Komi

Review by npm on October 25, 2007

went for my birthday. this is now my favorite DC restaurant and possibly my favorite in the U.S. the service was impeccible (i never feel that way.) the food was incredible. my personal #1 mezze was a moscato grape and red pepper gazpacho. i also enjoyed the lime vanilla lollipop a few days later and it brought back memories.

Review by ma0169a on August 9, 2007

Review by jtyler on August 2, 2006

Review by mminnich on November 19, 2004

I was looking forward to this restaurant and perhaps had my expectations set too high. I wasn't exactly disappointed -- well yes maybe I was a little disappointed. My appetizer of 5 different varieties of oyster on the half-shell was excellent. However, my partner's raw mushroom "salad" was a little bland and absurdly small. I wanted to try the veal for my main course, and having just been to Nora the week before where they describe in great detail how their veal is weaned on mother's milk and frolics in the grass before getting the chop, etc., I inquired if Komi's veal was caged or free-range. This brought the head waiter around who informed me that there was no such thing as free-range veal. I politely suggested that veal simply meant a baby cow, caged or otherwise, and besides I had just seen free-range veal on the menu at Nora the week prior. He smiled and said that he knew Nora (as if that were relevant) and reiterated that there is no such thing as free-range veal. I let it go and ordered the lamb, but his disagreeable and slightly haughty manner was the low point of the evening. The slow-braised lamb was serverd on lentils and black cherry reduction and was very good. My partner's encrusted (with pistachio I think) scallops were less successful, I thought. We didn't stay for dessert.

Review by janet on September 13, 2004

By ordering three a la carte items,I had an absolutely amazing dinner for a very reasonable price. I plan to go back soon to try the tasting menu.

Review by mcunning on June 2, 2004

It’s the extras that make Komi worth the visit. I joined my girlfriends for a “Sex and the City” style dinner on a Wednesday evening at around 8pm. We started off the meal with tasty little breads topped with whipped olive butter. Next, the waitress surprised us with cold cream and celery soup. It tasted like ranch dressing with salt, but, heck, it was free. We settled on three vegetables a la carte: whipped potatoes, garlic rapine, and snow pea with fingerlings (which we think means potatoes). All were reasonably priced at four dollars.
For dinner I order braised pork belly. It was delicious and after I finished, with greedy eyes and a full stomach, I envied my friend’s pistachio encrusted scallops. The service was commendable. My water glass never reached the halfway point. At the end of the meal, and after we ordered a banana chocolate tart, the waitress brought homemade chai tea lollipops, an extra something to take with us.

Review by scosby on May 18, 2004

It still seems new, and young, and improving. However, this was my second trip and it seemed that even in the space of the intervening month that things had improved. The staff seemed enthusiastic about their product. The wine list is short but excellent and interesting. They use unusual ingredients--and well--which is refreshing. A restaurant of that caliber was definitely needed on that street. Items I've tried so far: mache salad, chicken pistachio pate, peekytoe crab and grapefruit salad, veal cheeks, skate crusted with rye crumbs, dayboat scallops. All were excellent. Fresh, piquant, well prepared. I might want to get a little art up on the walls, but they said they were going for a more zen feeling.

Review by AlexaK on May 6, 2004

The chefs at Komi obviously take the time to buy the freshest ingredients and prepare and present them in such a way that is not only pleasing to the eye but to the palate as well. A small, intimate restaurant that has excellent food.

Review by raporter on April 25, 2004

24-year-old chef is amazing. Restaurant has taken old Raddicchio space and somehow made it spare and elegant and roomier, though proportions and layout are the same. Touches like the real towels in the rest rooms are great. Our amuse buche was a carrot/cumin/lime soup in a nifty little cup, patiently explained by a young and enthusiastic waitress. The bread basket had several good choices and a sun-dried tomato butter. Starters included the de riguer beet salad, a peekytoed crab and avacado salad with an arugula side that was light and refreshing, and a chicken pate that was unctuousness personified. We had a pretty great and pretty reasonable bottle or two of white (don't know the price - my friends were treating for my birthday) to go with it all. Entrees included panko-crusted divers scallops on a bed of couscous infused with dark greens that made me want to lick the plate. The kitchen happily created a vegetarian plate from the sides for my vegetarian friend, particularly recommending the black-eyed peas -- to the point that, although my friend didn't request them, they brought some anyway. Since I am the pea fan, I sacrificed and ate them, and they were great. For dessert, I was pretty wild about the blueberry shortcake featuring tiny, real blueberries, not the frozen kind (god knows where they got those in April) and three wee prfectly salty-sweet shortcakses laced with just the right amount of real, thick cream. But the favorite was the cheese plate, which a very excited young man brought to our table and stayed to explain the history and characteristics of each of our five choices. I think he wanted to hover and watch us eat them too! All in all, this was the best meal I've had in the last two years. I plan to go back a lot. With a reservation -- it's a small and popular place.

Review by katycrum on January 31, 2004

Review by carolynhann on January 23, 2004

Komi is one of those unique dining experiences in DC where food is elevated to a playful art form. The wait staff are attentive, polished, and knowledgeable about the menu and the wine list. Guests receive a free sample of a delicious cauliflower-curry soup near the beginning of the meal as well as a homemade lollipop at the end. I left with the feeling of being pampered, childlike, and hip - all at the same time. The only downside to the restaurant is that acoustics aren't great, and sometimes you can hear your neighbors better than members of your own party. Still, Komi is terrific.