Bryan Voltaggio's Range Earns 3 Stars from WaPo

The Washington Post's Tom Sietsema has a full review of Bryan Voltaggio's Range. With praise for one of the "best bread baskets in the city" and servers who can "read their customers like books," the result is three stars.

The big surprise after four dinners: The hype is justified. Range, backed by chef de cuisine Matt Hill from Charlie Palmer Steak, is a terrific restaurant much of the time. Its early problems with pacing appear to be solved, and while the setting overlooking several floors of office and retail space — including a 30-by-60-foot "synchronized LED wall" of changing art — suggest Las Vegas, this part of town could use the glitz.

Sietsema likes every pasta thrown his way, but notes the pizza can be inconsistent. [WaPo]

Over in Roll Call, Warren Rojas has a roundup of the staff's favorite breakfast choices on the Hill, including Tune Inn, Market Lunch, Sonoma and Jimmy T's. Of the latter:

Pull up a chair and pick a neighbor's brain while poring over cooked-to-order eggs, grilled half smokes, home fries and toast. Or savor a simple but sumptuous slab of grits, layered with shredded cheddar and coarsely chopped fried bacon. Show the world your sourest puss while spooning your way through a half grapefruit. [RC]

David Hagedorn praises the service at Hank's on the Hill in Capitol File. Turns out the food is pretty great, too.

At the newest Pennsylvania Avenue spot, members of Congress and their staff mix with media luminaries and locals to slurp down freshly shucked oysters and order up Leeds's signature dishes: delicately fried popcorn shrimp and calamari, and the chunkiest lobster roll in the District. Shrimp po' boys are also a favorite, but the real draw is—of course—the oysters. In-the-know foodies order up a dozen by choosing a selection from the six varieties offered daily. [CF]

Tyler Cowen highlights Rumi's Bistro in Vienna in his Ethnic Dining Guide. He says, "Excellent Afghan, this place earns a regular spot in my repertoire. The Afghan take on fesenjan(walnut and pomegranate sauce) is tasty and hard to get elsewhere." [TC]

Todd Kliman adds Monty's Steakhouse in Springfield to his list of places he's currently enjoying.

Monty's is doing a lot of things right. The comfy and subtly stylish space, which situates this steakhouse squarely among the new, non-masculine subset of the genre, is as unexpected as the quality of the cooking at this stripmall Springfiled restaurant. The steaks -- hand-trimmed, locally-grown dry-aged prime meat, owner Madana Montazami claims -- are big, properly cooked, full of juice, and rewarding, and the sides are cooked with care. [Washingtonian]

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