Washington, DC New Menu Report: Week Of 01/26/15
High in the Swiss Alps, few rustic dishes are as hearty or beloved as aromatic raclette. This warming winter dish is served at Blue Duck Tavern every evening during the winter months at 6:00 p.m., is priced at $18 per serving, and is easily shared between two people. The Blue Duck Tavern's version is an artisanal Vermont raclette heated and served tableside with sourdough bread and housemade pickles. Blue Duck Tavern's cheese specialist, Sophie Slesinger, is on hand to serve other winter cheeses and charcuterie, and general manager, Joseph Cerione, has chosen a superb Grüner Veltliner by Wimmer-Czerny to accompany the raclette for $15 per glass and $60 per bottle.
Blue Duck Tavern is hosting two "Taste of Napa Valley" wine dinners featuring wines from Peter Franus Winery on Tuesday, January 27 and Michael Mondavi Vineyards on Thursday, January 29. Both dinners will be held at 7:00 p.m. at the coveted chef's table in the restaurant, and both dinners will feature a different iconic wine paired with each course of a special, four-course menu. Both winery owners will be on hand to introduce their wines and guide the tasting. The price for this dinner is $155 per person, not including tax and gratuity. Email the restaurant to make your required reservation.
It doesn't matter whether you root for the Patriots or the Seahawks; on game day, everyone is welcome to watch the Super Bowl at Cafe Deluxe West End. If you choose to watch the game at Cafe Deluxe, they are offering drink specials that include $4 Flying Dog drafts (Raging Bitch; K9 winter Ale) and $1 Miller High Life pony bottles. This neighborhood go-to spot serves classic American food and their diverse menu includes options for everyone, from kids, to vegetarians, gluten-free adherents, and burger lovers.
From whistle to whistle, City Tap House is serving unlimited drafts from 40 beer lines and two beer engines for $35 per person, not including tax and gratuity. In addition, they are serving a special Super Bowl menu that includes hearty fare like Philly cheese steak with duck fat fries and Bavarian pretzels with buttermilk dipping sauce. This popular pub fills up quickly, so reservations are strongly encouraged.
This year, ENO Wine Bar is offering gridiron fans a chance to nosh and cheer their teams for two prices. You can watch the game on the wine bar's high definition TVs, and during the game take advantage of $4 local beer, $5 wine on tap, unlimited popcorn, and a special menu that includes pork barbecue meatballs, an assortment of chips and dips, flatbread, and grilled cheese bites.
If you are looking for a more upscale football party, you and 9 to 22 fellow football fans can enjoy a private party in the Cellar for $30 per person, not including tax and gratuity. Before the game starts, your host will predict the winner, and then during the entire first half of the game, guests whose team was predicted to win will be rewarded with a carafe of wine every time that team makes a touchdown. In addition, there will be unlimited snacks during the first half of the game. To book ENO's Cellar, email Sabrina Kroeger by Friday, January 30.
Put a little spice in your Super Bowl menu and head over to Fuego Cocina y Tequileria, chef Jeff Tunks' authentic Mexican restaurant in Arlington, Virginia. The restaurant will be showing the game on their wide-screen TVs and are offering Happy Hour all day. Things kick off with a pre-game party at 5:00 p.m. and the restaurant's "5 for $5" special: the restaurant is selling taco plates, Fuego's Hamburguesa, Mexican wings, guacamole, and Margaritas for just $5 each.
Judging from recent drops in the mercury, a hot, steaming bowl of clam chowder may just hit the spot, and Boston-based Legal Sea Foods is happy to oblige with their Super Bowl snacking companion, Souper Bowl Special, running January 31 and February 1 at three of their D.C. area locations. In honor of #12 Tom Brady's sixth trip to the Super Bowl, fans can purchase six "souper" bowls of clam chowder for just $12 (a half gallon of clam chowder is regularly $21.95) from Legal Sea Foods' takeout counters on Super Bowl weekend.
Starving college students and savvy spenders everywhere will be excited to learn that it's possible to dine well in D.C. for $25; they just need to dine at Mio Restaurant. Call it in loco parentis, old fashioned generosity, or good business, but owner Miguel Iguin is offering college students a three-course prix fixe menu (appetizer, entrée, and dessert) for $25 the entire winter semester. The menu is only available from 5 to 6 p.m. and participants must have a valid student ID. The dishes served will change every week but include a variety of appealing but healthy brain food selections designed to help them do well in school, like pigeon peas "gandúles," codfish croquettes, and vegetarian eggplant and sweet plantain napoleon.
It's January, and in acclaimed chef Richard Sandoval's culinary empire that means it's time for a new installment in the "Test Kitchen" series of Latin and Asian-inspired menus. This round of small plates and cocktails will highlight dishes influenced by the ingredients and flavors of Mexico and Korea and it is available through March 31. One standout dish is the Reseda Farms beef cheek albóndigas (spicy Mexican meatballs) in a chipotle tomato sauce, topped with Cotija cheese and served with a warm baguette. The featured Mexican-Korean menu items range in price from $8 to $14, and for your drinking pleasure, Rob Day, Richard Sandoval Restaurants' national beverage director, has developed some inventive and flavorful cocktails to pair with each dish. His drinks are a sensuous, spicy blend of East and West, as in the watermelon soju Margarita with Agavales tequila reposado, Korean charm soju, watermelon juice, sour mix, and serrano pepper.
Summer Whitford is the D.C. City Guide Editor at The Daily Meal and the DC Wine Examiner. You can follow her on Twitter @FoodandWineDiva.