Dino - A last minute dinner

Where should we go?  We just got out of a work happy hour in Cleveland Park.  2 Amys?  Palena?  On this day, Dino.  Late summer.  I really like Dino.  It's been good to me. Dean Gold shops at the farmers' market for lots of fresh & local, and I'm down with it.  Plus their before 7pm $27 3-course deal is pretty much the best in town.  I hope my memory hasn't foresaken me, this was a few months back...

Artichokes.  Crispy and zesty and begging for me to squeeze that lemon wedge all over 'em. 

Prosciutto rolled peaches.  Whaaaaaat?!

Cheesy warm gooey cannelloni.  Beautiful color, too.

Tubular pasta with duck leg confit.  And greens.  I want it again, now.

Dino
3435 Connecticut Ave NW
Metro: Cleveland Park

Teatro Goldoni

Once upon a time I went to Teatro Goldoni for a cute lunchbox-like lunch. Since bento boxes are apparently all the rage right now, I was reminded of this lunch.

The goods: Salad, cheese cannelloni (like manicotti--I'm really not sure there's a difference), salad, mashed potatoes w/baby spinach, protein (I had salmon, guest had two teensy scallops), and chocolate amaretto flan.

Overall I thought this was a great portion size for lunch, and quite reasonable at around $12 or so. There definitely could have been a slightly larger piece of fish (this photo is practically to scale--it was miniscule) and less in the pasta category. The cannelloni was very rich and cheesy, but good. Some might find it a bit much for lunch, but I never turn down something gooey and cheesy (and edible...I don't want to eat your gooey cheesy sock). It was tasty. My one suggestion is to put the flan on a separate plate. I know, it's cute to have the dish with all the seperators, but the thought of a stray flake of salmon hitting my flan was not appetizing at all. And I'm all about mixing my foods, so that's saying a lot.



I had heard that if you order the lunch special at the bar it comes with a glass of wine. I was with my supervisor from my internship, so suggesting it didn't seem appropriate. BUT it's ALMOST where I decided to go for my birthday for that very special. Instead we went to Java Green because--well, because it's awesome. It's [Rice and] Beyond, you could say.

So, K streeters, next time you are sick of Peacock Grand Cafe and the other minimal pickins in the area, know that you have a friend (and very friendly service, I might add) at Teatro Goldoni.

Teatro Goldoni
1909 K Street NW
Metro: Blue/Orange Lines to Foggy Bottom or Farragut West; Red Line to Farragut North

Italian Store

What can I say that hasn't been said?

At the Italian Store in Arlington you can get every shape of pasta you ever dreamed of. Like stellini--"little stars." Also, any kind of European cookie, cracker, wafer, candy, etc, that you want is there. AND there are homemade pastas, raviolis, and other treats hanging out in the fridge area. Seriously, you could only eat from this place for the rest of your life and be fine.

We were always beleivers in Italian Store pizza. Call me a snob, but I won't touch anything made here, here, or here. If you were raised anywhere in the NY Metro area then you wouldn't either, at least not with your head held high. But Italian Store's pizza (which is offered both by the pie and by the slice) is the best real pizza in the area, in my opinion. I enjoy Faccia Luna, but that's fancy-pants pizza.

Lately we evolved into the sandwiches--they rock for a picnic or just a casual weekend lunch. A "small" hard roll is enough for any adult's lunch. My favorite is smoked turkey/lettuce/tomato/mustard. I like their "special dressing" or plain ol' oil & vinegar, but find that unless I'm eating right away on the--er--patio, the liquid saturates my roll in a semi-sad way. No one wants a soggy sandwich. [For ex., if you are going to say...Chrysalis, then maybe get it dry for safe keeping. It's not a terribly long ride, but ya know.]

You can get any regular deli meat you like (J likes the roast beef/turkey combo) OR get a super fun Italian sandwich with capacola, genoa, prosciutto, pepperoni, etc. There are always a few of the favorites pre-made because they know their customers. I recently picked up a Napoli for a friend. The description reads as follows: "Pepperoni makes this our spiciest creation, with lean capacola ham, and buttery soft mozzarella cheese." Spicy!

Oh yeah, and then there are these cookies. Do you like black & white cookies? Then go right now and buy yourself some Berger's. Oh wait, maybe not yourself. Warning: we finished these by ourselves in barely a day and a half. Find a few friends before purchasing them. Apparently if you are from Baltimore they need no explanation.



The Italian Store
3123 Lee Highway
Driving or hitting the bus is best, but...
METRO: Orange Line to Clarendon--it's almost a mile walk. Doable and worth it.

Dino

I recently went to Dino with a group of TWELVE. After seeing the information on the web site about the various minimums imposed for private parties (requires a non-OpenTable dealing for parties of 11+), I thought--you know? Dino is a good, reasonable place. I'm going to get in touch and see if that minimum ($700 I think) reaaaally applies (maybe they are just kidding?). Dean Gold got back to me super quickly and said I should give him a call--we could order off the menu with no minimum at a semi-open kitchen table so long as we (with a 6pm reservation) are out by 8ish for the next group coming in. Subject to a cancellation fee, but we're planning on showing up in full family force.



Not everybody loved Dino. The naysayers said that the pasta dishes were too rich and heavy, and I think the menu was intimidating to some because it's not the standard Italian joint they are used to. Some of us were getting ready for the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler, so--carbs, right? I forgot that L would likely want to avoid something too heavy and cheesy, so she decided to forgo the pasta for the rotisserie half chicken. She said it was kind of bland--I didn't taste it myself.

Maybe I'm just easy to please (feel free to invite me over to try your cooking--it's a confidence booster). I LOVED my risotto primavera with morels and ramps (onion/leek-like vegetable), and swooned over Mom's lasagna. Father and son got the Tuscan bread soup, and when I asked them what had been in their now-empty bowls, they said "really good soup." The teenager got "fish" that was "good." When I asked her what made it good ("The sauce?" I prompted. "Sides?") she said "it just was." J liked his halibut with baby bok choy, and the roasted red pepper sauce on the plate (which was orange!) was delish.

A said the golden tilefish was "small but good."



In a large group it seems like most people don't love their food, and it's not because the food isn't great, or even good. It's because it's hard to please 12 people, aged 14-82. And everyone is somewhat stressed from traveling, worrying about everyone else (is there anything for Grandma to eat? What time is it? When do we have to be at the next place?), and it's not the leisurely, wine-laden situation that J and I had at our first visit to Dino last year.

Dino
3435 Connecticut Ave NW
Metro: Red Line to Cleveland Park

2 Amys

The end of Passover was blissful. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about eating the bread of affliction and thanking everybody who could have possibly been involved in getting my ancestors out of slavery in Egypt, but matzah leaves much to be desired.

So for the second year in a row, we noted (not celebrated) the holiday's end by eating at 2 Amys. Check out my last post to read a more colorful description of 2 Amys background (certified by a Neopolitan pizza association, the definition of ripieno, etc).

We had BEER. I had Bells Kalamazoo Stout (I liked it a lot, but I wanted it to be a little colder...if possible), and J had the Hitachino Nest White Ale--I love the cutie patootie owl on the bottle, and it was DELICIOUS. Sort of sweet, but not in a gross way. A really refreshing Belgian-style wheat beer. But $9. YIKES.



We ate the exact same thing (as last year, not each other). Abruzzese pizza for J. Ripieno Basilico for me. J's pizza was (again) delicious, but he was definitely eying my ripieno when the ricotta started oozing out of the delicious crust. In fact, he took that opportunity to scoop some cheese up for himself. Thanks a lot!

J's pizza



My stuffed pizza



For appetizer, we shared bruschetta with tomato fondutto--delicious grilled bread (bread!!! REAL BREAD!!!) with olive oil, garlic, then topped with delish tomato excitement. If you get the regular bruschetta, that refers only to the grilled bread rubbed with olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper.



It was so good that when our neighbors on the right were peeking over, I assured them that it was amazing and that they had to get it. They didn't. Fine!

We remembered this time that their homemade ice cream is divine, so we ordered both the strawberry w/chocolate chips ice cream AND the apple spice cake (which came with...drumroll...a side of vanilla). J unsurprisingly went nuts over the apple cake, and unfortunately I think strawberry w/chocolate chips is now my favorite-but-impossible-to-find flavor. So fun.




2 Amys
3715 Macomb Street NW
Metro: A hike from the Red Line to Cleveland Park, or drive.

2 Amys

When I mention 2 Amys to friends from back home (NJ/NY), I always tell them it's the best pizza in the area, then quickly qualify that with something like, "You know, sit down pizza. Not by-the-slice." But the truth is, I prefer the "sit-down" pizza at this Northwest Neopolitan pizzeria to some of the delicious cheesy by-the-slice establishments of central Jersey; it's just a totally different thang. 2 Amys pizza is so serious that they are certified by the Verace Pizza Napoletana Association, which specifies the exact ingredients and preparation methods to abide by to create the most authentic Neopolitan pie.

Beware, this place is packed. And noisy. And if you want the homemade donuts, you better arrive at a reasonable lunch hour, because they are usually gone by dinner. Reservations? Pah! So why would families schlepping kids of all ages, high chairs, grandmas, etc wait hours for pizza?

It's that good. And I'm not the only one to say so.

The nasty weather influenced our decision on how exactly to end Passover. We were going to stroll down to a local Mexican joint, but the rain convinced us a car ride to 2 Amys was meant to be. Our first taste of non-K-for-P was a Hefeweizen-like beer at the bar while waiting (just 30 minutes) for our table.

J's Abruzzese pizza was topped with meatballs ("polpettine" at 2 Amys), garlic, parsley, and Pecorino cheese. Considering he ate 3/4 of it right there, I'd say it was good.

My Ripieno Basilico was truly fantastico! [As I edit this post, my mouth is watering just thinking about it, and it's breakfast-time.] Ripieno means "stuffing" or "supplementary" in Italian, but is also a musical term referring to the main body of an orchestra. At 2 Amys it refers to the menu's stuffed pizzas. These aren't neat calzone-shaped pockets with ribbed closed edges. This is literally like someone took an awesome pizza and then closed it in half. The crust is fluffy but crispy but chewy, and blows my mind. Mine was filled with ricotta, fresh mozzarella, grana (an Italian cheese), pesto, and tomato. But let me tell you, this was no cheese pizza. Half of my dish made a superb dinner, and the leftovers were the next day's lunch. I reheated it in the microwave (too impatient for the toaster oven) and the crust held up just fine.

Before our meal, we decided to forgo traditional appetizers and just split a pleasant crostini with sheep ricotta and asparagus. AFTER our meal, when we were both stuffed, we still decided to order cannolis and the chocolate truffle swirl ice cream. The house-made ice cream was divine, and I'm sure any of their flavors would be. It had a silky, creamy texture with a little bit of crunch to it (but avoided being silly, like a Ben & Jerry's). The cannolis were not my favorite, probably because I'm less traditional on the cannoli front and enjoy a thicker, sweeter filling. In the past we've enjoyed the straight up Margherita pizza and the polpettine al forno (meatball appetizer).

2 Amys is one of the best place to eat in Washington. Like many of the other places I frequent, it's on the Washingtonian's Top 100 in 2008, resting comfortably at #30.

2 Amys
3715 Macomb Street NW
Metro: A hike from the Red Line to Cleveland Park, or drive.