Archive for August 10th, 2009

I recently dined at Citronelle at the Latham Hotel in Washington, D.C. This is one of Michel Richard’s restaurants.

Amuses of Salmon, Mushroom Cigar, and mini Ratatouille taco

This was a nice start to the meal and came with champagne. I especially liked the salmon, which came with crispy bits on top, reportedly they were rice krispies.

Iced Cucumber Avocado Soup

A real winner of the night, served in a heavy platter with a lot of ice, this was refreshing, creamy, delicious—simply wonderful.

Soft Shell Crab stuffed with PeekyToe Crab in Tempura

My dining companion’s favorite, this was a nice light tempura batter with an absolutely delicious sauce. The sauce was like a light hummus made with eggplant and mint oil.

Halibut with lobster saffron broth

The halibut was over-cooked. It simply was a little dry and tough. The sauce, however, was to die for. Absolutely scrumptious and delicious.

Lobster Burger

This cute mini burger came complete with home made potato chips. Moist pieces of lobster served as the “meat” between two mini brioche-based buns.

72-hour Short Rib

The wine was good, the beef rib (without bone) was tender, but it wasn’t as good as I’ve read about. Our neighbor’s table ordered the full entrée version of this, served more rare. This had great flavor, but I’m afraid Daniel Boulud makes a better short rib.

Cheese Plate with Turley Zinfandel

We had great cheese, but the true winner here was a 2007 Turley. This wine was magic, and it helped accentuate all the positives in each of our four cheeses.

Strawberry cocktail

Of the last three “courses,” this is a supreme winner. Wow! This was a dessert served in a big cup—celebrating the strawberry. It had shaved ice and really complex flavors. A real treat.

Chocolate Bar

This was a grown-up KitKat with raspberry sauce. It was good, but the raspberry component was a little heavy. You might just call it raspberry sorbet and sauce with a chocolate bar. You use your fork and knife; not to be a Mr. Pitt (from Seinfeld), but it would be messy to eat with your fingers.

Petits Fours

We enjoyed these the next day. Too much delicious bread and butter were available the entire evening.

We were seated next to an amateur critic who was taking notes all night long in her notebook. She said her short ribs were too salty. While the waitstaff was old school yet friendly, they didn’t take as much care to our satisfaction as this lady with her notebook. Three different people came over to check on her salty beef, while no one ever asked about our too-well-done fish.

My esteemed dining companion loved the meal, citing the bolder flavors than what we had experienced at the French Laundry last November. While many of the dishes I had were very delicious, and I agree, more assertive flavors were to be found on our table, something fell short of this being a best-ever meal.

Two of my first three wine pairings were lackluster, good, but not great. Then with a white burgundy, Vin de pays d’Herault, Mas de Daumas Gassac Blanc, things got serious(ly delicious). This was followed by an excellent red, La Parde de Haut-Bailly, Pessac-Leognan 2001 and the aforementioned Turley Old Vines.

This was a special meal for sure. If you took away the poorly cooked halibut and the so-so chocolate bar dessert, I would have felt far more comfortable (we ate a lot), and more convinced the stars were all aligned for perfection.

Warmly recommended, especially if you score a view of the kitchen. Insist on this. We were seated in a corner, in the path of a noisy air duct. I wasn’t pleased at first, but as the night wore on and I grew more warm, the chilly blast was more welcome.