Hell’s Kitchen DC

So we went to this place at our last minute stop to DC. It’s located by the wharf area.

Everything we had was on point, and would do it again.

For appetizers, got the shrimp cocktail and the beef Wellington (the beef Wellington is supposedly a must have, and usually not an appetizer, but we wanted to try it out).

For the main course, did a little surf and turf.got the 8oz sirloin (medium well, which they cooked just right) and lobster (we also got a side of Mac and cheese snd asparagus).

For desert got the toffee bread pudding. It was so good.

For drinks, had an espresso martini and an old fashioned. None of them made me hung over the next day.

Refinery Rooftop

We grabbed brunch here, as it is the rooftop of our hotel. (And also later in the day grabbed drinks, which is definitely a good place to do that for after work drinks).

For drinks, got their version of espresso martini (they make it with cold brew coffee). It was really good. For appetizers, got the crab cake. Would definitely get it again. For my main, I went for the quesadilla. It was alright (would probably try something else next time).

Figaro

Went for dinner at this restaurant before seeing a comedy show at the Comedy Cellar in the west village.

For appetizers, got the salmon over crispy rice. Great choice and would definitely get it again. For the main course, got the scallops with trofie pasta. Also great choice (scallops were cooked just right).

For drinks, did the standard Aperol spritz (as this is an Italian restaurant).

GinGin

Went to this place after a fine dinner for drinks in the Polanco area in Mexico City. Surprisingly the place surpassed expectations.

The music was mainly disco house, so lots of Purple Disco Machine. The waited sometimes strobed his flashlight when we a sick song came on. We also got sparklers from the waiter for free.

For drinks, mainly stuck to what I knew, which is Jameson highballs and Glenlivet on the rocks.

Will say the music sort of went downhill after 12:30am.

Auna

We went to the this place for a friends 30ths birthday. We got a fixed menu, but ended up asking the waiters to wine pair our courses.

I will say the service is very high end (which I guess is expected since we were in the Polanco area). The waiters always made sure the table was clean, and they insisted on pouring the wines themselves (they would come over to the table if they saw you doing it!).

Here is the menu:

– **For Snacking (Shared):**

– Hummus with ‘chile de agua’ pico de gallo and wood-fired bread

– Pickled Vegetables with mushrooms, beet, and carrots on sweet potato sourdough

– **Starters (Shared):**

– Salmon Trout with soy vinaigrette, pistachio, and white kimchi

– Green Salad with blue cheese dressing and bacon-pepita crumble

– Fried Squash Blossoms with mushroom cream, guava chutney, and spicy sauce

– **Main Course (Shared):**

– Braised Short Rib with burnt onion sauce, ‘queso cuadro’, and blistered shishitos

– Striped Bass with romesco sauce, parsnip, and braised bok choy

– **Dessert (Shared):**

– Basque Tart with mamey ice cream and cocoa crumble

– Wood-fired Bananas with dulce de leche, ‘rancho cream’, and pinole crumble

From the above, the hummus, pickled vegetables, salmon trout stripped sea bass, and desserts were great. I probably wouldn’t get the others again (the braised short rib was cooked great, but the sauce/flavor wasn’t good).

La Cueva

We stopped by here for breakfast after our hot air balloon ride in Mexico (it was included in our tour).

They served us orange juice, Mexican coffee (which had a sweet flavor), fruits, this sweet bread, and a dish that is called chilaquiles (this dish is better with chicken… the beef was not good quality and too chewy).

The cave vibe seemed legit, and seems like they’re other food could be good. Would come back if I wanted Mexican food.

Sonora Grill

We went to this place for dinner after going to the Soumaya Mueseum in Polanco (Mexico City).

Like the rest do the area, it’s fairly up scale. Lots of high rise buildings and big naked companies.

This restaurant was located in a high end mall. Definitely the vibe was great.

For drinks, each whisky drink required that you order a double (so about 23 usd for two shots of Glenlevit). Deal was pretty sick.

For starters, they started us of (for free) with some nachos and dip (that seemed to have cheese and beans). For appetizers, we got the cauliflower, beef tacos, beef wrapped asparagus, quesadilla sampler and octopus. Would get the first three again.

For our main, shared the ribeye steak (medium rare) with mushrooms and spinach’s sides. Would get all but the mushrooms again.

For desert, we got a variety of cakes (not exactly sure which ones). Would get any cake there again.

Cafe Comunidad

We went to this place for our third brunch in Mexico City (15 minute walk from our AirBnb).

I got a latte and Aperol spritz. Both were decent.

For my main, got the huevos a la Mexicana (scrambled eggs effectively).

I would come back here, but service was a bit slow.

Mari Gold

We checked out this place for brunch in our third day in Mexico City.

We ended up ordering things family style, and asked for their 8 top recommendations. From what they recommended, I would say the fish was great. The shrimp cocktail and the wings were ok. Didn’t really like most of everything else.

Will say that I did like the vibe of the restaurant, but not sure I would come back. Also the mimosas were not too strong.

Limantour

We went to this place for drinks for our second night in Mexico City, located in north Roma.

Definitely recommend this place for drinks. Had a coffee type drink (of course with alcohol), and a Jameson highball.