We joined some friends Saturday night and gladly accepted their suggestion to try a new Catalan-cuisine restaurant called CASA TERESA. It is located on 19th Street, between "I" & K Streets, NW and even has complimentary underground parking at night! At first, we had some trouble finding the space as Waze & Google Maps take you to "I" and it is on 19th, and just a tad below street level. On the horrid rainy, wet, cold and truly disgusting night, we were thrilled to find a space across the street (not knowing there was free parking) and be truly welcomed in this very warm space by such a truly warm and wonderful staff.
I settled in with the wine list and the sommelier noted that they featured many wines(all Spanish by the way) made by women. This is part of the heritage of Teresa, the restaurant's namesake, named by her great grandson chef/owner Ruben Garcia Castilla. We ordered a rose of Syrah & Garnaxta from Arrayan called "Peluda" and it was yummy, so much so that when we switched to red we stayed with the same label and adored the full bodied 2017 Arrayan "La Suerte de Arrayan" from Castilla in La Mancha. I recognized the label when the wine came and will now remember how awesome the wines are from this winery.
We were warmly greeted by Chef Ruben himself who came back multiple times to make sure everything was okay. His entire team did the same and kudos go to Andres our excellent server as well as Fadi, the assistant manager. I felt like we had met an entire family in just one evening and we knew that we would be back before the meal even began.
We decided to share some tapas and as soon as Andres mentioned that there was a special croqueta on the menu made with Jamon Iberico and then wrapped in a piece of that famous acorn-fed jamon, we had to try them; Chef Ruben calls them "Spanish Nigiri!" The filling was rich with bechamel, but the small piece of Iberico made it oh so special and just right and they were cooked to perfection. The Pa'amb Tomaquet or Tomato Bread is an omni present fixture in Catalunya and here it is even more fun as it comes with a small card explaining how to make the bread by shmearing the fresh tomato onto the grilled bread and then drizzling olive oil on it as well as a dash of sea salt. Magnifique and FUN! We ordered the Anchoas de Santona on the side as a treat to put on the bread and these anchovies are the best indeed.
We decided to share some tapas and as soon as Andres mentioned that there was a special croqueta on the menu made with Jamon Iberico and then wrapped in a piece of that famous acorn-fed jamon, we had to try them; Chef Ruben calls them "Spanish Nigiri!" The filling was rich with bechamel, but the small piece of Iberico made it oh so special and just right and they were cooked to perfection. The Pa'amb Tomaquet or Tomato Bread is an omni present fixture in Catalunya and here it is even more fun as it comes with a small card explaining how to make the bread by shmearing the fresh tomato onto the grilled bread and then drizzling olive oil on it as well as a dash of sea salt. Magnifique and FUN! We ordered the Anchoas de Santona on the side as a treat to put on the bread and these anchovies are the best indeed.
We all ordered our own mains from cheese and jamon plates to the fish of the day to the gorgeous Pulpo a la Parilla a los Mojos which is a huge piece of octopus coiled and set in two mojo sauces: verde & rojo (green & red). Corte de Cerdo Iberico is a 7 ounce pork loin from that same famous acorn-fed pig with garlic and pa'amb tomaquet on the side, just in case you did not have enough before. It was tender and superb, but the Carne a la Brasa was even tastier with a Roseda Farm(Maryland) flat iron steak grilled and sliced with mojo verde. We decided to share the sides and that was a great idea as the Grilled Veggie platter is huge and has everything from mushrooms to sunchokes and more. Patatas al Caliu are roasted with beef fat and then there are the regular Patatas Frittas.
Alcachofa con Romesco was a huge artichoke heart served with the spicy sauce.
A review appeared the next day(yesterday) in the Washington Post by Tom Sietsma and I must agree that Tarta del Queso here might be one of the best cheesecakes anywhere!! It is a fluffy cheese made Basque-style with goat cheese and burnt on top then laded with a "walnut" sauce that counters the sweetness of the dish and is simply perfection. Others enjoyed the Flan and while the cheese was nice, I always yearn for those stinky runny cheeses (especially the famous blue Cabarales).
As if we had not had enough, Chef Ruben returned to say his farewells but only after proffering a gorgeous freshly made Chocho for each of us. They were warm and sweet and filled with gooey custard and the "croissant" style roll was sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon. The best way to describe this is a custard -filled croissant churro--hence CHUCHOS.
I have to note that Casa Teresa does offer a tasting menu with paired wines and you can be sure we will head back here in the Spring when we return from Down Under!
Thanks to this amazing team who made our evening so special! All the phots are on FB!
