amanda mcclements

Christopher Walken roasts chicken.

Elijah of Arlington offers Five Bites for this week. 1. Warm doughnuts with fresh whipped cream at Tabard Inn brunch 2. Parker House rolls at CityZen 3. Palak chaat (crispy spinach with tamarind) at Rasika 4. Pan dulce with syrup at Café Atlantico 's Latino Dim Sum brunch (pictured at left) 5. Muhammara (red pepper dip with walnuts) at Yazuzu Five Bites is a weekly opportunity for you to tell Metrocurean readers which dishes you're enjoying around town. E-mail five of your favorite dishes or drinks and whether you'd like your name and a picture included to metrocurean@gmail.com. (Photo courtesy Café Atlantico.)

If you're the kind of person who's always doctoring your bloody mary because it's never quite spicy enough, get thee to the farmers market (today's Penn Quarter FreshFarm market runs from 3-7 p.m.!) and seek out the Toigo Orchards folks. Toigo's "Birth of Pain" bloody mary mix has everything your deprived senses could want: a sinister devil with pointy yellow teeth on the label, locally grown heirloom tomatoes, and a searing, lip-numbing heat courtesy of scotch bonnet peppers and horseradish. And it's so luxuriously thick it'll coat the ice cubes in your glass. I stuck a hot pickled okra in mine, but next time I'm reaching for a spicy Mean Bean or two. (Metrocurean photo.)

D.C. will lose one of its restaurant institutions Saturday when A.V. Ristorante closes its doors to make way for new construction. For the latest, check out Marc Fisher's column on washingtonpost.com, which reports that diners wishing to bid adieu have been enduring some mighty long waits for tables. Anyone planning to eat there in these last few days?

Word on the street for some time now has hinted that Fabio Trabocchi (at right), the celebrated chef of Maestro , would soon leave to open a restaurant of his own in Northern Virginia. For my own selfish reasons, I was hoping the rumored new spot would be as close as possible to downtown. When I said "downtown," I meant D.C. — not Manhattan. Word came late this afternoon via e-mail and text message that Trabocchi had resigned and would leave Maestro in two weeks. A fuller picture of the story comes from a "food flash" from The Washington Post 's Tom Sietsema. According to Sietsema, Trabocchi is heading to New York to join Fiamma Osteria . And just when we thought all the big chefs were setting their sights on lil' ol' D.C. (thanks Eric Ripert , Wolfgang Puck and Laurent Tourondel ), we lose one of our greatest talents to the Big Apple. But Sietsema indicates the move might not be permanent. (Is anything?) Read up for more details.

Today's sweet Five Bites come from Farah (at right), an HIV-researcher by day and food blogger on the side. Her blog, The Deep Dish , has a baking slant to it: "You could say I have an insatiable sweet tooth," she says. (And she just went to Locopops down in Metrocurean's hometown!) 1. Liliputians from ShoeBox Oven 2. Cornmeal griddle cakes with whipped buttermilk from Vermilion 3. Strawberry rhubarb cobbler with ginger ice cream from Tallula 4. Kit Kat from Central Michel Richard 5. $5 hot chocolate from Murky Coffee Sweet or salty, liquid or solid, Five Bites is a weekly opportunity for you to tell Metrocurean readers which dishes you're enjoying around town. E-mail five of your favorite dishes or drinks and whether you'd like your name and a picture included to metrocurean@gmail.com.

This fall when Kimpton opens its next D.C.-area venture, the 154-room Hotel Palomar Arlington at Waterview (room pictured at right), the neighborhood will gain not one, but two new food spots. On the fourth floor of the hotel will be Domaso , a restaurant serving Northern Italian cuisine that showcases ingredients from local farms. A terrace will offer views of Georgetown. The restaurant takes its name from a fishing village on Italy's Lake Como. A signature restaurant may be standard for hotels of this caliber, but the new Palomar will take its epicurean aspirations a step further with a gourmet wine and cheese shop. Domasoteca will carry an extensive selection of wines with an emphasis on Italian and local Virginia wineries. The shop will host expert-led wine and cheese tastings. Like its sister Palomar near Dupont Circle, the hotel will also host a nightly wine hour in the lobby. Hotel Palomar Arlington will be located at 1121 N. 19th St.

The Food Network is looking for the next Iron Chef, and what better way to find the next big anything than to launch a reality show? "The Next Iron Chef" will premiere on the Food Network in October, and among the eight contenders is the D.C. area's very own Morou Ouattara. (That's him at right, generously hugging Bobby Flay on "Iron Chef America" after Morou was robbed in Battle Frozen Peas .) The chef and owner of Alexandria's Farrah Olivia will duke it out with seven other chefs for the honor of joining Mario Batali, Cat Cora, Masaharu Morimoto and Flay as an Iron Chef. "We have chosen a group of chefs who we believe to be at the forefront of the culinary landscape, each of whom could stand proudly beside Bobby, Mario, Morimoto and Cat as a new Iron Chef," says Bob Tuschman, senior vice president of the network's programming and production. "In our quest, we are looking for an individual to complement the current group and bring a ...

Renew Shaw (aka the blogger formerly known as Remaking le Slum Historique ) has the goods on a new private club reportedly opening tonight in Shaw called The Space . Set in an old carriage house at 903 N St. NW, the club claims to be a "loft style lounge with the feel of a home. For work, play, or simple relaxing." The Space was previously rented out for various events. The club lists among its membership benefits: complimentary appetizers and a nightly cocktail hour, concierge services, free Wi - Fi , members-only events including art shows, fashion and music, and a private terrace available for parties. There's no mention of the cost of membership, but you know what they say: If you have to ask... There's an application on the site that requests a photo (for security purposes), asks about your favorite national or international restaurants, vacation destinations and bars/clubs (extra points for international answers?), and about charity involvement. Commenters o...

The minds behind the Cookthink blog , Metrocurean's favorite source for straightforward, easy-to-follow cooking advice, have launched their recipe web site in beta version, and they need your help to refine it. Cookthink aims to answer that question you've probably asked yourself many times while staring blankly into the refrigerator: "What am I craving?" There are a few ways to figure that out: search for an ingredient, dish, cuisine or mood. For example, a search for "beef" and a "summery" mood yields this recipe for grilled flank steak with lime soy marinade. The more search activity and feedback they get, the better the site will become. So check it out, and get cookin'.

A completely bizarre story in today's Washington Post Metro section tells the tale of a robbery thwarted by a glass of Chateau Malescot St-Exupéry, a little Camembert cheese and a group hug. I kid you not. The story is a must-read. It's not the first time culinary accoutrements have helped fight crime. Who can forget the Capitol Hill resident that bashed a fleeing suspect on the head with a frying pan when the teen ran through the resident's house? No word on where the wine and cheese burglar went to enjoy the rest of his glass of Malescot.

This Friday the 13 th's Five Bites come from Metrocurean reader Kali Simone Haney (at right). 1. Salmon Benedict at La Fourchette 2. Ika geso at Sakana 3. Rice pudding at Mama Ayesha's 4. Blue corn biscuit and organic strawberries with rosemary cardamom infused coconut milk at Vegetate 5. Tamarind tea at Oyamel Five Bites is a weekly opportunity for you to tell Metrocurean readers which dishes you're enjoying around town. E-mail five of your favorite dishes or drinks and whether you'd like your name and a picture included to metrocurean@gmail.com.

Rumors about Cashion's Eat Place being up for sale have been circulating for months. The Washington Post 's Tom Sietsema gave us part of the story Wednesday when he reported that the beloved Adams Morgan restaurant is being sold by owners Ann Cashion and John Fulchino to longtime sous chef John Manolatos. The next question — so will Cashion's change? — is partly answered by ZagatBuzz today . According to the site, the name will stay but Mediterranean influences will take the place of the menu's Southern twang.

The wait is nearly over for pizza-hungry residents of Columbia Heights. James O’Brien is expected to officially open RedRocks FireBrickPizzeria on Thursday at 5 p.m. at 1036 Park Rd. NW . Residents have been tracking progress on the space for nearly a year over on the Columbia Heights news forum . The new spot will offer dining on two levels, a 35-seat patio and a takeout section downstairs. High heat is key to good pizza, and RedRocks will cook its pies in an 800-degree brick oven. The restaurant will also serve paninis with housemade bread, salads and starters. And to wash it all down: Chimay Triple and Allagash White on tap, 30 microbrews by the bottle and a selection of wines. Weekend brunch is scheduled to start Saturday, July 21.

Have you heard the mysterious case of the disappearing honey bees? In an effort to raise awareness of this alarming trend, Buzz is celebrating "Don't Step on a Bee Day" today by offering free honey cups (mini vanilla cupcakes topped with house-made honey frosting). Bee cookies and other themed treats made with artisanal honeys will also be on sale. So stop on by for some sweets and read up on colony collapse disorder, an affliction decimating commercial beekeeping operations across the country and threatening the U.S. food supply. And if you can, make a donation at Buzz toward research into the causes of and potential solutions for the disorder.

Like the flurry at the end of April, it's been another busy few weeks in the world of restaurant openings. Proof in Penn Quarter and Locanda on Capitol Hill both opened last week. Washingtonian 's Best Bites blog has Proof's menu and a few photos. Meanwhile, Locanda's renovated dining room erases all memories of the tired space formerly home to Meyhane . Bright orange chairs and earthy, warm colors make the space feel welcoming. Executive chef Brian Barszcz, who has worked at Obelisk , Tallula and Bistro Bis , will oversee the menu of Italian dishes with Mediterranean influences. Bar Louie , a national chain, just opened in the Gallery Place movie theater complex, and the fourth D.C. restaurant for the Eatwelldc group, Logan at The Heights , is now open. Also in Columbia Heights, RedRocks Firebrick Pizzeria is reportedly opening this week, according to the GOG Blog.

In case you haven't heard it seven thousand times already (oh, how the media love a good gimmick), Saturday is 7/7/07. If you're the superstitious type, you may think this day holds more lucky promise than your average date. While I can't promise you'll get lucky, I can point you to some clever deals. PS 7's is already all about the lucky number, what with their street address being 777 I St. NW. (Chef/owner Peter Smith and his wife reportedly just welcomed a 7-lb-7.7-oz baby boy, Simon Porter, into the world, as well.) Smith is offering a $47 three-course menu and $57 four-course menu July 7-14. The menus include a new cocktail named for the baby, which blends half and half, scotch, maraschino liqueur and mint syrup. (It's $7 by itself.) Chef Smith also unveiled a new lunch menu for PS 7's lounge, with each item priced at $7. The menu includes the delicious housemade mini hot dogs and half smokes, a duck pastrami sandwich and mini doughnuts with chocolate ...

Metrocurean reader Stacy, who works in the radio business and is an avid lover of all things food, offers today's Five Bites. 1. Lamb sirloin with goat cheese ravioli from Corduroy 2. Asparagus and portabella salad with yuzu vinaigrette from Raku in Bethesda 3. Seared scallops with hearts of palm puree from Ceiba 4. Steak fajitas, chips, salsa and guacamole from Rio Grande 5. "Coffee and donuts" (with the oozing Nutella center) from Notti Bianche Five Bites is a weekly opportunity for you to tell Metrocurean readers which dishes you're enjoying around town. E-mail five of your favorite dishes or drinks and whether you'd like your name and a picture included to metrocurean@gmail.com.

It might not be quite as impressive as the Declaration of Independence's 231st anniversary, but Metrocurean turned a ripe 2 years old today. (And I thought all those fireworks were for me.) Though this little milestone almost passed under my radar, I was reminded of it while talking to my mom about signs at the P Street Whole Foods heralding local produce (albeit, a limited selection). It was two years ago, on this blog's first day in the world, that I first noticed signs designating local produce at my neighborhood grocery store and wrote about it . Two years later, the local food drumbeat is growing louder. Same goes for sustainable seafood, humanely raised animals and small farms. You could dismiss it as a trend, but our food industry is one of the few places that a single consumer dollar can provoke big changes. And we consumers are becoming ever more savvy about what we eat and where we spend our money. If you're interested in learning more, I highly recommend Barbar...