David Mihalcik

They were displaying a variety of dishes featuring Clementines! I had seared clementine with blue cheese and a duck confit with clementine. I really liked the seared clementine, but the confit was not seared (I prefer crispy skin), and the clementine on that dish wasn’t seeded. I think this was the dish’s first night (and a monday), so its execution will probably improve. It was very good, and, like all duck confit dishes, must suffer comparison to Atlantico’s, which is superior.

The fried dates were great, as always, and we tried the battered fried shrimp, which were an interesting change. The ‘patatas bravas 2009’ were the third iteration of the dish that I’ve had, and perhaps my favorite so far. These were chunks of tiny potatoes, fried with a crispy exterior, and the same mix of red sauce and aioli from previous iterations. Another dish we ordered was a brussel sprout salad, served warm with bits of orange, ham, grapes, and apples. Excellent, as well.

I ordered the Picadillo, which was quite tasty. My wife ordered the Carnitas, which was even better. The cubano, made panini-style, wasn’t as impressive.

Anyway, it is the only place I’ve been to in the district with mofongo and tostones on the menu.

in my experience, with a few exceptions (Jaleo), the good restaurants in Bethesda are those in the Woodmont Triangle Area.

Went there with my wife this afternoon (Oct. 2008). We arrived after the lunch rush on a Saturday, and the place was starting to thin out; we only had to wait 15 minutes or so to get our burgers, fries and shake. I had the Barn Burner, a burger topped with Thai-inspired a daikon and carrot relish, and my wife had the Obama, which included blue cheese, bacon and onion confit. We had an order of the farmhouse fries and the onion ‘rings’, which were really onion petals (lyonaise, not outback) all fried together in an unappealing lump.

The highlights were my wife’s shake (toasted marshmallow!) and the flavored mayos.

The burgers are good, but DC seems to have become a burger town over the past year (see also: Ray’s Hell, Central, Palena, Matchbox, 5 Guys…), and I’m not certain these are really worth going that far out of your way for. It finds a nice spot on the Pareto frontier of DC burgers: not too big (Ray’s), and not too pricey (Central, Palena), and cooked right (5 Guys), and they present a decent selection of toppings. However, I’d say Ray’s wins on beefyness (and crazy toppings), and Central and Palena win on overall flavor.

On the neighborhood level, you can’t find a better burger.

They have opened an upstairs dining room, so it isn’t quite so crowded. I usually get an order of suppli and the fizzy red wine with a pizza, but I’ve never had something I didn’t like. They have a changing selection of crostini, and do some of their own charcuterie.

I saw The Dark Knight in the IMAX theatre. There was quite a wait, and no popcorn, or any food, in the theatre, but it was worth it.

A good, if not outstanding, Ethiopian place with reasonable prices and a good veggie injera mix. Probably not going to win in a beauty (or service) contest with nearby Addis Ababa, it is competitive in terms of food and drink, both in price and flavor.

I had the chicken fricasse and sorrel drink. I probably won’t get the sorrel drink again (too much!), but the food was good, and I need to try out the meat pies!

My wife and I ate here when we were on the Hill a few nights ago. We both had salads and pasta; the salads were very good. I ordered the squid ink pasta, and my wife had the ravioli of the day. My pasta was tasty, but the ravioli, filled with cheese and leeks, was excellent. A minor complaint – the food was better than the service, with my water glass spending most of the humid DC evening empty.

I had duck with blackberry gastrique.