love to go to a chef’s table to celebrate my 50th birthday. What are some of the better chef ’s tables in town, both for food and, more important, for a fun experience? Tom: The most celebrated kitchen table in the city is probably Michel Richard Citronelle in Georgetown. I love that long table and the up-close ballet of really talented cooks. Other chef ’s tables to think about
include Tosca downtown and 2941 in Falls Church. Outside the Washington area, there are the Inn at Little Washington and Table 21 at Volt in Frederick.
Hovering waiters: What is the best way to alert servers that you want fewer interruptions during your meal? I am not a fan of my precious few times out to dinner, and our invigorating conversations, being interrupted by constant water glass refilling and clearing of each little dish as it’s used. Tom: I think the best way to ward off excessive service is to let your server know, from the start, that you’re out to enjoy your guests’ company and you’d prefer not to be interrupted other than to have your meals delivered and the check brought out. Say it with a smile and see what happens. Bear in mind that a lot of
restaurants have protocols for checking in with diners, refilling glasses, etc. So it’s not necessarily the fault of a waiter for hovering. He or she might just be following the rules.
Regarding Twitter: You are a regular poster on Twitter. Do you respond to questions there? Tom: Social media have kind of taken over my life this year. As much as I would love to respond to everyone who writes directly to me, there’s no way I could make all my deadlines if I did. That said, I do sometimes write back to readers, and I have a soft spot for 90-year-old grandmothers looking for quiet dining rooms and for 20-somethings looking for romantic venues in Paris or wherever.
Fall Dining Guide feedback: I think it’s a fine thing that you review cocktail bars, hamburger stands and food trucks as well as restaurants. But having myself eaten in the past year at such Dining Guide establishments as Red Hook Lobster Truck, BGR and Komi, I can’t understand how you can rate such disparate establishments on the same scale. It’s one thing to rate one food truck against others. It’s another attempting to measure a place where one stands in the hot sun for 50 minutes waiting for food to carry back to one’s office against a place where one sits in comfort while a parade of staff members waits on one. Assuming that your stars represent the total dining experience and not merely food quality (which wouldn’t seem to have much pertinence for the cocktail bar), how can your rating system make such comparisons? Tom: In handing out stars, I compare like venues with like venues. For example, I ate at a bunch of food
trucks in the city and suburbs before selecting that lobstermobile as the best of what I experienced in terms of food quality, mostly, but also atmosphere (the scene) and service. Similarly, Columbia Room got
three stars because there are only one or two such cocktail experiences in the area that come close to what Derek Brown and company are doing — and I was comparing his venue to his competition: bar vs. bar, in other words.
The regular Dining column will return.
FINE LEBANESE CUISINE FINE LEBA
in Arlington” – Tom Sietsema
“A Welcome Addition
2300 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, VA 22201 703.465.4440
www.me-jana.com Free Parking
6 King St., Alexandria 703.548.0600
Authentic Thai Cuisine
www.maithai.us
Yechon Restaurant Fine Korean and Japanese Cuisine
(703)914-4646 • (703)914-0100 OPEN 24 HOURS
4121 Hummer Rd., Annandale, VA 22003
1200 19th St. NW 202.452.6870
Mediterranean Cuisine FREE BOTTLE OF WINE*
Portuguese & Not valid w/other offers or Holidays *1 per table
Chevy Chase Bank Bldg., 8401 Connecticut Ave. Chevy Chase, MD • (301) 652-8684
“A Modern Home for Classic Thai” The Washington Post
ThaiPavilionRestaurant.com
29 Maryland Ave • Rockville, MD 301-545-0244
Rockville Town Square
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