Girl Meets Food

Bacon, bacon, booze, brunch.  Those are my priorities.  What are yours?

If your mind is already on the weekend, read on for some exciting morning noshing, including bacon flights, Turkish eggs Benedict, and a half-smoked Bloody Mary.

Eola offers Sunday brunch from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with fresh ingredients plucked straight out of the Dupont Farmers’ Market.  Wake up to French toast, eggs and hash, homemade cinnamon rolls, market veggies, Cheddar grits,or  biscuits and jam.

But the most important part of Eola’s brunch in my opinion, is the bacon flight.  Did you hear me?  A.  Bacon.  Flight.

Choose from a variety of house-cured and smoked bacon including Duroc-Hampshire, Farmer’s Cross, Ossabaw, and Tamworth breeds, for $12. See the brunch menu here.  Eola, 2020 P. Street NW. 202.466.4441

The Source by Wolfgang Puck starts brunch a day early on Saturdays from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., with traditional brunch and Asian-inspired dishes.  Order a dim sum platter with spicy Thai-style chicken salad or market-fresh berry French toast with sausage.  There’s also a three-course prix-fixe lunch for $28. See the brunch menu here. Don’t forget The Source’s creative take on the Bloody Mary!  Shanghai Mary with Szechuan chili paste; and the classic District Mary with a miniature half-smoke garnish.  The Source, 575 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.  202.637.6100.

Agora is serving up a Mediterranean brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.  Get a healthy start with labneh, strained yogurt with fruits and nuts; or a beet salad with lemon mashed potatoes, garlic, and orange; or charcoal-smoked eggplant, green and red peppers.  A Turkish twist on the old includes Pastirma Eggs Benedict with poached eggs and cured loin of beef; or scrambled eggs with spicy Turkish sausage. Agora, 1527 17th Street NW.  202.332.6767

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The RAMMY Awards are like the Oscars of D.C. area restaurants, and Tuesday’s nominations party saw restaurateurs, celebrity chefs, industry professionals and yours truly, rubbing elbows at The Ritz-Carlton.

Birch & Barley's hostess cupcakes

Nycci and David Nellis of Dishing it Out hosted an evening of excitement, creative cocktails and delicious nibbles.

Complex with layers, Bourbon Steak’s oxtail shooters were warm and creamy with aromatic truffles.

Birch & Barley’s super-fresh Spanish mackerel sat atop thick, spiced yogurt.  I helped myself to five.

What?  They were there.

Eventide’s seafood salad is a balanced treasure trove of tigerfish, calamari, shrimp, and octopus, tossed in lime and orange.

Birch & Barley’s dessert table beckoned seductively with lemony cream puffs—creamy, light and balanced between tart and sweet.  Freshly-made oatmeal creme pies and faux hostess cupcakes drew crowds back for seconds.

PS7's Bittersweet Ilsa

Chantel Tseng of Tabard Inn whipped up beautiful Casablanca Crustas with Cointreau, chamomile honey, lemon and bitters.

PS7’s Gina Chersevani’s pretty-pansy Bittersweet Ilsa was a garden of Absolut, Campari, cinnamon and marigold tea.

Restaurant Eve’s Grog was a sunny burst of rum, lemon verbena, lemon bitters, and lemon juice.  Perfect for spring!

And the Nominees for the 2010 RAMMYS are:

Fine Dining
2941
Michel Richard Citronelle
Minibar by José Andrés
The Oval Room
The Source by Wolfgang Puck

Upscale Casual
Central Michel Richard
The Liberty Tavern
Proof
Vermilion
Zaytinya

New Restaurant
Bibiana
Birch & Barley
Bourbon Steak
Eventide
Inox

Chef
Bertrand Chemel – 2941
Scott Drewno – The Source by Wolfgang Puck
Daniel Giusti – 1789
Vikram Sunderam – Rasika
Haidar Karoum – Proof

Rising Culinary Star
Michael Isabella – Zaytinya
Liam LaCivita – The Liberty Tavern
Shannon Overmiller – Majestic Café
Nicholas Stefanelli – Bibiana
Jon Mathieson – Inox

Pastry Chef
Anthony Chavez – 2941
Amanda Cook – CityZen
Josh Short – Neighborhood Restaurant Group
Fabrice Bendano – Adour
Travis Olson – 1789

Wine Program
2941
Michel Richard Citronelle
Dino
701/Ardeo/Bardeo/Bibiana/Bombay Club/The Oval Room/Rasika
Proof

Beverage/Mixology Program
Brasserie Beck
EatGoodFoodGroup
Founding Farmers
PS7’s
Tabard Inn

Neighborhood Gathering Place
Bar Pilar
Belga Café
Cork
EatBar
Kemble Park Tavern

Restaurant Power Spot
Art & Soul
BLT Steak
Bombay Club
The Source
Teatro Goldoni

Hottest Restaurant Bar Scene
Birch & Barley and ChurchKey
Bourbon Steak
Masa 14
Posto
POV

Manager
Souheil Moussadik – CoCo. Sala
Ryan McCarthy – Passion Food Hospitality
Ashley Williams – Mie N Yu
Mark Politzer – Bourbon Steak
Fernando Contreras – KAZ Sushi Bistro

Employee
Corina August – Mie N Yu
Joe Bolam – Urbana
Adolfo Cajchon – Seasons
Marco Guzman – Café Atlantico
Jose Orantes – Dino

The 2010 RAMMY Award winners will be announced at the RAMMY gala on June 6, 2010 at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, DC. Tickets to the RAMMYS may be purchased by email or by phone (202) 331-5990.