The New List-Volume III: I’ve got friends in low (and high) places
It’s a good thing I ate myself in to oblivion last year instead of this year, because instead of “From Komi to Marvin”, the name of my blog would have been “From Komi to 3 Bar & Grill.” Doesn’t have quite the same ring to it. The list had it’s inevitable shift this year—some restaurants were up and some were down. It’s hard to really get too hung up on the order of the list since out of 100 it’s pretty hard to differentiate between number 61 and number 58, but I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t have my own opinions, so here we go.
The Shooting Stars
The truth is, there weren’t a ton of major jumps up for last year’s restaurants. I guess that says a lot for…consistency? But there were some changes, some good and some inexplicable. The changes that made my think “hey! good for you!” were the likes of Rays the Steaks (#31 to #19) and Adour (#71 to #50). I think both of those restaurants are cult favorites that really are as good as everyone says they are. And for a fish and bread girl to praise Rays the Steaks as much as I do, you know it’s good. And then there are those shifts that cause epic eye rolls. For instance, there’s Blue Duck Tavern (from #42 to #25) and Charlie Palmer Steak (from #41 to #23). Both are good, but I didn’t think they were really incorrectly ranked to begin with. I don’t necessarily think either of these guys are among the top 25 places to eat in D.C. And there’s Jaleo. My nemesis. I still don’t quite get it, though it seems like everyone in the world (or at least the Washingtonian dining out staff) do get it. Jose Andres finagled his way from #46 to #32 this year. Watch out Komi, he’s coming for ya!
I’m Drowning, I’m Drowning!
I’ve become pretty attached to these restaurants over the past year, so I’m always a little sad to see them slip in the standing…or am I…? Well, sometimes I am. Especially when I saw the dive that Volt took (from #15 to #29). It may not seem like much since number 29 is still mighty impressive, but Volt was by far one of the best meals I’ve had this year and I’m sad to see it slip behind the likes of some lesser restaurants. Is Bryan Voltaggio’s fame just too much to handle? A few restaurants took a well-deserved tumble this year—BLT Steak (#11 to #22), Westend Bistro (#35 to #67) and Bourbon Steak (#16 to #35). I think these restaurants were the J&G Steakhouses of last year—maybe placed a little higher on the list than they deserved since they had a super cool celebrity chef attached. I think they’re in their rightful places now though.
And now that I’m done disagreeing with the Washingtonian writers, it’s high time to point out their little article they did on the wrap up of my blog. Feel free to check it out here. No need to leave comments on how poor my grammar is this time folks, I got it the last time.
