tablehopping

Wet your Appetite

By david roffman

September 2008

A beachside vibe pervades Surfside, a budget-friendly Eclectic seafooder in Glover Park, where grilled-to-order seafood, chicken and steak are folded into tacos – or accessorized with internationally inspired vegetable and rice preparations – and washed down with margaritas from the back bar. Customers order at the counter, then take their food to tables in an airy space defined by exposed brick and tropical colors, or upstairs to enjoy the city breezes on one of the nicest rooftop decks around. 2444 Wisconsin Ave.; 202-337-0004.

Two new restaurants in DC’s neighboring Penn Quarter and East End areas are drawing raves from diners – Proof and Co Co Sala. Proof, 775 G Street, N.W. in Penn Quarter across from the Smithsonian Reynolds Center that houses the National Portrait Gallery, is a restaurant that’s also a wine bar. Serving modern American cuisine along with fine wines, cheeses, and charcuterie, Proof is owned by Mark Kuller and was designed by Griz Dwight, AIA with GrizForm Design Architects. Here is a restaurant design that exudes both contemporary chic and rustic warmth. It is an instant hit.

Co Co Sala, 929 F Street, N.W. in DC’s East End, is a restaurant and bar with a focus on chocolates. In fact, their web site sumps up as a “chocolate lounge and boutique.” Owned by Nisha Sidhu and Bharet Malhotra and designed by IA Interior Architects, this restaurant has two main dining rooms, each with a bar counter, banquettes, and other table seating. It is luxurious, plush and sexy. The owners are even going to be adding a third dining room in the near future.

When Commissary opens Sept. 10, replacing Latin-accented Merkado (which closed on August 24), Logan Circle frequenters will find an Americana-themed space that serves as a WiFi-equipped coffeehouse and a wine bar focusing on local brews and eco-friendly wines. On the menu: all-day breakfast (the new “it” meal for the work-at-home brigade), pizza, salads, sandwiches and reasonably priced evening entrees. The sweeping, industrial-modern space will be clad in blue denim and vintage American flags, with a huge red, white and blue awning over its sidewalk area. Keeping with the eco/local–friendly theme are tables made from recycled wood (1443 P St. NW).

Hello Cupcake, which opened on Monday, August 25, is the latest enterprise seeking to prove that man and woman can live on sugary muffins alone. This ultramod storefront cafe below Dupont Circle will offer an ever-changing roster of some 20 versions of the treats, along with coffee, tea and designer sodas (1351 Connecticut Ave. NW). But it’s not this week’s only cupcake opening: Lavender Moon Cupcakery debuted on August 24th (116 S. Royal St.). Judging by the lines-out-the-door success of Georgetown Cupcake (1209 Potomac St. NW) and the popularity of the iced mini-desserts at cafe-bakeries like Buzz and Bread Line, there are clearly lots of people who subscribe to the adage “Life is short, eat dessert first.”

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