Oy, Oy, Oyamel

What happens when one of your favorite chefs, whose restaurants you’ve greatly enjoyed in the past, becomes more and more successful?  And by successful I mean keeps opening restaurants all over the damn place.

Well, I guess on the one hand you can be happy for that chef’s success and be excited to try all of those restaurants.  I mean, there is a chef or two here in New York who have gone on to fame and fortune and I’m pretty happy to be eating in most, if not all, of their establishments.

But what about the other side of the coin, where as your favorite chef opens a new restaurant, one or more of the previously opened ones turns out to be not so good?

Okay, the chef I’m referring to is José Andrés.  You probably know José; a great cook  whose food I've always admired, wildly popular, got a bunch of TV shows, Spain’s greatest ambassador, etc., etc. He has that great accent.  He’s a partner (in Think Food Group) and ostensibly the Big Kahuna Chef of close to a dozen restaurants. He made his bones working in some of Spain’s top kitchens, including that of Ferran Adrià, of…well, you know…that Ferran Adrià.  And then when he embarked to the United States, rather than heading for New York City and all of it’s potential fame and glory, he headed for Washington, D. C. - and whatever it is you go there for.

In José's case, it was to open restaurants.  Jaleo, Café Atlantico, Zaytinya - all good, if not great restaurants, as a matter of fact.  Highly touted restaurants, which gave him and his partners the ability to open more restaurants. These were and are fun, happening places with good food, good times and fairly gentle prices. Then there were more – Oyamel, another location or two of Jaleo, minibar by José Andrés, a restaurant or two in Vegas, one or two in Los Angeles – you get the picture.

Just last weekend, I was excited to try a restaurant of Jose’s that has been open for a while now – Oyamel, in D. C.  Even though I’d be warned off by a friend who knows his food, I was curious ( said friend said it sucked, btw).  But it’s José's place, after all, so off we went. 

Now, to say I was put off a little by being seated in the bar area, even though I had made a reservation weeks earlier, would be putting it mildly.  My mood was made (slightly) worse when my protestations fell of deaf ears, as we were told by one of the 3 or 4 hostetts that it would be another hour’s wait to sit somewhere else (like perhaps in the restaurant), and that they didn’t consider our table to be in the bar area, even though, ummm, it was in the fucking bar area.

I don’t know about you, but sitting in the bar area of a popular restaurant on a Friday night isn’t my idea of fun. Because sooner or later someone’s ass is gonna be about an inch from my guacamole, and at $13.50 an order, I prefer my guac sans ass, especially when it’s the ass of some tourist douche from Iowa.

Be that as it may, I guess all would have been forgiven if the food knocked me out; that way I could prove my friend wrong, which is always fun.  It didn’t…as a matter of fact, other than a really nice fresh hearts of palm and avocado salad, nothing was that exciting - not even the ass guac (okay, the chips and salsa were fine). 

Then it struck me; my last meal at Zaytinya, a place I’ve blogged and raved about in the past, wasn’t that great either.  I mean, sure, it was ok and all, but it lacked a certain zing that I recalled from previous meals. These were both meals, that once were finished and we walked outside, I said to Significant Eater: “We don’t have to go there again!”

So perhaps there are two lessons to be learned. One is for José and that is - don’t forget about all your other restaurants when you’re running around the world opening new ones and flogging yourself on TV.  And the second is for me and that is, listen to (some of) your knowledgeable food friends – they (sometimes) know of what they speak.

Preparing For A Hurricane (Irene) After An Earthquake (?)

I feel bad. Bad for the earthquake that was epicentered in god-knows-where Virginia this past week. Up here on the 15^th floor in lower Manhattan, things were shaking pretty good.  And after my cat and I were done looking at each other for a good 10 seconds and thinking what the heck is going on, I realized it was a friggin’ earthquake.  That comes from 18 years of living in California, and experiencing my share of earthquakes – trust me - there isn’t anything that feels quite like a big earthquake.

So why do I feel bad?  Well, as anyone who lives on the east coast, or anyone that has CNN knows, Hurricane Irene is heading our way. Therefore, everyone has already forgotten about the damn quake. And  hurricanes get named; earthquakes don’t.  They’re just called, for instance, the Great San Francisco earthquake of 1906. Or the Loma Prieta quake; you remember that one - it stopped a World Series game in progress - back in 1989. That was also the biggest one I’d ever been in, and it was quite a shaker. 

Now all we’ve been hearing, at least since the god-knows-where Virginia quake came and went, is Irene. Irene this and Irene that. How we need to be prepared. How we need to have potable water. How we need to have a “Go Kit.” Okay, already, I get it.

We have our water (do hurricanes make you thirsty?). Our bathtub is filled to the brim.  Enough batteries to drive a small car. Check. Candles – you bet. It’s like all Hanukkah all the time around here. The Festival of Lights –  no kidding.  Ice – geez - any bruises we might get will be iced down very quickly. Significant Eater and I have enough canned goods to survive a major shutdown of the whole city.  Canned beans. Canned pork. Canned pork and beans. Although as anyone who lives here can tell you, there is always a bodega open somewhere close by; nothing stops those guys. 

Oh -  there’s one other thing I always have enough of. Booze. But just to be on the safe side, and because I was in DC this week and happened to stop by one of the greatest liquor stores in the world, Ace Beverages, I picked up some new stuff…

There's the Bulleit (95) Rye, next to a nice bottle of Cocchi Vermouth di Torino, a sweet vermouth first produced in 1891, along with a few items I always have on hand - Adam Elmegirab’s Boker’s bitters, real Maraschino cherries and some other assorted odds and ends.  The Bulleit Rye is a fairly new product, released in March of this year, and has been reviewed all over the web.  At 90 proof and 95% rye, what could be bad?   The vermouth, also released this year for the 120th anniversary of the company's founding, may well give everyone’s favorite vermouth, Carpano Antica Formula, a run for the money.

And last night, getting very ready for the next natural disaster, I mixed up a couple of classic Manhattans for Sig Eater and me...

After a few of these, there's only one thing to say...Bring it, Irene.

Tender at the Rib - Exploring BBQ Around DC

With a year and a half of traveling to DC on a fairly regular basis now under my belt, I still don't really have an opinion on what's the best barbecue anywhere in the area. So much of what I've tried is pretty bad; bad enough where I have no remembrance of the names. There was some place up on 14th St NW that sucked. Badly. It had the appearance that it might be good - big stack of logs in the front window. Inside, just a bullet-proof glass window where you ordered and picked up...like at a bank or a post office. To no avail. There's Hogs on the Hill. Which may have been good on one of my visits, but was really not on my next time back. And a few others. But then there was this, which I stumbled upon one afternoon while taking a drive with a friend to have lunch...

Remember, we were going to lunch, so we didn't stop. We stopped on the way back instead. To greet this guy, who was manning the smokers...

And selling his wares out of this portable unit...

It's The Tender Rib, which is evidently parked right smack dab in the middle of this parking lot, in the middle of nowhere, somewhere out near RFK Stadium, on Thursday and Saturday afternoons. Actually, it's on Benning Road NE, if that helps. They fortunately have a website to go along with their bricks and mortar operation, since we'd just had lunch and didn't order anything. But he ran over to our car and insisted we try at least a taste of his ribs...

So how were they? Simply, the best ribs I've tried in the area. And actually, maybe as good as any others I've tried. Pink ring, nice and smoky, Tender, juicy with just the right amount of chew. A rub that's not overpowering but complimentary to the flavor of the pork. There wasn't any sauce on these samples; they didn't need any. I can't wait to try out all their barbecue and a trip to the restaurant is in our immediate future...

Interestingly enough, there's another guy who operates his smoker in a parking lot and out of an old bus parked off of Rhode Island Avenue. In a Safeway parking lot. It's called Mr. P's Ribs and Fish. Supposed to be good. Last time I stopped there, Mr. P was closed. And I can't forget, of course, about the big news; Hill Country BBQ has opened a huge (300 seats) restaurant in DC, two weeks ago in the Penn Quarter neighborhood. Currently, it has a lot of people confused; about the quality, about the ordering and about the whole ticket shebang, which works sort of like Katz's, so here's a tip...if it works for Katz's, it works. I'm going to let it settle in before Significant Eater and I head over there for what I hope is some damned good brisket.

Finally, on my drive down to DC this past Wednesday, I made a stop at Red, Hot and Blue Barbecue, which is just outside of Annapolis, and an easy hop-off, hop-on from Route 50, from which it's quite visible. I've heard about them for a long time (there are 3 Maryland locations and it's a franchise - who knew?!) and figured I'd bring home a sack full of stuff so SE and I could eat 'cue and watch the finale of Top Chef. I brought home a sampler of ribs, brisket and sausage.

And you know what? The Top Chef finale was so much better than our dinner, it wasn't even close.

It's All Happening...At the Zoo

With apologies to Simon & Garfunkel, of course.

Since it was my birthday and I'm spending the week in D.C. with Significant Eater (it was also our anniversary), I decided to treat myself to some pho. This pho was from a joint in a strip mall called Pho 88, out in Beltsville, Maryland, and it was damn good. That raw beef next to the bowl cooks up just right in the steaming broth, and it's served with half a lime, bean sprouts, herbs and chilis, all to be added as the diner prefers...

I like to do a little reflection on my birthday (why? I dunno)...you know, go to a museum, wander around, take pictures, whatever. Washington, D.C. is a pretty amazing city for that - it's OUR city, and by our, I mean all Americans. Many of the museums are free; they're the ones that are part of the Smithsonian. (Hey, even the Cooper Hewitt in NYC is a Smithsonian Museum...but it's not free...what are you kidding me?)

In my opinion, one of the great "museums" the Smithsonian has to offer is the National Zoo. It's in a beautiful setting, it's within a mile of our DC abode, and it has giant pandas...and who doesn't love a giant panda? It was cold yesterday, but I figured pandas love the cold; after all, they have all that fur. Upon arrival, the first sign of giant pandas appears:

Okay. Walking a little further on, there's this...

Located within...

So, you know, there's gotta be giant pandas somewhere. Getting closer, I spot...

And...

As well as...

Now, I figured if there's one of those souvenier penny thingies, there has to be a giant panda around, right? Starting to panic, I thought I spotted one in a tree...

Till I finally realized we have those wandering all around NYC. Then, I saw this...

Which appeared to be laughing at me. As if he/she knew that I was wandering aimlessly in search of something which I wasn't going to find. On my birthday, no less. But, as they say (I told you I like to reflect on my birthday), seek and ye shall find. And finally, there he was...

In all his, ummm, giant panda glory. Whew. He was rolling around, enjoying his stash of bamboo and I spent a good 15 minutes with him, practically alone in the zoo on a frigid February day. Not bad. But guess what? The giant panda wasn't my only "prey" on this day...no...the zoo also had some new arrivals last year and I wanted to see how they were doing...

But it wasn't in the cards...too cold for the cubbies. They're not the only great cats, of course...

And that one was prowling around...

It was getting close to closing time, and I had one more stop to make, to see one of the zoo's great families...

That's Mandara, with her two year old baby Kibibi...

And finally, this gal, who really is a charmer...

Lucy is almost 40 years old - not quite as old as me, but a treat on my birthday nonetheless.

I Vote...for The Gibson and the Old Pal

We finally got to try out The Gibson last night, and we weren't disappointed. I'd been wanting to go since we first started our excellent DC adventure, but you know, sometimes things just don't work out the way you plan. However, it was worth the wait.

Friendly and knowledgeable bartenders are always a plus, and the new fall menu had just been released. Wanting something a bit bitter (who, me?), I opened with a Rabbit Hole, comprised of Ramazotti, Campari, Creme de Cassis (Clear Creek, iirc), lemon juice and a flamed orange peel for garnish. Eminently likable, especially if you like your drinks a bit less "boozy."

Significant Eater began her evening with a Kentucky Racer (ahhh, those Albuquerque gals), a nice Manhattanish spin made with Old Overholt, Punt e Mes, Kubler Absinthe, Allspice Dram and Peychaud's to finish. Here's a picture, and remember, it's in a bar and it's a brand new camera...

After round one, we moved into heavier booziness, as I drank a well-made Old Pal, and Sig Eater went with a perfect Manhattan. The Old Pal, another Manhattan-style cocktail but much more bitter, is one of my favorite drinks. If I could recall the 5th drink, which we "shared," I'd tell you it was as good as the first 4.

They also have started serving some light food from a kitchen upstairs - in just the past week or so. We didn't eat, though the menu looked good, and after we ended up with lousy burgers at the Black Squirrel in Adams Morgan, I wish we had partaken. Oh well, we liked The Gibson enough that we're sure to return. Especially when the bartenders are as great as this one...

As for the Old Pal, there appear to be a few different ideas on how to make this cocktail. In The Savoy Cocktail Book, a classic if ever there was one, Harry Craddock called for equal parts of Canadian whisky, French vermouth and Campari. Harry, of course, is the man credited with saying, when asked what the best way to drink a cocktail was, "Quickly, while it's laughing at you." So he's got that going for him. Some other weird website had the vermouth as sweet; that's wrong and that's more likely a Boulevardier cocktail. Or call it a 1794 - a drink I first had at Rye in San Francisco. Confusing, isn't it? Well, no one said cocktails were an exact science, and as long as it tastes good to you, who's complaining?

The Gibson
2009 14th St. NW
Washington, DC
(202) 232-2156

Old Pal
1.5 oz. rye
3/4 oz. Campari
3/4 oz. dry vermouth

Stir with ice. Stir more. Stir again. Garnish with a lemon peel.

What I Did On My Summer Vacation - DC Style

Well, let's just start by saying it really wasn't a summer vacation. But I have spent the last two weeks (thanks to some seriously excellent neighbor friends) away from NYC, hanging with Significant Eater in DC. You see, we had a bit of a flood from a 60's era central air conditioning unit in our bedroom, and it leaked all over our floor. So, some of my vacation was spent dealing with the removal of the old floor and installation of a nice, new one. All is good and who said vacations can't be productive?

Of course, being in DC affords me the opportunity to try some new restaurants, drink a few cocktails made by bartenders whose acquaintance I haven't already made, return to places that I've already been to and liked and sometimes do all of the above.

For instance, the other night Significant Eater and I had a very fine meal at the infant Estadio, the 2nd restaurant from the owner and team at Proof, a well-liked restaurant right near the Verizon Center arena. Here's what the rather charming Estadio looks like from the street...

Arriving early, we were able to grab seats at the bar without any problem at all. When we left, there was a mad scrum for those same seats. A few nights later, a friend and I didn't get there till 8 and it took a much more concerted effort for us to find 2 empty bar stools...but we did.

One of Estadio's high points is that its bar program is run by Adam Bernbach, a well-known DC mixologist who also runs the show at Proof. When Sig Eater and I showed up on that wickedly hot DC eve, Adam offered me a slushito, a semi-frozen cocktail dispensed from one of two machines churning away at the end of the bar...

The one I tried had gin and Campari in it, and if any of your friends have trouble with Campari, the slushito will melt those troubles away. The Reir - a Rickey style tall drink comprised of bourbon and salt-cured orange soda also is a drink to be reckoned with...at first sip strangely medicinal and then finishing all bright and thirst-quenching. The Bamboo, a cocktail of sherry, dry vermouth and bitters (iirc), makes me think that we'll see more high-end cocktail places using wonderful sherries- Death & Co. has been making drinks with sherries for a while, and it's a good trend.

Food wise, everything we ate was pretty damn good. Pintxos of artichoke, boquerone, manchego and bread were delicious; the only thing that could possibly make them better would be if they were slightly smaller so that all of the flavors could be enjoyed in one bite as they are in the chorizo/manchego/quince pintxo. Squid a la plancha was tender and juicy. Jamon croquettes, perfectly fried, come four to an order, so no fighting over the dreaded "extra" one. Patatas bravas were textbook and make me forget all about french fries, since french fries are so often horrid. Roasted mushrooms is a dish that I'm trying to perfect at home; they won't be this good, but I'll keep trying.

A few nights later and whaddya know - that artichoke pintxo was perfectly bite sized, and most everything we ate was executed well. My co-eater Danny wrote about it on a DC food board, as a matter of fact.

One of the cooler things about DC that we don't see much of in NYC is the happy hour. I'm not talking about the happy hour at dive bars, but at places where the food is actually the draw, not the tubs of crappy beer. So we were happy to get back to Johnny's Half Shell, a seafood palace on "The Hill" that has a weeknight happy hour from 4:30 - 7:30. You can't go wrong with the fried oysters, clam chowder or grilled squid...but be careful with the martinis, which clock in at about 8 ounces.

Since Johnny's is co-owned by Ann Cashion, one of DC's first chefs to win national acclaim, SE and I decided to finally try Cashion's Eat Place, which she opened many years ago in Adams Morgan. She hasn't been involved with the restaurant since '07, but it still honors her tradition, as the web site says. Our starters slash appetizers were great, including maybe the best gazpacho we've ever had (umm, except mine?), though the one main we ordered was less than spectacular.

Two Amy's Pizza, which DC pizza lovers rave about, was good on our first visit and less good on my second...DOC notwithstanding. Pete's New Haven Apizza, now a mini-chain, was less good on my first visit and I haven't been back...yet. Pizza Paradiso, P Street location, basically blows, but has a great beer list. Spike's new pizza joint I haven't yet tried, but if it's as bad as his burger joint, then I'm glad I haven't been. So here's a tip - don't go out for pizza expecting anything good - maybe you'll get lucky. After all, pizza is easy, but maybe not as easy as everyone thinks.

P Street is also the home of Pesce, a restaurant that I've eaten at a few times, and which was opened by the late, great Jean-Louis Palladin along with a partner, Roberto Donna almost 20 years ago. It's still run by Jean-Louis' widow Regine, and she's there most every night. Guess what? They do a happy hour - 5 for $5 - a selection of 5 different appetizers along with 5 different wines, each priced gently at $5. How can you go wrong? My calamari was textbook, and the brandade stuffed piquillo peppers with ink sauce, though not a happy hour dish, were delicious...

The one misfire at Pesce was the shrimp with hummus, neither element really being complimented by the other. Why screw up shrimp with hummus? Why screw up hummus with shrimp? Anyway, the welcome is genuine, avoid the shrimp with hummus, and you'll be fine.

On 18th Street in Adams Morgan, Amsterdam Falafel makes Significant Eater and me happy. Good, fried-to-order falafel balls and an amazing array of do-it-yourself condiments, satisfy the urge for not-too-bad-for-you junk food. Here's part of the condiment bar...

Bourbon, our go-to bar on 18th Street, satisfies the urge for...bourbon. You'll lose count if you try to count bourbons, especially after indulging in one of their excellent Manhattan's (make mine rye, please). The Diner (yes, it's called The Diner) is okay, open 24/7, and has $3 good beers some nights, while its sibling Tryst, the coffee/cocktail joint next door is fine for a shot of espresso or a hit of wi-fi...just be sure to wear your ironic hat.

There are times, though, when all that DC politics, heat and humidity needs to be put on the back burner, as it were. And SE and I are very fortunate to have some wonderful friends in the Annapolis area. We had dinner one night at Cantler's, which may be easier to get to by boat. There, the crab cakes are good, the salads are surprisingly good, and the atmosphere is Chesapeake Bay crab house perfect. The next night, Tom's house-smoked baby backs were a hit, along with fresh corn on the cob (Jersey has nothing on Maryland corn, by the way). And for a city boy, a day on the bay ain't bad either.


Amsterdam Falafel - 2425 18th St. NW, DC

Bourbon - 2321 18th St. NW, DC

Cantler's - 458 Forest Beach Road, Annapolis, MD

Cashion's Eat Place - 1819 Columbia Rd. NW, DC

The Diner/Tryst - 2453 18th St. NW, DC

Estadio - 1520 14th St. NW, DC

Johnny's Half Shell - 400 N. Capitol St. NW, DC

Pesce - 2002 P St. NW, DC

Pete's - 1400 Irving St. NW, DC and 4940 Wisconsin Ave. NW, DC

Pizza Paradiso - 2003 P St. NW, DC (2 other locations)

Two Amy's - 3715 Macomb St. NW, DC

Weekend in DC

Now that we're settled into our DC apartment part of the time, it's fun to spend time down there on weekends every now and then. 'Stead of in the city - you know - New York City. Significant Eater and I always love weekends during the summer in the city - well, except for the parts that I can't stand, like the heat, humidity and smell. But it's a fact that when a lot of New Yorkers leave town for the weekend in the summer, if you avoid the tourist and other generally annoying areas, the city takes on a different feel - more relaxed, slower - a fun time to be together.

Why I explained that I don't know, but this past weekend was a DC one - and as far as our stomachs were concerned, we had some really great food, some mediocre food and cocktails, and some decent street food to go along with it all.

First lemme show you some gratuitous views from our roof-deck. SE gets caffeined up on the roof every morning. Here's the...well, if you don't know what this is, you might want to get that checked...

And here's the Washington National Cathedral...

with some big building in the foreground whose name escapes me.

Oh, we were taken to a secret spot by Miami Danny (now a Washingtonian, even though he still wears flip-flops, in a freakin' city)- well, secret that is, except for the busload of tourists that had pulled up. Here are MD, SE and guess who? I won't tell you who it is or where it is because I don't remember, but maybe you can look it up.

Bar Pilar was where SE and I started on Friday night - and is there really no host or hostess, as we were told? The second time I approached the server who had told me that, she basically ran away from me without saying anything. Ran. Ask SE. Nice.

Anyway, after about 15 minutes, using high-quality hovering skills honed over years in bars, we were able to snag two seats at the bar. Nice enough. Bar Pilar was once, I seem to recall, noted for it's cocktail program back when a certain bartender was behind the stick. No more, I guess. Asked for a Manhattan and an Aviation. Tender asked me what goes in an aviation? Switched to 2 Manhattans. Free-poured and shaken and too much rye (not necessarily a bad thing?). I guess the bar program has taken a plunge (or all the bartenders were in NYC at the MCC).

The food came soon enough. The roasted mushrooms were okay, frisee salad too (though the egg was overcooked). A lamb dog, a good idea in theory, was bland with zero snap, even after setting the superfluous giant hot dog bun aside. Mustard was great (wow), but who the hell serves minced raw shallots as an accompaniment to anything except maybe in a mignonette sauce or their mise en place?

Pork shoulder, served on grilled bread (?), was not good. The best dish of the night, and last to be served, was the fried chicken. Nicely crisp and somewhat juicy, served with a really good potato salad and a couple of pickle slices that were properly crunchy...and here's a tip: serve those sides with the pork, too. No need to return, I guess, but with the crowd they have, what do they care?

Walking around the neighborhood on Saturday afternoon, stumbled upon the Latino mercado which sets up in Adams Morgan on Columbia Road. I say stumbled though it has been there for years, according to M. Danny. Puerto Rico was in the house, as were Mexico and Argentina Avoid the commercial - style stuff; we had a good empanada, and great tacos from a mom and pop; lengua abounds.

That night - a return trip to Zaytinya. I had the pleasure of ordering for our group (my old friends trust me), and while I had somewhat mistakenly order a WHOLE LAMB SHOULDER for the 4 of us, there was more than one Significant Eater at the table, and we did good work. The lamb shoulder was amazing, black and crusty, fatty and juicy, salty and peppery - just perfect. I can't really compare Zaytinya having no in-depth knowledge of the DC restaurant scene, but it could easily become a favorite down there (Birch & Barley, though much different, has been good twice too).

The next day was reserved for one of my least favorite things to do....that is, after grocery shopping at Whole Foods on a Saturday, at prime time. Being out in a large crowd, with everyone lined up to get food. For tickets. But we ended up at a Taste of Arlington, a mass of humanity best left for those, shall we say, less cranky that I am. We did have a couple of nice bites, including some bratwurst and short ribs from this crew, but...

we missed this, being cooked by a couple of chefs from a Jaleo outpost...

Sadly for us, this paella was about an hour away from being anywhere near our stomachs. Never seeing a paella pan this huge in action, I took it as a sign...to teach myself how to make good paella - past attempts have been so-so, and I've bought a nice properly-sized paella pan and...I think I'll save that for a weekend in NYC. It'll give me something to blog about.

What Has DC Got That NYC Doesn't?

You know, as a dyed-in-the-wool, jaded and especially annoying New Yorker - born in Brooklyn, even - there isn't much that impresses me, especially when it comes to restaurants, chefs and food. I mean, we've got it all here, under one roof. Access to the best seafood and produce (try the green market some day if you think I'm kidding), a bajillion restaurants (lots of them good, some great), hot cocktail lounges, awesome kitchenware shops, etc. etc. But there's one thing we don't have, and DC does, which should make a lot of NYers jealous...and that's José Andrés. And as if that wasn't inglorious enough, even LA has him now, or at least has a restaurant of his...and it's a friggin' 4-star.

So, DC, thank your lucky stars...because you've got something that NY doesn't. But now, with Significant Eater and me kinda living in both cities, we've got José too. And the other night, we got Zaytinya...and we got hooked.

First off, we walked out of the metro at the Chinatown station (the metro is basically DC's subway system - but way cuter and cleaner than NYC's could ever hope to be) and there it is. Easy as that. All you drunkards out there - no worries about driving, though if you're getting drunk late, remember the system shuts down around 1 AM. Even though our reservation had changed due to a late cancellation, we were seated immediately, at a great table with a view of the action on the streets as well as inside. See how happy Significant Eater looks, even though her plate is empty as she's anxiously awaiting food delivery.

It was soon to be...first the puffy, hot flat bread, along with this cutesy dish of olive oil and pomegranate molasses. I prefer no cutesy, but wtf, it must impress some people, just not me - remember, jaded New Yorker, etc. etc.

Oh, the cocktails surrounding the olive oil weren't bad - SE had a Greek sidecar (Metaxa, cointreau and maraschino), and mine was something or other that I consumed in like 30 seconds; it was that tasty and I was thirsty, after all.

According to our charming waitress, SE and I should probably order between 4 and 6 dishes to be properly sated. HAH! She had no idea who she was dealing with, and as we quickly ordered 9 items, she nodded approvingly.

The first dish to arrive (everything we ordered was paced properly and in the right order; at no time was our table covered with more dishes than two humans could properly consume) was a revelation. Simply fresh roasted chickpeas. In their pods. Like edamame, but so much more, the pods are first roasted and then drenched in an olive oil/lemon juice and dill bath, which we couldn't get enough of. Messy - yes. Lots of bread dipping - yes. Bread runs out and is refilled - yes. What more can you ask for?

Alongside the chickpeas were served kolokithokeftedes, zucchini and cheese patties in a caper/yogurt sauce...an order of 4, brown and crispy outside, smooth and creamy in. The perfect combo, no?

As we moved on, it became apparent that these guys really know how to cook. Sure it helps if you love the cuisines of Greece and Turkey; lots of yogurt, dill, capers, feta, mint, garlic, etc. - and we do. Though smoked white asparagus with smoked yogurt sauce isn't your everyday Greek fare, and drew a comment from SE as to it's deliciousness...

It's obvious from above - a vegetarian can eat quite nicely at Zaytinya. Sadly, they'd be missing a lot. For instance, the Garides Me Anitho, shrimp sauteed with shallots, dill, lemon juice and mustard almost caused a fight to break out at our table; it was that good. They couldn't have the spiced quail couscous, with little chunks of quail and butternut squash strewn throughout. Nor the lamb ravioli, filled tonight with lamb's tongue and brain, served in a thick tomato sauce, and which might have been our favorite dish of the night.

Might have, had it not been for our final savory course, the spit-roasted lamb (we spotted the lamb roasting as soon as we walked to our seats), encased in a crispy package floating atop it's dill-feta-yogurt sauce without a care in the world...

As dinner came to a close, and we wrestled with the decision as to whether to have dessert or not (3 baskets of bread'll do that to you, but we did have some ice cream/gelato and a small portion of something chocolate-y), SE and I both agreed that we need to return to Zaytinya - soon. Because - there was a lot we didn't get to try.
Because - the price is right...cocktails, a couple glasses of wine and a beer along with all that food was $125.
Because - there are great specials offered at happy hour.
Because - the service is warm, friendly and proper.

And because - there's nothing quite like this in NYC. Thanks for having Jose, DC.

Zaytinya
701 9th St. NW
Washington, DC 20001
202-638-0800