A Heaping Helping of Bad

I’ve mentioned this before, but will continue to flog this horse: dining on Barracks Row and around Eastern Market ranges from mediocre to horrible. My first impressions of Cava – the new Mediterranean tapas place – were woefully off course; I refuse to ever pick over the dried-out sub-continent servings from Pennsylvania Avenue’s Aatish on the Hill again; Jordan’s 8, which just celebrated an anniversary, deserves to go out of business with its lack of service (asking for utensils three times seems a bit much, but perhaps the staff was trying to do me a favor), slapdash treatment of vegetables (is cooked spinach really quite difficult), and a ravioli that could be bested by something from a can; and to top off the list Banana Café – reputedly a “Mexican” joint – can’t even produce a decent fajita that isn’t slathered in grease or an ingredient that doesn't look as if it came from the "international" section of Walmart's food aisle.

Matchbox is a lonely exception to this drek, and now comes news that the owners will be opening up a new spot a few doors down, dubbed Ted’s Bulletin. Hill Rag reports that Ted’s, an American diner, is expected to open up in February of 2010. The owners suggested that this prime location would have been snapped up anyways, so they decided to preempt such competition. However, given the current state of dining in the neighborhood, Ted’s fiercest competition will likely be its corporate pizza- and mini-burger-serving cousin next door.

Meanwhile, closer to the ballpark, at the corner of 3rd St. and K St. SE, the Cornercopia deli and cornerstore has debuted. Check back soon for a review of its sandwich offerings…