Fro-yo fanatic

It's true-- after a mere 24 hours I had to return to Dupont Circle to Mr Yogato for a late afternoon snack. It was as good as I remembered, even though I had to share this one with Richard. And it's also true that after dinner I just had to try Tangysweet and see how they held up to my new favorite place on the other side of Dupont Circle. It was packed with yogurt-deprived people in a long line to the door. We chose half pomegranate and half original (the other option was green tea). I loved the crisp, sour flavor of the pomegranate- just like eating the fresh fruit. And the texture was the same firm, creamy-yet-icy delight of Mr Yogato. However, I felt like Tangysweet was a bit too sweet, and lacked the truly tangy yogurtness of Mr Yogato. So, for now, to Mr Yogato I will go...

Oh, oh, yogato!

I am far more accustomed to compromising when I get dessert than I am to getting exactly what I want. What I wanted was cold, creamy, tangy yogurt which was fruity but not sweet. What I got was delicious, cold, creamy mango yogurt which was fruity and tangy and not the least bit sweet. IT WAS AMAZING and I wandered around in a fro-yo induced trance until it was done. I love it, and feel like I should move from the suburbs to the city just to be closer to Mr Yogato. The only downside is that the the toppings seems like a rip-off, but people seem to order them.

I need to return soon, and while I am there, to swing by tangysweet!

What thrills me...

... is the idea of living in this seemingly tropical climate where every steamy day ends in a release of rain and thunder and lightening from the sky...
...is sitting on our back porch drinking a 2003 Darioush viognier, purchased at the vineyard back when I had no concept of marriage, mortgages, or what a viognier even was, watching the wind and rain pound the trees and the ground...
...is not having to water our garden straight through July, our lettuce crunchy and fine...

And because I couldn't have said it better myself, and because it has been sitting at my home for almost 5 years, and because I wandered into a vineyard in the midst of construction at 10am on a weekday and fell in love with a white wine for the first time, “The 2003 Darioush Viognier Napa Valley posses texture and flavors so concentrated, the wine almost suggests a honey made from the pollen of honeydew melon, jasmine, citrus blossom, and honeysuckle. Amazingly, this Rhone-style white is not especially sweet; rather it pools luxuriously on the palate, then, like a summer raindrop, evaporates refreshingly.” Brett Anderson.

Berry trough

I cruelly forced Richard out of bed this morning, stuffed him in the car with some coffee and baskets, and drove all the way 'round the beltway to Poolesville to sample the ethereal summer blueberries.

At Farm At Home we arrived early enough to find bushes heavy with luscious fruit, and we picked and picked and picked until we had loaded our preferred blueberry-picking baskets with ripe berries. Yum. Yum, yum, yum. I attempted to convince him that the $50 we spent on berries we carefully picked was purely for health-enhancement purposes, and that it was cheaper than a few vitamins and a lot tastier. He didn't buy it, but tolerated the expenditure mostly because he wants to see what happens when I eat 16 pounds of berries in the coming days.

When I got home I discovered the true use for that bottom right-hand drawer in the fridge I had been foolishly storing onions in is actually a trough for berries. Yum.

Beer, frites, and pooping gnomes

After the symphony we decided to see if our lucky would hold and we could get a parking space in front of Brasserie Beck (of course we did, since this was a decidedly lucky day). I had wanted to try Beck, but looking at the menu online there wasn't much I wanted to eat, and I thought it was expensive for what it was-- so a late night beer was a perfect opportunity to give it a try.

I liked the space-- it pulled off that modern-yet-timeless feel with a nice balance of elegant touches and casual intimacy one would find in the cozy corner of a train station cafe in Europe. People were friendly here-- in fact, the service was top notch from start to finish-- welcoming, knowledgeable, attentive and relaxed. The beer menu is extensive and fun with lots of great descriptions. I told our waiter what I liked and he recommended a tasty brew from the Artisanal section of their menu. It arrive complete with its very own printed glass and an image of an apparently pooping gnome on the label. For $9 is was mid-range on their menu and not much of a bargain, and paired with the crisp, hot, parsley-flecked frites served with three fresh mayonnaises for $7, this was no casual beer and fries. But the beer was delicious, and it was fun and relaxing spot with excellent service and atmosphere, and unless you are feeling especially flush there is no way you will drink enough to wake up hungover.

A lucky night complete with sushi

How often can you score box seats for a Friday night symphony at the Kennedy Center for a mere $20? As if that wasn't enough to make you feel lucky, you hit no traffic driving there at 6pm on Friday night and park directly in front of your experimental dining choice for the evening, Kotobuki, in Palisades. Now, I know this is supposed to be a blog at least somewhat about eating in PG in the proximity of Cheverly, and I know I have done an exceptionally poor job lately. But the reality of it is there is less traffic in the summer, there are a lot of things happening, and we are just out and about a lot more than the rest of the year when we tend to stay closer to home. Perhaps the heat makes us itchy and adventurous.

Kotobuki is located in the sleepy Palisades area, a quick drive around Georgetown to the Kennedy Center. In its tiny upstairs room we were seated immediately (see, I said we were lucky) and munched on quality toro and hamachi sushi, shitake and avocado maki and some inari. We also tried the earthy-sweet burdock and carrot salad. I'm not sure the last time we ate our fill of nice sushi for $20, but this was our night. I liked the place-- simple, plain and quality for a good price-- these people have the right idea and I hope they stick with it.

Modernist Society scrapped for a few free drinks....

We went to Bourbon in Adam's Morgan for a Modernist Society gathering. This is a seriously busy place, and once we scored a table we waited 30 minutes for a menu. We finally ordered at the bar and waited for our food-- we were in doubt we would be able to participate in any of the activities.

I like the idea of Bourbon-- American whiskey at its best, decent pub food, and an undoubtedly thriving atmosphere. Plus, there was a fancy McCallen tasting there that night, and once you did the free tasting and filled out the postcard so they could keep up with their fans, you got a free drink at the bar. No kidding.

The bartender lost our order, we got hypoglycemic, he rushed the next order to us with drinks on the house, and we started wondering if we were going to get home. Needless to say, after the decent pub grub (ostrich and veggie burgers, the ostrich the better) the free tasting, the comped beers and the complementary whiskey with the postcard, we had the cheapest evening out we have ever had in DC. Seriously, ever. We paid $25 including tax and tip for the lot-- and I was almost embarrassed.

As for the Moderist Society, we never made it upstairs until the event was into the nightclub phase and it was time to waddle home. And for Bourbon, it is a half decent place with a humble bartender who can admit he messed up your order and send you away to pout with a drink on the house. We are sure to wander back at some point when we want a noisy and fun evening out.