wmsmurray

Just made reservations for Christmas Day. Woo-Hoo! I've never been but judging by all the praise it will be quite an experience.

My wife and I have been there a couple of times and have enjoyed it. The atmosphere is very nice - pleasant room, friendly staff and good service. Their food definitely leans more toward what I would consider traditional Mexican as opposed to Tex-Mex (which is often confused in this area). The prices are good and the food has been pretty good too. The spiced tortillas and salsas that come to the table are especially nice. Let us know what you think of the place.

As much as I love Champagne and sparkling wines, I know nothing about the smaller grower champagnes. I would like to hear everyone's suggestions, notes, etc. on their favorites and maybe some places in the DC Metro area to find some of these wines.

While certainly not in the same league as a Matchbox, I noticed at happy hour last night that Hamburger Hamlet also has these.

We finally made it to Restaurant Eve and it was worth the wait! We sat in the tasting room on Friday and had the 5-course tasting menu. Now when I initially made the reservations it was either 6:30 or 9. I made the 6:30 but was wondering if maybe that was a little too early but the pacing of the meal was perfect and we were there until about 10. Since we were there for our anniversary, I thought it would be best if I didn't drag out a notebook and start taking notes. Therefore I will do my best to recall everything but can't guarantee that I won't miss a point or two. The hard thing about the 5 course is that you have to choose - and they are not easy choices. I started with the lobster creme brulee which was unlike anything I've had before and was just amazing. It consisted of a creme brulee of lobster including the hard caramelized shell on top, a small "salad" of lobster meat and braised fennel with a lime vinegrette (I think) and three small dollops of a sauce with lobster roe in it. The creme brulee was smooth as silk and was not dominated by any one ingredient and the carmelized sugar on top was a nice counterpoint to the savory filling. The salad was incredible - the lobster meat was some of the sweetiest I've tasted and the fennel was perfectly braised. I have to say that I was as excited to experience the wine list and meet Todd Thrasher as I was to have the food and Mr. Thrasher did not disappoint. I started with a glass of sparkling wine from South Africa (my own choice) and it was pretty good. I chose it simply because I had never tasted a sparkling wine from South Africa and was not disappointed. It was a nice match for the lobster and is definitely something I would have again. The second course was a fish (sorry I can't remember the kind) "en papillote" - French was not my language so I apologize for any misspellings or buthering. It was simply done with just some fennel, squash and white wine and was superb. The fish was steamed nicely but not overly so, the veggies were tender to the bit and the flavors melded perfectly. I don't remember the wine that I had with this. I put myself in Mr. Thrasher's hands for the rest of the night and it was the right choice. The next course was a rabbit stew served in a small squash - great presentation. The stew was, of course, delicious. It also had some squash in it, and some other veggies too. The broth was flavorful and viscous. Mr. Thrasher at first suggested a Cote du Rhone. When I asked him what he would have with this dish he said the same wine but when he came back he had two half glasses. One was the wine he recommended and the other was another Cote du Rhone with a different blend. They were both fantastic but very different (one was very fruit forward with dominating cherry flavors and the other had very earthy, smoky flavors) and both were a great pairing with the rabbit. The cheeses were next and as cheese hounds, my wife and I were very much looking forward to this. Despite loving cheese, I know very little about cheese and about matching wine with cheese. So, again, I turned to Mr. Thrasher for recommendations. Since I still had a good amount of both wines left, he suggested that instead of the offered cheese that I have their cheddar cheese soup with two small triangles of a grilled ham sandwich. My wife ordered three of the cheeses - she asked for the stinky selection. They were all good but I don't remember what they were. My cheddar cheese soup was all cheddar and no soup. I think our server put it best when she said "it's like fondue in a cup." It was like they had taken their best quality cheddar and added just enough of whatever they use so that it doesn't congeal. It was cheese heaven! Finally it was time for dessert. This was perhaps the toughest choice to make on the menu as I wanted to try every single thing on there. In the end I chose the Mojito and my wife had the chocolate cashew tart with cashew(?) ice cream. wow! The mojito was kind of like tiramisu I guess with cake soaked in mojito covered in a chocolate mint shell that was amazing. And it came with a small mojito which was great and inspired me to fine tune my mojito recipe. My wife's dessert was just as good as mine and I would've been just as happy with that as I was with the mojito. If my dessert had not come with alcohol, I would've ordered one of the delicious sounding Cidercars (kudos to Iamthestretch for the name). In fact I plan on going back after work this week just to try one. In addition to the five courses there were also three amuses that came out - the first was a selection of small appetizers including the deviled quail's egg which lived up to its description. The second was a soup that came out between the second and third course. For the life of me, I can't remember what the soup was but I think it was a squash. Whatever it was, it was the most decadent, delicious, cream-laden soup I'd ever had. The final amuse came out after dessert and it was a selection of small finger desserts including a small eclair, a toile cookie and a shortbread. A great way to end dinner. Through all of this, the service was perfect - friendly, attentive but not obtrusive. We never had to wait for water or bread or anything but our server was not hovering over us either. The pacing of the food was just right. I was also lucky enough to have a chance to talk briefly to Mr. Thrasher right before we left and it is great to see someone who loves their job so much. It makes all the difference in the worth. Thanks to all at Restaurant Eve for a great dinner.

You know - I didn't. I should call them back and let them know.

After reading about this place for months - my wife and I are finally going for our anniversary! Woo-Hoo! We're going to do the tasting menu and can't wait. I'm not sure what I'm more excited about - Chef Armstrong's creations or Todd Thrashers' creations. Anything in particular on the menu that is a "can't miss"?

So here was my take on the place. Went last night with a group (there were 8 of us) of people for a birthday. The service, I thought, was good. I got there early and had a couple of Negra Modelos at the bar. The chips (as was mentioned in earlier posts) were a little too salty for me but I did enjoy the two salsas. The red one was nice and smoky with a good bit of heat to it and the green salsa (tomatillo I assume) was nice and tangy. My only complaint about the salsa was that they were both a little to thin - but that is probably a personal style issue. The retaurant was not too crowded (but it was only 5:30) and the hostess seated me even though I was the only person who had arrived. I was a little surprised as it seems many restaurants have the "don't seat the party until everyone and their dog has arrived" policy. The waiter while getting me some water (and even asking if I wanted tap or bottled) asked if it was some sort of event and I told him it was a birthday. He then asked me to point out the birthday girl when she arrived, which I did - nice touch I thought-showed some thoughtfullness. We all ordered appetizers and some extras instead of entrees for dinner. We were all pretty pleased with what we got. I ordered the appetizer that had small shrimp sauteed in a tomato sauce with onions and carrot slices and served with small corn tortillas to wrap it all in - sorry I can't remember the name and it is not on their online menu. I enjoyed it quite a bit - certainly more than I expected. The right amount of heat, shrimp not overcooked, just the right amount of onions (not drowned in them but not sparse either) and enough tortillas so that I didn't have to ask for extra. Oh and we get a couple orders of the guac. Now I have never in my life had guac (something about green, slimy food) but I figured if I was going to like it, it would be here. While it was good, my taste buds would've liked some lime juice and a little salt to pick up the flavor. Not bad but not worth what they charge for it. Other dishes ordered that I tried were the empanadas and the Zarape de Pato. The empanadas were good but the zarape de pato was the best. We, of course, ordered desert and the waiter was kind enough to put a candle in the birthday girl's flan. I had the Chocolate-Chipotle Boca Negra, which I enjoyed thoroughly. I really enjoyed the balance between the chocolate and the chipotle - to quote another diner, "It's like a party on your tongue." While I think the texture was a little off (a little too soft for me), it was still good. Overall it was a much better experience than I expected. Now, that said, I do think the prices are high for the food but the service was good, attentive and not overbearing and I quite liked the interior. If I'm looking for good Mexican food I will likely go elsewhere but it was a fun experience.

Thanks for the responses everyone. I will report back on my experience there.

My wife and I are going to this place tonight for a friend's birthday (her choice not ours) - anyone been recently? Has the place improved at all? In any respect? As much as I am encouraged by restaurants in this area that actually serve mole, I am really not looking forward to eating here.

Chef Wabeck, I have only dined at Firefly once but my wife and I loved it. Everything from the ingredients to the thoughtful wine list and ambience made it a winner and we hope to dine there again soon. My questions for you are what do you find to be the greatest challenge as a chef in DC and (on a purely frivolous note) what is your favorite city in terms of eating out? Thanks for your time.

My wife and I went there for our first anniversary in November and the experience was all I was hoping and more. I would just concur with the advice of doing the tasting menu so that you can mix and match between the different menus. We chose the seven course and that was definitely a little too much for us. I would also like to second the advice to put yourself in Vincent's hands, we decided that we wanted to have a glass of wine to match each (well almost each) course and Vincent's selections were amazing. It was also a good thing that we happened to get a room at the hotel that night as trying to drive home would have not been advisable. Anyway, enjoy the experience and I look forward to hearing about it.

Just a quick follow-up to my question about sidecars. I found myself downtown yesterday and decided to stop by Town & Country to try their version of a sidecar. Let me preface by saying that I've had sidecars at exactly three different places and I am not familiar enough with the recipe to know what it should taste like according to Mr. Boston. That said, I really enjoyed the sidecar there. It wasn't boozy at all but you could taste that the ingredients were not cheap hooch with a nice balance of sweetness and fruit. Not sure I was keen on the sugared rim but wasn't bad either.

I apologize for this being off-topic but I didn't think it would merit a new thread on its own. I'm curious as to where people think the best sidecar is served in the District.

I would also recommend Bell's. They are the only store in the area where I've seen a good selection of wines from the Sierra foothills in CA, some of which produce some decent Zins.

I work in Crystal City and am in the middle of the Underground. Really nothing here to recommend to people. The San Antonio Grill and the ribs place (blanking on the name for some reason) are OK if you're already here but not worth coming. There is a Morton's if that's your sort of thing. However, in Crystal City on street level Jaleo will soon be opening a branch and there are some other chain places like Legal Sea Food.

My sister is here from out of town and my wife and I are taking her to Firefly for her birthday on Friday. Anyone know what the menu looks like right now. We haven't been for over a year. Thanks.

I'll definitely second that! Been there probably three or four times and it has always been a great experience both with the food and the service.

My wife and I went there for our one year anniversary and did the same thing - dinner and a room. We had a table relatively close to the kitchen so we could see everything happening (like a ballet! none of the mad dash rushing, cursing and yelling I had expected). The food is just spectacular. While I can't claim to have dined in many restaurants of this caliber, we finished the meal happy that we came and that it was worth the money (although the cats couldn't eat for a month ) The sommelier was similarly spectacular. We basically turned ourselves over to his choices and did a by-the-glass with every course for the dinner. His choices were fantastic and sometimes very different from what I would have chosen as a pairing. And by the end of the night we were in no condition to drive anywhere - so the room is a good idea. Hope this helps.

Went to Sette Osteria last night (been a week of trying new pizza places) with the MIL and wife. I got there early enough to sit at the bar and enjoy a glass of wine. Had something recommended by the bartender that I had not heard of before. It was a sparkling Italian red. It was (I guess) the red equivalent to Prosecco but not as sweet. Interesting. Anyway, for dinner we had the Italian specialty meats for the table and the calamari fritti. The meats were great but I am a sucker for salamis, prosciutto and mortadella. The calamari were mostly good. Crispy, tender and mostly not chewy and I enjoyed the dipping sauce. For dinner I had the Prosciutto e Rucola pizza and enjoyed it a lot. I love fresh greens on a pizza and the lemon vinaigrette worked well with the other flavors. The only other thing I tasted was the pasta my wife got-the Paccherri al Ragu Napoletano. The meat sauce was very good and the pasta the right degree of al dente. I had a glass of the Grotta del Sole bianco which was a good foil for the flavors on the pizza. Overall a good experience and I would like to go back to try some of the other menu items.

Went to Matchbox for the first time this weekend after hearing pretty good things about it here. My wife and I shared both the arugula pear & frizzizzled goat cheese and the prosciutto white pizza. Now I was a little concerned about getting a soggy pizza after reading this forum but the crust was nicely done and crispy on the outside and just a bit chewy on the inside (which is how we like our crusts). It was not smothered in ingredients but had just enough and the flavor combination of the prosciutto, olives, ricotta and mozz was wonderful. Aside from the food I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the place. For some reason (I still can't put my finger on it) it transported me to San Francisco. Anyway just my two cents.