The Monocle, Washington, D.C.

Washington has a handful of "power restaurants" where politicians and lobbyists go for their little get together and arm twisting sessions. One of those places is right near the Senate side of the Capitol, and opened in 1960, counting John Kennedy and Richard Nixon amongst their regular customers. It's called The Monocle, and it's still one of the places to go to see and be seen.

The food at The Monocle is simple and direct. Good quality meats and seafood come out without pretense and excess decoration or fussiness.

So, I journeyed over to Capitol Hill and met Laurent at his office and we walked over to The Monocle for a great lunch, and his first time to actually eat a meal there.

Generally I try to order as many different things as possible, but Laurent and I kept picking the same things! We both insisted on getting the same appetizer, and it was good enough neither of us would have wanted to miss it. We got the crab imperial on sliced avocados. The crab meat was very lightly dressed in a spicy-hot mayonnaise and stuffed into a round mold, where avocado slices were inserted. The mold then was turned upside down and served with a spray of baby watercress, while an herb oil and lemon slices decorated our plates. Then, at dessert time, we both picked the lemon curd pie, a soft, mild, creamy thing with lots of raspberry purée as decoration, color, and splash of fruit flavor.


We did, at least, decide upon different main courses. Laurent got the salmon filet, grilled, and served with a honey mustard glaze, accompanied by carved new potatoes and a mélange of julienned carrots and haricots verts French green beans. The salmon looked moist and nicely prepared. I chose the flatiron steak, remembering Robert's experience earlier in the week. There was no attempt at nouvelle cuisine here, though, as I got a whole eight ounce steak instead of three measly little slices like Robert did. My perfected grilled steak was topped with Spanish onions and red bell peppers and the meat was positively delicious. Perfectly pairing with the steak was a big serving of rich, delicious scalloped potatoes.

The Monocle is one of those places you just want to go to for consistent, good quality, basic food, and with impeccable, attentive, and prompt service.