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A cheap eats challenge: Washington vs. New York

Has Washington's food culture evolved enough to compete with New York, the country's gastronomic gold standard? Serious Eats founder Ed Levine and I decided to find out. See the score chart for full results. - Tim Carman

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Gelato

D.C. Offering (left): Pitango Gelato on "P" street: Cardamon (cream colored) Cafe Espresso (brown) and the pistachio.
Comments: Dense but not in-your-face intense, the flavors never dominate the inherent milkiness of the gelato. Levine loved the richness of the caffe espresso, while I still daydream about the cardamom.
Score: 91.5
NYC Offering (right): Olive oil and salty peanut gelato at Otto. Comments: Because she works for Mario Batali, pastry chef Meredith Kurtzman focuses more on presentation, with drizzles and garnishes, as opposed to, say, ice cream in to-go cups. Levine calls it, flat out, “gelato as the ice cream gods meant it to be.” I bow before the gods.
Score: 95
(Photos by Michael Williamson, left, and Tim Carman, right, The Washington Post)

The Washington Post / THE WASHINGTON POST

<strong>D.C. Offering (left):</strong> Buttermilk pancakes at <strong>Market Lunch</strong> on Capitol Hill. <br>Comments: Levine dissed the buttermilk pancakes as not crispy enough at the edges, though he thought the grits were “solid,” and he “really liked” the bacon-cheese-egg-potato sandwich. I appreciated the market’s bear hug of its Mid-Atlantic and Southern roots. <br>Score: 85 <br>
<strong>NYC Offering (right)</strong>: Ricotta pancakes at <strong>Maialino</strong>. Levine thought the breakfast was well worth the price, and I agreed, despite over-poached eggs and mushy ricotta pancakes. <br>Score: 92.5 <br>(Photos by Tim Carmen The Washington Post)

Breakfast

D.C. Offering (left): Buttermilk pancakes at Market Lunch on Capitol Hill.
Comments: Levine dissed the buttermilk pancakes as not crispy enough at the edges, though he thought the grits were “solid,” and he “really liked” the bacon-cheese-egg-potato sandwich. I appreciated the market’s bear hug of its Mid-Atlantic and Southern roots.
Score: 85
NYC Offering (right): Ricotta pancakes at Maialino. Levine thought the breakfast was well worth the price, and I agreed, despite over-poached eggs and mushy ricotta pancakes.
Score: 92.5
(Photos by Tim Carmen The Washington Post)

The Washington Post / THE WASHINGTON POST

<strong>D.C. Offering (left):</strong> Sweet potato pie with cinnamon meringue (cranberry jam layer) from <strong>Buzz Bakery</strong>. <br>Comments: Levine found nothing (not even the sweet potato pie) that “makes me think I’m tasting something for the first time.” By contrast, I thought executive pastry chef Tiffany MacIsaac’s kitschy chocolate chip cookie, with giant polka dots of chocolate, was satisfyingly chewy and crispy. <br>Score: 87.5 <br>
<strong>NYC Offering (right)</strong>: Double shot cake at<strong> Dominique Ansel Bakery</strong>. Comments: Levine thought everything — espresso dark chocolate cake, apple tart tatin, canele, kouign-amann and Paris-Brest — was “spectacularly executed,” which is hard to argue with. Except for the canele, which I thought was so waxy, it tasted like a child’s toy. <br>Score: 93 <br>(Photos by Deb Lindsey FTWP, right, and Tim Carmen, left, The Washington Post)

Bakery

D.C. Offering (left): Sweet potato pie with cinnamon meringue (cranberry jam layer) from Buzz Bakery.
Comments: Levine found nothing (not even the sweet potato pie) that “makes me think I’m tasting something for the first time.” By contrast, I thought executive pastry chef Tiffany MacIsaac’s kitschy chocolate chip cookie, with giant polka dots of chocolate, was satisfyingly chewy and crispy.
Score: 87.5
NYC Offering (right): Double shot cake at Dominique Ansel Bakery. Comments: Levine thought everything — espresso dark chocolate cake, apple tart tatin, canele, kouign-amann and Paris-Brest — was “spectacularly executed,” which is hard to argue with. Except for the canele, which I thought was so waxy, it tasted like a child’s toy.
Score: 93
(Photos by Deb Lindsey FTWP, right, and Tim Carmen, left, The Washington Post)

The Washington Post / THE WASHINGTON POST

<strong>D.C. Offering (left):</strong> Beef berbere and carrots and green beens from <strong>Benethiopia.</strong>
<br>Comments: Cooks Lula Habte, Russell Bailey and Christian Kloc produce sauces and stews of surprising complexity, which even Levine acknowledged. In fact, given that he had nothing negative to say about this “very pleasant surprise,” his relatively low score is suspect. <br>Score: 91 <br>
<strong>NYC Offering (right)</strong>: The schwarma platter from the <strong>King of Falafel</strong>. Comments: Levine says “Freddy” Zeideia personifies “the great street food we found all over America.” I found Freddy’s ultra-crunchy falafel addictive but thought his dry shawarma relied too much on sauce for flavor. <br>Score: 92 <br>(Photos by Tim Carman, right, and Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)

Street Food

D.C. Offering (left): Beef berbere and carrots and green beens from Benethiopia.
Comments: Cooks Lula Habte, Russell Bailey and Christian Kloc produce sauces and stews of surprising complexity, which even Levine acknowledged. In fact, given that he had nothing negative to say about this “very pleasant surprise,” his relatively low score is suspect.
Score: 91
NYC Offering (right): The schwarma platter from the King of Falafel. Comments: Levine says “Freddy” Zeideia personifies “the great street food we found all over America.” I found Freddy’s ultra-crunchy falafel addictive but thought his dry shawarma relied too much on sauce for flavor.
Score: 92
(Photos by Tim Carman, right, and Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)

The Washington Post / THE WASHINGTON POST

<strong>D.C. Offering (left):</strong> The Pattison Avenue sandwich from <strong>Taylor Gourmet</strong>. <br>Comments: Co-owner Casey Patten has created the Pattison Avenue, a superb Italian roast pork sandwich. Levine said the Pattison “hit all the right notes.” I appreciate that Patten has refused to try to “improve” upon a classic, instead intensifying an already great combination of flavors. <br>Score: 92.5 <br>
<strong>NYC Offering (right)</strong>: Roasted turkey roll from <strong>Parm</strong>. Comments: Parm is a modern, if self-conscious, diner whose turkey sandwich, noted Levine, “changes the way serious eaters think about turkey sandwiches.” I thought that the sandwich needed less rosemary and that Torrisi should stop drowning its star meat under a tsunami of toppings and condiments. <br>Score: 92 <br>(Photos by Michael Williamson, left, and Bill O'Leary, right, The Washington Post)

Sandwich

D.C. Offering (left): The Pattison Avenue sandwich from Taylor Gourmet.
Comments: Co-owner Casey Patten has created the Pattison Avenue, a superb Italian roast pork sandwich. Levine said the Pattison “hit all the right notes.” I appreciate that Patten has refused to try to “improve” upon a classic, instead intensifying an already great combination of flavors.
Score: 92.5
NYC Offering (right): Roasted turkey roll from Parm. Comments: Parm is a modern, if self-conscious, diner whose turkey sandwich, noted Levine, “changes the way serious eaters think about turkey sandwiches.” I thought that the sandwich needed less rosemary and that Torrisi should stop drowning its star meat under a tsunami of toppings and condiments.
Score: 92
(Photos by Michael Williamson, left, and Bill O'Leary, right, The Washington Post)

The Washington Post / THE WASHINGTON POST

<strong>D.C. Offering (left):</strong> The Pizza Margherita from <strong>2 Amys</strong>. <br>Comments: Our margherita pizza looked ready for a glossy magazine shoot, its outer crust spotted with char and its toppings so evenly distributed, it seemed as if someone had used a protractor. “It’s like a work of art,” Levine said. <br>Score: 93 <br>
<strong>NYC Offering (right)</strong>: Margherita pizza from Motorino. Comments: Levine thought the outer crust of Motorino’s margherita pizza was “much higher than 2 Amy’s,” but what I first noticed was the crust’s leopard spotting, which was blackened to a degree I’ve never seen in Washington, clearly the more conservative char town. I also loved the salt level of Motorino’s chewy, bready crust. <br>Score: 94.5 <br>(Photos by Michael Williamson, left, and Bill O'Leary, right, The Washington Post)

D.C. Offering (left): The Pizza Margherita from 2 Amys.
Comments: Our margherita pizza looked ready for a glossy magazine shoot, its outer crust spotted with char and its toppings so evenly distributed, it seemed as if someone had used a protractor. “It’s like a work of art,” Levine said.
Score: 93
NYC Offering (right): Margherita pizza from Motorino. Comments: Levine thought the outer crust of Motorino’s margherita pizza was “much higher than 2 Amy’s,” but what I first noticed was the crust’s leopard spotting, which was blackened to a degree I’ve never seen in Washington, clearly the more conservative char town. I also loved the salt level of Motorino’s chewy, bready crust.
Score: 94.5
(Photos by Michael Williamson, left, and Bill O'Leary, right, The Washington Post)

The Washington Post / THE WASHINGTON POST

<strong>D.C. Offering (left):</strong> The Palena burger from the <strong>Palena Cafe</strong>. Comments: Frank Ruta’s juicy, loosely packed truffled cheeseburger, which frequently incorporates dry-aged steak trimmings into its blend, could make a competitive eater on his 99th hot dog hungry again. We sampled it at the end of our tasting marathon, and the funk-forward burger on a brioche-style bun was “an unalloyed pleasure <span>. . .</span> even at this unlikely and unpromising juncture,” noted Levine. <br>Score: 94 <br>
<strong>NYC Offering (right)</strong> Cheddar burger from <strong>Prime Meats</strong>. Comments: Levine and I agreed that the blend for this half-pound Black Angus burger had the unmistakable funk of dry-aged meat, which should be enough to satisfy discriminating burger freaks. It would have satisfied, too, except for some miscues from the kitchen, like the complete lack of char and the over-layering of lettuce, which added a telltale watery, garden flavor to our burger. <br>Score: 91 <br>(Photos by Tim Carman, left, and Bill O'Leary, left, The Washington Post)

D.C. Offering (left): The Palena burger from the Palena Cafe. Comments: Frank Ruta’s juicy, loosely packed truffled cheeseburger, which frequently incorporates dry-aged steak trimmings into its blend, could make a competitive eater on his 99th hot dog hungry again. We sampled it at the end of our tasting marathon, and the funk-forward burger on a brioche-style bun was “an unalloyed pleasure . . . even at this unlikely and unpromising juncture,” noted Levine.
Score: 94
NYC Offering (right) Cheddar burger from Prime Meats. Comments: Levine and I agreed that the blend for this half-pound Black Angus burger had the unmistakable funk of dry-aged meat, which should be enough to satisfy discriminating burger freaks. It would have satisfied, too, except for some miscues from the kitchen, like the complete lack of char and the over-layering of lettuce, which added a telltale watery, garden flavor to our burger.
Score: 91
(Photos by Tim Carman, left, and Bill O'Leary, left, The Washington Post)

The Washington Post / THE WASHINGTON POST

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