After a week of quiet from our trip, we are back on the food circuit and decided to finally get to PROOF (775 G St, NW-www.proofdc.com) where we ate and drank way too much with our dear friends, but had a fantastic time. In general, our server Max took care of our needs quite well and made some great suggestions. We did need some wine poured here and there...but managed fine.
The setting is nice and NOT too loud, even on a Friday night, although the bar is crowded as there are so many wines and options by the glass. The decor is simple, yet comfortable, and while the name implies the wine is the star here, the food is just as good in most cases.
As always, we were asked if we wanted sparkling or flat, and we opted for sparkling and asked what types they had. Max told us proudly that Proof is the first restaurant in DC to use the Nordaq in house filtering system, but still charges for $5/carafe! WOW, that's a lot for water that costs virtually nothing. Maybe once the system is paid off, they can stop charging as so many other places using similar systems do.
The flatbread was puffy and irresistible and came with a yogurt and chive dip. We tried not to fill up as we had so much coming... We started with the Chef's Charcuterie Board which is a huge platter for $28 including gherkins, breads, mustard, dates, raw honey, and of course the meats: Bresaolo, a fennel salami, Chorizo, Coppa Salami, Cacciatore, Gentile, Sopressato, Speck, Saucisson de Lyon, Toscano and Prosciutto de San Daniele (this was the only meat that was not simply superb). There was one pate on the platter as well, but we ordered the PATE PLATTER as well which came with DUCK & APPLE Terrine, CHICKEN SOUP Pate, a creamy DUCK LIVE PATE sprinkled with coarse salt and one of the most divine PATE DE CAMPAGNE ever (that was more like a terrine).
A cheese platter was also chosen and all the cheeses were delicious as well:
LINCOLNSHIRE POACHER(UK) a crumbly tasty cheddar
MONA Sheep&Cow from Wisconsin that had a great nutty taste
PIPE DREAMS ASH RIND Goat
a shaved TETE de MOINES from Switzerland
PONT L'EVEQUE that I would have loved a bit more ripe
ROGUE CREAMERY CAVEMAN BLUE from Oregon that we all agreed with mild and divine with a tiny crystalline crunch in it
We started with a bottle of TAITTINGER Cuvee Prestige Non Vintage which was close to gone by the time the food came, but it was a great aperitif and would have been fine with the charcuterie and cheese as well, but we all agreed to move to red for the sake of the meat and had a K VINTNERS Syrah "Pheasant Vineyard" 2006 from the Wah Luke Valley in Walla Walla, Washington that was absolutely perfect. Not overpowering, but a big enough red to stand up to the meats.
Our next red was an EIEIO 2006 "Swine Wine" which is their entry level Pinot Noir from Oregon that was also full bodied, yet mild enough for the lighter appetizers we had. Speaking of appetizers, save one entree, that was all we ordered, and it was a great choice, because these plates are great to share and seem to offer up the best that Proof has.
AHI TARTARE with Hass Avocado, Nori Tempura, Wasabi Soy Emulsion CHILLED TOMATO Soup with Parmesan & Garlic Croutons, Torn Basil and Jerez Sherry Vinegar & Olive Oil comes in a yin-yang presentation of red and yellow tomato soups and is cream-less and superb. Not a gazpacho with chunks but loaded with bursting tomato flavor. ABALONE "3 Minute Ceviche" with Citrus, Jalapeno, Coriander & Avocado was also quite nice and a change on the regular ceviches around HEN of the WOODS QUICHE with Salad of Green Beans & Radish with Vin Cotto, also nice, but was really a good quiche which does little for me
We were starting to get crowded at the table and Max pulled out a small tray the end which had a slot for the wine bottle and allowed us much more space (a nice trick when you do order lots!).
CHESAPEAKE SOFT SHELL CRAB with English Cucumber & Sweet Chili Garlic Aioli was a superb preparation with a huge crab and great sauce. GRILLED Spanish OCTOPUS with Potato-Chickpea Salad, Capers, Smoked
Paprika, Roast Pepper Vinaigrette was another treat.
The dud dish of the appetizers was the SAUTEED BUFFALO SWEETBREADS which is prepared in the style of "buffalo wings" with Celery Leaf Salad, Roquefort and Smoked Bacon. The "sauce" was just too cloying for all of us and agreed the sweetbread itself needs to be treated more delicately.
At this point we moved to our last red, ALTO MONCAYO 2006 Campo de Borja GRANACHA which was a great wine as well. We have become so thrilled with the increase in quality Spanish wines here lately and I hope that Proof will increase its list in this department as they have such a great variety from so many countries!
Speaking of the wine, the glasses here tend to be heavy Italian (unnamed) crystal which I am not so fond of. I realize this is because of the massive amount of wine glasses and the need to avoid hand washing and breakage, but I miss my Schott or Riedel when drinking quality wines.
I really wanted to taste one entree and ordered the CRISPY DUCK & PORK CONFIT with Cassoulet of FLAGEOLET BEANS, Spinach, Lardons which suffered from extreme dryness. The confit had been cooked to death and the duck leg was just overdone. Luckily, the beans were moist and tasty and helped to alleviate the poor meat.
We ended up taking much of the meat home for our dog! and she adores it, especially the lardons!
We did order three veggie sides with this and they were all superb: SAUTEED RAPINI with Garlic, Chilies & Ginger was quite nice but none too exciting
GRILLED LOACL SCAPES with Shiro Miso were diving mini-garlic bulbs/stalks that I don't recall ever having before and we all agreed they were quite novel, tasty and worth the try.
The CRISPY CAULIFLOWER with Lemon Tahini was another divine creation. We all agreed--charcuterie, cheese,app's and sides are the way to go here.
We agreed to split a STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING which is Will's fave from back in the UK and it suffered a bit from a tuile that was obviously left somewhere humid for a long time. The CHOCOLATE MOUSSE PROFITEROLES with Chocolate Sorbet and Chocolate Sauce is a good choice for you profiterole lovers. I would have loved more cheese, but was so full, I had one bit and we headed home knowing that Proof has proven itself well.
