restaurants – Truxton Is In Shaw

Memory Lane- BKK Closing-Now imagine it with chairs

I saw in PoP’s post that BKK is closing at the end of March. I decided to look in my old posts and see what I had to mark the occasion. It was about 13-14 years ago when this restaurant opened as the original Beau Thai. Then when they moved to 7th St, it was kept open as BKK.

I liked it better as Beau Thai. It was our go to place to get food when I was too lazy to cook. I loved their Pad Thai and Panang tofu (Thai X-ing had better but the spice levels starting getting off the charts for me). I see Thai X-ing has closed too. Maybe I’ll do another post for Taw Vigsittaboot’s venture.

For a gentrifying area, Beau Thai was what was needed. I remember, what was there before the building was renovated, was a greasy take out with plexi-glass. But I’m starting to doubt my memories, please correct me if I was wrong. This was a sit down place, with wait service, a step up from the options that we previously had. This plus Big Bear a short walk down R St NW just added more amenities to Truxton Circle residents.

The following was originally posted on August 17, 2010:

Well after work, went to Beau Thai at 1700 New Jersey Avenue NW and had me some Pad Thai. I’m full. It was good.
If you have an early menu the phone number is wrong. It seems the phone number is 205-377-5329. I asked about that 205 bit, but apparently it’s 205 and not 202. 202-536-5636
Any way, pad thai.
and

Beau Thai Co-owner Aschara Vigsittaboot behind the counter, August 2010

The food came fast as she’s got a couple of people in the kitchen, so she differs from her brother Taw (Thai X-ing) in that way. When asked about him, she mentions that he doesn’t have delivery but she hopes to do delivery soon.

Bresca Pick Up Review

I don’t know why Bresca did not appear in my initial run down of Michelin starred restaurants offering take out. But looking at the various Tock options I noticed it wasn’t on my radar before. That and it is in Shaw!

Well that has been rectified. Bresca is great and provides a major meal. When all this is over, and we have a sitter for Destructo, the Help and I need to sit down at this lovely restaurant.

Looking-into-a-bag-of-food — Our meal before I ruined it in a bike ride

The above is an image of our meal before I ruined it along the bike ride home. The tarts on the right are at their best, so there is no at home photo because when I secured the bag on the CaBi, the meringue was ruined. I tried to come home on a JUMP scooter, but none were working with my app.

I ordered the BeeHome four course meal, which after the 20% service charge and 10% taxes (was the service charge taxed?) came out to $118.80. Money well spent I say. The four courses consisted of a snack of Brioche Tartine, with foie gras topped with a strawberry-campari puree and black pepper and a green leaf I cannot identify. It’s not mint. Maybe an oregano or kind of basil? Then followed by a starter and main course of our choosing. I chose a green tomato salad and the pineapple and carrot salad as the starter. Then the main of the Brioche Stuffed Chicken and the Duck Leg and Thigh. Dessert was a chocolate tart, which got destroyed on the ride back home. Also thrown in, I gather was an amuse bouche of a two little madeleines.

The meal was wonderful, so much so it kicks the Dabney meal down to 3rd place (Rose’s #1, Bresca #2, Dabney #3, and Kinship #4). And the Dabney was almost even with Rose’s at Home. Even better it was so filling, we’ll have some later for lunch this week.

Several parts of the meal was a big hit with Destructo- the 2.5 year old. He really liked the duck and the carrot and pineapple salad. He inhaled the madeleine. I doubt he appreciated the little flecks of salt on the chocolate drizzle. He really, really liked the duck even though he loves the 5 Little Ducks video and excited to see live ducks and even after we told him the duck he was eating once went “quack”. He didn’t care, he just wanted more duck in his belly.

I can’t tell you anything about the chicken as my beloved spouse ate the whole thing without sharing. So I am left with his impression of “it was good.” He said the meat was tender, and it had a cheesy interior. I don’t know if cheese was in it. I think he’s mistaken. I will never know. But I do know about the fennel sausage that accompanied the chicken in another container. That will survive till lunch and what little I sampled, was oh so good. I think there is a whole stick of butter in it. It’s rich herby and buttery, and a little salty.

He was supposed to have the carrot and pineapple salad, but was so stuffed with stuffed chicken, he did not really touch it, which allowed me and the 2 year old to eat it. Destructo liked the salad until he didn’t. There were some vinegary undertones that I think built up until he noticed it enough not to like it. The carrots (and maybe parsnips) were sweet and slightly tender. In the grains (the granola) were quinoa and pickled sultanas. And of course, there was pineapple.

My duck was accompanied with some root veggies, rice and pickled fennel. When I had the fennel, the duck and the rice on the fork they worked together. However, if I had the fennel on its own it was too acidic. Paired that with the green tomato salad, then I was getting way too much vinegar. The other problem was some of the carrots were too woody. Flavor and mouthwise those were my only complaints.

As mentioned, we were pretty stuffed at the end of the meal and had enough for left overs. We saved the chocolate tart for after the days dishes were washed (or placed in the dishwasher) and the toddler was put to bed. It’s a tart with a chocolate shell and a chocolate filling with a layer of passionfruit on top. I ate about 2/3rds of mine and saved the rest for later.

Next, restaurants that do their own delivery.

ANXO’s Base Layer Cocktail

It has come to my attention that the world does not know the goodness that is ANXO’s Base Layer cocktail.
My friends if you thought ANXO was just ciders and small plates, you are sadly mistaken. There are other non-apple based drinks like vermouth, beers (meh- I don’t like beer), wines, and lovely cocktails like the Base Layer.

In the past decade I’ve come to love a drink called the Old Fashioned which is bourbon or rye whiskey, a sugar cube or simple syrup, 2 dashes Angostura bitters, and maybe soda water, maybe an orange peel, and maybe a cherry, over ice. ANXO has something close, their Base Layer, which is El Dorado 8-year Rum, Laphroaig a scotch, Pemartín Amontillado a sherry, spiced simple syrup, Angostura & orange bitters, and an orange peel. Tastewise, it seems like a very smokey Old Fashioned, even though the ingredients aren’t the same.

Movement with the Great American Bistro

Well it’s been about 2 years since my last post about this project. It is looking closer to getting done. The owner is hoping to open in March 2020. It is on the 1500 block of New Jersey Avenue NW.

Twelve Years Later…. at Big Bear

Today, because it’s Friday and because we came up with lame excuses not to go to work, the Help and I are having a day date. We decided to start it off by having breakfast at Big Bear. It was great. I had french toast and a pot of English Breakfast tea as we sat inside with the Washington Post and the ambiance of the place.

I observed a family, where the father saw two separate friends/ acquaintances. He chatted with one, who came over and joked with the man’s elementary aged kids who were out of school for a thing.

Outside there were people. Some sat alone, tapping away at their laptops. Others gathered with a friend or two. And there were two workers fixing the paving thingamabobs.

About twelve years ago I stood in almost the exact space I was sitting at with my spouse. Big Bear in April 2007 was a possibility. I have a couple of pictures from an open house they held back then. The owners invited neighbors in to take a look at the place and nosh. Then, it was just going to be a coffee shop.

While I sat, I was comparing the feel of the place, then and now. Now it has a rhythm and a rep. It has a certain neighborhood vibe. I noticed parents, besides the one I mentioned earlier, with their kids on the way to school, pop in for a coffee. It just felt comfortable. It wasn’t full of promise or possible failure. It was, what it was.

The physical building and space has also changed. The patio is like part of the building, where people can sit (and battle bugs) under a canopy of grape vines behind walls of plants. The walls have art and shelves of booze (they make a good Old Fashioned) that weren’t there before. Oh, and there is a very tiny functional kitchen. The kitchen was very tiny in 2007, but not as functional.

2020 Michelin Guide Bib Gourmands in Shaw

Laotian spaghetti and meat-sauce — Hanumanh

Michelin has their guide out on-line and there are a few Shaw and Shaw adjacent places on the list.

Chercher– 1334 9th St NW. There are two locations. I’m assuming they are talking about the one in Shaw.

Hanumanh– Normally at 1604 7th St NW but they are undergoing some “unexpected” repairs. So they are on 14th St for now.

Pearl Dive Oyster Palace– 1612 14th St NW.

Red Hen– 1822 1st St NW. Not in Shaw but in walking distance from our house, so Shaw adjacent as far as I’m concerned.

Royal– 501 Florida Ave NW. Another Shaw adjacent place but is actually Shaw adjacent. You can sit out side and look longingly across Florida Ave and see Shaw.

Supra– 1205 11th St NW. Georgian food y’all. You can argue that it’s in Mt. Vernon.

Tiger Fork– 922 Blagden Alley, NW. We keep meaning to go here.

Unconventional Diner- 1207 9th St NW. Once again we can argue about where this is, Mt. Vernon/Shaw. I’m going to link to their OpenTable page because their website has been hijacked.

Dangit old Engine 12- Spark Restaurant Review

Dammit. I really had hoped this would be better. Maybe they’ll change things up or find their audience or something, because I was mildly disappointed with the new Spark restaurant that took the place of the old Engine 12 Firehouse restaurant.

I had high, maybe too high, hopes for the new restaurant in the old space, when I saw bone marrow on the menu. The last time I had bone marrow was at Eat the Rich (RIP) paired with some jam. It was soooo good. I had those same expectations when coming to Spark.

Okay, let me start off with what I liked. It was bone marrow. There was nice crusty bread. There was a little of a pickle side to cut the fat of the marrow. There was a nice funky tool which to use to scoop out the marrow. There was salt at the table so I could season bland tasting marrow. Yeah, that’s my one complaint, it was bland tasting. Maybe it was because the marrow was ‘smoked’ and not braised or whatever the heck Eat the Rich did. It lacked a richness, and just tasted like fat. I’m fine with paying $16 for a plate of bones and bread, if it is yummy bones and bread.

My main reason for getting a sitter and making Spark 12 our date night outing were the bones. Ignoring the bone marrow, everything else was meh, ‘alright’. The people at the next table were loud and even after they left, we still had to speak with a raised voice to hear each other. The service seemed a little slow, but since they’d only been open about a week, that was forgivable. The Old Fashioned I ordered was fair tastewise but packed one hell of a boozy punch. The Help ordered a chocolate atomic fireball non-alcoholic drink. It was like a chocolate manhattan with the cinnamon spice candy along the rim and at the bottom of the drink. I thought the chocolate tasted watery and the strong cinnamon was a little overwhelming. If I hadn’t had a big lunch I might have been hungry for more, and if I were, we would have left to check out Big Bear or ANXO.

The experience left us a little sad. We really want the space to succeed. The previous restaurant had mediocre food. This, although they just opened and there is a ton of room for improvement, is also mediocre. This would be a great restaurant if they could just get the food right and in this neighborhood we expect more out of a sit down restaurant. A friend pointed out that if they wanted Caribbean, (Spark has some island dishes) they would go to Jam Doung down the block. This neighborhood also hosts Red Hen, Bacio, and DCity Smokehouse, places known for their great tasting food.

Maybe the problem is that I just got a super mediocre meal. The Help, my date, seemed content with his beef patties, but he’s easy to please. I haven’t written Spark off, I’ll try them again and hope for better. But next time we’re bringing the kid and skipping the sitter.

That is one pretty salad

So for lunch I ventured out and was hankering for a Halfsmoke dog but they were closed on Tuesday for lunch, so I walked back in the direction of Truxton Circle to fix myself lunch when I was drawn into Fishscale at 637 Florida Ave NW.

See that salad. That sure is one pretty salad. I did not order that salad. I ordered a fish burger with the sunflower slaw. It was good. Was it $15 worth of good (incl tax)? Unsure, but it was good. I liked it. I may come back to check out the salad to see if it tastes as good as it looks.

Monday Ramblings

I must say I love, love, love the Bloomingdale Farmer’s Market. I ran into my ex-roommate who, though lives 2 blocks from me now, I lost contact with. Reunions, yay! Also Painted Hand had bunny rabbit. Add a sticky-bun and a apple danish, good times.

Since I’m in the general area, congrats to the Big Bear for being in a commercial for a cable company and NBC Universal (YouTube). Yes, BBC you are a beautiful indy coffee shop and would make a lovely filming location.

This weekend a family began moving off the block, and I was told it was the schools that did it. We’ll miss this family as the mom threw some pretty great neighborhood parties. There was the one they held in the middle of the snowstorm, and one where the back gate was opened and the party got extended down the alley with small children running up and down. Add to this with another family with small and very socialable kids who are also planning on moving this year, our little section of the neighborhood is going to lose some of its character. The good kind of character and I hope whomever takes their place will add to the awesomeness of the block, or at least someone else fill the spot of “cruise director”.

Lastly, let’s talk sibling rivalry, that is Thai X-ing vs Beau Thai. I like Beau Thai’s Pad Thai better than Thai Xing’s Pad Thai. However, I like Thai X-ing’s Panang a tad bit better than Beau Thai’s, mainly because there are some odd veggies thown in (last time I had the Panang Tofu) the Thai X-ing version. Beau Thai’s Panang is good, the sauce is good and thick and hangs on to the rice. As a left over for lunch I liked it even more.

Now imagine it with chairs

Well after work, went to Beau Thai at 1700 New Jersey Avenue NW and had me some Pad Thai. I’m full. It was good.
If you have an early menu the phone number is wrong. It seems the phone number is 205-377-5329. I asked about that 205 bit, but apparently it’s 205 and not 202. 202-536-5636
Any way, pad thai.
and
The food came fast as she’s got a couple of people in the kitchen, so she differs from her brother Taw (Thai X-ing) in that way. When asked about him, she mentions that he doesn’t have delivery but she hopes to do delivery soon.