Bibiana Osteria Enoteca
Bibiana Osteria Enoteca is a new Italian restaurant in downtown D.C., owned by Ashok Bajaj of Rasika, Bombay Club, Ardeo and others. I’m always on the lookout for fabulous Italian food, so I was pretty excited to give this place a try. Happily, my friends were equally enthused, and so we breezed in for dinner on the Friday before last, eager and hungry.
I linked the website above, but don’t even bother clicking – they’re so new that there’s nothing on the site as yet. Of course, this meant going in blind, with only a few hints from early bloggers to guide us on what to expect from the menu. But maybe a little spontaneity is a good thing. (^__^)
The restaurant itself is divided up into essentially three sections. There’s a bar/lounge area that greets you immediately from the door. Then there are two dining areas, one on each side of the bar. The dining rooms are pretty isolated from one another, so I didn’t even know there was another area until the end of the night, as I was leaving. This actually makes the restaurant feel very smallish and cozy, which I liked.
Enough with the decor. On to the food!
There were four of us, and we all got two appetizers, one main course (or pasta) and a dessert, so it kept me quite busy snapping away at the food. Pictured above is an appetizer from the “piatti piccoli” course, the “fichi”: black figs, ricotta salata and almond silvers. Actually, this dish unites the two ingredients that kept popping up in many of the dishes: figs and almonds. I don’t even like figs that much, but these were delicious! (*___*) I would even order them for myself.
The food festa continues below!:
dinner happy hour restaurants: asian fusion d.c. latin fusion
by Lindsey
2 comments
Zengo
I wasn’t sure what sort of food to expect from a place called “Zengo” located in Chinatown. Is it Japanese? Japanese/Chinese fusion?
I had a chance to find out a few weeks ago when I popped in there for happy hour. The cuisine turned out to be an intriguing Latin-Asian fusion, which I enjoyed quite a bit (with a couple exceptions).
They’ve got a pretty decent happy hour menu, and our waiter that day was feeling quite generous, so we lucked out on a few extra drinks past the usual 7pm deadline. (Actually, I should correct that and say that my *friends* lucked out. I, not surprisingly, nursed one glass of wine all evening).
I really like the interior, which houses a large lounge area downstairs with comfortable chairs and couches by the bar. The dining room is upstairs, where their restrooms are also located. (Instead of doors, the restrooms are separated by a long beaded curtain…interesting).
So, on to the food! Pictured above is my friend’s “crunchy calamari,” served with lemongrass, garlic, mixed greens, and orange-coriander sauce. I had a bite, and it was delicious! I do love coriander anything. ♥
Indique
I’ve wanted to try Indique in Cleveland Park for a while, so was quite happy to finally get a chance to have dinner there a few weeks ago for my birthday. (^__^)v ♥
It feels a little more down-home and cozy in comparison to Rasika, and although the tables are a little cramped together, the noise level wasn’t too bad. (Whereas with Rasika, you have to yell at one another across your table to have a conversation during peak dinner hours!)
Pictured above is the vegetable samosa chaat, looking a bit deconstructed. I thought it looked a little messy, but it tasted great (from the one bite I took of it; it wasn’t my appetizer).
The rest:
Red Velvet Cupcakery
For my birthday earlier this month, my dear friend bought be a dozen cupcakes from Red Velvet Cupcakery! \(^O^)/ Red Velvet is a cupcake shop located dangerously close to my office in downtown D.C. Actually, it’s not exactly an easy distance for a quick break, so I don’t find myself in there too often. This is a good thing, because it’s much too tempting, otherwise!
Their Penn Quarter shop has been open for a while now, and they recently opened a new one in Dupont Circle as well. (Whoa, rivalry with the other Dupont cupcakery, Hello Cupcake!) These cupcake shops seem to be springing up everywhere. Is there room enough in this town for them all!? Georgetown Cupcake may have the best in the city, but Red Velvet has an edge over Hello for the Dupont shops in my opinion. Hello may have better flavor selections and slightly cheaper prices, but I think Red Velvet cupcakes have better icing, and moister cakes that stay fresh longer.
But here’s something rather vexing about them: I can’t look up the exact cupcake flavors because Red Velvet has mysteriously changed their website! It’s now a very ugly and unhelpful single page (no links to flavors or anything), which looks neither appetizing nor inviting. They used to have such a pretty website. What happened?
Anyway, enough with the rant and on to the cupcakes:
Pho 75
Pho can be had in a lot of places around here, including my local shopping center that also houses a Panera and Five Guys. Out of all of these, however, the best of them is located in Rockville, just a little north of the court house and Metro station. I’ve been going there for years, and it’s still my favorite. ♥
However…
A friend of mine insisted that there’s a place in Virginia – Pho 75 – that’s THE best, and so, after much talk and anticipation, she took me out there last weekend to give it a try. It turns out that Pho 75 is the pho restaurant that I remember seeing next door to D.C. Sandwich, the banh mi shop in Falls Church I visited a while back. (^___^)
Pho (pronounced “faaah??”) is rice noodle in broth, topped with your choice of beef or chicken, thinly sliced. I usually get the regular sized bowl of beef brisket, which is almost always “number 15″ on the menu, regardless of which pho restaurant I go to. XD
Top Chef 6.05: "Camping"
I’ll admit it: One of the things I was looking forward to the most from last night’s Top Chef episode was seeing whose food Tom Colicchio was going to spit out, and whether the guilty party who’d prepared the dish would survive elimination (they didn’t).
The first several episodes are usually these “throw-away” eps, just biding time as we impatiently watch the group pare down to a workable size. There are always a good number of chefs that are in over their heads, and make you wonder how they qualified to begin with. The Las Vegas season has had quite a few chefs who fall into this category, despite the fact that the judges rave about how fabulous this cast is compared to past seasons (but then, they always say that). Then again, the underdog has climbed up to the top before, so maybe I’ll be pleasantly surprised before the end. (^__^)
As for this episode (spoilers under the cut):
Food in Children's Books
The most vivid memories I have of the books I read as a child usually center around the food. Maybe I was a foodie-in-training from a young age? But actually, even if I weren’t a foodie, I would still remember the food well, because good eats seem to feature quite prominently in a lot of children’s literature.
For instance: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. Here was a story where a greedy little boy almost actually betrayed his family to the dark side in exchange for a heaping dish of sweets called Turkish delight. Of course, little girl me was dying to try this stuff, which was supposedly so heavenly that it was worth sacrificing everyone you loved. I had no idea what this Turkish delight was, but I wanted it! Had to have it! Then I grew up and discovered Turkish delight and was very disappointed to learn that it tasted like gooey, sticky soap. So much for the magic.
The Paddington Bear series was another great favorite of mine, and practically every other chapter featured food in some way or another. Even if it didn’t, Paddington always carried around a marmalade sandwich under his hat “for emergencies.” XD I was never a fan of marmalade, but his love for it was quite amusing to me, and I enjoyed all his escapades involving the stuff. My favorite episode was when he had the audacity to order a marmalade sandwich at the fanciest restaurant in town! I suppose it’s sort of akin to ordering a PB&J sandwich at Citronelle or French Laundry, lol.
Paddington had a standing date with his good friend Mr. Gruber for “elevenses” every day, when they’d share a hot cup of cocoa accompanied by what he’d call “buns.” I’m actually not sure what “buns” are in the British sense. (Breakfast rolls? English muffins?) Nevertheless, I always found it to be a charming tradition, and I remember wanting to have “elevenses” right there with them in Mr. Gruber’s antique shop. (^__^)
Penn Quarter Farmer's Market
First off, apologies about the previous post on Cafe Atlantico. I was messing around with the edit function on Wordpress’s iPhone app and managed to delete the majority of the post! It’s been fixed (in other words, rewritten from scratch), so if you were wondering where the rest of the post was, it’s back. (^___^)b
So, Penn Quarter holds a farmer’s market every Thursday from 3~7pm between the months of April and December. They’re relatively small in comparison to markets I’ve seen elsewhere, but it’s quite accessible at least. It’s located on 8th Street near E, close to the Gallery Place Chinatown Metro station.
I popped over there a few weeks ago and picked up some nectarines. They were incredibly flavorful and juicy! But I suppose it’s never a guarantee from week to week, and I found that the nectarines I picked up the following week weren’t as juicy.
dessert dinner restaurants: cocktails d.c. latin fusion restaurant week
by Lindsey
2 comments
Cafe Atlantico
I’m not sure how to categorize the cuisine at Cafe Atlantico exactly, though Open Table describes it as “Fusion / Eclectic, Latin American, Caribbean.” It’s one of Jose Andres’s restaurants (the others, of course, being Oyamel, Jaleo, and Zaytinya of recent Top Chef fame). I’ve been to both Jaleo locations and to Zaytinya, all of which serve up tapas style meals where you can pick and choose lots of little dishes. I hear Oyamel is fairly decent Mexican food, but I haven’t tried it myself.
Aside from the famed cocktails at Cafe Atlantico, I knew very little about this place. Their Restaurant Week special extended through September 6, so some friends and I poked in there to check it out. We ordered a bunch of stuff, mostly deviating from the RW menu. But ultimately, the shining star of the night was the cocktail!
Pictured above is their passion fruit martini, made with orange rum and passion fruit juice with ginger jalapeno infusion. They top it off with a fruity whipped cream-like froth that was quite lovely. The cocktail wasn’t overpowered by tartness as I might have expected. I really liked this drink. ♥
EDIT: Uh…somehow I managed to DELETE the rest of this entry. (;___;) I can’t find the cached page, so will have to reconstruct all over again. Apologies for making this entry disappear meanwhile!
Lucky Stick
I was browsing the snack shelf at the Japanese grocery store when I spotted this Pocky Imposter! Sitting right next to the real deal, even. The ever Engrishy “Lucky Stick” biscuits came in two flavors that day – strawberry or cappuccino cream. Strawberry’s kind of standard and boring, so I opted for the cappuccino.
First off, when I opened the box, I was hit with that sickeningly sweet instant flavored coffee smell (very similar to those “International Coffee” mixes by General Foods). Visually, I could tell that there was only a very thin layer of cream. Perhaps I’m just accustomed to getting more generously coated icing, like they have on the thicker dessert Pockys.
As for the final assessment after taking a bite: the artificial coffee flavor was not very good at all, and left an unpleasant aftertaste in my mouth.
I guess they were trying to emulate the Pocky but totally missed the mark. Not even close, Lucky Stick. Not even close.
Cottage Pie
Shepherd’s Pie (or cottage pie) is my ultimate comfort food. It’s got so many of my favorite things piled one on top of the other, and best of all – it’s so easy even *I* can make it. \(^O^)/ And I make a damn good cottage pie, if I can say so myself. Actually, all of it is thanks to Alton Brown and his fabulously simple but delicious recipe for shepherd’s pie. I just substitute ground beef for ground lamb to convert it into cottage pie. Though someday, I would like to make a true shepherd’s pie with lamb.
My friend Jen is my big enabler. She has cottage pie once a week, much to my extreme jealousy. Every time she mentions having cottage pie for dinner, it makes me crave the stuff. Unfortunately for me, oven usage is kind of a big deal in my household, since Japanese people just don’t bake. My oven is used as a storage device, not a cooking mechanism.
Last week, after hearing my friend mention cottage pie yet again, I was determined to make this stuff, oven or no! I decided to utilize my toaster oven to make a couple ‘mini’ pies stuffed into small meat loaf pans. I was apprehensive about putting the tiny oven to work like this, but I had to give it a try. And what do you know? SUCCESS!
See below the cut for the making-of. X)
Proof: part II
I know I’ve blogged about Proof before, but this is one of my favorite restaurants in D.C., so I can’t help but revisit it once more – this time for dinner. ♥
I seem to gravitate toward wine bars when selecting favorites (Proof, Vinoteca, Grapeseed). Perhaps they take special care in selecting excellent dishes that pair well with their extensive wine collections? Whatever the case, it’s rare that I find a dish I’m not happy with in any of these establishments.
Proof has been a favorite, ever since I first dined there in its early days (back in ‘07?) I love that they have wine tasting sizes, so for the price of one glass, you can sample three different wines. They offer a great selection of cheeses (complete with intriguing descriptions of each), in addition to a diverse charcuterie ranging from prosciutto to duck terrine.
On the Saturday of Restaurant Week, after several days of indulgent eating, some friends and I made a dinner time visit to Proof. Obviously, we didn’t want the eating extravaganza to end. Unfortunately, Proof doesn’t usually participate in RW, and this month was no exception. So while the food was excellent as usual, the meal did range on the pricey side.
First off, the atmosphere. Compared to the more casual and charming Vineteca, Proof is a little more “clean cut,” for lack of a better word, and attracts a much older crowd. I wasn’t thrilled with the dark lighting, which made it difficult to see the food (and to photograph it), and made me feel like I was eating in a cave. Maybe they’re going for the wine cellar aura?
In any case, because of the poor lighting, coupled with my lack of camera skills, my photos came out unbelievably blurry. (;___;) I’m only posting the ones that came out in focus, which aren’t many.
Pictured above is the cheese plate that the table shared. You can order three ($13) or six ($25) from a menu that lists the available selections into cow, sheep, goat and blue cheeses. I don’t recall all the ones we picked, though we did try to get a good mix. My favorite was the one in the foreground, a goat cheese by Pipe Dream.
Raisin Sand
I know what you’re thinking: What in the world is raisin sand?? It’s a raisin sandwich, which might or might not be an improvement from your first impression. Ah, we crazy Japanese with our weird word shorteners and even weirder food combinations… Actually, I love shortening words. It’s a nice succinct way to refer to something that would otherwise be a mouthful. Sandwich = sand. Department store = depart. Kentucky Fried Chicken = kenta. Brad Pitt = burapi. (My favorite is “Shuwa-chan” (lil’ Shuwa) for Arnold Schwarzenegger).
Wait, was this about food?
Back to “raisin sand.” This is one of the Bourbon line of cookies I’ve been blogging about. Unfortunately, it’s a low point. It’s not utterly inedible, but not particularly flavorful either. I think it could work if it was a little sweeter perhaps, or more raisin-y. I thought it was surprisingly moist, though.
Siroc
Here’s the last of the Restaurant Week posts, more than a week later. I hope I remember enough to write about it! (^___^);;; Final stop on my RW tour was Siroc, a “modern” Italian restaurant located near McPherson Square. It was rated by Washingtonian’s food critic as one of the top RW picks, so I was pretty excited to have lunch there. Some co-workers and I made a big trip of it, abandoning our cubicles en-masse for a leisurely Friday afternoon meal.
Lunch is definitely the time to go for RW to get the most out of your dollar. The $20.09 for three courses is a great deal, and I’ve noticed that most places don’t skimp on the portions – Siroc being no exception.
So, beginning with the appetizer course:
