Organic and Delicious? Founding Farmers impresses a stuffy-nosed Langolier.
Confucius once said that one should never eat good food with a stuffy nose. Two and a half thousand years later that quote remains true and, as it happens, your friendly neighborhood Langolier has been suffering with a severe case of viral rhinitis for the last week. It’s an interesting feeling, eating without being able to smell, your tongue feels the sensation of the food and your brain is able to apprehend the flavor that is about to be tasted, but that flavor never comes and you’re left with a feeling of discontent comparable only to sexual frustration. Nonetheless, I had a date with a very cute little lady from Tennessee and was neither willing nor able to surpass a chance to hit up a fine establishment like
Founding Farmers during restaurant week.
First of all, let me take a minute to sing an ode to the miracle that is restaurant week in Washington DC. My good friends Matt and Ting – both true aficionados of cuisine - went to no less than six restaurants over the past week. That’s what I call taking advantage of a bargain! Sadly, your correspondent is both too busy and too destitute to be living that kind of lifestyle. Still, a three course meal with wine for only thirty dollars is a luxury that I could splurge on.
Located in the new IMF building, “Founding Farmers” has an atmosphere that somehow manages to combine urban hipness with rural coziness. It’s a difficult trick to accomplish and my compliments go to the architect. The first floor has a bar and truly huge, wooden tables. Walk upstairs and you will find silo-shaped booths and a nice view unto Pennsylvania Avenue. The location and ambiance make this restaurant ideal for GW students who are looking to throw down twenty-five bucks for a solid meal. However, I’ll let my partner the Canadian Connoisseur discuss such details and I’ll get to the part that really interests me – the chow.
Although I may be a voracious consumer of all types of life forms, that does not mean that I don’t treasure our environment or support animal rights. Founding Farmers focuses on small farmers – people who helped to establish our nation and today continue to provide us with delicious homegrown food. The restaurant is serious about providing its costumers with organic, local, and family-farmed sourced fare. Most of their meats are produced on free ranged farms and the vegetables are grown without chemical and biological enhancements. Even their water undergoes reverse osmosis by a special machine that they have in the restaurant! I never thought that DC tap water could taste so good!
For my entrée I had a very tasty “Late Harvest” Salad – a concoction of caramelized onions, apples, bacon, and bleu cheese that, admittedly, would have tasted a lot better if I was less sick and could sense all the flavors. One expects “Founding Farmers” to have a good selection of salads and the restaurant does not disappoint. Entrée salads are a bit small to satisfy a hungry guy, but the little salads go well along with an entrée. For my main course I decided to go with a dish that even my nose could not ruin – good, ole’ fashioned meat-loaf with Yukon gold mashed potatoes. Mmmmmm, mmmmm, good! Other entrees that I would recommend are the rotisserie chicken, herb crusted prime rib, and any of the homemade pastas. One thing that I did not get, but will certainly savor next time I hit up this joint, is one of their signature cocktails. The menu claims that “our specially trained bar chefs bring this lost art back from its heyday”. I never realized that the art of making drinks was lost, but I have a feeling that “Hemingway’s Frappe” with Absinthe or “Chelsea’s Manhattan” with Chai-infused Vermouth could bring anyone back to the Halcyon days of old when men were men, food was organic, and drinks cost a nickel. Well, not exactly, but overall I found the restaurant to be reasonably priced for a working professional. As for GW students, in today’s economy I’d save this one for a special occasion.
I have to begin by giving my partner big props for our Restaurant Week pick. I had wanted to try Founding Farmers ever since it opened sometime last year (it was their “green” mission that interested me most), so when I learned that we had a reservation there, I was pretty excited….and then, when I found out that their Restaurant Week menu included wine, I was smitten. I’m no Restaurant Week authority, by any means, but this is the only place I know of that actually includes a glass of wine in the price of dinner…what a deal!
So like I said, it was the “green” aspect of this new restaurant that intrigued me from the start, and once we were seated, our friendly waiter told us more of the details. Not only does Founding Farmers get most of its ingredients from local sustainable farms, but the entire place was specifically designed in an eco-friendly manner. The restaurant employs great habits like on-site recycling, making use of natural daylight, and using solar energy (just to name a few) in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint. Come on, how could you not feel good about supporting this place? We were feeling good about this meal, even before we looked at the menu!
First, we ordered our wines: one was an organic Chardonnay from Chile, and the other was an Argentinean Malbec from a sustainable winery called Yellow + Blue (equals “green”…get it?). Both of the wines available with the Restaurant Week dinner were regularly $8 or $9 a glass, and among the cheaper of the options on the wine by the glass list. We had barely had time to taste the wine before our salads arrived. I had the Farmer’s Salad - an interesting mixture of avocado, medjool dates, tomatoes, almonds, and chunks of fresh parmesan cheese. I have to admit, it’s not a combination I would have ever thought of myself, but it turned out to be surprisingly delicious! For my entrée, I had the Plank Salmon with a lemon-herb sauce. It had been smoked on a piece of Cedar wood, so it had a rich smoky flavor. With it, came the vegetable of the day, which happened to be some nice garlicky Swiss Chard. For desert, we had homemade ice cream and a big piece of Red Velvet cake. The cake was really red, though not so velvety, but it was topped with undoubtedly the best homemade cream cheese icing either of us had ever tasted.
Although our choices on this particular visit were somewhat constricted by what was included as part of the Restaurant Week deal, there were lots of other great options on the menu. For vegetarians, each suitable item on the menu is marked with an asterisk for your convenience. However, be sure to pay close attention to the markings, since I noted that some seemingly vegetarian dishes - like the tomato soup, for example - did not have an asterisk. Also of note was the mouth watering list of sandwich options, most cost between $8 and $12, and all served on fresh bread made from scratch right there at the restaurant! By the end of the night, we had already decided that we would be coming back to pay homage to our Founding Farmers again in the near future. The service was excellent, the food came out fast, and knowing that you’re supporting a great place should make seeing the bill a little easier! I’d suggest making reservations if you plan to go during peak dinner hours or Sunday brunch.
Founding Farmers is opened for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; Everyday 8-11 am. The Bar is opened till 12.
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Bens Chili Bowl is a DC institution that really needs no introduction. Since the late 50’s the late-night eatery has lured celebrity and layperson alike with their world-class chilidogs, half-smokes, and milkshakes. Located on U St. between 12th and 13th, start your evening off at Ben’s with a couple of their signature dogs (or if meat isn't your thing, the vegetarian chili). Satisfied but not stuffed, next take the short stroll over to the 9:30 Club at 815 V St., where the legendary funk pioneer George Clinton will be performing with Parliament Funkadelic. There is a good chance that even if the name is new, you are familiar with their music, and if not then you are in for a treat. I saw George Clinton perform with P-Funk a few years ago and it was easily one of the most fun shows I have ever had the pleasure of attending. 
Zaytinya is a modern reworking of traditional Middle Eastern foods and flavors. Perched right by the Verizon Center, this restaurant is a Middle Eastern oasis from the hustle and bustle of the Metro Center area. The walls are clad in the purest white, and lit by candles arranged around the restaurant. It is a romantic but certainly lively spot, with a bar that always seems busy. Be sure to make reservations as this is quite a popular spot, especially if there is an event going on at the Verizon Center. Zaytinya is still offering restaurant week specials until the first of March. However, for our purposes we will sample some of the fantastic tapas offered here. The restaurant is primarily a tapas spot, offering small plates of re-imagined Middle Eastern food. Select 5 or 6 of them to share between two people. I would suggest starting with one of their spreads served with pita (try the Taramosalata). Next select a sampling of the other small plates. For vegetable plates I would suggest the Kolokithokeftedes (Zucchini and cheese fritters) or Piyaz (giganes bean salad with kale). For meat plates I would suggest the Adana (lamb) Kebab or Kalamata Sirloin. After sampling some of the best, albeit not traditional, Middle Eastern food in the district head to the Kennedy Center for their free Arabesque Series
The Kennedy Center uses their Millennium Stage series to bring unusual and international artists to the nation's capital. It focuses more on the contemporary, the ethnic, and even better it's completely free. This month they are hosting Arabesque: Arts of the Arab World. Representative artists from all 22 nations of the Arab League will perform at the Kennedy Center running through March 15. Friday will host a Somalian hip-hop artist K’NAAN. Growing up during the Somalian civil war his experiences have vividly shaped his music. He has been described as a mix between the reggae of Bob Marley with the consciousness of American hip hop. Saturday will feature Nawal an acoustic based lyricist and vocalist. She hails from the Comoros Islands off of the East Coast of Africa. She plays five different acoustic instruments and sings in four different languages. Both of these artists promise fantastic if strikingly different performances. 
For my entrée I had a very tasty “Late Harvest” Salad – a concoction of caramelized onions, apples, bacon, and bleu cheese that, admittedly, would have tasted a lot better if I was less sick and could sense all the flavors. One expects “Founding Farmers” to have a good selection of salads and the restaurant does not disappoint. Entrée salads are a bit small to satisfy a hungry guy, but the little salads go well along with an entrée. For my main course I decided to go with a dish that even my nose could not ruin – good, ole’ fashioned meat-loaf with Yukon gold mashed potatoes. Mmmmmm, mmmmm, good! Other entrees that I would recommend are the rotisserie chicken, herb crusted prime rib, and any of the homemade pastas. One thing that I did not get, but will certainly savor next time I hit up this joint, is one of their signature cocktails. The menu claims that “our specially trained bar chefs bring this lost art back from its heyday”. I never realized that the art of making drinks was lost, but I have a feeling that “Hemingway’s Frappe” with Absinthe or “Chelsea’s Manhattan” with Chai-infused Vermouth could bring anyone back to the Halcyon days of old when men were men, food was organic, and drinks cost a nickel. Well, not exactly, but overall I found the restaurant to be reasonably priced for a working professional. As for GW students, in today’s economy I’d save this one for a special occasion.
First, we ordered our wines: one was an organic Chardonnay from Chile, and the other was an Argentinean Malbec from a sustainable winery called Yellow + Blue (equals “green”…get it?). Both of the wines available with the Restaurant Week dinner were regularly $8 or $9 a glass, and among the cheaper of the options on the wine by the glass list. We had barely had time to taste the wine before our salads arrived. I had the Farmer’s Salad - an interesting mixture of avocado, medjool dates, tomatoes, almonds, and chunks of fresh parmesan cheese. I have to admit, it’s not a combination I would have ever thought of myself, but it turned out to be surprisingly delicious! For my entrée, I had the Plank Salmon with a lemon-herb sauce. It had been smoked on a piece of Cedar wood, so it had a rich smoky flavor. With it, came the vegetable of the day, which happened to be some nice garlicky Swiss Chard. For desert, we had homemade ice cream and a big piece of Red Velvet cake. The cake was really red, though not so velvety, but it was topped with undoubtedly the best homemade cream cheese icing either of us had ever tasted. 
The Cabernet Sauvignon can be found at many local liquor and wine stores. The Watergate Liquor store, West End Market, the Wine Specialist, and Columbian Plaza all stock it. I would open this wine about 30 minutes to an hour before you plan on enjoying it. It is a rich, dark, and tasty wine. A friend and I got tastes of plum and pepper from it. Pair it with a nice meaty dinner. Beef, pork, even a richer chicken (perhaps parmigiana or Marsala). Share it with a friend over some bitter chocolate or a strong cheese. Oxygen can only help this wine so pour small glasses and really give it some time. Make any evening special with this accessible yet inexpensive bottle. Until next week, keep getting cab saavy.
But no one wants to visit a museum on an empty stomach. First, swing by Metro Center's Jaleo, by far one of the best tapas spots the city has to offer. Not only that, they boast a fantastic restaurant week menu, allowing you to choose 5 different tapas at the fixed price of $35. Given this restaurant's popularity, and the fact that it's restaurant week, I would recommend a reservation. It's hard to go wrong with the restaurant week choices but personal favorites would include the endive salad, the garbanzo bean stew, the bacon-wrapped dates, and the scallops. Order a pitcher of delicious sangria to enjoy the full experience. 
