Restaurant Review: America Eats Tavern

Wow!  What an unbelievable eating experience in DC.  I was lucky to go to America Eats Tavern, a “pop-up” or temporary restaurant by Chef Jose Andres in the place that Café Atlantico used to be.  My cousin is an ultimate foodie and had the responsibility of determining what our food experience was going to be.  It was a win-win situation for both of us.

First course:

Eggs A La Benedick – My cousin is into molecular gastronomy so this dish was completely up his alley.  As for me, the eggs had been whipped up in such a light way that I just couldn’t figure out how to eat the liquid egg.   

Fried Chicken with Catsup (plus additional Jack Daniel’s Catsup) – This comes with blueberry catsup, but my cousin ordered the Jack Daniel’s catsup on the side.  I actually preferred the sweetness of the blueberry catsup with the deliciously fried chicken to the salty, tanginess of the Jack Daniel’s version.  This was so delicious that the table next to us had to copy our order.

Second course:

Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich – It’s almost like a Hot Pocket version of a PB&J.  While I liked the modern twist, and the use of a natural nut butter (instead of Jiff), it was a pretty expensive PB&J.  It did come with chips and a glass of milk for a bit of childhood nostalgia.

Shrimp Etoufee – Yummy, but with so many Cajun places in the DC area, this didn’t seem like anything special.

Third course:

Harvard Beet Salad – I’m going to admit that I’m seriously bias here because I LOVE beets.  And this was a heavy beet salad.  Lots and lots and lots of beets.  Well done.

Mock Turtle Soup – Served only on Tuesdays and Wednesdays  I’m really glad to catch the word “Mock” in front of “Turtle;” otherwise, I was a bit hesitant to give this slow-poke a try.  It reminded me a lot like a beef stew to me.

Fourth course:

New England Clam Chowder with Poached Cod – Heavenly.  Seriously.  This version of clam chowder was lighter than traditional chowders and had a delectable piece of cod and raw clams. 

Blackened Croaker with Braised Turnip Greens – The fish was very fresh so the croaker was also quite delicious.  It was blackened which tends to mean it’ll be a tad bit on the salty side.  I’m a big fan of greens but the braised turnip greens were a bit too salty and saucy for me.  I ate up every last bit of the fish however.

Fifth course:

Key Lime Pie – What a lovely, light finish to our meal.  There was no graham crust.  Instead the key lime part of the pie was squeegeed out onto the plate.  A nice finish to our palate.

Overall service:

Fantastic.  We were treated like kings and queens.  The pacing between the courses was well done.  I say that if I'm going to have an eating experience like this, I'd expect the type of service we received.  Thankfully, it lived up to expectations.

All in all, I’m no foodie, but I enjoyed our meal.  While we walked away barely able to roll away from the table after so much food, I think the best way to enjoy this restaurant is to really spoil yourself with a full range of 5 courses so you can sample a little bit of everything.  This was definitely a fun night of eating.