Idle finger food chatter
Tuesday night I attended a private event over at the Old Dominion Brewhouse and ran into Shaw Rez, as well as Kevin Chapple, and some other ANC people. Alex had tipped me off about the event and I did see him but we never got around to speaking.Someone had asked if the food served up was from the restaurant or was it catered. The food I had seen on the menu before. The time I did go out to ODB with a friend I ordered the shrimp wrapped in thin strips of fried potato. They are good but they need a little something, like ketchup. I saw crab cakes on the menu in some form (maybe as a sandwich) and the mini cakes floating around were okay, but I'm picky about my cakes. Someone else had mentioned the chicken bits were excellent once they were dipped in the honey mustard.
Anyway, there was some mention about ANC stuff. One was something I don't even want to report on but it involves a deposed mini-dictator and his plans. Another was a sentiment from Gallery Place to not be in the 2C-verse and join up with that area that calls itself Penn-Quarter. I totally understand that sentiment, as GP has a heck of a lot more in common with PQ than MVS. Then speaking with an ANC from 2F, he supposed that once the Whitman and other places fill up there may be a rearrangement of borders. I gather that won't happen until the 2010 Census.
And lastly, ODB is a minority owned business.
posted by Mari @ 22.2.07
10 Comments:
I tried ODB twice. THe food is so bad. I'm as excited as the next guy to have some options, but I'd rather walk an extra 4-5 minutes for something decent. I gave their wings 0 (zero stars). Ive been interested to hear the chatter about ODB and Vegetate, 'cause one is truly awful (ODB) and one is OK, as in very average, but the way people talk aobut them you'd think they were great. We're desperate for options, so I won't complain too loudly.
Glad to hear you say vegetate is only average, in contrast to the hype I've seen about it. We've been there several times and been disappointed in the food and service every time. They seem to outdo themselves to have poorer and poorer service every time. Last time we waited like an hour for our eggs. And they always bring bread without butter -- even if you ask, they will forget. and while you are waiting endlessly for your food, the hostess will be reading the newspaper and is genuinely disinterested in your plight. believe me, the food is pretty bad. I am a lifelong vegetarian. the one good thing they have is the curiously strong homemade ginger ale. but I wont be going back
When it comes to food I have a wide tolerance. I will admit I like Wendy's Jr. Cheeseburgers, particularly when they are very juicy and drippy. But I rarely wander over to the one at NY & FL Aves.
Anyway. ODB is okay. A friend of mine from the burbs wanted to come over and 'talk'. And we wanted a place that we could talk but would put limits on what you could talk about, if you know what I mean. ODB fit the bill to a 'T'. Noisy enough to be part of the chatter, but not so loud you couldn't 'talk'. Also ODB was close enough so that I didn't have to turn it into a production of getting there.
The food was secondary. It was the space that mattered. And that's an important factor. I want, and I guess some others may want, spaces in the neighborhood for meeting and socializing. For meeting my friend, B-Bar (which I still haven't been to) was a slight unknown and we aren't part of the hip set so, it wasn't right. Vegetate was too ... formal is not the right word, but not relaxed enough. Warehouse or Azi's, too quiet and small. What I appreciate is the extra option when one of the friends say "hey, you want to get together for a quick bite/ beer and catch up?"
Really, the food won't kill you. Besides, the conversation and the company is what I'm focused on.
Don't understand why people keep dumping on ODB because its food is not 4 stars. It's a brew pub with many TV's aimed at showing sporting events for Pete's sake. That right there should give you a sense of their priorities:
1) Good Beer
2) Good Sports
...and then food, which is fine pub food in my opinion. On a recent trip I found the tuna steak sandwich to be fine, made even "tastier" when paired with a pale ale and a college basketball game.
Point is you can't expect the world out of pub food. Though you should expect good beer, and in this case a great place to watch sports. Gormands should keep heading up 9th to Acadiana or on to the various Gallery Place haunts for the restaurant glitterati.
So any clues as to what the deposed dictator is planning? I don't live in 2C, but I do live right by it, and pass thru there often. I'd hate to see potential development pushed away because of one person.
there will be more of his type developments...check cashing joints and illegal vendors
Emerald, it's a restaurant. It serves food for money. Therefore, it's ok to criticize the food, which is awful. My 2 cents on ODB is that it reminds me of every restaurant attached to a Hilton Garden Inn. In Central New Jersey. Hung ceiling, awful tile floors, cheap chairs and tables. CapCity is a good brewpub. Good Beer. Sports. And good food.
I am in agreement about the mediocrity of new eateries in our midst but ODB is pub food that serves excellent beer and makes no pretenses -- like B-Bar with its noise as music, overpriced drinks, and cover charge and Vegetate with its overpriced sorlent green food substitutes and pretty kiddie drinks. I just wish I could get it into the heads of the Ethiopians that Americans like texture among in their mushy multicolored glops. STILL, I am elated that all of these folks have gambled to open businesses among us. I just hope we will have a falafel place like Amsterdams in Adams-Morgan and a real vegetarian place like the old Golden Temple. Keep the faith, people.
maybe you ingrates would like it better if more rancid carryouts and the chains move into your hood?
you guys complain about the food at odb like you were expecting something more than hot wings. then you complain about getting bread without butter at vegetate?
give me a break.
based on reviews, other blogs and from my own experience it seems that there are hundreds of people that disagree with you about the food offerings in YOUR neighborhood.
from what i know about shaw you guys should be glad and proud that any business has decided to locate in shaw. (especially with the recent crime surge in shaw)
do any of you have any idea what it takes just to get the doors open on a new business? not to mention all of the crap you have to go through with the dc gov't. then to top it all off a lot of the new businesses in shaw have had year long fights with the psychotic churches who want no change whatsoever.
all of these business are fairly new and from what i have read have been through pure hell just to open and survive this long. instead of posting negative comments that could be detrimental to the viability of the places why don't you offer some constructive criticism to the owners/managers? afterall you do want these places to grow and succeed don't you? how do you expect them to get better or offer the things that you would like to see on menus? to go some where and not complain and then post negative comments on blogs or other sites is pretty passive-aggressive i think.
think about this:
queen of sheeba still doesn't have a liquor license. vegetate just only a month ago was able to receive a stipulated abc license. be bar went through a six month battle with a church over it's abc license. odb had all kind of problems with opening, etc. do any of you realize what hardships these businesses not only in shaw but all over the city go through?
maybe you guys will be happier when odb is replaced by espn zone or azi's by starbucks or vegetate by applebees? maybe be-bar will become a wet willies or something.
i for one would love it and truly appreciate if one of these businesses you guys complain about would decide to locate in sw. so keep complaining, posting negativity and not being supportive and you might find yourselves with more carryouts, liquor stores and chains.
Crap, I've had to hit F11 and my comment disappeared!
Anyway posts are getting long so I'm going to shut it down after a couple more comments.
My comment in a nut shell.
Rancid carry outs? Got 'em.
Honest reviews will include complaints and negatives. I would be suspcious of reviews if they were all positive and glowing.
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