|
"And all I can say is WOW. They do offer a special "Rush Hour Dinner" from 5-6Pm on Tuesday to Thursday (3 courses for $26.95), but we ordered off the regular dinner menu. Well, kind of. We started out with the baked fontina with toasted bread, garlic & thyme as an appetizer. It reminded me of being in Switzerland or Canada and ordering raclette, but with different flavors. Yum! And then we moved on to dinner. My husband ordered the veal medallions with bacon & a red wine sauce. And the risotto on the side was "to die for". I have no idea what it was, but it tasted like mac n cheese - except better because it was risotto."
See full post here!
The NorthernVirginia Magazine ~ December 2007; Page 66
By Warren Rojas
Food: 8.7 Ambiance: 7.8 Service: 7.3
The buzz on Bazin’s continues to grow. And with good reason.
Partners Patrick and Julie Bazin have upped the ante on neighborhood dining with a come-as-you-are establishment that seems to appeal to everyone from graying expense account holders to penny-pinching 20-somethings out for a little pampering.
The plasma TV above the handsomely outfitted bar remains religiously tuned to the Food Network. (Catering to the crowd or the ultimate in subliminal programming? You decide.) Brick walls, exposed rafters and glossy wood tables communicate a basic but contemporary feel. Servers dutifully patrol the main dining room, but never rush the cadre of businessmen who seem to linger beyond their allotted lunch hours to squeeze in one of the astounding desserts.
A gourmet quesadilla replaces traditional Tex-Mex style fillings with shredded duck, flanking the barbecue bird with a smoky chipotle cream sauce and zesty salsa fresca. Citrus oil-spritzed asparagus come accompanied by a delightful fried goat cheese fritter (savory coin helps buffer the acidic dressing). A warming beef stroganoff unites tender steak, onions and mushrooms with sour cream-soaked spaetzle (well done). Salmon goes southern atop stone-ground grits finished in a marvelous shrimp-tasso sauce. Assorted chocolate and seasonal fruit creations keep dessert lovers happy.
The comprehensive wine list boasts plenty by-the-glass options from well-respected regions. Bottles start at $25 for a 2005 St. Supery Sauvignon Blanc.
Temple of Earthly Delights
A new Vienna eatery doesn't offer cutting-edge cuisine -- and
that's fine with diners
By
Tom Sietsema
The Washington Post ~ Sunday, June 11, 2006; Page W23
Open: for dinner Monday through Saturday 5 to 10 p.m., Sunday 4 to 9
p.m.; for brunch Saturday and Sunday 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. All major
credit cards. No smoking. Free parking. Prices: dinner appetizers $6
to $12, entrees $15 to $26. Full dinner with wine, tax and tip about
$65 per person.
We
finally know what Patrick Bazin looks like. Having left the historic
Occidental restaurant in Washington after a 6 1/2-year run as
executive chef -- a job that kept him behind the scenes and away
from his audience -- he opened his own place in Vienna in March. Now
he's on view, in an exhibition kitchen behind a small "chef's
counter" at Bazin's on Church, and can even be seen roaming the
dining room when there's a pause in the action.
The
difference between working in a sprawling downtown restaurant and a
space of his own in the suburbs? "This is much more personal," says
Bazin, whose wife, Julie Bazin, a former men's clothier, is general
manager. And, from selecting wine to making desserts, "I'm involved
in every detail" of the infant business, adds Patrick Bazin, a
43-year-old New Jersey native. As at Occidental, he continues to
dish up modern American cooking, though the recipes at Bazin's tend
to be less elaborate. As he puts it, "I'm not trying to be a food
temple."
Yet
the chef isn't dumbing down much of anything, either. His excellent
fried oysters, dotted with aioli and served atop creamed spinach and
bits of ham, are a reminder of his days downtown, while an entree of
seared scallops comes with a polenta cake zipped up with kimchi,
Korea's fiery fermented cabbage. Polenta and cabbage salad? The
match works just fine in the mouth. And while the wine list is
imperfect (hello, spell check!), it has variety, decent prices and
some fine labels going for it; the respectable Drylands sauvignon
blanc from New Zealand, with its lovely citrus aroma, sells for $24
a bottle.
Bazin's isn't very big, but it's plenty inviting. Early in the
evening, the restaurant's broad windows pull in lots of light, and a
flat-screen TV behind the granite bar, tuned to the Food Network,
sparks an appetite. The room's design is simple: brick walls, green
trim, a tilted mirror here, an arched wooden ceiling above your
head. Most of the floor is bare, and the windows are free of drapes,
details that contribute to the restaurant's noise pollution. The
owners hope to minimize the problem with sound-absorbing panels,
scheduled to be in place this month. Meanwhile, plan to dine early
if you don't want to shout through dinner.
Scrape, scrape, scrape. The man sitting next to me one night is
determined not to leave a drop of crab chowder in his bowl. Having
sampled the soup myself, I understand his reaction to the appetizer,
a very satisfying union of cream, corn, seafood and diced potatoes.
And when I overhear an effusive server tell the couple on the other
side of me that the spring salad is his favorite first course, I
find my-self smiling at the memory of mesclun splashed with an herby
vinaigrette and fenced in with endive spears. The composition is
made more interesting with julienned green apple, toasted almonds
and crumbles of blue cheese. Everything reads well on the menu, and
much is to be admired. Thin shavings of roasted portobello mushrooms
scattered with pine nuts add up to a fine meatless beginning, and
peppery bits of chicken in crisp spring rolls meet a kicky match in
a dip of chilies, mango and pineapple.
Bazin and his teammates -- two of his sous chefs from Occidental
followed him here -- need to pay a bit closer attention to their
cooking times and temperatures, however. Ravioli fattened with
pureed potatoes and garnished with sweet bites of lobster is lovely
on its own, though when I tried the appetizer, its buttery lobster
sauce was cool to the touch. And filet mignon did a great imitation
of roast beef -- overcooked and oddly flat roast beef. Two details
made that entree palatable: a frame of sweet baby carrots and a
fragrant white truffle cream sauce draped over the meat. Some
nights, the food comes out of the kitchen as speedily as the sort
you order from your car and a speakerphone; if you're not in a rush,
be sure to say so from the get-go.
Flounder, fine-grained and delicate in flavor, is even more enticing
with a stuffing of sweet crab, a bed of vegetable-flecked basmati
rice and a sauce bright with lemon. If roast chicken doesn't break
any new ground -- it's merely pleasant -- I very much like the way
Bazin dresses the breast, with velvety strips of bell pepper in
three colors on top and a base of creamy orzo enriched with a
reduction of pan juices. A diner here is tempted to order a main
course based on its accompaniments. Buttery leeks and crisp gnocchi
lead me to a plate of tender veal, for instance. And a succulent,
inches-thick pork chop comes with a drift of pureed sweet potatoes
scented with vanilla -- just enough to elevate the starch but not
enough to turn it into dessert -- as well as crisp diced apples that
pack a vinegary punch.
The
neighbors seem thrilled to have a place that falls between fancy and
carry-out near their homes. Young as it is, Bazin's developed
regulars as soon as its doors opened. One of them is 84-year-old
Charlie Nackos of Vienna, who drops by every night he's in town and
prefers Budweiser to microbrews. The restaurant doesn't list
Budweiser on its menu, but the staff buys a case of the stuff just
to make their No. 1 fan happy. That's customer service.
Bazin doesn't skimp on the last course. Instead, he offers eight or
so desserts -- a lot for a small shop -- and they run from the
simple to the sophisticated. Strawberry shortcake celebrates the
fruit with a tender, bun-size biscuit, and whipped cream and
blackberries are nicely showcased in a cobbler set off with a scoop
of ice cream reminiscent of an old-fashioned orange Creamsicle.
Pineapple upside-down cake is a C student in comparison, and dry to
boot. Of the more upscale endings, I'm partial to the warm,
pudding-like chocolate tart and the decadent peanut butter tart, the
latter elegantly displayed on a long white plate with zigzags of
chocolate sauce and a dusting of crushed peanut praline.
Those endings make a sweet impression, as do the affable young
waiters, the wide-ranging menu and the willingness of the host to
buy a loyal guest his suds of choice. Bazin's isn't a food
temple; it's something better: an earthbound restaurant that works
really hard to make you glad to be there.
|
