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| washingtonpost.com - Dining: Tom Sietsema |
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| Tom Sietsema on enhanced Palena: Dining Room shines, enlarged Cafe loses a pinch of luster |
(Sun, 13 Feb 2011)
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| "We moved from Logan Circle to Cleveland Park to be closer to Palena." |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema: Better seen than served, Bayou Bakery boasts sweet without the heat |
(Sun, 06 Feb 2011)
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| Let me play design critic for a few paragraphs to tell you why I like hanging out in Bayou Bakery, the happy new self-service restaurant whipped up by pastry chef and cookbook author David Guas. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema: Free to be brash and loud, Cuba Libre needs more flavor |
(Sun, 30 Jan 2011)
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| Like a lot of new restaurants with big bucks behind them, Cuba Libre, unveiled by GuestCounts Hospitality of Philadelphia, bolted out of the gate last fall. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| French conquers all at Bezu in Potomac Former embassy chef conjures Gascony |
(Sun, 23 Jan 2011)
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The awning at Bezu calls for some tailoring. "French-Asian" no longer applies to the food diners find inside the Potomac restaurant, where Francis Layrle replaced Dennis Friedman in the kitchen in October and where one of the few remaining traces of the departed chef is an appetizer of ahi tuna s...
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Perry's: It's smooth sailing for revamped Perry's as new captains face, and meet, challenges |
(Sun, 16 Jan 2011)
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Ford's Fish Shack: At this Ashburn catch, Crab cakes and lobster rolls stand out |
(Sun, 02 Jan 2011)
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| Two stars (Good) Ford's Fish Shack, 44260 Ice Rink Plaza, Ashburn. 571-918-4092. fordsfishshack.com. Tony Stafford says he and his wife, Ana, had the name, the location, even the money to open their dream of "an American farmhouse bistro" in Cambridge, Md., two years ago. The one thing that st... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Pho Viet: Homey restaurant offers intoxicating broth |
(Sun, 26 Dec 2010)
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| The sign announcing Pho Viet quickens my pulse. There are two reasons for this. In a city that's rich with assets, Vietnamese cooking is not one of them. With few exceptions, if you're craving a good banh mi or vermicelli bowl, you need to head to the suburbs, best of all Northern Virginia. Secon... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Michel: Richard bets on Tysons Corner -- Diners come up a little short |
(Sun, 19 Dec 2010)
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Even some of his friends suggested that Tysons Corner was a poor location for Michel Richard's chic third area restaurant.
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Jackie's: Six-year-old eatery retains old charms with new chef |
(Sun, 12 Dec 2010)
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| If I lived closer and my job didn't involve chasing new restaurants and keeping tabs on old ones, Jackie's would see a lot more of me. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Casa Nonna: Latest Italian offering lands in Dupont Circle |
(Sun, 05 Dec 2010)
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| Stracci is Italian for "rags," and the torn sheets of pasta on my plate at yet another new Italian restaurant in Washington look the part. Rolled out from semolina flour and local eggs, and layered with tangy tomato sauce and winy beef short ribs, the dish is served in a portion that suggests it ... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Bangkok Golden: Thai beyond the buffet, Laotian off the menu |
(Sun, 28 Nov 2010)
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| "Are you here for the buffet?" That's always the first question out of the mouths of servers at Bangkok Golden Thai Restaurant, and I can understand why. In all of my visits to the tiny dining room in the Seven Corners Shopping Center, I've never seen anyone order off the menu. That puzzles me, b... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Arts & Living |
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| By Candy Sagon on Ozzie's: Big, noisy, well-priced, and did we say big? |
(Sun, 21 Nov 2010)
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When Randy Norton, co-chairman of Great American Restaurants, decided to open an Italian place in the Fairfax Corner shopping center, he knew just where to go to research great Italian food.
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Author: Candy Sagon |
Category: Arts & Living |
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| Ask Tom: Plugged ears and pinched noses -- Diners' dismay about music and food |
(Sun, 14 Nov 2010)
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| While I'm away, eating for a story, please enjoy the following edited excerpts from questions and comments that have appeared in some of my recent online food discussions. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Equinox and 701: New chapters for two downtown mainstays |
(Sun, 07 Nov 2010)
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| A periodic update on previously reviewed restaurants. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Mussel Bar: Wiedmaier's latest is a letdown, bar none |
(Sun, 31 Oct 2010)
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| If you open a restaurant specializing in one or two things, you'd better get those one or two things right. And if your name is Robert Wiedmaier, you have to know that expectations are going to be higher for you than for a garden-variety chef. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Carmine's: Penn Quarter Italian restaurant thinks big -- in many ways |
(Sun, 24 Oct 2010)
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The woman at the table next to mine at Carmine's gasps when her lunch is set before her. I know the sound well, having heard it before -- made it before -- in this brash new Italian restaurant in Penn Quarter. The only reason I know my neighbor hasn't been served tennis balls on top of spaghetti ...
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Kitchen Confidential: Tom Sietsema's 2010 Fall Dining Guide (The Washington Post Magazine) |
(Sun, 17 Oct 2010)
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| To be considered an insider in a city that values power and access above all, the truly plugged-in Washingtonian should have President Obama's personal e-mail address, seats at the 50-yard line at FedEx Field and a spot for Junior at Sidwell Friends. (Bonus points if you've been to Camp David,... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Estadio: The reign of Spain continues in Washington with a welcome newcomer |
(Sun, 10 Oct 2010)
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| The best seat in the house at Estadio is the second leather stool from the left at the yellow marble counter in the rear of the restaurant. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Girasole: A good spot to stop in Virginia's hunt country for good Italian |
(Sun, 03 Oct 2010)
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| For the past five years, and always on my way to other restaurants, I've been driving past Girasole in Virginia's hunt country. Such a handsome spread, I thought as my eyes took in a two-story dwelling in the tiny Fauquier County town of The Plains. Such happy-looking faces leaving the place, I m... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Candy Sagon on Mokomandy: Unusual partners make a nice team |
(Sun, 03 Oct 2010)
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Korean and ... Cajun??? I have to admit, this idea seemed a little strange to me when I first heard about Mokomandy, a sleek new restaurant in Sterling. And I'm not the only one. Owner Thaddeus Kim has heard almost every variation of "You're adding kimchi to your jambalaya?"
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Author: Candy Sagon |
Category: Arts & Living |
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| Tom Sietsema on Buddha bar: Local link in chain proves weak |
(Sun, 19 Sep 2010)
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| The moment you step inside Buddha Bar, you leave Washington for ... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Lyon Hall: Pared down menu lets food shine |
(Sun, 12 Sep 2010)
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| I always suspected there was a good restaurant hiding in Lyon Hall. It just took the place a little time to make its charms visible. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema on Agora: A restaurateur turns to Turkey for revamp |
(Sun, 05 Sep 2010)
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| "Write what you know," authors are advised. With a slight twist, the same guidance could apply to food purveyors: Serve what you know. Few restaurateurs understand the significance of that wisdom better than Latif Guler, whose past experiences at the same address in Dupont Circle were unsatisfyin... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Mom and pop, and charm and spice |
(Sun, 29 Aug 2010)
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If you think the part of my job that takes me to posh settings to dine on the work of famous chefs is what I enjoy most, you're wrong. The more years I spend writing about restaurants, the more I'm drawn to bare tables, shopping strips and mom-and-pops. Unlike some of the fancy places, with their...
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Squeezing lemons, and tight squeezes: Readers on water service and table hogs |
(Sun, 22 Aug 2010)
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| A periodic peek at the Post food critic's e-mail, voice mail and inbox |
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Author: by Tom Sietsema |
Category: Technology |
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| Good news on Capitol Hill |
(Sun, 15 Aug 2010)
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| It's 7 o'clock on a Sunday night, and Ted's Bulletin is indulging me with a favorite meal: breakfast for dinner. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| A welcome change for Ward 7 -- But the latest Ray's needs beefing up |
(Sun, 08 Aug 2010)
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| The T-bone at dinner costs $21.95, and it comes with a choice of two sides and a dash of self-promotion. ("Hand-Carved Fresh Daily to the Most Exacting Standards," reads the menu.) Except for some album covers and a few mirrors, the walls are bare. With the check come dice-size bites of that all... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| A bit of France lands in Bethesda Cam's bistro brightens the dining scene |
(Sun, 01 Aug 2010)
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After far too long, there's a fresh reason to book a table in Bethesda: Bistro Provence.
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| At Seventh Hill, pizza and passion The owners of Montmarte go Italian |
(Sun, 25 Jul 2010)
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| "I'm having such a great day," says the slender, sweat-beaded pizza-maker behind the counter of Seventh Hill. "I love what I do!' |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Hot, and in more ways than one Uncle Liu's showcases popular pots |
(Sun, 18 Jul 2010)
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| When I don't feel like cooking, I go out to eat. When I do feel like cooking but want someone else to do the prep work and cleanup, my new routine is to go to Uncle Liu's Hot Pot in Falls Church. At Uncle Liu's, friends and I can cook our dinner at the table, dunking a variety of meats, seafood, ... |
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Author: Candy Sagon |
Category: Arts & Living |
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| Blue Rock Inn offers local, low-key focus in Washington, Va. |
(Sun, 11 Jul 2010)
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| "Everything looks like a painting." We haven't even been served water yet, but a friend is already impressed with what he sees from our window table in the hushed dining room of the Blue Rock Inn in Washington, Va. Before us, there are geese and a pond shaded with a few weeping willows. A turn of... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Zesty Indian food, service Wait staff adds verve to Spice Xing |
(Sun, 04 Jul 2010)
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If more restaurants employed servers such as Blessing Jasi, I bet I'd hear a lot fewer complaints from diners. Anyone can take orders and ferry food from kitchen to table. But it's a rare server who gives patrons the genuine sense that there's no other place he or she would rather be than right t...
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| A different take on Ethiopian For starters, it's in the Atlas District |
(Sun, 27 Jun 2010)
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Best of two worlds at Kushi: Gastropub offers sushi, skewers |
(Sun, 20 Jun 2010)
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| Kushi Izakaya & Sushi Darren Lee Norris was so unsure how Washington diners would accept an izakaya, or Japanese gastropub, that he tacked raw fish and vinegared rice onto his idea for a new restaurant. Sushi, the former Ridgewells caterer reasoned, would lure customers to Kushi Izakaya & Sushi.... |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Tom Sietsema reviews the Italian fare at Prince George's Bond 45 |
(Sun, 13 Jun 2010)
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| ** (Good) Bond 45 149 Waterfront St., Oxon Hill. 301-839-1445. bond45.com. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| In the dark about tipping and lighting: Chatters seek advice, air peeves |
(Sun, 06 Jun 2010)
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Today's special: Edited excerpts from questionsand comments from recent online chats.
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Author: Post |
Category: Opinions |
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| Another direction for U Street Corridor gains a generous French bistro |
(Sun, 30 May 2010)
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| ** (Good) Bistro La Bonne 1340 U St. NW. 202-758-3413. bistrolabonne.com. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| How are they now? Tom Sietsema gives 20 restaurants another taste in the Spring 2010 Dining Guide |
(Sun, 23 May 2010)
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| Tom Sietsema checks in on The Monocle, the cherished L'Auberge Chez Francois, the once-disappointing Redwood and other area restaurants in his Spring 2010 Dining Guide. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Arts & Living |
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| An old hand's popular new spot: Palio struggles to handle avid patrons |
(Sun, 16 May 2010)
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| ** (Good) Palio of Leesburg 2 W. Market St., Leesburg. 703-779-0060. www.palioofleesburg.com. |
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Author: Candy Sagon |
Category: Arts & Living |
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| Same address, changed atmosphere: 701 shines with new chef, interior |
(Sun, 09 May 2010)
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701 701 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. 202-393-0701. 701restaurant.com.
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Good tidings for the Eastern Shore: Chef returns to open Bartlett Pear Inn |
(Sun, 02 May 2010)
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| He's only 30, but Jordan Lloyd has already rubbed shoulders with some of the country's most respected chefs in some of the best-known kitchens. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| A blend of tastes in a homey setting: La Caraqueña's pan-Latin staples sing |
(Sun, 25 Apr 2010)
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| ** (Good) La Caraqueña 300 W. Broad St., Falls Church. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Going beyond fish and chips: Againn will please Anglophiles |
(Sun, 18 Apr 2010)
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| **1/2 (Good) Againn 1099 New York Ave. NW (entrance on 11th Street NW). |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| An undetected find in Dupont Circle: Eola entices from drinks to dessert |
(Sun, 11 Apr 2010)
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Eola 2020 P St. NW.202-466-4441.www.eoladc.com. ** (out of four stars; Good) Sound check: 69 decibels (Conversation is easy). Part of why I always look forward to having dinner at Eola has nothing to do with the cooking and everything to do with how much consideration the restaurant puts into mak...
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Arts & Living |
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| Inspired sushi, and a lakeside view: Raw food reigns at Sushi Sono |
(Sun, 04 Apr 2010)
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| Sushi Sono 10215 Wincopin Cir., Columbia. 410-997-6131. www.sushisonomd.com. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Rare specialties in Alexandria: Cosmopolitan Grill offers Bosnian treats |
(Sun, 28 Mar 2010)
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| Cosmopolitan Grill 7770 Richmond Hwy., Alexandria 703-360-3660 restaurant-cosmopolitan.com |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Worth the wait Ris Lacoste's place lives up to her mission |
(Sun, 21 Mar 2010)
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| **1/2 (Good/Excellent) Ris 2275 L St. NW 202-730-2500 www.risdc.com |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Sweet and savory: Tom Sietsema reviews Acacia Bistro |
(Sun, 14 Mar 2010)
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Acacia Bistro 4340 Connecticut Ave. NW. 202-537-1040. acaciabistro.com
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Birch & Barley hops: In Logan Circle, brew with a side of dinner |
(Sun, 07 Mar 2010)
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| Birch & Barley in Washington, D.C.'s Logan Circle neighborhood has a strong beer selection and a tasty menu. |
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Author: Tom Sietsema |
Category: Opinions |
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| Patience at Pita Hut brings rewards: Salad-enhanced sandwiches shine |
(Sun, 28 Feb 2010)
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| Pita Hut 6 N. Washington St., Rockville. 301-251-7005 |
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Author: Candy Sagon |
Category: Arts & Living |
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