liamdc

As a native Bostonian, it's been wonderful to have business bring me back to the city on a regular basis from Washington, DC. I intentionally stay at the Parker House when I'm in town in order to be a stone's throw from No. 9 Park at the corner of Park & Beacon. The quality of the food and the hospitality of frontman Eli, and bartenders John and Ryan keep me coming back. Each time I've eaten at the bar, and enjoyed conversations with the bartenders and fellow diners. Last visit I enjoyed an exquisite dish of chestnut ravioli (made w/ duck proscuitto) along with a surprisingly delicious Napa pinot noir, the 2000 Cote de Carneros (juicy cherry palate, remarkably spicy finish). I had the black pepper cheesecake for the second time - and it didn't disappoint. Next time I may have to have the truffled gnocchi once again. During my second to last visit, a colleague and I split the seven-course tasting menu. Stand-outs included the razor clams and scallops. And the half bottle of Rafanelli zinfandel was one of the best wines I've ever tasted. Bravo!

Nectar is one of the few places in DC that I've found which aspires to a high level of service, ambiance, food preparation, food presentation, and food quality and actually pulls each element off. We certainly need more restaurants in DC that have such high aspirations, to say nothing of needing more that can actually deliver. That said, the oysters and the cheese course on Saturday evening were exquisite. And I certainly hope that I might find the duck confit soup on the menu during my next visit as well! Medals to the following wines (in no particular order): 2000 Stephen Ross Santa Maria Pinot Noir, 2000 Quinta Do Vale Donna Maria Pouro Tinto, 1999 Rolet Vin de Paille. Thanks to Jared & Jamie for a magical experience.

Sara's right here and says thank you thank you!! (I get to enjoy dinner w/ her and Mazman tonite, lucky me!).

Riesling--and an occasional gewurtz--is all I drink with Chinese food anymore. Good cheap options include the Fetzer (Cali) gewurtz and the Hogue (Wash. state) johannisburg riesling. But the '02 German kabinetts go wonderfully with Chinese as well. One of my favorite from the current crop is the 2002 Dr.H. Thanisch Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Kabinett. My local retailer sells it for just under $20 a bottle, which is good value among the better Germans.

Had wonderful pinot noir at No. 9 Park in Boston last night: a 2000 Cote de Carneros from Napa Valley. Cherry palate. Remarkably spicy finish. Might work.

While I disagree that '80s music "is not cool under any situation," I strongly agree with your point about consistent food & service. My experience at Komi suggests consistency is something they need to work on. The Post review may encourage me to try this place again. I guess I'll set out to build a bridge between '80s music and Sinatra fans. I like both genres. But nothing's better to dine to than big band or jazz.

A friend & I visited Buck's last evening for its $20, 3-course Sunday meal. There were 4 appetizer choices. I had the iceburg lettuce/blue cheese/bacon salad featured in the photo accompanying the Washington Post review on Sunday. The cheese was delicious and the dish worked perfectly as a starter. My friend had the beets/sweet potato salad which was marvelously presented - I can't speak to how it tasted. Of 3 entree choices (fish, chicken, sausage), we both had the blackened chicken breast, mainly because we both wanted red wine and didn't want sausage. (Anyone else out there been to try the fish-fry that Tom Sietsema raved about in his review? Last night, the fish was rockfish.) The chicken was tasty, very tender, with a slightly crispy outside, served over a mass of mashed potato and garnished with a leaf of romaine lettuce. We washed it down with an inexpensive French syrah/grenache blend ($19/bottle), which is also offered by the glass. We both had what the waitress described as "chocolate birthday cake" for dessert. It was very moist chocolate cake with a fudgy top and a large dab of creme fraiche on the side. Satisfying. The atmosphere was very cozy, even though we sat right by the front door. As others noted, the service is a bit on the slow side, but it wasn't overly so for us last night. When we arrived about 7 PM, it was full, but we were seated in under 10 miniutes once a table opened. As the evening progressed (by 8 PM), the restaurant began to employ a rather odd policy of seemingly turning away a number of customers by telling them of "an hour wait" even though it was only half to 2/3rds full. Other customers waited 30-45 minutes for a table even though many were open. I'm not sure what was going on, but I'd suggest arriving early on Sundays to avoid being turned away. That said, the bar seems like a rather relaxing place to hang out. Overall, this is a cozy neighborhood restaurant that I'd certainly be willing to try again for its full menu or again for an affordable Sunday dinner.

Maybe they recognized him and gave him good service?

Thanks for the feedback. I *think* the wine was from a new bottle, but it was awhile ago so I can't be certain. In any event, I'll have to give this one another try.

I tried a glass of the 2001 d'Arenberg Shiraz McLaren Vale The Footbolt in Boston about a month ago. I found it to have no nose and a very flat taste. Almost no character at all, frankly. I gave it a while to breathe, but it made little difference. A more wine-knowledgeable friend came to a similar conclusion. Any thoughts on what went wrong with a wine that is supposed to be a goodie? Does this vintage need more cellaring? Might my description suggest it was a bad bottle?

From yesterday's Washington Post in case you missed it... GETTING A NEW LOOK: The last day of December will be the last meal served by Kinkead's (2000 Pennsylvania Ave. NW; 202-296-7700) before it closes for a major renovation. The two-level seafood restaurant is "very worn after 10 years," explains spokeswoman Mimi Schneider. The million-dollar makeover, orchestrated by restaurant designer Russell Stillwell of Next Step Design and architect Jim Ritter, will focus on both the kitchen and the dining areas; executive chef Jerry Cousson, promoted to the top cooking job in October, is working with owner BobKinkead to nudge the menu in some fresh directions, too. With an eye on one of the year's biggest dining occasions, "We're hoping to reopen by Valentine's Day," says Schneider. Not every corner of the restaurant is scheduled for change. "My basement office will still be the same -- unless I redo it," jokes Schneider. -- Tom Sietsema

As the third of the triumverate of mazman and sara to dine at Komi on Monday evening, I thought I'd offer a few words on this thread... First of all, let me preface my remarks by agreeing with Steve who said that one visit to a restaurant should not a complete assessment make. Indeed. Shit happens, sometimes for the worse. It's for this reason that most food critics do not base their reviews on one visit alone. However, they would be dishonest to not factor a bad experience into their overall assessment. That said, I was glad to see sara's posting which I felt sufficiently balanced the largely positive reviews that preceded it. Our experience on Monday evening did not resemble the previous postings. Food notes: Personally, I found the cauliflower/apple puree -- offered to all diners, apparently? -- to be refreshing and delicious. The bread basket was also generously filled and of good quality, including a tasty spread. I had the veal entree, which was very lean, but lacked flavor. I tasted the scallop appetizer. Perhaps I'm more of a New England seafood traditionalist, but the dish didn't float my boat, so to speak. It really lacked a personality for my taste buds, just felt like I was eating something cold and raw (which I often love to do in seafood & sushi restaurants!). The service, as previously mentioned, is a problem. It was very slow on Monday evening, even when the restaurant was hardly filled at the start. Later on, it took more than 10 minutes to receive our check after requesting it and telling the waiter that we were running late. The restaurant did, however, do a good job in dealing with a dirty situation -- namely, a wine glass covered in dust and containing a hair. After having my glass filled from the bottle of red we ordered, I discovered 2/3rds of the rim to be layered in dust, then upon further inspection found a hair to be floating inside it. They poured me a fresh glass of wine from another bottle. Komi definitely needs to do something about the track lighting along the left-hand wall (left side as you enter). It was blinking bright & dark all evening and gave the feeling that sparks could fly at any moment. Plus, the spartan decor struck me as a bit drab. A few wall hangings wouldn't hurt to make it a bit more homey. Echoing mazman, I'm willing to give Komi a second chance sometime ... but honestly I'm more likely to visit a tried-and-true, moderately-priced DC neighborhood establishment like Cashion's, Johnny's Half Shell, or Ardeo/Bardeo before I return to Komi.

As a native Bostonian, but one who's been away several years, I don't profess enough current knowledge to suggest all you're looking for. But recent trips to town make me confident in the below 2 recommendations: No. 9 Park - Boston Magazine has called this place the "best restaurant overall" in the city. I ate at the bar the last time I was in town and enjoyed the truffled gnocchi. It was phenomenal! Terrific service at the bar and a splendid wine list as well. Plus, its location puts you at the foot of one of the most beautiful state capitol buildings in the U.S. No. 9 Park Samuel Adams Brewery - Located in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, this is the best brewery tour I've ever been on, and that includes Guinness in Dublin and Spaten in Munich! Samuel Adams Brewery Tour

I guess I'm looking a little upscale - just above pub grub - but no particular type of food. I'm very flexible. Thanks for the No. 9 Park suggestion. I've been once, but didn't realize they were open for lunch as well. Excellent option.

Can anyone recommend a good place in downtown Boston where one can eat lunch at the bar on a weekday? I'll be staying at the Parker House, so anything between Quincy Market and the Park Plaza area would be convenient. Thanks in advance!

Last time I was at Firefly, there was a wonderful super Tuscan on the wine list (as well as by the glass). It would likely go great with the lamb! ;-)

I was back in my hometown on business this past week and stopped in for drinks & a meal at the bar before returning to DC. In the Drink Dept., I had an amazing pear martini, one of the house specials to start. My friends and I had a great conversation with Eli, the manger, before things got really busy. And the bartender was terrific, very attentive, with great wine suggestions during the evening, plenty of bread. I forget his name though! Sorry! It's been a long week. I had the Truffle Gnocchi off the bar menu ($20). It was a very generously sized portion, garnished with lobster, mushrooms & peas. A creamy, but not overly heavy sauce. With it, I had a glass of the Refosco from Santa Barbara County. A very nice suggestions from the bartender. The dessert was amazing: a Black Pepper Cheesecake (soft cheese, pineapple, and tart green apple). A refreshing Kracher Cuvee from Austria accompanied the dessert splendidly. Even though the restaurant got very busy toward 7:30, it was a very cozy spot. Easy to hold a conversation. Very rich, old-style decor. Nicely lit. I'll be visiting the next time I'm in Boston. And I have my eye on the tasting menu, too.

To say that Minibar was a unique dining experience undercuts how fantastic it actually was. The combination of tastes and textures along with descriptions with the chef & his assistants as well as answers to our frequent questions made it one of the most challenging, interesting, and enjoyable dining experiences I have ever had. To those that haven't been, the concept may strike one as a bit hokey, but you get over that once you're eating! The pace of the meal was quite pleasurable, with small breaks in between preparations of new courses. Chef Kats & his two assistants were a pleasure... Notes about our meal ... the meal "stars" for me included: the spray mojito, anchovy mousse ravioli, the jicama wrap w/ apples & cabrales blue cheese, the watermelon w/ balsamic & trout roe, the mango soup w/ pop rocks, and the pina colada. The two dishes I thought went best in succession were the cotton candy foie gras followed by the conch fritter w/ a liquid center. We had the Uruguayan viognier with our food course. It accompanied the food quite nicely. ¡Vaya! ¡Vaya! ¡Vaya!

I've enjoyed the B.R. Cohn Silver Label Cabernet. I first had the '98 in a restaurant--a vintage I understand wasn't supposed to be the best for California cabernet. Nonetheless, I've subsequently had the '99 which was most enjoyable (80% San Luis Obispo/20% Sonoma). www.brcohn.com

Otter Creek Copper Ale from Middlebury, Vermont. http://www.ottercreekbrewing.com

Yes, Castlemaine XXXX is produced in Queensland, Australia. I once heard a Sydney native derisively say about Queenslanders and XXXX, "They call it 4 X because they don't know how to spell 'piss.'" I tried XXXX back in the '90s when they began importing it into the U.S. I was *not* impressed. It is no longer imported into the U.S. if my understanding is correct. We're not missing much. Liam

Singha is nothing special in my opinion. Frankly, I prefer a lager like Rolling Rock to Singha.

Sake's OK. I went dancing there a couple of weekends ago--but it is very loud to lounge around (at least later on). Have you tried Mantis in A-M? Comfy couches, good Asian bites and decent drinks as well. Liam

Ah, WoodleyGirl, you must be one of the crowd from the Hall of the States. Maybe we'll see him at Bistro Bis soon. Liam

For the one special meal, you might consider Nectar. Up in Cleveland Park, you might look at Ardeo as well as Bardeo--its companion wine bar/small food plate room. I second the suggestion of Indique in that neighborhood as well. Down in Dupont, Johnny's Half Shell, BeDuCi, and Pizzeria Paradiso would be excellent candidates for a meal.