redwood restaurant and bar, bethesda

it's rare for me to take a trip to bethesda. let's face it, unless you live there, it's a daunting thought, that drive. i have a close friend there so i am happy to report i have and will continue to go more frequently in the future. the drive wasn't really that bad after all.

redwood restaurant and bar is open and i made my first visit wednesday evening. it spans what seems like over half of a charming, bustling new pedestrian walkway called bethesda avenue. first impression of redwood was positively positive. the lighting is splendid - dark, cozy, reds and ambers.

to the right is a lounge area with modern low-set tables and comfy looking chairs. attractive people. a long bar.

to the left, a long and wide corridor of dining room tables, adjacent to a wait station that is the best looking one i've ever seen - you don't mind watching them fill water, tea pitchers because it's lovely. granite. modular. clean.

behind the host stand (overheard - one hour long waits), a wall separating another bar - you step up to it. it's secluded from the rest of the restaurant - next time i'll explore it. perhaps one doesn't feel isolated up there, or would you?

to me, almost certainly the best feature is the procession of floor-to-ceiling windows that flank the dining room tables so you're only arms reach from the goings-on in the courtyard walkway. not just any windows - they fully open up like towering shutters, transporting your table to the outdoors. it's charming yet cosmopolitan here. it's european. it's freeing. it's downright cool.

the bathrooms are tidy and again, modern but warm (the lighting in here, however, not so complimentary). it's nice when you don't have to touch anything. of note, the automatic paper towel dispenser is set to deliver the perfect portion and with only one wave of your hand you have enough to dry your hands. it's the little things in life.

redwood's atmosphere is well-balanced, managing to be quite warm while maintaining clean, geometric lines, chocolate browns and crisp whites. clean, clean wine glasses. in the back (i'll call it the back but there really is no back to redwood - it's thoroughly horizontal), there's a fireplace (and was that a buck's head on the wall?). nice, nice, nice.

on to the food. it will come as no surprise to those who know me, that an entree was out of the question tonight. appetizers here aren't meant to share - the appetizer menu is composed of salads, mostly. but, and to my delight: amish chicken liver mousse with poached figs and arugula. simple, delicious. the figs were poached like you'd poach a winter pear - in plenty of red wine or port, perhaps, star anise, vanilla and cinnamon i suspect. sweet, spicy, yummy.

the bread for the table was perfection. crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. i wished all bread was like this bread.

we shared a cheese board, nice selections of the usual and unusual. nice to see u.s.-made constant bliss. honeycomb was sticky and rich. the confit of apricots on the cheese board was flavorless and didn't add anything, really. my friend enjoyed a lovely beet salad (nicely diced and pretty), a vegetarian potatoes gratin was both interesting (i'll be stealing this idea - sorry - i loved that it was cut into a perfect rectangle and served on a rectangular plate) and tasty.

we also shared sides of cheesy grits, and macaroni and cheese, delivered in the tiniest le creuset daubes. so cute that if my balenciaga bag was bigger i might consider... well, i'm kidding, of course, i would never risk getting macaroni in my balenciaga. i digress. both needed a tiny bit of salt and the macaroni should've been al dente - in my opinion.

sadly, i can't report on dessert. there was a chocolate something rather that intrigued me and the waiter mentioned that the goat cheese (souffle, was it?) was "the bomb". yes, he used that word. oh and the service was well above average - attentive and helpful.

all around well done. i'll make that trip again - it was completely worth it.

did i mention that people in bethesda are particularly attractive?

sonoma

wednesday evening i had a date at sonoma. interestingly, since we didn't have a reservation, we were told we could sit at the bar or sit upstairs on those weird, too-low sofas. as we discussed leaving, we were interrupted by the hostess who informed us they would have a table in 10 minutes. (huh? why not mention that in the first place? of course we'll wait 10 minutes. geez, why is it so hard?!)



oh - a cancellation.



why is there only one sparkling wine by the glass at a "wine bar"? and it's a prosecco - sadly one that's too sweet to have more than one of, by the way.



charcuterie plate (of course i ordered it) was good but doesn't have the accoutrements that proof does.



i've only had meat and cheese at sonoma in the past so i was initially excited to see what they could do when using fire. i found the menu limited. i wanted something to jump out at me. the special sounded good but when i saw it arrive at the table next to ours, it didn't look as appetizing as it sounded.



waiter moved my OCD date's glass not by the stem but by putting his entire paw over the glass. i may not have noticed, but sadly he did, and he proceeded to obsess about it for the next 5 minutes until he could order another. ugh.



i ordered a cheese and mushroom tartelette as well as the pork tenderloin pate (both from the appetizer menu). i was a little saddened by the look of the tartelette (brown and dry) and by the fact it was slightly underseasoned; otherwise it was good - oh and the baby arugula salad perched next to it was lovely.



the pork tenderloin pate was - not surprisingly after i thought about it - dry. why attempt such a thing? pork tenderloin is always dry if cooked through. i needed sauce with my pate. or it needed a much larger fat percentage in the mixture. the viognier suggested was marginal too (and i usually love a viognier).



my date's hanger steak was undercooked and had to be put in the oven for a bit (um, i think refire in order here but what do i know? i'm just a cook). oh and the chefs knew i was there - love you chef b - come on though - had i been in that kitchen i would've been screaming at you - let's have some attention to detail when cooking for a fellow cook.



oh i hate sounding so negative but i must say i was disappointed. i looked so cute that night too. i should've had a big smile on my face with each bite.



perhaps it was just the company.

proof

wine is proof god loves us and wants to see us happy
ben franklin

i really enjoyed an evening at proof thursday night. i hadn't been since february and, at that time i didn't enjoy it as much as i had several times prior.

even sitting at the bar alone for 30 minutes - which i never do - was liberating. bartenders were sweet.

i really, really, really like this place. it was so light and summery inside (i thought it was a cozy winter spot). i moved outside when friends arrived. i didn't eat anything but charcuterie and cheese as this is what i typically do at happy hour. ann, our server, was fabulous, as always. wine great. i can't say enough good things. it was a perfect night.