Posts Tagged ‘Del Ray’
Posted by Warren Rojas / Tuesday, June 14th, 2011
Anyone who believes it’s hard being the new(ish) girl in town has probably never Tiffany MacIsaac:
(Image: Neighborhood Restaurant Group)
MacIssac and hubby Kyle Bailey swooped into town in late 2009 to help the Neighborhood Restaurant Group launch Birch & Barley. Since then, MacIsaac has been handed the reins to the multiplying Buzz bakeries and placed in charge of the dessert programs across the NRG properties–scooping up a RAMMY nomination along the way.
WR: Butter. Sugar. What other culinary elements could you not live without?
TM: Salt. I prefer maldon for finishing, but there are all kinds of salt that add depth and balance to sweetness. My assistants know that every recipe gets a pinch of salt.
WR: What’s the very first dish you ever mastered? How long did it take? Do you still make it today?
TM: Early on I was really focused on ice cream and sorbet. I have always loved making it and it was the first thing I really dove in to and understood. I use a refractometer to make my sorbets, so there is no exact recipe. I currently have over 40 flavors that we produce for all of the Neighborhood Restaurant Group.
WR: What seasonal ingredient(s) get your creative juices flowing?
TM: I love grapes. I always look forward to concord grape season. I remember the first time I ate one, I was 19 and it completely blew my mind. It tasted the way I had always known grapes were supposed to taste, but I had only had that flavor in Bubalicious [sic] Bubblegum. Every year I remember how special that moment was.
WR: My latest cookbook obsession is …
TM: I read every issue of Art Culinaire. I love it.
WR: What’s the most challenging dish you’ve ever attempted? Would you make it again?
TM: I always try to challenge myself with new ideas/flavors/techniques. There is no particular dish, but I do have a general philosophy that if you can’t make something work, put it down and come back to it later. Sometimes I’ll work on something, abandon it for a year then come back and it just clicks. You can’t force things to work.
WR: If I could the spend the day working alongside any local chef, I’d love to collaborate with …
TM: This might be weird, but I’d say Sara Moulton. I used to watch her religiously on The Food Network. She was part of the reason I went to culinary school. When I was at Allen and Delancey, she dined there and I actually went to the table like a total nerd and gushed over her.
WR: What’s the easiest/quickest–but still wholly satisfying–meal you make for yourself?
TM: I am sandwiched obsessed. I can eat a good sandwich for any meal and I can make almost anything in to a sandwich. When my husband puts a new item on the menu at Birch & Barley, the general manager and I are always scheming a way to put the dish on a sandwich. At home, I am big fan of chicken salad, especially if Kyle roasts a chicken and we have leftovers.
WR: In the next six months you won’t want to miss my …
TM: Well, it’s summer and we have a new line of frozen items at Buzz – Ballston including the frozen fruit pops which are fun. I’m also getting a cotton candy machine. I’m not even sure what I’m going to do with it yet, but it’s cotton candy, so it should be fun!
WR: It’s quitting time. I’m pouring myself …
TM: Johnny Walker Black on the rocks
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Spontaneous sorbets, MacGyver-like sandwich ingenuity and access to a cotton candy machine? Chef, you sound like one fun gal.
Come back next Tuesday for another helping of Red Meat.
–Warren
Posted by Natalie Kaar / Tuesday, June 7th, 2011
(Eva Franco)
Hello there, shoppers!
Love the fun, flirty styles of Eva Franco? Of course you do, and I have great news:
Both Periwinkle locations, in Del Ray and Shirlington, are hosting an Eva Franco Summer Trunk Show this Thursday, June 9, from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m., when we’re invited to save 25 percent on all Eva Franco designs!
With all of those summer soirees just around the corner, we couldn’t have asked for better timing.
Just remember to save a little cash for those dynamite Queen Bee deals this weekend!
Happy shopping!
–Natalie Kaar
Posted by ryan / Thursday, March 24th, 2011
Del Ray’s Evening Star Café is hosting a charity event on Sunday, April 3. Funds raised will help the animal rescue effort called “Voices for Hope”. Their primary objective is to raise awareness and provide education on how to properly care for an animal. Your winning bid in the silent auction could eventually help cover the cost of spaying, neutering, and other necessary items.
Up and coming executive chefs like William Artley, Logan Cox, and Brendan L’Etoile are going to be in the kitchen preparing their specialty dishes. Artley should feel right at home, but Cox and L’Etoile are coming from within the confines of the District. Respectively, they work for the New Heights Restaurant and Marvin.
Donations are already being accepted at the Nature’s Nibbles pet store, also in Del Ray. Many of these animals they’re trying to help have never known what it’s like to play with a new toy or sleep on a soft bed. Please consider giving any food or gently used hand-me-downs you may have.
The big event takes place between 5-8 p.m. at the Upstairs NO 9 Lounge. The cost to attend is $50 per person. Buy tickets online, or call (703)-549-5491 for more information
-Ryan Robertson
Posted by Warren Rojas / Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011
Turns out you really can’t keep a good chef down. Take hometown hero Eric Reid:
(Image: Meaghan Gay)
Mere months after being forced to abandon his own restaurant, the publicly lauded Del Merei Grille, Reid was hired to help newcomer Del Ray Pizzeria woo back local diners after a particularly rocky start. He’s since learned to love the subtleties of Italian cuisine–though, rumor has it, DMG regulars have cajoled him into trotting out his signature frickles from time to time.
WR: Salt. Pepper. What other spices/herbs could you not live without?
ER: Thyme and parsley. Fresh thyme adds such a nice earthiness flavor to the dishes and now that I’m doing this Italian thing, I like the way the parsley adds a vibrant green to the entrees.
WR: What’s the very first dish you ever mastered? How long did it take? Do you still make it today?
ER: The first dish that I mastered? Hard to say, I don’t think you can ever really master a dish. I will say that I make shrimp and grits very well. It’s currently not on the menu at the pizzeria.
WR: What seasonal ingredient(s) get your creative juices flowing?
ER: Tomatoes. I love to make jams, chutneys, sauces, salads and preserves. Endless options with tomatoes.
WR: My latest cookbook obsession is …
ER: Magazines–they don’t even have to be food related. Any magazine that has a recipe or a new restaurant for me to read about.
WR: What’s the most challenging dish you’ve ever attempted? Would you make it again?
ER: Beef Wellington. This was on our Valentine’s Day menu at Del Merei one year. I thought I had the temps perfect only to find out after baking them off every one of them was blown away. I had to throw together another batch immediately. It was a bit of a nightmare with everything else going on.
WR: If I could the spend the day working alongside any local chef, I’d love to collaborate with …
ER: Brian Hooyenga. He was the chef at Evening Star when I was there. I would love to work the line one more night with him.
WR: What’s the easiest/quickest–but still wholly satisfying–meal you make for yourself?
ER: Fajitas. Thinly sliced NY strip, little cumin, little chili powder, salt and pepper. Sautee with some onions and peppers, get some sour cream and cheddar, a couple flour tortillas and hot sauce. You’re good to go.
WR: In the next six months you won’t want to miss my …
ER: Next project. I’d like to keep it in Del Ray; just need to find the location.
WR: It’s quitting time. I’m pouring myself …
ER: A Dogfish [head] and a grandma [resto-speak for Grand Marnier]
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Tomato jams are a personal favorite, chef. Methinks we’ll be seeing each other real soon…
Come back next Tuesday for another helping of Red Meat.
–Warren
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, January 25th, 2011
Chef Will Artley has been around food for a LONG time.
He cut his teeth on several local properties–the since-shuttered Colvin Run Tavern, Butterfield 9 and IndeBleu, as well as Kinkead’s–before taking up the Neighborhood Restaurant Group‘s cause in Del Ray, where he continues to steer Evening Star‘s culinary ship (including the subordinate Majestic and No. 9 lounges) as well as running Planet Wine’s by-reservation-only Farm Table.
But rather than clear things off his plate, this apparent workaholic plans to add another title to his curriculum vitae this year: gardener.
WR: Salt. Pepper. What other spices/herbs could you not live without?
WA: I’d give up pepper for fresh thyme. Fennel seed I use quite a bit, too.
WR: What’s the very first dish you ever mastered?
WA: Eggs. all styles.
WR: How long did it take?
WA: About 40 dozen. lol.
WR: Do you still make it today?
WA: Yes. I actually give cooks/sous chef applicants two eggs when they apply. I tell them to cook them one sunny side and one over hard. You’d be amazed at how many people fail that test.
WR: What seasonal ingredient(s) get your creative juices flowing?
WA: Ramps. Every year I spend time trying to figure out how I can prolong their shelf-life.
WR: My latest cookbook obsession is …
WA: A toss up between bread books and Sarma Melngailis’ “Living Raw Food” UNcookbook
WR: What’s the most challenging dish you’ve ever attempted? Would you make it again?
WA: Isomalt teardrops–Never. Not my style.
WR: If I could the spend the day working alongside any local chef, I’d love to collaborate with …
WA: Frank Ruta. He’s a stud.
WR: What’s the easiest/quickest–but still wholly satisfying–meal you make for yourself?
WA: Seems boring, but to be honest with you, anything I can throw in a wrap. Quick, easy, satisfying.
WR: In the next six months you won’t want to miss my …
WA: 2,000 square foot garden (located about 3/4 of a mile from the restaurant). We plan to harvest: green beans, cukes, squash, all herbs, 130-150 heirloom tomato plants (hope to harvest 500 pounds), carrots, beets, greens and onions. I’m sitting down with my buddy Travis Hester this month to finalize our planting. Come on, springtime!
WR: It’s quitting time. I’m pouring myself …
WA: A Maker’s.
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We’ll toast to a fruitful garden with you, chef. But I’m more of a Booker’s man.
Come back next Tuesday for another helping of Red Meat.
–WR
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Wednesday, September 8th, 2010
(Image: John Arundel)
Frickles fans have just over two weeks to feed their fix at Del Merei Grille, as the neighborhood eatery will be shuttering on Friday, September 24.
Co-owner and chef Eric Reid (pictured above with in-law and partner Mary Reid) is, understandably, saddened about having to move along in order to accommodate the planned full-scale renovation of the Calvert apartment building. But the optimistic toque doesn’t seem to harbor any ill will towards the landlord.
“It’s going to be really nice for the neighborhood … once it’s all said and done,” he said of the high-rise makeover.
Rather than dwell on any negatives–not that he really could, given that Reid and all the other soon-to-be-displaced tenants (Bombay Curry Company, Pizzaiolo Cafe & Bar) are being asked to sign confidentiality agreements as part of the retail update–Reid said he’s choosing to celebrate his 5+ years run by bringing back customer favorites (including a mixed grill boasting andouille sausage, scallops and shrimp, his famous mustard-horseradish sauce and other tastes from wayback) and just generally enjoying the ride.
“We’re going to pretty much find any excuse to have a party,” he suggested about the closing week agenda.
Rockwellians have already scheduled a farewell chili dog and beer bash for next Wednesday. And Reid hinted that he’s prepared to burn through his inventory with total abandon (switching up the menu near nightly, experimenting with new dishes).
And while he’s trying to not fixate too much on the future, Reid said he would absolutely love to continue cooking/launch another restaurant concept in his native Del Ray. He said he’s already being courted by potential investors/new business partners, but Reid insists on remaining focused on Del Merei until the lights officially go out.
Those who’d like to keep track of the chef after the 24th can always do so on his personal Twitter (@delmeric).
–Warren
Del Ray Vid Vies for Cash Prize
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010
(Video: Meredith Bragg)
It’s coming down to the wire in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s “I Am Free Enterprise” video contest.
And while nothing is certain till the polls close tonight at 11:59 p.m., Del Ray resident Meredith Bragg remains squarely in the middle of the pack–which means he’s still got a decent shot at pocketing between $20,000 (third place) and $50,000 (first place).
Regardless of whether he walks away with a top prize or not, Bragg deserves–sorry, I had to–bragging rights for cracking the top 5 via an outsider’s perspective. While all the other finalists chose to flog themselves/their livelihoods, Bragg composed, instead, a video valentine to some of his favorite gourmet purveyors–Caboose Cafe, Cheestique and Let’s Meat on the Avenue.
“I love the shops in Del Ray and Old Town and wanted to show how small entrepreneurs make my life and community a little better,” Bragg said of his non-traditional tact, noting, “A true free market it is a symbiotic relationship and helps consumers just as much as it helps businesses.”
Should his shopping montage net him a financial windfall, Bragg plans to celebrate–in true trickle-down fashion.
“I’ll need to throw a party for all the Facebook friends who helped vote for me every day over the past few weeks,” he said. “I’ll likely serve sandwiches.”
–Warren
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Friday, May 21st, 2010
(Image: The Next Web)
Oh, pseudo-serious-aggregation-of-140-character-or-less-bursts-of-brilliance, how I’ve missed you!
Mad love for all those who managed to get the poison out this week, including:
* Del Ray suds source Rustico (@RusticoVA) for twisting technology into a 24/7 excuse to tie one on;
* Reality TV junkie Jeff Houck (@JeffHouck) for astutely taking Top Chef DC with a grain of salt antacid;
* Culinary freethinker Johanna Kindvall (@kokblog) for turning bacon haters into believers one delicious dish at a time;
* D.C. rabblerousers Brightest Young Things (@BYTEatDrink) for challenging folks to eat way outside their comfort zone; and,
* Interweb weirdness trawler Boing Boing (@BoingBoing) for unabashedly relishing bizarro food festishes.
Great stuff. Keep on keepin’ on, all of you.
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Monday, May 10th, 2010
(Image: Louise Max)
ACKC co-founder Eric Nelson liked the fro-yo they used to dish out at his twin, local cocoa bars.
But he so LOVES the full butterfat, soft-serve ice cream mix they’ve added to the menu so much–”It’s the real deal,” he said of the frosty delight–he’s sharing free samples of the new frozen treat all week long.
From today through Friday, May 14, stroll in to Nelson’s Del Ray or D.C. shops for a free 5-ounce cup of either vanilla, chocolate or swirl ice cream. Samples are limited to a single serving per customer per day, but Nelson said repeat visitors are welcome to snag another helping during subsequent visits.
Should you get hooked, expect to see the soft serve joined with all the different “Diva” flavors in forthcoming frozen desserts and milkshakes.
–Warren
New Toque Adds Mystique to Cheesetique
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Monday, December 21st, 2009
Cheesemonger Jill Erber is thrilled with all the culinary embellishments chef Joshua Andrus has wrought–a roster which, to date, has included homemade soups, assorted quiches and gourmet flat breads–since assuming control of the Cheesetique kitchen in late October.
But she is most excited about what he’s pledged to add to the carte later this winter: house-cured charcuterie.
“It’s really more about finding the time to fit that in as well,” Erber said of the plan to add signature pates, terrines and aged meats to the wine and cheese shop’s snacking arsenal.
Andrus, an alumnus of D.C.’s fabled minibar, has certainly beefed up the wine bar’s offerings. But Erber insists the focus will always be on “approachable” cuisine.
“We’re not here to truffle people to death,” she stressed.
–Warren