Georgetown?

[JRage]

To answer tjaehnigen's post, the current chef at Mendocino is Drew Trautman. We didn't change chef's when we changed ownership, but it may seem like we did. What changed was that we gave him more freedom to change the menu. We are encouraging him to keep the menu fresh and seasonal and allowing him to use more expensive, organic ingredients (whenever possible.)

He is doing a great job of it and we are proud of the work he is doing. (but, I do have a biased opinion.)

I am part of the new ownership of Mendocino. OK, enough self-promotion...but Tjaehnigen did ask...

[bilrus]

Welcome JRage.

[tjaehnigen]

jrage--

Many thanks. I very much enjoy dining at your place. I did not really think the chef had change, IMO, since the menu choices and presentations were not fundamentally different. I am thuinking of coming back again soon. We had this roasted tomato soup there I think last summer that was to DIE FOR. I applaud that you've given him some greater flexibility with the menu and ingredients, too. Nice.

[JRage]

Tjaehnigen,

They made that roasted tomato soup earlier this summer and it was pretty amazing... stop by anytime, I think you'll be happy. (although it is a little busy this restaurant week...)

And thanks for the welcome BilRus, makes a novice online guy feel welcome...

Edited August 1, 2003 by JRage (log)

[Mark Sommelier]

Woo Hoo! Lobster burgers with pommes frites cooked in clarified butter and a glass of Domaine Maillard 2000 Vielles Vignes Meursault on the terrace at Citronelle. Sorry for the shameless plug.

[tjaehnigen]

Tjaehnigen,

They made that roasted tomato soup earlier this summer and it was pretty amazing... stop by anytime, I think you'll be happy. (although it is a little busy this restaurant week...)

And thanks for the welcome BilRus, makes a novice online guy feel welcome...

Let me know when the roasted tomato soup is on the menu again and I will be there. heh heh

[silentbob]

I'm taking a new hire to lunch on the firm's penny at some point next week. Logistically, the Georgetown/West End restaurants are probably the most viable options. I've already eaten at Citronelle, Melrose, and Kinkead's. Marcel's, Nectar, and 1789 don't appear to be open for lunch.

Two other potential options are Mendocino and Sea Catch. The reviews of Mendocino on this board seem to be mixed, and I couldn't find much on Sea Catch. Are those the only promising choices available? Any other ideas?

[PoorLawyer]

I've eaten at Sea Catch for dinner a few times. Prety standard seafood/fish fare with a couple meat options. The food and service have always been very good.

[morela]

Give Red Ginger a try...

or Basil Thai (that way your off of the main strip; a.k.a (not) Mmmm Street, except for one or two places)

[chengb02]

As a far as Chinatown...I asked about the Burmese  place since we don't have much of that (worth mentioning) here (in NYC). Its just that i would need to find stuff to do besides Chinatown since its so small.

Sorry, didn't read ahead, this is already too late, but...If you are looking for something to do in Chinatown for a few hours and haven't been yet, check out the Spy museum. When I go to Chinatown I rarely eat Chinese food as I don't like most of the places, but will stop at Legal Seafood. As for Georgetown, there really isn't much. If you're going there to shop, just stop by D&D and get a sandwich or something and then continue on your way.

Edited April 14, 2004 by chengb02 (log)

[clifford]

Two other potential options are Mendocino and Sea Catch. The reviews of Mendocino on this board seem to be mixed, and I couldn't find much on Sea Catch. Are those the only promising choices available? Any other ideas?

silentbob-More from the shameless plug department. PM me and I will be happy to take care of you.

I've eaten at Sea Catch for dinner a few times. Prety standard seafood/fish fare with a couple meat options. The food and service have always been very good.

PoorLawyer- after 17 years, the restaurant has, admittedly, become fairly staid and predictable. The new management team and Executive Chef Jeff Shively are working hard to breathe new life into the restaurant. We don't aspire to the sophisticated cuisine of Citronelle, Nectar, 2941, et al., but we are evolving into a more interesting, and hopefully enticing, seafood restaurant.

[PoorLawyer]

I've eaten at Sea Catch for dinner a few times. Prety standard seafood/fish fare with a couple meat options. The food and service have always been very good.

PoorLawyer- after 17 years, the restaurant has, admittedly, become fairly staid and predictable. The new management team and Executive Chef Jeff Shively are working hard to breathe new life into the restaurant. We don't aspire to the sophisticated cuisine of Citronelle, Nectar, 2941, et al., but we are evolving into a more interesting, and hopefully enticing, seafood restaurant.

Good to hear. I didn't mean my comment in any negative way. Nothing wrong with being able to go into the same place more than once and everyone have a good meal every time. I'd rather have it consistent than have a plate built into a spire up to the ceiling of mediocre food.

[JennyUptown]

I'm posting notes on my recent experience (I won't call it a meal) at Mie n Yu here rather than starting a new topic. Trust me, it's not worthy.

My boyfriend (aka PLM) and I had plans over in Georgetown Friday night. We haven't been going out a lot recently between work (his) and health (mine). I'm usually the bossy b*tch who says "I wanna go to..." so when he suggested a place for once, I agreed to go there, even when it was Mie n Yu and I'd never heard anything good about the place except for commentary about the decor.

PLM and I have agreed that I will never, ever bite my tongue again, at least when it comes to restaurant selection. In my defense, dinner wasn't in the plans, but shortly after we arrived, PLM announced that he was hungry, he could eat.

I wasn't hungry, but decided to wait to make up my mind until I'd seen the menu. First, though, we had to get menus...

The fun began

Backing up a little, when we arrived, we decided to give ourselves a self-guided tour of the stupidly-named Mie n Yu. I felt dumb each time I had to say the god awful moniker. PLM made me tell the cab driver the destination.

We strolled through various rooms, each themed (we later learned) to correspond to a different aspect of Marco Polo's explorations. Some - those downstairs mostly - were crowded, while the upstairs rooms were sparsely populated. In a room we later learned was the Venetian Room, we asked the bartender if we could sit at one of approximately eight unoccupied tables. He told us we could, but that first we'd have to see the hosts. He wasn't sure if it was lounge seating at the moment or restaurant though. We'd have to ask. Back downstairs we went.

At the hosts' station, we were greeted by Mie n Yu's own version of Larry, Curly and Mo. We told them what the upstairs bartender had told us that we needed to come down to be seated up. They exchanged concerned looks and I could see hints of that bouncer-about-to-say "no, sorry" face. They asked if we wanted to order food or to only have drinks. We told them "we don't care, we just want to sit."

<<further confusion and indecision, but finally the male waiter/host we'll call Larry took charge and seated us.>>

If only we'd just left.

In order to try to prevent this post from becoming the longest in recorded egullet history, I'll just say there was lamb, it was greasy to the point of being inedible (and we like lamb). There was spinach, it was served in a cool asymmetric bowl that was - alas - full of...water, easily 3/4" of it.

With one cocktail (a French kiss which was fine, but basically a glorified cosmopolitan) and one Sapporo, this meal of one entree and one side was just shy of $60. Ick.

The question you might be considering right now: are the atmosphere and cocktails alone worth a return visit? Factoring in Georgetown traffic or parking hassles, the bizarre crowd (frat boys, families with children) and awful food, no freakin' way. We walked away shaking our heads. My fault.