25 for $25, again

[mamster]

"Coffee and doughnuts" could be pretty good, too.

I had the $12.50 lunch today at 727 Pine, and it was great. I went in thinking about risotto, but today's selection was with mascarpone and English peas, which didn't tickle my fancy, so I started with the pureed garlic soup. I've been happy with cream soup at 727 before, and this one was great, nice cooked garlic flavor with some crisp garlic chips and croutons. Then, arctic char, beautifully cooked (crispy skin!) on top of braised brussels sprouts with bacon, all topped with a bit of lamb's lettuce salad. It all came together wonderfully, and I was scraping up sauce with my bread. Finally, I had the chocolate dessert, which consisted of a light chocolate macaroon (egg whites, no coconut), inverted and topped with some teardrops of chocolate pastry cream and a scoop of vanilla ice cream, the plate garnished with orange sauce. It was a good but not great dessert--the cookie had a nice springy texture but not a lot of flavor. Great ice cream, though.

[Schielke]

Is there much difference between the lunch and dinner? Are portions or dishes different? It sounds like a steal!

Ben

[Millikan]

In response to the query re: Ray's - I had lunch there this past Sunday and the food was great. I had clam chowder, Blackened Rockfish, Key Lime Tart. There were four of us (we all had the clam chowder and Rockfish and all proclaimed them yummy) and had four different desserts (creme brulee, Key Lime Tart, Ice Cream, and Pecan Blondie with caramel).

All in all, desserts were good, but not outstanding, and Rockfish was excellent (blackened enough to impart great flavor but not overpowering). Came with polenta and veggies...... Don't know what the dinner menu is like.

Service also excellent and they are also offering 25% off Washington wines in conjunction with the deal.

I had never been to Ray's to eat before and I was pleasantly surprised. I had assumed that it was one of those places that gets by because it is an institution but not because the food is good. I only moved here from DC about a year ago, and have made some terrible eating mistakes based on what people tell me are good restaurants. (Until I found this website, that is!) Hope this helps!!

[tsquare]

Friend and I hit Etta's for lunch. Saw Ms. T.D. running around keeping an eye on things. Room seems bright - maybe the sun coming out, or fresh paint?

Such a steal!

Squid appetizer with green olive tapenade. You could tell these were seafood, thick rings lightly battered, not chewy -vs- Ham hock and black bean soup with a green salsa (tomatillo?) that was smokey and rich. Pureed.

Salmon with spinach, blood oranges, cornbread pudding (?). A fine and rich piece of fish, "rubbed with love" -vs- linguine with clams and pancetta (yum, bacon.)

A tureen of rubarb crisp with marscapone (hmm, didn't get a taste) -vs- the famous coconut cream pie (and a big ol' generous portion of it.)

If you've never been or thought it was just for tourists, I'd say, give it a whirl.

[seawakim]

I had the $12.50 lunch today at 727 Pine, and it was great.  I went in thinking about risotto, but today's selection was with mascarpone and English peas, which didn't tickle my fancy, so I started with the pureed garlic soup.  I've been happy with cream soup at 727 before, and this one was great, nice cooked garlic flavor with some crisp garlic chips and croutons.  Then, arctic char, beautifully cooked (crispy skin!) on top of braised brussels sprouts with bacon, all topped with a bit of lamb's lettuce salad.  It all came together wonderfully, and I was scraping up sauce with my bread.  Finally, I had the chocolate dessert, which consisted of a light chocolate macaroon (egg whites, no coconut), inverted and topped with some teardrops of chocolate pastry cream and a scoop of vanilla ice cream, the plate garnished with orange sauce.  It was a good but not great dessert--the cookie had a nice springy texture but not a lot of flavor.  Great ice cream, though.

Ditto. We also went to 727 Pine for lunch today. Sorry we missed you, we would've loved to have you join us.

The ice cream was indeed great, but it was white chocolate ice cream I believe

I also ordered the Arctic Char and thought it was well prepared. Dave ordered the Braised and Grilled Baby Chicken which was served with Mashed Potatoes, green asparagus and morel mushroom (1) and a great reduction.

For dessert I had the macaroon and Dave ordered the sorbet trio (mango, grapefruit and lemon) which was ok but too tangy for my taste.

Overall, good food.

Edited March 5, 2003 by seawakim (log)

[RandyB]

I've always wanted to try the roast suckling pig at Brasa, and there it is on the 25/25 menu. Any one been there lately?

Brasa

Below menus are subject to change. Please call for details.

DINNER ONLY

Starter choices:

Curried Mussels

Pumpkin Polenta

Wild Salad

Entrée choices:

Roast Suckling Pig

Banana Leaf Wrapped Bass

Petite fillet

Pumpkin Risotto

Dessert choices:

Kahlua Caramel Profiteroles

Sugar Pie Pumpkin Cheesecake

Bourbon Pecan Pie

[MsRamsey]

I've always wanted to try the roast suckling pig at Brasa, and there it is on the 25/25 menu. Any one been there lately?

Yes. Please see page 3 of this thread, where you will also find the current week's menu.

[nightscotsman]

I've got to say, based purely on the posted menus, the Georgian Room has this one locked up:

Starter choices:

Smoked Black Cod

Jerusalem Artichoke and Roasted Garlic Soup

Entrée choices:

Roasted Sea Bass

Sarah Joe's Cracklin' Pork Bellies

American Kobe Beef

Dessert choices:

Coffee and Doughnuts

Black and White Chocolate Souffle

Mmmm.

I zeroed in on this one too. I'm completely conflicted over the pork bellies vs. the Kobe beef. If only all of life's choices were these types of no-lose situations...

The soup and the souffle are locks...

Yeah, that menu got me too. Anyone up for dinner at the Georgian next week?

[tighe]

Has anybody tried the 12.50 lunch?

I had the $12.50 lunch at the Hunt Club today. I would reccomend skipping it. It wasn't a particularly good deal compared to the regular menu. Small cup of soup, half a sandwich and sorbet. Scrat had their soup and sanwich special which was a full sandwich and full bowl of soup, but no dessert for only a couple dollars more. I also thought the sandwich I had, salmon BLT, was a little funky.

[malarkey]

[Yeah, that menu got me too. Anyone up for dinner at the Georgian next week?

I would be!! any night but monday... I agree, the menu sounds fabulous, and I've never been there. they have a dress code dont' they?

[mamster]

they have a dress code dont' they?

I don't know, but I saw a dejected-looking Schielke loping out of there with no pants.

[tsquare]

they have a dress code dont' they?

Absolutely not, but the place feels like you should dress up. A year or so ago, they attempted to make the place less formal. Not sure they succeeded, but I went in casual clothes and no eyebrows were raised. The food was very good, the place - spacious. I think it would be a hoot to take a rowdy crowd in and liven up the place...so have fun.

[malarkey]

well ok then! expect me there, and I'll dress, um, nicely. I guess. we'll see, I'll dig through my closet this weekend

[MsRamsey]

There's something about The Georgian that puzzles me. How can they be a hotel restaurant, yet close on Sunday and Monday?

[tighe]

There's something about The Georgian that puzzles me.  How can they be a hotel restaurant, yet close on Sunday and Monday?

Probably because the Four Seasons has what, 3 or 4 restaurants in it?.....

[MsRamsey]

There's something about The Georgian that puzzles me.  How can they be a hotel restaurant, yet close on Sunday and Monday?

Probably because the Four Seasons has what, 3 or 4 restaurants in it?.....

I did not know that.

[seawakim]

Is anyone up for an eGullet dinner at Nell's?

Edited March 10, 2003 by seawakim (log)

[Schielke]

Katie and I had the $25 dinner at Flying Fish last night. I was a little disapointed that the Smoked Albacore was not on the menu anymore, it had changed to smoked shrimp spring rolls that the waiter was not too excited about.

Apps: I had the Lobster Bisque and Katie had the Asian pear salad with 5 spice walnuts. The Lobster Bisque was very nice, it was somewhat spicy. It could have used a few more chunks of lobster though. I think there were 2 very small ones. Katie's salad was nicely prepared and the 5 spice walnuts were tasty.

Mains: I had the Wild Sockeye with roasted tomatoes and purple mashed potatoes while Katie had the Mahi Mahi with ginger butter sauce. My dish was a generous piece of sockeye that was cooked nicely. The fish itself was excelent, but the rest of the dish was only ok. The fish felt detached from the rest of the plate and did not work as a whole...good thing the fish was top notch. Katie's Mahi Mahi was the clear winner, again the fish was well prepared (they must have a great grill man back there) and tied well with the rest of the dish.

Dessert: I had the Warm Grappa Brownie and Katie had the Coconut Torte. The Brownie was pretty much a molten chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream, but was pretty tasty. I could not detect much grappa flavor and had to guess as to where it was in the dish. The ice cream was sub par and watery tasting. The brownie itself was very nice and the perfect doneness. Katie's torte was great. It had a rich full coconut flavor and a great moist texture. One of the better coconut desserts I have had. Good show.

Overall, we had a lovely time and I would go back to flying fish to order off the menu.

Ben

[nightscotsman]

MsRamsey and I had dinner at 727 Pine last night. I know it was a Sunday, but I can't believe this place makes any money, since I have yet to see it even close to half full. Anyway...

We had a nice amuse of cold english pea soup with squab gelee. Very tasty, but and odd choice for winter - seemed more of a springish dish.

For appetizers I had the sunchoke soup with shrimp and crispy bacon and MsRamsey had the crab stuffed peppers. The soup was fabulously smooth and creamy, yet light and not overly rich. It had drizzles of lemon olive oil which sparked the flavor up a bit. Very, very good and my favorite dish of the evening. The peppers were also good, served on a creamy sauce and surrounded by "chorizo oil".

I had the Kurobuta Pork with red rice for a main, and MsRamsey had halibut they were substituting for a stugeon surgeon dish on the menu. The pork came as a chop about an inch and a half thick cooked medium rare - extremely juicy - with a shredded daikon salad on top. Very good, but not spectacular. MsRamsey's fish was perfectly cooked with a nice crust, served with herbed gnocchi and a saffron broth. I'm not usually a big fan of halibut, but this was delicious.

We ordered both desserts on the $25 menu: a sorbet trio (lemon, passion fruit, and grapefruit) and a large French-style chocolate macaron topped with vanilla ice cream and milk chocolate ganache. both were very nice and with charming presentations.

We were also brought mignardise of tiny financiers with a whole spanish almond in the middle. Yummy.

Overall an excellent meal with generous portions, and an amazing value for $25.

[mamster]

Sounds great. 727 seems to do a great job with fish, and a juicy pork chop?

When I was there for lunch the other day (with seawakim, though I didn't know it), they were doing pretty well.

[tsquare]

Went to Brasa - the main menu has changed and there were some really great sounding things - but the 25 for $25 was good enough. Had pumpkin polenta with truffle oil - yum (I could even taste the truffle flavor!) Lamb tagine with panir - yum, yum. Caramel Profiteroles for dessert - what, no chocolate? Just kidding, they (two) were good.

Intrigued by a new starter - quail on chocolate polenta...

[Schielke]

So does the "double yum" rating of the tagine w/ paneer mean it was twice as good as the "single yum" rating of the polenta?

[tsquare]

Nah, I'm just running low of vocabulary brain cells today.

[col klink]

I hit Brasa last week. I had the curried mussles for the app, which was definitely my favorite of the night. I also had the chance to sample the polenta (fabulous, though I didn't taste the truffle oil but it's quite possible I don't know how to recognize it since I've never had truffles before) and the blue cheese salad which was also pretty good. I ordered the roast suckling pig for the main course. This was a little dissapointing since I was hoping for some crispy skin; guess I need to go the Georgian Room! The texture of the pork was similar to pulled pork but far more tender. That was great, but there just wasn't very much pork flavor at all, especially when drowned in the sauce and chorizo on the side. The clams were good. I just think they were trying to do too much with the dish. The petit fillet with the blue cheese sauce chosen by my fellow diners was the better choise. The reduction sauce was really tasty; it really livened up the mashed taters. There was only one dessert, chocolate ice cream in small pastries and topped with a little caramel sauce. It wasn't half bad. The ice cream was nice and chocolately without being overly sweet.

I can't wait to go back to try the bar menu now!

[malarkey]

klink, you simply MUST go to the Georgian while they are doing the $25 menu. The pork dish (Sarah Joe's Cracklin' Pork Bellies) is SOOOO up your alley...