Restaurant 3 is named such because it's the 3rd restaurant I'd go to if I was really hungry in the Clarendon area and wasn't allowed to go to Five Guys or Whole Foods. Maybe not, I'm not sure.
There's nothing wrong with Restaurant 3, it just annoys me because it's new and sort of snazzy looking, the food is okay but not fabulous, and it's on the pricier side for the quality of the food. Also, someone should do the owners a favor and steal that awful fluorescent "3" they've got hanging--it's totally out of place, and doesn't match their decor at all.
We started with the lettuce wraps of duck confit and bourbon molasses, which were actually very good--maybe the best part of the meal. The meat was very soft but almost drowning in the sauce, and its accompaniments were also very tasty (a crunchy salad mixture and nuts to wrap in the lettuce). Grilled brie with a side of grapes was pretty good, but the oil-saturated slices of toasted bread that came with it were unnecessary--not quite warm, and with an almost stale-like texture. I ended up just eating the brie with a fork in combo with the grapes, which I wish were colder for a greater contrast with the warm brie.
My dinner was okay, but I probably wouldn't order it again. The menu at Restaurant 3 just didn't call to me, it wasn't my style. I wasn't freaking out about ordering the way I usually do, wondering how in the world I'll be able to choose between choices X Y and Z which are all making my mouth water. I got the vegetarian croquettes, described as grit cakes with salsa verde. They were large, not too dense, yellow mounds of what seemed like cornmeal and some veggies and lots of butter, tasty, but I would have rather had ONE of them on the side of something else than two of them as a meal. I wasn't sure what to expect but went for it figuring I'd try it sooner or later. Plus, nothing else was really floating my boat.
J had better luck. He ordered the cider-brined pork chop, which came with a three-apple relish and deliiiiicious mashed potatoes (three potato mash). I guess that's the three theme going on.
We've already been back to Liberty Tavern for dinner, and will probably go again soon to try their brunch. R3 has yet to have iEat feet walk through the door again. We'll give it another chance eventually, but it just seemed like it wasn't really worth it.
Restaurant 3
2950 Clarendon Boulevard
Metro: Orange Line to Clarendon
hey- you should talk to LB about R3. she went in, sans reservation, to discover & empty restaurant. They asked for a table for two. The guy looked at her like she was on crack, said nothing was available (perhaps they should try sitting at the bar?!?), and suggested that they make a reservation next time.
ReplyDeleteThat shizzle may work in DC, but not in A-town. Nobody puts baby in the corner.