Come Again

Last week a post-conference dinner for 4 quickly turned into an 8 people affair, and I had no time to call for reservations. Since everyone else had been travelling all day, a 40-minute wait was not an option. I shepherded the group down New Jersey Avenue, hoping the views of the Capitol would stave their hunger. The host at Bistro Bis was gracefulness personified – he welcomed everyone (the nametags were a dead giveaway) and had a round table set at the far end of the wood, steel and glass dining room, which allowed me to split my attention between musings on legal anthropology and the vintage food posters in French.

Bistro Bis, a sister restaurant to Vidalia, is a few blocks away from Union Station at the George Hotel. Split into three areas that flow into each other, the rooms are tied together by the use of natural cherry wood and soft lighting. Though its location says power lunch, the feel is cozy, and there were plenty of dates going on around us.
As a quick starter for the table (aside from the bread basket, devoured in record time) I ordered mussels in curry cream for the table. The mussels have a wonderful kick from the piquillo peppers, and where it not for the consistency of the curry cream I would have thought I was at Brasserie Beck.

Since everybody was having different entrees, a bottle was impossible. I had a glass of Gamay, a fresh and floral wine that hails from the Beaujoulais region and is also served slightly chilled. The fruit notes were cherry, with the acidity of strawberry. For an entrée I had the Duck au Rhubarb, two of my favorite tastes. The duck breast was crusted with pink peppercorns, which added color and flavor to the meat while keeping it from drying out. The rhubarb was present as a compote as well as a gastrique. I’ve had duck with cherries on several occasions so the rhubarb is an interesting twist, highlighted by the fact that using breast instead of leg and thigh keeps the fat and its smoke away. A second cut sat on top of thinly sliced slightly fried potatoes and a touch of salad.

I ordered the Petit Fours for the table – a selection of confections, cookies and chocolates that on this particular night featured macarons, peanut butter and dark chocolate triangles, and lattice cookies. My favorite on the menu, though, is the spiced carrot cake topped with buttermilk panna cotta, a wonderful combination of acid, warmth, degrees of firmness, and a refreshing side of mandarin orange sorbet.

We poured into E street happy, well fed, and fully recovered from the first day of the conference.

Bistro Bis @ the Hotel George
15 E St NW
Washington, DC 20001
www.bistrobis.com

Comforts of Yore

I always try to get the most value for money when I choose what places to go for Restaurant Week, and find that it is a very accurate gauge for the Management's approach to customers who would not normally eat at their establishment. While restaurants may make up for it in volume of patrons, or people would go for the non-included beverages with more ease, profit margins are easily shot at $20.09 and $35.00. The decisions that are made - offering up a full menu, or a slightly scaled down menu that still features the kitchen's signature or strongest dishes, and keeping up the standards in service even when the checks won't be as high as normal - have a direct impact on whether or not people will come back, Restaurant Week or not.

J. has been a steadfast Restaurant Week companion for years, idiosyncrasy and all. We had never been to Coeur de Lion but its fame as one of the old-DC establishments preceded it. On the corner of 9th and Massachusetts, NW and a block away from Mount Vernon place, the restaurant at the Henley Park Hotel saw the fall and rise of its environs. Conveniently located a few blocks away from the Convention Center metro stop, it is an old-fashioned watering hole. The bar, with a live yet non- intrusive piano, will delight anyone who enjoys visiting the Peacock Room at the Freer Gallery. The main dining room has a glass ceiling, a solarium of sorts - totally wasted on the dinner crowd, but a great alternative for enjoying the persistent sun of winter during lunch.

J. and I were promptly seated in the additional dining room, a nice space with deep red walls and stone masks. It is not really tied, decoratively at least, to the main space, and anyone wanting to sit under the glass ceiling ought to request it in the reservation. Our waiter was attentive but not overbearing, and presented us with the Restaurant Week menus as soon as we sat down.

To go with dinner, we ordered a bottle of moderately priced California Pinot Grigio - for such a high end restaurant, Coeur de LIon has several affordable options by the glass as well as the bottle. The menu was a scaled down version of the full menu - the crab dishes were gone, as was to be expected, but they kept the filet mignon and replaced the sea bass with rock fish. To start J. had the Pancetta Goat Cheese tart and I had the Belgian Endive salad. Since endives are pervasive at cocktail parties, I expected the boat presentation and was pleasantly surprised to be presented with a mound. The endives were sliced and tossed with frisee lettuce, topped with slices of Asian pear sliced figs, spiced walnuts, and cubes of stilton cheese. The dressing was a vinaigrette with sherry and walnut. The cheese paired very well with the figs and sherry, and I only wished the kitchen had added some more walnuts - the proportion of greens to accompaniments was slightly off and the overall bitterness of the salad was not as controlled as it could have been.

For entrees, J. ordered the Pan Roasted Moularde Duck Breast and I had the Seared Rockfish (the regular menu has the same dish, but with Sea Bass. I don't think Rock Fish is much cheaper than Sea Bass, so this might have been a decision based on freshness). J.'s duck was very well cooked, with a smokey note to it from the fat as well as the hoisen demi-glaze. My rockfish was delicious - the texture was firm but easy to cut through with a fork, and I dipped it into the lemon caper sauce before loading the fork with fennel and artichokes. There weren't many pine nuts in the plate, but the flavor was definitively there. I like all those ingredients, and had never had pine nuts with artichokes before - a wonderful combination of textures and acidity.

For dessert we both had an apple turnover (the other option was a chocolate cake). The ice cream was house-made and the vanilla bean specks were clearly visible, making the ice cream firm, fragrant and creamy. Turnovers are usually very homey looking desserts (I have many memories of my mom using the extra pastry from a more ambitious pie, chicken pot or otherwise, to make pineapple turnovers) but this one was a perfectly executed square.

J. and I had a leisurely dinner. I always appreciate not being rushed, but it was clear that the staff is not used to handling a full house anymore. The food is well-executed and though by no means cutting edge, it is infused with care and knowing hands at the back and front of the house. Let's hope Restaurant Week works its magic and Coeur de Lion can take its place as the neighborhood's dowager restaurant.

Coeur de Lion Restaurant
Henley Park Hotel
926 Massachusetts Ave NW
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 414-0500

A little bit of France

The block around the Cleveland Park Metro has several restaurants I visit regularly, including Indique and Dino. Though Lavandou has been around for years, this was my first visit. Having Bistro du Coin and La Chaumiere at walking distance also made me reconsider the trek more than once.

Lavandou is everything a neighborhood French restaurant ought to be - friendly, well-priced, and with lots of potential patrons gawking through the picture window. We were there for brunch but upon sneaking a peek at the (entirely French) wine list, I found a nice selection of bottles, half-bottles and glasses. The specials board announced No Corkage fee Mondays and All You Can Eat Mussels on Tuesdays. Though they seemed to be a bit short-staffed (drinks took especially long) we were seated right away and the bread basket made a speedy appearance.

As as its name and decor attests, Lavandou features Provencal Cuisine - the Southern, Mediterranean region of France celebrated by painters and chefs alike. The dishes are less heavy than other French eateries in DC, and a strong emphasis is placed on olive oil, sea food, and aromatics. The four of us had the Easter Prix Fixe, three courses for 37 USD (tax, tip and beverages not included).

For a first course we ordered fresh duck pate, asparagus with truffle oil and parmessan cheese, and coddled eggs with cheese, cream and salmon eggs. Coddled eggs are not for the faint of heart - they are cooked in simmering water, in their shells or in ramekins, until set. The texture is a step above of a raw egg, but the flavor is wonderful, especially as it offset the creaminess of the dairy. The salmon eggs added little in terms of flavor, but they were definitively there, texture-wise. I spooned the mixture on the toast points provided and kept my gaze away. The pate was fresh and had the texture of tuna salad. The asparagus was just right for Easter and its promise of spring.

For second course, we ordered a linguini with sea food (mostly mussels and shrimp), baked salmon on a bed of leeks, and lamb steak. The sauce for the linguini was the best part of the dish - the flavors were balanced and the tomato tasted incredibly fresh. The pasta was made on the premises but was slightly overcooked (which, granted, is a matter of preference). The salmon was well-cooked but the leeks were confusing. They were billed as a fondue (as opposed to the more famous Swiss variation, this is a preparation of vegetables cooked over low heat until very soft and reduced to a pulp. The fondue included the green parts of the leeks and, for some reason, was very citrusy. I love having lamb for Easter, but this was my first time encountering a lamb steak. The portion was generous and perfectly seasoned, a straightforward portion of protein with no flourishes or extra sauce. I enjoyed every bite.

For dessert we ordered stuffed apple beignets, choux, Grand Marnier and chocolate crepes, and the themed dessert, "Ouefs a la Niege," also known as Floating Island. As with the rest of the meal, this is more about aromas than high technique. The beignets were the simplest - battered apples, deep fried with a side of compote. The crepes were basic but made with good ingredients, and the choux were as light as dough can possibly be. The floating island consisted of meringue floating on vanilla bean custard, a refresher after all that lamb.

With that wine list and the promise of all you can eat mussels, I will never talk myself out of taking the metro again.


Lavandou
3321 Connecticut Ave NW
Washington D.C. 20008
(202) 966-3003
www.lavandoudc.com