A recent dinner found us tucking into risotto swollen with what tasted like a forest of porcini mushrooms, lamb ragu humming with red wine and rosemary, and pork tenderloin nearly upstaged by its roast potatoes and creamy borlotti beans. tosses pies that reach for perfection (and come close)]. Biscuits are baked every 30 minutes or so, and the side dishes are first-class. No barriers to entry; ADA-compliant restrooms. A: Tom Sietsema I went to more than 80 restaurants to come up with my list of 40. No barriers at the entrance; a lift in the bar allows access to the main dining room. Here are the cities most prepared for climate change | Camille Squires | August 26, 2021 | Quartz For the full Anju experience, you have to try something from the childhood of co-owner Danny Lee, whose mother and business partner, Yesoon Lee, is behind the great comfort of braised chicken thighs, onions and potatoes in a cloak that looks like lava as it bubbles away on the table. Delicious now hop on your Peloton. Even soft-serve ice cream impresses us when its flavored with tahini caramel and delivered in a delicate glass tea cup. Adler stands in front of the visible kitchen, inspecting plates as they go out: some of the best, and most photogenic, pesto-sauced pasta, veal cutlets and shrimp scampi in memory. From bars and taco joints to four star local legends, the FALL DINING GUIDE has a dinner for everyone. Desserts chocolate mousse, floating island, profiteroles run to the classic. Indoor seating only. Go now, and you build your own adventure by ordering two dishes from a roster of some of the most novel food around. 202-742-3570, rosesluxury.com. As before, the smell of smoke from a wood-stoked oven seduces you the moment you step inside the wood-and-brick interior. Hang in there, Pennyroyal Station! Sea bass cooked low and slow with lavender and lime and delivered on steel-cut oats and hedgehog mushrooms is one of those combinations that make you go huh when you read about it and whoa! when you taste it. The menu seems not to have budged much from its opening days, but I like that housemade chocolate bars still come with the bill. Indoor seating only. (The tortillas spring from fresh masa and a hand press.). Mostly seafood, based on crab from Maryland, the model comes with French fries and. Dressed with lemon juice, sumac and turmeric, its the best chopped salad in town. Im a folder, says the owner. [At long last, Albi gets to the heart of Levantine cooking]. Portioned as if leftovers were expected, the entrees come with a choice of two sides, all of which would look at home at a church social. Im most drawn to fish here, although the plump pork chop, brined in baking spices, is mighty impressive. [The Dabney brings depth and technique to Mid-Atlantic cuisine]. A bite of fried bread followed by a taste of daikon sweet followed by savory and decidedly sour wakes up the appetite. No barriers to entry, although the small restroom is too snug to accommodate a wheelchair. (Onion flowers help.). Mac and cheese gets finished with Parmesan breadcrumbs, and the braised greens served with smoked tomatoes sting with the juice of pickled Fresno chiles. The restaurant takes heat requests seriously. Shelves carve the room, whose rear mirrors make it look bigger, into discreet nooks; the cookbooks on display include those from some of the countrys foremost restaurants and chefs. Takeout, no delivery. When hes not minding his ever-expanding culinary empire, Andrs is saving the world. Tom Sietsema 11mo This year's survey of my favorite restaurants, my 22nd annual fall dining guide, is a reflection of how the pandemic has changed me. Kinship is down to serving dinner five nights a week. Chef Matt Hill and his business partner, Todd Salvadore, have worked at some of the areas best restaurants, and theyve incorporated best practices into everything they do at Ruthies, a tribute to the chefs late North Carolina grandmother. From the Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post comes the food critic's essential guide to the D.C. dining scene. Im nervous, he says. Mixing trees and crops can help both farmers and the climate | Jonathan Lambert | July 14, 2021 | Science News investors seeking a one-stop guide to the restaurant business. singles are more interested in a potential someones vaccination status. It doesnt feel challenging enough for some chefs, says Michael Babin. Lunch and dinner daily. A&J offers its menus in Chinese and English, but fear not: The lists are the same, except for the fuller descriptions on the English version. Which it is, despite some trimming of the drinks and wine lists and a format switch. Open for indoor and outdoor dining and takeout. Named for one of the French Quarters best-known streets, the restaurant manages the neat trick of evoking one of the best food cities in the country without going the Disney route. Takeout, no delivery. Meet Andrs-Julian Zuluaga, an alumnus of the school of Fabio Trabocchi. Knowing that Tyler and her colleagues, chef Jon Sybert and wine maven Bill Jensen, are also behind the nearby Tail Up Goat is reason enough to pay respects. Eight courses sound like a lot, but theyre presented so that something light (or lighthearted) might follow something weighty. . The weave of cumin, ginger, fenugreek, coriander and more is warm and wonderful. Indoor seating only. One of the areas best ambassadors for the food of southern India is this retreat, opened nine months into the pandemic by chef John Rajoo, a native of Tamil Nadu, whose capital is Chennai. The cooking, from chef Katarina Petonito, mirrors the setting. For now, their staff of eight is doing its best to accommodate patrons, who are reminded they cant camp out for the evening. Know that the signature steamed mussels still come in a double pot, with a thatch of crisp fries in a newspaper-lined, copper-colored vase. Indoor and outdoor seating. The name pays tribute to the women in restaurateur Peter Changs life, foremost his wife and co-chef, Lisa; and his mother, a former farmer in central China. Jos Andrs brings Spanish comfort food including a lot of eggs to Bethesda. 2,240 followers. Were you to inspect his open kitchen, youd find vegetable scraps being saved for cocktails and lids instead of plastic wrap to cover food. Takeout, no delivery. Youll want to swipe a bite of oh-so-soft lamb through a puree sparked with oregano, parsley, garlic, turmeric and red wine vinegar. Drinks show up quickly. Flat sidewalks lead to the dining areas, and ramps lead to ADA-compliant restrooms. No matter where you settle, youll find a menu framed by what farmers and growers are sending chef Neal Wavra, who co-owns the property with his wife, Star. Tangs food isnt just clever, its worth preserving for posterity. (The crust is based on the one created by the owners father, who founded what became La Prima Food Group based in College Park.) 1319 Rockville Pike, Suite C, Rockville, Md. Accessibility: Two doors lead to the host stand;. In contrast, Obelisk feels like a poetry reading graced with sublime food. Forget its debut and feast on its much-improved second act. (read more) Opinionated About Dining April 2017 minibar ranked #15 in Opinionated About Dining's Top 100+ U.S. The lush uni, meanwhile, is plucked from Santa Barbara, Calif. Hiroshi presents the treasure with a dab of wasabi and a tiny quail egg. A custom wood smoker made from a repurposed propane tank, along with an Argentine grill and box smoker in the kitchen, flavor much of the Southern-inspired menu. Did I mention the menu is still printed on the kind of luxurious stock typically reserved for wedding invitations? P.S. While Ive experienced his cooking only as takeout, the food inside the bags and boxes is arranged just so, as if waiting for a photo shoot. Every dish tastes best in class, be it light arancini that any Italian chef would be proud to serve or a pork chop from Autumn Olive Farms that leaves the wood grill tender and juicy (and eats like a prized steak). Indoor and outdoor seating. Nowhere in sight. A lot of people have left the industry. Asked to sum up 2021, crucible is the first word out of his mouth. No barriers to entry at the Rockville branch, which has an ADA-compliant restroom. ADA-compliant restroom. Desserts are outsized. photo by: deb lindsey This is top five, for sure.. Cheesecake requires some explaining at the table, too. Owned by Alex Manfredonia, who brings fine dining experience from San Francisco, Vin 909 has the reception down pat. The server has been on board since Frankly Pizza! Turns out shes as much an artist as a chef. Review | Tom Sietsema's 7 favorite places to eat right now; Washingtonian These Are Washingtonian Readers' Favorite Restaurants in 2021; Washington Post 2021 Fall Dining Guide; Bloomberg.com The Best New Restaurants in Washington, Chosen by Top Chefs; Northern Virginia Magazine The 50 Best Restaurants In Northern Virginia Of 2021; Sundas clearly learned a lot at Rasika West End. Is it still good?, [Three Blacksmiths invites more to the table]. Indoor seating only. No matter what you think of the bridge between Latin America and the Mediterranean created by Enrique Limardo, you cant say he overpromised. I used to work at Montmartre, the much-missed French draw on Capitol Hill, he tells us. Kinship is tasteful in all ways. The majority of his food is touched by a hearth that serves as the focal point in the homespun dining room and gets as hot as 1,000 degree in its center. The bottom line at the restaurant: Make it delicious and pretty and give customers a sense of value, whether its one bite or a platter, says Silverman. The mistake is to think of the youthful 45-seat restaurant as yet another Korean outpost in an area brimming with similar menus. Order some avial, batons of steamed banana, carrots and the Indian vegetable called drumsticks in a golden cloak of shredded coconut, curry leaves and yogurt. Its the Goldilocks of restaurants just right. That hasnt stopped staff from ferrying food to customers on the second-floor dining room or chef Jocelyn Law-Yone, 68, from storytelling. Eye-openers include kinche boiled cracked wheat finished with clarified butter and beef stew mixed with torn injera. The game-changer prefers to surprise customers and maybe change your mind.. No utensils necessary, chowhounds know; the extra scrolls of spongy injera in your order are all the scoops you need. (But if you like leftovers ). A tangle of slippery lo mein noodles shows up slick with chile oil, crisp with fried shallots and colorful with red cabbage and chopped scallions. Corn might be stuffed into pasta and arranged on a piney cream sauce; local beef is sliced over charred shishitos alongside a brushstroke of mustardy Diane sauce. One of the best reasons to reserve at brunch is the chance at pupusas, an idea of sous-chef Alberto Lopez, a native of El Salvador. Meaty rockfish teeters on a bed of corn and diced cuttlefish, circled in a sauce coaxed from peanut butter and shellfish broth. Awash in green tile and fringed parasols from Bali, its become my new favorite landing spot in the countrys most famous inn. A dip of a demitasse spoon into the shell finds a sunny yellow custard flavored with some delightful surprises: anchovies, golden raisins, fennel and more. Craft features halibut poached in olive oil and decked out with a panko crust. No delivery. Unfortunately, I encountered a few dishes that did not. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post) By Tom Sietsema Oct. 5 at 10:00 a.m. 231 As the. Not into crab? Indoor and outdoor seating. Rutas roast chicken drew food lovers to his still-missed Palena in Cleveland Park. No wonder reservations are still hard to come by. Mama Changs glorious tofu skin salad, slick with chile oil and garnished with cilantro and scallions, qualifies as a final meal request not anytime soon, fingers crossed. Its missing in a lot of places these days, but Muchas Gracias is a poster child for inattention. Lamb chops are marinated overnight in garlic, Greek yogurt and green chiles elements that insert themselves into every nook and cranny of the meat and acquire a shower of crushed pink peppercorns after they leave the grill. Indeed, Johnsons list draws inspiration from around the world. Pork gets a lot of play on the script, as a chop, in cassoulet, and as a cheese-stuffed schnitzel, its plate bulked up with spaetzle and seasonal vegetables. Diners choose a centerpiece (chicken, lamb, goat, wild boar, potato-cauliflower curry), which is positioned on a long wooden board with a changing vegetable, buttery black lentils, baby spinach sauteed with ginger, garlic and cumin seeds, plus a bite of dessert. 6 Washington Post Fall Dining Guide 2018 *No 29 in Washingtonian Magazine Top 100 Restaurants In the short time shes been the chef here, Tracy OGrady has reached out to Arlington with housemade breads and pastas, a long dessert list that addresses both cake and pie, and steaks for two: 18 ounces of rib-eye or New York strip with a choice of three sides you know, so locals dont have to trek to Washington for a steakhouse experience. It belongs on the bookshelf of every devout chowhound and fresser." Adam Platt, Restaurant Critic, New York magazine New York City Food Crawls - Ali Zweben Imber 2018-09-30 Sip and taste your way through New . 42461 Lovettsville Rd., Lovettsville, Va. Dinner Thursday through Saturday, brunch weekends, monthly Sunday supper. WaPo 's Tom Sietsema released his 2010 Dining Guide online yesterday, and in between other . Baba ganoush is hardly the most photogenic dish in the world, but chef-owner Michael Rafidi primps it so that the first course eggplant three ways: whipped, charred and pickled holds our gaze. Schooled to be a priest, Onyona has his waiters watch how the food is made before they become guides, and the effort pays off at the restaurant. Theyre labeled James (as in Beard) and Julia (as in Child). I wanted to do surf and turf, but not with beef or lobster, says De Pue, who has a catch in flash-fried octopus paired with peach-topped pork loin. When he opened his Maryland pizzeria seven years ago, friends told him he needed to round out the menu with appetizers and pasta. Kenya native and self-trained chef Kevin Onyona poured $2 million into transforming a basement dining room (the one-time Vidalia) near the corridors of power into an upscale African statement. But were trying not to steer away from the principals original ambitions, chiefly heightened comfort food., [Like a good neighbor, Pennyroyal Station is there for you], He and his colleagues are doing an ace job of hiding any obstacles. No takeout or delivery. Because readers asked, the following reviews offer information on vaccine mandates and accessibility. Check. For openers, I'm spending more time. The design adds to the you-are-there feel. Breakfast, lunch and dinner Wednesday through Sunday. [If you think fine dining is on pause, Imperfecto would beg to differ]. It really ought to be in pictures. 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