bookluvingbabe

2 hours and ten minutes until an early V-Day dinner at Firefly. I may have to walk there from Cap. Hill to earn enough points to enjoy myself but who cares? Fried Oysters and bittersweet chocolate panna cotta are beckoning...

Le Bon usually closes at 5 or 5:30 and I think Pete's closes at 3. Jennifer

I really like Tortilla Coast, across from Capitol South. Beyond that much of the area around the Folger is a black hole... Jennifer, in year 14 of working in the area....

We had a decent lunch at Starfish Cafe today. I wasn't wowed although my boss was. The spicy hush puppies were a nice touch to start with. I had the crab cake sandwich. More than a few bites of shell in there. A very nice saffron-lime tartar sauce that was sort of smeared on the roll--I would have asked for it on the side if I had thought of it-- was lost in the bread. The fries and cole slaw were just average. My boss had the ceviche and was in heaven. No dessers for us and now I'm left reading about the calzone special at 2 Amy's and wondering how much of a workout I would need to do at the gym to justify a second lunch! Jennifer

I can't imagine it's any different than what it was back at the top of this thread. ← I was afraid that was the answer... Sigh... Jennifer

Anyone been to Starfish Cafe lately??? I have a lunch meeting there this week--trying to figure out what to eat. Thanks!

We went last night. Perfect as always! Let's see--we had the lobster bisque (heavenly), scallops and shrimp (still too spicy for me but I've learned to order a glass of cava and just enjoy.... ), caesar salad (not as sharp or dressing-y as I remember but still good). We were pretty full by then but the 12 ounce strips still beckoned. I had mine with mushrooms and Mr. BLB had his "au poivre." Good but I think the hanger steak is our best choice and we'll be back to ordering that next time. (And for the record, Michael, I don't think once a month is being a regular!!! Wait 'til you see how much you see us in Silver Spring! ) How many ounces is the hanger, on average? I'm back in the Weight Watchers mode as of this morning and I'm wondering how many points that puppy's going to be. We finished with the chocolate mousse (no sharing--we tried and failed last go round) and the heavenly hot chocolate. (The Starbucks drinking chocolate is a fair substitute when the Ray's hot chocolate starts to haunt your dreams, BTW. Not perfect but respectable...) We were in and out in under 90 minutes. As always we drove home negotiating when we can make a return trip! And l had a VERY nice lunch just now with the leftovers. Jennifer, a very happy second-class customer....

What about having pies as the centerpieces?

God knows we need some edible food on the Hill! Very cool--I walked past the space the other day and wondered what was going in! Jennifer

Anyone know if that divine whole wheat pasta dish is still on the cafe menu? Thanks! Jennifer

I would happily eat every meal at Fins. The best shrimp burritos I've ever had. http://www.fins.net/ We also had a few nice meals in the Gaslamp area. The Courtyard by Marriot in the area had a lovely smoked pork chop... Good luck!

Anyone been lately? Found out this is where Mr. BLB is taking me this evening for the big b-day. I fear I may be a bit too tired to fully enjoy it after spending last night stuck in the airport and taking a very bumpy commuter flight home this morning! Thanks! Jennifer

Thanks for the reminder--just called to score a table for the 30th. (Please tell me I didn't just make plans for super bowl Sunday....) Looking forward to trying to the new location... Jennifer

How long should we give it? A week or two? I don't want to get my hopes up but it would be nice to have a joint around the corner. Especially on a night like tonight where a trek to Palena just seems too far! Jennifer

Same here. It's sounds like a delightful place. I had planned to be there tonight but alas, something came up. ← Indeed! Don't you hate it when real life gets in the way of important things like reading, chewing and discussing???? Still... I need to get myself over there and to Red Bean. It's really not that far from Van Ness. Jennifer

hmmm, if it was duck, so much for my ability to identify ingredients. in any case, i highly recommend this dish! ← Who knew Whole Wheat pasta could taste that good???? I never would have agreed to share with Mr. BLB if I had known! Another very nice evening, though marred slightly by a server who "forgot" to mention the cookie plate as a dessert option. We ended up sharing a lovely chocolate tart but were very sad to leave and see cookie plates on other tables. Sigh... Jennifer

I just wanted to add that when I made reservations at Firefly for NY Eve (this afternoon) they asked for a credit card (which I assume explains why I couldn't make it on Opentable)--I asked for cancellation guidelines and then gave them my number. No problem with giving it when I know damn well whom I'm talking to. If they had called back five minutes or five days or five weeks later, there is no way I would have given it out over the phone.. I don't think the issue is asking for a cc, the issue is the way it was implemented in this case. Just my two cents... Jennifer

And I certainly wouldn't give my card number out over the phone to some unknown person. (This isn't a slam against Corduroy--I worship at the alter that is Tom Power...) At the very least it's poor planning on their part to ask so late in the game or it's a really cool scam someone thought up... Or did they dramatically overbook and are trying to thin the ranks by making calls... If you decide to keep the reservation, I'd call and make sure to get name rank and serial number before handing over my card information. But that's just me! Jennifer Thank you. That was my point (or my peeve). ←

Have you tried the squash soup with the pumpkin pie oil???? Ask for extra cilantro and be transported to another dimension... All the fall cocktails are lovely too! Jennifer

Are my eyes deceiving me??? No Corduroy???? Sigh... Jennifer

I thought about stopping at Palena tonight for a burger and decided, somewhat ala Jimminy Cricket, to let the parking gods be my guide. Alas, someone pulled into the space in front of Palena JUST ahead of me... I came home to slightly fizzy apple cherry cider, warmed up nicely, and scrambled eggs with cheese curds from the farmers market. Definitely not a Palena burger but I can go work on my Gilmore Girls marathon instead. Next time... Jennifer

Is anyone interested in trying this out "on a whim" on Wednesday evening if they are open? ← I wish I could--that menu both scares me and makes my mouth water. Alas, previous commitments intrude. I hope someone will report on these two dishes especially: Cilantro Braised Lamb Shank w/ White Beans Ravioli, Cilantro Cream & Baby Spinach Moulard Duck Breast (Rare Only) w/ Dried Strawberry Sauce and Wild Mushroom Strudel Jennifer

We had another fabu evening at Firefly on Friday. And we finally ventured into unchartered territory and ordered a different app--the spring rolls. I only had a taste but WOW! Mr. BLB was using soaking up the last of the dipping sauce with the bread. Definitely a winner. I had the lamb, he had the ribeye. Wonderful all around and I thought the mac& cheese was an improvement over previous versions--much richer and a little bit burnt on top. Yummy and I had enough lamb leftover to make it breakfast on Saturday morning. No dessert--I had just come from the office partry after all....Next time though, especially if the bittersweet panna cotta is still on the menu. Jennifer

After nearly a month of dreaming of the squash soup, I have convinced the husband that dinner at Firefly is in order this evening. It means I can't stuff myself silly with shrimp at my office Christmas party this afternoon, but some sacrifices are worth making. Jennifer

So.... I'm planning ahead. Mr. BLB wants to know where I want to go for my birthday in January. This year my birthday falls on a Sunday. We're flying back into town on Saturday night so no celebrating the day before. Somewhere in the back of my mind I seem to recall hearing that Sunday's aren't the best days to go out for fine dining --the Chef is often not in the kitchen. Is that true? Was it ever true? My first instinct is to go to Citronelle. Hubby has never been and I had an amazing dinner with 2 girlfriends as a last celebration before the wedding; we were re-creating a dinner we had at Citrus 8 years ago--totally lived up to our memories as one of our top 5 dining experiences. I know we could go to Corduroy or Firefly or Ray's and have a totally amazing meal. Or wait a few days and go to Palena. BUT...we go to all of these on a regular basis. I love them but they don't necessarily feel like special occasion places to me anymore. Ideas? Suggestions? The only real limitation is being open on a Sunday and being either Metro-able or an easy taxi ride. No Inn at Little Washington please. Thanks! Jennifer