| EATBAR GASTROPUB http://www.tallularestaurant.com |
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April 17th, 2009
After hearing about EatBar via the Washingtonian (both touting their marvelous hush puppies and in the ‘Burger Brackets’), we made it our mission to sample both the ‘puppies and their burger.
We seated ourselves in the bar/lounge area and waited a while to be served. Service was spotty, but not much can be expected from a venue of this sort. I’m sure that everything was just a little nicer next door at Tallula, the parent restaurant. Now, it may just be due to the couple of drinks I had up the street at Clarendon Ballroom, but the hush puppies were good. Not as good as the ones I’ve had at Outer Banks, but they were pretty good. The burger was good as well–in fact I didn’t even care about smearing ketchup all over my face in order to shove all parts of it into my mouth in each bite.
But, the bottom line is, I’ve had better versions of everything here somewhere else before. I’d rather eat french fries at Farrah Olivia or Sweetwater Tavern, and rather have the burger from Palena Cafe or Central.
I had ‘The Rock Star’, a super bubbly drink that still had a strong taste of wine. The area that EatBar is located in is far from the metro and is not a very attractive one at that. The decor is very confusing. I can’t decide if it’s Gothic-gastropub-chic or a weird mash-up of things that reminds me of the inside of a funeral home or a psychic/tarot reader in the country.
Glad I went, but not going again. Especially since the crowd that seemed to be around us was… “special”. Not the kind of ambiance I’m looking for in a place.
From Zagat
(For Tallula) Hailed as the “best idea to come to Clarendon since the yuppies invaded”, this “sleek, urbane” New American serves an “imaginative menu” of “delicious” food crafted from “fresh seasonal ingredients”, plus an “extensive”, “wonderfully priced wine list” (including 70 by the glass); the adjacent “gastropub”, Eatbar, is “perfect for noshing” on “fabulous small plates”, but given the “lively” crowd of “twenty and thirtysomethings”, “expect loud weekend nights.”
Food: 23, Decor: 22, Service: 22, Cost: $40
Clarendon | 2761 Washington Blvd. (Pershing Dr.) | Arlington, VA | Clarendon Metro | 703-778-5051
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