Jeff reports that Ruthie Jane Baird was born Feb. 5, a month early, in the middle of a snowstorm.
“We wanted to get the house ready and make sure everything was all right with the baby,” he says.
The lunch menu has been streamlined, with some low-cost items added, including chicken or grilled veggie quesadillas and variety of sandwiches, all priced at $6. One addition was imported from upstate New York, where Jeff is from. It’s called the State Fair Spiedie — chicken or pork marinated in special spiedie sauce, with lettuce, tomato, mayo and provolone.
“It’s street food, served from lunch carts or at fair grounds at those little booths,” he says. “I took it and turned it into a sandwich form. I have my family bring the marinade down from New York whenever they come.”
the D.C. restaurant's bar and its dining room
In D.C. Againn
Chiming in on restaurants outside our metropolis is in many ways as helpful as wine reviews for unobtainable bottles, but the District is close enough that we all escape to the 202 on occasion, and GPS makes anywhere findable. Next time you set your sights north, plot a course to New York Avenue and 11th Street NW. There, a formidable gastropub awaits.
Againn (pronounced uh-GWAIN) is a British Isles bistro that brings a farm-to-table philosophy to pub-inspired fare. Why shouldn’t fish and chips be made with sustainable cod and locally sourced peas? Add to the experience a long, sleek and über-apportioned bar; personal Scotch lockers; thoughtfully selected beers; and cutting-edge craft cocktails, and it’s clear that this is no ordinary bangers-and-mash joint. And when Charlie Palmer Steak’s level-III sommelier David Denton raves about it, you gotta go.
Greeted by high ceilings and huge windows, I gravitated toward the raw bar and an inviting selection of Chesapeake Bay and Prince Edward Island oysters. Served handsomely with a mignonette that I later used for the fish and chips in lieu of malt vinegar, the oysters were expertly shucked to preserve the briny liquor.
To shake off the gelid conditions, I sipped Le Cheval Noir, a toddy prepared with Calvados, Leopold Brothers Three Pins Alpine Herbal Liqueur, hot water, house-made "quatre epices" honey and lemon. Garnished with star anise and served in a snifter the size of a baboon skull, the steam and aromatics eschewed the cold and restored ruddy cheeks like Luke Skywalker’s tauntaun sleeping bag.
The Haig & Peaches cocktail featured Haig Pinch whisky, peach lambic, Aperol (a lighter — in color and alcohol — cousin of Campari), Bénédictine, lemon, vanilla rooibos tincture (think tea) and egg white. I showed the recipe to The Mint’s Bobby Kruger; let’s just say he turned chartreuse with envy.
Besides the cocktails, the wine list by Elli Benchimol (certified sommelier formerly of Zola, Rasika and Michael Mina’s Bourbon Steak in Miami) is a work-in-progress, blending her California roots and post-punk vibe with an Old World palette. Benchimol was one of the shocked sommeliers in the Washington Post’s Judgment of Washington tasting, so top-flight Virginia wines find willing corkscrews here too.
Executive chef Wes Morton’s Citronelle, CityZen and French Laundry background has suffused him with James Beard-worthy skills. Instead of another sous-vide and micro-gastronomy wonder, however, Morton has brought artistry to comfort food. And in an environment where restaurants are teetering on the edge of red and busted after two weekends lost to blizzards, Againn was bustling, so the cityfolk are digging it.
As for the vittles … after the oysters came a Moroccan stew, with lamb, fresh mint and harissa (a Moroccan spice concoction with garlic and peppers). Served in a casserole dish, it made for a hearty and warming appetizer for two that was easily enough for a single entrée. Againn offers a Roast of the Day, too: Friday’s was Creekstone Angus-beef ribeye with Yorkshire pudding and roasted red potatoes, but I went for those fish and chips with perfectly salted homemade steak fries. And even with the Monument Avenue 10K looming, I pitted my sub-40:00 personal goal against dessert. Clementine creamsicle ice cream with raspberry sandwich cookies might add a few seconds to my time, but what's livin' without a little sin?
If you wanna know what else is good, follow my @eightohfork tweets live when I hit Againn again over a luncheon with Denton on Thursday afternoon. How deep into the menu we'll go depends only on whether it's my plastique or his on the line.
Sheba in Shockoe
Two Ethiopian eateries in our town. Count ‘em … Nile, whom I’ve lauded before, and Sheba. With a third-generation Italian background, Ethiopian isn’t exactly my ancestral cuisine, so I cannot speak of the regional slant of one versus the other, or nuanced differences in the preparation of doro wat.
Nevertheless, I’ve ingested enough injera in my day to know that Sheba’s fare is delicious. A Byrd Park family I'm friendly with just adopted a 3-year-old Ethiopian boy, and to celebrate, families gathered at Sheba for a communal meal. With kids outnumbering the grown-ups, the room percolated with bouncing tots and exotic aromas from another hemisphere. After enjoying a $15/head buffet that left everyone satisfied and the hosts packing leftovers, I shook the generous owner’s hand and promised to return, not least for another cup of their strong/black/sweet coffee.
Seventy-two hours later, I was back on the block with two Italians, a chef and a Navy EOD technician rummied up from The Mint and ready for dinner. Where to go after midnight in Shockoe Valley: NY-style slices at The Pizza Place, burgers at River City Diner or wings at the Halligan Bar & Grill? Sheba's kitchen officially closed around 11 p.m. or so, but the owner kindly recognized me and in spite of the hour sent out a terrific combination of lamb, chicken, cabbage, collards and legumes that wafted with cardamom, turmeric, garlic and ginger scents.
No, service that night didn’t include gursha, but the warm vibe in the room couldn’t have been more welcoming, regardless of the implied cultural gap. In fact, before midnight dinner was served, the five of us jived to a DJ who spun hits like disco biscuits, putting most of Richmond’s danceable nightlife to shame with hot grooves. Until my cousin the seaman joined, I was the only Caucasian shakin’ it, but whether due to Shockoe hospitality, Ethiopian tradition or plain old American funlovingness, I experienced a junk-in-yo-trunk-bump-and-grind that would make any Facebook photo album blush. Now THIS is my idea of dinner of dancing. I’d post some pix, but my cousin claims it would jeopardize national security. In a town not known for its clubbing or its Ethiopian heritage, Sheba gives Richmond a heaping helping of both.
Richmond, tries oyster harvesting with Ryan
Croxton, co-owner of Rappahannock River
Oysters, for an episode of "Chefs A' Field."
RRO, a family-owned business that has been harvesting since 1899, has been shipping oysters across the country (and to restaurants in Richmond), but this spring the company will open a shop at Locklies Marina in the Middlesex County community of Topping, where owners (and cousins) Ryan and Travis Croxton hope to bring attention to their products.
“We’ve been looking for a place to develop commercially,” Ryan Croxton says. “Somewhere we can invite chefs and customers, and teach people about aquaculture. We’re branding [the oysters] the way people talk about wine … trying to make the region a Napa of oyster making, and Locklies can become a hub.”
Locklies remains a fully functioning marina, off the shore of which RRO harvests one of its many varieties of oyster. The storefront will be a place to showcase the oysters. And soon, Ryan says he hopes to open a restaurant at the marina.
RRO grows oysters throughout the Chesapeake Bay area. Their most consistent crops are the Rappahannock River Oyster, the Stingray Oyster and the Olde Salts Oyster. Rappahannock River Oysters are grown in the water near Topping, in mostly freshwater from the Blue Ridge Mountains; Stingray Oysters are grown in the Ware Neck area of Gloucester County in brackish water; and Olde Salts Oysters are grown in Chincoteague Bay, where they’re infused with tidal salt water. The oysters grown in water with low-salt content are generally sweeter with more mineral-like flavor, while the oysters grown in water with high salt content have a sharp, crisp taste, Ryan says.
“It’s like being smacked in the face with an ocean wave,” he says of the ocean-grown oysters. “Some people really like that.”
The marina sits near the Chesapeake Bay at 784 Locklies Creek Road, about a 90-minute drive from Richmond. Although the Croxtons have made many trips to Richmond for restaurant events and tastings, RRO’s oysters arrive in Richmond via UPS truck on most days. Of the many restaurants in the area that use RRO oysters, Mezzanine (3433 Cary St.) and Lemaire (101 W. Franklin St.) usually offer the widest variety.
Many Richmonders remember Sneed from his days as owner of the Frog and the Redneck in Shockoe Slip, but he’s also a partner in Carena’s Jamaican Grill on Midlothian Turnpike.
“We have some young chefs and thought that [having] him working with them ... would be inspiring and helpful,” Healy says.
Consistent with Sneed’s renowned affinity for simplicity, the new menu is somewhat pared down, and preparation of many dishes has changed. For example, the previous menu included hoisin-glazed grilled mahi on shichimi shrimp and vegetable fried rice with toasted sesame seeds, unagi drizzle and kaiware sprouts. The revised menu has “fresh mahi topped with local crab, served with Arborio rice pilaf.”
While the previous menu had five additional ingredients listed with the shrimp-and-grits, the new menu has two: sausage and cheddar cheese. Grilled salmon served on a bed of eggplant caviar with sautéed red-and-yellow peppers and Arborio rice pilaf replaces the former menu’s miso-glazed salmon with Asian slaw, wontons and vegetable couscous.
Some additions include Mussels and Fries (the mussels are cooked with green curry, garlic and white wine, or saffron broth) and a Platter O’Toads (description: “The famed Sugar Toad blowfish, [‘sweet as sugar, ugly as a toad’].”)
Among the other additions are a house-made rum cake for dessert, soon to be joined by crème brûlée, tapioca pudding and apple pie.
Healy says the new children’s menu offers a choice of pizzas from the brick oven, pasta and chicken dishes, and baked macaroni and cheese.
You’ll still find filet mignon and strip steak, the Seafood Tower, Colossal Crab Cake, sushi rolls and gourmet pizza (with a few changes).
“While we have been successful with our [previous] menu for many years at the Brandermill location,” Healy says, “we are excited to unveil our new menu at both locations.” The banquet menus for both restaurants have also been updated.
He says the new menu more closely reflects “the fact that we’re in central Virginia and on the river and close to the Chesapeake Bay.” But don’t get too used to this version; Healy hinted at another update in month or so.
Six Burner owner Ry Marchant, with the help of Jason Alley from Comfort restaurant and Tanya Cauthen of Belmont Butchery, started organizing the event about a month ago after an e-mail from his daughter tipped him off about a similar event that took place in New York City on Jan. 24.
“We’ve got a good restaurant community,” says Marchant. “Most everybody I talked with was really enthusiastic.”
Restaurants will choose which relief organization their donation will support –the Red Cross or Heifer International. The Red Cross is providing food, water, shelter and medical care to earthquake victims in Haiti. Heifer International is a nonprofit working in Haiti that provides livestock (not for slaughter) to poverty stricken families. The livestock provide families with up to 4 gallons of milk a day and can produce up to one calf a year.
If he’d had more time, Marchant says he would have tried to recruit even more participants. With 30 restaurants, Marchant says he hopes the event will raise as much as $10,000.
Participating businesses:
Six Burner
Comfort
Belmont Butchery
The Boathouse (Rocketts Landing and Sunday Park)
Yellow Umbrella Fresh Seafood (5600 Patterson Ave.)
Europa Italian Café & Tapas Bar
The Hill Café (2800 E. Broad St.)
Olio (formerly European Market)
