Tom Sietsema Awards The Wine Kitchen Two Stars

This week Tom Sietsema files a two-star assessment of The Wine Kitchen in Frederick, a follow-up to his October pre-review in his First Bite column. And while there are some misses on the menu (particularly on slow days), the Washington Post critic likes the bistro's fun atmosphere for drinking.

Sietsema seems charmed by the bistro's personality-filled wine labels that compare a pinor noir to a Corvette, writing, "Vroom! Vroom! My taste buds are primed to roll with the Sonoma Coast sipper, which lives up to the hype." But, oh yeah, Sietsema likes this place for eating, too, as it is apparently a good place to go during winter months. The critic brings up the weather twice in this review — once for a warming butternut squash puree and another time for a seasonally appropriate pork belly preparation.

Some drawbacks include a glass-walled, temperature-controlled private dining room that's more like an operating theater, undercooked white beans and a branzino that "tasted like a retread." But, all in all, Sietsema writes he hopes the group's planned third location will be in the District proper. [WaPo]

In the running list of where he's eating now, The Washingtonian critic Todd Kliman swaps in two spots, Boundary Stone and Proof. Of the latter, he writes that everything seems to have fallen into place. And what of Bloomingdale newbie Boundary Stone? "Really more the kind of place to drown your troubles—or create a few—but I'm just waiting to go back to this faux-divey Bloomingdale bar for the blue cheese-stuffed arancini and deviled eggs (both of which could fool you into thinking you'd stepped into a three-star restaurant menu)..." [The Washingtonian]

Rina Rapuano checks out Zeitoon Mediterranean Grill for the Washington Post this week, a strip-mall carryout in Sterling that she discovers turns out some quality pan-Mediterranean food. Rapuano's pick is the kufta kebab meal and she also points out that the decor of the place is quite lovely: "It's a work of art that makes waiting for takeout a pleasure, as did the snazzy jazz piped into the dining room and a complimentary soda." [WaPo]

THE BLOGS: DC-Wrapped Dates goes back to Equinox and discovers that its awesomeness is unchanged; Penn Quarter Living was not disappointed by a meal at Minibar; DMV Dining has something of a religious experience at A. Litteri; We Love DC has an enjoyable first meal at the newly opened Boxcar Tavern.

The Wine Kitchen [Photo: Facebook]