Last night we returned to FIREFLY after over a year (located at the MADERA Hotel on New Hampshire Ave at Dupont Circle). Little has changed in the wonderful "woodsy" decor; I still adore the wall of white birch trees and the subtle lighting, although we did need to ask to have the lights turned up so we could read our menu! On a cold night, you might want to avoid sitting at the front tables next to the large window/doors onto the patio. Double glazing is a suggestion for the draft can chill your feet.
That all aside, our superb server Christopher gave us many ideas and helped us through our choices quite well. Will started with the CRISP OYSTERS in CHIPOTLE TARTAR SAUCE which is a wonderful, spicy and tasty dish for you fried shellfish lovers. He opted for a single glass of white with this: VERAMONTE 2005 Sauvignon Blanc from Chile, which is fresh and crisp, but a bit grassy for my palate (although it paired well with the spices in the sauce).
I started with the red; our bottle was a magnificent SCOTT PAUL 2003 "Cuvee Martha Pirrie" PINOT NOIR from the Willamette Valley in Oregon. This big fruit forward wine was a naturally made and unfiltered wine that was dark, smooth and went down like silk! A perfect pairing with my CURED CUK BREAST with Arugula, Dried Cranberries and Candied Pecans, a wonderful filling salad that would make any rare duck breast lover happy (and I am one of those!).
Our entrees were not quite as exciting, with Will opting for the MUSHROOM CASSOULET with Oregon Black Truffles that was nicely prepared, very filling, but not hugely exciting. The sauce was tomato-ey and it was loaded with all kinds of wonderful wild mushrooms, but just seemed to be missing something.
My ROASTED CHICEKN with OYSTER MUSHROOMS, Bacon, Pearl Onions and Turnips was much better in a wonderful brown sauce that was so tasty and again the wonderful mushrooms were perfection. A highlight of the meal was the side of TRUFFLED PARMESAN FRITES with their own TRUFFLED KETCHUP that we just could not get enough of. The excellent fries were dusted with a coating that was simply irresistible!
For dessert we had a wonderful cheese plate which we shared. The manager was a bit off on his suggestion of the order in which to eat the cheeses, but Christopher corrected that:
GRAYSON, a semi-soft British cheese was a new treat, then the VERMONT CHEDDAR was the least exciting with a magnificent SAN JOAQUIN CHEDDAR that was crunchy and crumbly and oh so intensely delish. The BAILEY HAZEN Goat from Humboldt County, Calif was creamy and pungent. CONSTANT BLISS from California was another new cheese that we will remember well-an aged cow that had a nice intensity. Finally the JASPER HILL BLUE was very yummy, but neither of us are blue folks.
Will had a glass of BAIRRADA QUINTA DO ENCINTRO 2001 Portuguese wine that was just right with these strong and flavorful cheeses.
