Irish-type Bar Turns Up a Decent Meal

Miller and other cheap American beers flowed freely at the Clarendon Ballroom on a recent Thursday, during happy hour, amid the Washington area's infamous humidity. This spot, with a spacious interior and popular roof deck, in Orange line-adjacent Arlington, is located near multiple bars and restaurants. But a question always lurks for visitors to these Metro stop 'hoods: which of these cookie cutter locales can provide a decent meal that doesn't have the patron regretting the whole ride home. Unlike the morning walk of shame, the memories of which will fade, those wasted calories, spent on a post-happy hour meal are going to stay with you for a while. So, it was with low expectations that I wandered into the nearby Ri Ra "Irish pub."

The area is rife with self-stylized Irish bars. Going west from Rosslyn, a partial list of such pubs includes Courthouse's Four Courts (with some spectacularly packed trivia nights) and Kitty O'Shea's, Clarendon's O'Sullivan's, and Sine's further south in Pentagon City. Just a step from the Metro at Clarendon, Ri Ra has a typical bar menu, with atypically few high definition televisions. This would normally draw praise at a D.C. restaurant, but should I have to squint to see the score of the ballgame in a traditional bar? After waiting about 15 minutes for a waiter - and then having to go request the privilege of being brought water and drinks - the rest of the meal was satisfactory, if uneventful. Orders were taken without error, service was moderately attentive, and the array of sandwiches - chicken bistro, spicy chicken, and some burgers - delivered as promised. A dining room that started the early evening relatively empty soon filled up with post-happy hour patrons, but the high ceilings and distances between tables help avoid a claustrophobic feeling, even if they did nothing to diminish the din. Guinness is readily served, but the availability of a dry and serviceable California Riesling was a nice surprise too.

Rating: 4/10
In Short: Adequate menu and mediocre service make this a serviceable stop for local workers.
Website: http://www.rira.com/
Location: 2915 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22201

They’re Not Good… They’re Great!!!

A New Classic Burger Joint Comes to Capitol Hill

I’ve been procrastinating writing about food for several weeks now, as Locanda was my last meal out in the area – and a disappointing dinner at that. To note: I haven’t been the only one noticing the poor performance at this Capitol Hill restaurant. The matter came up in a recent weekly online chat hosted by Tom Sietsema, where the Washington Post’s food critic acknowledged the establishment’s problems:

Locanda is in, um, "transition" at this point. The original chef has left. My hunch is that the Italian restaurant will return to its near-glory in the months ahead. Sorry to be vague, but that's all I can say right now, having spoken with a few key players (one of whom seems not to be telling me the truth).

Part of the delay has been because of the self-imposed limit to review only neighborhood restaurants. Matchbox is on the horizon, but the absence of good restaurant choices in the area – fast food excepted - continues. The “Sizz Ex” chain is still on tap for an outing, but the “ramshackle” Market Deli at K St. and 1st in Southeast turned out to be merely uninteresting. It had no horrors or idiosyncracies to speak of, but the fare lacked intrigue as well. The deli at K and 1st is a sure enough bet if the fridge is empty, but lunch and breakfast promises only routine dishes with a slight homestyle influence.

Then came news from trusted sources that a new burger joint had opened up on Capitol Hill. A quick surf of the ‘Net turned up a quick-loading, easy-to-understand Web site with all the necessary information on Good Stuff Eatery, located at 3rd and Pennsylvania Ave. This is a family affair, with celebrity chef Spike Mendelsohn being joined by his parents, grandfather and siblings.

Coming on the heels of a Bravo “Top Chef” competition, restaurant-goers might be concerned that Good Stuff Eatery would suffer from lackadaisical attention to food and drink. The line snaking through the Eatery onto Pennsylvania and up the block past a Cosi might suggest the well-coifed crowds are fans of celebrity, rather than cuisine. However, the smell of the grill and the Good Stuff Melt immediately doused any such worries. The burgers are a perfect size – not too small that you feel deprived, and not too large that you are gorging on a mass chain’s cow product. The thyme- and bay- flavored village fries bring the taste of the Atlantic City boardwalk to the capital, and the traditional shakes, plus a selection of beers and sundaes, evokes the classic diner or drive-thru. The Good Stuff Melt was grilled to the perfect tenderness; the Good Stuff Sauce, onions, and cheeses all conformed in a eloquent bouquet of meat, none overpowering the other. And of course the bun is just the right sturdiness to contain this handful of beef and toppings without turning into a wearying trudge through bread.

If all this praise is raising the bar too high to maintain – then so be it. Good Stuff Eatery is a much needed alternative to the common “Five Guys.” Washington D.C. has long been missing an outstanding burger joint – no White Castle or Jack in the “Crack” (Box), The standard set by the Mendelsohns in their first couple weeks is a high bar, but with plans to expand, the Good Stuff Eatery is a welcome addition to the Capitol Hill/Southeast dining scene and perhaps soon, your neighborhood too.

One criticism worth mentioning: the order-taker automatically substituted the larger size drinks and fries. A small portion should be assumed, or the cashier should ask, especially when the prices for both are jumbo. There's a lunch-time special - burger, drink and fries - for $10, but otherwise you'll be forking over $15-$20 for this soda fountain-style delight.

Rating: 8/10
In Short: Don't ever go to a fast food joint anywhere in the DC Metro area again.
Website: http://www.goodstuffeatery.com
Location: 303 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, Washington DC, 20003