Tom Sietsema Drops 1.5 Stars on a Salty Boundary Road

Washington Post critic Tom Sietsema sounds almost pained to file a 1.5 star review for H Street's new darling Boundary Road this week. While he liked the restaurant a lot when he went in for a First Bite months ago — at the time suggesting it as a possible challenger to the Atlas Room's status in his book as "the most polished of the neighborhood's dining rooms" — some kitchen missteps have since gotten in the way of a higher rating. Namely, too much of everything — oil, black pepper and, mostly, salt:

Too much of the cooking tastes as if it passed through a salt mine on its way to the table. A server's reaction to my complaint about an especially overseasoned dinner was to offer me dessert on the house, but what I really want is duck leg confit that doesn't smack of being sponsored by Morton's. No meal escapes the problem.

But Sietsema's still rooting for the restaurant, noting that is "has good bones, good drinks and a nurturing staff." He would just very much like for its kitchen to take his advice and take it easy on the salt, please. [WaPo]

Tim Carman files on ChefDriven, the food truck from former Yin Yankee chef Jerry Trice whose menu changes weekly with the market and with the season. Carman's such a fan of the menu that the frequent changes seem to be its only drawback — especially when Trice took the oyster tacos off the menu: "The balance of the dish — hot, cool, crunchy, pillowy, earthy — is so wondrously architectural that you want to fall to your knees and beg Trice to bend his own seasonal rules and keep the tacos on permanently." [WaPo]

Going Out Guru Justin Rude also files for the Post this week, this one for Justin's Cafe out by Nationals Park. Rude attributes the popularity of the cafe to its proximity to the park, its neighborhood trailblazer status and also to a solid menu: "Although the menu is not ambitious, its familiar flavors are well made and one or two steps ahead of most ballpark offerings, especially for those looking for lighter fare." [WaPo]

Jessica Sidman tries out the Sundae Bloody Sundae at The Pig, which is, yes, a pig's blood ice cream sundae. She writes: "I can't say I've ever had straight-up pig's blood, but whatever it tastes like is pretty well masked behind the heavy chocolate and touch of Grand Marnier. The consistency is more like a dense mousse than ice cream. It's so rich and so sweet that I can only stomach a few bites before surrendering my spoon." [WCP]

THE BLOGS: EatMore DrinkMore discovers a gem in Maple; Eat the District likes Georgetown Bagelry, which is actually in Bethesda; DC-Wrapped Dates revisits (and still adores) Eola and has a decent opening night experience at Bandolero.

Boundary Road [Photo: R. Lopez]