Eating Good in my Neighborhood

No, I'm not talking about Applebee's.


The past few weekends Justin and I have been checking out some of the restaurants in our neck of the woods, Capitol Hill.


A couple weekends ago we went to Zest Bistro because it was Restaurant Week.


I took part in the Restaurant Week menu and had the seared foie gras bilini, pear habanero jam, with balsamic reduction as an appetizer:   

The chocolate porter braised short ribs, cauliflower puree, kabocha squash, kale, and mushrooms as an entree:

And for dessert I had the milk chocolate bread pudding with espresso caramel anglaise:

Justin, on the other hand, had the lamb shank on the regular menu calling his name, and boy did it look delicious!

Last weekend, I used my Open Table Spotlight $20 for $40 coupon at Bistro Cacao. Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures, but the food was delicious! I had the venison and Justin had the rack of lamb.  The service was was excellent the ambiance was very romantic! The lights were dim and we were sat in a curtained area with wing back chairs. Very luxurious! I almost felt bad that Justin and I weren't celebrating something! 


Right when we thought we were too stuffed for dessert, we opted to go to another Capitol Hill establishment, The Sweet Lobby, for some french macaroons! There were so many different flavors it was almost hard to choose, but we tried the pistachio, chocolate, lavender, salted caramel, and mint chocolate. Yummy!


Lastly, we went off the beaten path and had some Italian food with friends at Bistro Italiano. This place is a cute storefront amongst rowhouses near Union Station. The food was solid and reasonably priced. I had the pasta and clams and I love how the spaghetti was cooked to a perfect al dente.


I can't believe that I've lived on the Hill for almost a year and it was my first time at all these places. I really want to make a point to eat at all the restaurants on the Hill...or at least come close to it :)