Restaurant Week at Westend Bistro

The week of August 16th marks the summer Restaurant Week here in Washington, DC. Despite the gloomy economy and bipolar weather, reservations were filled up weeks in advance in the most sought after restaurants. I only had a few that I really wanted to try, Westend Bistro being one of them. I have recently become a big fan of Eric Ripert, whose restaurant "Le Bernadin" earned 3 stars from the Michelin guide, the highest honor that any chef in the world can get. Naturally, one would expect similar quality of food in his DC restaurant.

Unlike other restaurants, Westend Bistro did not post their RW menu on the web, so I assumed that I could pick off their normal menu.

I arrived at the restaurant, which was right next door to the Ritz-Carlton. The decor was very impressive, modern but not overdone.

I was handed the menu and was immediately disappointed by what was offered. There were only 2 options to pick from for each course. For the appetizer there was a house salad and a heirloom tomato consomme. Entree: Fish burger with mesclun salad and Grilled Chicken with Isreali couscous. Dessert: Creme Brulee and profiterole, which is a creme puff served with a chocolate sauce.
My friend and I both opted for the tomato consomme to start. The presentation was beautiful, with the server pouring over the cold soup in front of you.


The consomme was very refreshing, especially on a hot day. The heirloom tomatoes were flavorful, and the basil and cheese added the perfect touch to the dish. My only complaint would be that it left me wanting more!

For my entree, I ordered the fish burger. I have to say I was a bit disappointed to see that it was fried. The fish patty was flavorful, but the big chunk of tomato and loose slices of fennel seem really out of place in the burger. I had to pull them out and eat them separately. The bun was buttery flavored, however, the grease of the fish soaked into the bottom of them bun which made it a little unpleasant. I did like the addition of the mesclun salad and the dressing that was served.

My friend ordered the grilled chicken, which seemed like a very tasty dish (I didn't taste it). Butthe chicken looked perfectly cooked. This would have been the dish to go for if you decided to go to Westend Bistro for RW.

The dessert was my favorite part of this meal, and usually I'm not a very big dessert person. The puffs were filled with a delicious cream that wasn't overpowering in sweetness. The chocolate added the extra kick to make the dish even more flavorful. My friend and I were both tempted to lick our plates clean in the end.

Overall, I wouldn't say this was a disappointing dining experience had I not had so much expectations out of it. But I just didn't feel like what was offered in their RW menu really reflected Eric Ripert's forte. He is known for his seafood, however, the only seafood item on the menu was a fish burger, which can scarecely reflect on a chef's usage on the "fruits de mer."
The service wasn't all that great either. I felt very rushed to order, and the waiter dropped off the check before we finished our dessert.
I wouldn't say I won't return, because there are other dishes that I want to try out. However, for restaurant week, I would suggest you look elsewhere. And if you're ever in New York, go to Le Bernadin!!

RW: Tavira in Chevy Chase

Oh yes, restaurant week ended in DC, and a lot of foodies like me are disappointed that we're going to have to wait for the summer to have another chance or excuse rather to fine dining!
Good thing Bethesda decided to have their own version of Restaurant Week. Bethesda, a suburb of DC located in Montgomery, Maryland boasts its own share of excellent restaurants. It's restaurant week offered a $15 lunch or a $30 dinner course. Knowing me, I opted for the lunch.
I decided to try out, Tavira, a Portugese restaurant that I have read great reviews about. I have never had Portuguese food in my life, and a lot of my friends hadn't either. There was also a coupon for a free bottle of wine, and hey who can say no to that?
My friends, Dorothy, Simon, and of course Amy joined me for this fun dining adventure.
The ambiance of the restaurant was very pleasant. As we walked in, I could already smell the many wonderful dishes that they had to offer.

For RW, they offered their "Taste of Portugal" menu which for the appetizers came with the choices of :

Caldo Verde: Portugal’s National soup, shredded kale, onions, potatoes & olive oil, garnished with chouriço
Salada da Horta: Fresh market greens, tomatoes, onions with Mediterranean dressing

Mexilhões na Cataplana: Steamed mussels, tomatoes and bell peppers in white wine sauce

Portuguese Sadrines: Marinated sardines with cloves garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, kosher salt, bay leaves,paprika served at room temperature served at room temperature

For our free bottle of house wine, we decided to go with a white wine, since we were going to be ordering seafood for the most part. It was a decent bottle of wine, and did I mention it was free?

I decided on the steamed mussels, Simon and Amy ordered the Caldo Verde, while Dorothy went with the Portuguese Sardines.

My first taste of the mussels was good, yet it was cold. I then asked the waiter whether the dish was meant to be served cold. He said oh no, and went ahead and took it back to bring me a new one (what is it with me with having to send food back, seriously?!") When it came back it was steaming hot. The tomato based soup was excellent; the red peppers were cooked just right and had a sweet after taste to it. The warm temperature definitely made the dish what it was.

Dorothy's sardine were marinated very well, and the olive oil base complemented the dish very well. Unfortunately I didn't try the Portuguese National soup, since it had meat in it.

For the main course the following were offered:

Bacalhau à Braz
Shredded salted cod sautéed with onions in olive oil, combined with straw potatoes, olives and egg
Lombo de Porco a Caçador
Pork loin with wild mushrooms, braised in brandy Croft, served with roasted garlic mashed potatoes
Frango à Piri-piri
Grilled chicken, Portuguêse style in Piri Piri sauce (hot spicy pepper sauce), served with home made potato chips
Caldeirada Portuguêsa
A traditional Portuguêse fish stew with shrimp, clams, mussels, sea scallops, potatoes
Parrilhada Mariscos
A traditional Iberian mixed seafood charbroiled on a skewer, served with aioli
Simon and I ordered the Charbroiled mixed seafood while Amy and Dorothy ordered the shredded cod. When the food came out, we were definitely wowed by the presentation of the Seafood skewer!

The taste of the seafood, however, was a bit bland and under-seasoned. It could've used a lot more taste as I found myself pour balsamic vinagrette over all the pieces. The rice was a good base to go along with the seafood.

The shredded cod was definitely an interesting dish. You definitely don't expected it to be what it was. First of all, there was very little taste of cod in it because it was blend up with so many different things. It was a bit on the salty side. The dish also tasted like a breakfast/brunch entree because of the eggs and potatoes inside. However, it still tasted mildly pleasant.
The dessert had to be the best part. Amy and I ordered the flan while Simon and Dorothy had the chocolate cake with ice cream.

The flan had to be one of the best that I have ever tasted. It was soft and creamy inside, and not to sweet for someone who likes my dessert on the lighter side. The portion was just right, and it was the perfect way to finish the meal.
Overall, it was a very nice meal, although the appetizers and desserts definitely outshone the main entree. I'd definitely recommend their "Taste of Portugal" menu as even during none RW days, they offer it at a special price, and it's a great way to try out some Portuguese favorites!

RW Take 2: Zola

Zola is a restaurant that serves up contemporary American cuisine directly above the International Spy Museum near Gallery Place/Chinatown. The decor inside was very bright and had a very nice feel to it.

Zola had extended their RW by one week, and I was super excited because they were offering their full menu. Before the meal, they served a crispy flat bread along with tiny rolls. They were both delicious, but I decided to same some room for the rest of the meal!

Originally I had wanted to take a double take on Tuna. Having the Tuna Tartare for Appetizer and their tuna mignon for the entree. Unfortunately, someone else had order the last tuna mignon. I was highly disappointed; I scrambled to find another entree. Nothing else had sounded as appealing. Then I saw that their beef sirloin came from a farm in Shenandoah Valley, I decided why not? I haven't eaten meat in about five months.

The tuna tartare was served with a cucumber salad and lemon cream on top, taro chips, and spicy lime vinaigrette.

The presentation was beautiful. The taro chips were lightly seasoned and crispy. To me the lemon cream was a little unnecessary on top. It didn't really go with the flavor of the tuna. The lime vinaigrette though was delicious, the spiciness definitely matched well with the tuna and cucumber on top.

My friend Amy ordered the Porcini Mushroom Ravioli as the appetizer dish. The flavor of the ravioli was decent, however, I found that the filling to be a bit mushy. I was somewhat expecting to see pieces of actual porcini mushrooms inside the ravioli.

The main entree was the biggest disappointment of the meal. First of all, when the dish was served pieces of the meat had fallen off the couscous and the whole plate was a mess. For a high class restaurant, something that's not presentable should not have been served. When the dish was delivered to me, I literally was thinking, "what the hell is this?" Secondly, I had asked for my sirloin to be cooked medium-rare. What was served to me looked to be medium-well. It was overcooked, so I asked for it to be taken back. The picture below tells the story.

After about 10 minutes, they brought my dish out again. This time, it was cooked right and it looked presentable. The meat was flavored well and cooked perfectly. The couscous though had some huge chunks of cream in some portions while some couscous just wasn't cooked well enough. The pancetta was a bit excessive in the couscous because there was already enough meat in the dish itself. The flavor was good, but it could've done without the pancetta.

Meanwhile, Amy ordered the Lobster Mac and Cheese, which sounds irresistible from the beginning! The portion was huge, and had a decent amount of lobster chunks in it. The flavor of the lobster was well incorporated into the mac and cheese. Overall a very comforting and satisfying dish.

I wanted a light finish to my meal, so for dessert I asked for the different flavors of sorbet. They had passion fruit, cassis and apple cider. I am a sucker for passion fruit, so I can't say no to that, but just to mix it up I asked for a scoop of cassis as well. Amy ordered a pear crisp tart. The slice of pear on her dessert was a bit bland. It wasn't crispy like a chip, yet it wasn't a full slice of pear either. Amy found it really hard to eat and gave up after one bite. For some odd reason, for a simple as a dessert of passion fruit and cassis sorbet, the kitchen managed to mess that up as well! Instead of the cassis sorbet, they brought out this toffee flavored ice cream. And of course once again the waitress was no way to be found. I notified the other waiter, and he took the dessert back in. When it was brought out again, I noticed that they had simply removed the toffee ice cream and replaced it with a scoop of cassis sorbet instead of bringing out an entirely new bowl.

I then asked for the manager, because I found this entire experience to be unacceptable. The food was good, but the the messing up of not once but twice took away what potentially could've been a very pleasant dining experience. I ended up having my meal for free, but I still walked out with a feeling of not wanting to return to Zola again.

Maybe for restaurant week, Zola just didn't take things very seriously. But it's no excuse to be serving food that's not presentable nor messing up a simple order such as sorbet. It's also highly disappointing that one of my only 2 RW excursions turned out to be so bad. People told me that I should give it another chance, but I'd rather take that chance to another restaurant that's going to be worth my time, palate, and money the next time I go out to eat.

RW Part 1: Rasika

Rasika is probably the most well known Indian restaurant, as well as one of the most popular restaurant altogether in the Washington, DC area, whether it's by a word of mouth or in dining guides. In last October's Washington Post Magazine's 10th Annual Dining Guide, food critic Tom Sietsema raised Rasika's from three to four stars.
It's been about a year and a half since I've done RW, so as soon as I heard that Rasika was participating in RW, I booked my table almost immediately!
I must say I broke one of my personal rules, the menu of Rasika is rather limited, however, it does offer meat, fish, and a vegetarian option.

Here is the lunch menu for RW:

Appetizers:
1. Malai Chicken Tikka
2. Tamatar Goli Kebab (lamb meatballs)
3. Palak Chaat (crispy baby spinach)

Entrees:
1. Chicken Makhani
2. Lamb Roganjosh
3. Tandoori Salmon
4. Palak Paneer/ Vegetable Mix

Dessert:
1. Black Cherry Sorbet
2. Mango and yogurt ice cream
3. Carrot Halwa with Cinnamon Sabayon
4. Gulab Jamun with Cardamom Ice Cream

For appetizer, I started with the Palak Chaat. It is a dish with fried baby spinach with a yogurt sauce on top. The first bite was delicious, crispy, salty, but balanced out with the yogurt sauce. However, I do feel like towards the end the dish get end up being too salty. It could've used more yogurt sauce. My friend Amy ordered the Malai Chicken Tikka, even though I didn't try the chicken, the cream cheese sauce that came with it was excellent and would be good if we had naan to dip it in!

I ordered the Tandoori Salmon for the entree. And I was surprised to see the two big portions of salmon that came out on my plate. The salmon was to die for, and hands down it was some of the best salmon that I have ever tasted. It was soft, tender, and juicy inside. The spices wasn't overpowering. The sauce that came with it matches well with naan and the mint paratha that came on the side. I had to force myself to finish those 2 pieces because it was so delicious. I would almost go back just for the salmon! I was a little disappointed in the naan, it was a bit on the dry side, and wasn't very fresh.
Amy ordered the lamb roganjosh, which is a dish that goes very well with rice.

For dessert, I chose the Carrot Halwa, which is one of their house specialties. It's a dessert with chooped carrots with raisins and cashews inside. It was a little sweet for me, but still very good. It was a nice balance to finish the meal, and a way to justify eating a dessert. Hey carrots are good for you right? Amy ordered the Gulab Jamun, which is similiar to little donut balls soaked in a sugary sauce, and it came with a cardamon ice cream. I really liked the ice cream, the spice just jumps out right at you.



Overall, I'd say Rasika almost matched up to the hype. One thing I did not appreciate was that the waiter dropped the check right in front of us while we weren't even half way through our dessert. That should be a big no no, especially in a nice restaurant like that. Then it took him forever to take my credit card once we were finally finished.
It is now 6:40pm, and I am still full from my lunch!