Four and Twenty Blackbirds

[Miguelito]

Considering making a family outing of it this w/e but want to be sure the destination is as enjoyable as the scenery en route.

If so, do they take (and do you need) reservations?

Thanks.

[JennyUptown]

My bad - Tom gave it two stars.

Edited March 17, 2004 by JennyUptown (log)

[JennyUptown]

Review aqui

[sextons]

I definitely think the brunch is worth it. There are about 10 entrees to choose from and they tend to average $13-$15. The plates are PACKED with food. Last time I was there I had the pan fried trout which came with cream cheese scrambled eggs, applewood bacon, potatoes, and homemade local plum coffee cake. There might have been something else on the plate too ...! There's always a fish or two, usually some time of eggs benedict, some kind of fruity pancake, chip beef & gravy ... I think it's a great brunch and a great destination for a Sunday drive. I would suggest making reservations - it can get pretty busy in there on Sundays. Hope this helps.

[bbq4meanytime]

We liked the brunch there. We stayed overnight at the Flint Hill Public House and ate dinner there, bruched at 4&20 the next morning. Don't know if they take reservations, but if they do, it would be a good idea.

If anything, the ride out there and back would make it worth it IMO. But then again, I spend every other weekend exploring the VA countryside.

[Joe H]

You MUST have reservations for Four and Twenty Blackbirds-brunch or dinner. It's well worth the trip; in fact if it were on K Street it would be on par with Kinkead's or Vidalia.

[bbq4meanytime]

Maybe we just were lucky but we DIDN'T have reservations and walked in.

[Miguelito]

Made the drive with wife, in-laws and 10-month old son Sunday. Bottom line -- good food, not so good customer relations.

I had the pan-fried trout, which comes with apple-smoked bacon, cream cheese scrambled eggs, and apple coffee cake. The bacon, two thick strips right on top of the fish, kind of overwhelms the trout -- not such a problem for me, as I love bacon (and you could always take off anyway, I suppose). Cream cheese in scrambled eggs? Who'da thunk it? But the textures and flavors melded nicely. Coffee cake was fresh and obviously made in house. Just a simple yellow cake with a fair amount of cinnamon swirled in among the large chunks of apple, and with a crumbly brown sugar topping. Fortunately, the cake itself was not too sweet, so the flavors balanced well.

My wife had the biscuits and gravy. Plenty of chipped beef in the creamy gravy made this dish a treat. Biscuits were fresh, flaky and buttery-rich, but could have been larger -- they're only about 1-1/2 inches across, and as only two of them come on the plate, the copious gravy easily outlasts the biscuits.

MIL had the portobello mushroom, spinach and goat cheese frittata; FIL had the ham, gruyere and apple frittata. I did not taste these, although MIL and FIL appeared to enjoy them.

Wife and I had Mimosas, FIL had a Bloody Mary. All were unusually strong -- not such a good thing for brunch, IMO, but better than too weak.

Unfortunately, a service issue marred what would otherwise have been a very enjoyable meal. We arrived a few minutes early for a 10:30 res, were seated by 10:25 and placed our orders by 10:40. We finally got our food at 11:35. Our waitress was attentive and nice, and even commented unsolicitedly around 11:15 that the delay seemed unusual, and went to check on things for us. My guess is that the order had been lost/overlooked until then. No biggie; things happen.

It's what happened as the meal ended that is stuck in my craw.

The manager came down as we were finishing to ask if everything was alright. I told him that we enjoyed the food, but that we were a bit disappointed by the 45-minute-plus wait in getting it, and noted that the table next to us had been served within no more than 15 minutes of placing their order. He was not apologetic, and said that the wait hadn't been unusually long, and that it resulted from the busy time at which we had arrived, not from any problem.

Three things about that just don't sit right with me. First, a 45-minute-plus wait for brunch is just not acceptable, even in a full house, and this house was not full when we arrived. If that kind of delay is routine at this establishment then something is not right in their operations. Second, if it is routine, why did our waitress, on her own initiative, comment that it seemed unusual? Third, why the brush-off when we raised the issue? It's not like we were asking for anything to be comped, just letting the guy know that the delay put a cloud on the experience. He acted as if he didn't want to hear about it.

Fortunately, hitting a couple of wineries on the way back (Gray Ghost and Unicorn) and getting to spend the day with the extended family set the mood back to mellow and happy.

[Faboo]

Today I arrived at Four & Twenty Blackbirds in time for a late brunch.

They were very busy so it took a while to get the entree, but it was well worth the wait.

Eggs Benedict on baby spinach and green onion dill biscuits w/lemon dill hollandaisse.

Fresh peaches on pecan shortbread w/homemade caramel ice cream.

This is a three star restaurant if there ever was one.

[John Talbott]

Considering making a family outing of it this w/e but want to be sure the destination is as enjoyable as the scenery en route.

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Don't know about noon, but food at dinner is great.

I agree with the stars.

[HORSEPLAY]

[

Fortunately, hitting a couple of wineries on the way back (Gray Ghost and Unicorn) and getting to spend the day with the extended family set the mood back to mellow and happy.

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