Permissions |

Enlarge By H. Darr Beiser, USA TODAY

In Greenville, Miss.: Doe's takes honors for one of America's Classics restaurants.

Enlarge By H. Darr Beiser, USA TODAY

Achatz: Chef at Chicago's Alinea took honors for Great Lakes region.

By Jerry Shriver, USA TODAY

"Celebrating the Art of American Food" was the evening's theme, but ethnic cuisine stole the show at Monday night's 17th annual James Beard Awards in New York honoring the nation's top chefs, restaurateurs, beverage professionals and cookbook authors.

Frontera Grill, a pioneering Mexican eatery in Chicago owned by Rick and Deann Bayless, was named outstanding restaurant, and David Chang, who cooks Japanese comfort food at Momofuku Noodle Bar in New York, was named rising-star chef, which is given to chefs age 30 or younger.

Winners in other major categories came from restaurants with American and French pedigrees, as has been the case in previous years: Thomas Keller of The French Laundry in Yountville, Calif., was named outstanding restaurateur; Michel Richard of Michel Richard Citronelle in Washington, D.C., outstanding chef; L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon in New York, best new restaurant; and Michael Laskonis of Le Bernardin in New York, outstanding pastry chef.

More than 1,600 food fans attended the awards presentation and gala reception at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center, which honored the 20th anniversary of the James Beard Foundation. Winners in 62 categories received bronze medals bearing the likeness of James Beard, a pioneer of American cooking.

Other top winners (a full list is available at jamesbeard.org):

FIND MORE STORIES IN: NEW YORK | Department of Energy | American food

•Wine service: Michel Richard Citronelle, Washington, D.C.

•Wine/spirits professional: Paul Draper, Ridge Vineyards, Cupertino, Calif.

•Restaurant service: Tru, Chicago

•Great Lakes chef: Grant Achatz, Chicago

•Mid-Atlantic chef: R.J. Cooper III, Vidalia, and Frank Ruta, Palena, both in Washington, D.C.

•Midwest chef: Celina Tio, The American Restaurant, Kansas City, Mo.

Note: I copied all of the above to show that I did not make up my earlier post and do NOT want to be the source of an incorrect report for the winner. USA Today reported both receiving the award for the mid Atlantic.

[DonRocks]

AT 12:53AM USA Today continues to report that both Frank Ruta and RJ Cooper share in the award for the Mid Atlantic area. However, the Beard website shows only Cooper as the award recipient. I hope that clarification of this is imminent by either USA Today or Beard.

Likewise at 2:50 AM, but Beard's site continues to report Cooper as the lone winner. We'll see tomorrow...

[DonRocks]

I did receive positive confirmation this morning that Frank and RJ tied for the award, and are therefore both 2007 James Beard Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic winners. Congratulations, Chef Ruta!

[smokey]

ann amernick is gone from the kitchen, but we heard that she might be offering cooking classes

Cooking classes?! Whoah, now THAT makes my ears perk up.

[hamburglerhelper]

Iron Chef America

Frank Ruta Vs. R. J. Cooper III...

Anybody know anyone at the food network????

[Halloween]

This is all I have to say. I had dinner tonight in the cafe. I know some of you wonder why anyone would go to Palena and order the burger. Well, I'll tell you why. It's because that burger is one of the single best items of food ever prepared on the planet. It is high art, a revelation, a masterpiece. If I should find myself on death row or on my death bed and still able to eat, I want a Palena burger, mom's mac and chesse, a glass of red wine, and a Palena burger for dessert. Congrats!

[jm chen]

Just got my copy of David Rosengarten's e-Newsletter, Tastings, and he has nothing but the highest praise for the burger at Palena.

Being David Rosengarten, he goes on about it for five or six paragraphs, but here's the meat (so to speak) of it:

OK.....in this case, I must admit......when intense beefy-butteriness hits truffle, mayo, brioche, sesame, runny cheese and garlic, things do not take a turn for the worse. But it's the beefy-butteriness that got this thing here—and should get you here, before anyone has the restless idea to change one miraculous little detail, or before the Palena burger turns from Washington's best-kept secret to Washington's next tourist attraction.

He also compliments the gnocchi, artichoke/bresaola salad, swordfish, french fries, hot dog, and chicken.

Now I'm hungry.

[Meaghan]

I forgot to tell you:

Go, Go, Go!

LIME AND CUMIN MARINATED SEVICHE

OF MAINE SEA SCALLOP AND YELLOW FIN TUNA

With blood orange cream, horseradish and peppery greens

If you miss that and you call yourself a "foodie" in DC, I'm sorry.

A buddy of mine said something great the other night. “I love uncovering all the little treasures Frank hides on the plate.” I love that, too.

Even when the menu you tells you so, you can never take those little whims and gems for granted. “My God! It’s a morel the size of a giant man's toe!"

Anyway, I decided I'm not messing around with too many other restaurants anymore. It's exhausting. It's like going on a million bad dates. So, from now on, I'm either going home. Or to Palena.

[zoramargolis]

We who rarely go out to eat, ate in the Palena Cafe last night. The best thing on the table was the crayfish bisque with mussels. I only got a tiny taste, because it was my daughter's entree, but it was superb. I had a burger, J had the mixed fried seafood plate, and we had a plate of fries to share. And, in honor of Ann Amernick's feature article in the Post yesterday, we ordered the "double chocolate napoleon"--puff pastry with chocolate mousse, made as per her specifications, according to the article. It was as described--shatteringly crisp and puffy. I was a teensy bit disappointed in the burger--not quite as "grilled beefy" tasting as I recall past burgers, the texture a little mushy. And the potatoes on the fry plate were on the limp side, though the onion rings and lemon slices were perfection.

[legant]

This is the "veggie" teen? And, you didn't remind her that (1) crayfish and mussels are NOT on the vegetarian plan and (2) Palena has a very good cheese plate? Shame on you! What type of mother are you! You should have taken the bisque from her and admonished her with the soup spoon just to teach her a lesson.

The best thing on the table was the crayfish bisque with mussels. I only got a tiny taste, because it was my daughter's entree, but it was superb.

[zoramargolis]

This is the "veggie" teen? And, you didn't remind her that (1) crayfish and mussels are NOT on the vegetarian plan and (2) Palena has a very good cheese plate? Shame on you! What type of mother are you! You should have taken the bisque from her and admonished her with the soup spoon just to teach her a lesson.

Veggie-teen is actually a pescaterian--she will eat small amounts of fish and seafood--although the varieties she likes are quite limited, not to mention the health limits imposed by mercury contamination of several yummy species. Mercifully, her willingness to eat some fish make it less of a dilemma when attempting to provide her with adequate amounts of protein. And also means that for a couple of dinners a week, I don't have to make two separate entrees.

[bookluvingbabe]

We've ventured out twice with BLBaby to Palena in the last few weeks. We've arrived right as the doors have opened and I think (hope) that we have been minimally disruptive. If nothing else, everyone smiled at him as much the second visit as the first...

I had the burger which I had missed having cooked medium while pregnant. The nettle gnocchi was amazing--on the first visit it served with balsamic vinegar and some sort of blue cheese. On the second visit, it was served in a rabbit ragu. Wow...

I also had a soup with artichokes in it that I can't remember now.

I so miss living in the neighborhood, though my bank balance probably doesn't....

I did discover how easy it is to take the boy on the Metro but I'm not sure I'm brave enough to try to dine at Palena with the baby and without Mr. BLB just yet...

Jennifer

[Al Dente]

If I could play guitar like anyone, I'd play like Clapton. If I could chef like anyone, I'd chef like Chef Ruta.

Consomme with slivers of truffles, sweetbreads and foie gras, raviolini with spring greens, and a luxurious dish of guinea hen breast with morels and little globs of beef marrow-- all of it masterfully composed.

The wife had the house salad and a cheeseburger...

Bonus: finally used a $100 gift certificate from our wedding!

[crackers]

I wish I had the menu in front of me because what Ruta puts together on the plate is so complex, yet melds so perfectly together, that it is hard to remember all the components separately. Salmon seviche was amazing - the tiniest pristine nasturtium flower petals adding a peppery bite. Also ordered the ricotta dumpling with favas, artichokes and shavings of white truffles, raviolini with cuttlefish, and a skate dish that was surrounded by a pool of vegetable puree as deep green as the late spring forest and delicate almond foam. A tart of fresh local strawberries finished us off. I meant to ask for a burger to go, but was so transported by the delicate parade of sensual delights being placed in front of me, that I forgot all about asking. Even though we were technically sitting in the "cafe," all the dinner components were from the first and second courses of the restaurant's menu. That is my new ideal way to experience Palena.

[DonRocks]

Consomme with slivers of truffles, sweetbreads and foie gras, raviolini with spring greens, and a luxurious dish of guinea hen breast with morels and little globs of beef marrow-- all of it masterfully composed.

I've had this dish three times in the past two weeks, and I think the ramifications are much deeper than simply being masterfully composed (although it is masterfully composed, without any doubt).

The last version I had was described as Chicken, Morel Mushroom, and Asparagus Consomme, with crayfish, veal sweetbreads, julienne of crepes, and slivers of foie gras. But there were a few other things in there too - it's a hodgepodgey mosaic of disparate, perhaps even clashing, unowns in a bowl of intensely aromatic broth.

And what aromatics! It beckons you to lower your head, partially in prayer and certainly in giving thanks, and to let the extraordinary bouquet waft it's way into the grains of your pores - I'm still not sure what the primary scent is, but it's almost like a juniper-based chicken stock punctuated with the urgency of a childhood longing for Sophia Loren.

One thing I am sure of is that this dish would be absolutely botched in the hands of nearly 100% of new CIA graduates. Can you imagine such a thing? A hotshot racehorse fresh out of cooking school thinking he or she somehow has the right to even attempt this, much less to serve it in a restaurant? No, no, no - finish your apprenticeship first, and then talk to me in five years, please.

Cheers,

Rocks.

[Al Dente]

Rocks is right on about that consommé (Don-- you have better food memory than I, as that was exactly what I had). This dish had a way of distinctly separating each element yet melding them together at the same time. It didn't make any sense but it worked beautifully.

[DonRocks]

Don-- you have better food memory than I

No, I stole a copy of the menu.

I forgot to tell you:

Go, Go, Go!

LIME AND CUMIN MARINATED SEVICHE

OF MAINE SEA SCALLOP AND YELLOW FIN TUNA

With blood orange cream, horseradish and peppery greens

If you miss that and you call yourself a "foodie" in DC, I'm sorry.

By the way, I've also had this dish three times in the past two weeks. As great as it was the first two times I had it, it's now being made with Copper! River! Salmon! instead of Yellow Fin Tuna. As much as I liked it with the tuna, the bright-orange salmon takes it to another level.

Cheers,

Rocks.

P.S. Be sure to try the innocuous-sounding Local Organic Romaine Lettuce "Caesar", Palena's way, with house cured Spanish mackeral, shaved reggiano cheese, and crispy fried capers, and get it with a glass of Prosecco.

[Al Dente]

P.S. Be sure to try the innocuous-sounding Local Organic Romaine Lettuce "Caesar", Palena's way, with house cured Spanish mackeral, shaved reggiano cheese, and crispy fried capers, and get it with a glass of Prosecco.

Last night it was with smoked sablefish. I wish I had tried it. I struggle with the menu at Palena. Gimme everything.

[crackers]

Salmon seviche was amazing - the tiniest pristine nasturtium flower petals adding a peppery bite.

As great as it was the first two times I had it, it's now being made with Copper! River! Salmon! instead of Yellow Fin Tuna. As much as I liked it with the tuna, the bright-orange salmon takes it to another level.

I didn't remember to ask for a menu, but I seem to recall that it was not exactly the same preparation as what Meaghan described with the tuna. (?) It was a beautifully plated informal abstract arrangement of bright oranges, deep reds and spring greens.