Sunday, July 24, 2011

Southwest's STATION 4 is a new stop in DC (7-23-11)

Samuel and I attended a matinee of Oklahoma (not to be missed) at Arena Stage yesterday and had the pleasure of dining out with both female leads afterwards. As they were between shows, they suggested a new spot just a block away at 1101 4th St, SW in what used to be the Waterside Mall and has now been redeveloped.
STATION 4 (www.station4dc.com) is a beautiful, classy, chic and yes, trendy spot with a varied menu, nice drink list (vodka from Maryland!) and an exciting wine list too.
The manager, Antonio, kept checking to see if everything was okay and the staff is quite attentive (for some, they might be a bit over attentive). As soon as Samuel saw the pizza choices, there was no hoping he would go for the Duck Confit Spring Roll, so I agreed to the MARGHERITA which came with fresh basil and beautiful confit cherry tomatoes (that means peeled and cooked to perfection). He was happy with his Shirley Temple and we ordered (well, the ladies did not drink) a bottle of Feudi di San Gregorio RUBRATO AGLIANICO 2007 which was a perfect red for a hot (am I understating-BLOODY HOT) day as we had ordered heavier meat courses. It had some nice body but was not overpowering or overly tannic. My friend ordered the SPICY PEPPERONI PIZZA and the wine was perfect with this as well as my BEEF SHORT RIB PAPPARDELLE with comes with Caramelized Shallots, Sweet Peas and a Black Truffle Essence. The toasted baguette on the side is a bit redundant with all that pasta! Speaking of bread, they serve tasty crunchy breadsticks which have olive tapenade baked onto them for extra yummy flavor. One of our guests also adored the Pappardelle and the other the CORVINA FISH Special which came with a divine green sauce that made this fish such a big hit we suggested it get on the daily menu! The veggie sides are nice too with tender buttery ASAPARAGUS and BRUSSELS SPROUTS with bacon served in a mini-cast iron pot.
The portions are large, so we were happy not to have an appetizer and were too full for dessert!
If you are headed to Arena, this is a great spot before or after as they are even open until midnight or later (now that's a treat in this neighborhood), but consider the short drive from almost anywhere in DC worth the trip!