SanFran88

If the most important issues are transportation and ability to handle a group that size I would do Oyamel and Jaleo. We've eaten at both in the last two weeks and they are each excellent. Since they stay open from 1130 on you can get in with a crowd and munchkins early without too much trouble. They are also large. Taqueria Poblano is also very good and kid friendly but it is smaller and doesn't open until 1730. A group your size might have trouble getting in (besides having to make your way down Mt. Vernon Ave. -- not hard, but possibly more than you want to undertake. If you do, however, don't forget to go to the Del Ray Dreamery on the next block for frozen custard.)

...not to mention that the idea that the food - filets or otherwise -- is better is bogus at best and deliberately misleading at worst.

We ate at Oyamel last night for the first time. Snuck in about 4:30 with my wife and now almost 4 year old daughter. I would echo most of what has already been said. The foamed margarita is excellent as are the agua frescas (no horchata though). We had the chicken tacos, the filet with tamarind, the scallops with pumpkin seeds, the quesadilla with cheese and squash blossoms, the quail with rose petals, and the cheese and mushroom enchilada. All were very good. We particularly liked the quail and the scallops. My daughter used the corn tortillas to mop up the sauce that came with the quail -- all in all a good idea. For dessert we did the milk chocolate flan, the warm chocolate cake, and the goat milk cajete. My favorite was the flan, my daughter devoured the warm chocolate cake and my wife fell in love with the goat milk cajete. All were wonderful. Service was excellent. I would add this to the list, along with Jaleo, of restaurants that are "kid friendly" provided you go at off hours (and your kid isn't a monster ).

Here are some things I would recommend off the bistro menu from the last time I was there (things might have changed a bit), geared toward less adventurous diners: Appetizers: Poached Mussels with cider and shallots Rillettes of Pork Bacon, Egg, and Cheese salad Roasted Autumn Squash soup (an excellent choice for a non-adventurous palate). Entrees: Duck Leg confit with lentils and sherry vinegar Pan roasted monkfish with seranno and cranberry beans scallops with bacon and sage the pork belly and sweet breads are to die for, but may throw your parents if they are picky -- that being said, my three year old has eaten them. If they really want to stay "mainstream," the ribeye with pommes mousseline and bordelaise is excellent, as is the roast chicken -- again, favorites of my three year old and my own not-so-adventurous in-laws. Find out what the specials are and save room for dessert (the pear tart is incredible, as is the chocolate cashew tart from the tasting room if you can talk them into letting you order it in the Bistro). And do the pear cocktail with fois gras -- you won't be sorry.

The Tasting Room menu changes pretty frequently, so its tough to say. Did you let them know it was your anniversary?

I think so. I do remember a chocolate cashew tart.

So I was in the bar at Eve eating lunch today when Chef Cathal came in clutching a box bearing a beautiful, fragrant white truffle. They have just changed the Tasting Room menu and one of the new dishes is a scallop with white truffles and risotto. Cathal took pity on me (I imagine I had a pretty envious look on my face after he gave me a whiff) and shaved white truffle atop my scallop salad on the spot. Mmmmmmmm...foodasm. (An emotion that ought to have an icon). Now I've got to hunt down a babysitter so I can get back into the Tasting Room. On a parallel track, the rest of the dishes on the Tasting Room look new as well, though I can't remember any off hand. My brain was too clouded by a truffle-induced fog.

I was in Saturday night and had the pear cocktail is well. It's definately all that and a bag of chips. Todd was also nice enough to make a hot buttered rum for my wife, which was as out of this world as you would expect. Todd said they will be adding some hot drinks to the cocktail menu. I want to say a hot white chocolate with candied jalapeno and some sort of spiced apple cider "sidecar" variation. I also had the wild partridge and it was absolutely wonderful -- I think it was on pureed celery root, and there was fois gras in the jus, but I could be wrong. Regardless it was serious foodasm time. Also a wonderful chocolate dessert with pomogranite coulis.

We have a three year old and eat out quite a bit in the Alexandria/Crystal City area. We have had good luck with Jaleo and there is a Jaleo in Crystal City now. It's open from 1130 on so you can get in early in the evening when it isn't too busy with an all adult crowd. Oyamel should also be open next to it, which will have a similar concept with Mexican food. Our daughter seems to like being able to point and choose from the many small plates. We eat at Taqueria Poblano on Mt. Vernon fairly frequently. We also eat about once a week in the bistro at Restaurant Eve in Old Town (if you get there at 1730 you'll be out by the time real people start showing up ). They don't have a children's menu, but they make our daughter a pasta dish with butter and cheese and she noshes off our plates. Our daughter is fairly low key and quiet though (most of the time). Kind of depends on your child's temperment as to whether you'd want to try that. We also eat there often enough that she knows everyone and thinks she owns the place. We used to eat at Evening Star, also on Mt. Vernon, and you will see a lot of other families with small children there, but we haven't been in a while since we started hanging our hats at Eve. I think, however, if you're eating off hours or early on a weeknight you can probably stretch a little bit, especially if the four year old isn't picky. Your best bet though is probably going to be the Jaleo in Crystal City all things considered.

Five of us had dinner in the Tasting Room Saturday night. We ate early (1800) since we all had babysitters waiting for us at home. I still can't find anyone willing to do the nine course with me. Very sad. I need larger or more gluttonous friends. The menu for the Tasting Room is below. I'll forego most of the adjectives; this is our favorite restaurant and our regular hangout, so it would probably sound like fawning. I just really love the way Chef Armstrong cooks and the way the front of the house is run. Dinner opened with a deviled quail's egg with osetra caviar on a brioche toast. Then two amuses: a venison and pistachio terrine followed by a tomato bisque. We spread ourselves out over the five course, though my wife did not play nice for the fish course, ordering the gnocci instead of the coral cod with billi bi. (The "soup" essentially became the sauce. I've had something similar here in the bistro -- a cod with "clam chowder.") Lasting impressions: the lobster creme brulee was excellent as was the scallop with pear tart. Both were compositions that didn't immediately come to mind, but both worked and were very good. Opah was good, but those that tried both were more impressed with the billi bi. I was stuck trading for gnocci during this course, which was good, but....The short rib and duck were good, but I was the clear winner this round with a lamb special. It involved three separate preparations: saddle, shank, and loin I think, all in a row on one of those long rectangular plates. Excellent. It came with a $20 supplement, but I thought it was worth it. Pear dessert had a pear soup, pear upside down cake, etc. I went with the oranges and nougat, which unfortunately contained saffron. I'm not a big fan of saffron, so I was casting envious glances at the pear trio. The others went with either the chocolate bombe or the warm chocolate cake (spiced pinapple garnish rocks -- cardamom, vanilla...other things I can't place) and all seemed happy. With wine and drinks we were about $200 a couple. Service was wonderful, but we eat in the bistro quite a bit so we know everyone. Though honestly I'm not sure that would matter; the waitstaff seems nice to all. In line with bilrus's take on the prawns, that is the one dish I've had at Eve that I wasn't crazy about. My problem wasn't the salt; I just found them to be a bitch to peel without resorting to shrimp boil form (which is actually what I did after butchering the first one). 9 Course ($95 I think?) 1. Roasted porcinis with 50 yr old balsamic or Terrine of foie gras with fig jam ($+20 supplement) 2. lobster creme brulee with baby fennel and tarragon vinaigrette 3. onions and oysters with osetra 4. roasted coral cod billi bi 5. veal sweet breads with caramelized apples and calvados 6. braised beef shortribs with pickled red onions 7. everona with glazed figs 8. bartlett pear soup with oatmeal crunch 9. coconut and mango 5 course (1 from each group) ($65) course 1 terrine of duck lobster creme brulee softshell crab with arugala and serrano aioli scallop with spiced pear tartlett crab bisque tuna carpaccio course 2 seared opah with chanterelle risotto and leak cream coral cod billi bi gnocchi with roasted acorn squash course 3 muscovy duck with swiss chard, foie gras and huckleberries short ribs roast beets with goat cheese souffle and walnuts course 4 cheese course course 5 passion fruit and chocolate mousse bombe sampling of pears oranges and nougat warm chocolate cake with spiced pinapple oil bollen

We ate in the tasting room a couple weeks ago. We did the five course, which I think is an amazing value. The dishes that stuck in my head as being particularly noteworthy were the lobster creme brulee, the scallop wellington (I had one and my dinner companion had the other), a very good gnocchi dish, and a veal filet that was served with some kind of amazing lick-the-plate-clean sauce. There were others, but those were the ones I remember. The amuse was a deviled quail egg. We let Todd pick the wines. We did two half bottles. I remember I really liked the Paradux. I'd definitely just let Todd do the wines. I also had some kind of basil cocktail that was wonderful; my friend had the New Age Gibson and liked it. The tomato water bloody mary is also excellent. For the desserts I had a chocolate and coconut "napoleon" (mousses of each separated by what I think were some sort of croquant (sp) wafers instead of puff) and my friend had the warm chocolate cake with spiced pineapple, which was very good. We ate in the bistro last night, but ordered dessert off the tasting room menu: there was an orange something or other that had several different takes (mousse, sorbet, etc on a rectangular plate) that was very good. I had a fig tart that was the special last night (pate sucre, frangiapane, pastry cream, fresh figs kind of bruleed on top). Also very good. My wife and I are going back with a group the 18th to do the 9 course. Hope this helps a little.

I see Oyamel is set to open in October in Crystal City along with Jaleo. Does anyone know anything about the menu (other than small plate Mexican)? Is Steve Klc developing the desserts, and if so, can he tell us what we can look forward to?

I really like several of the appetizers off the new bistro menu -- the pork rillettes, the "bacon, egg, and cheese" salad, and the pasta with clams. I don't think you can go wrong with any of Todd's concoctions...try them all and call a taxi

...on the other hand, this could mean "seconds" for me!

We're going to Maestro for the first time Saturday night. Any advice? Any thoughts on which of the three menus (la creazione, la tradizione, la evoluzione) to try? My wife weighs 105 lbs. so I'm not sure how long she'll be able to hang .

This is amazing, but it is certainly in keeping with the experiences we have had at Eve. Two recent anecdotes (admittedly not as remarkable as Ralph's, but I think telling in their own way): 1) We have eaten quite a bit in the Bistro, but have never been able to do the Tasting Room. We finally got a wife approved baby sitter lined up (mother-in-law flying up from Florida ) so I called to make reservations for the 7th of August (wife's birthday). Unfortunately, the restaurant is closed the first week in August. After apologizing profusely, Meshelle asks me if I would like her to get us in somewhere else Saturday night. So she e-mails me back with reservations for Maestro, assuring me she has spoken with the manager and we will be "taken care of". 2) I was in the bar for a quick lunch last Friday and the chef came out and started talking with a few of us. He found out I had never had guinea hen (not sure I remember how we got to that point in the conversation) and he was adamant we come in that night to try it (he was doing it in the Tasting Room). I was hesitant, since we dine there quite a bit with our daughter, but only on weeknights, early. But he was sincere and insistent; what came across was the very real desire to share something wonderful. (Like when I found out my wife had never seen "Casablanca.") So we showed up at 1730. Chef sent out crabcakes and then a sensational saddle of venison and the guinea hen (done as a ballontine, mmmm), plus the fettucini with butter and parmesan they always make for Lily, our daughter. Lily loved the guinea hen and the venison as well, though I'm not yet ready to tell a three year old she ate Bambi. All was wonderful, and finished off with a chocolate passion fruit bombe from the tasting room menu. You can't fake soul, and Eve has it; it shows in the food and it shows in the service.

How hard is it to put them in parentheses? Any number of books already do it; I just don't get it. Pheh.

We will be there the first two weeks in October. We have Party for the Senses on the 2 and 9th, and I will probably do the Sweet Sunday on the 3d. I think Blue Zoo opened since last year; we went a few months ago when we were down and I thought it, as well as Shula's, were pretty good.

Do the recipes give both weight and volume? I thought that was one of the odd things about Yard's book -- that it didn't.

Some cooking schools may offer a shorter continuing education series. L'academie here in DC does a 20 lesson course based on the professional course. I took it on the advice of Steve Klc here on e-gullet and it was absolutely worth it. There are things you are just not going to learn (quickly) from a book. I think you'll find once you get a certain amount of knowledge and practice under your belt, the books you will be attracted to will change.

Has anyone heard any buzz or seen excerpts from Roland Mesnier's upcoming Dessert University?

The Food and Wine Festival at EPCOT (Disney World) is slated for 1 October to 14 November. Though they don't seem to have announced the exact schedule yet, the events (Party for the Senses, Chef dinners, etc.) are supposed to go on sale at 0700 20 July. We went last year and had a wonderful time. Is anyone else planning on attending this year?

Just wanted to join in the chorus of congratulations for Chef Cathal, Meshelle, and Todd. We've been to the Bistro at Eve a half-dozen times since it opened (I'm not counting the two times I snuck in for lunch without telling my wife ) and I think we've tried everything on the menu. The worst thing I can think of to say is the prawns can be difficult to peel -- but worth it. (And unlike Tom, I like the oxtail ravioli). I think the line in the review about this being a great neighborhood restaurant of the sort you find in San Francisco or New York is absolutely correct. Meshelle and Todd really make the Bistro feel like a home-away-from-home. Cliche yes, but true. The only reason we haven't done the tasting room is the Bistro is just so comfortable; well, that and needing to find a sitter that can pass my wife's third degree. Hopefully I'll still be able to convince Todd to take me to Costco to help me pick out wines. Damn, I knew I should have got a firm commitment before the review came out. I saw on their website www.restauranteve.com they are having a veal tasting at the end of the month; looks like its a horn-to-hoofs sort of thing. Pretty adventurous for Old Town.

"Insincere posting"...I'm shocked, shocked. Our experiences have always been similar to what you describe. Last time we were there with our daughter, she had told the waitress how much she adores chocolate and as we prepared to order dessert the chef sent out -- unbidden -- a wonderful chocolate dessert prepared for the tasting menu upstairs. I've also found the sommelier to be very helpful and gracious. And I love the Eamon cocktail.

I wholeheartedly agree with Tom on this one. We've eaten at Eve four times as well and have found the service and food wonderful each and every time. We've also recommended it to a number of our friends who have subsequently dined there and have received nothing but glowing reports back. Maybe the poster wandered into a restaurant in a parallel universe by mistake.... Has anyone else had the sort of disastrous experience described or is this just some strange anomoly? Clearly it wasn't Tom's experience either.