‘happy for the flag’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’
A human being can only eat so many hot dogs and hamburgers around the grill with family and friends. So here’s a helpful roundup of some food events that will get you out the door and give you something to do other than wondering if the steaks are done with Uncle Barry manning the grill.
By Tricia Barba
‘bangers & mash @ againn, DC’
courtesy of ‘Plantains and Kimchi’
Oh, establishments
Can’t argue with an institution, right? This week Esquire released The Best Bars in America 2011 list which includes favorite newcommers and old staples. Two Capitol Hill DC Bars made it on the list: Tune Inn and Hawk ‘n’ Dove. Can you guess which category they were in? The Feast caught upwith Tune Inn owner Lisa Nardelli on making the list. Congrats!
Lobster everywhere
Luke’s Lobster opened up yesterday and yes those lobster rolls are good. I was almost convinced to go with the shrimp or crab instead, but that almost like cheating. Looks like this joint will be super popular with the lunch crowd (I really admire people who can wait in sch long lines). A tip: go for dinner, it’s as quiet as can be.
Againn Tavern
Againn Tavern, the restaurant people have such a hard time pronouncing is shutting its Rockville doors. The Feast spoke to Whisk Group CEO Mark Weiss, and he says there’s a possibility of reopening after Memorial Day. For now, you can always go to Againn in DC.
Entertaining
If you like entertaining, Metrocurean brings us some Perfect Summer Party Menu ideas. Think International Backyard Bash or No Fuss Chili Party.
Happy Eating!
By Brittany
"Sax Restaurant & Lounge-9" by Spiggycat
People will call this crowd “diverse,” but it is a very specific kind of diverse. Which is to say, there are equal parts black and white, male and female, and rather a lot of gay men for a place selling so much female flesh. Really, though, they all seem just alike. Every woman looks like a high-price real estate agent or divorce attorney – or at least like they have one of each in their Blackberry contacts. The men wear shiny cufflinks and smirky, goofy facial expressions, but not ties. These are not my people and this is not my kind of place, but I knew that going in and cannot really judge them for it. These people and their ilk will throw each other many “fun” and “crazy” fiftieth birthday parties here and will enjoy themselves immensely, thinking they are just so outrageous.
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By fedward
All photos by the author
If you follow me on Twitter, you might be aware that this has been an eventful week. Literally. Friday the Social Chair and I hosted her birthday party, Sunday we hit our usual brunch, Monday I had a tasting, and Tuesday saw the launch party for Dan Searing’s new book, The Punch Bowl. Plus Tuesday was, as always, Tiki Tuesday at the Passenger. So I was busy.
Instead of picking just one of those, I thought this week would be a perfect opportunity for a photo feature. So here goes.
By fedward
Remember how I said I reached out to Dan Searing about a launch event for his book? I found out earlier today that launch event is tonight, at 6pm in the Warehouse Theater behind the Passenger.
I’ve already made use of the book, as you might discern from the above picture. That’s an oleo-saccharum in progress — sugar muddled with lemon peel, extracting the oil from the peel and resulting in a much more complex final product than you’d get with just lemon juice. I’ll see you tonight!
By Brittany
This 2011 American Craft Beer Week has been marked with many events around the DC area – some of which will carry on in the craft beer spirit all though SAVOR next month. While I appreciate the concept, I generally prefer to keep Craft Beer Week in my heart year round and avoided most of the official events. That did not mean, however, that I avoided drinking some truly lovely beer.
Baltimore-based but globally-travelling, Stillwater Ales has been making some of my favorite new beers recently. Jaded, brewed at De Struise Brouwers is the third edition in Stillwater’s “Import Series” and is, in a word, lovely.
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By Tricia Barba
‘Good Stuff’
courtesy of ‘lorigoldberg’
On a roll like always is the ubiquitous Spike Mendelsohn. Despite what was perhaps a bad choice of words earlier this month, Mendelsohn’s first food truck lunched today without a glitch in sights.
Sixth & Rye has been popular before the deli truck even first hit the streets. You can think of it as DC’s First Kosher Deli on Wheels with Sixth & I, Chef Spike and Chef Malcolm Mitchell behind the venture. It even has 1,755 followers on Twitter already, where the truck goes by @SixthandRye.
‘Food’
courtesy of ‘MichaelTRuhl’
It’s easy to be intimidated by the prospect of cooking Indian food. Will it turn out right? Will my kitchen smell like curry for days? Am I better off ordering from a restaurant in town that actually knows what they’re doing? But take my word for it: making Indian food, really good Indian food, doesn’t have to be that hard. Save your pennies on having someone else make you chicken tikka masala; you can do this.
After the jump you’ll find Kaz Kazmi’s recipe for pakoras, a traditional Indian fried vegetable fritter. They’re flavorful and spicy and taste so good that before you know it the entire batch you made will be gone.
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‘Owner Qaiser Kazmi’
courtesy of ‘MichaelTRuhl’
There’s a phrase that comes to mind after talking to Qaiser (Kaz) Kazmi: “go big or go home.” The father of three and entrepreneur gave up the corporate life working in IT and set his sights on creating an Indian-inspired concept back in 2005. Today, he’s working on perfecting the first Merzi restaurant in Penn Quarter/Chinatown and looking to expand across the city, and eventually across the country.
Merzi, which means “choice” in Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu, came about after Kaz found himself becoming less and less connected with his career and more and more invested in his passion for food. But for someone who wasn’t classically trained as a chef, there were a few bumps in the road. “In 2002, we were having some people over, and I said to my wife: ‘If these kabobs I make are delicious, then I’m ready for a restaurant,'” said Kaz, laughing a bit. As the story goes and as we’ve all experienced before in the kitchen, Kaz’s attempt to look for a sign from God or the stove ended in what he referred to as “terrible kabobs.”
But a few years of research and taste testing later, Kaz created a concept to bring Indian food to a level that is comfortable and not intimidating for Americans.
By Tricia Barba
If you’re looking for some of the best oysters in DC, just head over to the ever-busy Barracks Row and walk into Senart’s Oyster & Chop House. It would have been easy money to bet that restaurateur Xavier Cervera’s new gem on 8th Street SE would be a smashing success, yet every time I walk into Senart’s I’m amazed by the fact that it is constantly packed.
Let’s start with the exterior, which was great to see being renovated during the construction period. The Senart family resided in the building between 1913 and 1939, and lived of the second floor while serving bar fare and fresh oysters on the first. Seventy years later, the place is updated and back. You can even see the restored mural on one side of the building – classy.
Walk inside and the oyster bar is narrow, but it just keeps going and going back. (I almost thought I would never actually make it to the bathroom.) It is just beautiful – marble and 50 ft. long. Personally, I’d rather sit outside on the patio under the patio umbrella very similar to the one on PatioPro, but as you can imagine, that’s hot property during the spring and summer.
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‘it’s here!’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’
The lobsters have outgrown their shells and are getting a second truck. That’s right, hungry food truck stalkers–double your lobster, double your fun. Red Hook Lobster Pound’s second truck has actually been rolling around the streets unofficially for a while now, and is having its official launch this week.
I talked to Doug Povich and Leland Morris from the Lobster Truck and asked them a few questions about the second truck. Read what they had to say after the jump.
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‘Cubs @ Nats (July 17, 2009) – 1’
courtesy of ‘Garyisajoke’
Nats fans are practically orphans when it comes to bar options surrounding their beloved ballpark. If you’re one of the effected parties, it’s downright miserable to live with from time to time. If you’re an observer of the culture and the area, it’s not that much better.
Current options include: The Bullpen and Das Bullpen. There’s also a McDonalds, a gas station, a couple hotels and apartment complexes. But, alas, a diamond in the rough!
Justin’s Café opened last year, just a few blocks from Nationals Park. They opened up shop at 1025 First Street SE with a fine line of beer, wine, and meals oh so divine. Pardon, my rhyme but I feel the selection was worth the cute play on words. Continue reading
By Brittany
Thursday night, the monthly latte art competition-slash-excuse for a party Thursday Night Throwdown (TNT) was hosted by Big Bear Cafe. Hosting rotates each month among various coffeeshops in the area, but with Big Bear’s roomy space and patio, convenient location, and burgeoning beer and cocktail program many attendees noted this was one of the highest turn-outs for a TNT in a long time.
Any cute kid who makes your latte anywhere in the DC area was there, probably with bits of espresso grounds under their fingernails. My hair smelled like coffee by the time I left. However, this will not be a column about coffee. Because, like everyone else in attendance, I was not there to actually drink coffee – I just came for the booze. (Even the competition’s judges just look at the drinks.)
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‘Yummy lunch at Surfside’
courtesy of ‘Joe in DC’
Sunday afternoon the smell of tacos will be wafting down H st. NE. The Food Experiment, a national cooking competition for amateur cooks, is hosting it’s first competition in DC.
Twenty-six teams of local amateur cooks will be making enough tacos for 300 people in the hopes of earning culinary glory and going on to compete in the finals in Brooklyn. The competition was started a few years ago by Theo Peck and Nick Suarez, both accomplished cook-off pros. This year’s Food Experiment spans five cities with five different challenges.
The DC leg of the tour is at the Rock and Roll Hotel from 12-3 PM, and tickets are $10. For the sake of full disclosure, I am competing in the challenge, so come on by and grab a taco and say hello!
By Tricia Barba
You have to admire people who take a risk. Opening up a brand new restaurant in a brand new hotel in a growing neighborhood is exactly that. However, if successful, you’ll not only reap the rewards, you also might be part of the force that helped reinvent a neighborhood. In this case, it looks like Chef Todd and Ellen Gray, along with their Watershed in NoMa are doing just that.
NoMa, of course, stands for “North of Massachusetts Avenue,” north of Capitol Hill and Union Station. It has one successful BID too; you can check it out on Twitter at @NoMaBID. The Grays are currently calling NoMa and the Hilton Garden Inn home as they work to get their second restaurant up and running. If you don’t know the restaurant is there, you’ll definitely miss it, but it doesn’t seem like that’s hindered anything thus far and there’s still a Grand Opening to come.
In what I found perhaps most interesting, Ellen tells me that Watershed is the only independent restaurant with Hilton. What I found funniest is that Chef Todd is working on controlling his language (typical chef cooking) in the kitchen, as it’s an open kitchen and no one wants to scare away the customers. But now, on to the food.
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’15/365: The Line’
courtesy of ‘Amber Wilkie Photography’
Last night the Academy Awards of the food world went down in New York City, and DC took home two James Beard Foundation Awards.
Chef José Andrés won for Outstanding Chef and Tim Carman of The Washington Post (and previously at the City Paper) won for Food-Related Columns and Commentary.
Some of you might have seen the tweets about it, but I’ve included a couple particular charming ones from the two winners after the break. You can find the full list of winners here. Congratulations to José and Tim!
”
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’
There’s a new bakery on the block in Ballston. Buzz Bakery is opening its second location today, and is offering samples of baked goods and MadCap Coffee at the new location.
While some of the offerings will be the same, there are several noteworthy changes and additions at the new location. For starters, there will be new breakfast pop-tarts, waffles, quiches, house-made ice creams and popsicles. Plus, you’ll be able to satisfy your sweet tooth at home with Buzz’s take-and-bake options of frozen cookies, scones, as well as sausage and cheese biscuits, that you can bake at home. Additionally, the bakery has a new and exclusive coffee supplier, MadCap Coffee, a small company based out of Michigan.
By Brittany
Horse races are sporting events I can get behind: Gambling, hats, and over in two minutes. Also, each of the American Triple Crown races features a traditional official cocktail.
At The Source by Wolfgang Puck, the bar team decided to honor the equestrian traditions by adding each of these three cocktails to their lounge menu for a limited time. However, as an Asian fusion restaurant, the classic mint julep (Kentucky Derby), black-eyed susan (Preakness) and Belmont breeze (Belmont) seemed a bit too domestic, so they decided to add pan-Asian flavors to their interpretation of each.
Upon reading this, I was curious – and maybe just a hint dubious. These are such iconic American drinks, the julep in particular. How would spruced-up Pacific Rim variants work out?
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‘Walk of shame burrito from Ted’s Bulletin’
courtesy of ‘bonappetitfoodie’
We’ve all had a Saturday morning where we’ve woken up parched, head throbbing and stomach gurgling for something heavy and delicious to cure a bad hangover. Granted I tried Eric Brannon’s breakfast burrito for dinner (who doesn’t love breakfast for dinner?), but I’d imagine on a weekend morning hungover or not, this burrito would really hit the spot. It’s easy enough to make, and certainly don’t feel obligated to eat it before noon. You’ll find the full recipe after the jump.
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By Tricia Barba
‘Yummy lunch at Surfside’
courtesy of ‘Joe in DC’
(Note those delicious tacos aren’t from El Centro D.F., but now I really want tacos.)
I think it’s the combination of it being Cinco de Mayo week and my love for Mexican food that has El Centro D.F. as our Tweet of the Week winner.
So far it has less than 150 followers, but the restaurant is only one day old! It’s a good number if you look at it that way. El Centro D.F. (or @ElCentroDF)bills itself as DC’s “Premier Taqueria & Tequileria,” and according to my friends who tried it out yesterday, it just might be.
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