OVERALL: 2 Stars
We were looking forward to this place so much, and we were sorely disappointed. The site advertised a buffet of delicious, well spiced mexican food, which clearly was not even close.
Food Quality: 2 Stars -- It was tasty, when it finally showed up. Matt asked for enchiladas in his first order, and finally got them 45 minutes later. The chicken soft tacos were a little bland, as well as the potatoes and eggs tasted like they were just tossed with mayonnaise. The chorizo and egg was yummy. The best thing on the table was the guac, salsa and chips. Hell i could have made that at home.
Mimosa/Champagne Quality: 3 Stars -- For beverages poured from a pitcher, they were mixed proportionately. I tried a few of the 'aqua fresca cocktails'. I think they were made by the bartender in training. Way too much liquor, i couldn't finish it. Its sunday for crying out loud, not friday night at 11pm.
Service Quality/Refill time: 1 stars -- The waitresses were prompt at pouring drinks, i'll give them that. The kitchen screwed them out of a decent tip though. We could order 6 dishes at a time for the entire table (and they were SMALL plates). On average 70% of our orders came back. Its not like they showed up with the wrong plates, they just never showed up at ALL. After 1 or 2 reminders to the waitstaff, we would finally get some food. This pattern was great for our portion control, since we got full way before we could eat too much food.
Atmosphere: 2 stars -- Looked very much like the inside of Ben's Next Door actually. Dark wood, dimly lit rooms with tall cafe tables, selective appearing loft with more tables. Decor was minimalist and indistinctly modern without much style or thought. Could be any bar from ultra rave to chic foodie.
OVERALL: 3 Stars
Girls day! despite the pouring rain, me and to other smokin' hot chicks decided to brave the weather and try this intriguing corner bistro. It was charming and did not fail to please.
Food Quality: 5 Stars -- Perfect portions, and delicious flavors with just enough kick. the pork sanwhich is to die for. I think the menu could use a little sprucing though; the place has a few obvious favorites and the rest sort of fade to the background. Eggs benedict was perfectly prepared. We did not try the french toast, but again, the presentation was beautiful on the next table over...
Mimosa/Champagne Quality: 3 Stars -- A little too much OJ and not enough of the good stuff. No exotic options. We did splurge for the pitcher of bellini ($18) which gave us four generous glasses. Delicious, but why did I have to pay extra for it?
Service Quality/Refill time: 3 stars -- Bless these young college girls! Soaking wet and still working for a living. Where are the burly bus boys to help them move umbrellas around and bring out food? They did their darndest to keep our glasses full and our seats dry.
Atmosphere: 2 stars -- Ehh... if you are going to have an out front patio, the tables need to all have covers that fit and work reliably. The waitstaff struggled with broken umbrellas made for square tables to put them on rectangular tables that were soaking already. Prepare a little better or don't open your front patio in the rain!
OVERALL: 4 Stars
We were totally pumped to try this place, because i had to make reservations a month in advance. It lived up to expectations, and is one of the few places we feel gets somewhat close to the Black's untouchable 5 star rating.
Food Quality: 5 Stars -- Fried chicken, mini bagels and lox, I counted a total of 8 cold salads which were fantastic. Cheese blitzes, numerous cakes for dessert, made to order omelet station. Mac and cheese was not impressive. You need more than just velveeta to make a delicious cheese sauce. Food is the reason to go here.
Mimosa/Champagne Quality: 3 Stars -- Again, just the standard; OJ and bubbly. No exotic juices or what not. The bloody mary was pretty tasty though, and i'm usually not a fan.
Service Quality/Refill time: 4 stars -- Waiters were well dressed and very polite. I don't think we ever had an empty glass.
Atmosphere: 3 stars -- The restaurant touted its "sky room" dining area, which pretty much was an extended sun room they had added on to the bar area to make into dining space. It was nice, i'll admit, to sit in the sunlight and stuff my face, but it did get kind of hot in there. They also need to do a better job of keeping the floors dry. I slipped near an emergency exit on the stamped concrete floors and spilt my entire plate all over another diner. thankfully none of the food was hot, and he was very nice about it.
OVERALL: 3 Stars
Across the street from Urbana, in Dupont. We should just get a reserved parking spot in this area. Middle of the road all around. No surprises either way.
Food Quality: 3 Stars -- Skip the lobster hash; too much hash, not enough lobster. And not too flavorful. Eggs chesapeake was pretty respectful. Mac and cheese was great. And one full point just for the fried pickles!
Mimosa/Champagne Quality: 3 Stars -- Each person had to choose between mimosas or bellini's or bloody mary's, and stick with that. BUT they bring carafes pre mixed to the table, so you can take a little of this and a little of that if you want.
Service Quality/Refill time: 3 stars -- No problems, delicious fried pickles came out along with the mac and cheese just as we were getting hungry. Several times we were waiting for carafe refills though. Our drunken selves were getting anxious for our refills!
Atmosphere: 3 stars -- The space was narrow and clean, and the front room had big windows that let in plenty of sun. The hostess podium looked like it had been thrown together the night before in some college kids basement: it was plywood and nails, painted on the front. We got placed in a smaller room in the back, which was quiet and shaded.
OVERALL: 3 Stars
So last weekend we took a break and had to regroup at Blacks. After that interlude, the southern based sports bar was next on the list. Next door to the well known chili place, the dark bar tried to class it up a little.
Food Quality: 3 Stars -- I tried the signature dish and it was delicious, but I couldn't believe how much plaque formed in my arteries from a dish with shrimp in it. Cheesy grits, piled with a white wine and butter sauce cover with shrimp and sauteed veggies. A fascinating combination. Fried chicken a waffles was also a stand out; sweet and salty.
Mimosa/Champagne Quality: 2 Stars -- They used the large wine glasses, which i like, they are easier to drink out of and hold more per serving. But all they had was the plane jane classic. Maybe a little pineapple would spruce it up?
Service Quality/Refill time: 3 stars -- The service was appropriately paced; just fast enough to keep you from looking for the waiter. He had a smart mouth on him though. I told him i was deciding between the shrimp and the french toast. He said, so would pass up our signature dish for bread dipped in eggs? well then.
Atmosphere: 3 stars -- Dark wood, tall stools pulled up to tall bar tables, trying to step up a notch from its namesake next door. On every wall a flat screen displayed a stock image of a beach. This really got on my nerves after a while. I kept waiting for something to happen. Put the morning news up there, or something, music videos, i don't know. It was like a digital fish tank, but less interesting, and with no fish.
OVERALL: 3 Stars
Weird eating naan and curries for breakfast. Remember to ask for orange juice to mix with your champagne. A carafe will be provided.
Food Quality: 4 Stars -- like i said, weird eating hot savory curries over rice and naan for brunch, but then it was a nice change. The sauces were light without too much grease. Most were vegetarian. One had chicken and another had fish. The crispy potato chip things with yogurt sauce and I think diced tomato were delicious. Such a strange combination but we couldn't get enough of them.
Mimosa/Champagne Quality: 2 Stars -- No exotic juices or even the typical OJ was offered with their semi-dry champagne. As you probably guessed this made us a little more drunk than usual. As we left we saw that some diners had small carafes of OJ on their table. Why were we given that option...?
Service Quality/Refill time: 3 stars -- Average on the refills. After while Bob realized the bottle was being placed in an iced tub just behind us, within arms reach. That sort of nixed the meaning of refill time. They were very tolerant of us otherwise. Josh knocked over the table and everything had to be replaced at one point. They cleaned up, and offered us more booze.
Atmosphere: 2 stars -- The decor was tasteful and the chairs very comfortable, but the space was so crammed with tables that is was difficult to get to the buffet. Get rid of the live pianist and spread everything out a little more. There were kids there too, which made keeping our voices down all the more important.
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OVERALL: 5 Stars
Oh, the south! Being from Texas, this location reminded me a lot of home. But the similarities ended with the menu. Otherwise, the place was sophisticated and had plenty of DC history to support its claims.
Food Quality: 5 Stars -- Buffet's are fun because you can pick and choose from several different options. The first thing on the line was fried fish, chicken and greens. The meat was delicious, with just enough grease to make you feel a little guilty. Macaroni and cheese, sausages, gumbo, jambalaya followed suit. A salad bar was laid out, as well as an omelet and waffle station. The food was placed in random order; the breakfast food was the least accessible when going to the buffet, when I think you should start out with eggs and croissant.
Mimosa/Champagne Quality: 4 Stars -- Included in the meal price was champagne or mimosas. Halfway into the meal we challenged the waiter into mixing us some other types of champagne concoctions from a list of juices he had rattled off as we sat down. Pineapple, grapefruit, cranberry. Pineapple was my favorite. The grapefruit was a little bitter.
Service Quality/Refill time: 3 stars -- Our waiter's name was Beau. He certainly seemed to love his job. He could have been a little bit faster with the refills, but thats always limited by the bartender. As he realized we were there for the booze, he began to pick up the pace.
Atmosphere: 4 stars -- The historical location definitely impressed. Our waiter gave us a well practiced scenario of the Presidents who had passed through and why the space has been designed and decorated as it had. There was a live pianist, trying to class it up a little, but I think he could have practiced a bit more.
