Overdue: Restaurant Week Reviews
It’s only been 10 months since my last post which makes me cringe a little when I think about. To be honest, it makes me sad because the only reason I haven’t been blogging is because I haven’t been cooking. Believe me when I say there definitely could have been time, but work was crazy and who wants to cook a meal at 8pm after a 12-hour workday when all you want to do is scarf something right. that. minute.? If your answer is yes, I applaud you. My answer was no and I ate a lot of sushi takeout. Sidenote: If you’re in the DC/Arlington area I’m urging you to go to Sushi Rock immediately and have four a “Light My Fire” rolls. (seriously I have a problem).
So what I really wanted to share with you (until I remembered Sushi Rock) was my Restaurant week experience. If you aren’t familiar with Restaurant week, it’s basically a week (and for some places two) where restaurants specialize menus for lunch and dinner for a “discounted price” (note: I say “discounted” because not every restaurant gives you a good deal; if you’re thinking you want to try a restaurant, look at their regular menu and do a little comparison) and aim to give you the best of what they have. RW is an opportunity to try restaurants you may not have otherwise visited due to cost, reservation availability, reason to, etc. Lunch is around $22 and dinner is around $35 - some are more and offer I’d been to restaurant weeks before but nothing like this. This year I tried out four (yes four) restaurants I’d never (disclaimer: I had been to one before, whoops) been to before.
How did we choose which restaurants to go to, you may be asking yourself? Well, for one, I scoured the blogs that did reviews on the entire RW selection each year to get a sense of the restaurants I could not miss based on bang for your buck, menu, drinks, and all around experience. I also talked to friends about which restaurants they really enjoyed and which to skip out on. I then took on the task of going through each of the available menus to see which I would like to try, and offered my boyfriend the final list of 5 or 6 from him to help choose 3. It was a process, but if you’re like me then you find solace in reading through menus. I don’t care that that’s a weird hobby; let me be.
The four restaurants I visited were Fogo de Chão, Co Co Sala, Brasserie Beck, and Ambar. Below I’ll let you know what I ate, how it was, and if you should even bother going.
1101 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20004 | Website
This is the one restaurant I had been to before (many times might I add) but my boyfriend (also my trusty sidekick in this particular food adventure) had never been and I thought what better time than now to introduce him to what I affectionately call “the meats”. Fogo restaurant week is almost exactly the same as any other dinner at Fogo, but two distinct items are missing: the filet mignon and anything lamb. This is a little disappointing because I could probably eat six pounds of the filet mignon alone, but there are, like, 10 other meats to choose from AND a salad bar. Make sure you go hungry because you’re going to have unlimited meats and sides to choose from and you want to make sure you get your money’s worth.
What I ate: Everything but the salad (you shouldn’t be surprised if you know me)
Picanha (prime part of the top sirloin)
Beef Ancho (rib eye)
Alcatra (top sirloin)
Fraldinha (bottom sirloin)
Frango (chicken)
Lombo (parmesan crusted pork loin)
Linguiça (pork sausage)
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Caramelized Bananas
Polenta
Pão de Queijo (cheese bread)
What I drank: Caipirinhas (obviously)
Cost: $35 and ~$13/ drink a la carte
Should You Go?: At least once in your life, but definitely during RW because why not pay $35 for a regularly priced $60+ meal full of the meats?
929 F St NW, Washington, DC 20004 | Website
So this restaurant’s claim to fame is “chocolate everywhere”, which I could certainly get down with. My roommates and I (there are four of us) decided to have a girls’ date here since it was a chocolate restaurant. The only thing I have to say about this restaurant is that the seating is kind of weird. Some people were sitting on these low stool-like things that were smaller at the bottom than at the top; we witnessed a girl in a skirt fall off of one, which was hilarious but also had me thinking to myself “she is all of us”.
What I ate:
Chicken Caesar Salad (parmesan crusted crispy chicken / baby romaine / parmigiano reggiano / flatbread croutons)
Organic Black Pearl Salmon (whole grain mustard glaze / crispy kale / warm marble potatoes & leeks / dill maple dijon vinaigrette)
Shrimp Mac n Cheese (mini penne / jack & cheddar / garlic shrimp / jalapenos)
Chocolate Onyx (dark chocolate mousse / vanilla crème brulee / salted caramel / crispy chocolate pearls / brownie / chocolate sorbet / cinnamon toffee bon bon+)
Everything was incredible.
What I drank:
Fetish (Fresh Strawberries / Chocolate-Infused Vodka / Strawberry Foam / Chocolate Dipped Berry)
Cost: $35 for dinner, $8/drink
Should You Go?: Yes!!! Everything I ate was fabulous. I don’t know if these dishes are available on the regular menu but if you’re looking for a RW venue, this is it. Go with your girlfriends, eat everything, and have a few drinks!
1101 K St NW, Washington, DC 20005 | Website
If you’re familiar with Arlington and DC fare you will recognize the company that owns this one; they also own Mussel Bar. Brasserie Beck is described as a “contemporary European style brasserie”, which to me means nothing. This was probably the restaurant I was least impressed with. Service was weird, the menu wasn’t very expansive and our drinks were pretty expensive. I think this was one we were looking forward to, too, so that was kind of a bummer. I chose them because their menu included mussels and steak; a definite yes for me.
What I ate:
Mussels (roasted garlic / parsley / cream)
NY Strip Steak Frites (grilled angus beef / watercress / belgian frites, bordelaise and béarnaise sauces)
Crème Brulée (speculous cookie / chantilly cream)
What I drank: Albarino wine and a ginger beer cocktail
Cost: $35 for dinner, $9-14/drink
Should You Go?: Honestly I was not impressed. The mussels were delcious, but the steak was chewy (the sauces kind of saved it), and the creme brulee was soft; normally you have a nice crack to the caramelized sugar on top but that was missing. The speculous cookie was a nice touch. I wouldn’t recommend this restaurant for RW, at least.
523 8th St SE, Washington, DC 20003 | Website
Ok y’all, this one is gonna be long. For one, we ate everything, and when I say everything I mean we actually had everything on their RW menu.This was my absolute favorite place and we vowed to go back many, many times because it was THAT. GOOD. Not only was the food incredible, they had the best deal of the week: instead of the run of the mill $35 prix fixe menu and a la carte drinks, they had an all inclusive deal for $49 which was unlimited plates and bottomless drinks. Bottomless drinks? Shut up and take my money (and they did). But seriously guys, this restaurant is considered “Balkan Cuisine” and is “small plates”. I don’t know what Balkan cuisine is but I think it’s my new favorite and I laugh when they say “small plates” because there was enough for both of us to eat on one plate. You’re going to be flabbergasted at the amount we ate at this restaurant. We told the waitress it was our first time there, and that it would probably best if she just started bringing us out what she thought we should eat based on what was best on the menu. The whole damn menu is what is best on the menu. After ordering drinks (listed below), we consumed the following..... and I’m 100% I’m missing something we ate - I just legitimately ate so much I forgot everything I ate... I’ll also star my favorites since there were SO. MANY. OPTIONS.
What I ate:
*Cheese Pie (crispy phyllo / cucumber yogurt / roasted red pepper sauce)
*Tartare Steak (pork “cracklins” / sundried tomato butter / pickled vegetables)
Pork Flatbread (slow cooked pork / baked egg / pickled onion)
Grilled Asparagus (veloute / crispy proscuitto / pumpkin / quail egg)
*Brussel Sprouts with Bacon (lemon & garlic yogurt)
Leek Croquette (ajvar emulsion / panko crust)
Cold Octopus Salad (garlic beans / sliced cucumber)
*Bacon & Peanut Pork Tenderloin (miso-mustard tarragon / mashed potatoes)
Spicy Pork Sausage (green peas / root vegetable stew)
*Drunken Mussels (rakija / garlic / capers / lemon / somun / cream)
Grilled Calamari w/ Gremolata (fresh herbs / diced pepper / lemon)
*Sesame Crusted Salmon (horseradish sauce / spicy eggplant / arugula)
Capri (fresh raspberries / vanilla pudding / dolcela hit icing / almond crumble / passionfrut espuma / raspberry sorbet)
What I drank:
Pomegranate Collins (vodka / pomegranate / lemon / soda)
Pear Daisy (pear rakia / triple sec / lemon / pear & cardamom puree)
Cost: $49 (a deal that is still available. You can go today and literally eat all this for $49)
Should You Go?: YES. YES. YES. If you go anywhere in this city (at anytime) go here. This is so far my favorite restaurant in DC and trust me, I’ve been to many restaurants in DC. WHEN you do go, GET THE STEAK TARTARE. One of the best things I’ve eaten in a long time and I didn’t even know I liked tartare.
So there you have it. It was a busy two weeks for me as I was busy eating (and drinking) literally everything. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out! I’m more than happy to talk to you about DC or Arlington restaurants or food here in general :)
