Gentrification Domination

While gentrification is an ugly word, it is definitely what is going on in my hood.  14th street is a major corridor through the area, connecting the recently revitalized shopping area in Columbia Heights (an urban Target!) and the National Mall.  But the area of 14th through Logan Circle has been going through its own revitalization.  As apartment complexes are popping up, new restaurants are opening weekly.  Last night, I got to try out our neighborhood's latest addition:  Drafting Table.

This architect-themed gastropub boasts "You'd rather eat at a bar than drink in a restaurant", meaning it's a late night hang out with good food.  The menu is not extensive, but I am eager to see if they have seasonal rotations.  The decor fits the theme, with compass lamps and drafting paper menus.  A fairly small table seating area surrounds the seats at the bar.  There was a 30-45 minute wait for a table, but they will call you when your table is ready, so we were able to grab a drink at another local favorite, Pearl Dive. 

Once we got the call and were seated for our first official roommate dinner, we started out with the fried pickles.  I forgot to take a picture, but you can see how much we hated them. 

I don't even LIKE pickles and these were delicious.  They came with a chipotle mayo that was absolutely fantastic. 

For our main courses, Lizzie and I split the burger while Ali opted for fish and chips.  Ali was left a bit disappointed by her choice, stating that another new local favorite, the Brixton, had better.  In all fairness, the Brixton is a British pub, so it makes sense that their fish and chips offering was better. 

But the burger did not disappoint.  I'm no burger neophyte - I probably have at least one a week - and I can say with some certainty that this was the best burger I've ever had.  To begin with, not only is there beef in the burger, but it is mixed with brisket.  The burger comes with bacon, mushrooms, and an apple chutney which, of course, I asked for on the side (and did not touch).  The finishing touch on the burger was "crispy blue cheese" - essentially, they put blue cheese on while its still on the grill, then flip it, cheese side down, to cook it a bit.  Deeeeeelicious.  Seriously. Yum.  I was even a bit sad that I was splitting the meal and wished I had the whole thing to myself! 

Happy with our meals, we decided to try out the desserts - namely, the Snickers Pie.  When it arrived, it was in a mug and more resembled chocolate mousse.  We were confused, but continued to gobble it down anyhow.  Once we had polished it off (again, I forgot to take a picture!), our waitress came over, deeply apologetic that she had ordered us the wrong dessert!  The chocolate pudding we had just consumed was delicious and, even better, free! 

Not ones to turn down free food, the waitress brought us the actual snickers pie. It was equally delicious and I ate so much dessert that I negated any calorie points I had earned by splitting the main course.  It was all worth it. 

The beer selection could be expanded a bit, but they have a wide variety of beers on tap, including my selection - a Colorado favorite from Oskar Blues - Dale's Pale Ale.  Lizzie opted for the in-house cocktail creation "Blueprint", which proved to be a good choice.  Overall, I think they have three new regulars!