L & N Seafood Grill, Arlington, VA

A shopping excursion to Pentagon City led Leo and me to pop in to L & N Seafood Grill (way up on the top floor of the mall) for a quickie dinner. Leo had the shrimp fettucine and I had the fish and chips. Our waitress, a very personable woman who was really flirting with Leo, suggested that I order the fish and chips "well done," since she reported the batter was often way too doughy without that special request—it was a good call, and the battered fish turned out perfectly with her guidance.




We arrived ten minutes before "Happy Hour" was over and we ordered the $3 happy hour margaritas. Our waitress decided that we'd probably want a second cocktail, so she brought each of us two at the happy hour price. Often during happy hours, cheap cocktails are watered down, but that was definitely not the case here!

Red Sage, Washington, D.C.

After walking down to the Tidal Basin to look at the cherry blossoms, my friend Kody and I wandered downtown for an early dinner. I'd wanted to go to Butterfield 9, but when we arrived, they were closed for a private party. Alas. So, we looked across the street and decided to try Red Sage. Red Sage is an interesting establishment on the corner of a big office building. The street level floor is a large bar and dining area featuring Mexican food in their "Border Cafe," while the downstairs is a slightly more elegant version with multiple dining rooms in similar decor and with a much more expensive menu I'll call American with a Mexican flair for what they call "The Grill." We opted for the Mexican food upstairs.

The decor can best be described as a contemporary attempt to create a Southwest geographic feature feel. Tables were free form (ours looked almost like the shape of a grand piano) and there was a huge "cloud" or something hanging from the ceiling over the bar area which I thought looked more like an upside down mesa. They chose a palate of deep sunset colors for the tables and chairs. Designs are modern, but comfortable; our oddly shaped booth was quite private and quite cozy.

Red Sage has an interesting take on Mexican food. Lots of trendy ingredients such as mushrooms and goat cheese have been incorporated into traditional food forms. There were a lot of cross-cultural Hispanic items, and I saw a lot of seviches and Cuban sandwiches on the menu. They also have a significant tequila selection and all the accompanying varieties of margaritas.

We opted to actually order chips and salsa for an appetizer. No free chips here—they cost $4.95. I ordered the chorizo-stuffed masa empanadas, but the waitress said they'd been taken off the menu. Alas. We got a large basket of warm tortilla chips, half yellow corn and half blue corn, and a plate with three small ramekins of "Fiery Pueblo Salsas": a black bean, a green tomatillo, and a red tomato version. The green salsa had the most jalapeño kick to it, but none were "fiery." All three of the salsa I thought tasted sweet.

For our main courses, Kody had the mushroom and goat cheese enchiladas with spinach and grilled onions and with a side of green rice. I had the "Border Platter," a combination plate of a chicken enchilada, a mushroom enchilada, and a mushroom tamale with red chile mole. Tiny ramekins of beans accompanied each entree. I thought the food was good and flavorful, but I couldn't help but notice that back in Oklahoma, we would have gotten twice the food for half the price. Of course, we have real Mexicans back there, and we don't have to import chefs from New York to create "Mexican" dishes.





There were a lot of interesting desserts on the menu, but we opted to spend our dining dollars on additional margaritas. I'll probably regret it in the morning. But, what would a dinner out with Kody be without a gratuitous Kody-holding-a-liquor-glass pic?

Cafe Berlin, Washington, D.C.

Last night I got to have an impromptu dinner with one of my politico friends up on the Hill who always manages to have an unusual insight into the behind the scenes workings of the party before the press figures things out. We decided to do something there in the neighborhood; I suggested the always-competent Cafe Berlin and he acquiesced, saying he'd always wanted to try it. So, off we went, braving the light rain which started falling (a significant event, since it wasn't so long ago when this friend and I went to lunch on a rainy day in Friendship Heights and he showed up sans umbrella and looking ever so much like a poor, drenched cat!).

Cafe Berlin was busy enough (wow, a Tuesday night, too!) that we were seated in the back dining room. Along the way, a diner passes through the bar and then next to the wickedly decadent dessert table as they wind their way through the floral tablecloth-covered tables to the large back room.

My friend started with a 1/2 liter of a German Bitburger beer whilst I drank a very ungermanic iced tea. Dinner was simple. He ordered the Sauerbraten and I ordered the Ungarisches Goulash.

The Sauerbraten had a stunning presentation. Slices of the marinated beef roast in the braising liquid rested in the bottom of the plate while a large baseball-sized Knödel—a potato dumpling— spiked with carrot spears and flat-leafed Italian parsley sat amidst the meat. My friend reported that the Sauerbraten (beef roast marinated and braised in wine vinegar) was very good and that the Knödel was "interesting," having the texture of a stiff cream of wheat; that texture is expected, though, since the dumplings are usually made from a combination of mashed potatoes and grated raw potatoes before they are seasoned and poached.



My goulash was good, but oddly unsatisfying. Now, this German "Hungarian goulash" is very different from the thick, macaroni goulash of my childhood; rather, it is very tender, stewed meat served atop Spätzle, or free-form German noodles, in broth. While everything tasted fine, I found the serving size of the meat to be a little small and the stewing liquid surrounding the Spätzle was very much that: liquid. I think perhaps I would have preferred the liquid to be thickened into more of a gravy.



Both entrees were accompanied by little bowls of clove-redolent red cabbage.

Both of us showed remarkable self-discipline and restraint and declined dessert. It's always a sacrifice to do that here, but I'm already wearing my "fat clothes," so it's a necessity.

Cafe Berlin is one of the few places I enjoy in the Capitol Hill-Union Station area. They do a great job of showing how German food need not be "heavy" and bland. I'm also pleased to see that they are staying busy and getting lots of mid-week diners, as by the time we were getting ready to leave, our dining room had filled up to the point that ambient crowd noise made it difficult to hear (of course, that was mainly due to a new table with three young married couples where the young women were "trying too hard" with their forced laughter at their husbands' lame jokes).

Ich bin ein Berliner!

Boys' night out at Annie's Steakhouse

Kam Fong Seafood Restaurant, Washington, D.C.

An unlikely quartet of us gathered in Chinatown Friday night as roommate Leo and I joined Robert and Jon after they called to invite us to come see the new Bed Bath and Beyond store. We found a nice place for dinner where Leo and I had not yet dined, and it turned out to be really good.

Kam Fong Seafood Restaurant is on Seventh Street, just north of the CVS Pharmacy across from the Chinatown Metro stop. A bakery and live seafood display (mostly lobsters and eels) occupies the outer lobby before diners go in to the main restaurant. Hong Kong native Leo was able to order for us in Cantonese.

Jon is a boring, unadventurous Georgia country boy, so he refused to eat "good" foods with the rest of us. He opted for a very Georgia meal of fried egg rolls with orange duck sauce, a won ton soup, and a plate of pork fried rice (fried rice is actually a snack or "junk food" in China, not a proper entree).



The rest of us enjoyed a fabulous repast personally selected by Leo. We started with a delicious cold sliced jellyfish on thinly sliced smoked pork knuckles, served with a hot pepper-spiced vinegar as a condiment sauce. I thought both were quite good, and Leo thought that it was quite authentic.



Next, the main courses began to arrive, starting with a large shrimp, pineapple, and walnut dish in a sweetened cream sauce served atop lettuce leaves. There was a big plate of beef satay with strips of green peppers and onions, and another big plate of roasted duck. Steamed white rice and a pot of hot tea were complimentary with the meal. Robert and Leo both also drank Tsing Tao beers.