Oval Room - Downtown - Restaurant Week

I always approach Restaurant Week with a certain amount of ambivalence. While $35 for a prix-fixe dinner may sound like a good deal, in reality, that is more or less the same price you would have paid during a regular weekend for the vast majority of restaurants that participate in this promotion. The added downside is that you usually get a limited menu of untested dishes designed specifically for RW and, because kitchens limit themselves to these dishes, they have a tendency to mail in their efforts during RW.

However, I do find that the $20 prix-fixe lunches can still be a relative bargain if you choose the right restaurant. The Oval Room is one of those restaurants.

Getting reservations for an RW lunch at the Oval Room was surprisingly easy. The one downside is that you have to give your credit card information to them just in case you are an unannounced no-show. This is obviously unnecessary and annoying, especially considering that when we arrived at the restaurant, numerous tables were empty.

Furthermore, the service at times was a bit supercilious. The maitre d' was unfortunately a bit too stiff and curt with my party, and not particularly welcoming. I get RW brings in the bridge and tunnel yahoos and hicks like me, but a paying customer is still a paying customer and deserves to be treated with utmost respect. For a formal restaurant like the Oval Room, you are not just paying for fine food, but for a fine dining experience. Anything that detracts from that experience, especially any hints of superiority or snobbishness on behalf of the staff at the expense of the diner, ruins the food and it needs to be mentioned. On the other hand, the waiter who served us was pleasant and affable and I quickly forgot my run in at the front of the house.

The food was consistently excellent. Generally speaking, I would characterize the style of Oval Room as New American with Asian and Latin twists thrown in. I ordered pappardelle with a smoked duck ragout for my appetizer and it was exceptional. The duck was perfectly braised and fall apart while the smokiness gave an interesting twist on the sauce. My entree was a salmon fillet with cabbage and a citrusy, Asian style dressing that imparted a nice brightness and lift to the unctuousness of the fish. They also prepared my fillet to a nice rare/medium-rare, retaining its moistness. My dining companions also ordered crispy chicken with mole that was huge, which my friend absolutely raved about. While not a traditional mole sauce as found in Mexico, my friend noted that it nonetheless worked seamlessly with the various other components of his dish. My other dining companion also enjoyed her steak with tamarind sauce, though it seemed a little more conservative than my salmon dish and the chicken dish.

Desserts were fine. My toffee cake seemed a little dry for me, but the accompanying ice cream was tasty. My friend's chocolate bomb was sufficiently chocolaty and quite good. Obviously, dessert is not really my wheelhouse, but I would have both again without hesitation.

In sum, for $20, this meal was a steal. When RW rolls around next August, I will be sure to try to get another lunch at the Oval Room.

Bistro D'Oc - Downtown

Bistro D'Oc offers a fairly standard French bistro experience. The ambiance was a low murmur, mildly bustling, but not overly noisy. Conversation with my dining companion was easy and pleasant. The waiter also struck the perfect balance of being attentive yet simulteneously unobtrusive.

The food was solid, if unexceptional. My escargot was a sufficiently buttery and garlicky, but the texture was rubbery due to being overcooked. My dining companion's salad was far more successful: a pleasant medley of warm bucheron paired with beets and haricot vert.

The entrees were solid. My short ribs were properly braised and the pomme puree was sufficiently rib-sticking. It was a perfect meal for a fall evening. My dining companion's duck confit was crispy on the outside and juicy in the inside. The pommes frites were also tasty and plentiful. While the food was not innovative or creative, sometimes you want to eat classics, and these renditions were generally well-made and correct (with the exception of the escargot).

The wine list is inspired by the Languedoc, which, if you didn't know, is oftentimes referred to as a "wine lake." I have had successful wines from this region, but you have to know what to order, and I did not find anything on the list particularly inspiring, unfortunately.

It is a place suitable for a date night and is conveniently located around the corner from the E Street Cinema if you want to impress someone with middlebrow cinematic fare. This is a good place for a second date where you know her enough to want to impress, but are still not at the point with her where you want to break the bank (dinner for two was about $100).

Occidental - Downtown

Occidental is a power lunch spot located in the Willard Hotel just blocks away from the White House. Its wood paneled interior, waiters bedecked in waist aprons, and various tasteful brass knick knacks and photos of bygone silver age celebrities usually denote an old school American restaurant that aims primarily to provide a suitably formal ambiance for cutting a deal while leaving the food an afterthought. Fortunately, the food, while unimaginative, was generally well prepared. My nicoise salad had some spicy greens mixed in and the filet of yellowfin tuna on top was prepared properly (that is, rare). The fried calamari was crispy, salty, and generally tasty, though the accompanying aioli tasted like the dregs from a bag of Lay's BBQ potato chip. One of the individuals I was dining with allowed me to taste some of her lima beans, which were rich, buttery, and flavorful. The desserts that were ordered were generally quite tasty as well, including a fruit tart and a chocolate pyramid.

If you work in the area, it is a place worth trying. And the people watching alone can make the meal.