Open City, Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan

When Monkey finally convinced me to go out again, we settled on Open City. He had heard of it a few days back, and because it is a venture by the owner of two of Monkey’s favorite places, The Diner (semi-fan) and Tryst (not a fan), we decided to give it a go.

As we were getting on Metro to head up to Adams Morgan, I saw a crazed guy in a GREEN JACKET turning around and growling and mumbling at us. Seriously, crazy people should not be allowed on or near the Metro, and probably should not be allowed green jackets. It freaked me out a bit until I realized that this was a THIRD crazy, green-jacketed person, and not one of the two from earlier in the day. OC is literally steps from the metro, right next to Chipotle. It has an outdoor patio (not in use at the moment for obvious reasons) which should serve to make it amenable to May evening dining, and should help to resolve some issues discussed later.

OC has the same Victorian/Deco blend décor as The Diner, an ambience similar to yet louder (yes, louder) than Tryst. Some TVs are available for your footballgame- or AndersonCooper- viewing pleasure, and it packs a hefty bar and coffee bar. (It was so new that most of the severs were wearing their The Diner tshirts.) Food is very similar to The Diner (henceforth referred to as “TehDiner,” as Monkey and I call it) only it takes a slightly trendy twist. If you took everything about Afterwords that is likeable, only you made it good rather than vaguely disappointing, that is what OC’s menu would look like. In addition to the “I-Just-Failed-My-Contracts-II-Exam-And-Need-Comfort-Food” fare, OC offers some snazzy sammiches and some seriously tasty-lookin’ pizzas, one of which threatens your eternal ability to get a date through its co-mingling of garlic, sausages, hot peppers, anchovies and the like, which Monkey had to caution me against. It did look tasty though. Also, breakfast all day long, just like TehDiner, which is probably why Monkey likes TehDiner so much.

Ultimately, I decided on a chicken philly and Monk got the ribs with a side of spinach. (He didn’t say it, but I could see that in his heart, he had hoped for collards.) We also ordered drinks, because it was nippy out and we were close to the door. …Which got continuously held open for the line of people waiting for a seat. More on that later. I don’t remember what Monk got chimay on tap, and I had a Manhattan. I didn’t have particularly high hopes, because Manhattans are dismal in this city, but it’s always a good dose of alcohol, and so as long as it’s not bottom shelf, it doesn’t really matter. And I do love a nice dry Manhattan. My Manhattan, as hoped, was nice and alcoholic (but did I detect a coke float?) However, the bartender has some training to attend to. Far too much bitters, and an overwhelming amount of sweet vermouth. I should have specified that I wanted it exceptionally dry, I guess, but that’s not really my responsibility. When it doubt, make it midway. I can understand people not wanting a dry one because it takes on a smoky, earthy flavor, but if I want a drink that sweet, I’ll just order a bourbon neat. My philly was tasty, but a little on the small side. It came with fries that I might have gorged on to further fill me, but we were there so soon after opening that OC had not even gotten its malt vinegar shipment in yet. Monk’s ribs were exceptionally good; he gave me one and I even ate it! (I do NOT eat meat off the bone. Unless it’s Mammoth.) The barbecue sauce tasted very much like Heinz, which I mentioned to Monkey, but neither of us really seemed to care as they were good ribs and cooked well, which is really what I think he looks for in his caveman fare. The spinach was rather flavorless (needed salt,) but nevertheless, it complemented Monkey’s meal of meat rather well, and I have to say that I appreciate OC’s approach to offering veggies etc. as ala carte sides. I do wish they’d up the size a little to make them family style though. (I’d even pay extra for it, I promise!)

Dessert was a necessity, because you can’t properly do a place whose parents are TehDiner and Tryst without the dessert. We both got chocolate cake and chais. The chai, of course, is the same mass-market stuff that Tryst uses, but it’s still good and really affordable compared to Starbucks. (And much tastier.) (OC uses the same menus as Tryst, save the availability of the Café Güd Lait, a Monkey favorite.) The chocolate cake though, falls to the same complaint that the desserts at Tryst do: they are too much like tortes. If I want a torte, I should be able to order one; and I never want tortes. I should, on the other hand, be able to order a chocolate cake and expect it to be nice and moist, rather than needing a 15 minute soak in hot water like those towels-in-a-brick that you get from the bank on customer appreciation day. This is not to say that I did not get my chocolate fix for the next two weeks, but all the same, the cake was dry.

Over all, it was a little more than we’d wanted to spend, but it made for a nice evening out. It was almost like a date, even. On a regular night, we would have just done dinner or dessert and probably, but not necessarily, no alcohol.

Potential problems:

1) It’s too small and tries to do too much. You have to decide whether you’re a restaurant or a coffee shop. We saw this problem in action as some people lounged and drank as a line formed to sit and eat dinner (and spend more.)

2) It’s a little too loud. Turn down the music some; just because you can’t make out the words to the song anymore doesn’t mean you should keep turning it up. Music really serves as a filler for when you *don’t* have enough people to make it sound and seem full in a venue of this size.

3) It will be interesting to see how these problems converge, especially in about a week or two from now, as students from all over try and find coffee shops to study in. As friend Albertina pointed out, Adams Morgan and Woodley Park shut down waaay too early. OC is planning on staying open as late as 3am some nights, which begs the question, how will you cater to your patrons who want to drink a princessy coffee and study the Krebs Cycle to the spy-music sounds of Thievery Corp when they are fundamentally at odds with your patrons coming straight from Madam’s Organ, who are trying not to kill their buzz, just want a fried egg sandwich, and insist that Coldplay is the best damn band ever?

As Ahnold said, “I’ll be back.” Just not before I’m sure they have malt vinegar.