I had a Joe’s Burger ($11.95) with Manchego and chorizo a couple weeks ago. It sounded fantastic, but it was merely very good — the chorizo was pretty ordinary, and the fries were standard-issue frozen. The good news is that I ordered it medium rare, and it came out medium rare. I had a Heineken, which was about the best of several Corona-like beers they offered.
Hudson, for now, is staying open extremely late — their sign says they’re open until midnight on Sundays, and 2:45 AM on weekends. Several places have tried this (Sette Osteria comes to mind), and I’ll be curious to see how long they can sustain it.
My early impression is that the staff is exhausted from the restaurant opening, which just happened last week. There are small glitches that will be worked out over time (including, hopefully, the bartenders learning the name of the chef!)
Mixed drinks here are frightfully expensive at $14, but are going to be a cut above average — a Gin & Tonic is made with housemade tonic, and hand-charged seltzer. Due to a technical problem with the freezer, the “lime ice” was unavailable at this very early stage, and so I had to settle for regular ice cubes with a lime wedge.
I saw an order of Philly Cheesesteak Sliders ($14) go by, and it’s a surprisingly large portion of sandwiches. I’d have gotten one myself, except that the kitchen confirmed my fear that they are indeed made with the real stuff — Cheez Whiz — so I passed on them.
Does everyone remember the wood-burning pizza oven at David Greggory? It’s still here, and a Margherita Pizza ($11) was very good and well-worth ordering. The crust was paper thin, had a nice char to it, and the mozzerella and tomatoes were of good quality. I had forgotten about this place as a potential source for pizza, but now it’s back on my radar.
Fried Chicken ($18) was a half-chicken, breaded with flour and buttermilk, and nicely fried with a touch of black pepper. Served in a paper cone (like all the truffled fries you see in this town), it was the highlight of the plate, which also came with a dish of mushy collard greens cooked with Westphalian ham — it sounded interesting, but was actually very bland. A little bowl of clover honey accompanied a freshly made biscuit that was perfectly fine if you don’t mind a strong smell of shortening (I’m very sensitive to this scent, and find it unappealing). The restaurant should rethink the plating of this dish, as the chicken, collards, and honey were all tilting toward the center of the round plate upon which they were sitting.
The wines here are nothing special, so you may be better off with a Dogfish Head IPA or a Van Winkle Rye. A glass of 2005 Olivier Leflaive Bourgogne Blanc was priced at $11, and went well enough with the chicken although I’ll probably get something else next time.
For about the fifth time, I cell-phoned Jake Parrott when I found myself confronted with an angry Bourbon list, not remembering what’s good and what isn’t. Not many people know more about Bourbon than Jake.
And not many restaurants have a better selection than Acadiana. I counted no less than 50 Bourbons, Ryes, and Whiskeys from their considerable list. For lovers of these spirits in this area, there’s Bourbon (the restaurant), maybe Temperance Hall, and then there’s Acadiana.
A Jefferson Reserve 15 Year ($10.25) was a Bourbon, but may as well have been a Rye since the nose was so wonderfully rye-y. (Rye’s are made with at least 51% rye; Bourbon’s are made with at least 51% corn). Drunk neat, with one ice cube on the side, it reminded me of how much I enjoy the bar at Acadiana.
A three part essay:
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The Source is the latest in the string of area restaurants opened by out-of-area corporations featuring celebrity chefs as their public face. It follows Olives, Lespinasse, Charlie Palmer Steak, and BLT Steak, among others.
When you go to The Source right now, you’ll see Klaus Puck — Wolfgang’s brother — as the face of the dining room. Will he be there a month from now? Will he be there six months from now?
I remember when Le Paradou opened at the end of March, 2004. Many people were eager for Tom Sietsema’s review to arrive. And yet Tom waited, and waited, and waited some more — it wasn’t until the beginning of October when the review was published, six full months after the restaurant opened. His reason? He wanted to be absolutely certain about Le Paradou before issuing such an important review.
The Source is getting a lot of buzz on the internet right now, but one must wonder how much of this initial enthusiasm is due to the opening team putting on a full-court press during review season. How will they be in six months? More importantly, how will they be in two years?
Restaurants opened by experienced corporations have a much easier time front-loading their quality from the very first day they open; it’s the mom-and-pop operations who are particularly susceptible to fumbling and making big mistakes early on.
The biggest favor Tom Sietsema and Todd Kliman can do for the dining public would be to take their sweet time in issuing their reviews and star ratings for this restaurant. The days of scooping the internet are over, but what the major publications have is the ability to be definitive, to be the reviews of record, the reviews that will be sitting on the windows of the restaurant in 2010. That is a big, big responsibility, and one that should not be rushed just to get the story out first.
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On the menu at The Source, “Kobe beef” is listed three times: as a sixty-dollar steak, as thirty-four-dollar short ribs, and as sixteen-dollar “sliders” on the lounge menu.
I asked my server where they got their Kobe beef, and was told that it came from Idaho — presumably from Snake River Farms, which is a major purveyor of products made from Wagyu cattle.
But “Kobe” is a controlled appellation in Japan, and all Wagyu beef labeled Kobe must meet the extremely strict production standards used in that prefecture — it is for this reason, and this reason alone, that real Kobe beef can cost several hundred dollars a pound. And it’s worth it, too.
Many restaurants flaunt American Wagyu beef as “Kobe,” so I don’t believe any laws are being broken. Nevertheless, it is, at best, misleading and irresponsible for any restaurant — certainly one at this level — to be engaging in this marketing tactic.
As long as American Wagyu is listed on this menu as Kobe, there’s a very simple answer to the question: Where is The Source?
The Source is in Idaho.
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The upstairs menu is available in the downstairs lounge, but only if the restaurant can handle the load on any given evening, so there are no guarantees.
A glass of 2004 Joseph Matrot Meursault ($22) makes a fine aperitif, but I would council having this before dinner, as much of the menu’s Asian influence might mask the nuances of this subtle, well-balanced Chardonnay.
Roasted Suckling Pig ($16) is three rectangles of pork, each served skin-side up and perfectly crisped on top. Sitting atop a little pool of plum-fig chutney, it cried out for a glass of 2004 Les Cailloux Chateauneuf-du-Pape ($25). The pickled cippolini sounded intrusive, but was a dazzling addition to the dish, one tiny little onion-round sitting atop each piece of pork, absolutely masquerading as a little piece of pork fat. It was clever, subtle, and brilliant. The menu also lists “sweet bean” as part of the dish, but unless it was a component of the chutney, I didn’t find it. I loved this dish, and would get it again, absolutely.
I opted for the Yuzu-Ponzu sauce with my ”Wok-Fried” Whole Sea Bass ($40), which came with steamed jasmine rice, although brown rice is an option. Presented whole, and expertly filleted and carved tableside, this was another beautifully crisped dish, the flaky meat being a touch overcooked, but well within the range of being a good wok job. This is a lot of money for a mid-Atlantic sea bass, but the cost is mitigated by a glass of 2006 Wieninger Riesling ($12), which works decently with the ponzu sauce. I won’t rave about this dish, but you’ll hear no complaints from me, either.
There are a couple downsides to ordering from the bar downstairs. The roasted suckling pig would have benefited from a small, sharp knife which it’s undoubtedly served with in the upstairs restaurant; the one I had was huge, metallic, and very cold at the handle. The tableside carving of the sea bass took five full minutes (and was a very well-done, thoughtful job), but the carver was forced to leave the upstairs restaurant, and due to space constraints needed to walk down to the end of the bar to perform his handiwork. Nevertheless, I really, really appreciated the trouble they took in presenting the whole fish, and carving it nearby, rather than simply doing it in the kitchen — it was an amazing touch that far exceeded anything I could reasonably expect while sitting at a bar.
Total cost for three glasses of wine, an appetizer, an entrée, tax, and tip: $151.50. This is a lot of money, obviously, but the service was fantastic, I dined well, and I left happy.
I stopped into the upstairs lounge at Mark and Orlando’s Tuesday evening, took a corner seat, cracked open a bottle of Chartogne-Taillet, and yanked out my Edith Wharton.
Jonesing for the Venison Wellington, I made the mistake of asking my server — after the Champagne had been opened — if Orlando Hitzig was working. As it turned out, he was off that evening, working the Taste of Dupont event.
Since Mark and Orlando’s is basically a one-man kitchen, I decided to go primal in Hitzig’s absence, ordering a Bacon Cheeseburger ($10). Here’s what I can say about this ten-dollar sandwich:
Beef house-ground, not pre-formed.
Decent sesame-brioche bun.
Romaine, not iceberg.
Good tomato wedge, not at all mealy.
Fresh-cut pommes frites, not frozen.
Ordered medium-rare, arrived medium-rare.
It’s worth getting, and with only a $10 corkage fee, can make for a well-priced dinner. I figured the House-made Ravioli with Lemon-Thyme Butter ($9) had been formed earlier in the day, and wouldn’t suffer much with Hitzig gone. Six really good rounds of ravioli, three white, three black, all stuffed with mushrooms.
The only problems came with cooking execution: the fries, good as they might have been, needed to have been done in hotter oil, and the lemon-thyme butter was too brothy, while I was hoping for something more reductive. Hitzig has been in the kitchen every single time I’ve poked my head in the door, so these cooking slips are easily forgiven.
More often than not, meaningful food discoveries come, not from traipsing out to an ethnic mom-n-pop in the distant suburbs, but from looking deep within the familiar. Not wanting to over-rave or over-write, I tend to go to Sushi-Ko on my “off weeks” when I’m not writing anything, and I just want to eat what I want to eat.
Tonight I walked in just looking for a few rolls, but a seat was open in front of Koji so I nabbed it.
I won’t go into the maki he made, because nothing he does surprises me any more, but my epiphany came when I asked for the check.
“Do you want some dessert?” Niporn asked me.
I really didn’t, but the situation was decibly exposed, so I politely asked to see the dessert menu.
She brought it, I glanced at it briefly, and ordered the Panna Cotta, thinking I’d take a respectful couple of bites and be on my way.
Well … WOW!
I took one bite, and darted a look up at Koji. “This is REALLY good panna cotta,” I said.
“You’ve never had that before? I got the recipe in Italy with Daisuke when we went a few years ago. The chef came in here once and said he likes mine better than his.”
I guess in retrospect, I have had this before, but hundreds upon hundreds of meals later, I had completely forgotten about it.
Panna Cotta. Sushi-Ko. $5.50. $5.50! GET IT!
Four-dollar valet parking: Here’s your late-night dessert spot when in Georgetown. Ah, but there’s also Citronelle Lounge, Hook, and Mendocino Grille.
Mendocino Grille for dessert?
Oh yeah. Stay tuned…
With my mom and Matt tonight at Ledo Pizza, Colesville.
First of all, this high-volume restaurant said “we just got our beer in 1 1/2 hours ago. All of them are in the refrigerator, but they’re still warm.” Okay, warm Heineken is better than no Heineken (though only when you’re desperate, and I mean desperate, for a beer). It was between Heineken, Corona, Bud, Miller Lite, etc.
My mom orders Pasta Fajioli soup.
It arrives cold.
My mom never complains, but she was right: It was cold.
We send it back.
It arrived two minutes later, cold again.
I flagged our server down — a clueless but non-malevolent high-school girl — and spoke up. “I hate to bother you again, but this is still cold.”
She took it back again, doubting us.
Five minutes later, she’s walking out holding the bowl and scowling. She drops it on the table, and says, “I just burned my hands on the bowl, so if it’s still cold, there’s nothing I can do.”
It was still cold! Actually, lukewarm at this point. The bowl was burning hot from the microwave, but the soup was still barely above room temperature.
Are you kidding me?
Cheers,
Rocks.
Neighborhood Eats — The WETA Guide is a television program that showcases hot-spot eateries and lesser-known gems throughout Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Watch it when it’s broadcast on TV 26 or online anytime.
Among the places profiled are D.C.’s Eastern Market Lunch Counter, Coppi’s Organic Pizza, Arlington’s Lost Dog Cafe, Bob and Edith’s Diner, Mrs. K’s Tollhouse, Urban BBQ, Cuban Corner, Yechon, and many more. Guaranteed to get your taste buds tingling!
We’re pleased to introduce Don Rockwell, host of the D.C. food board donrockwell.com, and the wine columnist for The Washingtonian. Each week, Don will post here on WETA’s new DC Dining web site and on his own Lettres de Mon Moulin. He’ll let us know what was good, great, or abysmal on the menu at area restaurants the previous week. This is an open blog, so agree, disagree, and give voice to your opinion about D.C. dining!
This week, Don takes us to Thai Square, Bistrot Lepic & Wine Bar, The Auld Shebeen, Moby Dick, Marcel’s, Stacy’s Coffee Parlor, Michel Richard Citronelle Lounge, Bob’s Noodle 66, Sette Bello, Ray’s The Classics, The Italian Store, and Comet Ping Pong.
Where do you go if you want to eat authentic Neapolitan pizza, but don’t have a trip to Italy on your horizon? Why do pepitas taste so good on the salmon at Kinkeads — and what is a pepita?
Watch Local Flavor, a special one-hour visit to four D.C. area restaurants. You’ll go behind the scenes to meet the innovative chefs at Kinkeads, 2941 Restaurant, Willow, 2 Amys Pizza, and Cafe Atlantico and watch as they make some of their signature dishes.
Because some local restaurants are landmarks in their own right, we’ve produced several video profiles of favorite eateries as part of WETA Neighborhoods, a continuing series that films interesting places in Adams Morgan, Shaw, Del Ray, and other areas around town. Click below to watch these WETA video clips online.
