Blue Duck Tavern

By Tom Sietsema
Sunday, May 20, 2012

Then: A fashionable tribute to farmers (2007)
Again: When can I get back?

I'm seeing more stars at Blue Duck Tavern these days, thanks not just to the superlative fresh grapefruit gimlet in my hand but also to the December arrival of chef Sebastien Archambault.

Lured from Los Angeles to the Park Hyatt Washington, the Texas-born, French-speaking chef takes prime ingredients and turns them into dishes that you can't wait to return for: crisp sweetbreads gathered over creamy macaroni, lemony spinach-ricotta tartlet, roasted suckling pig that collapses at the touch of the fork, and salmon that elevates the fish from the routine with the assistance of smoked orange roe, sorrel cream and green almonds. I could compose a feast from just the side dishes; sauteed spinach and zesty pecans beneath a dusting of ricotta salata is so beautiful, it ought to be in pictures.

En route to your table in this sleek, glass-and-wood expanse, where the best (but also the noisiest) seats face the open kitchen, you pass the dessert station. After seeing the fat apple tarts, it's hard to pass on them. Since it's spring, though, I spring for what's seasonal, usually the strawberry-rhubarb cobbler set off with tender buttermilk biscuits, or any of the house-churned ice creams that show up in a frosty mini-bucket.

Everything about the Obama-approved restaurant is humming these days and nights, personable service included. Sorry, L.A.!