I've come across a plethora of inexpensive happy hours at places I wouldn't have expected recently. I like booze and don't like to pay for it, and I don't feel like I'm alone, so I thought I'd share:
Oceanaire: Most of Oceanaire's entrees run into the $30s, so it's not a place that many of us have on our regular rotation, however they do have an excellent happy hour. 3$ draft beer, 4$ house wines, and 5$ cocktails make the booze affordable. Throw in bar snacks for between $5-$8, including a number of seafood tastes, and this is a pretty good deal.
Bourbon Steak Lounge: In the 4 Seasons in Georgetown, most cocktails at BSL go for $15 - hardly a daily happy hour. But until THIS WEDNESDAY, August 31st, you can get a hot dog and a pint of DC Brau for just $7. It's off menu, so just ask your server/bartender
J&G Wine Bar: I wrote about this last week, but the bites and tastes at J&G wine bar gets you three tastes of wine and there snacks (paired) for just $20 - incidentally the same price it will cost you to valet your car for this happy hour at the W, so take the metro or walk.
Kellari Taverna: Discounted drinks at the bar ($3-5$) is nice, but even better is the giant block of parmesan cheese with toast that you can slice of chunks from to snack on for no charge, in addition to the giant bowl of olives- also free. Have a few cocktails, munch on some snacks, and you have yourself a meal.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
NE Regional Amtrak Sale
At the usual $49 each way advanced purchase price, Amtrak already saves you money if you're traveling to NYC alone or with one other person (at 3 people it starts to be cheaper to drive). But if you book before tomorrow, you can get a roundtrip ticket for just $58, making up for New York City's $7 Miller Lites and high fall hotel rates.
Book here: http://www.travelzoo.com/car-rental/north-america/-29-Baltimore-D-C-to-NYC-on-Amtrak-Sale-Ends-8-25-1088103/?utm_source=top20_us&utm_medium=email_top20
Book here: http://www.travelzoo.com/car-rental/north-america/-29-Baltimore-D-C-to-NYC-on-Amtrak-Sale-Ends-8-25-1088103/?utm_source=top20_us&utm_medium=email_top20
Lyon Hall
Lyon Hall is one of those neighborhood places that I really really really want to like, but I just can't quite get there.
The place has all the right ingredients - good location in Clarendon, a cool retro vibe, great beer program, mussels on the menu, good service...
This is also a place that treats its neighbors well. Eating there with the MTB for Easter Brunch, the maitre d tried to do whatever he could to accommodate his regulars despite having a full book. Service has always been enthusiastic and cheery, even if a few amateurish mistakes shine through (which are always promptly handled by management). I will say I did have to wait an oddly long time one Saturday afternoon while sitting at the bar by myself to get the bartender's attention - by all alone, I mean I was the one customer they were responsible for.
I also like how their respectable drink list is organized - beers you can drink all afternoon in one category, versus those that'll get you drunk in a hurry.
But then we come to the food. I get that french food is supposed to be heavy, but sometimes you aren't in the mood to lay waste to your entire afternoon by what you order for lunch, and that's hard to avoid here. There are also issues of consistency - one day I had the best mussels dish I've ever had. The next time I ordered the exact same thing and it was downright foul. The mussels tasted old and about 1/3 weren't opened. The same bartender who took so long to realize I was a customer also failed to notice (or comment) that half my dish went back untouched.
So for the time being, I'm putting Lyon Hall in the beer category. Great place to grab a drink on a Saturday afternoon, but if I'm going to drop serious cash on dinner, I'll probably go elsewhere.
The place has all the right ingredients - good location in Clarendon, a cool retro vibe, great beer program, mussels on the menu, good service...
This is also a place that treats its neighbors well. Eating there with the MTB for Easter Brunch, the maitre d tried to do whatever he could to accommodate his regulars despite having a full book. Service has always been enthusiastic and cheery, even if a few amateurish mistakes shine through (which are always promptly handled by management). I will say I did have to wait an oddly long time one Saturday afternoon while sitting at the bar by myself to get the bartender's attention - by all alone, I mean I was the one customer they were responsible for.
I also like how their respectable drink list is organized - beers you can drink all afternoon in one category, versus those that'll get you drunk in a hurry.
But then we come to the food. I get that french food is supposed to be heavy, but sometimes you aren't in the mood to lay waste to your entire afternoon by what you order for lunch, and that's hard to avoid here. There are also issues of consistency - one day I had the best mussels dish I've ever had. The next time I ordered the exact same thing and it was downright foul. The mussels tasted old and about 1/3 weren't opened. The same bartender who took so long to realize I was a customer also failed to notice (or comment) that half my dish went back untouched.
So for the time being, I'm putting Lyon Hall in the beer category. Great place to grab a drink on a Saturday afternoon, but if I'm going to drop serious cash on dinner, I'll probably go elsewhere.
Friday, August 19, 2011
NoVa Wineries
So speaking of wine...
I'll be the first to admit it, I didn't have a lot of faith in Virginia wines. It was one of those things that I've heard a lot about, but I figured, its Virginia, and its great that they're supporting local businesses, but the wine itself can't actually be good. So when the MTB said we were doing some wine tastings, my attitude was , eh, its drinking in the middle of the afternoon, who cares if it's good.
The first surprise of the day came as the location of the vineyards - these aren't down near Charlottesville or in the Blue Ridge, there are a number of wineries near Warrenton, just 45 miles away from DC.
The second surprise was that some of these wines weren't just passable, some of them were really quite good. Here's the rundown:
La Grange Winery, Haymarket, VA: First I'd highly recommend printing out an actual paper map of the area. I know, I know, but signal is weak out there, the roads are of the country variety, and one can easily get lost without some guidance. La Grange is down a pleasant drive near the Shenendoah foothills in an old country house with a number of outbuildings, next to the vineyard. Once inside, there is a little store that sells trinkets, snacks, and, obviously, wine. Next to that is the tasting room, with a U-shaped bar to belly up to for your tasting.
Options for tasting are: whites for 5$, reds for 7$, or all of them for 10$. These are not Napa prices (in a good way) but they are also not Napa pours (in a bad way). What they call a tasting, I'd call a splash, but hey, its cheap and we're drinking, so its fun nonetheless. The Chardonnay was our favorite, slightly metallic but not too sweet and not too oaky. I'd also recommend the Cabernet (should mention that I'm a cabernet man) but the Dead but Still Red was interesting as a Cherry'd Cabernet Franc. I didn't care for the Meritage as much as it was recommended. The best part about Le Grange - after your tasting, grab a glass for 7$ and head out to the lawn where you can relax on patio furniture in the shade overlooking the vines.
Pearmund Cellars - Warrenton, VA: After we visited La Grange, we took the back roads (I mean no-shit back roads) to its sister winery near Warrenton called Pearmund. It seems like a lot of the wineries in NoVa use grapes from the same farms, so while the wines may have similar characteristics, each is made in its own way and has its own personality.
To get to Pearmund, you wind through the vineyard of white grapes and arrive at the morton-style building with a decent interior to the U-shaped tasting bar. Set up was similar to La Grange, whites, reds, or the reserve tasting with a mix.
The MTB actually liked the Chardonnay here a bit better than at La Grange, it was a bit less sweet with a buttery oak flavor. I got the full tasting which included the Malbec.... this was maybe one of the more foul wines I've ever tasted - the nose was so strong of earthy ammonia (pee) that I couldn't get past it. In fact, I felt so strongly about it that I couldn't even get into the Ameritage blend that included a percentage of the Malbec.
Having said that, I really enjoyed the Cabernet Sauvingon, even though the body one typically expects from a Cab wasn't present, the flavors were there. I also enjoyed the Cabernet Franc, which was a bit more funky, in a good way.
There are a few other wineries in the area that I look forward to trying soon. With just $10 for a full tasting and less than an hour away, a Virginia wine tasting isn't a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon...
I'll be the first to admit it, I didn't have a lot of faith in Virginia wines. It was one of those things that I've heard a lot about, but I figured, its Virginia, and its great that they're supporting local businesses, but the wine itself can't actually be good. So when the MTB said we were doing some wine tastings, my attitude was , eh, its drinking in the middle of the afternoon, who cares if it's good.
The first surprise of the day came as the location of the vineyards - these aren't down near Charlottesville or in the Blue Ridge, there are a number of wineries near Warrenton, just 45 miles away from DC.
The second surprise was that some of these wines weren't just passable, some of them were really quite good. Here's the rundown:
La Grange Winery, Haymarket, VA: First I'd highly recommend printing out an actual paper map of the area. I know, I know, but signal is weak out there, the roads are of the country variety, and one can easily get lost without some guidance. La Grange is down a pleasant drive near the Shenendoah foothills in an old country house with a number of outbuildings, next to the vineyard. Once inside, there is a little store that sells trinkets, snacks, and, obviously, wine. Next to that is the tasting room, with a U-shaped bar to belly up to for your tasting.
Options for tasting are: whites for 5$, reds for 7$, or all of them for 10$. These are not Napa prices (in a good way) but they are also not Napa pours (in a bad way). What they call a tasting, I'd call a splash, but hey, its cheap and we're drinking, so its fun nonetheless. The Chardonnay was our favorite, slightly metallic but not too sweet and not too oaky. I'd also recommend the Cabernet (should mention that I'm a cabernet man) but the Dead but Still Red was interesting as a Cherry'd Cabernet Franc. I didn't care for the Meritage as much as it was recommended. The best part about Le Grange - after your tasting, grab a glass for 7$ and head out to the lawn where you can relax on patio furniture in the shade overlooking the vines.
Pearmund Cellars - Warrenton, VA: After we visited La Grange, we took the back roads (I mean no-shit back roads) to its sister winery near Warrenton called Pearmund. It seems like a lot of the wineries in NoVa use grapes from the same farms, so while the wines may have similar characteristics, each is made in its own way and has its own personality.
To get to Pearmund, you wind through the vineyard of white grapes and arrive at the morton-style building with a decent interior to the U-shaped tasting bar. Set up was similar to La Grange, whites, reds, or the reserve tasting with a mix.
The MTB actually liked the Chardonnay here a bit better than at La Grange, it was a bit less sweet with a buttery oak flavor. I got the full tasting which included the Malbec.... this was maybe one of the more foul wines I've ever tasted - the nose was so strong of earthy ammonia (pee) that I couldn't get past it. In fact, I felt so strongly about it that I couldn't even get into the Ameritage blend that included a percentage of the Malbec.
Having said that, I really enjoyed the Cabernet Sauvingon, even though the body one typically expects from a Cab wasn't present, the flavors were there. I also enjoyed the Cabernet Franc, which was a bit more funky, in a good way.
There are a few other wineries in the area that I look forward to trying soon. With just $10 for a full tasting and less than an hour away, a Virginia wine tasting isn't a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon...
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Bites and Sips at the J&G Wine Bar
J&G Steakhouse is one of the more critically-acclaimed steak restaurants in the city, but I'm guessing most of us have never visited. Aside from being in a hotel (most of us are naturally suspicious of hotel dining), its very expensive, as one would expect from a name brand steak joint in a trendy hotel downtown. But there are deals to be had if you look hard enough...
Last night, the MTB and I went downstairs to the J&G Wine Bar (found through the restaurant and down the stairs, or through the entrance at the corner of Penn Ave and 15th St). The wine bar is a pleasant space, with outdoor seating, and has the entire J&G wine list, full bar, and an abbreviated J&G menu available to patrons. It also has a special Bites and Sips menu, available by request.
Here's the gist: small (and they mean small) tastes of J&G food, each paired with a tasting of wine from the cellar, for 8$ per piece or $20 for three. Now first lets dispense with the single option, order the three to get a decent sampling and make it more cost effective.
We tried the Bacon-wrapped shrimp, served with a Chardonnay on the sweet side that paired well with the seafood. It was one jumbo shrimp with the aforementioned bacon, sitting on top of a slice of ripe avocado, next to a pile of diced papaya mixed with spicy dry mustard. Next up was three mini sliders (and I mean mini) with wee little sesame seed buns, wee little tomato relish, wee little cheese slices and a wee little burger patty. This was paired with a Montapulcino red that was very good and also went well with the sliders. Last up was a pair of tenderloin crustini, medium rare with a spot of J&G steak sauce on the top, served with a Viginia Cab/Merlot blend.
Let me say something for a second about Virginia wines. The MTB and I went on a wine tasting a few weeks ago around Haymarket and Warrenton, and I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of some of these wines. They didn't have the depth of a California Cabernet in taste or smell, but were by no means bad. However, this was a bad glass of wine at J&G last night. Little-to-no nose whatsoever, and a strong ammonia taste that came through and, when mixed with the beef flavor, tasted very off-putting. On our tasting in VA recently, I ran into this one other time with a malbec that was all but undrinkable with a similar ammonia flavor. So be wary of Virginia reds - some are very good, some are very not.
But back to the subject at hand... 3 tastings of food, plus 3 tastings of wine, for $20 at one of the better restaurants in town, between 5pm-7pm Monday - Friday. Not a bad deal at all.
Last night, the MTB and I went downstairs to the J&G Wine Bar (found through the restaurant and down the stairs, or through the entrance at the corner of Penn Ave and 15th St). The wine bar is a pleasant space, with outdoor seating, and has the entire J&G wine list, full bar, and an abbreviated J&G menu available to patrons. It also has a special Bites and Sips menu, available by request.
Here's the gist: small (and they mean small) tastes of J&G food, each paired with a tasting of wine from the cellar, for 8$ per piece or $20 for three. Now first lets dispense with the single option, order the three to get a decent sampling and make it more cost effective.
We tried the Bacon-wrapped shrimp, served with a Chardonnay on the sweet side that paired well with the seafood. It was one jumbo shrimp with the aforementioned bacon, sitting on top of a slice of ripe avocado, next to a pile of diced papaya mixed with spicy dry mustard. Next up was three mini sliders (and I mean mini) with wee little sesame seed buns, wee little tomato relish, wee little cheese slices and a wee little burger patty. This was paired with a Montapulcino red that was very good and also went well with the sliders. Last up was a pair of tenderloin crustini, medium rare with a spot of J&G steak sauce on the top, served with a Viginia Cab/Merlot blend.
Let me say something for a second about Virginia wines. The MTB and I went on a wine tasting a few weeks ago around Haymarket and Warrenton, and I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of some of these wines. They didn't have the depth of a California Cabernet in taste or smell, but were by no means bad. However, this was a bad glass of wine at J&G last night. Little-to-no nose whatsoever, and a strong ammonia taste that came through and, when mixed with the beef flavor, tasted very off-putting. On our tasting in VA recently, I ran into this one other time with a malbec that was all but undrinkable with a similar ammonia flavor. So be wary of Virginia reds - some are very good, some are very not.
But back to the subject at hand... 3 tastings of food, plus 3 tastings of wine, for $20 at one of the better restaurants in town, between 5pm-7pm Monday - Friday. Not a bad deal at all.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Turn up the AC, DC
No, this is not a blog about an Australain rock band.
It's a blog post asking why the hell it has been so hot in so many area businesses lately. "Hot spot" is not supposed to be a literal term.
I realize that it was the hottest July on record, I do. But it seems like recently too many bars, restaurants, and hotels have been a bit to reluctant to turn on the cold air. 18th St Lounge, Masa 14, Rhodeside, Mr. Smiths - all were too hot to stick around. Even the bar at Bourbon Steak in the 4 Seasons hotel on Saturday night was too warm for comfort, and for 15$ per drink, they can afford to run it as cold as they want. I should also point out that most of these visits have occurred at night, so its not even at the hottest part of the day.
Look, I know running your AC in this heat is probably expensive. But so is losing customers because they don't want to sit and sweat for hours with their dates. It is the hospitality business, please be hospitable.
It's a blog post asking why the hell it has been so hot in so many area businesses lately. "Hot spot" is not supposed to be a literal term.
I realize that it was the hottest July on record, I do. But it seems like recently too many bars, restaurants, and hotels have been a bit to reluctant to turn on the cold air. 18th St Lounge, Masa 14, Rhodeside, Mr. Smiths - all were too hot to stick around. Even the bar at Bourbon Steak in the 4 Seasons hotel on Saturday night was too warm for comfort, and for 15$ per drink, they can afford to run it as cold as they want. I should also point out that most of these visits have occurred at night, so its not even at the hottest part of the day.
Look, I know running your AC in this heat is probably expensive. But so is losing customers because they don't want to sit and sweat for hours with their dates. It is the hospitality business, please be hospitable.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
