dracisk Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 1 minute ago, franch said: (anecdotally, I've heard that about P&P too) I can eat most people I know under the table, and I was not hungry after Pineapple and Pearls. (I wasn't stuffed, either.) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TedE Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 36 minutes ago, Keithstg said: Better than I was expecting, honestly. About what I was expecting. Pretty good scores on food overall, but the pricing will be a sword of Damocles hanging over every review. And maybe the real news here is that Tom must have gone on either opening night (!) or the night after to file this for Friday. He *never* would have done that even 5 years ago, even for a First Bite column, even for a place with this much buzz/controversy, and would have defended the decision to give a new place at least a couple of weeks before writing about it. My how the times have changed. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franch Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 Laura Hayes (WCP) is going tonight. rereading the Sietsema piece, it's not as awful as on first read. he seemed to like the food for the most part, disliking the foie course and a course that features something he doesn't like of the savory courses. I do think tasting menus across the US neglect dessert as sort of a throw away a lot of times (notable exceptions including Alinea and Jean-Georges), which is a pity. I think TedE is right. every review will not only be "is this food excellent?" but "is this food as good as the food at [Eleven Madison Park/Momofuku Ko/Pineapple and Pearls/Metier]" and the answer MUST be yes for Shaw Bijou to thrive. still excited for tonight! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bart Posted November 4, 2016 Author Share Posted November 4, 2016 36 minutes ago, TedE said: About what I was expecting. Pretty good scores on food overall, but the pricing will be a sword of Damocles hanging over every review. And maybe the real news here is that Tom must have gone on either opening night (!) or the night after to file this for Friday. He *never* would have done that even 5 years ago, even for a First Bite column, even for a place with this much buzz/controversy, and would have defended the decision to give a new place at least a couple of weeks before writing about it. My how the times have changed. Maybe times have changed or maybe it's just the price that made him review it early. In his chats over the years he's often said if a place is charging premium prices, they should be functioning perfectly and review-ready on day one. He often follows that up with, they're not offering reduced prices early on, so they are fair game for a review. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bart Posted November 4, 2016 Author Share Posted November 4, 2016 2 minutes ago, franch said: still excited for tonight! Looking forward you to your take on the place! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSchaad Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 30 minutes ago, TedE said: About what I was expecting. Pretty good scores on food overall, but the pricing will be a sword of Damocles hanging over every review. The problem is that the pricing at Shaw Bijou makes "Pretty Good" an unacceptable score. With all the other highly rated and more 'affordable' prix-fixe destinations in the city, why would any sane person with the kind of disposable income that allows them to even consider dining here do so? To brag they were present at the train wreck? TSchaad 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 58 minutes ago, DonRocks said: Regardless, with Prix Fixe menus in upscale restaurants in France, you leave as full as you want - if you want to leave absolutely *stuffed*, you will - there's no requirement to finish your plates if you're a light eater, but to involuntarily leave hungry would *never* happen - or, at least, not anywhere I can think of at the moment. +1. Every prix-fixe menu I had in Spain this fall -- Alkimia, Disfrutar, El Celler de Can Roca, DiverXo -- left me more than sated. You can't let people go hungry for $400+pp, or whatever the tariff is here. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 23 minutes ago, franch said: Laura Hayes (WCP) is going tonight. rereading the Sietsema piece, it's not as awful as on first read. he seemed to like the food for the most part, disliking the foie course and a course that features something he doesn't like of the savory courses. I do think tasting menus across the US neglect dessert as sort of a throw away a lot of times (notable exceptions including Alinea and Jean-Georges), which is a pity. I think TedE is right. every review will not only be "is this food excellent?" but "is this food as good as the food at [Eleven Madison Park/Momofuku Ko/Pineapple and Pearls/Metier]" and the answer MUST be yes for Shaw Bijou to thrive. still excited for tonight! 21 minutes ago, Bart said: Maybe times have changed or maybe it's just the price that made him review it early. In his chats over the years he's often said if a place is charging premium prices, they should be functioning perfectly and review-ready on day one. He often follows that up with, they're not offering reduced prices early on, so they are fair game for a review. First off, Tom, and reviewers in general, go to restaurants so much earlier these days because they don't want to be scooped by each other or bloggers or yelpers and the myriad of other food journalists that didn't exist even 5-10 years ago. secondly, while Tom didn't hate the food per se (and I don't think many people thought he would hate the food) the tiny portions (a tasting menu should not just be an array of hors d'oeurves) and the huge price point create a huge problem for Shaw Bijou. A restaurant is not just the food in a vacuum, it's the sum total of all the parts. And the perceived value has to be there. Early indications are that this is not the case for Shaw Bijou. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TedE Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 9 minutes ago, TSchaad said: With all the other highly rated and more 'affordable' prix-fixe destinations in the city, why would any sane person with the kind of disposable income that allows them to even consider dining here do so? Variety. The "experience". Seriously, and I can be a cynical bastard, but I'm more and more convinced that the trend in multi-course tasting menus has become less and less about the food on the plate and more about the "journey" or whatever the term du jour is. From what I can gather the wandering dinner aspect of Shaw Bijou is unique to DC. There you go. If you won't bat an eye at a $300 for two for dinner at P&P, etc., what's $500? $600? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TedE Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 11 hours ago, Jonathan said: First off, Tom, and reviewers in general, go to restaurants so much earlier these days because they don't want to be scooped by each other or bloggers or yelpers and the myriad of other food journalists that didn't exist even 5-10 years ago. Well, that's exactly what I was getting at . The dining world has succumbed to Twitter/Yelp/whatever, and there is no turning back from an audience that expects instant judgment. I would have to dig back ten or so years in the archives, but I'm almost certain he defended giving new places some breathing room in the past. Then the reach of online reviews became harder and harder to ignore (including this here website), and he amended that to "If they are charging full price they should be ready for a review" in order to justify earlier and earlier visits. A review on opening night still took me aback. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jca76 Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 3 minutes ago, TedE said: If you won't bat an eye at a $300 for two for dinner at P&P, etc., what's $500? $600? As someone who spends the vast majority of my (government salary) disposable income on food, that's not a trivial difference. I think a lot of diners do bat an eye at P&P's or Komi's or minibar's pricing, but decide it's worth the splurge. I haven't left P&P hungry, and $250 for everything seems like an excellent "value" for what feels like a special experience. If Silverman charged twice as much, I'd be a lot more hesitant about recommending P&P to a friend. I left my sole dinner at minibar's new location still snacky and annoyed by how expensive it was compared to the old location, which has kept me from rushing back in the two years since, even though the food was very good (and some of it great). Overall experience isn't determined by the quality of the food in a vacuum; cost matters. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonRocks Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 1 hour ago, franch said: I agree with this. this is the true crime. my wife and I could have hit up Ben's/Jumbo Slice after our dinner at Minibar as well, which was disappointing. (anecdotally, I've heard that about P&P too) Not sure who remembers this, but the first time I ever went to Minibar, back in the summer of 2003, I had *two Wendy's spicy chicken filets* on the way home after the 34-course meal. I ask people to re-read that post, and to evaluate its correctness, 13 years into the future. I think at this point, it would do people very well to re-read the entire Rogue 24 thread - just five years ago, people were positively up-in-arms about spending $135 for the 24-course Journey Menu. I'm not making any points here; just trying to add some historical perspective at a time when it's very much needed. Shaw Bijou costs $50 more than what the most expensive menu at Rogue 24 cost ($185 vs. $135), and the Rogue 24 meal was prepared by a James Beard Award-winning chef with over twenty years of experience in kitchens, including having been Chef de Cuisine at Vidalia under Jeff Buben. I also remind everyone that Rogue 24 was retired in BOLD, and deservedly so (I ignored its last two weeks of existence after RJ left - that was just a technicality). One thing's for sure: Rogue 24 was a groundbreaking restaurant. In 1963, the Yankees gave Mickey Mantle a $100,000 contract. Two days later, the Giants gave Willie Mays a $105,000 contract, about which Mantle was openly jealous: Aug 28, 2013 - "Parallel Lives of Mickey and Willie Examined in Book" by Lindsay Berra on m.mlb.com 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TedE Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 16 minutes ago, jca76 said: As someone who spends the vast majority of my (government salary) disposable income on food, that's not a trivial difference. But there is a target audience for whom the price difference *is* trivial, and in this town that target audience is not insignificant. You don't need to capture all of them, just give some of them a reason to darken your door once in a while. I stand by my notion that at this price point the actual quality of the food becomes less and less of the story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonRocks Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 1 hour ago, TedE said: But there is a target audience for whom the price difference *is* trivial, and in this town that target audience is not insignificant. In NYC, there are enough people who can afford this type of thing within a 5-mile radius - plus the tourists that come - where it's potentially viable if it's good enough; in DC, nobody is going to be able to afford this (I mean, they "can," but will they want to?), and how many tourists do you know that go to Shaw? Some, of course, and more-and-more people are hearing about the restaurants there, but will be it enough? I know what I think, but that's not going to change anything, so I'm just going to wish them all the best of luck and keep my nose to the grindstone, as my mom used to say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TedE Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 6 minutes ago, DonRocks said: in DC, nobody is going to be able to afford this, and how many tourists do you know that go to Shaw? Don, you honestly don't believe this, do you?!? This town does not want for high (and *very* high) income earners, that's for sure, and they certainly eat out a lot What is it, 4 or 5 of the top HHI zip codes in the US are close-in suburbs? Hell, the HHI of the top 10-15% of households in the Shaw census tract is likely way more than you think (median HHI is $90K, just looked that up. It surprised me!). People who come into DC for a high-end meal will go wherever their Uber will drop them off these days. "Tourists" won't come here, but "foodie tourists" (gack) certainly might. I see places like Shaw Bijou akin to clubs that offer bottle service. You aren't getting your money's worth, but that is beyond the point. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtureck Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 3 hours ago, franch said: I agree with this. this is the true crime. my wife and I could have hit up Ben's/Jumbo Slice after our dinner at Minibar as well, which was disappointing. (anecdotally, I've heard that about P&P too) The problem with these price points is that if every bite that enters your mouth isn't fabulous, you're going to leave disappointed, and that's almost an impossible bar to hit. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 4 minutes ago, TedE said: I see places like Shaw Bijou akin to clubs that offer bottle service. You aren't getting your money's worth, but that is beyond the point. But clubs that offer bottle service don't have the overhead of a Shaw Bijou. Shaw Bijou has a very slim margin for error, and most likely needs to be very near capacity every night to stay open (I would imagine). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonRocks Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 51 minutes ago, TedE said: Don, you honestly don't believe this, do you?!? This town does not want for high (and *very* high) income earners, that's for sure, and they certainly eat out a lot What is it, 4 or 5 of the top HHI zip codes in the US are close-in suburbs? Hell, the HHI of the top 10-15% of households in the Shaw census tract is likely way more than you think (median HHI is $90K, just looked that up. It surprised me!). People who come into DC for a high-end meal will go wherever their Uber will drop them off these days. "Tourists" won't come here, but "foodie tourists" (gack) certainly might. I see places like Shaw Bijou akin to clubs that offer bottle service. You aren't getting your money's worth, but that is beyond the point. That's why I said "5-mile radius" (I had originally typed "3-mile radius") - in NYC, you just walk, or hop a cab, and you're there in a few minutes - there are always plenty of people within a mile or two that are worth over $10 million; in DC, it's quite an event to drive and park, and "affording" is a matter of priorities: $90K isn't going to support very many $700 meals. I can see people going once, but I can't see a lot of return visits, and I don't see this being a tourist magnet - perhaps there's a "Part Two" of this business strategy that has yet to be revealed. You can't compare this to Minibar, because Minibar is supported by many thousands of other covers at various ThinkFoodGroup restaurants, and is really more for publicity than for making money - it's like Peet's Coffee opening on Wisconsin and M Street. So, yes, I honestly do believe this. Separate issue: I am often shocked at the *absolute lack of knowledge* of supposed "foodies" I speak with - it's stunning how little they know. And I mean people who I assume are going to know a *lot* about the culinary arts know amazingly little. Maybe that's why "scene" restaurants do so well. I've always, in the back of my head, been a little scared if I ever got into a debate situation, but honestly, I don't think I have much of anything to worry about based on what I've seen on display by supposed "experts." The lack of knowledge is to the point where it's disturbing, and bluster seems to dominate - truly, the people on this website know *so much more* than the average self-proclaimed "foodie" you meet in a DC restaurant, it would be funny if it wasn't so widespread. It also makes me realize that we'll always have a relatively small membership, and in some sense, that makes me sad, but I'd rather be small and substantive, than large and vacuous. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jca76 Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 32 minutes ago, TedE said: This town does not want for high (and *very* high) income earners, that's for sure, and they certainly eat out a lot . . . People who come into DC for a high-end meal will go wherever their Uber will drop them off these days. "Tourists" won't come here, but "foodie tourists" (gack) certainly might. I see places like Shaw Bijou akin to clubs that offer bottle service. You aren't getting your money's worth, but that is beyond the point. It seems like this is conflating potential audiences, and I'm not sure that Shaw Bijou seems poised to capture either of them particularly well? If you're a "foodie tourist" coming from out of town, why are you going to go to the second most expensive place in DC unless it's also getting stellar reviews? People who travel for food do their research. (The bf and I certainly do.) If you're a rich/expense account diner -- with so much money that you truly do not care about value or so little taste that you don't care about food -- are you going to go to a place that gives you so little flexibility and forces you to flit around a townhouse from course to course? (This isn't San Fran with its tech money or NYC with its finance money. I'm assuming that sort of money in DC means an older diner/more conservative tastes.) Maybe the trophy-collecting rich diner goes once, but is there really enough of that to keep a place with this sort of overhead in business regardless of food quality? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadarene Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 13 hours ago, Jonathan said: There are tables available tonight if anyone is interested...personally, I'd rather take my wife to Portland, Oregon ($673 for two, round trip) and go out to 3 or 4 restaurants and food carts before dropping $1,000 in Shaw at the Bijou and then heading over to Ben's or Jumbo Slice for pizza. Let me know if you want recommendations for Portland; I can provide a ton. :-) 11 hours ago, TedE said: But there is a target audience for whom the price difference *is* trivial, and in this town that target audience is not insignificant. You don't need to capture all of them, just give some of them a reason to darken your door once in a while. I stand by my notion that at this price point the actual quality of the food becomes less and less of the story. As someone in that target audience, the actual quality of the food damn sure doesn't become less and less of the story for me. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 Well they clearly have created a buzz;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadarene Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 9 hours ago, mtureck said: The problem with these price points is that if every bite that enters your mouth isn't fabulous, you're going to leave disappointed, and that's almost an impossible bar to hit. Among the places that have hit that bar for me are Dill in Reykjavik, Ko before it changed locations, Disfrutar in Barcelona, Central in Lima, Volt in its heyday, and Sushi Taro's omakase counter, as well as many other, much cheaper destinations. If you can't hit that bar, you shouldn't be charging $185 before tax, tip, and beverages. 9 hours ago, Jonathan said: But clubs that offer bottle service don't have the overhead of a Shaw Bijou. Shaw Bijou has a very slim margin for error, and most likely needs to be very near capacity every night to stay open (I would imagine). Gotta keep up the maintenance on those waterproof Icelandic sheepskin chairs. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TedE Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 2 hours ago, DonRocks said: That's why I said "5-mile radius" (I had originally typed "3-mile radius") - in NYC, you just walk, or hop a cab, and you're there in a few minutes - there are always plenty of people within a mile or two that are worth over $10 million; in DC, it's quite an event to drive and park, and "affording" is a matter of priorities: $90K isn't going to support very many $700 meals. I can see people going once, but I can't see a lot of return visits, and I don't see this being a tourist magnet - perhaps there's a "Part Two" of this business strategy that has yet to be revealed. You can't compare this to Minibar, because Minibar is supported by many thousands of other covers at various ThinkFoodGroup restaurants, and is really more for publicity than for making money - it's like Peet's Coffee opening on Wisconsin and M Street. So, yes, I honestly do believe this. Separate issue: I am often shocked at the *absolute lack of knowledge* of supposed "foodies" I speak with - it's stunning how little they know. And I mean people who I assume are going to know a *lot* about the culinary arts know amazingly little. Maybe that's why "scene" restaurants do so well. I've always, in the back of my head, been a little scared if I ever got into a debate situation, but honestly, I don't think I have much of anything to worry about based on what I've seen on display by supposed "experts." The lack of knowledge is to the point where it's disturbing, and bluster seems to dominate - truly, the people on this website know *so much more* than the average self-proclaimed "foodie" you meet in a DC restaurant, it would be funny if it wasn't so widespread. It also makes me realize that we'll always have a relatively small membership, and in some sense, that makes me sad, but I'd rather be small and substantive, than large and vacuous. On your first point: $90K median income in a tract that includes at least one (maybe two, I think) public housing blocks? There are some folks with serious money buying those $1M+ rehabbed town homes (dual Big Law, etc.). Very few people with $90K HHI will go here. But the audience is there, they don't have to live in McLean or Chevy Chase. On your second point: We agree! This is what I have been trying to say. There is a surprising number of people I've run across who consider themselves "foodies" who know very little about food or cooking beyond whatever trends they encounter on the plates of the latest hot spots, or read in the NYT Style section. And many of them have money. Lots and lots of money. That proportion of the foodie world that you lament dwarfs the knowledgeable base you have built here? This place is for them. High end dining has become big game hunting for social capital in some circles, and the trophies are Instagram-ready small plates. A high priced barrier for entry only sweetens the chase. I could be entirely wrong about all of this (that is going to be the fun part, watching how this develops), and I have zero interest in ever dining here, but I can't help being drawn to the reasons behind its existence, and whether or not they read the market correctly. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notquiteanonymous Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 10 hours ago, Jonathan said: There are tables available tonight if anyone is interested...personally, I'd rather take my wife to Portland, Oregon ($673 for two, round trip) and go out to 3 or 4 restaurants and food carts before dropping $1,000 in Shaw at the Bijou and then heading over to Ben's or Jumbo Slice for pizza. Make it Nong's Khao Man Gai food cart and my fiance and I will join you! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Poivrot Farci Posted November 5, 2016 Popular Post Share Posted November 5, 2016 Quote Mignardises of butterfingers, Twix, skittles, Jujubes…. I get the life-story part but it is odd that one would want to crack & replicate the flavor/texture matrix of supermarket aisle candy during the one week of the year that most would-be patrons probably have a leftover bowl of the real stuff at home. This low-hanging launch kind of has a memorable Kenny Powers’ stunt feel to it (no, not that one); the madcap swashbuckler who attempted to jettison himself more than a mile across the St. Lawrence river in a rocket powered Lincoln Continental (full length documentary version) cruising forth at a staggering 280mph. Years in the making, lots of hype and possibly not enough studied grasp of physics and aerodynamics fundamentals of rubber meeting and then leaving road. Kwame’s culinary bonafides and stardom, which some interchange with “talent”, was mostly accrued after participating in an edited/choreographed cable gameshow and supplemented by tales of pulled bootstraps of which most have our own version . He benefited tremendously from it, quite apparently, and if I had met my sugardaddy at a cocksure age 26, not knowing what I know now, that confidence isn’t always an adequate substitute for skill, I very likely would have aimed for the other side of the Potomac too, with Icelandic pelted car seats and a gold leaf steering wheel. But the predisposed genius of white-knuckle driving, tickling the ivory or counting matchsticks does not carry over to sauté pans & circulators and the weight of inexperience while short-cutting the inside track is about as hefty as any model Lincoln built before the oil embargo. And plating food on what look like expensive ashtrays made by bored adults does not add anything to a dish other than the cost of extra shelving because they don’t stack well. I think I’d rather root for success than chuckle at failure but it’s hard when there appears to be a deficiency of humility, practice and worthwhile purchases. 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty L. Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 Not surprisingly, Julien's is among the best posts ever on DR. Who wouldn't rather have had just one course of Julien's food at Eat the Rich than even a free meal at the Bijou? 21 hours ago, Poivrot Farci said: I think I’d rather root for success than chuckle at failure but it’s hard when there appears to be a deficiency of humility, practice and worthwhile purchases. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadarene Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 1 hour ago, notquiteanonymous said: Make it Nong's Khao Man Gai food cart and my fiance and I will join you! Gotta go to the brick and mortar location on SE Ankeny! Longer hours, and then you can go to the Rum Club afterwards for amazing cocktails. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bart Posted November 5, 2016 Author Share Posted November 5, 2016 On 11/2/2016 at 4:35 PM, DonRocks said: Here's your answer: Do you think Mike Isabella smiles 24 hours a day? Wut? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zgast Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 I think I'm going to wait till someone actually eats here before reading any more of this. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post franch Posted November 5, 2016 Popular Post Share Posted November 5, 2016 Hey guys! As promised, I'm here to tell you about my time at The Shaw Bijou. As mentioned in this thread at length, I have been very excited for The Shaw Bijou to open. We were great fans of Eleven Madison Park in NYC before moving to DC this year -- it's a very special place for my wife and me, as the hospitality we've experienced there is second to none. We got engaged in their kitchen. Our favorite server at EMP told us to keep an eye on The Shaw Bijou, as Chef Kwame was an EMP kitchen alum. In April, my wife and I went to the Philly Wing Fry event that Chef Kwame had at Union Market and met Greg Vakiner, Kwame's business partner and General Manager of The Shaw Bijou. We learned that Greg was in the kitchen when we got engaged at EMP. When reservations went up, we made one on day one. For the avoidance of doubt, we paid full price for our dinner and drinks, have no financial or otherwise personal connection to the restaurant, and were not comped/discounted/etc. in any way. Also, I used to be able to easily embed Instagram pictures, but they've made it a huge pain in the ass to do so, so I'll link them for anyone curious. Sorry! I arrived and was greeted by two hosts who offered to take my bag and ushered upstairs to the bar. I am offered a seat in one of the infamous Icelandic sheepskin chairs while I wait for my wife to arrive. They are just as comfortable as you imagine. The bar is manned by Ben Long, a Sasha Petraske and Convivial alum, and a gentleman named Zac Hoffman. When my wife arrives, Ben asks us our cocktail preferences, likes, dislikes, favorite spirit, etc. I am prepared a green chartreuse smash and my wife is prepared a maraschino liqueur variation on a martini. Yes, the cocktail glasses are chilled with liquid nitrogen. The bar is a cool spot and the bartenders are skilled -- I wish the bar was open for cocktail service and not tied to dinner service only. The glassware is all different too -- it is sourced from different antique shops around the Northeast. I notice a bottle of William Larue Weller and ask about a spirit/whiskey list. Zac tells me that they haven't drafted one yet, but talks a bit about the spirits they have. The WLW in question is an '07 and is seemingly one of the easier bottles to get in their collection. Zac's Twitter highlights some of them. One cool bottle is the Colonel E. H. Taylor "Tornado Surviving" Bourbon - a bourbon that was in barrels when a tornado destroyed the rickhouse surrounding them, leaving the intact barrels to be exposed to the elements outside as the buildin was repaired. Our first course was served in the bar - a pastry filled with La Tur goat cheese and hazelnut oil with Jamaican jerk-dusted duck prosciutto. This was spectacular. It was a cool take on a charcuterie plate and the flavors worked together really well rather than clashing, not easy with strong flavors like goat cheese and Jamaican jerk. We finish our bites and cocktails and are brought downstairs to the kitchen for our second choice. The chef at the "canape station" explains that The Shaw Bijou is designed to feel like you're at a dinner party in Chef Kwame's home -- from the bar, to the kitchen, to the dining room -- and that the dishes are inspired by different times in Chef Kwame's life. The bite in the kitchen was "chicken and lamb over rice", an homage to the halal carts of NYC, and was lamb sweetbreads, golden rice crisp, and emulsion of smoked sesame seeds. As a frequent halal cart veteran, the reference was clear and appreciated....and delicious. Afterwards, we were walked through the (surprisingly small) kitchen and saw the spice wall, which despite the hype and endless photos, is bigger in person than you expect. We chat a bit with Chef Kwame and Greg Vakiner and some of the other kitchen staff (many EMP veterans) before being led to the dining room. We're offered still or sparkling (complimentary) water and brought a wine menu -- The Shaw Bijou offers a wine pairing ($185), a beverage pairing incorporating "off the beaten path" wines, beer, and cider ($85? $95?), or ordering off the menu -- half bottles, full bottles, and glasses are available off of a fairly small (two page) wine menu. Our server also said we're welcome to continue with cocktails from the bar. In part due to Sietsema's lauding of the wine pairing, we elect to splurge on pairings, though we normally choose a bottle or two. Wine is served in impossibly delicate Zalto crystal glasses that make me concerned I'm going to break them. The flatware, like the glassware at the bar, is sourced from antique stores and each piece is different. Our first course in the dining room is "black clams" with chilis, lime, and caviar. It's delicious (how can caviar not be), although my wife mused that she would expect each of us to receive one rather than this being a course for two. Next up - beet cured hamachi with avocado puree. It's simple and elegant at the same time -- you can tell that the seafood is amazingly fresh by this point. Continuing with the seafood, the decadent "garlic butter crab" is served -- it's king crab poached in garlic butter with uni bottarga on top. This is a highlight. Another highlight is the squash veloute with parmesan foam -- it takes a lot to make a soup of any sort really good to me, and this did it. Next comes bread and butter -- it's some sort of flaky buttery bread that almost reminds me of paratha and carrot butter -- along with the seared foie gras course, served with shrimp and pork marmalade (which I failed to get a picture of). Contrary to Sietsema's review, I didn't find this overly salty or anywhere close to it. This was my wife's favorite course. It was pretty spectacular -- topping foie gras with meat seems risky but it wasn't too much. Around this point I am compelled to mention a constant theme since the beginning of our dining room experience. There's a table that has been pretty loud (though complimentary) that has a (seemingly drunk) patron that began loudly trashing the restaurant, the service, and the food. The person was taking live videos of her doing a speaking review, complete with yelling stuff like "NOT IMPRESSED with this AT ALL" as she was being served courses and name dropping all of the other restaurants that she preferred. Given that they were talking about how good the food was before that, it seemed like she was clearly trying to get a free dinner. Multiple tables were clearly upset and disrupted by her behavior -- I locked eyes with more than one other patron who was clearly offended/disgusted/amused. The staff at The Shaw Bijou handled this with the patience of saints and excellent customer service. I wasn't privy to everything that happened, but they were offered additional off-menu courses (which she loudly said was "the right decision" when a staff member was in earshot). They left mid-dinner, it didn't appear they paid for their wine pairings, and profusely thanked the staff and said they'd like to be back. It was the worst and most disruptive behavior I've seen outside of a fast food restaurant and it was handled in a far nicer manner than I would have handled it. In a newly-serene dining room that I could hear the music for the first time, we are served the sunchokes with tamarind. This is followed by the "steak and eggs" -- house dry aged Wagyu beef, onion subise, and pickled quail egg yolk. We're told about the in-house dry aging and the different kinds of beef that were experimented with. This was my favorite course. The beef was simply sublime and was only complimented by the "egg" part of the dish. I would kill for a full-sized entree size of this. The last real savory course is "mojo", inspired by the red beans and rice place Chef Kwame ate at in the Bronx, and is squab with crispy skin, habanero puree, and red bean puree. I'm a big fan of this -- I like squab generally and love when a "fine dining" type place can incorporate ingredients like habanero and red beans without a failed fusion-y overpowering effect. We're served a palate cleanser of a little cornet pastry with sudachi and elderflower sorbet. The first dessert course is "beets and cream", inspired by red velvet cake that Chef Kwame used to eat as a kid (which was originally made in part with beets). I love this -- I love red velvet cake and the inspiration shines through. I was skeptical of the beets, but color me converted. I am not a super sweet-loving person (and even less so a big chocolate bomb), so this was great for me. My wife would have preferred a sweeter dish. The next dessert is "floating icebergs", a twist on the classic French dessert. I disagree with Sietsema that the meringue was too sweet, finding it to work really well in this dish, but am just as puzzled as he is by the celery twists floating in the bowl. It seems like an attempt to incorporate something weird in a dessert that doesn't really have a reason. We're brought a tray of mignardises -- squash doughnuts, "butterfinger", "Twix." The squash doughnuts are great and were clearly just made as they are still warm. The Butterfinger and Twix bites are good, but not remarkable. We're given a bag with a small jar of sunchoke jam, a chocolate bar, and an engraved spoon as well as the menu. We head back up to the bar for a last cocktail, which was as fantastic as the first. The wine pairings were very generous -- the sommelier informed us how long each glass was to last/for how many courses, and if we were low before we should have been, we were frequently topped up, which was a very nice gesture and very appreciated (I like when the perks of a restaurant you read about from Sietsema happen to "normal' people too)! We were a bit surprised there was no dessert wine offered -- our pairing concluded with the Barolo. I had asked the sommelier to email me the wines we had during our pairing. I was really surprised to see a dessert wine on the list -- somehow our final (1 of 7) glass of wine was omitted. A bit disappointing as we both love dessert wine and the pairing was already pretty pricy, let alone with nearly 15% of it missing. Sietsema's comment that they could go for pizza afterwards seems weird. It was more food than Minibar. My wife left full, and I left definitively not hungry. It isn't the stomach-busting experience that a classic French tasting menu (I'm looking at you Jean-Georges) can leave you with. Wow. So that was a really long and a bit rambling review. Way longer than I meant it to be. Sorry! Anyway...the question lingers in every review - would you go back, and is it worth it? The price is going to be that sword of Damocles hanging over The Shaw Bijou's head -- it's priced with NYC giants like Eleven Madison Park and Momofuku Ko, and exceeds critical darlings Pineapple and Pearls and Metier, leaving only Jose Andres's Minibar ahead of it. The answers are yes....and I'm not sure. Everything was good at minimum, with some room for improvement, and several were standouts. But at this price, everything should be a standout. The mess-up with the wine pairing is particularly hard to take (and reinforces my bias against wine pairings). As everyone here knows, I have an emotional connection to this place and want nothing more than for it to succeed, especially in the face of the backlash and hate it's getting. But it's not the unqualified perfection I wanted it (and it probably needs) to be. I'll consider going back -- but not before I have the chance to experience Pineapple and Pearls, Masseria, and Metier, at the very least. Wine Pairing: 2013 Albert Boxler, Pinot Blanc, Reserve 2011 Neumayer, Grillenbuhel, Riesling (this was supposed to be a Champagne, but we don't particularly care for champagne and love riesling, so the sommelier offered a substitute) 2012 Fritz Haag, Brauenberger Juffer Sonnenuhr, Spatlese 2006 Domaine Faiveley, Mercurey,Clos du Roy 2012 Moric, Reserve 2010 Giovanni Manzone, Gramolere, Barolo 35 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadarene Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 Glad you liked it. It doesn't sound like it's for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanielK Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 Thanks, franch, for a detailed and thoughtful review. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MsDiPesto Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 Too bad the venue didn't have the ability to put a "cone of silence" over that obnoxious table. Thanks for the review! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithstg Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 22 hours ago, franch said: Wine Pairing: 2013 Albert Boxler, Pinot Blanc, Reserve 2011 Neumayer, Grillenbuhel, Riesling (this was supposed to be a Champagne, but we don't particularly care for champagne and love riesling, so the sommelier offered a substitute) 2012 Fritz Haag, Brauenberger Juffer Sonnenuhr, Spatlese 2006 Domaine Faiveley, Mercurey,Clos du Roy 2012 Moric, Reserve 2010 Giovanni Manzone, Gramolere, Barolo Really appreciate the detailed review. Just had a client ask me if I'd heard of the Shaw Bijou on Friday (ha ha)! For $185 x 2, they could have done a lot better than this wine pairing. Forgetting a glass at this price level is inexcusable, imo. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post DonRocks Posted November 6, 2016 Popular Post Share Posted November 6, 2016 1 hour ago, Keithstg said: Really appreciate the detailed review. Just had a client ask me if I'd heard of the Shaw Bijou on Friday (ha ha)! For $185 x 2, they could have done a lot better than this wine pairing. Forgetting a glass at this price level is inexcusable, imo. *This* wine pairing was *$185* EACH?! That's $31 a glass! There is absolutely nothing wrong with these wines, but the price - if this was truly $185 *EACH*?! I don't want to assume anything about the price, so I'll back off for the moment. And I stress that this is why people need a restaurant critic who knows wines. Albert Boxler is well-known in the states because he's in Kermit Lynch's portfolio, and he produces some pretty exceptional Grand Cru bottlings when you can find them; The Pinot Blanc Réserve is a very good Pinot Blanc, coming from 40-year-old vines, but it´s still a Pinot Blanc, and assuming an average price of $31 per wine served, the restaurant paid less for the entire bottle than they charged you for your glass. I know of the Neumayer, but I don't ever recall having one ("Grillen" means "insects," btw, and is actually a piece by Robert Schumann - I'm familiar with the piece, but not the wine ... go figure). I've got some of the Haag Spätlese in the "regular" and the "auction" bottlings, and it's a wine I know very well. This is from a fantastic vineyard, and is a wine that I (personally) choose to drink *alone*, without food, because it's so perfect by itself, and I'm curious what they paired it with. Serving the 06 Faiveley Mercurey is very clever because the bottle age, coupled with the relative lightness of it, technically make it a "fully mature Burgundy," but the only reason it's fully mature is because it's a Mercurey from 06 (what's known as "a restaurant vintage"); you wouldn't see too many Chambolle-Musignys from 05 in its place. Faiveley is a fine négociant, but ... Faiveley is a négociant, and Mercurey isn't even in the Côte d'Or. The Moric is a Blaufränkish, and demonstrates the value of a good sommelier to a restaurant. It's a varietal that nobody knows, is quite tannic, has old-world components, and is not all that expensive - it retails for probably $30, and I suspect you had this with your first dark meat; the Mercurey probably went with a lighter meat or fish. The Barolo was certainly the most expensive wine you had, and can stand up to the darkest of meats, dark chocolate, cheese, etc. I'd be really impressed if it was a 1990 instead of a 2010 - this wine is too young to drink. You know, there isn't a single one of these wines that I wouldn't be happy to drink - they're good, honorable wines, and well-chosen - but *please* tell me this pairing didn't set you back $185. If you got 5-ounce pours (which is a *huge* glass of wine - Corduroy serves 5-ounce pours by-the-glass), then you had the equivalent of about 1 1/4 bottles of wine, and the restaurant made probably $125 in profit, per pairing. If I'm wrong about the pricing, someone please tell me (I may be, but nothing I've written is jumping out at me as being blatantly wrong (that doesn't mean it isn't)). 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simul Parikh Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 If you're saying $125 in profit by value, Don, that's not that much of a markup. Am I understanding correctly? You're saying $185 pairing, but true value is $60. Isn't 3:1 fairly standard for wine? Or should it be closer to 2:1? I just assumed 3:1 for wine and beer, or worse. Enough $8 glasses of $15 bottle wine for this guy to not care to get wine when out. And, not to be a dick, which obviously means I'm about to be a dick... and though I very much enjoyed the review by Franch, honestly I was predicting a fairly stellar review with a few knocks on it. After all of their support of the restaurant what were they going to say? "You guys were all right, this place sucks?" The review may be accurate, but waiting to hear more reviews. Though a negative review from some that predicted a dismal meal might not be all that useful either, ha. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonRocks Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 7 minutes ago, Simul Parikh said: If you're saying $125 in profit by value, Don, that's not that much of a markup. Am I understanding correctly? You're saying $185 pairing, but true value is $60. Isn't 3:1 fairly standard for wine? Or should it be closer to 2:1? I just assumed 3:1 for wine and beer, or worse. Enough $8 glasses of $15 bottle wine for this guy to not care to get wine when out. I was conservative in my post, giving them full benefit of all variables. I doubt they were five-ounce pours (but they might have been); I doubt they paid $60 for the wine they poured (but they might have), etc. Keep in mind also that there is some waste when pouring by the glass. I'm waiting for more information about both the price and the wines before concluding anything - and that information may never come. I agree that we're all waiting for more reviews. Still, I do appreciate both the length x depth of the review, and also the disclosure that they had a special bond to the restaurant - it's *perfectly fine* (encouraged, actually) to post about restaurants you have an affiliation with or an affinity to, as long as that relationship is disclosed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithstg Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 2 hours ago, DonRocks said: *This* wine pairing was *$185* EACH?! That's $31 a glass! The Pinot Blanc Réserve is a very good Pinot Blanc, coming from 40-year-old vines, but it´s still a Pinot Blanc, and assuming an average price of $31 per wine served, the restaurant paid less for the entire bottle than they charged you for your glass. Serving the 06 Faiveley Mercurey is very clever because the bottle age, coupled with the relative lightness of it, technically make it a "fully mature Burgundy," but the only reason it's fully mature is because it's a Mercurey from 06 (what's known as "a restaurant vintage"); you wouldn't see too many Chambolle-Musignys from 05 in its place. Faiveley is a fine négociant, but ... Faiveley is a négociant, and Mercurey isn't even in the Côte d'Or. The Barolo was certainly the most expensive wine you had, and can stand up to the darkest of meats, dark chocolate, cheese, etc. I'd be really impressed if it was a 1990 instead of a 2010 - this wine is too young to drink. You know, there isn't a single one of these wines that I wouldn't be happy to drink - they're good, honorable wines, and well-chosen... Funny - my criticism of the pairing rested primarily on the above three wines. Anyone pouring a 2010 Barolo right now should consider pulling a "Myhrvold" prior to serving it. Lots of '06 Faiveley's popping up on LastBottle over the past year or so - I'd be willing to wager that's where those came from. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franch Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 @DonRocks - Thanks for your informed post. You definitely know more about wine than i do, particularly French wine, long my weak spot. It's just so unapproachable that I don't know where to start, despite really liking many French wines. Yes, the pairings were $185 each. If it helps, the champagne we passed on was identified by Sietsema as Larmandier-Bernier -- I would hope it would be a like-for-like substitution in price though. The dessert wine identified in the email was 2014 Abbazia di Novacella, Praepositus, Moscato Rosa -- the (included) seventh glass would bring down the price to $26ish a glass. I wouldn't be surprised to know that each glass was 5 ounces or so with the top-ups. The sommelier was very generous with coming around with the bottles (which I know is a psychological thing - I'm more impressed at "top ups" of 3 ounce glasses than I probably would be at a straight pour of 5 ounces). The Haag was amazing. We *love* Riesling and have had this wine from other vintages, it's truly spectacular. I believe it was paired with the Butter Garlic Crab and Squash Veloute. The Barolo had been decanting, but to my knowledge wasn't blended. I was also a bit surprised to see a 2010 Barolo poured -- it was delicious, although it presumably would be better in 15 years. 2010 Barolo is an acclaimed enough vintage that those bottles will only appreciate in price and presumably as a wine. For everyone's information, I responded to the sommelier's email noting the omitted glass. He responded apologetically and invited us to come visit the bar at our convenience so they can make up the mistake to us. Classy move IMO. @Keithstg - I hadn't heard of LastBottle! What a cool concept. Feel free to shoot me an invite if you want a referral credit. Any other of these sites I should know about? @Simul Parikh - I like to think I would have been impartial even if the dinner was a total nightmare! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadarene Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 franch, out of curiosity: were the cocktails included? If not, how much did they cost? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 For comparison, here are Metier's two wine pairings, which I believe are priced at $100 and $185, respectively. I'll leave it to Don to do a blow by blow, but looking at the second pairing, it seems like a better value (though, it's six, not seven glasses): aside from the entry-level Champagne (for the cocktail) and Riesling, the other four wines are a class or two above what's being poured here. Metier's Wine Pairings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonRocks Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 2 hours ago, Simon said: For comparison, here are Metier's two wine pairings, which I believe are priced at $100 and $185, respectively. I'll leave it to Don to do a blow by blow, but looking at the second pairing, it seems like a better value (though, it's six, not seven glasses): aside from the entry-level Champagne (for the cocktail) and Riesling, the other four wines are a class or two above what's being poured here. Metier's Wine Pairings Does it disqualify me if I say I've had dinner at Eric Texier's house in Beaujolais, and that he stayed with me when he came to DC? Yes, douche-level "humble" brag ... busted ... interesting thing is that Eric (Ziebold) has absolutely no knowledge of my friendship with Eric (Texier). God I really am a douche, but I do have deep back pockets if I ever need to use them. Urban Bobos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franch Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 4 hours ago, Gadarene said: franch, out of curiosity: were the cocktails included? If not, how much did they cost? they are included. no idea what the price would be if we stuck with cocktails during dinner. 1 hour ago, DonRocks said: Does it disqualify me if I say I've had dinner at Eric Texier's house in Beaujolais, and that he stayed with me when he came to DC? Yes, douche-level "humble" brag ... busted ... interesting thing is that Eric (Ziebold) has absolutely no knowledge of my friendship with Eric (Texier). God I really am a douche, but I do have deep back pockets if I ever need to use them. Urban Bobos ffs. #humbleBUTNOThumbleATALLbrag Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweaked Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 The Washington City Paper chimes in. Looks like Laura Hayes ran into the same vlogger as Franch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franch Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 holy crap guys I'm dying laughing over here. edit to add: ?uestlove and Mike Isabella both gave shout outs to The Shaw Bijou on twitter, with ?uestlove calling it "on another level", if we're keeping track of reactions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadarene Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 Laura Hayes shares Sietsema's opinion about the portion sizes. And the service issues she mentions are pretty inexcusable at that price point. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ad.mich Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 Thank you Franch for the detailed review. I'm not a wine expert, but I do drink a little bit of the brown. if a taste of that Col. Taylor Tornado Survivor was included as part of the drink pairing, that was probably the most expensive pour of the night. It's damn good stuff and goes for pretty obscene prices on the secondary market. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post RJ Cooper Posted November 8, 2016 Popular Post Share Posted November 8, 2016 If I may: Executing a multi course tasting menu takes an extreme amount of knowledge, skill of technique and humbleness for the craft. This is an extreme undertaking, that with youthful vigor and bravery does not have fear for "failure". Why so? There isn't enough experience to understand the successes and pitfalls. This does not mean there isn't talent, it merrily means there isn't enough life experience. Is failure forthcoming? No, remember all a young 26 year old opened Komi, and it blossomed to the extraordinary. However, Johnny learned from the experience and started moderate and grew; smart move. What we are experiencing is the multi media hype to swell the public minds of the extraordinary, when what it is is just youth and will see many growing pains. Media promoting youth to me more giant then reality: Remember DC we had RG3, high priced, and where did it lead! Wish the team, the chef and the investors good luck. We all have a choice to dine or not. Just like tomorrow. Peace from the south. rj 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonRocks Posted November 8, 2016 Share Posted November 8, 2016 [I've thought about this and changed my mind - I thought there was going to be a video made - what we're doing here is wrong. It would be one thing if she was going to attach her name to a public video, but if not, then let's be bigger than this. Yes, she was rude, but let's leave her be. I'm sorry if it appeared I was egging on a mob; I thought the video would be published, (Don't be offended if I remove all public-shaming posts - they aren't actually "deleted"; they're just moved into a separate, holding area.)] 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CapitalGourmand Posted November 14, 2016 Share Posted November 14, 2016 On 11/5/2016 at 6:12 PM, franch said: Hey guys! As promised, I'm here to tell you about my time at The Shaw Bijou. I appreciate the detailed write-up, Justin. I'll post some thoughts about my experience, along with a few pictures, hopefully by the end of this week. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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