NOTE: Chef Daniel Bortnick replaced John Wabeck in April, 2007.

2004 Dining Guide
By Tom Sietsema
Washington Post Magazine
Sunday, October 17, 2004

I wouldn't have to eat a morsel of food to be taken with Firefly. The faux tree dangling tiny lanterns from its limbs and the stone wall framing the kitchen prompt me to imagine indoors is out while the gentle, honeyed lighting at dinner suggests early evening in the country. Much of chef John Wabeck's food plays along with the easygoing theme. When I last dropped in, tomatoes in three colors, splashed with balsamic vinegar, and silken salmon carpaccio over thin slices of juicy melon signaled summer in every forkful. Nothing is overly complicated, but plenty is simply swell. Lamb steak with chard (hold the watery mac-and-cheese) is comfort food with class; tomato risotto comes swirled with fresh marjoram and pancetta; and it's fun to see a chef who eschews the ubiquitous salmon for something more daring, such as mackerel with rapini and a drizzle of chive oil. Sublime stuff. Pork-and-chicken spring rolls, nicely crisp on the outside, prove oddly mushy inside, and desserts could use a jump-start. But you'll drink well (Wabeck is a grape nut) and feel cosseted (the chef sometimes forsakes his white jacket and the stove for civilian dress and the dining room, where he plays host).

The restaurant allows customers to bring up to two bottles of wine with a corkage fee of $15 per bottle.

At first glance, I wasn't sure that Firefly, at the Hotel Madera, warranted a review of the bar. Firefly is primarily a restaurant; but I'd heard good things about the space, and the other Kimpton Hotel bars (Rouge, Topaz and Poste) have proved to be favorites. My friends and I arrived one night to check the place out, and found it packed. The main dining room, an attractive space with a wall of birch logs, was full. The bar only has eight stools and two high tables for four. All were taken, and there was a crowd standing around the bar. After a short and fruitless search for service or seats, we turned around and left.

But I tried again, and it's a good thing I did. I had mistaken a small lounge area near the bar -- five small coffee tables and one large arching banquette with two more tables -- for an additional restaurant seating area. It turns out that it's actually designed for people who just want cocktails or a quick bite to eat, as no reservations are taken and only appetizers are served. On Friday nights, this area sometimes fills with dinner customers who couldn't get regular tables and decided to make a meal of appetizers. (For what it's worth, there are 58 seats in the dining room and 35 at the bar and lounge.)

I wouldn't recommend stopping at Firefly on a weekend -- including Thursday night -- much after happy hour. That's prime dining time; Everyone waiting for a table is shuttled to the tiny bar area, where they jockey with people who've just stopped in for a cocktail. We found this out the hard way. At 8 p.m. on a Friday, the crowd was two-deep around the counter, preventing us from getting drink orders in.

Another visit around the same time on a Tuesday, though, provided time to sit under the twinkling "firefly tree" -- a birch tree hung with glowing copper lanterns that divides the restaurant and bar -- and work our way through the cocktail menu.

The drinks are simple, but use choice ingredients, such as the small-batch Woodford Reserve Kentucky bourbon in a delicious Manhattan or the Tanqueray martini with gorgonzola-stuffed olives. It's not flashy or exciting -- no "Pink Pussycats" and "Electric Grapes," unless you tell the bartenders what's in them -- but there's nothing more satisfying than a solidly made cocktail with quality liquor.

Lounge customers can only order from the "bar food" menu, which just duplicates the restaurant's appetizer list. The food is good, but there are too many salads and soups (French onion is great for lunch, but I wouldn't want it with a cocktail or for a late-night snack). Chef John Wabeck designed the menus at the Topaz Bar and Bar Rouge, and both of those have more options for hungry barflies, such as the latter's savory quesadilla or burger.

By all means, visit this rustic-looking lounge for a drink and a taste of Wabeck's cooking -- the tart with chorizo and caramelized onion was a crowd-pleaser. But visit on an off night or you might not be able to get either.

-- Fritz Hahn (Oct. 2002)