Last night we wandered up 11th Street, NW to an area next to Columbia Heights that is now crowded with restaurants as well, so on arrival at Queen's English(3410 11th St NW) parking was not as easy as I had figured, but it was not impossible.
The small space opened just over 4 years ago and was a smash with it's spicy/fun/Asian fusion and unique cuisine; it was indeed on my radar all this time. It's a cozy space and a atd noisy with an open kitchen with a bar seating 6 facing into the kitchen. We had the quietest table which is in the window alcove and we loved it.
Our server Noelle explained that the food is in plates that are meant to be shared, which we loved. The menu is divided in 3 sections containing 4 dishes each(plus one speical last night) called starters, in-between and finale(which is really main courses). The only dessert is homemade vanilla ice cream with blueberry sauce and fortune cookie crumble which is creamy, crunchy and delish.
From 5-7pm they have some special wine deals called the Natty List which means natural.
which have descriptions such as "nut dust, brown butter gnocchi & garlic bread" for the Blaufrankisch/Zweigelt rose we chose called "Risque de Schutt" from Carnuntum in Austria. we loved this fruity, yet dry and very dark rose (33%Blaufrankisch/67% Zweigelt) that went well with the quite spicy starters we chose:
HAMACHI was cut into small cubes with a marinade of sesame, orange and aromatic oils while the CUMIN LAMB TARTARE packed a punch (though milder) with anchovy salt, quail egg and delicious cheddar popcorn on top!! (Fotos on FB)
We opted for the special which was wok-seared (three times) BAMBOO with house made aged soy and spices. Noelle explained that the fresh bamboo season is only several weeks, so we had to try this novel and different dish. It reminded me mostly of lotus root, but we were warned not to consume it raw as it is poisonous(hence the three times cooking).
CHINESE CAULIFLOWER (from in-between list) was superb with sunflower seeds, pickled raisins(these were addictive) and a curry bagna cauda, while the KING CRAB & BONE MARROW are combined and served in a huge bone hollow with XO Sauce and lobster bottarga atop frisee to cut the richness of the dish. Another huge hit, as was everything.
We switched to a red wine Noelle suggested(ordered before 7pm for the speical) from Georgiev/Milkov in the Thracian Valley of Bulgaria called "Brestovitsa Vineyard" made from the varietal called Rubin--who knew--and described on the menu as dark chocolate, vanilla and stewed tomatoes. My fave wine description for a rose was "department store makeup counter, charred strawberry, salty sea spray!!"
The last in-between we had was TOFU & TRUFFLE DUMPLING made with edamame and a shallot corn espuma which was a wonderful dish with great flavors and comes in 4 portions, so easy to share.
The three of us chose two mains which was plenty after the filling starters and other dishes:
DRUNKEN DUCK NOODLES are made with hot chili, sour cabbage, corn, tofu & scallion, while the BOBO CHICKEN is beautifully arrayed with a sauce of sesame, tamarind and brown butter.
We wanted some more wine and decided to start(and take home the rest) a bottle recommended by Sarah, the congenial owner, a Bordeaux Grand Cru 2002(yes 2002) Domaine Chante Alouette made from Merlot, Cabernet & Cab Franc that was as smooth as could be and went with everything or indeed after we had the ice cream, nothing!
What great food, great service and great fun we had.
