amanda mcclements

In today's Weekend section, the post.com's Fritz Hahn offers a review of U Street's new Cue Bar and predicts that Ping-Pong might edge out Texas hold 'em as the bar activity du jour. The Ping-Pong tables at Cue Bar, Hahn reports, are a hotter commodity than the new hangout's pool tables. Could it be that beer pong's sober big brother is actually more fun? It's certainly better for the bar owners . While I'm on Post watch, Tom Sietsema also awards the new guys at OYA two and a half stars .

There are usually a handful of restaurants that extend the Restaurant Week deals well past the official week. A few kept it going for an additional week, but Zengo is offering a $20.06 lunch and $30.06 dinner through Jan. 31. And don't forget about Charlie Palmer Steak 's regular $20.06 three-course lunch offering. Any readers out there have other extensions to add to that short list?

I admit that I don't get out of the city as much as I'd like to. I'm carless, and sheer laziness has me spending most of my weekends playing and eating within a few blocks of my house. But if there were ever a time when the burbs seemed to be having more fun, at least in terms of exciting restaurant news, it's now. Here's a look at what's new and coming soon outside the city limits: David Craig 4924 St. Elmo Avenue, Bethesda The seafood heavy menu at this new spot in Bethesda sounds enticing, with dishes like Maryland oyster stew, pumpkin ravioli with sage brown butter and local rockfish with root vegetables. Washingtonian gives several dishes an initial thumbs up in the February issue. Gallery Restaurant and Lounge 1115 East West Highway, Silver Spring This new Silver Spring restaurant promises "American style dishes enhanced with flavors from the Caribbean, Central and South America." On the menu: ceviche, bacalao fritters, striped bass with roaste...

After closing for a few weeks for renovations (much to the chagrin of its fans), Komi has reopened with a new menu concept, reports The List : "In the spirit of recapturing a meal in the Mediterranean, diners will now begin with an ever-changing selection of mezzethakia -- dishes that feature the very best of each season's offering. That will be followed by your choice of macaronia, entrée, cheese and dessert. This set menu will be all that Komi offers on Saturday nights. Tuesday through Friday, you can still order a la carte off the menu. Based on many moments The List has enjoyed at Komi, we're betting this is going to be good." According to a donrockwell.com commenter , the set menu costs $58 per person. I've said it once , and I'll say it again: If you haven't been to Komi, you're missing out. (Photo from Economist.com's cities guide .)

What people are talking about...(aka what I missed in a week without Internet) ... Indigo Landing , opening in April in Alexandria, brings award-winning chef Bryan Moscatello to D.C. ... ... Restaurant Eve owners Cathal and Meshelle Armstrong make plans for their second restaurant . ... ... Gallery Restaurant and Lounge opens in Silver Spring. ... ... We get our best story to come out of a Restaurant Week yet: A man nonchalantly rides a Segway into Bistro Bis , and the Reliable Source seeks to uncover his identity (and finds more Segway-bound diners).

2006 has been proclaimed the year of the cocktail by Food & Wine , and there's no denying that with all the experimentation going on behind bars, a watery gin and tonic just doesn't have the same appeal anymore. D.C. is lucky to have a handful of talents—call them mixologists or bar chefs if you must—shaking up ever more enticing concoctions. Along with Restaurant Eve 's Todd Thrasher, Firefly 's Derek Brown is one of the best. His constantly changing cocktail menu is currently stocked with wintry drinks, like the Warm Cosmo, which blends Svedka Vodka, Triple Sec, cranberry-apple tea, lime juice and clove-orange syrup served warm with a twist. I tried out the Montreal, a "Canadianized" version of a Manhattan made with Woodford Reserve, maple syrup blended with Canadian whiskey, and Angostura bitters with a maple syrup soaked cherry. The sweet smell of the syrup hits you first, followed by a smack from the whiskey. There's also the Pomorita, a margarita...

Just polished off the daily scramble on toast at Mocha Hut , which is quickly becoming my favorite Wi-Fi go-to spot, which means I'm still waiting for Verizon to get a move on and grant me the modern convenience of DSL. Besides unpacking boxes and going through Internet withdrawal, I checked out D.C.'s newest meat and potatoes destination, Fogo de Chão , and enjoyed a killer meal at CityZen . The media party at Fogo was a kitschy-licious good time, full of men in gaucho pants brandishing skewers of juicy meats. The pork ribs, leg of lamb and fried plantains were my favorites, and appropriately enough, it's possible to make a trip to the salad bar and return with nothing but meat and cheese on your plate. It's also possible to abuse the powers of the two-sided disk, leaving it on green for way too long, and slip into a protein-induced food coma. After rebounding from the meat fog the next evening, I was treated to an amazing procession of courses at CityZen, where chef E...

I know we've all moved on from the whole Buck's v. D.C. Foodies scandal, but this is really too funny: Washingtonian stirs the pot further by sending two interns to Buck's, one to try snapping photos with a camera phone, the other to pose as that annoying restaurant patron Anthony Bourdain calls a sauce-on-the-sider. The episodes were relatively bloodless (pun intended if you get to the well-done steak episode), and though the whole exercise was intentionally obnoxious, it's still pretty damn funny. Props to the brave interns who put themselves in potential danger. Talk about paying your dues...

Please pardon the slump in post activity this week. I'm in the process of moving and am sans Internet at the moment. Having left the cozy cocoon of radiator heating, I'm also adjusting to some temperature regulation issues. Upstairs is sweltering while downstairs is what I'm calling "chateaux" temperature. Wool socks and sweaters aside, every cloud has a silver lining — my red wine stays the perfect temperature. Now if I could only find the box with the corkscrew... Have no fear though. I'll be back up and running to bring you all the food news you crave in what's sure to be an exciting year for the D.C. restaurant scene. There's already news of a major overhaul at the brand-new Viridian. Check out this DonRockwell.com thread for the full story.

Many of you who follow the food scene in D.C. are probably already well aware of the D.C. Foodies v. Buck's Fishing and Camping saga. If not, you can read about the ensuing outcry here , here and here . In a nutshell, Jason snaps a few pictures with a camera phone while dining at Buck's, chef Carole Greenwood finds out and confronts Jason, wife and baby, saying he needs her permission to use any photos, Greenwood's co-owner follows up with a peace offering of dessert wine, and all seems OK. Before Jason has a chance to post what he says would've been a positive review on his blog, he receives a cease and desist letter from Buck's lawyer, complete with misspellings and the client's name written incorrectly. The letter threatens legal action if the photos are used, claiming they are "confidential" and "propriatary"[sic]. So, I figured I'd weigh in, because as D.C. Foodie's wife said, all the cool bloggers are doing it. Much of the di...

Happy 2006 from Metrocurean. Just finished up a hearty meal, following my Southern roots, of sautéed collards (for dollar billz, ya'll), black eyed peas (for luck) with chorizo, dirty rice and skillet corn bread (that looks like pac-man). Here's to a year full of great food!