Last night we returned to our neighborhood haunt BLACKSALT as it's been over a year (www.blacksaltrestaurant.com). Blacksalt (on MacArthur Blvd in the Palisades) just 3 minutes from our house is easily one of the top seafood places in town and easily tops in the neighborhood for just about anything (ok, so Makoto is across the street, but that gets boring).
We started with a bottle of superb DAEDALUS Pinot Gris from the Willamette Valley in Oregon listed on the bottle as "circa" 2007; what is that? It was a great wine to have with our little plate of MARINATED WHITE ANCHOVIES (from Greece) with Fried Eggplant Salsa Verde that just melted in our mouths. The breads and Calamata olive/oil dip came and we could not resist again.
We went through the dishes and it was not easy to decide as there were so many excellent fish choices. Will and I naturally started with the Maryland SOFT SHELL CRABS with Tasso Ham, Roasted Peppers, Tomatillos and Cilantro that turned out to be huge portions with a super combination of ingredients for flavor and taste. The SMOKED BLUEFISH Crostini was a large portion as well piled high with delicious "pate," spiced pecan, organic radish and Frisee.
We switched to a CHATEAUNEUF du PAPE Clos LA ROQUETE 2007 that was also divine and seemed to be the hit of the evening...especially at its low price! Our third and last wine was recommended by the very cute sommelier and was a LUGORE VERMENTINO 2007 from Sardinia that was much more expensive, tasty and superb, but actually not as good as our first two wines.
The entrees were varied and all were excellent. North Atlantic Grey TILEFISH came with Sweet Corn, Fava Beans, Shitake Mushrooms and Tarragon. Wild Alaskan HALIBUT was a pure snow white treat with Spring Vegetables, a tasty Local Herb PESTO Crust and Fried Quail Egg for perfection in flavor. Wild Alaskan King SALMON was served with Red Quinoa, Local Squash, English Peas, Mint & Pine Nuts. My Wood Grilled Icelandic Arctic CHAR was in a slightly spicy MOLE VERDE with Sweet Plaintains and several small cubes of Citrus Braised PORK BELLY for added taste. The sauce was also slightly thick and rich with pumpkin seeds (pepita) which were apparently cooked in duck fat for even more flavor). These superb fishes were all a treat in their own ways and the ingredients used to surround them only added to the excitement. Again, my only complaint is the shape of some of the deeper dishes that force the utensils to fall into the sauce! COME ON CHEFS!
Desserts could not be passed up from Pastry Chef Susan Wallace which included a KEY LIME PIE with Blueberry compote (will had them hold the whipped cream) and sesame seed tuile, a trio of CREME BRULEES: Butterscotch, White Chocolate Raspberry, and Milk Chocolate-Hazelnut. Finally my CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CRUNCH CAKE with Caramelized Bananas and Peanut Brittle was so rich, I shared it with the table after three small bites, even though I loved it.
All in all, another great night out in DC!
