My first fancy restaurant experience here in DC. Jamie got a gift card as a going away present from her co-workers. I don’t know if there’s a better gift than food.

This place was very good. I had the flank steak with potato purée. Jame had the olive/onion/tomato/caper salsa underneath striped bass with tail-fin to boot. She won, although both were delicious. Best part was the chocolate souffle with carmelized bananas. I could’ve eaten 3 of those. Also, top 5 mojito I’ve ever tasted. Garnished with sugar cane so you know that it’s made with the real stuff. One of the most pleasant qualities of the place is that it was very non pretentious. Grandpa tourists in shorts can feel just as welcome as a hipster art gallery owner. It was a little pricey, but no worse than any other restaurant of it’s caliber. The service was a little slow, but not due to the waitress. I think they were a little understaffed. If nothing else, I’d go back for the souffle alone.

_j

I visited this exhibition at the Smithsonian today. I had no prior knowledge of Jim Henson except that he made the Muppets and Sesame Street. Like most kids I was enamored by both of the shows as a child.

It was a kick to see Kermit and Rolf the Dog. Interesting to see all of the sketches and storyboards Henson produced while creating all of the characters. Couple things I didn’t know about him were that he was a legit cartoonist and graphic designer to say the least, he made a short art film that’s worth looking at, and his first Muppet-like characters appeared in TV commercials. I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to see a real life Big Bird costume or Animal, the crazy drummer Muppet, but overall the exhibit exceeded my expectations.

Check and see if and when the tour stops in a town near you. It’s a quick exhibition, takes a little over an hour. If you go, I’d download the podcast audio tour first. It’s free and it definitely enhances the experience.

_j