where to eat in dc | al dente

Italians value food as pleasure and meals as luxurious affairs. During a recent meal at Al Dente, an Italian restaurant from renowned chef Roberto Donna in the Friendship Heights neighborhood of DC, I transcended mortal satiation and entered a kind of food nirvana, blissful and gratified off fresh mozzarella, the rolling names of pasta varieties, dry wine, and coffee-drenched ladyfingers. 

Zander and I started the meal with complimentary fresh bread and olive oil. The bread basket includes white and wheat bread and the star, Al Dente's Italy-certified pizza crust, for dipping. Already impressed, my burgeoning fandom grew in leaps and bounds when handed the wine menu. Attached to the robust wine list was a selection of local Virginia wines from vineyards small and large, ones I've visited and some of which I hadn't yet heard. Even more astounding, nearly every bottle was in the $30-$40 range, an incredibly reasonable price tag with minimal markup. We chose a dry Viognier from Delaplane Cellars. After one glass, I added Delaplane to my list of must-visit wineries.

We opted to start light with a sharable heirloom tomato salad dressed with onions, fresh basil, gorgonzola dressing and balsamic reduction. Unfortunately, our salad never arrived, and once handed our entrees, we opted to skip it. I have no doubt it would have been fresh and delicious, but I'll have to wait for another chance to taste it.

Zander quickly chose the parsley spaghettini entree with soft shell crab, cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, and garlic. The house made pasta came out piping hot, cooked perfectly al dente, and bursting with flavor from the parsley and herbs. I took one bite to try it... and then a second, third, and fourth because I couldn't stop. It was delicious and portioned just large enough to justify the whopping $25.95 cost.

After tasting the charred outside, soft on the inside pizza crust in our bread basket, I needed to taste the whole pizza. I ordered the Salsiccia e Rapini with tomato, smoked mozzarella, pork sausage, broccoli rabe, and garlic. Because I can never resist prosciutto, I added that on ($3). I was stuffed after the first slice, but the fresh cheese and garlic, oh the garlic! kept drawing me back in for more. At $12.95, the pizza is the best deal on the menu and some of the best (if not the best) pizza cooked in the authentic Italian tradition that I've had in DC... or anywhere.

We passively accepted dessert menus, assuming we'd skip it, until our eyes landed on the homemade tiramisu. I can never say no to it. It's a decadent dessert that doesn't rely solely on sugar. It's a balance of bittersweet cocoa and espresso aromas, ladyfingers and a tantalizingly smooth texture. And Al Dente's inimitable, uniquely shaped version, served with a warm chocolate sauce, had me rolling my eyes back with true Italian pleasure.

if you go...

al dente menus

i hear the brunch is particularly good

beware the over-attentive service (a better problem than inattentive service)

there's a free parking garage at night 

fiola | where to eat in dc

 the bar at Fiola

Every once in a while, you need to shut down your inner voice saying, "It costs how much?" and experience decadence. It's an incredibly difficult thing for me to do. I'm hopelessly reasonable when it comes to finances. (If only I could transfer some of that reasonableness to, say, any other area of my life!) When it comes to money, Zander and I complement each other. He appreciates good food and good wine and the beauty of occasional indulgences. He appreciates the restorative - emotionally, physically, and mentally - powers of a good meal. He knows that romance lies beyond a glass (or two) of Prosecco at an intimate bar. All the while, I keep him grounded - sometimes you have to find that romance in things far more practical and light on the wallet. 

But this blog post isn't about practical. It's about that romance and indulgence at an intimate bar. It's about Fiola Da Fabio Trabocchi, one of D.C.'s most sough after, romantic, delicious dining experiences. 

For our first visit we opted to sit at the bar. We started with a few glasses of wine; we just barely missed the happy hour that ends at 6:00. We started with the bar menu, comprised of elevated takes on typical bar food. We tried most of the menu, starting with the Mozzarella - Neapolitan buffalo mozzarella fritters. The salty Parmesan, the crispy breading, the flavorful mozzarella, the light marina sauce spooned in the bottom of the bowl all came together to form one of the best appetizers I've ever tasted. I almost ordered another serving.

Next, we tried La Piadina - grilled flatbread with proscuitto and stracchino cheese. I really enjoy Italian cheeses, is what I've discovered. The above-average sized portion was filling - I had to wait a while to order the next bite. To say this wasn't our favorite dish of the evening should hold no credence - it's great, it just didn't pack as much flavor as the others.

Our final appetizer was the veal meatballs. These succulent, moist meatballs are covered with tomato and a sunny side up egg. I kissed my fingers and threw them in the air with appreciation. Zander would come back to Fiola just for these. I would, too.

If you're wondering just how much food two people can eat in the course of one evening looking at these pictures, so am I. Apparently, it's a lot. Zander ordered the oysters before his entree. From the sound of him throwing them back, they're a winner, too.

For his entree, Zan tried the Tortellini of Cotechino Sausage with oyster mushrooms, veal sweetbreads, and green asparagus. I tried a bite of the broth and a tortellini, and even I - who am squeamish about sweetbreads, truly enjoyed it. The tortellini is rich and filling, the sweetbreads not overpowering, and the asparagus adds a great crunch to round off the dish. He loved it.

Now let's talk about this burger. It might odd that I went to a fine-dining Italian restaurant and ordered a burger, but would it be as strange if I told you it's quite possibly the best burger I've ever had? It really was. I have daydreamed about that burger. The $22 behemoth is a tenderloin patty topped with smoked provolone cheese, pancetta (swoon), and con fit tomato, and is served with rosemary fries. After all the food we'd had over the course of a few hours, I couldn't eat more than half of it, but Zan was more than happy to help me polish it off. The rosemary adds a nice flavor to the fries, though they were just a tad too salty.

Zan and I left with a tab that nearly made me faint, but a meal like this - that transports you to Italy for an evening, and lavishes you with flavor and decadence that make you close your eyes to savor each bite, it's worth it every once in a while.

if you go... 

fiola

601 pennsylvania ave nw

bar menu

happy hour: 4-6

dinner menu 

run update + giambotta recipe

I blogged last week about my fear of running and my 3 mile wall. Last night, I finally beat that fear and my doubts. To make myself do it, I started by mapping out a run. I know if I plan for it, if I give myself a route, I'm more likely to stay on it.

The first 2 miles were hilly, but I kept a steady pace and managed not to stop. The next 1.5 miles were level or downhill for the most part, which helped give me the confidence I needed to keep going (also, I wasn't so tired, but I wanted to stop? Mind over matter.) Then came that last half mile.

I live on a hill that is not insignificant. It's a full 1/3 mile. Ending my first ever 4-miler on a hill felt like an impossible ask. And then I turned up the volume on my iPod, skipped to the next song with a hard beat, and I ran it. I sprinted the last two blocks home. It wasn't a fast run, and most certainly probably wasn't pretty to see! but I didn't walk, and I finished.

I also registered for my first race yesterday. I'll be running the Capitol Hill Classic 10k on May 19th. After last night, I know I can do it, and I honestly think I'll be trained for it well before it's here. That feels pretty damn good, you know? So thank you to everyone who encouraged me via here or facebook, twitter, instagram, etc. Letting y'all into my fears held me accountable for overcoming them.

Onto what I ate post-run.... 

Ciambotta (sometimes called Giambotta), or Italian vegetable stew found in the southern regions of Italy. It. Is. Bomb. It's my new favorite one pot meal. If you have leftover veggies you need to use, some chicken, beef, or vegetable stock/broth laying around (wine would work, too!), canned or fresh tomatoes, and seasonings, you've got this dish practically made. Here's the recipe. 

italy called and wants its homemade bolognese sauce back

I don't like not knowing the right answer. It harkens back to my days of being a teacher's pet. I like to always be right, and I like to be the first one to be right. My brother gave me the ever-charming moniker, "Know it All" when I was a kid. Oh man, how I hated it. Oh man, how I loathed it. And oh man, how I loved it. You gotta be some kind of smartypants to get that kind of accolade. (Thank god I got nerdier cooler with age. ;)) 

So you can imagine the extreme torture it is to be asked a question, especially a simple one, and not know the answer. Oh, how it destroys me! Go ahead, stick your hand in and twist my vitals! It's the worst. And that sickening torture happens every time someone asks, "What's your favorite food?" 

...

WHAT KIND OF QUESTION IS THAT? 

You might as well ask me if I prefer semicolons or colons, or to choose between To Kill a Mockingbird and The Invisible Man (the nerd level in this post is damn-near reaching unreadable!). I am twitching even typing this, even THINKING of these absurd, irresponsible, rude, mean, cruel, torturous, impossible questions. 

There's pizza. Jesus, my love for pizza is truly worthy of invoking the name of a deity. 

Ham. OH HAVE MERCY, how much I love ham - honey ham, spiral cut ham, off the bone ham. I'm sloshing about in a drool-covered keyboard now. 

A perfectly cooked steak. 

Duck boob.

Roasted broccoli.

Edamame.

Hummus.

Edamame hummus.

Cajun french fries. 

Shut the front effing door, I hate this question and everyone who has ever asked it.

But if we're all six years old again (have I even aged past that, really?), and someone has a gun to my head and I have to choose (what kind of mind games do most killers really play, really?), I say... my answer is... are you ready? Sitting down? Reading this on your mobile device trying not to run into a light pole? I got distracted. 

My answer is sausage. 

Yep. Sausage. Homemade, preferably, from your local favorite Italian grocer or deli. Or in your kitchen, if you're so ambitious. Sausage. Hot Italian sausage. 

It is the best pizza topping. The best sammie filling. The best pasta protein. Hell, you could probably make hummus out of it, what do I know? (......New goal.) 

I love sausage. And I really, really adore fresh spinach pasta. So it was only a matter of time until I caved in and made homemade Bolognese sauce. I do a simplified version of this like bi-nightly (please don't judge my extreme pasta intake too harshly!), but this is big 'ole pot worth, worthy of freezing if you can keep it around that long, and it's truly homemade. 

Don't even get me started on my favorite dessert or spice. I'll be yammering for weeks. 

Recipe adapted from Sugar Free Mom's traditional Italian Bolognese sauce

ingredients

4 links Italian sausage of your choosing (i use vace's hot - located in d.c.)

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 large onion chopped

4 large cloves garlic, minced + more because there's never enough garlic tip: i use a cheese grater to mince!

1 cup water

2 28oz cans of crushed tomatoes (i didn't have this much so my pictures may appear slightly more "soupy" than you will with the full two cans! i'll use the full amount next time.)

1 28oz can diced tomatoes (taste of italy from vace in d.c.)

2 tsp dried fennel seed (lovelove)

2 tsp dried basil (who am i kidding? i don't measure anything. pinch + pinch + pinch)

2 tsp salt 

2 tsp pepper

2 tsp parsley

2 tsp oregano

2 tsp thyme 

2 tsp parsley 

crushed red pepper to taste (i loaded it up)

i.e. EVERYTHING IN YOUR SPICE CABINET

pasta of your choosing (for me: fresh spinach fettucini, also from vace!)

steps 

heat your oil in a large pot on medium heat

add sausage and cook until brown (pink is okay - it will cook through while it simmers!)

add onion and garlic and saute until your house smells like heaven (/until translucent)

add crushed tomato, water, and all 100 seasonings. bring to a boil. reduce heat, cover, and simmer for one hour, or until you're mouth is watering too much to wait any longer. 

bring a separate pot of water to boil and add your pasta of choice. cook for 7-9 minutes and drain. 

if the sauce is too thick, you can add more water. if it's too thin, try adding some tomato paste. i thought the consistency was great.