KSPS

I think a restaurant with a private dining room would be your best bet. Here are a few of my favorite restaurants, generally, that also have private rooms: Taberna del Alabardero (18th street) has two private dining rooms that are sized right for your group. I love the food and service at this elegant restaurant. If you've ever dined in Europe, you know the table is yours for the night to linger and talk. That's the way it is at Taberna. 1789 (Georgetown) is very, very Washington DC and your out of town guests might appreciate the atmosphere. The only thing old-fashioned about this restaurant is the decor; the food is interesting Modern American cuisine. I was once in the Garden Room with a private party and that room has the least interesting decor. Ask to make sure you know where your table will be. I like the Manassas Room. Note: The restrooms are not wheelchair accessible. I second the recommendation for Restaurant Nora. The food is wonderful, but the food politics can be a bit tedious. Just don't read the flip side of the menu. KSPS

You're making me seriously jealous! We did the Florence gelato/art scene last month, but I've been gelato free since returning home. Here are some additional recs for gelato in Rome: Della Palma (Via della Maddelena 20/23): This is located on the road heading north out of the Piazza della Rotunda on the left with your back towards the Pantheon. This is not the place to go for those who have difficulty making up their minds. The variety is daunting! The quality is very high here -- about on par with Giolitti -- but I think the other places I mention have creamier gelato. The strong appeal for this place is the opportunity to try unique flavors. Their chocolate -- in its infinite varieties -- is the draw for me here. Cremeria Monteforte (Via della Rotunda 22): The place has quality that rivals San Crispino, which is routinely dubbed the best gelato in Rome. The flavors are very, very intense; their pistachio sets the standard. This place is tiny and looks like nothing much. As a result, the crowds are less here than at the name places, like Giolitti, or glitzier places, like Della Palma, in the Piazza della Rotunda area. Fiocco de Neve (Via Del Pantheon 51): This is located on the road heading north out of the Piazza della Rotunda on the right with your back towards the Pantheon. Traditional assortment of flavors and very, very high quality. Their intense, dark, not-too-sweet chocolate is my absolute favorite. San Crispino (Via della Panetteria 42) : This is the place to go to try fruit gelato and adult flavors like liquor or liqueurs. Wonderfully intense version of anything they make. Perhaps the antiseptic appearance of the place puts people off. For a location close to the Trevi Fountain and its reputation as the best gelato in Rome, the place has been remarkably empty all the times I've gone there. Even without having heard about this place, the rave reviews posted should draw in more customers.

Time to diet! We hit four restaurants during RW. As most people have discovered, our feelings about RW relate to how much of the routine menu is available. Here's the rundown: Tuesday -- Colvin Run Tavern: This continues to be one of our favorites whether for RW or non-RW -- a distinction admittedly related to the fact that it is the best food that's only a ten-minute drive from our house. The RW menu includes approximately six appetizers, six entrees, and three desserts. The RW menu is the only one in existence during the promotion; there's no two-tier system in effect as in Taberna del Alabardero. The RW menu is a mixture of dishes from the regular menu and unique options. For example, my flounder with artichokes and tasso ham is a dish I've enjoyed other times we've dined there, but my husband's short ribs were unique to RW. Perhaps the sheer number of choices avoided the step-child vibes that some RW menus give off. Taberna's meal certainly felt that second-class citizen. Reading the options at a RW meal at Melrose didn't excite anyone in our party last summer, although the taste of every dish turned out to be great. Wednesday -- Ten Penh: We've done DC Coast during a previous Summer RW and Ceiba, and Ten Penh during Winter RW. I recommend the promotion for any of the sibling restaurants. At all three restaurants, patrons are handed the whole menu, but given a verbal explanation that the promotion has limits for the appetizer and dessert course with an upcharge for one dish among the entrees. At TenPenh, my husband and son loved their authoritatively spiced calamari salad, and I would thoroughly enjoyed the lumpia, particularly the three dipping sauces that accompany the order. My husband and son think the lamb prepared three ways was one of the best dishes they've ever eaten. I have less charitable feelings about my entree course because I wasn't served for about fifteen minutes after their food arrived at the table. Then, I was served primarily because I took action. I corralled a runner who had brought food to a nearby table. Whether or not he alerted our waitress, I don't know. She came over a couple of minutes later and asked, "Where's your dinner?" I replied, "Good question." A manager arrived shortly bringing my softshell-crab entree, apologized profusely and walked away. I took one bite of the crabs, tasted the overly sweet teriyaki sauce, and wondered whether I should return the dish entirely. Instead, I scraped off the sauce and continued eating. The manager returned and, this time, informed us that my meal would be free. Thursday -- Ceiba: The best experience of the week. Last winter, I don't recall any of the ceviches being included in RW, but this time the shrimp cevice was offered. Our friend enjoyed that, but it was at the limit of his tolerance for spice. The rest of us ordered the golden gazpacho, and it was simpy the best gazpacho we've ever eaten. The addition of crab and the spiced tomato sorbet made for a wonderful play of flavors. All the entrees -- the combination crab cake and softshelled crab entree, the skewered shrimp, and scallops -- were excellent. Friday -- Taberna del Alabardero:We hadn't been to Taberna for a little over a year, so we decided to visit again during restaurant week. The RW week promotion is very, very limited, and nothing on the special menu also appears on the regular menu. Appetizers consist of two: cream of potato soup or a tossed salad with duck confit and sliced pears. The three people who ordered the soup, loved it but found that it filled them up. Two people thoroughly enjoyed the salad. One of the two entree possibilities -- mahi mahi with mushrooms in white wine -- was a success. The other choice -- flank steak -- was declared tasty enough but too chewy. The service was as polished as always, and the table was ours for the night. We lingered talking over our coffee, and, eventually, asked for the check. Although we had a perfectly enjoyable dinner experience, I wouldn't bother going during RW again. We had reservations for dinner last night at Bistro Bis with friends, but they had to cancel, and my husband and I decided we'd had enough so we cancelled, too. KSPS

Next week, my husband and I will be in Miami for one night before heading off to points south. I'd love to have some recommendations for a wonderful restaurant featuring Pan Latino or regional Florida cuisine. Talula is the restaurant we're drawn to from our own limited knowledge, but I'd love to learn more from people who know the Miami food scene. Thanks! KSPS

I love sushi and I eat it for lunch a couple of times a week in restaurants in N Virginia. The restaurants are small neighborhood restaurants; the one I patronize most frequently is owned by the sushi chef and the manager is his wife. I rarely sit at the sushi counter. I tip 20% on the bill including tax. However, I have never tipped the sushi chef. Occasionally, I see a patron putting a dollar or so in a glass bowl on the sushi counter. Recently, the first person who did this bought take-out. The second person who did this ate at the counter. What's the etiquette on tips for a sushi chef? (FWIW, I was taught that one didn't tip the owner of a beauty salon. I'd be tempted to say anything I was taught is dated; however, I've even read that same guidance within the month.) All Advice Welcome! KSPS

I ate at Vidalia within the past two months -- our first time since the rennovations were completed -- and I thought the food was as good as ever. Everyone in our group of five was happy. No sense of being "rusty" in spite of the long break for rennovations. I can't remember what we ate. (That's probably a function of the fact that we dine out a lot.) We had a long wait for our drinks to arrive, but our waiter made sure the rest of the meal went smoothly. We have reservations for Vidalia during Restaurant Week. I don't know how you feel about THE WASHINGTONIAN's restaurant guide, but they include Vidalia in their top category of four-star restaurants. Karen

During the summer RW, Charlie Palmer had offered two or three set menus. I think one was a beef entree and the other was a fish entree. There may have been a chicken option. This is in contrast to other restaurants offering many choices much less anything on the regular menu for the basic price. Everyone in our group of four ultimately liked his/her food, but there was less of a sense of anticipation. We clearly had settled on a choice from among the offerings. If you're on a limited budget, this may still be the best way to try Charlie Palme. Certainly the style of the restaurant and the service makes for a lovely experience. Karen Selwyn

I know that this one has been done before, but I can't seem to locate the thread. I do remember Nectar being the clear choice. With that gone, what are some other great restaurants within walking distance of the Kennedy Center. Thanks! With Nectar gone, we usually eat at Aquarelle in the hotel at the Watergate. The food is neither sublime or adventuresome, but it's always tasty, service is pleasant and professional, and the finances of eating there are incredible when factoring in parking. Parking in the hotel lot is complimentary for patrons of the restaurant, which means you get to save the $15 parking fee for the Kennedy Center lot. There's one catch: The hotel parking lot closes at 11:00 p.m. If you can't retrieve your car by 11:00 p.m., you aren't going to retrieve your car that night! You'll need to know the running time of the show you're seeing at the Kennedy Center to use the hotel parking with confidence. A couple more comments about the food: There are several prix fixe menus along with a la carte choices. The lowest price prix fixe cost $39 for a three-course meal. There are menus with more courses and, predictably, higher tabs. The food includes a few innovative touches, but it mainly sticks to predictable but well-executed new American cuisine. The kitchen is wonderful about substitutions; changes are cheerfully accepted and reliably delivered as asked.

If you go to the web site now, you'll find some new text to the effect that participating restaurants will be posted December 23.