Bistrot Lepic (The Emperor has no Clothes)
1726 Wisconsin Ave. NW
I am about to say something so HUGELY unpopular that I might need to shack up with Zimmerman in the safe house till this all blows over. Okay here it goes, 3-2-1 I DONT LIKE BISTROT LEPIC.
Bistrot Lepic not BISTRO is located in upper Georgetown and it seems that almost every review I've ever read about this place give's it excellent ratings. I was here about a year ago and most recently with VH1 and TR the weekend after the July 4th holiday.
Yes, I do like wine and yes I do like french food, just not the french food I had here. Honestly, I don't remember what I had a year ago and yes I can and do remember meals that I really enjoy a year later, but I dont remember anything good or bad. I can say that I did not think to come back.
VH1 actually had the idea to grab dinner and I almost didn't remember ever eating here until I looked it up on line. With all the rave reviews I was confused as to why I didnt have any fond memories.
The Venue
If you've read any of my reviews you know that I tend to prefer more modern contemporary settings but if done well I can appreciate almost anything - except this place. Georgetown is a very old DC neighborhood.
I actually went to High School close to this venue so very familiar with the area. I guess they choose to incorporate the dated facade and interior as part of their 'french charm' but I found it like an old rug that you just want to shake in the back yard to get all the dust off. I mean from the old maroon cushions upstairs on the seating to the drapes and floor it just made me want to sneeze. Just not a fan but apparently most folks are.
The Staff
The staff was outstanding in every way. The gentleman who greeted me (funny I did remember his face), to the nice bartender and server - all really outstanding and made us feel very welcome. I think the Chef or main Chef and or Sous-Chef and apparently that little Mouse from Ratatouille must have all left together for the holiday and pre-made a few dishes to warm up because....well, not good.
The Food
So you know I prefer to visit a restaurant more than once before I form an opinion OR gather opinions from a few other folks I am dining with and also sample their dishes and this time TR agreed with me...not very good that night but VH1 did enjoy two out of three courses but think she gave the dessert a 'Meh'. How in the heck can a french dessert get a 'meh'?
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| Les rognons de veau, pomme de terre au four écrasée, moutarde de Dijon |
We started off with wine upstairs - so far so good. Actually better than good because I think they had happy hour prices so we had a few before we slid over to the table. We decided to go with the prix fixe menu, also a nice touch. I think it was about 30ish.
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| Pied de cochon désôssé et croustillant |
We started with the Crusty boneless pig's feet with onion mustard sauce X2, Organic mixed baby green salad from the Calza Farm (wait from where- who the heck knows where this is..or cares.??) - then Veal kidneys with chunky yukon gold potatoes and Dijon mustard sauce, Duck confit, lamb, Toulouse garlic sausage, and cannelloni bean stew and Hanger Steak. Then for dessert, Chocolate mousse X2 and Homemade fruit tart of the day.
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| Le cassoulet du Bistrot Lepic |
TR was not impressed with her steak, I also tried it and it was not very good - it was Char grilled but just not very appetizing to me and she agreed so at best it was just okay.
The crusty pig feet was not bad just on the oily side for me. It was like comfort food which is always a good thing and I guess that's one reason for the side of lettuce but that was just well -meh - on the side of the plate with nothing to make it stand out.
The Duck dish was a Caussolet Stew - I think this may be the signature dish - but there was nothing stewish about it. It was very dry, I think over done. VH1 did like her Veal and I tried it and agreed it was pretty good. The mustard sauce complemented the Veal very well and it was nice and tender. The desserts were just not up to par period!
Hey, I'd like to think we caught this spot on an off night but I am probably not going to head back - especially since I had to actually drive this time- giggle. There is no metro within walking distance!
