rhodegirl

Docsonz, If you’re interested in Chesapeake Bay oysters, Rappahannock River Oysters company is a good source. I’m not affiliated with them in any way, but a couple of years ago, as a reporter, I wrote a piece about the company for Chow.com: http://www.chow.com/stories/10143 Here’s the Rappahannock River Oysters website: http://www.rroysters.com/ Note they don’t ship oysters in July and August because of the higher water temperature, but they’ll resume in September.

Mr. Lynes, I love Michael Ruhlman's work and it was a pleasure to read your interview with him. I was so happy to see his comments about Chef Kelly. I don't know her personally, but I've been to Primo, in Rockland, Maine, a couple of times while traveling, and it's one of my favorite restaurants. (She seems truly dedicated to using local, seasonal ingredients as much as possible, she makes some of the best fresh pasta I've ever had and even her simplest salads are amazing.) The fact that she runs "a comfortable, wonderful kitchen", as Mr. Ruhlman said, comes through in the front of the house too - good karma all around at Primo.

Great interview. just fyi, it's Chef Melissa Kelly, not Keller.

Thanks for your review, JennyUptown. I enjoyed reading it. (I've never been to Evening Star - I'm guilty of nearly always staying in DC when I go out to eat.) Do you happen to remember the particulars about the glass of wine you had? It sounded good from your description, especially with summer almost here.

Just to note, the person in today's chat who wrote about Colorado Kitchen said at the beginning of her post that they visited CK two weeks ago, not this past Sunday. Not defending anyone's actions or doubting your description of the man who berated the hostess this past Sunday, DCMark. It just sounds like the incident you witnessed and the situation described by the person in today's chat occurred on two different Sundays.

I highly recommend a number of dishes that were on the menu as of last week: Artichokes Sott’Olio – Artichokes marinated in olive oil with house cured Portuguese sardines and Spanish mackerel and Mozzarella di Bufala from Naples. This chef knows his way around an artichoke, not to mention cured fish. Galantine of Organic Chicken, with mostarda di frutta, lentil salad, treviso and arugula dressed with hazelnut vinaigrette. A delicious pate-like dish served with a kind of fruit preserves, which was a nice contrast with the sharpness of the treviso (a type of radicchio, I think) and the arugula. If you see this dish on the menu, do yourself a favor and order it. Penne with lamb meatballs. Sublime. One of those dishes so perfect you want to take as long as humanly possible to eat it because you don't want it to end. In fact, a tear may come to your eye as you savor the last bite. Thanks to Kelli and the staff for excellent service.

Chef Michel Richard is featured in a great radio piece on Chef's Garden, a family farm in Huron, Ohio that caters to chefs around the nation. The story ran on NPR's Morning Edition today. You can listen here: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4566575 Warning: the sounds of Chef Richard in his kitchen and the photos of the vegetables from the farm (on the NPR website) may prompt you to drop everything and run to Citronelle as soon as possible.

I too thought Joe H's story about the staff at the Hot Shoppe looking out for elderly patrons who came in alone every night was touching. But I have to say, the last word that came to my mind when I read Todd Kliman's great piece about Dr. Hall was 'elderly'. He is professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at University of Maryland. That's present tense, meaning he's not retired. In that position, he's most likely still doing research and he most certainly does not spend his days alone. Maybe he enjoys going to Marcel's every night just to relax and escape the faculty squabbles he has to referee. In any case, Kliman's story did not leave me with the impression of a lonely, elderly man, but rather that of a vibrant, interesting person with an active career who has good taste in food and wine (and ambiance, of course), who knows what he likes and sticks with it.

In a feature that ran on the front page of the Metro section of Sunday's Washington Post, Chef Ris Lacoste of 1789 and other women chefs head out for the evening and talk shop. <In the past decade, women have increasingly landed starring roles in the kitchens of some of the nation's best-known restaurants...But government statistics are unequivocal. While women make up more than half of the food-preparation workforce, fewer than one in five is a chef or head cook. The industry's most prestigious awards go mostly to men. Most of the recognized top chefs in the country are men. Most of the students at the L'Academie de Cuisine in Gaithersburg are men. No wonder the women vent.> To see what they vent about, check out the full story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/artic...-2005Mar26.html

Docsconz, One place that’s great for families with a young child is 2 Amy’s. It has excellent pizza and antipasto dishes. It’s one of the best restaurants in the city, I think, and it also happens to be one of the most child-friendly restaurants in all of DC. Kids seem to get a kick out of seeing the guys slide the pizzas in and out of the oven. (There is a thread on 2 Amy’s on egullet, but I’m not sure how to link it -sorry.) It’s three or four miles from downtown, off Wisconsin Avenue. (The address is 3715 Macomb St. NW) It would be a good choice if you felt like venturing away from the Mall for a couple of hours, just for a change of pace. The National Cathedral is nearby - interesting architecture – check out the gargoyles if you go. Have a great trip!

Daddy-A, Thank you so much for this wonderful blog. My husband and I visited Vancouver for the first time last summer and we fell in love with the city. It's an amazing place for anyone who loves food (not to mention gorgeous natural surroundings). At one point, after indulging in an outstanding dinner at West, we briefly contemplated sending for our dog, Gilbert, and moving from DC to Vancouver right then and there. Obviously, we didn’t make the move (at least not yet), but we are inspired by your blog to go back for more visits as often as possible. (And thanks to you and the others on the Vancouver board, we have many, many ideas where to eat when we go.) p.s. Your dogs are adorable. p.p.s. Thanks especially for the photo of Deep Cove. We spent a wonderful day kayaking there. Canucklehead is right - you can spend the day in a beautiful place that feels like an island town and then zip back into Vancouver to eat dinner in one of the best food cities in North America. What's not to like?

[Ah, ah, ah, he says, shaking his finger disapprovingly and with scorn... this will either need to be submitted as an eGullet Calendar Event, or if it's within seven days, to be posted on the ISO DC Dining Friends thread and organized via private mail. Sincerely, Luca Brazzi. ] ← Egads, didn't Luca Brazzi end up sleeping with the fishes? Tell us this is not your fate, DonRocks...

One night last week, I finally had the chance to try the Filipino style spring rolls, and they were delicious. I can see why the spring rolls - and Corduroy in general - has received such high praise! I’d also recommend the parsnip soup and the seared sea scallops with Thai curry sauce, which were served with mashed Kabocha squash. We only had time for a few quick appetizers in the bar this time, so we’ll have to return for a full dinner. Those goat cheese ravioli sound enticing.

Most of the tables were filled on both the weekend nights we went. In fact, one night, by the time we were leaving around 8:15 or so, there were people waiting for tables. Our waiter said they've been busy on Friday and Saturday nights, but the weeknights have been much slower. (By the way, I believe they are also open for lunch on weekdays and for brunch on Sundays.)

Hmmm, I don't remember if they have cassoulet on the menu. If your heart is set on it, you might want to call ahead to check.