First Look: Taqueria Nacional

Plaudits: Young and Hungry 2009 Top 50 Restaurants
Neighborhood: 14th Street/U Street

The Setup

We needed to grab a quick breakfast for myself, Official Co-Writer/Fiancee of DCWD Texas, and Official Friends of DCWD Sam and Shawn. Having just returned from California, breakfast burritos seemed like a great idea, so we headed to the newly re-opened Taqueria Nacional.

The Vibe

I have no idea what the old Taqueria Nacional looked like, but I have to imagine it was less designed than this version. Carved along with Bakehouse inside the historic Post Office on T Street, there are intentional holdovers from the old space: a counter with a post office sign, some original railing, and the general facade. Everything has a fresh coat of beige paint or upscale vintage chic decor applied on top of it: crystal chandeliers, repurposed wood and aluminum signing, curlicue-framed mirrors acting as a hard-to-read menu. Make it around the Chipotle-style ordering line and you'll find a smattering of tables. Perhaps more than most spaces, this place has clearly seen a decorator's touch.

However, unlike some of the other new locations we've visited on 14th St recently, the service is shaky and uneven, something probably that much more apparent with the open counter kitchen. My order is nearly lost, and as it is, comes after Texas has already finished hers. Nothing that can't be polished in the coming months, but certainly a fair warning for regulars, as the line was already backing up on this slow Saturday morning.

The Food

For breakfast, we ordered what we thought of as the three basics: tacos, quesadillas, and huevos rancheros. Each could probably be painted with the same brush: fine, but for the price point, something you could make at home, and probably not worth it. Of the three, the quesadillas were probably the best: Shawn and I both got ours with chorizo, and the blend of eggs, jalapeno, and cheese was quite pleasant, especially when combined with the housemade sour crema. Again, at $7.50, maybe not the best quesadilla I've ever had, but decent. Similarly, the tacos weren't much different, though their size - about the size of snack spring roll - made them not as great a value at $2.50-$2.75, given their content.

The huevos rancheros were probably the biggest disappointment. When we placed our order, the cook in front of us opened up a steam tray to uncover pre-cooked eggs on crispy taco shells. Unfortunately, when you leave crispy taco shells in a steam table, they stop becoming crispy. So what we had was a little bit of a mushy mess, and as much as I hate to harp on it, definitely not worth the price tag.

The Verdict

If improvements happen, maybe a contender for a neighborhood taco place. If not, not worth the hype.

Food Rating: ** (out of 5)
Date Rating: 2.5 Hearts (out of 5)
Dress Code: Casual
Bar Rating: N/A
Vibe: Calm
Cost: $ (out of 5) (less than $25 for two)

First Look: B Too

Plaudits: None
Neighborhood: 14th Street

The Setup

Somehow we're going to try and get to as many of the influx of 14th Street restaurants as possible (given that it's our neighborhood right now). Our first attempt starts with the new 14th Street offering from Top Chef contestant Chef Bart Vandaele, B Too with Official Friend of DCWD HR Intern.

The Vibe

In many ways, B Too is like a lighter, brighter version of Chef Bart's first restaurant Belga Cafe. The same color scheme composed of beiges and tans and browns, with dark wood tables surrounded by leather-upholstered casual plastic chairs. A large 16-seat chocolate brown-wood paneled bar takes up the front of the house, while an assortment of four-tops, two-tops, and rounds are in the back in an L-shape around the open kitchen. There are a few differences from Belga, like the large animal-skins on stretched frames on the walls, and a downstairs dining area. All in all, it's a charming scene, one that fits in well with the new and improved 14th Street, and one that is bustling and vibrant.

The Food

Let's just say that our trip to Belga Cafe wasn't exactly a home run. So we came into this meal with guarded optimism. And the meal begins unevenly: Dressed Gingerly, a cocktail of trippel delirium, Bulleit bourbon, Domaine du Canton, and lemon juice portends a delicious honey-forward deep drink, but instead delivers an overly sweet heavy on the Domaine.

Still, our first bite is quite possibly the highlight of the night: a blood sausage waffle to start the meal. Served with a smattering of caramelized apples and a mix of green apple sauce and vincotto cream, it was a little bit of a surprise that the blood sausage came on top of the waffle, as opposed to as part of the waffle. Still, there was a lot to love about the dish. The way the boudoin noir almost acted as a spread on the waffle was pleasant and brought forth some great flavors: meaty, nutty, deep. The fluffiness of the waffle was also self-evident, a brilliantly sweet but subtle bite.

Similarly, the brussels sprouts (as the menu indicated, a 100% Belgian dish) were a treat: a wonderful mix of the rich oiliness that only duck fat can provide. Brussels sprouts and rich, salty meat seems like a pretty ubiquitous European meal, but these were a little better than others. The confit chunks were rich as well, and this was a lovely side dish/starter.

Still, there are some missteps too, not all of them attributable to opening week jitters. A filet van hertenkalf - venison with fresh herbs, raspberry beer, and dark chocolate hints on some bits of couscous and parsnips, is one of those dishes that is perfectly fine but utterly forgettable, all of the sweet flavors listed not coming through nearly as strong. The couscous is probably the best part of the whole dish, which is also disappointingly small: only three quarter-sized chunks of filet are provided for our $26 plate, a theme that seems to run through all of the plates we see leaving the kitchen.

There are some deficits with our frog legs dish too. As most who've had frog legs know (or escargot, for that matter), frog legs are great in so far as they are properly sauced; without a heavy dose of butter or cream, legs are quite flavorless. Therein lies our dish: presented more like drumsticks, our legs can't soak up enough of the creamy tomato and garlic butter sauce to stay unbland. Even hints of the Ricard anise liqueur aren't enough to pick it all up.

The Verdict

On some levels, very much another Belga Cafe in our neighborhood. If you like waffles, that's great news. If not, prepare for some up and down dishes.

Food Rating: ** 1/2 (out of 5)
Date Rating: 3 Hearts (out of 5)
Dress Code: Casual
Bar Rating: Suits Scene
Vibe: Energetic
Cost: $$$ (out of 5) ($50-$75 for two)

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We Made It From the Market: Sweetbreads

Ah, sweetbreads. I’ll admit that the first time I ever ordered them, I had no idea what they were (and let’s just say that those salad days were a little more recent than I’d like to admit). Still, when I took my first bite, I knew I was in love (so much so that Official Co-Writer/Fiancee of DCWD Texas knows now that, along with a few other dishes like foie or duck breast, if it’s on a menu, 80 percent of the time, I’ll order it). I will also admit that I am among the luckiest fiancés in the world, a sentiment encapsulated by a random Wednesday when Texas brought home none other than a half-pound sweetbread for me.

Still, the thought of cooking the sweetbread itself was frightening. Where does one even start? Coincidentally, an episode of Top Chef we had watched the week before had Chef Hugh Acheson critiquing cheftestant Brooke Williamson on not cleaning her sweetbreads enough. Holding this slippery viscous chunk in my hands, I thought to myself, what is there even to clean?

Luckily for me, I had impulse purchased a copy of Fergus Henderson’s nose-to-tail cookbook and used its simple sweetbread recipe to cook the gland up right:

Fergus Henderson's Sweetbreads

1 pound lamb sweetbreads
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A pot of water (enough to happily cover the sweetbreads)
A healthy splash of white wine
Cloves of garlic
A bundle of thyme and parsley tied together
Black peppercorns
A splash of olive oil
A knob of unsalted butter

Rinse your sweetbreads thoroughly in cold, gently running water to remove any blood, giving them the occasional gentle shuggle to aid the cleansing process.

Bring your pot of water with its wine, herbs, and spices to a boil. Reduce to a gentle simmer. Slip your sweetbreads into the pot. Poach for 2.5 minutes so they firm up slightly. Think of the finger that pushes the Pillsbury Doughboy’s tummy. Your finger should push the same way.

Remove the sweetbreads from the pot, lay a kitchen towel out on a tray, and scatter the sweetbreads across it to cool and dry off.

Once the sweetbreads are cool enough to handle, peel the membrane off the little glands, a slightly fiddly process but well worth the trouble when it comes to the eating.

Now to the vital part. Get your frying pan hot, but not furiously hot. Add a splash of oil and a knob of butter. As this melts, season the sweetbreads with salt and pepper and then add to the pan. What we are looking for is a steady sizzle, not a frantic singeing, so that the sweetbreads brown to a nutty crispness all over, maintaining a giving interior. At this point they are ready to serve with a chunk of lemon—the nutty nodule, not the burnt offering or the anemic gland.

Once you have achieved the nutty nodule, there are many additions to the pan you can make, for example, a splash of chicken stock, a splash of red wine vinegar, peas, pea shoots, young fava beans, bacon, quarters of Little Gem lettuce, braised endive, mint, capers, young spinach, or watercress. 

Taste Test: **** (out of 5)