Sunday, May 28, 2006

"Whatever happened to . . . ?" is a question that lands in my e-mail basket with regularity, most recently with respect to the one-time, two-part Caribbean restaurant Ginger Cove/Ginger Reef. "I'm told by a friend that they've closed," writes Washington reader Daryl Mitchell. "True? Relocated maybe?" Yes and (sort of) yes. The whimsical establishment, owned by veteran restaurateurs Jimmie and Sharon Banks, closed after a brief run in Washington's Penn Quarter last year. "It was a costly operation, an ongoing struggle financially," explains Sharon Banks, whose island cooking also graced the tables at the late Hibiscus Cafe in Georgetown and Fish, Wings & Tings in Adams Morgan. Fans can still find her zesty jerk chicken, fried kingfish and rum raisin bread pudding, but they have to travel to Brooklyn to do so. The Bankses recently launched a small catering operation there, Yellow Yam, a nod to a staple of the Jamaican pantry. For details, e-mail yellowyam1@nyc.rr.com.

Got a dining question? Send your thoughts, wishes and, yes, even gripes to asktom@washpost.com or to Ask Tom, The Washington Post Magazine, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071. Please include daytime telephone number.