For the third year in a row, Washington will be celebrating “the holiday that time forgot” with a tour-de-carnivore that will highlight some of the best barbecue the area has to offer.  Beginning at Urban Bar-B-Que’s newest location on Sunday night and ending at long-time favorite Rocklands the following Sunday, we’re taking it to the next level for this year’s Meat Week.  We’ve got so much new talent on the DC barbecue scene, we just had to add an eighth day (finally bringing us in line with the national organizers’ recommendation).  And with one of those shiny new logos that plays off the DC flag, you know we’re ready.

If you’ve been following along from the beginning, you know that we started DC’s Meat Week chapter after an introduction to the event by the Washington City Paper’s Tim Carman.  I’m pleased to report that our Meat Week team from last year is back together again this year, with Jenelle Dennis (aka Babeque) as our Captain and David Gootzit as First Mate.  Both are KCBS-Certified Barbecue Judges, and they’re quick to extol the virtues of crisp bark and a well-defined smoke ring in quality ‘cue.  I asked each a few key questions about Meat Week and will be posting their answers tomorrow.

As befits a celebration of the best of the area’s barbecue offerings, we’ll be returning to several of our most popular venues from last year.  In addition to the two I mentioned above, we’ll be hitting up the PORC crew for a second response-requested buffet at Wilson’s in Shaw) and Mr. P’s Ribs and Fish for another round of parking lot barbecue.

We’re also proud to finally be able to visit the guys from Pork Barrel BBQ in their own space after two consecutive Meat Weeks featuring “coming soon” sneak peeks.  They’re rolling out the red carpet, with a Meat Week sampler special and the first official taste of their new Carolina Vinegar sauce.  It’s been a long time coming, but good barbecue is all about taking the time to get it right.

The rest of our Meat Week slots this year are given over to ‘cue joints that didn’t exist when Meat Week 2011 rolled around:

Hill Country’s DC outpost has been winning rave reviews since they opened, and their all-you-can-eat Monday night special seemed like the perfect way to welcome them to the lineup.  As it turns out, this Monday Hill Country offers a chance to do some good with your meal: they’re holding a charity concert to benefit the victims of the recent Texas wildfires.  Tickets are $20 and the restaurant is also donating 20% of their food and beverage sales for the night to the relief efforts, as well.  If you’re thinking about coming out Monday night, please consider making a donation.

Smoke & Barrel knows how to draw a crowd with their combination of barbecue and beverages (most notably bourbon).  Due to their limited size – at least until expansion is complete – they’re participating in Meat Week with a reservations-required.  That’s the good news.  The bad news?  Reservations are already completely booked.  If you’re not already on board, you’ll have to check them out another night.

Finally, Memphis Barbeque in Crystal City is doing its namesake city proud, smoking everything from pork to salmon (not to mention a few sides) in a massive sit-down space on 23rd Street.  What better way to celebrate the Friday night of Meat Week?  We had the privilege of taking a First Look when they were ready to open.

The official website features the schedule, addresses and special offers that will be available each night.  While you’re on the site, take a look around at some of the photos from last year and check out the Meat Week Hype that we’ve created for this year, too.  Like that flag logo?  You’re in luck – t-shirts will be available for sale each night (just find the Captain or First Mates).

Except where noted above, all events are come-as-you-are and everyone is free to order whatever they please.

If you’ve ever left one of the Eat Good Food Group’s Alexandria restaurants wishing you could replicate what you just ate at home, consider yourself one step closer.  Tomorrow at 6 PM, Society Fair opens its doors to the public, offering many of the ingredients used at Restaurant Eve, the Majestic, Eamonn’s, PX and Virtue Feed & Grain.  Get ready to raid Chef Cathal Armstrong’s pantries.

We had an opportunity to take a look around as Rob Shinn and his team were getting ready for this week’s opening, and we were like kids in a candy store as we moved from butcher’s counter to coffee station to bakery racks.  Goods we’d only read about before (being unable to find them at local grocers) were all around us.  Where’s Julie Andrews to sing about “favorite things” when you need her?

Lots of pictures and your plan of attack after the jump.

First things first: don’t think of Society Fair as a wine bar.  Sure, they’ve got a posh seating area with 25 wines by the glass (including 4 on tap) and a tempting menu of light fare.  But focus on that, and you’re missing the forage for the trees.

Nevermind the fact that you’re not going to be able to get a seat in the wine bar anytime soon.  The real reason to turn your attention away is the fact that it’s all an elaborate advertisement for the market.  Everything you eat, drink – even the glassware – is available for purchase in the retail shop.  So let’s turn our attention that way to begin.

Walk in the front door of the market, and you come face to face with the massive coffee station.  Shinn described Society Fair’s coffee program as “aggressive,” pointing out offerings that included a daily pressed coffee, drip-poured options, and even a rotating signature seasonal drink (the first is an orange-tequila caramel latte, just to give you an idea of where they’re setting the bar).

From there, head to the right and you approach a marble table laden with cakes, pastries and assorted treats.  Along the windows, you’ll see baskets of the “daily bread,” which will come out hot and fresh three times a day at Society Fair.  Baker Nathan Hatfield is a veteran Eat Good Food guy, and anyone who’s ever demolished a bread basket at Restaurant Eve knows what he can do.  He’ll be working with a French Pavailler oven that’s just visible through the rear window of the shop.

Walk back toward that window, and you’ll encounter a standing cooler with a well-edited selection of American and Irish cheeses.  These, again, are some of Chef Armstrong’s favorites and they run the gamut from creamy and soft to firm and salty.  Fromagier Justin Owens’ creations will also be available for sale at Society Fair, and we’re eager to taste them for ourselves.

Now turn your attention to the wall.  See the larder menu with its hefty list of recommended meats and charcuterie?  You probably won’t find every item on this board in front of you every time you stare into the butcher’s case, but Society Fair can get them for you if you ask.  Even better, they can also trim the meat to your specifications and offer suggestions on how best to use it, if you’d like.  Welcome back to full-service butchery.

The butcher’s counter is also the place to go to try Society Fair’s rotating menu of tempting sandwiches.  We envy anyone with an office within walking – or even driving – distance.  Try though we might, we just can’t find a nearby source for roasted pork shoulder with pimento aioli, sliced egg and lemon on toasted potato roll (or as they call it here, the “Spaniard’s Lunch”).

The rest of the shop is given over to a combination of prepared and packaged foods that represent everything you need to replicate a restaurant meal at home.  Yogurts, olives, butters, pickles, stocks, spreads…they’re all ready and waiting for you in the coolers at Society Fair, having been made by hand the same way they are for use in the kitchen at Restaurant Eve or the Majestic.  Spices are sold in small tins under the Society Fair label, ground fresh and likely to be far more flavorful than those red-capped jars gathering dust in your cabinets.

Cocktails more your culinary style?  General Manager and “liquid savant” Todd Thrasher’s contributions to Society Fair include packaged versions of his homemade tonic, his dirty martini mix, and even his cocktail onions.  A whole table is given over to the bar tools and mixers he prefers, including Bittermens bitters and Dolin vermouth.

Okay…now we can head into the wine bar and take a peek at the menu.  Each of the wines available by the glass is accompanied by helpful – and less helpful – tasting notes.  One sparkling wine is “charcuterie pairing perfection,” while a Spanish white is described as a “crowd pleaser? Not so much.”  And how can you resist a wine that’s “u-turn on rte. 29 good?’  Glasses run from $8 to $22, with most in the $10-12 range.  ”Professor” Sommelier John Wabeck is someone whose taste in wine we’ve enjoyed since his days at Firefly, and we’re looking forward to trying some of his latest selections by the bottle and the glass.

Just like Virtue Feed & Grain’s beer-centered bar offers a few inventive “hoptails” for those who want something different, Society Fair invites you to try their “vin-tails,” which are described as “artisanal wine influenced libations.”    They blend white wines with spirits, bitters and botanicals to play up the wines natural inclinations in drinks like the “Pleasantly Bitter Beginning.”  We’re suckers for Todd Thrasher’s creations, so put us down for two right now.

At the end of the bar is a full demonstration kitchen with seating for ten.  Three-course dinners will be prepared and served by reservation only Tuesday through Saturday. They’ll have a single $45 seating on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7 PM, and two $55 seatings on Fridays and Saturdays at 6:30 and 9 PM.  Each night’s menu will be guided by a different theme, and there are plans to bring in guest chefs and eventually expand the offerings to include wine and cocktail classes, as well.

So when and how should you get there?  If you just can’t wait for tomorrow’s official 6 PM opening, rumor has it you’ll be able to stop by the market at lunchtime today for a sandwich or any of their prepared goods.  Once they’re fully up and running, the market will open at 7:30 AM and close at 10 PM daily, and the wine bar will open at 11:30 AM and close at 10 PM (though Friday and Saturday nights may run later than that).  Society Fair will offer parking in an underground garage accessible via Columbus Street (turn west onto Duke Street from Washington and then make your first right).

The only thing you won’t be able to buy at Society Fair is the years of training and know-how that go into those dishes.  Guess you’ll just have to keep practicing.

Society Fair
277 South Washington Street
Alexandria, VA

On the surface, Lime may seem like another quick-service Mexican restaurant – Baja Fresh, Chipotle – but we stopped in to take a look around, and what we found surprised us.  Lime is much closer to a fast-casual sit-down restaurant, as evidenced by their focus on service (and their adult beverage menu).  They’re planning to offer speedy lunch options for office-workers on the go as well as a more relaxed sit-down experience for those who prefer to savor their meals.

We walked in on Lime during service training, and they were kind enough to give their cooks an impromptu test run as well so we could see a few of their more popular dishes as they’ll be served.  Check them out after the jump along with some photos of the inviting decor and the amenities that Lime is most proud of. If you manage to get there at a time when there’s no line blocking your view, the first thing you’ll probably see is the countertop tub mounded with ice and beverages.  Beers and Jarritos sodas poke out every which way, making it look like you’ve just arrived for a backyard barbecue, and they also offer frozen margaritas, sangria and even splits of wine.  But don’t get distracted – you’ll have a Lime staffer just inside the door to greet you and help you navigate the menu in case you need a hand.

Place your order and pay, and you’ll receive a numbered Lime tentcard to keep with you – when your food is ready, a server will bring it to your table.  Then work your way along the hammered copper counter and select your condiments.  With a target of ten minutes from order to receipt of food, it’s not uncommon for first-time visitors to still be poring over the many hot sauces and fresh-made salsas when their number is up.  You’ll find plenty of limes at the salsa bar, but no lemons (a manager told me they “consider ‘lemon’ a four-letter word” – though I’m not sure how many letters they see in ‘lime.’)

If you do make it to a table before your food is ready, you’ll have your choice of seating areas.  The front of the restaurant features high-top tables and stools below golden yellow walls decorated with art incorporating Lime’s namesake.  Toward the rear of the restaurant, a more traditional seating area is framed by wooden beams and windows that reference southwestern architecture.

But you probably won’t be paying much attention to your surroundings at that point, as the food is likely to have your focus.  Lime  makes it a point to source all-natural meats that are raised hormone-free, and their veggies are prepped on-site.  Not a meat-eater?  You’re in good company – one of Lime’s founders is a vegetarian and has always insisted that every item on Lime’s menu be adaptable to a meatless diet.

The attention to freshness and flavor in the menu starts with their handmade salsas and continues through to tacos, salads and fajitas.  The tastiest menu items we encountered were the ones that really let the ingredients shine – like the fajitas that are perfectly grilled and served with all the fixings to make your own tacos.  If you want a real treat, try the queso dip made from real shredded cheese and blended with Lime’s asado salsa for a deep smoky flavor.

Catering is available, and Lime also offers delivery in the nearby area at no extra charge.  They also point out their commitment to the environment in the form of biodegradable beverage cups and take-out containers.

With prices that top out at $11.99 (and most under $9), Lime offers a reasonable lunch option and a definite dinner deal in Clarendon.  If you manage to save room for dessert, you can pay tribute to Lime’s Miami roots with a thick slice of sweet-tart key lime pie.

Lime Fresh Mexican Grill
2900 Wilson Blvd. #104
Arlington, VA (Clarendon)

Fortunately, you’ve still got plenty of time to shop if you Think Local First.  We’ll save the pitches about supporting the local economy and encouraging eclectic and diverse retail options for another time…right now, all you need to think about is the fact that you can buy your last-minute gifts right up until the Night Before Christmas if you shop in-store.

Stumped for gift ideas?  If you’re shopping for someone who loves cooking, eating or drinking in the Washington area, we’re here to help.  From now until Christmas Day we’ll be offering twelve of our favorites – some old, some new, all tasty.  We’re starting off with a delicious source for sweet treats on Barracks Row:

On the first day ’til Christmas, my true love gave to me…a Caramelized Pear and Goat Cheese macaron from the Sweet Lobby!

The siblings, originally from Trinidad, are both graduates of MIT with degrees in engineering…not your average patissier‘s background.    Winnette fell in love with macarons and French pastry while in Paris, and she has been applying her scientific training to perfecting her recipes ever since.  When the opportunity came to open their own shop on Barracks Row, these Hill-dwellers jumped at the chance.

While their technique and attention to detail are traditional, some of the flavors that the Sweet Lobby works into their macarons are anything but ordinary.  Think black sesame pumpkin, hazelnut praline salted caramel (yes, all those tastes are in one macron) and chili-spiked chocolate.  The little treats are sold individually or in stylish orange-and-cocoa boxes of 4, 16 or even 40!

Despite (or possibly because of) their delicate texture and air of refinement, it’s highly unlikely that macarons will ever supplant cupcakes as DC’s go-to sugar fix.  Thankfully, the Sweet Lobby has you covered on the cakier front, as well.  With buttercream frosting (on most) and cake that is moist and dense, they’ll go toe-to-toe with almost any DC cupcake contender.

Since opening in June, the Sweet Lobby has been establishing a reputation as a go-to source for some of the most delicious macarons this side of the Seine.  The complex little pastries, with their brittle shells and near-liquid interiors, demand a perfectionist’s touch.  Fortunately for us, the Sweet Lobby has Winnette and Timothy McIntosh.

And as if the cupcakes and the macarons weren’t enough for such a small space, the McIntosh siblings sell madeleines and shortbread in several flavors.  They’ve also created Steep, a line of custom blended loose-leaf teas.  Work with the Sweet Lobby staff and you’ll be sure to find a gift combination that works for your loved one.

The flavors of both the macarons and the cupcakes change daily, so you’ll want to check in with them via Facebook or Twitter to get the latest update. Prices are better than many competitors’, with cupcakes selling for $2.75 and macarons go for $1.75 each.

The Sweet Lobby
404 8th St., SE
Washington, DC

Since July of 1997, Evening Star Cafe has been an integral part of both for the residents of Del Ray.  It has been the site of first dates, proposals and countless other milestones in their lives.  So you can understand the level of interest caused by the restaurant’s recent remodel, and the pressure on the Neighborhood Restaurant Group to get it right.

The wait ends tonight at 5:30, when new chef Jim Jeffords and his team throw open the doors to welcome the neighborhood back for the first time.  Although there are plenty of changes to ooh and aah over, the regulars will be pleased to see that it’s still the same old Evening Star at heart.  And the fact that they can now make reservations throughout the evening via OpenTable will likely be a welcome addition, as well.

We stopped by yesterday for a quick look around and a chat with the staff.  Details, including some work-in-progress photos and a few new menu items to whet your appetite, after the jump.

Check out the redesigned black-and-white tile floor.  Take a peek at those aerodynamic-looking red chairs and the white tabletops.  The overall effect is a nod to the “modern” look of the late ’50s and early ’60s, and it’s meant to evoke a time when restaurants were an integral part of their local community.  Along those lines, a new banquette runs the length of the dining room, providing a family friendly element and additional seating that brings the room’s capacity to 60 people.

The “retro diner” effect is reinforced in the main dining room through lighting and not-yet-in-place artwork from Rick Singleton.  Singleton designed the unique Erector-set lighting that you may remember from Evening Star’s former incarnation, and his new pieces are equally inspired.   Take a look at the nosecone fixture over the table in the front window and see what we mean.

The menu at Evening Star has undergone a similarly subtle revision.  With the arrival of chef Jim Jeffords (no relation to the former Senator from Vermont), the restaurant’s traditional Southern roots are more visible than ever.  New dishes include “Poppadews” – fried red and golden peppadew peppers stuffed with pimento cheese – and crispy black drum with sautéed brussels sprouts, chili roasted butternut squash sauce and homemade
pork rinds.  Sausages will be made in house, and there’s a new emphasis on nose-to-tail preparations (look for crispy pig ear croutons to make an appearance).

In the Majestic Bar, at the rear of the restaurant, guests will find an atmosphere “like your cool uncle’s basement.”  Mason jar lighting over the bar, a wall of sports trophies commemorating real victories (some donated by Evening Star regulars), and a trio of repurposed vintage G.E. refrigerators set the tone.  But I don’t care how cool your uncle is/was…there’s no way he had the kind of beverage selection they’ll be offering at Evening Star.

This being a Neighborhood Restaurant Group establishment, Evening Star benefits from the expertise of Beer Director Greg Engert, the man who brought you the impressive beverage programs at Rustico and Birch & Barley.  Expect more than two dozen beers on tap, featuring “the Best of American Craft” and including a cask ale.  Local labels like Port City and Lost Rhino will be prominently featured, as will old-school classics like Pabst Blue Ribbon.  And the fact that they’re dispensed from classic refrigerators (still in working condition) makes the whole experience that much cooler.

NRG synergy doesn’t end with the beer list.  The dessert list features some of Executive Pastry Chef Tiffany MacIsaac’s best work yet, and any wine you can buy next door at Planet Wine can be purchased and enjoyed at Evening Star Cafe.  The renovation even added a pass-through between the two spaces, which will help when Evening Star resumes its private-dining “Farm Table” dinners inside Planet Wine.

Evening Star Cafe officially opens for business tonight, but it will be a while before they’re operating at full speed.  Brunch service won’t resume until after the New Year, and the Number 9 lounge upstairs is still undergoing renovation and will be opening soon.  Considering the loyal fan base they’ve developed in the neighborhood, none of this can come soon enough.  For now, though, Evening Star is starting with a comfortable “Welcome back.”

Evening Star Cafe
2000 Mount Vernon Ave.
Alexandria, VA (Del Ray)

First, we’ve seen several members of the DC Food Truck Association posting about a toy drive that the association is undertaking to benefit My Sister’s Place.  Participating trucks are accepting donations of new, unwrapped toys every day from now until December 15th.  The toys will be given to children staying at the shelter during the holidays.

My Sister’s Place has been serving victims of domestic violence in the Washington area with emergency shelter for more than 30 years.  They have since expanded their services to include transitional housing assistance, counseling, and a program for immigrants victims of domestic violence, as well.  They have helped more than 1,100 families in need.

Want to know if your lunch destination will be accepting toys on behalf of My Sister’s Place?  Your safest bet is to tweet them and ask – they’ll likely welcome the chance to remind their followers that they’re helping. But chances are they will be participating…the DC Food Truck Association lists more than 20 members on their website, and a quick search for the #DCFTA hashtag on Twitter turned up tweets from TastyKabob, AZNEats, Rolling Ficelle, PORC, the Cheesecake Truck, DC Empanadas and Cajunators asking customers to bring toys.

Second, we’ve got some good news for you if you work in the public sector.  GovLoop, the social network that connects more than 50,000 federal, state and local government employees and provides insight into issues like federal benefits open season, is celebrating their 50,000th member (in just three years).  That means free food for you, if you’re a government employee.

GovLoop has partnered with CapMac and BBQ Bus to provide free lunches for the first 500 public sector employees who show proof of employment tomorrow (Thursday, December 8th).  Your freebies await as follows:

-200 free lunches from CapMac at Federal Triangle, with your choice of classic macaroni and cheese with a drink or goat cheese macaroni and cheese with a drink

-300 free lunches from BBQ Bus at L’Enfant Plaza, featuring your choice of a pulled pork sandwich with chips and a drink or three bean vegetarian chili with a drink

Both trucks will open for service at 11:30 and will be serving until all of the giveaways have been claimed or until 1:30, whichever comes first.  To claim your free lunch, bring a government ID, business card or some other proof of employment.  And don’t forget – this isn’t just limited to federal employees, so state and local workers can take advantage of these deals, too.

Watch Twitter for each truck’s exact location, and definitely plan to be early.  The only thing longer than a food truck line is a food truck line waiting for free food!

WE GOT TO HANG OUT WITH TOP CHEF STEPHANIE IZARD!

Ah, much better.  If you’ve read Capital Spice before now, you know we’re kind of huge Top Chef fans.  And our first big interview was with Chef Spike Mendelsohn as he prepared to open Good Stuff Eatery, so we’re especially partial to Season 4 (Top Chef Chicago).  So when we were given the chance to attend a dinner prepared by Spike and Top Chef winner Stephanie Izard, we jumped at it.

The dinner, which took place on Wednesday, November 16th, was part of Chef Izard’s tour promoting her new cookbook, Girl in the Kitchen.  Rather than subject herself and her fans to a series of low-key bookstore signing events, Izard has partnered with local chefs in cities across the country to put on special dinner events benefiting Share Our Strength.  The “Goat Tour” (the name is a nod to her year-old, critically acclaimed Girl and the Goat restaurant) has the look and feel of a concert tour, right down to the t-shirts worn by Izard and her team featuring a map and a list of dates on the back.  With everyone from Jimmy Fallon to the Wall Street Journal calling chefs “rock stars,” it’s only fitting.

A four-course pizza feast with a pair of fun chefs after the jump.

We arrived at We, the Pizza unsure of exactly what kind of dinner we would experience.  The menus were already set up, and we learned that we would be having wings, salad, and pizza, with both chefs doing their versions throughout.  We struck up a conversation with a couple – let’s call them Armand and JDQ – who knew Elizabeth through a mutual friend, and settled in for a full-on feast.  This was going to be a marathon, not a sprint.

Although the menu made no mention of which preparations belonged to each chef, we recognized several We, the Pizza menu items and figured out others through a process of elimination.  We grabbed a beer and settled in to meet our fellow guests while we waited for the chefs to come up and explain their dishes to us.

The first course was a pair of chicken wing recipes whose heat had many people grabbing for another beverage right off the bat.  Interestingly, both chefs opted to use harissa in their sauce, resulting in one dish dosed with even more heat from jalapenos and one that brought a lighter, more citrusy flavor courtesy of yuzu.  It was a bold way to begin the event, and it made us hungry for more.

The food was served buffet-style, so we piled the wings and salad onto our first round plates.  The salad course matched up Chef Izard’s offering of shaved kohlrabi, fennel and red oak with Chef Spike’s chopped antipasto salad.  Izard’s dish was more complex, with fennel, cheese and a ginger-maple vinaigrette.  Spike’s salad topped lettuce with Italian meats and cheeses, tomatoes, onions and a red wine vinaigrette.  Even knowing what lay ahead, we were tempted to go back for more greens.

And then came the pizzas.  They were relentless, with pie after pie making its way up from the kitchen to the event.  It felt like a grown-up version of every kid’s dream birthday party.  We saw pizzas topped with goat chorizo, ricotta and pickled peppers (Stephanie brought the chorizo with her from Chicago).  Spike’s fall classic, with butternut squash, goat cheese and balsamic onions, was a huge hit.  The surprising star of the night was a pizza topped with fried chick peas and eggplant caponata.  It had a great balance of acidity and creamy mozarella, and we were all excited when Chef Izard told us that the caponata recipe can be found in her cookbook.

Just when we thought we couldn’t eat any more, we were treated to a surprise dessert of gelati from We, the Pizza’s handmade selections.  Sure, the vanilla and chocolate were rich and smooth, but people pretty much lost their minds when the salted caramel made an appearance.  If you haven’t tried it yet, you owe it to yourself to check it out.

After the plates were cleared, we had a chance to chat with the chefs and hear about what went on behind the scenes.  Though Chef Izard and her team travel with some key ingredients (like that goat chorizo), they tend to shop locally and keep things simple.  In this case, that meant using We the Pizza’s dough for their crust, resulting in larger, denser pies than they normal serve at Girl and the Goat.  As Chef Izard put it, “Spike knows what he’s doing when it comes to pizza…why would I travel with all those extra ingredients?”

Our friends for the evening were pleased across the board, commenting favorably on the yuzu wings, the “earthy” Shroomin’ pizza and the aforementioned caponata pizza.  But it was the overall feeling of the event that they really enjoyed.  Armand summed it up best when he described the event as having “amazing atmosphere.  It felt like we were having dinner with old friends!”  JDQ agreed that the chefs were fun and accessible, and they both made sure to point out just how much they had enjoyed the food by showing off an impressive stack of gelato cups.

The Goat Tour is terrific on so many levels – a chance to interact with Chef Izard and taste her food, team-ups with some of the highest profile chefs across the country, and all to benefit Share Our Strength!  Keep an eye on the website, as there are plans to do an event in Philadelphia in February though the date, location and guest chef are still being kept under wraps.

<<EDIT 11:30 AM, 12/1/11: An alert tipster just let us know that Memphis has decided to delay its opening until Monday.  Staff are handing out coupons for a free appetizer with the purchase of two entrees during the month of December and explaining that the restaurant just got its liquor license today.>>

Back to back barbecue openings, and it’s not even my birthday!  Consider it a practice run for Meat Week 2012.

If you smell smoke in Crystal City tomorrow, don’t be alarmed.  Memphis Barbecue opens its doors at lunchtime, and they’re going to be bringing the low-and-slow taste of that great southern barbecue city to the former site of Mackey’s Public House on 23rd Street.  We stopped in for a look around the dining room and a peek inside the kitchen.

The name that Chris George and his father, Dr. William George, gave to their restaurant is at once generic and super-specific.  On the one hand, it channels one of the five major styles of American barbecue (and one of the two major competition circuits), connecting itself to the history and the tradition that comes with it.  At the same time, that connection tells you everything you need to know about the meal you’re about to experience, conjuring up memories of smoky pork laced with spicy dry rubs and tangy-sweet sauces.

As it turns out, Crystal City’s take on Memphis does all that and quite a bit more, with a menu that only begins at hickory-smoked barbecue.

More of what’s in store after the jump.

If you remember anything about Mackey’s (you probably don’t or it would still be there), walking into Memphis will make you question whether you’ve come to the same place.  Gone is the faux pub decor, replaced with brick walls, tile floors, and furnishings of black and red.  The design is a tribute to some of the great barbecue joints across the country, and it just happens to evoke the inside of a wood-burning smoker simultaneously.

Sure, you can order a slab of ribs or a big pulled pork sandwich for the road, but Memphis isn’t just a grab-and-go smoke shack.  The focus at Memphis is on dining, with entrees that incorporate hickory smoked flavor into everything from the ‘cue to salmon, shrimp and even vegetables.  The menu offers appetizers, sides and desserts as well, and the bar features barbecue-friendly beverages like Fat Tire Amber Ale and an array of bourbons.

To handle the lunch and dinner crowds, the Georges are running two Southern Pride smokers with a combined capacity of 800 pounds.  One will be used for longer-cooking items like pork shoulder and brisket, while the other will cycle through chicken, ribs and smaller cuts.  Overseeing the smokers and the hickory-burning wood grill will be pit master Redrick Rayborn, who managed one of the Corky’s Ribs & BBQ locations in Memphis.  Cue enthusiasts will tell you that’s a solid pedigree, as Corky’s barbecue is among the best in Memphis.

All that firepower came at a price; Arlington County mandated that all of the wood-burning equipment needed to be contained under a single ventilation hood.  The result?  A few weeks’ worth of permitting delays and one of the largest custom-made vent systems you’ll ever see.

Memphis will be open from 11 AM to 10 PM Monday through Thursday, 11 AM to 11 PM Friday, 10 AM to 11 PM Saturday and 10 AM to 9 PM Sundays.  They’ll offer a brunch on Saturday and Sunday from 10 AM to 2 PM, and limited late-night offerings are in the works.

So whose ‘cue will do it for you?  There’s only one way to find out.  Can you say barbecue for lunch AND dinner?

Memphis Barbecue
320 South 23rd Street, Suite 50
Arlington (Crystal City), VA

But the wait ends tonight.

Pork Barrel BBQ officially opens its doors at 5 PM, and when we took a look around this weekend the restaurant gave every indication of being worth the wait.  As Heath Hall put it, “This is barbecue.  We wanted to make sure everything was just right.  You can’t rush good barbecue, no matter how much you might want to.”  With five smoked meats and more than half a dozen sides on offer, that meant a lot of testing and retesting of recipes while the restaurant space was finished to everyone’s satisfaction.

All the dirty details on the smoker, the sides and the space after the jump.

Walk in the door and you’ll find a restaurant divided into two sections.  On your left, you’ll see a large communal table carved from a single slab of maple and a bar area with an unfinished, industrial feel.  The design was inspired by the main sprinkler pipe.  Rather than try to hide the pipe as it ran through the middle of their space, they incorporated similar piping into the counter seating by the windows, the footrests along the bar and – most impressively – the bar tower with its six vertical taps.  Ostrich seats and a unique-in-America soapstone bar with a “leather” finish add some polish, and the fully stocked bar indicates that Pork Barrel wants you to feel right at home while you’re tucking into your ‘cue.

To your right as you enter, you’ll find the dining room and the line to place your all-important barbecue order.  You’ll pass handmade tubs featuring regional and small-batch sodas that will either bring you back to your childhood or leave you scratching your head: Moxie, Nehi, Cheerwine and RC Cola are all represented, as are rarer gems like Frostop Root Beer, Sun Drop and Cool Mountain.  They’re a nod to the regional flavors (and feuds) found throughout the barbecue world, and we dare you to resist their allure.

As you approach the counter, you’ll see a plasma screen television featuring the menu.  You’ve got a few big choices to make here:

• Meats: Pork ribs, pulled pork, brisket, smoked chicken or a brisket sausage made specially for Pork Barrel BBQ by Alexandria’s own Logan’s Sausage.
• Hot sides: Chipotle cheddar macaroni and cheese, collard greens in homemade pork pot liquor, baked beans, and a smoked vegetable ratatouille.
• Cold sides: Potato salad, Texas caviar (black-eyed pea salad), Cole slaw spiced with Pork Barrel BBQ rub

There may even be a few additional options by the time the doors open tonight.  You can even order beer here and then pick it up at the bar once you’ve got your food!

Your barbecue selections will be sliced to order at a counter to the right of where you order, taken from full shoulders and briskets in hot holding units (instead of inside the smoker where they would more easily dry out) right before your eyes.  Don’t worry about the servers drowning your meat in BBQ sauce.  As any KCBS Certified Barbecue Judge will tell you, pooled sauce can get a team disqualified – they’ll leave it to you to sauce to your taste.

Meanwhile, that gigantic Southern Pride smoker will just keep chugging away in the kitchen, using a combination of oak and hickory to provide the smoke while gas allows it to maintain a constant temperature as it cooks up to 500 pounds of meat at a time.  As you might guess, it takes a while to learn the quirks of a smoker this big – the random hot and cold spots, the exact timing to hit the sweet spot on everything from chicken and sausage to pork shoulder and brisket.  Pork Barrel has been testing to get things just right, and even with all those tests under their belts they know that the product they serve tonight is just the first in a long line of “best evers.”

“A smoker is like a giant cast iron skillet,” explained Hall.  ”Every time you use it, you season it a little bit more.  Your first five times you use it are always going to pale in comparison to the next five, which will be surpassed by the five after them.  It just keeps getting better the more you use it.”

Pork Barrel’s Hall and Brett Thompson aren’t the only two talents invested in making the Del Ray restaurant a success.  They partnered with Bill Blackburn and “Mango” Mike Anderson to make the move from products to dining, and a long-time Del Ray favorite has joined the team here in the home stretch.  Chef Will Artley, who recently departed Evening Star Cafe, has struck out on his own as “The Restaurant Sage.”  He’s a chef consultant, and he is working with the Pork Barrel team to put the finishing touches on everything and to oversee operations for the first few weeks.

Everyone involved knows that two years is a long time to have expectations out there building up.  ”Anticipation is high, and we expect word to spread quickly as soon as we’re open,” Hall told us as we tasted the latest brisket to come out of the smoker (great smoke and spice, but still a bit chewy…a solid 7 of 9 on the KCBS scale).  ”At the end of the day, the food is going to be there; it has to be.  We have  beautiful space, but if we don’t get the food right it doesn’t matter if we’re serving it in a lean-to or the Taj Mahal.”

Now that opening day has arrived, they’re ready to face thousands of new judges every week.

Pork Barrel BBQ
2312 Mount Vernon Ave.
Alexandria (Del Ray), VA

Outstanding Restaurant, James Beard Foundation
#24 – World’s 50 Best Restaurants (up from #50), S. Pellegrino
 Best Restaurant Bar, Tales of the Cocktail
Upgraded from one Michelin star to a full three stars

And just in case all of these accolades (and the four stars from the New York Times) didn’t make it hard enough to get a reservation at the Union Square Hospitality Group’s star attraction, the restaurant underwent a renovation that reduced their seating capacity from 114 to 80 and introduced a new format that offers either a four-course menu ($125 per person) or a Tasting Menu ($195 per person).  A new cookbook – the word barely begins to describe it – out today is the luxurious icing on the cake, and it confirms that Danny Meyer is in the process of selling Eleven Madison Park to a restaurant group formed by Chef Daniel Humm and general manager Will Guidara.

So how did we end up with a choice reservation on the night before Hurricane Irene blew into town?  Full disclosure: One of our cousins is on staff there and helped to secure the reservation for us.  Considering the slate of awards referenced above, we’re pretty confident that our over-the-top experience owed more to the perfectionist culture at EMP than to our personal connection, but you can judge for yourself.

Immediately upon our arrival, we could tell we were in for an evening unlike any we’ve had in a long time.  The maitre d’ greeted us by name as we walked in the door – before either of us had said a word.  We were shown to a table near the front of the room, allowing a full view of the space.  Before long, we met three more staff who confirmed food allergies and general dislikes before inviting us to sit back and enjoy our tasting experience.  They take those answers seriously, too – Elizabeth’s aversion to sea urchin resulted in her receiving an alternate dish while Mike was served a “cappuccino” of sea urchin, crab and apple.

Even with all that attention up front, we were unprepared for what was to come.

Photography by Francesco Tonelli

The first course, a tomato water “tea” with thyme and a parmesan crisp, was a perfect introduction to Chef Daniel Humm’s menu.  It was light and refreshing, capturing the acidity of the tomato and then bending it into a more savory broth.  It highlighted an ingredient at its seasonal peak.  And it showed the chef’s penchant for presenting familiar ingredients in new and unexpected ways.  We were already sold.

Eleven more courses made up our Tasting Menu, and I’m not ashamed to admit that we were exhausted by the time we reached the dessert courses.  Our palates had been dazzled with the likes of goat cheese lollipops, rabbit rillette and lobster lasagna, and even with our restrained approach to the wine pairings we had the equivalent of a few glasses each.  The inventive take on a classic egg cream, prepared tableside with malt, vanilla and olive oil, was a delicious blur.

Still, some of our favorite dishes stood out distinctly.  We couldn’t stop talking about Chef Humm’s two-course take on a classic Long Island clambake…even now, it feels like giving away a magician’s secrets to describe the presentation in detail.  Suffice it to say they simulate the tastes, smells, sounds and sights of a beach-based cookout and then pair it with a South Hampton Saison Deluxe beer.

We may not be the first diners to leave Eleven Madison Park in this kind of haze.  The servers are kind enough to record the dishes you experience a la minute and then hand you a souvenir menu as you depart.  Lest you scoff at the idea that the record is done in real-time, our menu even included an unplanned thirteenth dish that the kitchen insisted on sending out when Mike found himself underwhelmed by a couscous dish midway through the meal.

Photography by Francesco Tonelli

Throughout the meal, our service staff shone.  Their suggestions were incisive and seemed to reflect our feedback.  Our water glasses never dipped below half-full and plates were placed and cleared like clockwork, but it didn’t feel like anyone was hovering or intruding into our meal.

Having seen the floor plan toward the back of the cookbook, we now know that Eleven Madison Park deploys four service teams made up of a captain, a server, an assistant server and a sommelier to cover the 80-person dining room.  Add in a lead server, two dining room managers and a service director, and even when the dining room is at capacity there are never more than four patrons for every one staffer on the floor.

Insights like this from general manager William Guidara, coupled with mouth-watering food photography by Francesco Tonelli and recipes that “require a significant time commitment, a certain level of skill, a reasonably equipped kitchen, and a healthy dose of persistence,” make Eleven Madison Park: the Cookbook much more than just another rundown of modified restaurant favorites.  Its heft and stark white cover will be right at home on your coffee table, where you can leaf through the seasons at your leisure.  But if you’re like us, you’ll be photocopying recipes to spread out in the kitchen as you attempt to take on dishes like Pink Snapper Poached with Pears, Parsnips and Razor Clams.

Photography by Francesco Tonelli

Chef Humm’s recipes are arranged by season, with each section featuring dishes that unite various seasonal ingredients in harmony.  They incorporate techniques from basic to complex, and they occasionally call for specialized equipment like liquid nitrogen or an immersion circulator (for sous vide cooking) – not everyone will be able to attempt every dish.  And if you get stuck?  Shoot an email to cookbook@elevenmadisonpark.com.  They’ve offered a hotline to help readers work through their difficulties.

Toward the back of the book, you’ll find recipes for the building blocks that show up time after time – pickled ingredients, gels, sauces, etc.  You can be sure that we’ll be working to master a few of these to show off as components in our own dishes, as well.  We plan to pick and choose our way, but if anyone out there is thinking of going all “Alinea at Home” on the book a la Carol Blymire, PLEASE let us know – we’d love to follow along!

The cookbook retails for $50, but if you follow the Amazon link on the EMP website, you can order it for $25.77 with free Super Saver Shipping.  Still not sold?  Check out the teaser video they put together for the book and tell me you’re not hungry for more.

And in case you’re worried that the cookbook lacks the whimsy of the kitchen at Eleven Madison Park, you need look no further than today’s release date – 11.11.11 – to see that the little details and the creative touches are still firmly in place.  It will definitely be easier to get a table if you’re the one doing the cooking (Michelin-grade service not included).

Eleven Madison Park
11 Madison Avenue
New York, NY