Yona Pop-Up Takes Over G by Mike Isabella
Beginning Mar. 4, G by Mike Isabella is turning over its kitchen to chef Jonah Kim for a month-long preview of Yona, the Japanese noodle bar and small plates restaurant he is opening in Ballston with Mike Isabella at 4000 Wilson Blvd. in Clarendon early this summer.
The a la carte preview menu will be available at G from 6-10 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays throughout March. The sandwich shop, which is open from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. daily and Sunday Gravy dinners from 6-10 p.m Sunday will continue to operate on their normal schedule.
Yona’s menu highlights include miso porky ramen, a pork broth with miso tare, chashu, kikurage, kimchi, negi, corn, nori and soft egg for $14; tonkotsu-shoyu tare ramen, chashu, menma, benishoga, negi, sesame seeds, nori and soft egg for $14; veggie ramen with a soy milk-veggie broth, bean sprouts, pea sprouts, corn, snow peas, eringi mushroom and black garlic oil for $12; steamed buns with pork jowl, ssam jang and iceberg for $9; dry-fried wings with fresh chilies, maltose and aged rice vinegar for $9; smoked hamachi with chojang, onion, perilla leaf and tobiko for $14; and yook hwe, a Korean beef tartare with traditional and non-traditional flavors and gem lettuce for $14.
A selection of Japanese beer, sake and Japanese whiskies as well as cocktails that feature fermented juice and other Asian-inspired ingredients will also be available.
Kim will also host the MIC cooking class at G on Mar. 9 and 10. He will demonstrate how to make proper dashi, the Japanese kinpira cooking technique, and how to create a steamed egg custard. Seats are $75 per person and available http://gbymikeisabella.com/mic-chefs-cooking-class-series/ here.
Jack Rose launches “Fondue by the Fire” happy hour
The staff at Jack Rose Dining Saloon, 2007 18th St. NW, is sick of snowstorms and cold weather, so they are transforming the upstairs Balcony Room into a wood-lined winter escape complete with a wood-burning fireplace and leather couch seating for the restaurant’s new “Fondue by the Fire” happy hour, which begins Feb. 22 and will run Sunday to Wednesday evenings from 5-10 p.m. until the weather gets warm.
Executive chef Russell Jones is serving up warm, savory and sweet pots of fondue using artisan cheeses, chocolates and house-made dippers. There are four fireside fondues – three savory and one sweet. Jones is infusing high-quality cheeses with booze, like rye barrel-aged brews and stouts, and pairing with house-made accompaniments like sourdough pretzels, beef brisket, pork bangers, marinated mushrooms and blaa bread, a traditional Irish white bread. And he’s taken a unique twist on traditional s’mores, dipping graham crackers, marshmallows and fresh fruits into milk chocolate.
The traditional fondue, priced at $13, includes aged cheddar with pumpernickel, house-made potato ruffles, red apples and marinated mushrooms; the Jack’d Up, priced at $18, includes Vermont pepper Jack and R.I.P.A. rye with pumpernickel, sourdough pretzels, beef brisket and marinated mushrooms; and the Oh Danny Boy, priced at $16, includes aged Irish cheddar and Guinness with blaa bread, potato ruffles, pork bangers and red apples. On the sweet side, the S’more Please, priced at $12, includes milk chocolate with graham crackers, marshmallows, strawberries and bananas. Other snacks include grilled BBQ whiskey wings ($8), shrimp hushpuppies with Old Bay mayo ($5), and fried chicken skins with paprika and lime ($6).
There will also be special beverage menus of $6 hot cocktails to enjoy by the roaring fire. Hot cocktail specials include spiked cider with Jim Beam bourbon, apple cider, cinnamon, clove and allspice; mulled wine with cardamom pods, cinnamon, star anise, black pepper, vanilla, clove, orange and lemon; and the Heart Warmer with Glenmorangie 10-year scotch, Ancho Reyes, hot chocolate and whipped cream.
Almost 20 whiskeys will be available for $7 per 2 ounce pour ranging from bourbon and rye, to scotch or Irish, whiskeys.
Bombay Club launches new happy hour
The Bombay Club, 815 Connecticut Ave. NW, is featuring special happy hours wines and cocktails for $7 from 4-6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday along with a featured complimentary appetizer that changes daily.
The free appetizer will rotate daily and includes dishes such as lamb and garam masala kebab, green herb chicken tikka, spinach and sweet potato patties, fried fish with Kashmiri chilies and fresh herbs, and spiced lentil dumplings.
New cocktails include a Bombay gin and tonic with green chili, cardamom, zest-infused gin, lime juice and tonic; Chameli with champagne, St. Germaine and a lemon twist; and Nargis with Bacardi, pineapple juice and orange juice. The cocktails are regularly priced between $12 and $14.
Belga Café serves sour beer dinner
On Feb. 24 at 6:30 p.m., Chef Bart Vandaele will host a special sour beer dinner at Belga Café, 514 Eighth St. SE. From a Petrus aged pale ale to Rodenbach grand cru, Vandaele has paired the sour beers with a menu of Belgian cuisine.
Guests will enjoy seven beers served alongside a four-course meal for $59 per person. The four-course menu includes a welcome beer, Petrus Aged Pale Ale, Brouwerij Bavik, 7.3 percent, followed by a first course of pork cheek confit salad with frisee, picked radishes and apple vinaigrette paired with Duchesse de Bourgogne, Brouwerij Vergaeghe 6 percent. The second course is pan seared scallops with spinach tagliatelle, peppers, beurre blanc and hibiscus flowers paired with Victenaar, Brouwerij Vergaeghe 6 percent. The third course is veal short ribs with a winter cassoulet with bacon, carrots and a Petrus Aged Pale sauce served with Rodenbach Grand Cru, Brouwerij Rodenbach N.V. 6 percent and Rodenbach, Brouwerij Rodenbach N.V. 5.2 percent.
The meal ends with a churro waffle for dessert served with Belgian chocolate sauce, caramel ice cream, and cinnamon sugar served with Oude Kriek Vielle Oud Beersel, Oud Beersel Brewery, Beersel 6.5 percent and Oude Beersel Framboise, Oud Beersel Brewery, Beersel 5 percent.
Park Hyatt Washington offers cheese and beer class
The Park Hyatt Washington will host its next Park Hyatt Masters of Food & Wine class “Froth, Fromage & Fermentation” from 3-5 p.m. on Feb. 28.
Blue Duck Tavern’s cheese specialist Sophie Slesinger will guide guests through a two-hour long fermented foods feast, eating their way through some of the finest cheeses paired with a selection of artisanal craft beer. Participants will learn the strengths, complexities and nuances of pairing food with beer, along with the art of fermentation.
Cheeses include Kunkik from Nettle Meadow Farm in Vermont, Winnimere from Jasper Hill Farm in Vermont, Marieke Gouda from Holland’s Family Farm in Wisconsin, Talbot Reserve Cheddar from Chapel County Creamery in Maryland and Ewe’s Blue from Old Chatham Sheepherding Co. in New York.
The class will be held in the Blue Duck Lounge, 1201 24th St. NW. Tickets are $65 per person and can be purchased here.
701 Restaurant hosts four-course wine dinner
701 Restaurant, 701 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, will celebrate one of Napa Valley’s finest wineries, Crosby Roamann, with a four-course wine dinner on Feb. 27 at 7 p.m.
Crosby Roamann, started by husband and wife team Juliana and Sean W. McBride, is a small winery located in Napa Valley dedicated to creating handmade wines. The dinner is $90 per person, and guests will enjoy a four-course feast with Sean McBride with pairings of Crosby Roamann’s California rose, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc and cabernet.
The menu includes an amuse bouche paired with a 2012 Rose de Saignee, followed by a first course of Maryland crab salad with cauliflower panna cotta, grapefruit and cashews paired with a 2012 Old Vine Sauvignon Blanc Rutherford. The second course is lobster risotto with salsify, scallion and rosemary paired with a 2012 Chardonnay Carneros; followed by the third course of 21 day dry-aged strip loin with pear butter and root vegetable gratin paired with a 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon. A chef’s selection of petit fours with complete the meal.
Editor-in-Chief Mark Heckathorn is a journalist, movie buff and foodie. He oversees DC on Heels editorial operations as well as strategic planning and staff development. Reach him with story ideas or suggestions at dcoheditor (at) gmail (dot) com.