Top Chef DC Episode 7 Recap

[In today's photo, let's celebrate the fact that I did NOT have to take the bar exam today, and that my friends who did are done...or at least, almost done.]


The Quickfire:
Republican Aaron Schock from the 18th District of Illinois 'splains the Toothpick Rule to the cheftestants. He's young, but he's smart.  He graduated college in two years. Create a whole dish packed into that toothpick bite in 30 minutes. J wants Andrea's fried chicken and waffle on a stick.
Alex, Ed, and Kelly were at the bottom.  Kevin, Angelo, and Stephen were at the top, and Angelo (and his cucumber cup) took it.  It was "like fireworks" in Rep. Schock's mouth.  Padma's braid is way too long, and she's wearing baggy cargo capris...eek.

Elimination Challenge: The Power Lunch.  They are going to take over The Palm.  They draw knives for the protein.  I think Kelly is right that Amanda will be slammed for breaking down the Porterhouses into filets and NY strips.  I'm not shocked at all that Angelo isn't familiar with the power lunch.  Anyone else digging the amped up music as the time ticked down?

Exec VP of The Palm lets them know that the winning dish is going on the menu in DC and their smiling face will go on the wall with the other famous photos.  There was a pea puree debacle.  The diners were Mark Warner, Mika Brzezinski, Joe Scarborough, John Podesta, and Bruce Bozzi (Exec VP).  Kelly O'Donnell, Luke Russert, Savannah Guthrie, and Art Smith (of the local Art & Soul and Obama Chicago favorite Table Fifty-Two).

Kelly and Amanda on the steaks, and Kelly's was a bit salty.  Andrea and Tiffany with swordfish; Andrea's is maybe too sweet and Tiffany's is great but overcooked.  Mark Warner's tie is zesty, and he thinks Tiffany's fish is, too!  Alex's salmon is well-received, and Stephen's is not in symphony like Alex's was.  It has a "heaviness to it."  Lobster from Angelo was chewy, and the foam was "strange."  Ed's lobster was better, but the peas were unnecessary.  Neither Kenny nor Kevin aced the lamb.

Alex, Tiffany, and Ed were on the top.  Chef Smith loved that pea puree, the one that everyone thinks Alex stole from Ed.  Alex's salmon and pea puree wins gold!  Awkward.

Kevin, Andrea, and Kelly were at the bottom.  Kevin's lamb was overcooked and tooo spicy.  Kelly was salty mcsalterson.  And Andrea cooked food that she's done before--if they wanted that food, they would have come to your restaurant (says the judges). Kelly cries--this is me not caring that you weren't sure about the lines between bland, zazzy, and totally overpowering.  Andrea goes home--bummer, she's a nice gal.  I think she never got over being slammed by Michelle Bernstein, her alleged Miami nemesis. 

"I guess that's what happens when you don't share.  She deserves to be on the bottom."  Amanda on Kelly, who apparently hoarded the salt (really? There wasn't enough salt in a friggin' steakhouse?).  Winner of Best Quote today.  Tom's been all about the semi-working lines leading to the elimination--this week it was "instead of a power lunch, we got a power nap!" or something like that.  

The most interesting thing about this week's episode was my daydream about eating the macaroni and cheese from Art & Soul.  Bubbbbbling over the side of the mini crock pot-like bowl.  WANT.  Eventually I'll stop going to the pool, knitting baby hats, and actually tell you about Pizzeria Orso, Jersey Shore Part II, Bibiana (swoon), etc. Small hats, as proof of my busy-ness [pattern for hat here and logos here.].

Weekly Recap: So Hot, So Many Blueberries

 
Blueberries.  They are everywhere, except for in my belly.  I know there are more delicious blueberry dish photos and blog posts to come, and I hope somebody will save me a slice of SOMETHING.  I wonder if you can make booze-filled blueberries the way you can do it with watermelon (thanks Kay819!).   Also this week, Deepthroat did a burger run down not so unlike my cage match a few years ago (and many burger joints ago, now that I think about it).  And DC Wrapped Dates enjoyed Eventide way more than I did (although I went early and without a Groupon...flaws hurt more when they cost more, I've found).  In other local and seasonal news, my garden-in-law is growing nicely, and I look forward to tasting the fruits of others' labor.

This week Barack Obama shocked the nation by returning to Arlington staple (and iEatDC favorite) Ray's Hellburger for the second time.   The Post published Tom's First Bite on Agora on 17th, but we already knew it was good from Mark & Angela's First Bite!


This blog isn't new, but it makes me giggle because--well, obviously.  They Brunch Hard.  So do we!!! 

Cooking co-ops.  There are definitely people I could do this with, if not for the whole proximity thing.

Is breakfast now the sixth most important meal of the day?

And finally, Pepto-Bismol is sponsoring the Nathan's Fourth of July hot dog eating contest.  How fitting.

I wasn't so enamored with food news this week, but these are the items that caught my eye, got shared, got emailed to me, were emailed from me, etc etc.  And also, watch this video (h/t Mel).

Have a great week everyone!!!

Komi

Hey! That's us!  That's our table!  No, that's not really us, but that really was our table--the nook in the window.  Originally we were seated in a floating table (not anchored to a wall aka Not My Bag), but because of our 8:45pm reservation, the place started clearing out just as we were ordering.  We took up our server (or at least, one of them) on her offer to move.  So nook + people watching + deliciousest food in the world = happiness.

Ahem!  Komi.  The myth.  The Legend.  No Photos Allowed. A chef described as a wunderkind.  #1 on the Washingtonian Top 100 Restaurant List (in 2009 and 2010). Obama Date Night Destination.  A realization that "best ever" is accurate.  And many other things that lots of people have already said (P.S. that last link was probably most influential--when I first moved here it was Jason from DCFoodies that I heeded most.  Of course the number of food blogs has decadrupled since that time). 

We quickly informed our server that we were "going for the gold"--the degustazione.  After all, who knows when--or if--we'll be back.  I was a little nervous that I'd forget certain plates (lost in the wine, perhaps?) so J and I played the "I'm going on a picnic game" every couple courses where we tried to name them all.  And then afterward I quickly scribbled (*2010 style) notes and took a screen shot for y'all.  This is as raw as I get guys.  Seriously.  I'm showing you my screen.  You know my battery life, and that I'm the kind of person that wants the percentage displayed.

Now, I'll dig into some details.  I liked absolutely everything and would have it all again.  The sashimi was unlike any sashimi I've had anywhere, even Makoto, which Zagat is in love with.  It was light and didn't have a hint of fishiness.  It provided cool (but not cold) and flavorful, super light bites.  BTW, the first bunch of dishes are called mezzathakia.  Mmmm.

The adorable tiny bun (as in bread) topped with creme fraiche and roe was SO DELICIOUS!  It reminded me that I look forward to making this appetizer from Mango & Tomato.  But now it has to be homemade adorable still-warm one-bite mini buns, right?

The spanikopita with the liquid center was another one-biter.  We all know how I love liquid center fried items.

Braised asparagus - awesome.  Tagliatelle with mushrooms & blueberries TOTALLY WORKED!  J was a little nervous that it would be strange, you know, with the blueberries.  But no.  The goat shoulder was unbelievable.  I described it to a friend (who hasn't eaten goat) as brisket meets dark turkey meat, but not.  One thing that's tough about a large tasting menu is that by the time you get to the seriously hearty main course kind of stuff, you are stuffed.  But at Komi, the bites are tiny, and they build progressively in weight and flavor so that you not only have room for the goat, but you LOVE eating it and basically finish the (large) plate (to share).

Same with the desserts.  The desserts were amazing.  Honestly.  Amazing. The caramel?  For real?!  At a lot of restaurants I want to eat dessert but I just can't.  I am too full.  I was ready for dessert.  Again, the build-up and the timing at Komi made not only eating dessert, but ENJOYING it, super duper easy.

The service was incredible.  Attentive (how could it not be, we saw servers pretty frequently with that massive list of plates), but it didn't seem like they were always around.  Plates came, plates went, wine was re-filled (we shared one bottle...it was a weekday!), but I still felt like we had our own space.

The only thing I really didn't like at Komi was something I didn't actually eat at Komi.  It was my little take home treat, a root beer lollipop.  And I'm a root beer fan, normally.  In this photo, it appears to be driving up Massachusetts Avenue.

The menu is not for picky eaters, but unlike other wild-seeming tasting adventures, this one truly produced one spectacular (looking and tasting) dish after another.  Pick a special occasion, or make one up.  Make a reservation.  We made ours 30 days in advance by phone for a weekday late seating.  That was before The Prez made an appearance, though.  Last step: go, relax, and enjoy.

Komi
1509 17th Street NW
Metro: Red Line to Dupont Circle

P.S.  If it's not obvious, this was the best meal I've ever had to date.  Really, ever. But maybe that will change one day. 

Zorba's Cafe

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!  And HAPPY BIRTHDAY to M!  [Announcements over.]

Hmmm where to go with an enormous group of girls?  Ever split a check 26 or so ways?  I'm guessing your answers is NO AND I NEVER WANT TO THX.

Recently a bunch (a whole big bunch) of us went out to Zorba's for our first of hopefully many future food outings.  We took up the entire space upstairs and to the right.  Zorba's has pretty decent Greek food--it's not amazing, but it's good, cheap, and really conveniently located.  It's nice to have a bargain meal that isn't from an obvious source (a burger place, chain sandwich shop).  One of the best parts about Zorba's is that it can be quick--you order and pay separately at the counter then wait for your number to be called.  But it can also be long--the place is big enough that if you want to sit and hang out for a while, you can.  People waiting for a table might hover, of course.  And I'm not saying that a crazy talking probably homeless man didn't hang out on the stairs for a few minutes and shout things at us, because he did.  But it wasn't so bad, and after a good 10 minutes the staff convinced him to leave.

Above is Zorba's yero, or maybe you know it as a gyro.  This link is an example of how gyro/yero has the pho/fuh dilemma going on.  Balancing proper with pretentious, being correct with being understood.  WHAT STRIFE! 

Anyway, marinated & sliced beef and lamp, tzatziki, feta, and some greenery on a pita.  $7.95.  Not the most filling dinner for a big eater like me, but if you pick at the food of the people around you it's fine.  Next time I'll order fries.

That's the spanakopita I was snacking on, even though it's ER's.  It was very far from my favorite spanakopita--there was way too much crust, and it seemed a little stale.  I want a thin outside and a warm gooey inside.  This guy reminded me more of a previously frozen situation popped in the toaster oven. 

And some baklava.  Again, I wouldn't write home about the pastry part, but the filling was yummy, even though it was very very sweet.  You need a few napkins for this sucker between the stickiness and some general greasiness.

Zorba's Cafe
1612 20th St NW
Metro: Red Line to Dupont Circle

BGR The Burger Joint

This Bethesda (and Alexandria and Dupont) burger joi--er, outlet bills its offering as the" one burger you MUST HAVE before you die."  Now that's taking it a little far.  That said, PLEASE get to your local Burger Joint and have the shake of the month before November ends.  The flavor is pumpkin pie, and the results are OH MY GOSH delicious.  Really.  Just go.

J and B enjoyed the burger of the month on a recent voyage: Thanksgiving On A Bun.  TOAB is a deliciously moist and well-seasoned turkey burger topped with cornbread stuffing, cranberries, and gravy.  I had to do something other than ALL CAPS to show you how amazing I think those toppings are.  Variety is the spice of life, people!

TOAB was great, and the sweet potato fries (and regular for traditionalists) are pretty good, too.  Even the veggie burger is yum--smoky and full of lots o' bits of good stuff.

I didn't have a regular burger, but I'm sure it's good.  Better than Ray's?  I'll have to go back to render that verdict.  For now, the only advantage I see for BGR is that you can bring your vegetarian plus-one there without damning them to a mac 'n' cheese existence (LC i'm looking at you!). 

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families!!!!


BGR: The Burger Joint
4827 Fairmont Ave
Bethesda, MD
Metro: Red Line to Bethesda (and other locations in Dupont & Old Town, Alex)

Straits of Malaya

Wow, we had way too much fun at Straits of Malaya.  We were joined by J&J, and after getting a private tour of their new abode we headed into the neighborhood to find some good eats.  First: the weather.  That day was AMAZING.  I know you may not be able to recreate that for your first visit (the season is basically over), but keep in mind that Straits has lovely rooftop seating.  Second: the service!  Our problem was typical: we wanted everything on the menu and didn't know where to start or what to choose.  Our server was so helpful--we basically gave her the list of things we wanted and she told us which dishes were similar or had similar sauces so we could have more variety.  Yay!

We enjoyed (and correct me if we're not remembering right--it was a while ago and I didn't take notes because it tends to embarrass my friends) the following:  the curry puffs (less puffy than you might imagine, still delicious), five spice roll,  chicken with basil, curry Chinese eggplant with chicken, and cha kway teow, a noodle dish billed as the chef's favorite.

We had a lot of flavors and textures going on, and I'd recommend everything we tried, which leads me to think a lot of the other items are worth trying on our next trip to the Straits. The place had a reliable, neighborhood feel where you know you'll get a good meal, you won't be rushed, and you also won't need to wait for hours to experience some mediocrity. Would I drive to Vienna Metro, head into the city on a Saturday evening, and hit Straits up as a date night destination?  Probably not.  But if me and my guy were strolling around the city on a temperate evening, wondering where we could have a quiet, yummy dinner that wouldn't break the bank, and by the way can it be outside?  And we don't want to wait?  Straits is that.  We'll be back, but not before we explore the rest of our pals' new neighborhood.

Straits of Malaya
1836 18th Street NW
Metro: Red Line to Dupont Circle

Sushi Taro and Mr. Yogato

We had the great pleasure of dining recently with J & J. Wow that's so cute it's almost wrong. Anyway, being city slickers and all, J-squared reeled in these suburban couch potatoes for a Dupont Circle evening. You might remember that we only recently started understanding about good sushi and better sushi. Well, Sushi Taro is DELICIOUS sushi. First there was miso soup all around, and delightful vegetable tempura. I will say that the veggie pieces were quite large, so at times you had to look to your neighbor and say, "Listen, I really want the eggplant, and it's awkward to share such enormous pieces of lightly fried vegetable with you without knives."

For dinner, the four of us shared two spicy tuna rolls, one yellowtail, one Alaska (salmon and avocado), one eel with cucumber, one plum with shiso leaves, a rainbow roll (spicy tuna with more fish and avocado wrapped around outside--see the visual), and the baby snapper nigiri from the "special" list. Everything tasted as it should--fresh and flavorful. The service was attentive and understanding (we asked a handful of questions). I'd definitely recommend Sushi Taro.

Afterward, we were full but not stuffed--at least not too stuffed for frozen dessert. We went around the corner to Mr. Yogato, one in a smattering of recent yogurt joint openings that still doesn't rival the burger explosion of 2008. You can get original soft, original tangy, or a rotation of yogurt flavors at Mr. Yogato, and then there are a zillion toppings. Including olive oil. I had original tangy with bananas, mini Eggo wafflse, and honey. It was AWESOME. Standard chocolate toppings abound, for the traditional folks. The best part about MY of course are the games. Besides the standards, including answering a trivia question (like "Name 7 countries that start and end with the same letter"--Jeff's question!), the night we were there your yogurt was 100% free if you could stand on one foot on your tippy toes (not quite ballet style, but raised up) for 15 seconds with YOUR EYES CLOSED. The eyes closed part is the kicker, people. Try it. Right now. As J said, you go to Mr. Yogato when you're with friends but Tangysweet when you're alone.

Sushi Taro
1503 17th St NW
Mr. Yogato
1515 17th Street NW
Metro: Red Line to Dupont Circle (South Exit)

Hudson - Restaurant Week

It's been a while. I've been eating, but not as much at restaurants. It seems school has devoured my life. But fear not! I will tell you about Hudson.

I recently [editor's note: not so recently, it turns out] enjoyed RW lunch at Hudson with two lovely ladies. Hudson replaced David Greggory at 20th and M Streets last fall, across from the St. Gregory hotel (::shudder::).

I decided to recklessly abandon any shred of healthy-eating decency at this particular lunch, which is why I had (1) Corn chowder (with piquillo peppers, chives, and chorizo oil), (2) buttermilk fried chicken (with whipped potatoes, gravy, and HONEY), and (3) a root beer float with vanilla bean ice cream. My food was awesome. The corn chowder wasn't super thick and creamy, so it wasn't as inappropriate for summer as it initially sounds, trust me! I rarely eat fried chicken, but if you're gonna do it, do it this way--so good! Not greasy at all!

I'll let S and L talk about their food...

S: For an appetizer, I ordered the beef brochette, which was served on top of a mini salad of frisee, pear, and a "roquefort crouton." The beef was tender, a little seared on the outside (my favorite), and so flavorful. Delicious. While I avoided the frisee (I don't waste energy eating wannabe lettuce), the "crouton" was a fried and melty blob of blue cheese. Such a good pairing with the beef. I'd totally get it again.

My main dish was a stuffed tomato florentine, which normally wouldn't be my main dish but I was tempted by the thought of a fresh summer tomato. It wasn't amazing. It was well plated, at least, with a cute little tomato hat, but I'd only recommend it to a vegetarian. It grew on me the more I ate it, but it didn't have a ton of flavor. L's beef tenderloin looked much more appetizing, but then I wouldn't have discovered the beef brochette since I probably wouldn't double up on a beef appetizer and a beef main dish. Oh well!


Despite being Miss Chocolate USA, as ieatDC just named me, I ordered the coconut panna cotta for dessert, again being tempted by a summery dish. It was also plated well with a drizzle of pomegranate sauce and a homemade tart lemon wafer cookie stuck in top. The pomegranate "sauce" was like a concentrated, highly flavorful extraction and added a nice zing to the panna cotta. Perhaps I'm not that familiar with panna cotta in the first place, but it was chewier than I imagined? I guess I thought it'd be like a flan or a mousse, but it was still delicious!

L: [Had the bet salad with goat cheese, beef tenderloin, and sweet potato bread pudding.] I thought the beets were good, though this type of salad is pretty much ubiquitous now, and I've had tastier versions at other restaurants. That doesn't mean it was bad, but it wasn't *amazing*. The beef tenderloin was a huge portion, and it was delicious. I would definitely order it again--it was the best part of my meal. The dessert was good, but the buttery sauce was too rich for me--I don't think I'd order it again.



Food was really really pretty. Generally tasty. Nothing to freak out about, but in the winter they usually have matzah ball soup, and I'm dying to try it.

Hudson
2030 M Street NW
Metro: Red Line to Dupont Circle

Teaism

Forever and ever I meant to go to Teaism, I mean, RACHAEL RAY went there on $40/day, it’s always suggested on The Chat, and it kept slipping through the cracks. [For what it's worth, the fellas I dined with seemed very excited about the fact that Ms. Ray recommended Teaism. Interesting sidenote.]

Recently I finally went to the Penn Quarter Teaism for lunch and was overall pleased and am looking forward to returning there—although maybe a little earlier, next time!

The PQ location was very crowded during the normal lunch time. Despite a sign politely asking people to not “save seats,” seats were being saved—we could see people sitting alone at empty tables with no food, waiting for the person in line. What is the problem with this, you might ask? Someone else may very well eat and finish by the time you get through the line! Seriously! The three of us had to sit outside in order to sit together, which wasn’t the most pleasant option on a typical steamy day.

The fried chicken bento box was our meal of choice. Small pieces of fried chicken (light, not greasy at all), cucumber ginger salad (reminded me of the cucumber dipping sauce at Thai restaurants, but with whole slices of cucumber), and sweet potato pieces. I noticed while online that as your food makes it down the Teaism assembly line, some unmarked squeezy bottles are picked up and the food is drizzled in—um—something. I’m not sure what was on top of my sweet potatos, but I’d rather there wasn’t so much of it.

To drink, the Mint Morrocan Green Tea was not nearly as flavorful as it should have been. When mint is the first word, it should taste MINTY! It did not. Another tea, the “special,” that I can’t remember the name of, had lots of tamarind in it (listed as the main ingredient), and was apparently delicious. The ginger limeade, according to a colleague, was too sweet—the first few sips were good, and after that it was a little too much to handle.

Overall, Teaism is a unique place to go for lunch when you are sick of the typical Cosi/Potbelly scene.

Soon I’ll be posting an It’s Just Lunch—or is it? segment with all my favorite area lunch choices to help you the next time 12 rolls around and you have no clue what you want. Or your picky coworkers want suggestions.

(Friends, if you don’t start commenting I will disown you all.)

Teaism
www.teaism.com
Lafayette/Penn Quarter/Dupont