DMV Dining

First of all, it’s great to be back. We have been on hiatus since welcoming our first child into the world, but we also have plenty of content to share with our readers that we obviously have not had time to get to. Until now.

So let’s flash back to last month’s Restaurant Week. Rachel, I, and a couple of our friends were looking for a restaurant participating for lunch. We were in search of a place that we had not tried before, offered a good value compared to ordering a la carte, and that was kid-friendly for our friend’s 17 month old.

Rachel and I had been meaning to check out La Forchetta (which has recently been renamed to Al Dente) since news broke out that Roberto Donna would be helming the kitchen.  It’s amazing that our visit to the short-lived Galileo III was not even over a year ago, yet just ten months later, Chef Donna has already found a new residence.

As for Al Dente’s lunch menu, it might have been one of the very best deals for Restaurant Week given the $20 price tag for three courses.  For the first course, diners had a choice between paninis, soup, salad, pizza, as well as appetizers of the day. Considering that some of the pizzas top out at $13.95, it’s an incredible value. And if you think that’s impressive, Rachel’s grilled sea scallops, one of the special appetizers, was $16.95.

Value aside, the trio of scallops was excellently cooked. As for my first course, I ordered the burrata with slow-roasted vine ripe tomato. Soft, creamy, and swimming in a pool of olive oil, the burrata was a terrific starter.

For our main course, diners had a choice between a selection of house made pastas, main dishes, and entrees of the day. Rachel ordered the basil pesto gnocchi, which was blended with fava and string beans. The potato dumplings were soft, delicate, and practically melted in your mouth. The pesto sauce was just as good as it was rich with flavor and really complemented the pasta.

I went with one of the day’s specials – sautéed rockfish with pizzaiola sauce. I’m not one to typically order fish as my entrée, but Chef Donna hit this one out of the park. Not only was the fish perfectly cooked, but the pizzaiola sauce was simply fantastic. I seriously wanted a jar of this stuff to take home with me. Oh, and on top of that, this dish would have cost $26.95 a la carte. Yeah, I couldn’t believe it either.

For dessert, we had a choice between tiramisu and biscotti, so Rachel went with the former while I ordered the latter. Even Al Dente’s dessert presentations were top notch as my biscotti was accompanied with a glass of moscato while Rachel’s tiramisu was artfully arranged.

It’s not often that Rachel and I are blown away not only by the food but also the value of a Restaurant Week participant, but Al Dente wildly exceeded our expectations. Not only do you get to take pleasure in Roberta Donna’s masterful cooking, but the prices, regardless if it’s Restaurant Week or not, are very reasonable. Oh, and ample parking is always a nice plus. Welcome back, Chef Donna.

It only took us ten months or so, but we finally tried Medium Rare last week. I can’t speak for Rachel, but I have been dying to try this place not only because of the simple concept, but plainly because I love steak frites. Turns out Medium Rare was designed with me in mind, and I greatly appreciate it.

We were able to procure a table for four with ease on Friday night, but that’s also because we were having a 6pm dinner. Rest assured the place was nearly full an hour later. It’s amazing to think that Yanni’s Greek Taverna is where Medium Rare now sits, but this is a great addition to the Cleveland Park neighborhood.

Helmed by Mark Bucher of BGR The Burger Joint fame, Medium Rare is the simplest of steakhouses – a prix-fixe menu of bread, salad, and steak & fries for $19.50. And yes, that even includes a second helping of their steak frites. For an entire meal under $20, it’s an incredible value.

The artisan rustic bread was crusty on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and our waitress gladly refilled our basket once we had gone through the first batch. The mixed green salad, topped with cherry tomatoes and Dijon vinaigrette, soon came next. We all enjoyed the salad as the lettuce was crisp without being completely saturated in dressing.

Then, it was time for the main event. The culotte steak (top sirloin cap) was topped with the restaurant’s “secret sauce” and served with a generous heap of frites. The steak, just like the name of the restaurant, was cooked medium rare. The thin, tender strips of beef were full of flavor, but the addition of the kitchen’s gravy/béarnaise concoction really got the taste buds flowing.

Just as I had finished my plate, our server came by with a grillpan full of more steak and fries to distribute evenly amongst our table. Rachel was full by this juncture, but I happily had her seconds (are you honestly surprised?).

The four of us decided to split a dessert, so we went with the apple pie accompanied with vanilla bean ice cream. The pie was piping hot, flaky, and overflowing with apple. I especially enjoyed the ice cream as the vanilla flavor was very pronounced.

We had a great meal at Medium Rare, and it’s a terrific option for those not looking to break the bank. You’re not going to be getting a prime filet, but for the price, I was very happy with my steak. All and all, I would definitely come back, though you really have to be in the mood for steak frites since, well, it’s your only option.

New Years Eve is perhaps the most overrated holiday of the year, so instead of dropping over $100 on one of those silly “open-bar” parties where the venues are overcrowded and short-staffed, we opted to go out with a few of our close friends for dinner instead. We ultimately decided on Ardeo which offered a four-course prix-fixe menu for a reasonable price of $65.

Rachel and I haven’t dined at Ardeo since 2008, and it’s received quite the makeover since our last visit. Because we had a party of ten, we were seated at their “community table” – a long table which made conversation with the entire community just a tad difficult. I won’t blame that on Ardeo though, a round 10-top is typically found at banquet halls, not restaurants.

Anyway, the amuse bouche for the table was a beef tartar accompanied with egg “caviar” and black truffle. I liked the execution of the egg caviar, very clever.

Diners had six options to choose from for their first course, so naturally I went with the beef carpaccio. And yes, while I’m aware I just had the beef tartar moments ago, I’m a glutton for all things beef, so this decision was rather easy. The four thinly-sliced pieces of beef were topped with a couple of 63 degree quail eggs as well as pickled brown beech mushrooms. Lovely presentation and a solid first course dish.

Rachel ordered the gnocchi salad, which was prepared with spinach salad, crisp gnocchi, braised fennel, and truffle vinaigrette. She thought it was a great first course. The gnocchi were a little different than what she is typically used to in that they were longer pieces, but they weren’t too heavy and you could definitely taste the truffle oil.

For our main course, I ordered the seven hour braised leg of suckling pig. I haven’t had suckling pig since my 30th birthday at Komi, and while the grilled barrel-cut rib-eye caught my eye, I simply could not do a trifecta of beef in one sitting (… or could I?).

Back on topic, the pork was accompanied with cheddar grits, black-eyed peas, redeye gravy, and peanuts. It slightly reminded me of the Kalula pork we had in Hawaii, except the meat at Ardeo was dry in some areas and not as rich in flavor as its Pacific counterpart. It’s also a shame there that wasn’t any crispy skin included, but again, that’s Komi’s fault for taking this dish to the next level. I probably would have enjoyed Ardeo’s rendition more had Johnny Monis not completely spoiled me with his exquisite preparation.

Rachel’s entrée was the Day Boat Scallops with a butternut puree, spaghetti squash, bacon, and a lobster emulsion.  The scallops were charred nicely on one side, but as our friend Keith mentioned who had also got the same dish, they may have been better if they were seared on both sides. The best part may have been the butternut squash puree as dipping the scallops in it made them taste even better. The spaghetti squash added a nice texture to the dish, but she couldn’t really taste any lobster in the emulsion.

For dessert, each patron received a trio of desserts. The first was a chocolate bonbon stuffed with vanilla ice cream and then dusted with more chocolate, the next was a coffee mousse, and the third was a chocolate-pistachio tart with salted caramel and a milk chocolate glaze. The tart was my personal favorite while Rachel favored the mousse.

Because it’s not New Years Eve without some bubbly, our waiter came by with some complimentary glasses of champagne to close out the meal. While the service was slow at times, I have to tip my hat to the manager. When one of our friends thought her cod was overcooked, the manager sincerely apologized and asked if she would like to order a different entrée. Within minutes, she received a freshly-grilled rib-eye and was very pleased with it. Now that’s excellent customer service.

When we received the bill, gratuity was not included which I felt was a little peculiar. Because we were such a large party, it’s often typical that restaurants include gratuity at a predetermined percentage, but apparently this was not the case for us. No matter, it just made splitting the check a little more time-consuming.

Overall, we had a great New Years Even dinner at Ardeo. Everyone had an enjoyable time and was satisfied with their meal. While restaurants are typically more expensive during the holiday, I felt that $65 was a fair price considering the quality and quantity of food we received throughout the night. I wouldn’t mind going back in the near future just to order from their regular dinner menu let alone their champagne brunch.

I feel like I have been on a burger kick lately, and I’m perfectly okay with that. I might be catching up from all my years of burger deprivation, and have been trying to go to all of the great places in this city that offer burger specials. Last week I went somewhere that you typically wouldn’t associate with burgers, but then again, you would also be depriving yourself of an awesome burger and an even better deal. The place? None other than Dino in Cleveland Park.

Whenever I’ve thought of Dino, I think Italian food, great Restaurant Week deals, and Passover menus. Now I can add burgers and a great happy hour to the list too. I got there in time for their happy hour and had some complimentary snacks of olives, duck pate, roaster red pepper, and olive tapenade before my friend arrived. I ordered the Raven beer from Baltimore-Washington Beer Works for only $4, and then we got down to the real reason we were here.

Every night, Dino offers their “Burger and a Brew” deal. That’s right, you can order a pint from their selection of craft beers and a 10-ounce farm-aged beef burger with an accompanying mixed greens salad, all for $12.

My burger came prepared medium, and was incredibly juicy and flavorful. It was topped with house pickle relish, anchovy and sriracha aioli, crucolo cheese, and piled on a ciabatta bun. Livya ordered hers with bacon and remarked that it brought the burger to another level. It was a very thick cut of meat, and Brett was greeted that night with both of our leftovers so he got to try his share as well.

While we were eating our burgers, I was definitely eying some other dishes brought to customers at the bar. It’s been years since we’ve been back to Dino for a proper meal, and we’ll definitely have to go back for a nice dinner or brunch. I must say though, it will be hard to resist that burger. If you’re in the neighborhood and have a hankering for a burger and a beer, not only is it a steal, but it’s simply delicious.

I used to live in Cleveland Park (and in Van Ness prior to that), so I became very familiar with that particular stretch of Connecticut Avenue. Being that there is so much at our doorstep in Bethesda, I don’t go back to my old neighborhood as often as I would like. Given the recent resurgence of new establishments opening in Cleveland Park, it’s nice to see the area continue to change and develop.

Just last week, we were able to attend an event at Weygandt Wines to celebrate International Champagne Day. It’s hard to imagine that the same spot used to belong to a Blockbuster Video, and right next door is the expanded Palena where I used to do my daily shopping at MacGruder’s. There are still the old standbys like California Tortilla and Indique, but we’ve definitely been eying Medium Rare and still need to make a trip to Ripple as well as the renovated Ardeo/Bardeo.

Anyway, back to the wines. We will fully admit that we are not winos and cannot claim too much expertise in that department. We do, however, enjoy trying new varieties and going to tastings at vineyards, but when it comes to choosing the right bottle at a restaurant to pair with a dish, consider us clueless… which is where the folks at Weygandt Wines come in.

If I still lived in the neighborhood, I could see it being my go-to store for choosing the perfect wine. The store itself is a showcase for Peter Weygandt’s wine selections as an importer from wines all over the world. The store’s partner and manager is Tim O’Rourke, a former chef who hails from restaurants such as Cafe Atlántico, Michel Richard Citronelle, and Tosca. Along the way, he fell in love with fine wine and came to the store with the idea of a place to showcase wine and discuss food.

The space may seem a little intimidating at first, but the staff is very warm and helpful, and if you are looking for something within a particular budget, they can steer you in that direction. There is even a showcase in the front of quality wines for $15 or less.

On this particular night, we were able to sample several varieties of champagne along with several red wines. They were all wonderful, but we have to say our favorite was the champagne from Nicolas Maillart. We even had some small bites to try courtesy of Ripple, and I was definitely drawn to their chicken liver and apple butter crostini.

In addition to providing helpful guidance on wine selections, they also hold regular tastings on Saturdays as well as other events. If you visit their website, there’s a handy guide of corkage fees in the DC area.

While we have written about Palena Café in the past, I felt that it deserved another post since this was the first time the two of us have dined there in years.

Earlier that evening, we participated at a fantastic wine tasting at nearby Weygandt Wines in recognition of International Champagne Day (post forthcoming). After meeting fellow bloggers and sipping on several varieties of champagne, we decided Palena Café would be an optimal destination for dinner given the convenient location as well as the reasonable prices.

Knowing that it was Friday night and all, we were prepared for a bit of a wait. There were plenty of seats at the bar, and much to my delight, Founders Breakfast Stout was on tap! If there’s a beer that can help pass the time, especially on a cold and blustery evening, it’s a glass of this brew.

We were seated at our table 20 minutes later, but deciding what to order took less than 60 seconds. The two of us had already agreed that one would order the cheeseburger while the other would get the Palena chicken. These are essentially the requisite dishes when dining at Palena, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

While an order of bread is a nominal fee, we ordered it anyway since the chicken takes at least 30 minutes to prepare, plus we were starving. But let me tell you, the chicken is worth the wait, but more on that later.

I first have to discuss Palena’s magnificent burger: it is one of the very best you will find in DC, period.  Seven ounces of angus beef cooked medium-rare, a slice of Sottocenere al Tartufo cheese, and house mayonnaise all sandwiched by a housemade brioche bun. Simple yet effective. The burger-centric blog Burger Days does a better job of summarizing Palena’s burger than I ever will, but for $12, this patty is well worth it. All of the ingredients work so incredibly well with one another that it’s one of those burgers you just can’t put down. Highly recommended.

As for the chicken, I’m in total agreement with Rachel about it being flawlessly cooked. People tend to think that chicken dishes are typically boring, but Chef Ruta works wonders in the kitchen by delivering a chicken that is juicy and flavorful. Featuring a delightfully crispy skin and accompanied with a side of lemon-braised greens, it’s a great value for $17.

After polishing up both of our entrees, the waitress handed us the dessert menu, and after looking over the ingredients of the Autumn Sundae, it proved too difficult to resist. Featuring squash sorbet, apple ice cream, pumpkin seeds, and bourbon caramel sauce, the dessert encapsulated the fall season on one plate. All we needed was some fall foliage instead of the cars driving by on Connecticut Avenue, but regardless, it was a phenomenal dessert.

Friday night’s dinner was perfect in every way. From the chicken to the burger to the seasonally-apt dessert to even the beer on-tap, everything was just excellent. How Rachel and I have not been to Palena more often is bewildering, but after tasting that burger, I think monthly visits are mandatory.

After years of vacancy at the former McDonald’s space, Tackle Box finally opened its doors yesterday. Between this and Medium Rare, new life has been injected into the Cleveland Park dining scene.

We had the opportunity to check out the restaurant’s newest location (the original is located in Georgetown, right next to sister venue Hook) for a friends and family event. Tackle Box offered a stripped-down version of their regular menu, at no cost, from 4pm to close. Talk about spreading goodwill to the neighborhood!

If you are not already familiar with Tackle Box, they are a casual seafood eatery that offers selections of grilled and fried fish, oysters, lobster rolls, clam chowder, and much more. The Cleveland Park location, however, is not only two stories, but also features an expanded menu.

The space sets the tone of a lobster shack, complete with buoys lining the walls while American flags are adorned in several corners of the restaurant. As their website proclaims – “We like summer vacation at the beach. That’s why we decided to open a lobster shack in the middle of the city for those days we couldn’t make the drive.”

Once we stepped inside, we felt like we were transported to the shore as the place was packed with communal picnic tables along with servers who looked like they were no older than 20 years old. Not that you’ll be looking for elite service with this type of venue as orders are brought out by number with servers hunting you down with plastic trays with meals prepared in paper plates/platters.

The huge bar that runs down nearly the entire length of the bottom floor looks like a great gathering place after work. The best part? They offer Natty Boh on tap!

Rachel and I split a half dozen raw oysters prepared at the raw bar by the front of the house. Accompanied with cocktail sauce and vinegar, these were some surprisingly large oysters. They were freshly shucked, very clean, and nicely presented in a wooden bowl (orders of dozen came out on a steel tray).

As for our entrees, we both ordered the Maine Meal which comes with a choice of fish, two sides, and a sauce. I ordered the grilled tilapia with lemon-garlic aioli, grilled broccoli, and mashed potatoes while Rachel got the grilled cod with a grilled portabella mushroom and corn on the cob.

Rachel originally wanted to order the whole steamed lobster, but alas, it was 86’ed by the time she stepped up to the counter. The fact that they included this on the complimentary menu spoke volumes on their effort to appease new customers though.

Anyway, I enjoyed the tilapia. It was nothing fancy, but for $7 a la carte (the Maine Meal is normally $14.50), one shouldn’t need to complain. While it was a tad salty, it was a decent piece of fish. When my platter arrived, I received a generous portion of grilled broccoli but my mashed potatoes were nowhere to be found. After informing the waiter, he told me that they had run out. Minutes later, he delivered a fresh batch of French fries! Nice gesture (and really good fries, to boot).

Rachel’s cod was excellently grilled and had great flavor to it, especially when dipped into the lemon-garlic aioli sauce. The corn was a little cold by the time she had bit into it, but it still had a nice char to it, if not a tad too buttery. The star of the show had to have been the mushroom, which she thought was huge, until she saw a fellow diner’s even larger mushroom. She said that alone could be an entree, and was a great deal as a side.

We also split a brownie sundae which arrived with two scoops of vanilla ice cream. It was a great way to end the meal as the homemade brownie was soft and delicious while the ice cream, which was nearly melted by the time we got around to eating it, was still very rich in flavor.

We can see Tackle Box being very successful in Cleveland Park given the location, expansive menu, and huge dining space. It’s been a long time coming for that long-vacant space, and we can’t think of a better restaurant to fill the void than Tackle Box.

Tackle Box is located on 3407 Connecticut Avenue in the Cleveland Park neighborhood of DC.

It’s amazing that after living in Cleveland Park and routinely walking by Palena for several years, I’ve only been to the Cafe once, and that was about four years ago. I remember the food being excellent back then, particularly a delicate pasta dish I ate, but it was the famous roasted chicken and burger that I had always heard about. It was definitely on our list to return to, especially now that they expanded into the old Magruder’s space.

My friend Livya and I decided to try our luck and head to the Cafe for dinner on a Tuesday night. When we walked in, it was almost a shock to see that the old neighborhood grocery store space has been completely transformed into a dining room with an open kitchen in the rear. The front entrance is closed off for now, and the plan is to open a market there soon.

Since they do not take reservations, we hoped it would not be too much of a wait. Fortunately it wasn’t (that is once the hostess finally paid attention to us and remembered to get us a table). I have to admit, after reading some Yelp reviews I was prepared for the food to be excellent and for the service to be spotty at best. Unfortunately, many of them were right.

Once we did sit down, with only drink menus presented, our waiter finally came over with dinner menus and asked for our beverage order. We decided to each try a different cocktail, and I ordered the Stormy Monday. It comprised of El Dorado spiced rum, Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur, fresh lime, and Prosecco float. It was very refreshing and tasted like a refined margarita martini. It definitely hit the spot after a long day at the office.

After some debating, and a long absence from our waiter, I decided I had to try the famous roasted chicken, and added roasted sweet potatoes as a side. Livya ordered the burger, fries, and the Cafe Salad. Given that the Palena Cheese Burger was ranked among Food and Wine Magazine’s Best Burgers in the U.S., she couldn’t really go wrong.

Now I had been told that the roasted chicken takes at least 30 to 45 minutes to prepare, but it felt even longer because we were sitting for quite awhile before we actually ordered. By the time our dishes finally arrived, we were starving. But I have to admit, it was well worth the wait.

I had never seen nor ate a more flawlessly cooked chicken, with crispy skin on the outside and perfect tenderness inside. Maybe it was the presentation, but this chicken was more refined and meant to be savored. At $16, this entree was a steal for basically half a bird with lemon braised greens. The entire dish had a lemon aroma to it and it was very comforting. The sweet potatoes were a nice complement, but didn’t stand out in their own right.

I was able to try some of the burger too, and I will definitely have to order that the next time I go. The meat was incredibly juicy, if not a little rare, and went perfectly with the buttered toasted bun and truffle cheese.

Of course, we had to get dessert, and we opted for the Spring Ahead Sundae. This shows how often some of the menu changes, since daylight savings was just this past weekend. It was a nice twist on a carrot cake sundae, with a scoop of carrot ice cream, one scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt, and then topped with shaved carrot ribbons, raisins, and nuts. It essentially tasted like carrot cake and proved to be light and refreshing.

All in all, we loved the food, and would definitely come back to sample something different. Brett happily ate my chicken leftovers at home since that dish is definitely meant for two people. I’m not sure if the service was just off that night, or if it’s to be expected. Considering we were there for three hours, it seemed a bit excessive at the time. This isn’t the Inn at Little Washington now!

Palena Cafe is located on 3529 Connecticut Ave in the Cleveland Park neighborhood of Washington, DC.

While the two of us like to cook during the week, we were in the mood for takeout one night and, after some deliberation, reached a quick, easy decision: Vace.

The Italian store and pizzeria has proven time and time again that they serve up some of the best pies in the Washington area.

That’s not to say that their pizza is flat-out amazing, but coming from a couple originally from New Jersey and New York (albeit upstate, but I digress) and having been to other pizza parlors in Bethesda, Vace’s pizza is fantastic.

Located on Miller Avenue, tucked between Wisconsin and Woodmont Avenue, the store is not the easiest to find.  And after walking in, you certainly would not expect that they would be known for their pizza after glancing at the walls of Italian products and homemade frozen pasta.

Unlike most pizzerias, Vace employs a unique style where the sauce is placed on top of the cheese rather than below it. But don’t let that deter you from ordering – the result is still the same: delicious.

With large pies (measuring at 16 inches) starting at a very reasonable $9.50 (toppings are $1.10 each), Vace is a convenient, affordable option for carryout. Just make sure to call at least thirty minutes ahead, especially during the week, as they get bombarded with orders during dinner hours.

As for toppings, we decided to get half pepperoni and half spinach. Should you ever eat from Vace, make sure to order the pepperoni. There’s just something about it that sets it apart from the competition. That’s not to say the fresh spinach wasn’t a great addition as well. Matter of fact, I don’t think you can go wrong with any of their toppings. But yeah, pepperoni: a must!

Vace is located at 4705 Miller Ave in downtown Bethesda. For carryout orders, call (301) 654-6367.

They also have another location at 3315 Connecticut Ave NW, in the Cleveland Park neighborhood of Washington, DC. For carryout orders, call (202) 363-1999.