Capital Fare
RESTAURANT KOLUMBIA
[from August 2005 issue]
Slotted into the space of the former Middle Eastern Le Tarbouche, Restaurant Kolumbia--named after the figure of freedom that gave the District its name, says the restaurant’s promo--has raised the culinary bar along K Street. Although other big hitters--Teatro Goldoni and The Prime Rib, to name a few--operate nearby, Kolumbia has a singular distinction: Jamie Stachowski, chef/owner, mans the kitchen and masterminds the menus, which are seasonal, by the way.
Right now, of course, we’re working on summertime produce and summer-friendly meats, which means you’ll find lighter, farm-fresh goods to whet your appetite. For example, fresh fava beans, pale green and delicately flavored, partner well with the small dark lentils for a sublime appetizer salad. Dress the legumes with a creamy goat cheese and arrange them on a bed of butter lettuce, and you’ve got one of Stachowski’s dream creations.
Or consider the onion and fresh anchovy tartlet, served with a wedge of tuna tartare. While this may sound relatively odd, the composition merits its place in a museum of edible art, and the flavor pairings trump the unusual combination. It was all a toss-up, frankly: Either of those, or the soup special: a chilled saffron sunchoke dish topped with a frizzle of Greek salad. The waiter smiled, and said that was one amazing dish. Besides, we thought, you get your soup and your salad in one bowl.
The breadbasket, too, is as well thought out. Warmed croissants and slices of a textured baguette--sourdough? We couldn’t decide--some with both a ramekin of chilled butter or a scoop of an eggplant dip as a low-cal, low-fat spread. Only thing is, the eggplant is so tempting you’ll want to spoon its ramekin clean, but that’s probably too tacky in this very fine setting.
Gone are the trappings of Le Tarbouche, of course, which gave patrons the feeling of being ensconced in a harem’s tent. Instead, the Stachoswkis (she works the front of the house) selected a very contemporary feel, with stressed natural wood walls, deep persimmon-painted plaster, free-floating glass panels overhead, discreetly hanging lighting, and several swooping vine sculptures to which imaginative flowers cling. If all this sounds too precious, it isn’t. The overall effect is one of quiet elegance, a perfect escape from the turmoil and troubles of DC’s streets right outside the door.
And what’s more, the elegant bar with its stools and small booths makes a happy hour--and later, too, of course--more upscale than the normal shirt-sleeves, raucous-TV places. You’d be happy to take a client here. And the client would probably be happy to sign on the dotted line. The only distraction: Too-loud ‘30s jazz.
Where does all this leave you with the rest of the menu? For one of us, the evening’s next dish was the special grilled swordfish medallions, perfectly cooked to just tender, and perched on a bed of steamed arugula, and topped with squiggly grilled baby squid--another edible artwork.
As for the other selection, always a sitting duck for braised short ribs, I ordered the summer entrée feature of a slow-braised short rib and a double-cut boneless pork chop served alongside a mound of red cabbage “cider slaw.” This may not sound very summery, but it does serve to please the inner being, though had I been truly clever, I would have added the side of garlic mashed potatoes. The short rib was luscious, a fork-tender wedge of boneless meat with a maximum of flavor. The pork chop was really too thick to slice easily, though its flavor stood up well to the slaw.
That left desserts to ponder, and most sounded too caloric after such a rich feast. After turning down the molten chocolate cake and the pyramid of hazelnut chocolate, and voting against the rosewater rice pudding brûlèe, we ended up with the trio of homemade sorbets: raspberry, strawberry, and…cheesecake. Yum!
Admittedly, dinners are a bit pricey, so you might want to request the chef’s tasting menu, one way to get a full range of Stachowski’s skills without paying top dollar. On the other hand, you might opt for a luncheon meal, when the prices take a slight dip, and you can feast on composed salads and lighter main course dishes. Maybe Stachowski might invent the ultimate sandwich of . . . well, that’s up to him.
Restaurant Kolumbia, 1801 K St., NW; tel., 331-5551. Hours: lunch, Mo.-Fri., 11am-2:30pm; dinner, Mon.-Sat., 5-9pm. Entrée prices: $25-$35.All major credit cards.
Alexandra Greeley is a food writer, editor, and restaurant reviewer. She has authored books on Asian and Mexican cuisines published by Simon & Schuster, Doubleday, and Macmillan. Other credits include restaurant reviews and food articles for national and regional publications, as well as former editor of the Vegetarian Times and former food editor/writer for the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong.