701 Restaurant DC

701 has marked itself as an up and coming new american restaurant in the heart of downtown DC. I loved the colors and hip atmosphere, but was slightly disappointed we missed their daily piano performance. For dinner, we started with the mussels, which were fantastic. The mussels were fresh, a decent size, and drenched in a vibrant sauce of coconut and lime. The sauce is definitely worth holding on to for bread-dipping purposes. The bread selection was also memorable, I particularly enjoyed the miniature corn muffins. For our entrees, I had the squab breasts and my date ordered the filet mignon. The pigeon was tender and very tasty. I loved the sweetbreads and fennel foam. I never had foam before or not that I can recall. My only criticism was that paired with a glass of shiraz, I found myself feeling stuffed and heavy after only a few bites. Too much wine I suppose, I'm not quite sure. The filet mignon was tender, but kind of tasteless. I didn't taste the ramps, but they looked delicious. I did, however, try the potato-bone marrow souffle and honestly, it was not my thing. I'm an adventurous eater and it wasn't the idea that threw me off, but the taste. I love mashed potatoes, why did they tamper with such a wonderful dish by mixing it with the insides of an animal bone? Just my take, my date finished it off. Once again, we were stuffed and with no room for dessert. That was okay though, it wasn't the perfect meal, but it was satisfying enough.

4/5
http://www.701restaurant.com/