A great dinner - guess where?

Compared to meals I've had in other cities - like New Orleans and San Francisco - I haven't had a lot of memorable meals in Washington (I'm talking about the food, not the company.) So I'm happy to write that I had a wonderful dinner on Saturday night at Napa 1015, on H Street, in the up-and-finally-coming-back H Street corridor (or Atlas district). It was one of the best meals I've had in locally in a long time.

Napa 1015 is located at 1015 H Street, NE - you'll have to look hard to find it if you're driving by. Inside it's a cozy little artwork-adorned place that calls itself a "neighborhood restaurant, offering Northern California inspired cuisine with a French flair." I've been to northern California a number of times, but I don't have any idea what "Northern California-inspired cuisine" is. But I can tell you I had the Wild Boar Pork Loin with Cinnamon Crab Apple Salsa, Gingered Sweet Potatoes & Swiss Chard Gratin, which had a delicious and interesting blend of flavors and seasonings.

The rest of my party had the Tagine-style Lamb Shanks with Apricot, Butternut Stew, and Couscous and the Pan Seared Chilean Sea Bass with Blood Orange Chipotle Cream Sauce. For vegetarians, they offer Grilled Tofu with Roasted Garlic Sauce and Winter Vegetable Stew, but otherwise their winter menu is heavy on meat and game.

My only complaint - we were there from about 7 - 9 on a Saturday and by the time we ordered desert, I had to make three selections before finding something the kitchen still had available. Since 8:30 is not exactly late to be ordering desert, to their credit the chef gave us a complimentary bowl of Mixed Berries with Crème Anglaise.

Napa 1015 has an authentic Mexican food night with homemade sauces and salsas every Thursday and a weekly wine tasting on Wednesday from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.

So if you're heading to a play or show on H Street, or if you want to just check out a restaurant in a different area of town, try Napa 1015.

NAPA 1015
1015 H St. NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-396-NAPA
http://www.napa1015.com/