84 T St NW (by 1st & Rhode Island)
http://rustikdc.com/
I tried out Rustik Tavern on a weeknight. The atmosphere and decor impressed me right away. It isn't anything amazing, but Rustik has a nice outdoor patio with a open feeling due to its corner location. Inside, Rustik is dark, with an almost romantic ambiance.
The beer selection was pretty good. It wasn't a huge selection, but the 10 drafts were comprised of a good mix of solid microbrews (and Yuengling). For food, we ordered pizzas. To be adventurous, I tried the Ward 5 (mushroom, mozzarella, zahtar (spice mix), preserved lemon, tomato sauce). It was pretty good. I also tried a piece of someone's Chorizo (chorizo, pickled onions, mozzarella, tomato sauce), which was also pretty good. These were not in the elite, but they were well-done enjoyable pizzas. Rustik also has small dishes, salads, appetizers. Someone in our group got a salad, which was covered in cheese sprinkles.
For dessert I ordered the Ricottta Mousse Napolean (with phyllo and peaches. Topped with amaretto honey, pistachios, and basil.) It was different and quite delicious. I was very pleased.
I should check this place out for brunch sometime as they have an good looking brunch menu as well as bottomless mimosas and other drinks.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Zentan
1155 14th Street NW Washington, D.C 20005
202.379.4366
http://zentanrestaurant.com/
I went to Zentan for a late dinner after a strenuous scavenger hunt put on by a friend's gym. The decor in Zentan is very upscale and very enjoyable. The service was solid. The dishes that I saw my friends get were typical expensive DC: small portions for not a lot of food. The skirt steak that my friend got (Cantonese Marinated Skirt Steak ) smelled quite good, but was not at all substantial and came with no sides for $26. His Coconut Shrimp soup good size for a soup and $8. Another person got a watermelon salad that looked sizeable, but it was just watermelon pieces in stack with some brown dressing.
We ordered a small bottle of saki for $30. They had a decent selection with descriptions of the flavor of each. I definitely enjoyed the one we got. Also, our server was quite helpful in pointing out that we had picked a saki he was not a big fan off and helping us choose another.
The sushi was good, nothing remarkable. As the out-of-towner sharing sushi with me noted, the selection was very much just the basic options. The prices for the sushi were also on the high side, but the portions were typical of sushi. In fact, the specialty rolls were actually healthy in size, although the price is still high. Frankly, I'd take Sei over the sushi here every time - even if I found myself at the front door of Zentan.
Overall, this is a nice, fancy place, but I suspect that it is geared more toward high-end guests at the Donovan Hotel who want a convenient and fancy meal than a place that locals in the know should bother with.
202.379.4366
http://zentanrestaurant.com/
I went to Zentan for a late dinner after a strenuous scavenger hunt put on by a friend's gym. The decor in Zentan is very upscale and very enjoyable. The service was solid. The dishes that I saw my friends get were typical expensive DC: small portions for not a lot of food. The skirt steak that my friend got (Cantonese Marinated Skirt Steak ) smelled quite good, but was not at all substantial and came with no sides for $26. His Coconut Shrimp soup good size for a soup and $8. Another person got a watermelon salad that looked sizeable, but it was just watermelon pieces in stack with some brown dressing.
We ordered a small bottle of saki for $30. They had a decent selection with descriptions of the flavor of each. I definitely enjoyed the one we got. Also, our server was quite helpful in pointing out that we had picked a saki he was not a big fan off and helping us choose another.
The sushi was good, nothing remarkable. As the out-of-towner sharing sushi with me noted, the selection was very much just the basic options. The prices for the sushi were also on the high side, but the portions were typical of sushi. In fact, the specialty rolls were actually healthy in size, although the price is still high. Frankly, I'd take Sei over the sushi here every time - even if I found myself at the front door of Zentan.
Overall, this is a nice, fancy place, but I suspect that it is geared more toward high-end guests at the Donovan Hotel who want a convenient and fancy meal than a place that locals in the know should bother with.
zpizza
806 H St NW, #2E
Washington DC, 20001
P: (202)347-8472
www.zpizza.com
Apparently this is a national chain, but the pizza was quite good. I came home from another meal to find an abundance of pizza. Specifically, a pear and gorgonzola pizza and a curry chicken pizza plus some kind of breadsticks kind of pizza. The pear and curry pizzas were delicious. They tasted very fresh and the curry and flavors had a good, but not overpowering bite. The breadsticks were cheesy and salty and enjoyable, although not nearly as exciting. I did not visit the location itself, nor did I pay for anything, but I'd put these pizzas up with the top tier of pizzas in DC.
Washington DC, 20001
P: (202)347-8472
www.zpizza.com
Apparently this is a national chain, but the pizza was quite good. I came home from another meal to find an abundance of pizza. Specifically, a pear and gorgonzola pizza and a curry chicken pizza plus some kind of breadsticks kind of pizza. The pear and curry pizzas were delicious. They tasted very fresh and the curry and flavors had a good, but not overpowering bite. The breadsticks were cheesy and salty and enjoyable, although not nearly as exciting. I did not visit the location itself, nor did I pay for anything, but I'd put these pizzas up with the top tier of pizzas in DC.
La Frontera Cantina
1633 17th Street Northwest, Washington D.C., www.lafronteracantina.net
(202) 232-0437
Another place along 17th Street that my team has stopped for drinks and food after a game. They have a nice happy hour with $4 margaritas, and they seem to enjoy indulging you with a free one if you have enough. The margaritas are nothing special, but the price is nice. The food is not horrible, but is fairly bland. I don't remember exactly what I got, but it was a common dish and "common" would also describe the flavor. One of my teammates had eaten a more difficult dish there on a previous trip and he said it was a pretty bad rendition of it. Our chips were solid, but the first set of them weren't warm, the second set helped. The salsa was decent, but again, not very flavorful. Our server was very eager, polite, and friendly, but the dishes took forever to come out of the kitchen. They didn't really understand how to make a requested drink. The patio out front is nice, but they are pretty strict about adhering to their table set-up, so larger groups cannot join tables together unless against the building. The inside looks like a small, unremarkable room with a bar. Prices are reasonable.
Overall, I'd say it is friendly place for cheap drinks on a nice day, but I'd eat elsewhere.
(202) 232-0437
Another place along 17th Street that my team has stopped for drinks and food after a game. They have a nice happy hour with $4 margaritas, and they seem to enjoy indulging you with a free one if you have enough. The margaritas are nothing special, but the price is nice. The food is not horrible, but is fairly bland. I don't remember exactly what I got, but it was a common dish and "common" would also describe the flavor. One of my teammates had eaten a more difficult dish there on a previous trip and he said it was a pretty bad rendition of it. Our chips were solid, but the first set of them weren't warm, the second set helped. The salsa was decent, but again, not very flavorful. Our server was very eager, polite, and friendly, but the dishes took forever to come out of the kitchen. They didn't really understand how to make a requested drink. The patio out front is nice, but they are pretty strict about adhering to their table set-up, so larger groups cannot join tables together unless against the building. The inside looks like a small, unremarkable room with a bar. Prices are reasonable.
Overall, I'd say it is friendly place for cheap drinks on a nice day, but I'd eat elsewhere.
Pizza No. 17
1523 17th St NW (between N Church St & N Q St)
Washington, DC 20036
http://www.17pizzas.com/
I went here after playing sports and to celebrate a good season, so our attitude and hunger may have improved the food, but we found this to be a good pizza place. Not among the elite of DC pizza, but not far off. The pizzas are wood fired brick oven and they come in either 8" or 12" sizes. The pizzas were very enjoyable, but not particularly filling, although we had played a double header and it was a rather late dinner sometime after 8:30. I think 6 of us (one person had only a slice or two though) ate five 12" pizzas. Among them were the Spicy Proscuitto $16.50, Meat Express $16.50, Pizza No. 17 (Tomato, Pepperoni, Squash, Green Peppers, Sweet Peppers, Mozzarella. Those were the three that I remember because they were all quite enjoyable (we also repeated one pizza). The crust was well done, the toppings blended well, and overall a good execution of this style of pizza.
We sat outside on their patio and the tables were reasonably nice, the inside looked small, but reasonably inviting.
The beer selection is not huge, but the beers that they had were interesting and good, including Paulaner Hefeweizen.
Definitely a very enjoyable place to enjoy good pizza outside on a nice summer evening if you're in the area.
Washington, DC 20036
http://www.17pizzas.com/
I went here after playing sports and to celebrate a good season, so our attitude and hunger may have improved the food, but we found this to be a good pizza place. Not among the elite of DC pizza, but not far off. The pizzas are wood fired brick oven and they come in either 8" or 12" sizes. The pizzas were very enjoyable, but not particularly filling, although we had played a double header and it was a rather late dinner sometime after 8:30. I think 6 of us (one person had only a slice or two though) ate five 12" pizzas. Among them were the Spicy Proscuitto $16.50, Meat Express $16.50, Pizza No. 17 (Tomato, Pepperoni, Squash, Green Peppers, Sweet Peppers, Mozzarella. Those were the three that I remember because they were all quite enjoyable (we also repeated one pizza). The crust was well done, the toppings blended well, and overall a good execution of this style of pizza.
We sat outside on their patio and the tables were reasonably nice, the inside looked small, but reasonably inviting.
The beer selection is not huge, but the beers that they had were interesting and good, including Paulaner Hefeweizen.
Definitely a very enjoyable place to enjoy good pizza outside on a nice summer evening if you're in the area.
Nooshi
1120 19th St NW # 2, Washington D.C., DC 20036-3686 (202) 293-3138
http://www.nooshidc.com
Asian fusion/sushi
I have eaten here a couple times now and I don't remember if I have every reviewed it. The last time I was there, I ate sushi. The sushi is solid, nothing remarkable, decent variety of rolls, but nothing stands out. The standard rolls are at a good price, while the rest of the sushi including special rolls are at typical DC sushi prices. The decor is nice, classy. Overall, a decent sushi place if you're in that part of town, but not a destination spot.
http://www.nooshidc.com
Asian fusion/sushi
I have eaten here a couple times now and I don't remember if I have every reviewed it. The last time I was there, I ate sushi. The sushi is solid, nothing remarkable, decent variety of rolls, but nothing stands out. The standard rolls are at a good price, while the rest of the sushi including special rolls are at typical DC sushi prices. The decor is nice, classy. Overall, a decent sushi place if you're in that part of town, but not a destination spot.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Ella's
901 F St NW, (between F & G on 9th).
http://www.ellaspizza.com/menus.html
202-638-3434
I've been here before, but I finally stopped by again. It's almost always quite busy, I thought waiting out the happy hour would help, but showing up at 8pm and I still had an hour wait for a table. The bottled beer selection is not lengthy, but well chose. I got a Duck-Rabbit Stout in a bottle and then got an Ommengang Quadrupel, with Schlenkerla being another option. My pizza was the Lombardi (lombardi
caramelized onions, gorgonzola & rosemary), which was disappointing. Some bites tasted quite good, but generally it tasted unremarkable and not even that good for a pizza. One of our party got the Wild Mushroom (wild mushroom
tomato sauce, mild goat cheese, wild mushroom & spinach), which I have had before, and it was quite good, but not at Rustico, or Comet Ping-Pong level. Another member of our party got the di mare (pesto, shrimp, roasted peppers & pine nuts), which he said was quite good, but I didn't try it.
The decor is nice here, but typical of Penn Quarter/Chinatown places. Our service was lacking as after waiting an hour to be seated, we had to frantically waive down a server after 30 minutes (at 9:30pm!). He had come by right after we were seated and still talking (which he used as an excuse after being waived down chatting with the hostess), but that is no reason not to come back for almost half an hour. The pizzas came out quickly though.
http://www.ellaspizza.com/menus.html
202-638-3434
I've been here before, but I finally stopped by again. It's almost always quite busy, I thought waiting out the happy hour would help, but showing up at 8pm and I still had an hour wait for a table. The bottled beer selection is not lengthy, but well chose. I got a Duck-Rabbit Stout in a bottle and then got an Ommengang Quadrupel, with Schlenkerla being another option. My pizza was the Lombardi (lombardi
caramelized onions, gorgonzola & rosemary), which was disappointing. Some bites tasted quite good, but generally it tasted unremarkable and not even that good for a pizza. One of our party got the Wild Mushroom (wild mushroom
tomato sauce, mild goat cheese, wild mushroom & spinach), which I have had before, and it was quite good, but not at Rustico, or Comet Ping-Pong level. Another member of our party got the di mare (pesto, shrimp, roasted peppers & pine nuts), which he said was quite good, but I didn't try it.
The decor is nice here, but typical of Penn Quarter/Chinatown places. Our service was lacking as after waiting an hour to be seated, we had to frantically waive down a server after 30 minutes (at 9:30pm!). He had come by right after we were seated and still talking (which he used as an excuse after being waived down chatting with the hostess), but that is no reason not to come back for almost half an hour. The pizzas came out quickly though.
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