Busboy

I conducted a completely inadvertant, unscientific and unfair comparison this weekend that may be, nevertheless, supportive of Craig's thesis. I dashed into one of DC's better wine shops Saturday night, looking for an under $20 Bordeaux-ish red to accompany what turned out to be overpriced and underperforming steaks. After hunting through the California section for a Cabernet or, better yet, a Cabernet with a splash of Merlot (the Bordeaux at this place tend to start at $50 and go from there,so I went Cali). There were a lot of labels I recognized as decent - I drink Hess and I'm not ashamed -- but nothing inspired me and I grabbed a $17 bottle of Clos du Bois Cab and headed towards the door. And then I saw a bin of Chateau les Grands Marechaux, a Merlot-heavy Bordeax Cotes de Blaye (an appellation I confess I'd never heard of) with a nice blurb from the Wine Advocate posted above it. What the hell. It was a little light for what I wanted, more Merlot than the Cab I was craving, but it opened up really well and, after an hour was aq damn elegant little bottle of $12.99 wine. You know, not perfect, but it kind of made you feel like you'd made a discovery. Today, I dashed into a corner grocery looking for a bottle of red and grabbed a "Twin Fin" California Cab. What a mistake -- what a waste of $10. And as I flipped through today's posts and came across this thread, it occurred to me that, whatever may be going on out west, there are absolutely zero California wines available in DC for under $20 that aren't huge production, marketing-driven nonentities. But I can still stumble across a wine like Grands Marechaux heaped under a hand-lettered sign, for less than fifteen bucks, and have one of those moments where you look up and say, "not freakin' bad," and make a mental note to buy more. Point to the French. (In fairness, I had a $50 [restaurant price] Gigondas Friday night that utterly sucked, so I am under no illusion that the French are perfect).

I actually like Vace, too, and it's handy especially since individual slices are sold. About a third the size of one at Ray's, a pepperoni, onion or spinach slice is handy while running errands.... And since I have a soft spot for New Haven-style I am curious about Comet, though the reference to white clams I swear I read earlier made me think Pepe's might be the source of inspiration. ← I am reasonably certain that Comet's pizza has nothing to do with the traditional New Haven style. Way too postmodern. I think it's New Haven in the sense that they try to create a casual neighborhood pizza joint atmosphere, not in the actual construction of the pies.

I think Philly probably has better pizza than DC and I am not -- yuppie though I am -- a fan of "authentic" pizza's, as they tend to be expensive and bland (though 2 Amy's isn't bad). My favorite place is Vace, [(202) 363-1999 3315 Connecticut Ave Nw] which inspires equal parts devotion and loathing. It has a couple of those local "Best of DC" Awards, some people leave the room screaming at its mention. Vace offers up an ideosynchratic pie -- the cheese is under the sauce -- but, with a little extra sauce (just ask), it is my favorite. If coming in from Arlington, invest in a pizza stone and put it in a 500 degree oven while you drive out and back (carryout only), it crisps up nicely. The hot new spot is Comet Ping Pong. I believe this will ultimately prove as divisive as Vace -- I'm not even sure I'm going to like it in the end -- but it's worth checking out, and anyone who considers themselves reasonably informed on DC Pizza will have to try it once. Alberto's is pretty darn good and comes in under most people's radars. May be the closest thing to Philly style, too. Largely a carryout, so remember the pizza stone. Also, bring a friend for the pick-up, because the parking nearby is awful.

An here it is. I don't usually go to the demonstrations, but I might stop by for Fabio. As long as he doesn't do that stupid lobster raviolit again...I've seen that twice on TV.

Lori -- The cheese is traditionally served after the main course and before dessert. I won't serve cheese as an hors d'oeuvre or significant part of another course, but that's just my prefernece: I like to build the anticipation. We usually eat the cheese spread on bread; when I have seen cheese eaten without bread, people usually use a fork (or a straw, in the case of something particularly runny ) You sound like you're doing a great job, next time you come to DC, let us know and we'll let you know where to by some great stuff that Sam's has never heard of. (Great thing about France: their version of Sam's Club has an amazing cheese selection) That being said, I am deeply suspicious of any suggestions of the "correct" way to assemble and serve a cheese course. Follow a couple rules of thumbs that have already been mentioned here -- vary milk and texture, for example -- put the cheese on the plate and pass it around. I usually just wander over to the cheese counter and decide what I'm in the mood for the day of the dinner. Cheese is a great part of the meal, particularly if I'm cooking: after all the work and intensity of the first courses, it's a chance to sit back, relax, and finish off the dinner wine. Maybe with a salad. Maybe with some fruit, or fruit compote-y things. Since you're probably serving a variety of cheeses, the wine selection is almost irrelevant: what single wine is a "perfect" match for a French blue, a Spanish sheep's cheese and a California Chevre? (appropos of Vadouvan's suggestion for savory accompaniments, slapping some oil-cured sun-drieds on chevre turns out quite well. Also try roast peppers.) The proper way to serve cheese is the way you enjoy it most. No points will be deducted for not following the book.

Craig -- I'm glad you wrote this. Despite my innate enthusiasm for for the Home Team and this American wines, I've long been disappointed at how mid-priced Yank wines stand up to their French counterparts. A Few years ago, it was even better, as I recall, with good Cru Bourgeois Bordeaux and village level Cotes du Rhone often available in the $10 range. A question: since I've spent time in Languedoc (and read often of the plight of their winegrowers), it's becoe an inexpensive and sentimental favorite. Unfortunately, the quality varies greatly. In addition to the obvious advice -- the list of importers you provided, looking for AOC wines, avoiding Red Bicyclette -- is there anything else I should look for when hunting bargains in the South of France?

From today's on-line chat with Tom Sietsema:

was making chocolate mousse with my daughter the other morning and at some point after we took the melted chocolate (and coffee and vanilla) off the double boiler but before we stirred in the egg yolks and sugar, the chocolate began to break down, the solids separating from the oil. Why? I wouldn't have been so surprised if we'd been melting the chocolate over direct heat and overheated it, or if it was still on the boiler, but it was just sitting, cooling on the counter. In desparation, we threw it under the KitchenAid's whisk treatment, and it seem to reform nicely, and the mousse was saved. Why was that?

Excellent -- please report back on the Ethiopian. The competition is very hot right now and any feedback will be appreciated.

I second Heather's suggestion, with the warning that service issues -- unfortunately, a hallmark of Donna restaurants -- may arise. Heck, I might go there tonight myself.

This blogger had a similar experience at Le Cirque recently and his mother wrote a letter....here is how the story ends http://www.amateurgourmet.com/the_amateur_..._from_siri.html ← I have to say, nothing in the review that I can discover justifies the blogger's dismay. Sirio failed to air kiss them. Astoundingly enough, for a first visit on a Friday night, they didn't get seated in the main dining toom with the regulars who have dropped tens of thoussands of dollars there over the years, but in the second room. And, most tragic, when they sent the artichoke back as uncooked, the dastardly waiter....(wait for it)... (wait)....AGREED with them! Those bastards! Unlike Beefcheeks, the Amateur Gourmet clearly had a chip going in and, whatever other sins may darken Sirio's soul, he handled an unfair review with aplomb.

I would be much surprised if Maestro is open, but it would be great if you could ring them and post back whatever you discover, for others in your situation. I do know that -- towards the other end of the scale -- Bistro du Coin will be open for what I assume will be a drunken and raucus Thanksgiving Day, marked by harassed and harassing service (best order wine by the bottle, it may be a while 'til the waiter gets back) and capped by Michel occupying the large central table about 11:30 and gleefully lighting his last, legal, indoor Thanksgiving cigar. Also, if you're with a crowd, a big table at one of the Vietnamese restaurants at Eden Center might be fun.

Those look great. I wonder if you could give us an idea of the cost/effort versus store-bought. Also, how different is the flavor?

I seem to recall from Jacque Pepin's memoire that when, as a child, he was sent out of occupied Paris to stay on the farm with poor relatives, he at at a heavy wooden table into which bowls had been carved. They simply ladled the stew into the into the hollows on the table, and wiped them clean (with stale bread, no doubt) after dinner. Makes the prospect of setting an extra place for guests a little daunting. Marlene: those settings look as though they're ready for what used to be described to me a "Russian Service", where the the waiter serves a course on the top vessel to each guest around the table; clears after the guests are finished, revealing the plate for the next course; and repeats the process, like Maxwell Smart trying to get into Control HQ, until the final plate is reached. Is that the case? Or do they clear the whole setting? Or is that just for show. Chez moi, when we dig the china out, we do it as I learned in a formal French restaurant: we have the chargers in front of the guests when they sit down and leave them through a drink and perhaps an amuse, until they are whisked away for the first course (only to re-appear with the main course, because I like big plates).

Having spent some quality time at the Rue Cler Market, I hope the place does weel simply on the basis of its name.

I'd stand that on its head and say that Italian Food isn't too difficult to make and the ingredients are relatively inexpensive. Thus, you can put relatively inexperienced (read:lower-paid) people on the line and charge entree near-entree prices for noodle dishes, thus pushing the tricky economics of restaurant ownership a bit further in your favor -- while turning out tasty food. How many of us cook Italian at home as a kind of go-to food for a nice mid-week meal (I had scallops, pancetta and mushrooms over crwamy polent last night, myself). Not to dis Italian chefs -- there are many levels of complexity that a chef can achieve, and their passion (or the passion of a committed owner) will come through in the quality of their ingredients and their commitment to their customers. But I think hitting that profitable middle ground (above "ethnic" but below "necktie") is easier with Italian than with a lot of other foods.

Methinks you mean RX but who knows, there could be a PX which also happens to be a cozy BYO If in fact it is RX, you selected quite a good one indeed ← It was indeed Rx (there's a hot new place in DC called "PX", hence the confusion) and is was selected after perusing some other eGullet threads -- given the quality of the PA board (I especially trusted Rich Pawlack on this) it is no surprise that I stumbled into a great spot.

Open it for fun. Have a backup. B&G is the kind of wine I found pretty darn classy from roughly the time discovered it, as an 18-year-old busboy in a department store restaurant impressed by the acceptable quality of the wine and the legant Frenchiness of the label (it didn't have the funny beflagged house you see in the link), and the time I actually started learning something about wine. If I recall, Pommards are tough old birds, maybe you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Thanks everybody for your suggestions. In the end, I lost control of the weekend to The Boy, who was desperate to get out of the 'burbs and into downtown. After a couple of hours showing us around South Philly, he allowed us to drag him off to a very good meal at PX. I was pleased to finally make it to a Philly BYOB. The restaurant was cozy, the food very good and I quite enjoyed talking about the vagaries of Philadelphia restauranteuring with a gentleman who appeared to be the owner. For beakfast the next morning we went to Milkboy Coffee house, my son's hangout of choice. A fine independent coffee house with a good brie and ham sandwich However, it looks like I will be back up in two weeks for several days (when The Boy, presumably, will be too busy to drag me into Philly) so your recommendations will not have gone for naught. Thanks.

Looks as though we're off to Ardmore to visit the boy, who has -- like his father -- run off to do a campaign. This means he has likely been living on Subway subs and Starbucks products for many weeks, so we'd like to get him a decent meal. There's a chance we'll go into Philly (I'll consult other threads on that, but if anyone wants to suggest something, I'll listen carefully), but more likely we'll stay out near the Main Line. Think something mid- to middle-upper level: a place you wouldn't wear sneakers to but don't need a tied for. Thanks. PS: Quality diners for Sunday breakfast also appreciated.

I don't know a damn thing about Key West dining, but if the whole idea of eating dinner on Thanksgiving at Alice's restaurant doesn't tickle you, find someone over 45 who smoked dope is his or her youth, and ask them why you should do it. "Walk right in it's around the back Just a half a mile from the railroad track You can get anything you want at Alice's Restaurant Now it all started two Thanksgivings ago, was on - two years ago on Thanksgiving, when my friend and I went up to visit Alice at the restaurant..."

Thanks for doing this, chef. And cngratulations on an extremely strong showing in the Post's dining guide. You must be a culinary Midas -- every restaurant you touch seems to turn to, if not gold, at least silver. My question is, with all the demands on your time, how much time do you actually get to spend cooking? How do you keep your chops? Have you ever considered starting -- as Roberto did -- something like Il Laboratorio, where you can indulge in "sky's the limit" cooking one or two nights a week in a small setting, without having to take too much time from your other responsibilities or break the rhythms of the excellent chefs now winning stars at Jaleo, Atlantico etc.?

The Thai room -- either the pioneer that brought Thai to DC or the abomination that held Thai food back a decade by frightening all of us away from it -- is finally gone. Well, it's been closed for months (years?) but that old sign finally came down the other week and the new joint is open: Comet Ping Pong. Though it is the offspring of the dynamic duo in charge of Buck's Fishing & Camping, the pizza parlor apparently owes its name to last year's sad passing of liquor store owner and neighborhood legend Sid Drazin, who, with his wife Bernice, ran Adams-Morgan's Comet Liquors for 25 years. Carole Greenwood and James Alefantis have acquired the sign and, barring objection from the usual neighborhood cranks, will get it up, no doubt, where they're good and ready. In the mean time, I'm glad these guys were the ones to get hold of of it (for more about Sid and a look at the sign, click here). Inside, the front room feels like a warehouse from just outside the Green Zone, but with TriBeCa lighting and booths that look like ping-pong tables set between park benches. The walls are maybe 15 feet high and have been overpainted and distressed, achieving an effect similar to a tenement hallway that's been repainted every decade or so, with different layers peeling away at different rates as the neighborhood collapses and the crack dealers move in. The wall behind the bar is lightened with blown up black and whites of friends of the owners including, I was pleased to see, farmer hearthrob Mark Toigo of Toigo Orchards and force of nature Cinda Sebastion of Gardener's Gourmet (the folks who used to sell their greens by the bowlful). There isn't much vegetation on the menu, but I expect it will be fresh. The back room has the ping-pong tables, balls an paddles and, with its cement floors and overhead lights resembles nothing so much as the garage at a 50's vintage Citgo. I kept waiting for bay doors to open up and Buik with a bad tranny to be pushed in. In other words, the place is totally cool. How Upper Northwest, long a refuge for people determined to prove that the city can be as boring as the suburbs, will take to it, I know not. One promising sign vis a vis the neighbors: in attitude, decore and layout the place is totally kid friendly. There is nothing to break, the servers are friendly and, apparently, anything goes in the back room, so let the little monsters mess around back there. In fact, if you ever spent a rainy afternoon in a friend's basement or garage playing ping-pong or bumper pool, you'll likely find the back room delightful. Oh, and there's pizza Pretty good pizza, in fact. Very good. It is unwise and unfair to take too detailed a look at a restaurant that hasn't even gotten its sign up yet, and I have no idea how it compares to the New Haven pies their pizza is modeled on, but I think Comet is very serious player in the pizza wars. Yeasty crust with lots of crunch. Quality cheese. The toppings are excellent, with a few offering a slight twists on familiar themes (as one might expect): not onions, but carmelized onions, not peppers but roasted peppers. My only disappointment was a the strikingly small brush of sauce on the red pizzas, not even enough to fully coat the bottom of the pie. Further investigation will be needed to determine if that was the recipe, or an aberration. I had excellent pepperoni, my wife loved her white pizza with clams (blessedly not served in the shell), and I liked it quite a bit, too. Daughter (13) gave it an "ok", but she eats Domino's willingly. The wine is cheap and, well, it's a good pizza wine. The beer selection is modest but sounded good, and there's a full bar. Service was enthusiastic. Tables are available. We are going back. Comet Ping Pong 5037 Connecticut Ave. NW; 202-364-0404

Depending on your wine/booze consumption, I think you'll be pushing the edge of your budget envelope (after tax and tip) at either Bis or Palmer, but they are both excellent choices (as is Johnny's) And, depending on your willingness to travel, there are a lotof other choices within a 5-minute cab/20-minute walk. Try the Penn Quarter neighborhood, which is begins maybe ten blocks from the the hotel -- though it's an "interesting" walk if you don't know the area. This is the hipster neighborhood, so you're always in danger of being served a brutally expensive martini colored in a way you don't usually identify with gin. But old guys like me appreciate all the eye candy and there is some excellent food to be had. Rasika serves excellent Indian in a wonderful setting; tapas at Jaleo are excellent and the atmosphere more informal, and many like Zatinya. The browsing is imperfect, but if you click onto the DC forum home page, and go to your lower left for a forum-specific search, the results are usually pretty good.

Sorry it took so long to get back.... We've been "basementing" our wines -- as oppposed to "cellaring" them -- for going on two decades now and, while I am sure the results are not what they would be had we kept the wines in ideal conditions, we find that they do mature and improve, rather than cooking and dying. Indeed, given that the conditions are warmer than a cellar would be, we may be getting our age and development a little quicker than those with better facilities -- kind of a microwave Merlot effect. (Admit it -- that phrase made you cringe) That being said, your point is well taken, and we periodically purge the cellar of anything that's been down "too long," try to focus on wines that approach maturity a little more quickly. Rather than start an argument on what grapes those would be, let me say only that we have very little Barolo. We strive for a consistent temperature. And, despite my carping about the high price of first growths, we do keep an eye out for the kind of mid-priced (by oenophile standards) wines that get deaccessioned by quality wine shops at a discount after a few years in the cellars to make way for the new vintages -- a less-known grand cru Bordeaux from a good but not great year, say, that's enjoyed five or six years of high-quality care, and will continue to improve for another four or five in the basement. That's one problem with the cattle call nature of the event and with my own inexperience -- hard for me make an informed judgement. And, it's entirely possible that they wines were wonderful, but that Baumard's house style just doesn't grab me. Guess I'll just have to taste more.