Tom Sietsema Calls After Peacock Room a "Bite-Size Treasure"

It might be tough to find After Peacock Room, the new Georgetown restaurant that opened last spring and reopened in November with chef Nicholas Sharpe at the helm. But once Tom Sietsema's taxi driver manages to locate After Peacock Room, the restaurant's cooking makes a great impression on him. Sietsema gives it two and a half stars in the Washington Post Magazine, with praise for most dishes on the restaurant's tiny menu. The chicken sounds particularly appealing.

Has anyone else noticed how good so much restaurant chicken is lately? A flock of breeders is helping to change the bird’s reputation as a mere place holder on menus. Sharpe makes a mousse from thigh meat, creme fraiche and porcini mushrooms, which he slips under the skin of a black feather Pennsylvania chicken and cooks sous vide. Next to the centerpiece sits a roasted golden apple with a cap of creamy pommes espuma, or potato foam. The flavors run homey; the execution shows flair. Sharpe has sharpened his skills since he last cooked in town. [WaPo]

Washingtonian's Anna Spiegel thinks Dr. Andrew Weil’s True Food Kitchen in Mosaic District nails health-minded dining without feeling like an appointment with a nutritionist. She writes:

Crunchy, thin-crust pizzas arrive with a scant amount of cheese but flavorful toppings like chicken sausage and baked fennel; a bison burger packs plenty of flavor thanks to shiitakes, caramelized onions, and roasted-garlic "umami" sauce. More virtuous options like grilled salmon with smoky quinoa and cilantro/pumpkin-seed salad or crisp-skinned roast chicken over lentils and curry yogurt also hit the mark. Not all the dishes that lean toward restraint are satisfying—some could be saucier, punchier, less spa-like. But in a dining landscape bloated with pork belly and mac and cheese, Dr. Weil’s concept can feel like a true escape. [Washingtonian]

For his $20 Diner column, Tim Carman of the Washington Post recommends roti and appetizers at Takoma Park's Caribbean Palace, for anyone who isn't afraid of carb overload:

Someone could start a Starchaholics Anonymous group after eating at Caribbean Palace. I would never join if it meant surrendering my easy source for roti. Every gossamer flatbread here swells and heaves with a curry filling, stretching its flaky shell almost to the breaking point. Released from its foil cocoon, the roti can feel as heavy as a pot roast, virtually impossible to eat in one sitting unless you’re a work animal. [WaPo]

Bethesda Magazine's Carole Sugarman visits Crave, a chain originally based in Minnesota that's now open at Westfield Montgomery Mall. There's nearly 100 items on the menu, and Sugarman thinks that's too many. She writes:

In my mind, however, Crave bites off more than it can chew, as there were misfires in practically everything I tried (save for the gigantic lemon garlic wings). And all that meh comes at a price: Dinner for two, with one appetizer, two entrees, drinks and a tip, was $115. [Bethesda]

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