Sette, Washington, D.C.

After an afternoon at the Phillip Collection Galleries, my friend Joel and I wandered around the corner to Sette for a late lunch. We sat out on the patio underneath a big canvas canopy and watched the Connecticut Avenue pedestrians walking by. I've been wanting to make to Sette, since it's one of the few restaurants open late in the area, but the reviews I'd read were mixed, so we never prioritized the trip. It's a modern Italian-themed restaurant with a rather small menu, but the service was ample and well trained. We had a rather ecclectic meal that was much more of a nosh than a lunch.

We split a bottle of prosecco that turned out to be a pleasant afternoon sipping wine. The waiter (he said he was Tunisian, and not Italian) also brought us bottles of Italian sparking water. We started with a plate of five very large pieces of grilled squid served amid a mound of dressed mixed greens and quartered cherry tomatoes. Next we had the Italian meat and cheese board, which featured five exotic Italian meats in paper-thin slices and five Italian cheeses cut in different shapes, with four big slices of grilled Italian country bread. We were chatting and lingering so long during these two courses, we should have been at a tapas bar!

About this time, the wind came up and we thought we were going to get a big downpour, so the waiters moved us all inside before we could order a third appetizer. We ended up at the end of the bar, so instead of more food, we moved to espressos and Joel was drinking crema di limoncellos. Eventually, we had a ricotta cheesecake that was ok, but the barmaid had microwaved it before serving, which, of course, I always think devastates all breads and pastries, plus the ricotta was actually hot in places, which made it feel "thin" on the tongue. It improved once it cooled back to room temperature, but the crust naturally was ruined by the nuking.

I suppose I shall have to go back to Sette sometime to try out their pastas and meat courses, but at least the noshing was fun. Joel was such a charming conversationalist, I really didn't pay that much attention to the food, anyway.

Cafe des Artistes, Washington, D.C.

Went to lunch with a friend from the Solicitor's office. Good thing we were walking, because the streets were still gridlocked with traffic, as 18th Street was still closed off from this morning's transformer explosions at the World Bank. We strolled over to the Corcoran Gallery and lunched at the Cafe des Artistes. It's a lovely place in what amounts to a grand lobby of the museum, with marble tiled floors, Doric colonades, elaborate friezes, and an elegant atmosphere.

I had a very good Corcoran House Salad, which included grilled chicken, goat cheese, toasted pinon nuts, corn, dried dates, and other goodies, served with a crisp citrus vinaigrette. My friend ate the barbequed pork sandwich, which was totally unlike any BBQ sandwich I'd ever seen. It was a huge pile of what looked to be pulled pork in a surprisingly orangey colored sauce mounded on a portion of an artisanal bread loaf, accompanied by a side order of cole slaw. For dessert, we both ordered the warm chocolate cake, which was individual Bundt cakes glazed in chocolate and crowned with a big scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

I was very impressed with the cafe and its friendly, attentive service. Should be a good place to entertain for business lunches.

Szcheuan House, Washington, D.C.

Did you know movie tickets cost $9.75 in D.C.? Afterward seeing a movie, we dined at Szcheuan House, since we were already in Chinatown. The restaurant was ok, but nothing spectacular. The highlight of the evening was eating jellyfish. They were crunchy. I was expecting them to be soft and squishy, but they were like eating crunchy cartilege or something. Tasted good, too, and didn't have a fishy taste. They came with a plate of little ham slices that you put the jellyfish on and then eat together, but I liked the jellyfish by itself better. I couldn't read the menus, since they were in Chinese.

Lei Garden, Washington, D.C.

Had a good lunch yesterday afternoon. Leo took me to Lei Garden, over in Chinatown, for dim sum. It was fun, although I must confess that I can do without eating the heads and shells of the tasty fried and spiced shrimp. I'm not sure if I'm disappointed or not, but after we were totally stuffed full of food, one of the carts came by with chicken feet. I've never had chicken feet before. Not sure I want to eat them. But, we were too full to get a dish and try them. Maybe next time.