Eating Washington DC - French Brunch

Most of my travel adventures center around gastronomical tourism. Sight-seeing definitely takes a back seat to eating in most cases. While Washington DC has hundreds and hundreds of great things to see and do from an historic and cultural standpoint, they have equally as many phenomenal restaurants, the likes of which can not be found elsewhere in points south until you get to Charleston, SC. Therefore, it was necessary to be extremely selective with the restaurants we chose because of having only 2 major meal slots during the 24 hour trip.

The first place we ate was Bistro du Coin on Connecticut Ave in DuPont Circle. This place is as close to Paris you can get without crossing the Atlantic. In all respects from the perfectly prepared food selections, the glorious flavors and textures, the appropriate portion sizes, the waitresses who may not be french but nail the french attitude, Bistro du Coin has that certain je ne sais quoi that's indescribable.

It's not pretentious, but it is, its own special way, and that's why I love it. The shabby chic interior. The cafeteria style cutlery. The paper napkins in blue and red. There's even a foose-ball table upstairs next to the restrooms. Even the unwashed water bottles they place on the tables adds to the ambiance. But I have dreamed about sipping champagne, sampling the pate du maison, and dunking bites of perfectly cooked fillet and steak frites into the best Bearnaise there is - on any given Sunday - at this special spot for I don't know how long.



We started with a glass of champagne and the house pate. It was served with grilled bread, cornichons, a tomato slice and a small salad of tender greens with the most delicious, authentic vinaigrette.

For his entree, Gary had the mini lobster ravioli that was baked in the most divine cream sauce ever. We practically licked the bowl clean. Correction, we did, in fact, lick the bowl clean with the aid of chunks of baguette. I mean, this is a civilized place after all.

I had a flat iron steak aux fines herbs, with golden steak frites (like American french fries but more *done* and crunchy) served with a gravy boat of sauce Bearnaise. And another glass of champagne.

Any self-respecting foodie could not leave this shangri-la without dessert, so we ordered the creme brulee. And the clafoutie aux poires - a baked custard and pear tart served piping hot from the oven which we devoured in seconds flat. And of course one more glass of champagne.

Creme brulee, under normal circumstances, is our go-to dessert after a fine meal. But on this day, after this fine meal, it seemed slightly sad and inferior to the stunning Clafoutie, but it was still delicious with its tiny specs of vanilla bean and extra crunchy top and perfect room temperature.

This was by far the most expensive lunch we've had in a long, long time - if ever - but it was so worth it. Clearly we were so enthralled by the decadent food and drinks we failed to take more than the one photo. Suffice to say, we were more than a little pre-occupied.