rousing reviews for THE RIGGSBY in DC (4-27-18)

While my birthday isn't until 3 weeks from yesterday, last night a bunch of us headed to THE RIGGSBY in Dupont Circle for a fabulous dinner cooked up by Chef Ed Scarpone who recently moved there from Fiola. The RIGGSBY has been around for a couple of years and is part of the Michael Schlow empire in a wonderful cozy location in the deco-themed Carlyle Hotel.

We were in the semi-secluded not-so-private dining room and while it was cute, I did not like facing the very creepy "multi-face" wallpaper; is that deco anyway? Other than that, it was a dream meal and our servers, especially Jalesa were all excellent.

Our amuse was Wellfleet Oysters and Trout Roe in a superb Cucumber & Serrano Mignonette which was perfect which was paired with a Charles Orban Brut Champagne.

Samuel got a Jalapeno & Goat Cheese Croquette. FB photos abound!

Next came a very light-style Lobster Bisque with cognac & tarragon, each bowl containing a beautiful half lobster tail. I was grateful that the dish was not a thick bisque as there was so much to follow, and the lobster flavor burst was still just as good. Nobody seemed to leave a spoonful. The wine was a superb Grgich Hills Fume Blanc 2014 from napa, which I must admit I haven't had in ages, maybe decades! Samuel had a gorgeous Asparagus Salad with Tico Rashi and a Poached Egg on top. Now Sam doesn't really like poached eggs, but this one disappeared mysteriously.

The second course was Spaghetti with Clams, Uni, Mussels and Peas that was a truly wonderful pasta and obviously chef has learned that to perfection being in one of DC's top Italian restaurants for the last year or so. Samuel had the same pasta with carrots and onions instead of the shellfish and declared himself full for the night(at least until dessert).

The wine was a Ramey Cellars "Sidebar" Syrah Rose 2015 from Russian River Valley which I fell in love with immediately, especially now that the weather is warming up.

Soft Shell Crabs were my personal request and chef came through with flying colors as these had grilled Shishito peppers and were ever so lightly battered with a Romesco sauce on a white bean puree....heaven! A Siduri 2016 Pinot Noir from the Willamette Valley in Oregon was a brave pairing that was ideal with the spice of the Romesco.

The main course was Beef Wellington cooked perfectly to medium rare paired with il Fauno di Arcanum 2014 from Tuscany which is mostly Merlot with Sangiovese and while young, begged to be paired with meat.

Dessert was The Riggsby Pot Brownie Sundae which got a lot of remarks now that pot is legal in DC, but this was obviously not laced with marijuana. It was covered with delicious crunchy walnuts and honeycomb and a thick rich brownie on the bottom under ice cream and chocolate sauce. The non-chocoholics got Creme Brulee and we all drank Dows 10 year Tawney Port.

It was a super fun night and I still have 20 days left to celebrate!

Adams Morgan's BROTHERS & SISTERS in the new LINE Hotel lifts dining to deliciousness (4-15-18)

New places are popping up constantly in DC and we just can't keep up as we try to cut back on our food intake, but Sunday night we asked two of our dearest friends to join us at the brand new BROTHERS & SISTERS at the LINE Hotel(https://www.thelinehotel.com/dc/venues/) smack in the center of Adams Morgan here in DC. Sunday night was a good choice as parking is not to hard(although they have valet for a fee). The restaurant is the creation of Chefs Erik Bruner-Yang & Harper McClure who sure can cook up a storm in this quite vast venue. We were four, but our two sons took another table separately(teenagers cannot be seen with their parents as we are an embarrassment), which worked out quite well. The old bank conversion offers a two story dome-like room with seating on both levels as well as two bars to the extreme left and right in separate glass-walled rooms(which are much quieter). Indeed the central room is also the hotel lobby with sofas, benches and tables all mixed together. I have to admit that if I was a hotel guest entering from the front, I might find it hard to navigate through the hostess stand, lobby and more to find the front desk, located in a free standing cage-like bank teller's booth. 

We were greeted warmly(we were early) and had to wait several minutes for the table and looked around at the vast space, but have to say the noise level was not that unbearable; once we moved to our table talking was really not an issue. Our server Miller was a gem, and while she guided us, we took charge making the choices and asking for each group of dishes to be staggered; it worked perfectly. We ordered a bottle of Averaen Pinot Noir 2015 from the Willamette Valley in Oregon which came as a 2015 and was a superb choice with tons of fruit. We thought about white wine, but it was so cold, we hit on this lighter red and actually had 2 bottles of it before proceeding to a heavier Bodegas Las Orcas Solar de Randez "Finca de Angel" Tempranillo (listed at 2011, but vintage 2014 appeared)from Rioja Alavesa in Spain. The wine was served by Cuong and at one point he asked if we used to go to Gabriel at the Barceló Hotel(now Palomar Dupont Circle) and he remembered us from all the places where now moved to Australia Chef Greggory Hill used to be. WOW!

The starters are broken into cold plates and hot plates and then there are plates to share and larger plates. We stuck to the first three and loved sharing EVERYTHING. An amazing UNI(Sea Urchin) platter arrived with profiteroles and condiments ranging from Himalayan salt to scallions, cooked egg white and yolk, EVOO, red and white onion, creme fraiche and a whipped pork lard. These were added to the delectable uni in each warm profiterole and was an amazing burst of flavor in the mouth.  What a treat! We ordered the Oysters with Uni which came three to the order and were amazing with a light tasty cucumber mignonette; a good option if you like oysters and don't want to get the whole Uni platter. Big Eye Tuna Crudo was superb with a light Coconut vinaigrette while the Avocado Salas with Five Grains and Hazelnuts was a true winner; one of the best salads ever in truth. There are many veggie options as well and we adored both the Brussels Sprouts with Urfa Ranch that packed a spice punch and was loaded with sautéed onions as well as the Cauliflower with Creme Fraiche amazingly prepared with a spicy vegan nouc cham(Asian fish sauce)-OMG!! My only complaint is that the menu descriptions tend to be two or three words and if you don't like an ingredient when the item comes you might be in trouble(for example the onions in the Brussels sprouts).

French Fries here are not be missed served with a ton of kicky earthy seasonings and a béarnaise dipping sauce. The Octopus Hot Dog is a revelation with Yuzu kosho as it really looks like a hot dog and has amazing flavor akin to one.

Straciatella(cheese) comes with black garlic and while a nice dish was my least favorite, but then I adored EVERYTHING!

Cacio e Pepe Mushrooms were with black truffles and truly looked like pasta, but was actually mushrooms with cheese and pepper.

Duck Ballotine was a sliced breast cooked beautifully and served with peas and beet gastrique.

The winner was the Beef Short Rib Burger with Mornay sauce that is a monstrous burger served on a giant parker-house like roll that is separated into four rolls joined together(see FB for photos) and is easily split 4 ways, so perfect to share and you may even want to get a second one! It comes over the tasty seasoned fries to boot! Who knew?

My other complaint is that when you are sharing dishes, serving spoons should be proffered as it is really not in the best health interests to use the forks or knives you have been eating with.

One dessert was ordered to go by our friends, but there was no way we could eat another bite after having so many superb dishes.

Bravi to the entire team on this new and exciting dining venue!!