Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Mama Ayesha's, Washington, D.C.

mural

Halfway between Woodley Park and Adams-Morgan is a Syrian restaurant called Mama Ayesha's that's been there since Dwight Eisenhower was in the White House some fifty years ago. Ayesha ran the place until her death during the Clinton Administration, and since then, younger generations of her family have continued to operate the establishment. When one walks down the street past the place, one can't miss it because of the big, bright mural painted on the side of the building showing all the presidential administrations during the eatery's tenure.

Ayesha's comes with good reviews and recommendations, though today was the first time I'd eaten there, when Robert and I stopped in for a late lunch while we were in the area.

They have a large outdoor patio seating area, and inside the restaurant, the right side of the dining room is devoted to the bar, while the left side has both banquettes and tables for regular dining. A water feature and a large number of artificial plants divides the two sides of the room. The ceiling is vaulted and decorated with a series of copper cups. Wall hangings evoke the feel of a Middle Eastern restaurant.

Robert opted for two side dishes for his lunch, a plate of falafel and a plate of betan'jan maglie, fried slices of eggplant drizzled in a garlicky lemon vinaigrette. He particularly enjoyed the eggplant dish.
eggplant

I ordered the lamb couscous. As it turned out, we were between main lunch and early dinner, so the lamb shoulder they usually serve with the couscous wasn't quite done yet, so they asked to substitute a lamb shank stew called mouzat and served it on top of couscous. It was quite good, the lamb falling off the bone with the slightest prod of the fork.
couscous

We both passed on dessert and Arabian coffee, as we were in a hurry and still had things to do this afternoon before five o'clock.

Monday, April 06, 2009

Dupont Italian Kitchen, Washington, D.C.

Kevin had a birthday last week, so we went to Dupont Italian Kitchen for dinner to celebrate. Twas a simple dinner, just salad, pasta, and a shared dessert.

Kevin picked one of the daily specials for his main course, a penne dish with tomatoes, basil, and asparagus. I had the calamari in red sauce over linguine for mine. Mine was good, with lots of tender squid rings and a fresh grating of parmesan cheese over the top.
asparagus penne calamari linguine

For dessert, we had a very good piece of tiramisu.

Dupont Italian Kitchen is another of the older restaurants on the 17th Street strip that seems to be fancying itself up. The waiters are more dressed up now and they've a fancy bar inside now instead of just a service bar (the gay bar Windows, now known as the D.I.K. Bar, is still upstairs). The menu is still fairly simple, though, and they haven't significantly raised prices or gotten fancy with the food.