Your 2014 Resolution: Dine at Georgetown’s 1789 Restaurant

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If you haven’t had the pleasure of dining at Georgetown’s 1789 Restaurant, where local farm fresh ingredients meet inspired seasonal American cuisine, then it is our suggestion you make it a New Years Resolution to visit in 2014 and dine with some of Georgetown’s most elite, educated, and well-traveled. In other words, dining with the people who know fine cuisine and good wine. If you’re an over-achiever and want to get a jump on your resolutions before your motivation wanes, 1789 is offering a five-course New Year’s Eve Indulgence Tasting Menu (in addition to their seasonal a la carte menu). Served between 5pm and 11pm, with the last reservation at 11pm, the five-course menu is priced at $125 per person – excluding tax and gratuity. Guests can also request a prepared wine pairing to go with each course for an additional $75 per person.

While the antique decor, history and location of 1789 certainly add to the charm of the restaurant, it’s Executive Chef Anthony Lombardo’s “guest first” philosophy paired with consistent high standards of quality that will keep bringing you back to find out what his new creations are each season. Some of Lombardo’s favorite flavors that he enjoys experimenting with include truffle, fennel, and vinegars. Indulgence Tasting Menu diners will experience some of these favorites including a dish made with Alba White Truffles and Périgord Black Truffles over buttery gnocchi and in Lombardo’s sauces that showcase his favorite flavors “more than they would in anything else”.

But for us, it’s the locally sourced, humanely farmed meats served at 1789 that made us salivate the most and will definitely bring us back. The freshness is evident at first bite. 1789’s Beef is sourced from a Virginia beef Co-op. Their Lamb comes from a small Mennonite farm in Cumberland Valley MD, and their Pig comes from Autumn Olive Farm in Waynesboro, VA. In particular the Lamb Loin easily made the top of our favorites; tender, juicy, and fall apart at the slightest touch delicate. The dry-aged Rib Eye was also fantastic. We’re pretty sure the Prime Rib on the Indulgence Tasting Menu will be just as flawless. For an extra special treat, visit when 1789’s silky, mouth-watering cured ham is available. Also sourced from Autumn Olive Farm, the cured ham is made from farm raised Ossabaws pig whose diet is finished with acorns making for a fattier nutty tasting meat.

Whether you’re taking part in the New Year’s Eve Indulgence Tasting Menu, or ordering a la carte, Chef Anthony Lombardo highly recommends the Foie Gras Torchon Brûlée; panettone, house jam and barrel-aged maple syrup paired with Sauternes. Dubbed as a “Classic Combo”, Lombardo believes “this [pairing] is just elegance at its finest, the most important food traditions all on one menu. It definitely speaks to what 1789 is.”

As previous country dwellers with our own vegetable garden, fresh eggs, and goats, we love the upscale American farm-to-table direction that Chef Anthony Lombardo has taken with 1789’s menu since starting his position in 2011. We’re definitely looking forward to Spring when Lombardo plans to spend more time and effort on canning and pickling – something that’s now a bit of a lost art form in our opinion. “Spring is like a metaphorical Christmas for chefs, with all the new stuff coming out of the ground!”

For a little taste of 1789 at home, Lombardo is happy to share his Brussels Sprouts Salad recipe with you; a customer favorite.

 

1789 Restaurant
1226 36th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20007
(202) 965-1789