Proof: My DC home away from home

I was in DC for work a couple of weeks ago, and having fond memories of Proof from my last visit, I decided to head back. I'll say up front: Proof was even better this time around, so good that I ended up there for dinner two out of my three nights in the city.

First off, the atmosphere is almost insanely welcoming. It's artfully lit, with cozy booths and spacious tables; wine bottles line a floor-to-ceiling room divider; there's a bar area in one corner; and the far corner, near the kitchen, houses a quiet little cheese counter, with a cheesemonger (?) methodically portioning enormous wedges of cheese into cheese-plate-sized hunks.

Oh, and the service-- it's spot-on. My waiter the first night came over to welcome me back the second night I was there, even though my table was not in his jurisdiction. Service is solicitous without being overwhelming; it's knowledgeable and friendly but not intrusive.

Proof is a wine bar, so of course there's wine. A decent selection of wines by the glass includes some unusual varietals (great for my Wine Century Club!) and offers three different sizes: half-glass, full glass, and quartino, all at reasonable prices. During my two visits, I tried a Furmint from Hungary and a Zierflander from Austria, both of which were crisp, delicious, and food-friendly.

Furmint

Zierflander

Ah, the food. Unlike at a lot of wine bars, the food here isn't an afterthought; there's a full menu, with lots of space devoted to charcouterie and cheeses, yes, but also an ample selection of salads, appetizers, and entrees.

On both my visits, I started with the olives. These are meaty, salty, substantial orbs in a delicious brine flecked with citrus zest and a touch of crushed red pepper. Since the olives are so large, one order is actually a decently-filling appetizer.

Very carefully plated

There's also a bread course of sorts, which is admittedly not Proof's strong point. While the dip-- Greek yogurt with mint, chives, and olive oil-- is addictive and spoon-worthy, the bread is flat, hard, unsalted, and largely flavorless. I understand why this might make a logical bland cracker for a pungent cheese course, but as a stand-alone bread it just doesn't quite work.

Quantity, not quality

But back to the good stuff. I tried two salads during my visit. First: maple-roasted delicata squash with arugula, pecorino, pumpkin seeds, and cider vinaigrette. This was a tasty and pretty hearty salad, with tender squash and some good crunch from the pumpkin seeds. I wished the pecorino had been portioned a bit thicker; as it was, it was so paper-thin it almost melted into the squash and didn't quite get a chance to assert its salty flavor. But overall, this was a good expression of fall on a plate.

Not too sweet

The second night I chose the roasted beets with pea shoots, kaleidoscope carrots, aged goat cheese, toasted hazelnuts, and sherry mustard vinaigrette (which I'd gotten before). This salad was a really ample portion-- I was unable to finish both this and a full order of olives. The beets were sweet rubies, contrasting nicely with the peppery bite of the pea shoots. I had only two half-carrots in this salad, which was fine with me, since despite being "kaleidoscope" they tasted like normal carrots. The healthy scattering of hazelnuts lent welcome crunch to the mix, and the three small hemispheres of aged goat cheese provided a surprisingly pungent cheesy funk to the mixture. This is a good salad, but it's strong-- the flavors are all assertive, so if you're looking for a mild start to your meal, consider yourself warned.

Buried beets

One of the two evenings, I stayed for dessert. They have some interesting dessert options, including a sticky toffee pudding (which you don't see all that often), but I was looking for something light. One special request later (kindly obliged by both my waiter and the kitchen), and I had a trio of their specialty ice creams. A scoop of gianduja gelato was smooth and hazelnutty; a boule of creme fraiche ice cream was surprisingly tangy and bold; and the orb of coconut sorbet had the appealing shatter-y texture of good sorbet, along with a tantalizing tropical flavor. And the nut cookie providing the garnish added some welcome heft to the dish.

Smooth, creamy, and neutral

I love Proof. It's the kind of place that makes me want to own a wine bar someday, someplace that is cozy and welcoming (even to a solo diner), takes pride in its food, and offers a diverse selection of wines that allow people to try something different without laying out too much cash. Last year, Proof earned four Offset Spatulas from me, and this year it effortlessly retains that rating. You can bet that next time I'm in the area, I'll be back.

Proof
775 G Street NW
202-737-7663

Riverpark: If you can make it there, you'll be rewarded

Last week, I received a kind invitation to the friends and family period at Tom Coliccio's newest masterpiece, Riverpark. I'd read a number of early reviews that commented on the middle-of-nowhere location, and boy are they correct-- it's all the way at the river (um, obviously) in Murray Hill, accessible by some sort of pseudo-pedestrian-promenade, and located deep in an office building. To get to the restaurant you walk through a deserted highrise lobby, growing ever more certain that you're in the wrong place until finally you spot Riverpark's entrance.

Inside, the space is clean, sleek, and modern, with a few funky touches (check the pattern of the glass on the wall, for instance). But the main dining area doesn't make use of the river view, which is a bit too bad. Regardless, once you get rolling with the food, you'll forget about any view (or lack thereof).

That's because the food is pretty darn good. Start off with some wine-- in this case, we went for a bottle of Aglianico del Taburno. It was spicy and complex and very red. Wine Century Club? Check.

And then dig into the bread. Small, warm ovular baguettes with a thin crust, brought to a new level by a sprinkling of pretzel-style coarse salt. Rip off a piece. Slather in butter. Chew. Repeat. And then just try to stop. (Hint: You can't.)

Gone in 60 seconds

AS chose the braised octopus to start. He raved both about the flavor and the texture, which avoided the usual octopus chewiness. There was broth; there were cockles; there was baby bok choy. All the food groups were represented.

Delicate

And then came the entrees. AS chose the duck breast, which came with celery, pomegranate, and black trumpet mushrooms. The plate, shown below, looked remarkably like a certain forest floor tableau that graced our table at Del Posto many moons ago. Unlike the miscellaneous vegetable shavings of Del Posto, however, this dish was delicious, beautiful, creative, and tasty. The small cubes of celeriac were an especially nice touch.

There's duck in there somewhere

My choice was the baby lettuces, with marinated vegetables, herbs, and champagne vinaigrette. It was also quite good; there was a solid mix of small lettuces, clearly very fresh, that were enlivened by tiny bite-sized vegetables (many of which seemed to be baby multi-colored beets). It was a decent-sized portion and a bit more creative take on the usual mesclun salad.

Roughage

That did it for the savory courses; of course, we moved on to dessert. But first, an interlude with a tiny, tiny little cup of espresso.

That spoon is about two inches long

And now the sweets. AS ordered the chocolate tart with salted caramel and chocolate sorbet. Overall, I'd say that it was okay; the tart's cookie crust was a bit too thick in proportion to the chocolate filling, which made the dessert slightly clumsy. The chocolate sorbet, however, was tasty and smooth.

All forms of chocolate

My choice was the molasses pound cake with maple-roasted pears, creme fraiche, and pear sorbet. This dessert was also, on balance, middling; the cake was sweet and bouncy-textured but rather average; the pears needed to be roasted a minute or two longer to achieve that meltingly tender texture that pears can achieve with time. I really liked the creme fraiche, but there wasn't all that much of it. And I really didn't care for the sorbet, which tasted strongly of cinnamon or star anise in a way that I don't particularly enjoy. It definitely quelled my craving for a dessert, but I wouldn't go out of my way to order it again.

Lots going on here

So on balance, the savory food at Riverpark was unquestionably top-notch; the wine, service, and dining room were all lovely; but the desserts could use a bit more refining. No matter; if you can make it out to the far reaches of Manhattan, Riverpark will certainly provide you with a four-Offset Spatula meal. Just don't get lost on the way back.

Riverpark
450 E. 29th Street
212-729-9790

Pros and cons at Craftbar

Saturday night found me at a girls' dinner at Craftbar. I've been to the restaurant once before, almost two years ago, and had had a four-Offset Spatula time. While we definitely enjoyed each other's company while we were there this time around, experience-wise we weren't quite so lucky.

Once we were all there, we were led to a table promptly. Unfortunately, said table seemed to be in the middle of some arctic jetstream airflow, with air conditioning pumping down directly onto the table. I'm especially sensitive to cold, but for the record it wasn't warm out to begin with, and let's just say I was freezing. Once we piped up, they turned the A/C off, but it came back on about halfway through the meal. By the end of the dinner, I was--literally--shivering. Think about that.

Our server was friendly but professional. Unfortunately, one of her other tables was a twenty-person bachelor party seated right next to us and at the exact same time as we were. That meant that the pacing of our meal was off, as both she and the kitchen tended to them. While our entrees were rushed out promptly, our server tended to disappear for long periods of time, stretching the period between dinner and dessert and dessert and the bill far beyond what it should have been.

But how was the food, you ask? Good question. First, the drinks-- KS ordered a cocktail called the earl gray bees' knees, a concoction with earl gray Tanqueray, honey, lemon, and egg white. While that sounds pretty darn foul to my palate's ears, KS loved it and cited it as one of the best things on our table the whole night.

On to the rest of the fare. First, the bread-- Craftbar's traditional breadsticks. These are dense, greasy things; set one on the table, and you're left with unappetizing grease spots dotting the brown butcher paper covering the tablecloth. There's some rosemary in there, but given the denseness, they're just dry. They beg for a dipping sauce. Or rather, they beg to be actual bread so you can have some butter or olive oil and actually enjoy them. Did I say that?

Tall. And greasy.

All the rest of our food came out at once. I went with the arugula, pine nut, and parmesan salad, which came in a salty lemon vinaigrette that stung my lips. This was actually pretty good and a decent portion with lots of cheese shavings, although a little audacious at $12. Really? I could make about 15 of these salads at home for $12. I guess that's not the point, but...

Filling, with lots of nuts & cheese

AC and SL shared the octopus appetizer, which came salad-style with fingerling potatoes and roasted lemon puree. Girls love their octopus, and this rendition was no exception.

Pretty!

Upon KS's recommendation and the server's confirmation, AC and SL also shared the lamb pappardelle. KS caved and ordered it as her entree as well. The concoction is listed as "Papparedelle, milk-braised lamb, stinging nettle, pine nut." KS remembers it as having a flavorful, reduced broth and a memorably tasty character the last time she ordered it. This time around, however, the consensus was: 1) the kitchen forgot salt, and 2) it was dry, dry, dry. Even from across the table, I could see that there was pretty much no sauce coating the pasta, which meant the strands stuck together in a congealed mess after a couple of minutes. The meat was pronounced dry as well. KS left about half of her portion, and AC and SL didn't want to finish theirs either. Disappointing.

See the bottom of the plate? Yeah, that means no sauce

Oh well, more room for dessert, right? Once we were once again granted the server's attention, we consulted the menu and placed an order. After a short delay, the desserts appeared. Upon the server's recommendation, AC and SL shared the pecan tart, an appealing pastry accompanied by a decadent-looking scoop of chocolate sorbet. The girls dove at the plate hungrily, raving about the sorbet, which was almost as rich as chocolate ice cream.

Just look at that glossy sorbet

I chose the carrot cake with roasted pineapple and cream cheese ice cream. Like the lamb, this proved disappointing. I'm used to Billy's Bakery's incredibly moist and almost gooey carrot cake, and compared to that, this carrot cake was austere, much more like dry carrot bread than cake. The crust tasted bitter and burnt, and I realized how dry the pastry was when I found myself hunting around for the occasional baked-in raisin for a welcome burst of moisture. The ice cream, however, was tangy and cool, and the pineapple (with an interesting spice note-- ginger, perhaps?) was a creative complement. Construct a bite with a bit of cake, dollop of ice cream, and a few squares of pineapple, and you're in business. Get a bite of just "cake" and you're left with a sad face.

Looks... wholesome

We paid the sizeable check and left the buzzy dining room. It seems as though you can have a great meal at Craftbar if you choose wisely; you can also leave thoroughly disappointed and much poorer for the experience. I believe the appropriate term for that is "inconsistent." Would I return to Craftbar? I wouldn't avoid it, and I'd come back if someone else were paying. The location is great, and there are some gems buried in the menu. But would I seek it out? Not especially. That means it loses one of its four spatulas this time around, settling around a thumbs-up-thumbs-down three.

Craftbar
900 Broadway, between 19th and 20th Streets
212-461-4300

Disappointed by the service at Kyotofu

This past Tuesday, Mom got out of work early, so we arranged to meet up for food and drink at Kyotofu. Now, I've written about how much I enjoy Kyotofu's soft serve; I've had their plated desserts once or twice before as well, but I hadn't been back recently for the dine-in experience. Well, turns out I wasn't missing much... at least experience-wise.

I arrived before Mom did and asked for a party of two in the dining room, which is shaped vaguely like a spaceship and is tucked behind the kitchen and take-out area. The waiter showed me to a table in the corner, separating a four-person setup into two two-person tables, one of which was for me. There was maybe one other occupied table in the room; the rest was empty. Seems reasonable, no?

Well, after I had settled in and removed my eighteen layers of outer garments, the same waiter came in and told me that table was reserved, so could I move to THAT table (points across the room to the opposite corner, which looks pretty much 100% identical to my table, only across the room). I actually laughed. Sure, I'll move, what the hell. So I started the rather laborious process of gathering my things, during which the party of two who had "reserved" my table told the waiter they didn't care and would sit in the other corner. So I was ALLOWED to keep the table. Woohoo.

That pretty much set the tone for the service that evening. Mom arrived and after a delay we were able to place our orders. I asked for a pot of genmai matcha green tea, which came in a beautiful setup, albeit with no place to put the basket of used leaves once I pulled them out of the tea to stop the steeping. Oh, and I was about two cups in before my requested sweetener arrived.

All very delicate

Mom's food finally arrived after I'd consumed nearly all of the tea. Kyotofu's savory menu is a bit confusing-- it's hard to tell how big the portions are, so it's difficult to judge how much food to order. Insider tip: they're small, get a lot. Mom went with three choices, and that was right for her. The first, chamame, was enjoyed; when the diners at another table asked the waiter what made it different from regular edamame, our waiter said "it's the same." Way to sell it, brother! Regardless, Mom claimed there was an interesting flavor-- not just regular salt-- atop the beans. Some sort of cheese? Who knows?

Beans in a bowl

She also ordered the warm Japanese mushroom salad. She liked this quite a bit as well, noting that I would probably like it too. I do like my salads, so I trust her judgment on this.

Greens 'n' fungi

Her final choice was the house-cured snapper nigiri. She took one bite and noted that she had expected the dish to have much more flavor. Too bad. From the other waiter roaming the room, I requested some soy sauce, which mercifully arrived quite promptly. I think the soy sauce rescued the dish to some extent.

Flavorless, but pretty

While Mom packed away her "real" food, I went straight for the dessert. Intending to get the soft serve sundae, I inquired as to what the soft serve flavors were that week and was told that the soft serve machine was out of commission. Wah-wahhhhh. On to plan B. I ordered the sorbet sampler, which I requested with one scoop of white peach and an extra scoop of coconut rather than the mandarin orange that completed the trio. The white peach was rather astringent, but the coconut sorbet was sublime-- preternaturally creamy with a texture like velvet and the strong and pure taste of coconut. There were three mini cookies on the side; two chocolate chip, which were forgettable, and one of an unidentified nature studded with what looked like white chocolate chips, which was actually quite good.

Strangely hypnotizing

At this point, dinner finished, my mom naturally wanted dessert. It took a good ten minutes or so for her to track down our waiter to request the dessert menu; a hasty order was delivered, and we eagerly awaited the conclusion of our meal. And a-waited. A solid half hour passed before she finally asked our server once again where the dessert might be. He said that the kitchen was "baking" the chocolate cake, so it takes a longer time. Uhhh, sure. Well, a few minutes later the cake emerged-- perfectly room temperature, of course (so maybe they had baked it and then the exorbitant wait was simply the time while it was cooling to room temp? Riiiight). No matter. What's important is that the cake was delicious. My mom particularly swooned over the pool of caramel in which it sat, and I took care of the dollops of "cream" on top-- I swear it was a dead ringer for the middle layer of an Oreo. Truly well done.

Worth the wait. Sort of.

We had wisely requested the check when the dessert arrived, and it came promptly, along with two heavenly finishing bites of complimentary mini chocolate souffles. Mmmm.

Final bites

As soon as our last bites were dispatched, we shipped out of there. I must say, while the food was quite good overall, I was pretty disappointed with the overall experience of Kyotofu. The service was bumbling and awkward, with terrible pacing and long stretches of inattentiveness. And have I mentioned that there are only about eight tables in the entire restaurant? Perhaps they simply need another server or two to staff the dining room. Let me be clear-- the food is good, but it's expensive, and for those prices, the service needs to be there as well. So the question is, would I return? I'll definitely be back for the soymilk soft serve when the machine is back in action, but I'll think twice before paying the price for the dining room. I guess that means Kytofu ends up on the wrong side of the two/three Offset Spatula divide.

Kyotofu
705 Ninth Avenue, between 48th and 49th Streets
212-974-6012

Back to Vong for twists on greatness

Two weekends ago (I'm a bit behind...) AV and I made our way back to Vong. I'd received a gift certificate there for my birthday, courtesy of my delightful parents, and though I'd enjoyed it thoroughly with both AV and my mother on two occasions in the same week, I hadn't yet found the time to go back. But finally the time had come, and we were back, hoping for the same bursts of greatness we'd witnessed the last time around.

As with last time, we started with the papadum chips with peanut sauce. Incredibly savory and compulsively popable, we both could be satisfied with a huge bowl of these chips, a vat of sauce, and perhaps a couch and a football game. But I digress.

Papadummmmmmm

For his entree, AV went with the vegetarian version of their summer rolls, but instead of the standard dipping sauce, he requested the spicy sriracha dipping sauce that usually accompanies the salt-and-pepper calimari. He was exceedingly happy with his decision.

Mash-up!

I was sad to see that their green papaya and apple salad, which I had enjoyed so thoroughly last time, was no longer on the menu. But it was replaced with "Mango salad, lime and chili dressing," which looked promising. I ordered it. And I was glad I had. It had thick strips of mango along with the same delicious odds-and-ends that had made the papaya salad so delicious-- cashews, fried green beans, cherry tomato halves. There was also a bizarre hunk of iceberg lettuce. Sure. Regardless, it was one of the better salads I've had in a while-- not quite as good as the papaya version, but certainly worth returning for.

A medley of savory and sweet deliciousness

On to dessert. Our amazing caramelized pineapple treat from before was also gone from the menu, so we were left to our own devices. AV overheard another table order an off-the-menu molten chocolate cake, and he followed suit. With vanilla ice cream, it was a solid rendition of the classic.

Gooey inside

I ordered just plain coconut sorbet. With that order, I got three large scoops of flaky, chilly coconut sorbet-- delicious-- and a long cookie-- forgettable. It was so much sorbet I almost couldn't finish it. Well, almost.

Coconut fabulosity

Even with all that food, we were still left with more than half of my $100 gift certificate left over. So, Vong, we'll be back-- for more four Offset Spatula action and whatever other delicious surprises you can throw our way.

Vong
200 E. 54th Street
212-486-9592