Three Latest and Best

Ahhh, am back from a long weekend, rejuvenated and well fed. Loved popping into some new places and seeing excellent chefs and owners trying some new ideas and fresh approaches. Kudos to the owner at Vinoteca who's taking a risk on a new and upcoming neighborhood (near Howard University) and seeing success. Here are my Three Latest and Best, the almost all out-of-town edition:

Vinoteca, Washington DC: When this new eatery in the Shaw/Howard/U Street area received good early reviews a month or so ago, they found themselves packed, but the owner was worried. He knew their future was in locals sitting down for great pasta, their house made charcuterie, and cheese menu. So, they changed their reservations strategy, went to open seating, and now are packed every night with folks they know will come back. Everything was delicious (from the tuna/garlic aioli, bison/buffalo mozzerella, and venison/goat cheese sliders to the ham and sage-stuffed ravioli, surprisingly good with a roasted red pepper sauce.) But my favorite thing was the menu of 12 or so cheeses and 8 or so cured meats offered by the portion ($2 each for cheese and $1.50 for meat). Instead of dessert, we ordered ash coated goat cheese, manchego, Explorateur, and a fantastic triple cream cow's milk cheese from Cowgirl Creamery, natch, called Red Hawk along with a duck prosciutto, speck, and lomo (a cured meat with a paprika crust). The big family style plate with cranberry sauce and honey easily made it around a table of 10. A brilliant idea, really, and one that works with their robust wine list.

Dean and Deluca, Georgetown: Every time I wander through Dean and Deluca, I have to block it from my memory or I'd just be depressed all the time. After a day of heavy meals, we decided to just get cheese, pasta and snacks for supper, stay in, and watch a movie. Of course, I had to introduce my pals to braseola which we easily found at their massive meat counter along with a good prosciutto. We added a goat cheese (the kind that's firm in the middle and mushy/smelly on the outside), a cranberry Stilton (for the holidays, I'm not normally big with the fruit cheeses), and a handful of dates. With squid ink pasta and whipped up vodka sauce, we had a perfect supper. Even better with the local egg nog doctored holiday style.

Lunch at Palomino: Back in Indy, I'd forgotten what a warm and busy lunch spot Palomino could be. From see-and-be-seen tables in the middle of the dining room to tucked away nooks great for working lunches without being bothered, this bustling downtown restaurant is still doing great -- even after all these years. I love their half/half combos and offset the creamy Gorgonzola penne with a chop chop salad.

Three Latest and Best

Ahh, the better weather now puts the nightmare of the last month behind us! I can actually believe spring might be coming now! I've been on the road and stuck indoors but have managed to keep eating!

Brunch at Patachou on the Park: What a delightful space! If you haven't been to the new Patachou location in the lobby of the Simon headquarters downtown (facing the capitol building) you've been missing the best brunch downtown. The best part?! It's not overly crowded -- yet. We recently had a delightful and leisurely brunch on a Sunday and not only enjoyed the big, comfortable room, but also saw a veritable who's who in Indiana. It will be my new favorite choice over the hip crowd at 49th and Penn.

Lunch at Danelli: I can see why this new room at the Canterbury Hotel is having a bit of a problem finding its way. What do you do when you have a new chef, you want to do high-end food, your prices are extremely expensive, and you have an expectation due to your location that you provide the hotel experience? You execute what you can -- a high-end, expensive, safe hotel restaurant with the best food you can do. The bar at the Canterbury is a wonderful room, but once you move back to the restaurant, you enter the extremely formal world of Danelli. the problem becomes clear when the food doesn't meet the high expectation set by the rest of the experience. In other words, the food has to be *perfect* and it's not. (If you do a pizza, no matter what you call it, the crust must be perfect and it can *not* be soggy in the middle. Mine was.) They will do best to recognize their entire enterprise will always be reliant on regulars and high end customers. and make the food better than the best (which it isn't yet.) But lunch is about the company right? If so, it was a fantastic meal -- feeding my brain as well as my stomach.

Deano on Connecticut in DC: Friends in DC took me to their favorite neighborhood place in Cleveland Park last weekend -- Deano. The east coast is crawling with these old school Italian joints from Little Italy to Florida. But this one is oh-so-different. Still giving customers the Italian diner vibe, this one has an upscale, uncluttered look, better to accommodate the people waiting for tables. We had our friends' favorite server as we were ushered to a wonderful round booth and given ample time to peruse the wine list, the menu, and specials. Here, the mixologist, Chris, takes his craft very seriously with a deep gin list, his own marinated cocktail onions, and marinated olive and broad bean bar mix. Starting with a Barbero, a junipero G&T and a Bull Dog Gibson, we ate our way through their menu with rib eyes, seafood, and the freshest pomodoro I've ever had in winter. It hit the spot!

Nirvana at Dunkin Donuts: You know, I really really like donuts. Not the cake kind with icing, but the slightly crispy from the fryer, yeast glazed then frosted in chocolate kind. I recently heard a faint calling in a busy airport, followed it and found myself at the Dunkin Donuts stand. I snarfed a chocolate, custard filled, yeast donut immediately with a full-sugar black cherry soda. Ohh, so good. Bonus, good sugar coma nap for the flight.