In his preview of D.C.'s upcoming restaurant week, which begins Jan. 9, WaPo critic Tom Sietsema talks to chefs about how they compensate for all those discounted meals during the biannual citywide promotion: "The trick, for [Ris owner Ris Lacoste] and her competitors, is to figure out food that reflects their style but isn’t 'going [...]
Stretched out, the lamb's body looked like it reached 3 or 4 feet. Gone were the coarse curls and its entire head. It just laid there, deep burgundy muscles kept intact with bones and cartilage, or whatever else holds together a once-living creature. I didn't witness a slaughter, but a full-on butchering seemed close enough. Last week, Young & [...]
This news has been reported in many other places, but Esquire finally posted the 20 Best New Restaurants feature online, where we can read what John Mariani had to say about Bibiana, Ashok Bajaj's sleek new Italian operation. Bibiana is the lone representative from the District, and like last year's D.C. pick (and the two [...]
The Columbia Room, Derek Brown's prix-fixe cocktail counter hidden behind the Passenger, is bringing in outside chefs for a series of tag-team dinners. The details are predictably complicated and fussy. According to a press release, "Each chef will join Derek Brown behind the bar and prepare two dishes that Derek will pair with hand crafted [...]
The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington hosts the annual RAMMY Awards on Sunday at the Marriott Wardman Park, and the question foremost on Y&H's mind is this: How will Inox's recent closing affect the ceremony, if at all? If you haven't heard, the celebrated, triple-chef-threat Inox closed this weekend. Chef Jon Mathieson shared the bad [...]
Just call Derek Brown, left, Mr. Outstanding Wine and Spirits Professional Y&H is a behind on this (hey, if you want excuses, I got a million of 'em!), but I wanted to offer my congratulations to the local semi-finalists for this year's James Beard Awards. It's an impressive list, one filled with many of Y&H's [...]
If the reviews submitted for our Restaurant Week writing contest are any indication of the places you frequented during the come-hither promotion, then Hook was very, very busy. No less than three readers entered reviews of the Georgetown seafood emporium. Perhaps this explains why the gifted chef Jonathan Seningen left the restaurant shortly after RW was over. [...]
It hasn't even been a week since the 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti, but I bet you've already been hit up 500 times for a donation to help the victims. You can barely turn to a Web site, a restaurant, a party, or a social network without finding some solicitation asking for more cash for [...]
Technically, I guess this is more like Appetizer of the Week, but the sardine antipasto ($12) at Bibiana packs so many humble pleasures on one plate that I couldn't resist plugging a starter instead of an entree. Chef Nicholas Stefanelli buys his fresh whole sardines twice a week from Portugal, debones them in house, and [...]
So says GQ magazine, which runs down the list of D.C. heavyweights in its November issue. Most of the folks on the list are pols or the power behind pols or the eyes watching pols. Ashok Bajaj makes the cut, apparently, because he feeds the pols and treats them all with respect. Bajaj tells GQ [...]
