JRage

Having a Penzey's store in DC would be both amazing and dangerous. As it is I find myself buying spices that haven't been used since lost ancient cultures made them popular... I'll send a postcard. And for those who don't know Penzey spices, they are really, really good.

The half-smokes you get in the DC area are made in New Jersey and are generally available on push carts on downtown sidewalks in most major cities. They probably are more prevalent in NYC that in DC. Not to be argumentative, but the Half-Smoke Sausage is, or at least was unique to the Washington area. As much as some of you might hate to admit it, it is one of the few, if not the only original contribution that Washington has made to the world's culinary community. The sausages I'm referring to are half-smoked here in DC and not in NJ, although I'm sure some enterprising NJ company may make them and potentially sell them in other cities, I'd be willing to bet that if you stopped by a New York push cart vendor, he would most certainly not be selling half-smokes. Feel free to prove me wrong. And mnebergall, until you can suggest something that is unique to the Washington area, in response to the 'What does Washington do best?' question... why snub my suggestion? To be frank, I'm not even a half-smoke freak, I think they are tasty, I very rarely eat them, but sometimes I think eGulleters forget what it truly means to be a foodie. Anyway, forgive the rant. and who's got my back here?

Bad sex? I don't follow...

This is not really on polishjj's flight path, but when I think of something that is unique to Washington DC, Half-Smokes come to mind. Has anyone found a half smoke in any other cities? and for that matter, Ben's Chili Bowl is half-smoke headquarters. Just a thought, not exactly an artisan bread... (Bread-line was a great suggestion though, if they would be passing through/by at lunch time.)

My chef is excited about this place, he's been talking about it for a while now. Online menu looks good. We will all have to report our experiences, when we make it in.

I'm a big fan of Spike and Charlie's it's Eclectic American cuisine. Nice atmosphere, great food, killer deserts. It's not too casual, but not to fancy either. Comfortable, I'd say. Address is:1225 Cathedral Street, Baltimore, MD 21201 Phone is: (410) 752-8144

Didn't Bush (senior) make major waves because he said that he didn't like broccoli? One of my takeaways from an impressionable tour of Monticello... Thomas Jefferson was so into meals that he essentially invented the dumbwaiter so that he could continue to be served food and wine without having to interupt interesting or politically sensitive conversations. A man after my own heart...

I wonder if other cities eGullet threads make as bizarre or as deviant a subject changes as ours do? And I can't tell if Mark was making a play on words in his last post... As in 'fidget' rhymes with...

My wife and I are making plans to go there with another couple next week... I will report back shortly.

As if it wasn't bad enough, that I lived near a Ben & Jerry's, they had to put in an Krispy Kreme... I am so done for.

That sounds pretty good, but then again anything with bacon in it sounds good to me. I'll have to stop by for some of that.

Soup and wine? I can do that... Our soup right now is a celery root chestnut soup with a serrano ham buttermilk biscuit and drissled with pumpkinseed oil. Very tasty... We have a seafood choppino, (like a stew) as well, (I ate that today...) As for the wine... with about 30 wines by the glass, we should be able to find you something to drink. I like that gumbo at Johhny's Half Shell a lot too.

I've always wanted to try that place... every time I drive by, I always think..."spaetzle." I love spaetzle..

I'm not normally a big fan of Virginia Wines, but we had the guys from Barboursville Vineyards lead our Thursday wine tasting last month and I was pretty impressed with some of their wines. ...and I hear it is a beautiful vineyard, so you might consider visiting them.

Thanks 8Track, for that great review. I'm glad you had a nice time. Looking forward to seeing you on a more "regular" basis, i.e. less than 5.5 years. And congratulations on your 6th Anniversary! As dbortnick mentioned, we're about to make our seasonal switch from the fall menu to the winter menu, so come back soon to check it out.

I'm with Steve and John. Dress code places are fine, especially when they are prepared to be accommodating, i.e lending jackets. I don't really think a person's dress is a reflection of how much respect they give the chef, the restaurant or their dining neighbors. If I'm in a "dress up" place and I spy a pair of "sneakers" at a table nearby, it doesn't cheapen my experience. I'd much rather have a place that prides itself on making everyone feel comfortable, no matter what they are wearing. There are plenty of places where the food is "tuxedo" great, but actually wearing a tuxedo doesn't make it taste better. And I'm just guessing here, but I'd wager that my chefs don't give a crap what the patrons' eating their food have on, just so that they are wearing an expression of satisfaction on their faces. ...And Hannah, You and your nice clean sneakers are welcome anytime at my place.

I second the Pasta Mia recommendation, go early and never anywhere near a big running race in town, and you'll get a table just fine. Process is a little strict there, but we are addicted to the pasta there. (so substitutions there by the way...) Also, I like Etrusco (1606 20th St NW, Washington, DC 20009 (202) 667-0047) in Dupont Circle, nice atmosphere and I haven't been disappointed with the food. Maybe a little on the expensive side, but worth a visit. Savino's in Dupont Circle has a gluten-free pizza which is pretty good, (although I can't recall why that is a good thing at the moment) and their food is pretty good. (Definitely a little on the expensive side.) You know, the downside of posting on eGullet, is that I always work up an appetite when I think about all of the good food and restaurants. I'm going to have to find a fitness site to post on.

Well, so much for recovering from this years unprecedented Thanksgiving weight gain... now I'll be spending all week eating Steve's desserts. Killer reviews Rocks.

I’m thrilled you are giving Mendocino another shot. The restaurants our eGullet peers listed above are excellent suggestions (many are personal favorites) so to have you choose us for your most special occasion means a lot. And I'm looking forward to showing off the new Mendocino.

Ouch!!!

OK. I've just made reservations for dinner at Cieba this Saturday night, so I'll give a full report early next week. Reading this thread, the comments seemed to go from good to better, so I'll admit, my expectations are pretty high. Anyway, if anyone has any additional recommendations, post them before Saturday night!

Hey now Meaghan, my wife reads this forum too! You're going to get me in serious trouble! (and for the record, and my wife...I am not sleeping with salivate, although I'd consider it for more good press. (now, that was a joke. )

I'm still waiting for dbortnick's stories on Peruvian cuisine... dbortnick?

Butterfield 9 has an upstairs area, with a balcony section and another room that is enclosed, I don't know how many it can hold, but might be worth looking into... oh, and Olives as a cool private area downstairs behind the curtain. That might be a nice place for a large group of 30. Went to a group dinner at Signatures and they have a couple of back rooms that I think they could combine to accomodate 30 people. They did a nice job with our group as well.

It's not served in a pumpkin, but we have a nice pumpkin soup at Mendocino right now... made with roasted organic pie pumpkins, drizzled with a garlic yogurt sauce and garnished with cinnamon cured duck. It's pretty tasty... give me some advanced notice and I'll have them make you a pumpkin bowl if you want...