D.C. Restaurant Week: Urbana

Who doesn't love good food at better prices? If you don't agree just stop reading, if you are saying DUH then restaurant week is for you!

D.C. has an amazing selection for restaurant week. From DuPont to Chinatown you can find a restaurant in just about every neighborhood, with hundreds of restaurants participating. They do it several times a year, so plenty of opportunities to eat.

We chose Urbana in DuPont Circle. Let me tell you, we were not disappointed! Although we had made reservations, we were at least 45 minutes late (my fault) and ended up sitting at the bar instead of our table. I am big a fan of bar eating. I think it's more interactive and always provides for fantastic people watching. Our bartender was awesome, he recommended some great menu items and even told us about their great brunch with $2 bellinis (it's on my list of things to do).

The menu was out of this world! Now for those of you who have never participated in a restaurant week it is a fixed menu at a fixed price ($35 for dinner, not including drinks). There are generally three to four courses and you get to choose one item for each course. For my meal at Urbana I chose butternut squash soup for course one, fettuccine for course two, salsicce pizza for course three and bomboloni for course four. Not one item disappointed. My dinner partner agreed.

The soup was wonderful, nutty and filling. I have issues with butternut squash soup (some of them are so bad!), but the bartender assured me I would enjoy it. He was right! I would order the fettuccine again without blinking. It had homemade sausage in it, with clams and mussels. I'm a seafood freak so this was spot on. The pizza, which seemed to be a popular choice as I looked around the restaurant, was also fantastic. Neither of us could finish and had to take some home. It made a great breakfast the next day. And HOLY DELICIOUSNESS the bomboloni was made of kittens and puppies! It was phenomenal. Okay so no kitten and puppies were actually involved but that thing was amazing! It was chocolate and hazelnut dreamy goodness. I could eat it everyday! I mean I won't because I can't afford to buy all new clothes, but it's really that good.

The atmosphere in Urbana was interesting, much more sophisticated than I am used to (dive bars are my comfort zone), but I loved it. Very sexy and cool. You had to walk down some stairs off of P Street to get in, so it was like an underground secret. It had a bar area where we sat separated from the restaurant and then another smaller bar in another area. I love places that have different areas for different moods. Overall I loved the restaurant and of course I loved the food. If you get a chance go participate in restaurant week, it's a great way to try new places!

The menu

Pre dinner drinks

The fettucini

Heaven

http://www.urbanadc.com

http://www.ramw.org/restaurantweek

Pizzeria Paradiso

Pizzeria Paradiso is located in one of my favorite areas in DC: Dupont Circle. The area is humming with activity. On a nice day you can sit on any given patio and just watch the world go by, the well-dressed, DC citizens of the world that is.

This particular day was beautiful out. I sat down and was immediately served a bowl of olives and given an extensive beer list (I'm talking a short story). The olives were divine and a much better app than bread. As I perused the beer list I noticed they had just about everything I had ever heard of plus so many I hadn't. I ended up having the waiter suggest an IPA. He recommended the Dogfishhead 61 minute. Dogfishhead is one of my favorites but I had never had the 61, but I took his recommendation.

The pizza menu is almost as extensive as the beer menu. Again I simply asked for suggestions. As I waited for my pizza I started observing my dining companions: men in business suits, son taking his parents out, ladies who lunch. It was an eclectic group, exactly what you expect from Dupont.

The olives were done the pizza had arrived. DELICIOUS! I scarfed most of it down without a thought. I got the Atomica. It was spicy, but not too spicy. The olives gave it a slightly salty flavor. Yum. You could definitely share, but probably won't want to.

I lost steam. The waiter came to check on me. Noticed my empty beer and suggested I try something special they had just put on tap the Bells 2 Hearted. As I sat and observed the crowd and the people walking down P Street I reveled in the sun. It really was a glorious day and I was delightfully full from the pizza. My beer arrived and I enjoyed it and the scenery for the next hour. I wasn't rushed out, the waitstaff was great.

If you are looking for a wonderful, casual place to eat, drink and people watch Paradiso is the place.

http://www.eatyourpizza.com/tag/pizzeria-dupont-circle/ 

The complimentary olives.

What was left of the pizza when I remembered to take a pic.

Martin's Tavern

Martin's Tavern in Georgetown.

From JFK and Jackie O to Tucker Carlson, anyone who's anyone in DC goes to Martin's. So naturally I had to see what all the hype was about.

As soon as Chris and I walked in I got a wonderful feeling of familiarity, history and Mad Men like appeal. It was if we had stepped back into the 1960s to an old fashioned bar where the bar keep knows your drink and your life story.

This was true of Chris, he seemed to be somewhat of a regular. Damon, our bartender, greeted him by name and when Chris requested a Stella, he mocked with "oh something different".

I introduced myself and gave my little story of where I was from, how I knew Chris, the basics. They had Dogfish Head 60 minute IPA, one of my favorites. As Chris and I sat and chatted at the bar, there seemed to be regulars all around. Damon floated from customer to customer, checking in on their food, drinks and lives as if he was an old friend. 

When it came time to order lunch the french onion soup came highly recommended by Chris and Damon. I also ordered the crab cake sandwich. Chris ordered a turkey club. 

While we waited for our food we browsed the newspapers that were left on the bar for customers. Talking about news. It just felt like what you had to do in such a historic place. It felt natural. 

My soup came out first and the recommendations were spot on. It was delicious with a huge helping of cheese on top. It was great. Then out came the crab cake sandwich and turkey club. Chris' looked good. Mine looked awesome. I don't think there was an ounce of filler in the crab cake. Huge chunks of crab, bigger than bite size, to my delight filled the sandwich. I had a side of fries and coleslaw as well. The fries were thick cut and had I been hungrier, I would have finished them off. The slaw was nice and light, but I didn't finish that either.

We got to know Damon a little more throughout the meal. He learned we were on a bocce team where he hoped we talked a lot of shit to the other teams. We learned he liked to go deep sea fishing. 

Martin's was wonderful, I can see why it has been around for so long. And for a Wednesday afternoon, there was barely a seat open around 1 pm. Go to Martin's when you are in Georgetown and order the french onion soup.

http://www.martins-tavern.com/

Delicious crab cake sandwich.

Chris' turkey club.

The Harry S. Truman booth.

Chris outside.

Founding Farmers

Founding Farmers located at 1924 Pennsylvania Avenue in Foggy Bottom.

I went here on Friday for breakfast with my partner in crime Courtney. She had given me the recommendation. We got there around 10 and it was decently crowded for a weekday. 

When you first walk in you are immediately impressed with the decor and vibe. Two levels, big bar on the first floor (Courtney told me at night they have fantastic mixologists). We ate on the second floor which was light and a little quieter. As soon as we got upstairs we could smell the homemade beignets cooking. It smelled divine. The host was very friendly (let me bring my Starbucks in) as was the rest of the staff.

We ordered bellinis to start. Let me tell you they tasted like fresh picked peaches. I would go back just to have another, not too many though, they were $12 each. This started our meal off very well.

We decided to split two meals: the crab cake eggs benedict and the sun dried tomato and artichoke cast iron skillet eggs with a side of hash browns and fresh fruit.

The eggs benedict were recommended by our awesome waitress. Courtney and I both love crab cake benedicts so these had a lot to live up to. And they did! They were fantastic. And HUGE! Made on homemade english muffins they were melt in your mouth delicious. Lots of crab, not a lot of filling. I would order them again in a heartbeat.

The hashbrowns were also incredible. Exactly what you want from hash browns, homey, a heavy, delicious. The fresh fruit was just that, very fresh and did not disappoint. 

The cast iron skillet eggs were not our favorite. The presentation was amazing but they did not have enough flavor. Courtney and I decided we should have probably just split the crab cake benedicts. 

Overall Founding Farmers was fantastic, great staff, great food, great drinks. I will definitely be going back.

http://www.wearefoundingfarmers.com/washington-dc/ 

Delicious Bellinis!

Some of the best crab cake benedicts I have ever had.

Our least favorite but the ciabatta was homemade and tasty.