sara

Any suggestions?? Any special drinks or desserts? Anything but eating them plain would be appreciated. Thanks

I want to draw your attention to my thread in the Philadelphia forum on Salt restaurant--I think it may interest many of you, especially those in the industry. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=33747

Katie, I actually DO agree with you that it's not the restaurant's obligation to take back wine if it's fine, but just not to the guest's taste. I feel slightly ambivalent about this, since I think a really generous place WOULD do such a thing, but certainly understand it's not an obligation. When my friend announced her distaste for the wine, in front of the waitress--after I had already tasted it and pronounced it quite good and passed it to her, next to me--I replied that I was sorry but didn't know what we could do about it. She responded--to the waitress--"why ask if it's ok if I'm not allowed to say I don't like it?" I then told her that the waitress was asking if it was of good quality, i.e. corked, not if it was to her liking per se (tho that IS what I was asking). The main problem I had is that the waitress said NOTHING. No apology, no comment, no suggestion, simply stared at my friend. I don't think that was the right response, and it made my next move (to order an additional bottle of wine, adding to the friend's mother's credit card bill), more awkward. Yes, I could've called ahead and asked about malbecs, but since I'd been there on two previous occasions, and both times a malbec was on the list, I wasn't worrying about it. In fact, one waiter did apologize that by some bad stroke of luck, there wasn't one last night. I bet it'll be remedied. As to why we didn't go to Cuba Libre? We wanted good food. And after reading about the owners' trip to Cuba (in the Philly Mag), which ended with their conclusion that "what Cuba needs is a Cuba Libre" I have no desire to bother with that place. Yes, my birthday friend likes it, but for the drinks, not the food. We were hoping for a place with both. I agree I should write to the owner--I considered it all last night as I tossed and turned (it should say something about my love for restaurants that this experience distressed me so much!)...but first, I think he'd disagree with my account, second, he strikes me as cold and arrogant and I doubt he'd do anything about it, third, I don't know that I'd go back there even if given a gift certificate, and fourth, it wasn't my money that I spent. Honestly, the other 5 women (including the birthday girl) seem to have not really noticed the goings on very much -- and at least weren't terrribly upset by it. I had a different experience as the one in charge and at the end of the table (i.e. within earshot of the servers/owner). I didn't spoil the others' evening by sharing all of this with them as it happened, nor did I extend the experience by discussing it with them afterwards. Finally, I thought it perhaps the most effective path was to simply share this with you all--the real community Salt's owner hopes to court, yes?

Two such good-looking men that even morphed together they still look pretty darn good!! (Ha!!!)

Last night I went to Salt with 5 other women to celebrate a friend's 22nd birthday. Having been to Salt twice before, I expected terrific creative food and professional service. Unfortunately, I was severely disappointed with regard to the latter. We arrived on time at 8 pm and were seated fairly promptly, at a table in the middle of the room--very nice. About 5 minutes later, we were asked if we'd like a cocktail, and declined, asking for the wine list. It took about 5 additional minutes before that list (part of the menu) arrived--and I noticed the reason--there was some fairly overt discussion going on between our waitress and the owner, apparently with regard to our ages. Aside from myself (age 26), the women were ages 21 and 22. And we all look young. I would not have been at all surprised if we were carded--it would have been appropriate, dealt with quickly and quietly, and put the restaurant at ease. But this didn't happen. (But throughout the meal, I could actually hear the servers and owner whispering to each other, guessing our ages, doubting if we were legal. I nearly collected the IDs and marched over to them!) Instead, we were given the list, and (as the person most knowledgeable about wine, and thus designated to make the choices) I began to peruse it. I was first and foremost looking for a Malbec, for the simple reason that the birthday girl (who is new to wine and yet quite opinionated), loves the jamminess and fruit-forwardness of that grape (she loves the Katina Malbec at Cuba Libre). Unfortunately, their list didn't feature a Malbec last night (well, the 'special' list on the back did, at $175, but that was too risky). So, I asked for some suggestions from the waitress, explaining my goal. She apparently knew nothing about wine, and said she'd take my questions to the owner and 'get back to me.' Well, this went on for some time-- I asked a question, or for a suggestion, she went to him (who was just about 10 feet away, focusing on all the tables but ours, apparently), reported to him, returned to me with answers that demonstrated her lack of knowledge. It was ridiculous. There was no apparent reason that David (owner) couldn't simply come over himself, when he became free--especially after I asked for him. The only thing I could think was that he didn't consider us 'important' enough to spend time with--as a former server, I'm aware of the stereotype of young women that they don't tip well, or whatever. But in this case, we had plenty of money (the parents of the birthday girl provided their credit card and no limit), a love of food, and at least one person who knows wine. (Maybe because we were stylishly dressed and young they thought we were overprivledged Rittenhouse gals not worth wasting time on?? Couldn't be further from the truth...) I ended up ordering the Two Hands Shiraz ($60), and a German Riesling ($58) (Don't have the name because, although I put a menu aside next to my purse to jot down the names at the end of meal, at some point the waitress went under the table and took it away!). Unfortunately, the birthday girl didn't like the Shiraz (describing it as 'mucusy'!), which she told the waitress directly, who simply looked at her with what can only be described as disdain. Granted, there was nothing wrong with the wine--it just didn't match the Malbec in my friend's head--but there was no offer to take it back, no apology, no offer of something else, nothing. In order to resolve the situation, I told the waitress it was ok, the rest of us would drink it, and we'd order a 3rd bottle--but instead of being delighted (this upped the tab obviously), she again seemed annoyed. So this time, I looked around for David directly, making eye contact,and motioning him over, to get better help picking this 3rd bottle. But NO-- he pointed to another waiter, said he knew the list and would help me! Fine, so I spoke with that man, who yes was helpful, but still, I couldn't fathom why David wouldn't do it himself. (Maybe I'm spoiled by nice treatment by chefs/owners elsewhere, but I don't think I'm being unreasonable). Anyways, I sat with the list, debating, long enough that FINALLY, 45 min+ into our meal, David came over and asked me if there was a problem. I explained the situation I was in, trying to match this Malbec my girlfriend desired, acknowledging the somewhat-silliness of the request but asking for appropriate help. He was actually patronizing at this point, telling me it couldn't be done. I mentioned that I was willing to spend a fair amount, and then he began steering me towards the $150 and up category, and to some pretty obviously overpriced wines. I ended up giving up and just ordering another bottle of the riesling, since my friend liked that. Ok, done. But no, David felt the need to then throw in a little comment "I see you know a LOT about wine"--sarcastically (it was dripping). Jeez--insulted by the owner, disdained by the waitress...fun. We got through the meal, pretty great food really: Fluke carpaccio with oysters, apple gelee and caviar--excellent Peekytoe crab salad with pomelos--too much mayo and avocado, crab needed to be spiced a little better Foie gras-- didn't have this myself, but others liked it Wild Striped Bass with braised oxtail ravioli--very good Ribeye--didn't have this, but 2 friends loved theirs Scallops--two girls ordered this and loved it Swordfish--didn't try it We also ordered every dessert on the menu, all good. Along with a glass of Eiswein for me (by this point, the waitress went around the table twice, double checking that every person didn't want a glass for themselves, which I thought was pushing it, since it was $13/glass). We were there for 3 hours, largely because it was 30 min or more between courses (it's a small restaurant, probably a small kitchen too). Finally, around 11, I asked for the check. There was a 10 min pause, during which time the waitress, only a few feet away, openly debated putting the 18% gratuity on the bill. Fine, she did. The check was $510, plus her $89 gratuity. Yes, we were a party of 6, so this can happen, but in her case, it was not to her advantage--with regard to tipping, I usually start at 20% and go up to 25%-- I would've only given 20% based on our experience, but it still would've meant at least $10 more. Obviously, I needed to get this off my chest--and I apologize for the length of this post . But I really feel we were treated badly because of our age and gender. I've had good service at Salt, but I realize now I was just in a party of 2 and with a somewhat older guy, who handled the wine list himself. This experience has left me angry and nauseous, and I won't be going back to Salt. What a shame--I really liked the food!

Both boring and poorly executed, IMO. I saw the tapas restaurant during our walk to the MCI, and it did intrigue me...Oh well, next time.

Since it was impossible to get a reservation on short notice at Jaleo or Cafe Atlantico before tonite's Simon and Garfunkel concert (which was awesome, by the way), Mom and I ended up at Eat First. Having seen this place reviewed positively over the years (albeit in the Washingtonian), I was pretty psyched. Unfortunately, we were disappointed with very greasy and almost uniformly tasteless food. We had: dumpling soup, baby bok choy w/ garlic, steamed fresh shrimp with a ginger sauce, and 1/4 cantonese roast duck. All were dishes mentioned in the reviews. All were honestly boring. Oh well-- I'm curious, did we just order badly, or have others shared similar experiences lately? Also, for furture reference what are other good options near the MCI Center (Zola was also booked)?

Katie I'm so sorry. Mike mentions closing as one possibility--are you saying it's a definite??

Great thread--I kept meaning to post after dinner at Jaleo last week with a friend from Barcelona...she didn't love the tapas, but nearly was blown away by the white chocolate mousse dessert. Fantastic, gorgeous, perfect in every way. Why don't we have this in Spain, she asked?

Yes, I was thinking of Tokyo Lunchbox. It really is very good, and worth the extra 2 block walk or whatever.

Definitely try the Japanese place catty corner to H&M--the name escapes me at the moment--can anyone help? It's not any of the places mentioned, but I think the sushi there, and the soba, is way better than most of the more upscale places I've been in Philly.

Yes, unfortuately it's July or nothing. Coming from Philadelphia, trying to celebrate finally finishing a PhD.

I sent in a request last week for ANY date in July, and got the same email response you all received. What should I do next?? How did you all get in??

hi I want to find a bottle of the above wine by next week. Anyone seen it in Philly, Southern NJ, or on the way to DC (between Philly and Chevy Chase)?? Help would be appreciated. Thanks

God that's sad...Really. Thanks for the update.

Besides Carman's (always first in my book), try Morning Glory, or Blue N Green (3rd St location) or Rx. For pho, I'm not surprised you didn't like it at Vietnam, I've been saying that there's wasn't good for years now...try Pho 75 or Pho Hua on Washington, or Pho Cafe at 43d and Spruce.

Steve, Ok, let me take a stab at a response. First, as you've acknowledged, I post more often than Mazman, but let me assure you (as I'm sure he will too), Mazman has eaten at a million different places since moving to DC a few years ago. As for myself, I grew up here, went to college here, and only moved to Philly 5 years ago. I know the broad range of restaurants in DC, VA, and some in MD (and my distribution is probably skewed a bit to the <$20/entree end). My culinary experiences have certainly widenened a great deal over the past 5 years, as I've traveled more extensively, but I must admit that I have always been underwhelmed by DC's restaurant scene, with (and this is completely honest) the exception of Jaleo. I was amazed at the positive reviews of places like DC Coast, Galileo (restaurant, not Laboratorio), Kinkeads, Queen Bee, etc that emerged over the years I lived here. None of these places deserved the accolades they got/get, IMHO, and yet the positive buzz continues... I do agree on giving a new restaurant the chance to grow and develop before dismissing it entirely. But what surprised me was the consistently positive remarks on this board (ok, with the exceptions of the salt, service) and then my markedly different experience--even with the same dishes. Sure, maybe the chef had the night off--but we don't know that for sure, do we? I can also tell you that I had a brief conversation w/ several servers and one sous chef before my guests arrived, and they had no awareness of Egullet, tho maybe the chef does... As far as Django, Nectar, and setting perhaps too high standards in cities...well, I actually think it serves a purpose. Django is perhaps not the best in Philly anymore at what it's doing--in part, I think, because it presented a challenge, and hope, to other chefs, and they're meeting that challenge (Rx keeps getting better and better, and the new Melograno is quite good, as is Chloe). I think it's important to aim high, at any pricepoint. And I can't help but compare other restaurants to Nectar, since that's my standard for DC restaurants right now--if I'm going to spend my money, I want it to be that good (maybe that's unreasonable, but it's why last time I was in DC I only ate out at Minibar and Nectar). And I wouldn't say Komi was THAT much cheaper, really. Sure, I'll give them time, and if the positive reviews continue, then Mazman can go back and report to me, and maybe it'll be worth one of my 2-3 nights in DC every 2-3 months to go back in!

Well, I am in town from Philly, so LiamDC, Mazman and I went over to Komi to try it out before heading to the 930 club for a show. The positive reviews had us pretty excited, I must say. I arrived first, to a completely empty restaurant (at 6:30 pm, tho yes, it was a Monday night). The servers were attentive, got me a glass of wine (muscat-this was good), while I waited for the rest of my party. When the boys arrived tho, the servers seem to have disappeared--it took ages to place our order (a staff meal or tasting actually seemed to be going on in the open kitchen), and this continued throughout the meal--we were the 1st party to place an order, but by no means the first to get our food, nor the 1st to get the check--and we were in a hurry. In addition, our server was less than friendly. In addition, the light over our heads was fluttering/flashing/ going out, which felt like a strobe light or something...they said PEPCO has caused the problem while doing some work but didn't offer to reseat us, or even offer much of an apology, they just made the explanation and left. And then played with turning down the lights several times, an unsuccessful attempt to minimize it. Anothe issue-- LiamDC was served a wine glass that was covered in lint, and even had a hair in it --the wine we ordered (the Shiraz, right Mazman?) had already been poured into it. At least, once notified, another server replaced the glass and the wine. Now, the food. Overall, my meal was pretty disappointing. I tried the scallops, and thought this was a pretty unsuccessful dish. The scallops were tiny, not much taste to them, and the cucumber water around them really didn't do anything to enhance or even complement their taste. Nor did the salmon roe, which again hardly tasted of anything. And texturally, the whole thing was a bit odd. I also had the pork belly--now, this was unlike any pork belly I've had anywhere else. It didn't even resemble pork belly-- it just looked like pork! The best I've had is at Fifth Floor in San Francisco, and a slightly less perfect version at WD-50, and this wasn't even in the same ballpark. Unlike Steve, I didn't find it engaging at all. To top it off, the turnips and brussel sprouts were undercooked--so undercooked I couldn't sink a fork into them. And the reddish sauce on the side was mysteriously bland. Mazman had the chicken, and Liam the veal --both devoured their dishes, but I'll let them report. I previously had every intention of trying dessert, but I was so underwhelmed by the whole experience, and due to the slow service we were running so late, that I didn't bother. I admit, the menu itself got me excited. I had thoughts of Nectar, at even more reasonable prices. But IMHO, this place isn't it--at least not based on what I ate. Maybe it's a step up for DC--but again, IMHO that's not a terribly high bar to set. In Philly, this place wouldn't survive more than a few months. I know others will disagree with me, and I'm open to debate. But this litany of negative experiences should at least provide a full dissenting opinion. ps. One thing I did like--the amuse, cauliflower soup. But it was overly salted. And like Steve noted, the wine list is definitlely over-priced.

I went to Melograno last night, and La Locanda last week. Between the two, I'd choose Melograno, but didn't think either was spectacular. You should know that Melograno is VERY noisy, and the service is less than friendly. I had the roasted artichoke appetizer w/ scallops (excellent, definitely a dish to try), the seafood stew (merely ok), and the chocolate souffle (delicious). My friend had the argula, pear, blue cheese salad special, and the pork loin--I thought both were merely ok. We shared a tempranillo, which went well. At La Locanda, we shareda totally forgettable pasta, and I had the osso buco, which again was just ok--tho was much better reheated the second day. Sorry I haven't been to any of the others. But why isn't Porcini on the list--that would be my choice.

Philomena's? Looks potentially charming from the outside, but then again, it is in G'town which seems to be the deal breaker for any hopes of finding a quality restaurant. Yes! Philomena's!!! Ugh... Avoid avoid avoid.

There's a terrible Italian place in Georgetown (yes, I know that's not very specific!). Let's see, I think it's on Wisconsin--it's down the hill from M St, on the left as you come down the hill..I think it's a woman's name. And they overdecorate for all the holidays, and when you enter you see women making pasta. Anyone know the place I'm talking about? Horrible overpriced food, terrible wine list, condescending sexist service...yick! An 80 yr old friend who's lost her tastebuds took me there 3 years ago. The experience, not the name, stuck in my mind.

Well, Angelina agreed to seat us if we cut our group down to 7 people and swore not to bring more...So, we have eliminated some guests and hope to make it work. However, in case we are forced to expand the group again, I will certainly keep these suggestions in mind. I especially like the Adriatica idea.

Hi I've been given the difficult task of finding a restaurant for my friend's 22nd birthday. The primary difficulty is that we're a party of 10, and she wants to go out on a Friday night (Dec 19th), and the restaurants I've called so far (Angelina, Alma de Cuba) won't seat us between 6-10 pm. I've asked the manager at Angelina to call me to discuss getting us in at 9 pm instead--but the hostess wasn't optimistic, and I also don't know for sure if it's worth fighting to get in there---how is the food really?? This policy is in place b/c of the need to not overload the kitchen, I know, but eating at 10 p seems ridiculous... So, here are the criteria--can anyone help? 1. Quality food-but not too exotic (no sushi) and must have at least 2 seafood or veg options 2. Fun atmosphere-- not Pasion (too stuffy) or Lacroix (too formal) 3. Has a liquor license 4. Dress-up -- not a jeans place 5. Big enough to seat 10 of us. 6. Willing to seat us at a reasonable hour. 7. (Sorry Katie, in advance)--not a Neil Stein establishment. Best part--PRICE is no object. This should make it slightly easier. THANKS for your help in advance. Sara

You've gotta be kidding! This is classic Carman, in all her glory. I adore her, and her food. What a terrific piece.

Django is great, but you may not be able to get a reservation. Also, the food is a bit more creative than at Pigalle or Chloe, imo, so it might not be quite as safe a bet. I personally think the atmosphere at Pigalle is more romantic/ anniversary-like than at Chloe, where service is very casual and the room can be very loud. Django is similar to Chloe in that respect, and the tables are quite close together. But I'm still a big fan of their food.