Shaw's Tavern on Florida Ave.

Beet, pistachio, arugula salad with a side of truffled grits. Yum!

This was my first time visiting and I rather liked it. We were scoping it out for lunchtime eats. The staff was friendly and attentive; while the food was delivered quickly. It was happy hour, but I am holding off the alcohol for a few months (gotta lose that pesky 25 extra); however my husband ordered an IPA and the burger of the day. 


I ate his arugula because there just didn't seem to be enough of it in my beet salad. However, I still loved the salad. The woman at the next table asked me about the grits because she said she could smell the truffle oil. I was amazed because I couldn't smell a thing (olfactory shut down or something). The large, stone ground grits were great when piping hot. I will definitely order again. 

We did note that there were no fish dishes on the lunchtime menu, so we couldn't invite a friend who eats mostly fish. There was catfish on the dinner menu and a chicken dish he might eat, but we will check it out again in a few weeks. All in all, a pleasant experience (and I loved all the 80's music).

-- Sent from my Palm Pre 2

520 Florida Avenue NW, Washington, DC.

A block down from the Howard Theatre in Northwest Washington, D.C.; 3 blocks from Howard University and Hospital.

Father's Day At Clyde's Chevy Chase

I have to admit that when I received the email that the family was going to convene on Daddy's Day at Clyde's, my heart dropped a bit. I really wasn't up to a chain restaurant experience, hoping instead for a foray into a new culinary venue.

I was pleasantly surprised - while the service was a bit confusing (we got there at the end of brunch and our wait staff changed mid-meal - the food was very fresh and tasteful, not to mention reasonably priced. I am used to visiting Clyde's in Georgetown and Columbia - two diametrically opposed locations. I have never been over impressed with either. It's usually for a lunch with clients that demand American fare and I find myself with the same appetizers and a burger. Yawn.

Yesterday was different. While our starters did contain our obligatory fried calamari and oysters (some family members won't leave home without 'em!), we branched out a bit with the Sesame Crusted Tuna Tataki which was served with seaweed salad, pickled carrots and onions, cucumber, Sriracha sauce, and wasabi vinaigrette. Yum. The sushi grade tuna worked well with the pickled veggies and I found myself eating most of those as my husband and others devoured the tuna.

Although there were nine of us, we only ordered five different entrees:

• Maine Lobster (all the dad's ordered this for some reason) with French fries, cole slaw and the obligatory lemon butter,
  
• Crab Cakes with asparagus, roasted potatoes and mustard aioli,
  
• Smoked Baby Back Ribs
  
• Trout Parm - Parmesan crusted trout, green beans,roasted potatoes with a bit of hollandaise, and the Prix Fix special
  
• Grilled Rockfish with crab salad and guacomole, Shrimp cocktail and Blueberry Strawberry Crumble for dessert.
  

My sister-in-law could not believe the size of her Trout Parm, so she spread half of it around the table. It was very good with a fried parmesan taste. My stepdaughter and I ravaged my husband's lobster, but he didn't mind since he really liked the crab salad and grilled rockfish from my plate. The three shrimp in the cocktail were huge and more than enough to share with other diners. As you can see, we are really into the 'family style' sharing thing - no plate is safe. Unless it is my father-in-law. No one got a hold of his fried oysters. I loved my rockfish - it was so flavorful without being over seasoned. Nothing was overcooked and portions were more than enough. Dessert was okay. I was more than glad to share the Blueberry crumble. It really didn't leave an impression. However, the Sinful Chocolate cake my sister-in-law ordered was good but not overwhelming. All in all, it was a pleasant afternoon and I will certainly return when I'm in the area and just am not feeling a hot stove (hmmm, isn't that always?). Clyde's of Chevy Chase 5441 Wisconsin Avenue, Chevy Chase, MD 20815
Phone: 301.951.9600

Local Flavor - Carolina Kitchen Bar and Grill

Last night we stopped at the new Carolina Kitchen Bar and Grill in Hyattsville.

Sigh.

Kwiq revu: Average chain restaurant with typically disjointed design and cuisine. I felt like I was eating my entree from a relish tray (see photo). The waiter forgot our appetizer and in true chain fashion gave nothing but an apology and a promise to remove the item from our bill.

This Carolina Kitchen is a huge expansion over their Largo, MD and Silver Spring, MD origins as it is much larger and includes a bar. We missed the 5-7pm happy hour and ducked in for a quick meal on 'No-Cook Thursday' since my in-laws have been raving about the place.

The cuisine is typical 'soul' type food with a splash of seafood - a must-have in the DelMarVa area. The appetizer menu had "country favorites", "southern seafood", and "Rocky Mount Wings", but not many items that were not deep fried. We initially ordered calamari, but changed the order to cheese & bacon cajun fries because it just seemed so decadent. They never arrived.

Immediately after seating in what must be dubbed "the King Kong" room because of its decor (model planes, King Kong poster and black and white photographs - what does that have to do with country kitchen cooking?) we received a plate of extremely light cornbread. It was sweet cornbread - my yankee preference, and came drizzled with honey and butter. Mmmm good. Must be the first time I have eaten cornbread with a fork.

We received our drinks, iced tea and lemonade, very quickly. I was hoping for that down home, fresh squeezed taste, but had to settle for the mix. I must admit that when I emptied my glass, it was quickly refilled.

I ordered the vegetable plate that let you choose three sides and my husband ordered the Southern Fried Pork Chops, which come with rice pilaf and two sides. North Carolina transplant that he is, he thinks he can combat swine flu by eating more pork. No pig is safe.

If you are hungry, you will definitely leave here satiated. My spouse had two large chops smothered in gravy over rice with bowls of collard greens and macaroni & cheese. He was able to eat most of one chop, the rice and a bit of each of the sides. There seemed to be an entire meal left.

I had the greens and macaroni & cheese and black eye peas presented on a long plate. That felt really weird. It gave me the feeling that there were dozens of sides sitting under hot lamps waiting to be thrown onto waiting relish plates. I certainly hope not. Some work needs to be done on the veggie plate presentation.

Thankfully there was hot sauce on the table because the greens and peas were lighter on the seasoning side than I prefer. It was all steaming hot - the mac & cheese was creamy with an extra layer of cheddar melted over the bowl.

Meal and tip weighed in at $40 for two without alcoholic drinks or dessert, and of course minus the appetizer. This is average these days for this type of restaurant. Considering the type of food, it might be better served at home. This is not the place to visit if you are dieting or on food restrictions - the lure of fried foods is strong.

While this is not on my go-to list, we will probably re-visit because my in-laws love the place. For some reason, seniors love getting large amounts of food. However, I do think I will return on my own to check out the happy hour - $3.99 martinis & cocktails and $2.99 draught beers Monday through Friday. Maybe then I'll check out that old, traditional southern bar menu favorite - spicy thai chili wings.