Tom Sietsema Gives the 50-Year-Old 1789 Two Stars

Tom Sietsema appreciates the classics this week during his visit to Georgetown's 1789 in celebration of the restaurant's 50th anniversary. The starched linen, jacket-advised dining room is keeping on keeping on, forgoing foams and pop-ups in favor of timeless cooking. Sietsema's review lands at two stars, noting a tendency from chef Anthony Lombardo to add too much dressing. But he gives major kudos to the crisp-skinned Arctic char with citrus slices, the "piggy-rich" pork loin, and the chef's pasta:

Allow me to introduce you to the chef's black and white tagliatelle. A tasteful bridge between the chef's Italian heritage and contemporary cooking, it may be the most joyful dish on the list. Tossed with bright green peas, smoky with bacon and decorated with single-bite crab fritters, the two-toned pasta can be ordered as a first course or a main course. Get the bigger size, because the chances of keeping the dish to yourself are small.

Sietsema didn't seem to want to share the vanilla ice cream-stuffed profiteroles for dessert either, calling them "the best of endings." [WaPo]

As has been previously noted, the Washingtonian's Cheap Eats 2012 hit the web this week with a ton of picks. They can't all be rehashed here, but they include Korean BBQ and soju at Honey Pig (Gooldaegee), "shawawesome" shawarma at H Street's Shawafel, and grilled shrimp pizza at Black Jack, now forever known as a "bordello-chic bar/bocce court." [Washingtonian]

In the Washington Post, Alex Baldinger visits St. Arnold's Mussel Bar in Dupont and argues that a steaming pot of mussels is a good idea for a workday lunch (92 degree temperatures regardless). With 20 mussels preparations to choose from, he recommends the house specialty, Mussels St. Arnold's, which "arrives in a house-made beer broth laced with caramelized shallots, garlic, thyme and duck fat. Each order comes with a side of Belgian frites and bread for dipping. It's a hearty entree that's well worth the $18." In the same review, Baldinger also takes a look at the restaurant's newer Cleveland Park location. [WaPo]

Also in the Post, Nevin Martell feels at home at Kohinoor Dhaba in Arlington, and lays out a strategy for the buffet: "First load your foam takeout container with a couple of fist-sized, tricornered samosas and deep-fried alu tikki fritters made with mashed potatoes, lentils and paneer cheese. For your main courses, go easy on the dry, crackly rice, which spent too much time under the heat lamp. Concentrate on the capsicum-spiked goat curry, rendered tender in onion gravy that is based on a family recipe, and the faithfully executed, but alarmingly orange, chicken tikka masala." [WaPo]

THE BLOGS: EatMore DrinkMore loves the Farmhouse Smash cocktail at The Pig; Eat the District loads up on the toppings at Tenleytown's Bloo Moo Yogurt and tries octopus, anchovy and tuna push pops (yes, really) at Pulpo; The Bitches Who Brunch plan a bridal shower brunch complete with butlers at The Grille at Morrison House in Old Town; Borderstan sips Viennese coffee and orders gnocchi with sauerkraut on the patio at Eastern European-inspired Bistro Bohem; Borderstan also hypes the Chivito sandwich at gas station sandwich shop Fast Gourmet and recommends you add shoestring fries with that.

—Adele Chapin

1789 [Photo: R. Lopez]