94 replies to this topic

[iamthestretch]

Hello everyone,

I have a group I am bringing to DC for a meeting in the Fall. The first evening they will dine at the Inn at Little Washington.

The second evening they will be dining in/around the Capital Hill area as they will be staying at the the Phoenix Park Hotel. We will be around 25 people and have had a long day. I think they would like something/place casual, relaxing and of course exceptional food.

Oh and the rub is this is on a Monday. But I might be able to book it for a group...

Thanks savvy ones!!

Kata

Can't claim it's "exceptional" food, but for a group that obviously has means, Charlie Palmer Steak is walking distance from the hotel, has a great view of the Capitol at night, a nice wine list and is open Mondays. They're also used to handling large parties, as they're a big lobbyist/politico schmoozing destination.
Bistro Bis is even closer to hand, literally around the corner, though you'd want to check that they could handle your party all at once.

Edited by iamthestretch, 30 April 2005 - 05:56 AM.

[Busboy]

Welcome to eGullet, mfkWisher.

As you've probably picked up, the Hill is considered something of a restaurant wasteland, though Bis is very good and Charlie Palmer's is well-regarded. Along with cult-favorite Ray's the Steaks out in Arlington, it is the favorite of the Washington Post's main food critic; having met their chef the other night, I know that they take their meat very seriously there.

Of course, the night after a long dinner and long drive at the Inn, you may want to just go to the bar in your hotel -- The Dubliner is pretty much a Hill landmark -- or around the corner to its divier neighbor, The Irish Times, to munch corned beef and hoist a few pints.

Has anybody been to La Colline since I was last there in, oh, 1987?

[bilrus]

Has anybody been to La Colline since I was last there in, oh, 1987?

1996 probably isn't too helpful either, so I can't help there.

Just to chime in that I thought Charlie Palmer was very good on my recent visit and they have at least one good sized private room and probably more than that. It is more causal and a much more modern feel than the Inn, but I wouldn't exactly call it casual either.

Bis is a little more casual but a also more upscale than most typical bistros.

Edited by bilrus, 30 April 2005 - 07:19 AM.

[Nadya]

Bis is open on Mondays and tends to be not so busy on that day. We also have a number of private rooms that can be a good choice for a party of that size as I am not certain we can accommodate 25 people in the dining room all at once. Call Annee Gillette, our event coordinator, at 202-661-2700.

[simdelish]

I would recommend keeping your list of options short: to either CPS or BB. You won't go wrong with either, and both would be quite delicious and memorable for your group.

I had an excellent dinner recently at Charlie Palmer Steak (I would say, in the top 3 meals of the last 12 months). It would be a very different atmosphere than the ILW, and the menu, although it has about 6 or 8 different incredible meat offerings, it also has numerous fabulous non-meat/seafood things as well. I am not sure of the guest minimum needed, but CP Steak also has a killer view from their private rooftop garden, quite a treat for even the locals with the view of the capitol dome in all its glory...(nighttime illumination is stunning). Very sleek, modern and elegant place, whites and neutral tones, not the usual dark wood clubby atmosphere of most steakhouses. Wine list is all American. Service was excellent and professional.

Bis is also a good choice, and would give more of that intimate atmosphere you will get at ILW. Delicious French bistro fare, but with a decidedly upscale twist.

[hannnah]

Has anybody been to La Colline since I was last there in, oh, 1987?

1996 probably isn't too helpful either, so I can't help there.

Just to chime in that I thought Charlie Palmer was very good on my recent visit and they have at least one good sized private room and probably more than that. It is more causal and a much more modern feel than the Inn, but I wouldn't exactly call it casual either.

Bis is a little more casual but a also more upscale than most typical bistros.

Ok, I was at La Colline back in December. Lunch was entirely acceptable, but I'd think CPS or Bis would hold up better in comparison to Inn at Little Washington.

[mfkWisher]

Thanks everyone. Seems to be quite a consensus here!
What excellent feedback too. Well it won't be til September,
but I can certainly let you know how our large group fares at
these places. It is nice to know they will have a comfortable
landing after dinner at ILW.

[PatDC]

Tunnicliffs finally has its new menu. I can't speak for the whole thing, but I liked the seared tuna appetizer. It's $12, I think. It's got a wasabi cream sauce and seaweed mix with cabbage. Very nice.

They have a couple of other tuna items on the menu that are similar (sesame, seaweed, wasabi), but I don't know how they are. Most of the menu didn't change much, except a lot of offerings went up by a buck. They've also got a pigs in a blanket app that looked interesting (fairly substantial).

Now that I've had an appetizer, I plan to try pizza at Sonoma for dinner. I'm not full yet, really. . Bring it on. We want good food on Capitol Hill. Bring it on!

[Kanishka]

Speaking of Tunnis -- can anyone confirm that the owners of Tunnicliffs are also the owners of the soon-to-be-closed Stoneys? I heard that a while back. With Stoney's closing it makes sense that Tony and Mo are putting more into Tunnis. Didn't want to jump to a conclusion though.

[bavila]

My Hill dining is limited to Tortilla Grill Cafe, Aatish, and a Turkish place on Penn (Anatolia, maybe?) -- all basically low brow, but reasonably tasty. Oh and a French place whose name I also can't remember (might have been La Colline), but they had a lovely leek tart. Very nice for a lunch sitting outside trying to forget how painful participating/listening to Senate hearings can be, at least if it's not swamped by politicos.

At Tortilla, the pupusas and accompanying salad rocked. And you can not beat the price.

Anatolia -- it's been a while, so I can't offer specific comment.

Recently met a couple of friends at Aatish for dinner with my 2.5 year old. My daughter LOVES pappadam. The waiter was somewhat alarmed that she would eat them since they're a tad spicy. I assured him that she was accustomed to the heat -- no biggie. Then she started playing with the container of coriander sauce, basically just looking at it. The waiter really freaked out then and nearly ripped the dish from her hand. I felt like saying, "Stop trying to tell the Americans not to eat Pakistani food in the Pakistani restaurant." Luckily he had other tables seated about that time and had less time to hover over us. Sheesh.

[Tweaked]

Speaking of Tunnis -- can anyone confirm that the owners of Tunnicliffs are also the owners of the soon-to-be-closed Stoneys? I heard that a while back. With Stoney's closing it makes sense that Tony and Mo are putting more into Tunnis. Didn't want to jump to a conclusion though.

The owners of Tunnicliffs and Stoneys are the same

[Tweaked]

My Hill dining is limited to Tortilla Grill Cafe, Aatish, and a Turkish place on Penn (Anatolia, maybe?) -- all basically low brow, but reasonably tasty.  Oh and a French place whose name I also can't remember (might have been La Colline), but they had a lovely leek tart.  Very nice for a lunch sitting outside trying to forget how painful participating/listening to Senate hearings can be, at least if it's not swamped by politicos.

You need to branch out on the Hill! First Anatolia is closed and is now Meyhane (sp?)

Other spots:

Montemartre (french bistro)
Sonoma (newly opened in old Il Raddiccio space)
Pacific Grill (try the grilled lemon chicken with noodles or grilled pork with noodles)
Ugly Mug (pizza and mini burgers by former Matchbox chef)
La Plaza (cheap El Salvadoran food)
Belga (Belgium bistro fare)

[bavila]

You need to branch out on the Hill!

Well, I've never lived in DC, and thankfully no longer work there either (woo hoo! no more commute!). But I will keep your suggestions in mind when I visit my friend who lives on the Hill.

Edited by bavila, 02 June 2005 - 11:43 AM.

[bilrus]

Ugly Mug (pizza and mini burgers by former Matchbox chef)

I heard second hand this weekend (but from a source I trust) that Graig Glufling has left Ugly Mug.

[Vandyhoo]

I heard second hand this weekend (but from a source I trust) that Graig Glufling has left Ugly Mug.

That is correct. Ugly Mug is a great bar, but that is just what they want to be -- a bar. Graig wants to cook, so they parted ways.

[Malawry]

Thanks for updating us, Vandyhoo. Bummer, though. Fortunately, there's still Matchbox for miniburger fixes (along with plenty of other places...)

[Kanishka]

Believe it or not, the cajun chicken sandwich new on the Tunnicliffs menu is good! Not too dry, perfectly spiced. I've been eating there for a couple years, and this was the best thing I've had there. Yeah, its just bar food. But I'm eager to try the rest of the menu, especially after the promising start last night.

[chuchelo]

We ate at Sonoma last night for the first time. It's the restaurant that took Il Radicchio's space on Penn Ave. Has anyone else eaten there yet?

I went with high expectations for the idea of a wine bar but had not realized that it was completely focused on Italy. Not that doesn't mean that the wine is not good, of course, just that I was hoping for some French possibilities.

Anyway, I ordered the string bean salad, followed by gnocchi. The string bean salad was excellent (though I would have called them yellow pole beans) very fresh, juicy, and well-dressed with something that let the veggies shine through.

After three or four bites I did something I rarely do - I sent the gnocchi back. I love gnocchi and seeing that these were "housemade" I was really looking forward to them. BUT, although they themselves were well-made they were FRIED and very oily. Perhaps others are familiar with this way of preparing them but for me it was horrid and really a waste. I don't like oily food, especially when I'm not expecting it.

My husband ordered pizza with prosciutto, potatoes, and arugula and it was quite delicious.

After sending back the gnocchi, I just decided to wait and share a cheese course with my husband. They had a good selection and we settled on humboldt fog ashline, Vermont cheddar, and romano. After the cheese we had dessert -- housemade pistachio ice cream for him and chocolate "pudding" (it was mousse really) for me. The mousse was very good. It came with two biscotti that had been mortally wounded by the humidity and one bite was more than enough of those.

Five glasses of wine accompanied this meal, all very good but very pricey. The prices are given by "taste," glass and bottle. I don't know how much wine you actually get for a "taste" but given that it costed $7 to taste a $10 glass of wine it struck me as a very expensive way to try things.

The bill with tip was about $120.00 which was much more than we would usually spend on eating out just because we were just too tired to cook and wanted to try a new restaurant. The place looks as if they aren't quite done yet. I like the sleek look and of all the iterations in that space, it reminds me most of the old Jenkins Hill, which was about 3 or 4 restaurants ago. They have three very large tables with bench seating that look super but looked very uncomfortable for a long lingering meal as the benches had no backs.

We'll definitely return but I can't see us becoming regulars.

[PatDC]

Anyway, I ordered the string bean salad, followed by gnocchi. The string bean salad was excellent (though I would have called them yellow pole beans) very fresh, juicy, and well-dressed with something that let the veggies shine through.

After three or four bites I did something I rarely do - I sent the gnocchi back.    I love gnocchi and seeing that these were "housemade" I was really looking forward to them. BUT, although they themselves were well-made they were FRIED and very oily. Perhaps others are familiar with this way of preparing them but for me it was horrid and really a waste. I don't like oily food, especially when I'm not expecting it.

I've eaten dinner there 4 or 5 times. I ordered the gnocchi once, and it was good but not great. I don't recall that it was oily, though. I'm having trouble remembering the dish so many weeks later. I've enjoyed most things I've gotten there.

And, yes, the beverage prices really do add up. I've liked the wines I've had there, but the last couple of times I stuck with the beer. I like Italian beer they have on tap (I always get the name wrong).

[garnish]

I ate there (Sonoma) on Wednesday night, and overall, I was really pleased. I tried the wine "tastes" but mine were all $3-$4 ($6-9 for a full glass). I had three and really enjoyed the option to test things out. And I didn't find it too expensive. We found descriptions in the wine list interesting, as each wine has a 2-3 word description next to it that does not repeat. So if you had a "light, dry finish" wine, you won't find another on the list with that same description. It will be "light, full bodied" -- you get the idea. We tried different glasses, debating if we would have described this or that wine as having a "fruity nose". I wish that I could remember my wine choices. I had three whites, and enjoyed each.

I started with the black risotto. I'd read something that day about Citronelle's begula/beluga pasta, and so I had a taste for something like it. They don't compare, no, not at all, but I did enjoy the risotto. I thought it had a good balance of salt, a decent texture of risotto, and the calamari was firm without being rubbery. I'd recommend it. And eat it again. My friend started with a small-plate of the chicken - penne dish. I had a bite and while I can't remember the details, I thought that one was good enough that I almost wished I'd ordered it.

For my main dish, I had prawns over a chick-pea puree. I was really surprised that the chickpea puree was cold, and couldn't decide if that was intentional or not. But it tasted good, so I didn't ask. The shrimp were on a skewer, and I always have a problem with that in restaurants. It's a nice presentation, but it also increases the possibility that I will meet my dining neighbors when my shrimp is propelled off the skewer and into their plate. It's probably just me, though. I got the small-plate size of this dish, with 4 mediums sized prawns. It was a good portion for me.

I don't recall my friend's dinner, but we liked it, too. Overall, we each spent about $36, including tip.

We had good service overall. Nothing to complain about. I'm really happy to have Sonoma on the Hill.

[Mayhaw Man]

I greatly enjoyed lunch yesterday at Bistro Bis. We were in a hurry, as I was headed to the airport, but not much of one, so a lunch at the bar seemed in order.

We split a most excellent (actually-THEY SPLIT-more places should be this nice about splitting stuff) Endive Salad Chardenoux and a charcuterie plate . The salad was really good and perfectly dressed (meaning not drowning-overdressing is something that I have come to hate and I will impose stiff penalties for this egretious crime when I am finally in charge of the world). Both were really good and the bartender/server was excellent (sorry, I don't remember her name, though I should).

Also, no matter what you order, order up a cone full of frites. They are really, really good. Pretty close to perfect.

Anyway, great place for a quick, not too expensive, lunch in very pleasant, well appointed surroundings. You could do much worse.

[orenlund]

Hi all.

I will be moving to DC in September for four months. I'll be working at the Supreme Court and living near there and I'm going to need places to go to eat (cheap) and to shop.

Cheap eats to me means anything that I can get for 10-15 dollars or less. I love most ethnic foods that I've had. I love a good sandwich. I worked in the industry (fine dining) before going back to school, so I'm not completely clueless or timid. I would love to find someplace to go after work that wouldn't take too much traveling.

For shopping, I need a place to get consistent produce at below-Whole-Foods-prices. A butcher and a great deli would be wonderful as well. I've looked at the links to grocery stores, but have no idea what is close and how much traveling each of the suggestions would take.

I apologize for not knowing where anything is and how to get anywhere. I'll learn as soon as I can.

Thanks for the help!

Oren

[dinwiddie]

Well, if you are going to live near the Court, you won't have much money left for eating, but:

3rd and Eats
500 Third St., NW
Open for breakfast and lunch. Great sandwichs and also strokes your social conscience as it is dedicated to training the unemployed and providing aid to the poor and homeless. But the sandwiches are fantastic.

Las Placitas
517 Eighth St., SE
Good Central/Latin American/Mexican/Salvadoran

Market Lunch
225 Seventh St., SE
Food stand in Eastern Market, a good place for breakfast or lunch if you can deal with carryout and eating at picnic tables, but expect a line.

[orenlund]

Thank you dinwiddie.

Luckily, rent is paid for by my school. I won't get paid for work, though so it's still true that I won't have much money left over for eating.

Those places sound perfect and they look very close to work and home. If anyone can think of anything else in the next few weeks, I appreciate all the help I can get!

Thanks again!

[Anonymouze]

Hop on the Red Line (Metro!) to Bethesda for great restaurants of varying prices and values both up and down the hill by Elm/Woodmont/Wisconsin Ave's...
Also in Rockville you can go to Eatsy's it's fantastic and different... there's a 6.00 all you can eat pizza/salad/dessert place near the NRC building about 1 or 2 blocks west or so just ask around for it... also a great middle eastern place diagonal across from that blding too and also Ize's is in that same plaza (bagels etc...)
Goodluck... and let me know if you bump into any inexpensive great finds since we just moved down here as well. Thanks again. Goodluck and welcome to the area.

[bookluvingbabe]

Breakfasts at the Court itself aren't bad--Angie makes a mean eggs and cheese sandwich. Plus employees get a discount.

Don't eat at the Senate (or the House.)

Cheap eats for breakfast and lunch can be had at Jimmy T's--East Capitol and 5th Street SE.

There isn't a lot of good grocery shopping right near the Court--Eastern Market can be pricey.

Sonoma on Pennsylvania Avenue can be done for a reasonable price if you order carefully.

Good luck!

[Busboy]

The bad news is that Capitol Hill something of a fine dining wasteland. The good news is that, because the workforce on the Hill is overwhelmingly young and government -alaried, there is a virtually endless supply of burgers and ethnic at a quality somewhere between shopping mall food court (and if you want one of those, Union Station is steps away. I like Wingmasters) and a restaurant you'd really go out of your way to go to, at a price you can afford on, say, a mid-level Congressional staffers salary. Lots of happy hours, too.

Slightly more expensive and bringing a little panache to the Hill: Belga Cafe, on 8th st. near the Marine Barracks; Sonoma Grill on Pennsylvania Avenbue on the House side (not far from you, I believ) and Montmartre, right next to Eastern Market.

Speaking of Eastern Market, the produce there is really only worth hunting down on weekends; during the week you're paying premium prices for standard produce at the regular stalls, whereas the farmers come out on weekends. I seem to recall a good and inexpensive Salvadoran/Mex carryout across the street, for cheap eats. These cheese guy is pretty good, I like Union Butcher a lot, and you can get good fowl of many varieties. Avoid the fishmonger.

There's a pretty good wine shop, Schneiders, not far from the Court, at third and Mass.

I confess I never thought of heading to Bethesda for good/cheap eats -- a long metro ride for another neighborhood that's considered an underachiever. Better to head out the orange line to Courthouse/Clarendon, I think.

More ideas on an earlier thread here.

[Busboy]

Don't eat at the Senate (or the House.)

Though French Fries are back on the menu at the House cafeterias.

[bookluvingbabe]

Don't eat at the Senate (or the House.)

Though French Fries are back on the menu at the House cafeterias.

Doesn't make them edible!!!!

[JennyUptown]

I concur. And think about it: most of what Bethesda has to offer is part of a chain (national or regional). Raku is duplicated in Dupont. Austin Grill is all over the place including Glover Park and downtown. Jaleo - multiple locations. Cosi - millions of locations.

I confess I never thought of heading to Bethesda for good/cheap eats -- a long metro ride for another neighborhood that's considered an underachiever.  Better to head out the orange line to Courthouse/Clarendon, I think.

More ideas on an earlier thread here.