Nom-nom in Washington

Recently, I had the chance to go to a conference in our nation's capital. While it didn't allow for a lot of free time, it did give me the opportunity to go eat at one of my favorite places, Old Ebbitt Grill. For those of you that haven't checked out this gem, let me HIGHLY recommend it next time you're in town. It's considered one of America's top historic restaurants and is steps away from the White House. While oysters are their bread and butter (you see what I did there-ha) here's a sampling of my meal.

I could easily have gone for the cheese sampler for an appetizer, but I've had it before, and it's big. It currently is made up of: fig jam and pecan raisin bread ////Cabot Clothbound Cheddar...Cellars at Jasper Hill, Greensboro, VT; cave aged cow's milk cheese Carmody...Bellwether Farms, Petaluma, CA ; aged cow's milk cheese Old Kentucky Tomme...Capriole, Greenville, IN ;aged raw goat's milk cheese Shakerag Blue...Sequatchie Cove Creamery, Sequatchie, TN ; and aged raw cow's milk cheese wrapped in Chattanooga Whiskey soaked fig leaves.  Obviously, I recommended to my waiter that they make a single person version so drop-ins like me wouldn't miss out on this $14 winner.

Instead, I went with the jumbo lump crab cake with seasonal sides. Right now they are doing sweet potato wedges, butter braised cabbage, and celeriac-honey crisp apple slaw. We paired this with Sauvignon Blanc "Flume Crossing," J. Lohr, Arroyo Seco, Monterey County, CA, 2013 and it was deeeee-licious. Since I missed out on the cheese, I had room left for the seasonal pumpkin cheesecake (thus getting my moo cheese in after all) and a decaf coffee. All-in-all a good nosh for around $50, and the twenty minute walk back to my hotel made it a lot more comfy in my belly.

Old Ebbitt has been a favorite of Presidents since Theodore Roosevelt's administration, and for darn good reason. While not a cheap eat, on a vacation, it's good to treat yo-self to at least one awesome meal. Good for a crowd, good for one. Check it out next time you're in DC, and until then, live gleefully.