321 Ashland

Has anyone tried the new restaurant? My wife and I are considering it but wanted to see if there was any feedback already.

Thanks.

BH

 

Peeked in the window, that's it.
What are their prices like? better or worse than BoneFishy?

 

Very nice restaurant. Great food. It's pretty expensive. About $35 per entree and $10-20 for appetizers and salads. We ate there last weekend, which was only their second night open. Because of the type of food and the prices, it's a not a place for the family. But it's a great place for you and your significant other, or with a group of friends.

It's great having this type of place so close to home.

 

Is it a "dress-up" kind of place? Rather than the Bonefish/Original Steakhouse attire?

 

Yes. However, my wife and I went there with jeans -- i.e., not dressed up. We intended to go to Bonefish, so we didn't get dressed up. When we were told the wait was two hours, we said 'screw that' and walked down to 321 and noticed it was open. We went inside and they were obviously happy to seat us. In the future, however, I would get a little more dressed up.

 

Same thing with us...went at the last minute and we were in jeans. We were welcomed with open arms, however, we felt a little out of place. And we really weren't expecting the prices to be as high as they were. And all sides are a la carte. Wouldn't really consider it a "family" place, it's pretty small and intimate. Would be great if you were celebrating a special occassion..we wouldn't really be able to afford eating there on a regular basis, however. I would only take kids who have impeccable manners (don't remember seeing a kids menu, but could be wrong). Their customer service efforts are to be commended, but I'm not sure the food is worth the money. Looks beautiful to behold (Emerill would be proud), but the artsy display of our dishes, at least, were deceiving. I had a nice grouper, but the "wild mushrooms" and unidentifiable vegetables surrounding it were bitter. The iced tea was weak and looked like tinted water. On the other hand, my hubby's baked half a chicken (pesto coated and grilled...yummy) was excellent..except he was told when asked that it was all white meat - not so..I helped myself to the leg he left on his place. But with nothing but the main course - no wine, salads or extras...just a straight meal w/no dessert..it still rang up $50-$60. We were still hungry when we left, only to be aghast once again that next door, a Maggy Moo's small ice cream in a cone or cup would have set us back another $5 each! I'm going back to San Vito's...more bang for the buck

 

I would like to say that Maggie Moo's is worth the price. Oh baby, bring on the yummies!

 

Sounds like Ashlands 321 is trying to be a high end place like Occidental, Kinkeads, Little Inn of Washington. Ummm, I just don't see a 4 star restaurant being in a shopping center. At least stick it in an old house off of Belmont Ridge Rd like Elizabeth's on 37th in Savanah GA.

I guess I'll have to check out this place since I like great food. Oh wait I'm on a diet - GRRRRRR!!!

Side note: Anyone tried out (Tysons) Ritz Carlton's Maestro? Want to try out the multi course dinner but want some reviews before shelling out $$$$.

Had another great dinner at Nagoya (sp?). Pretty cheap too considering most of the habachi dinner are less than 30 and it get the entertainment.

-Teak

 

First of all, I would not claim that ANY restaurant in the DC area is or tries to be the Little Inn at Washington. To use your examples, Kinnkead's is very good, Occidental is excellent, but Little Inn is a world-renowned establishment that few dare to compare themselves to.

321 Ashland is definitely trying to be the caliber of some finer downtown DC restaurants like Kinkead's, perhaps more comparable though to 701 Penn, Oval Room, Red Sage, or even Lightfoot in Leesburg at dinner. As one who works in DC and used to eat out a lot more in DC (when living in Arlington), 321's arrival is welcomed with open arms! Nothing against families or family dining, but it is nice to finally have a truly adult dining option in this area! And yes, the prices reflect the atmopshere and menu style. This is not another run-of-the-mill strip mall restaurant, even though it's located in one.

Based on our first visit, I think they're off to a promising start. Whether there is a market for such high-end dining in Ashburn remains to be seen... I hope they are around for awhile.

 

Okay, take out L.I.W. and replace it with Butterfield 9 or something in that line. But I know some people who would disagree with your statement about L.I.W. My point was that Ashland 321 is setting itself to be a semi high end place with those prices. Usually establishments with mean prices in the 30's are usually at the finer end of dining. Ashburn is not what I call a high commerical area like Tysons, Georgetown, downtown DC, etc. So prices should be lower due to location unless the restaurant can warrant the prices thru food and service. My experience is alot of the fine dining still provide value for the meal you get. And some places you get so-so meal but you pay for the atmosphere or service. Like Mei N Yu (sp?) in G'town. Food was good but I didn't think the quality of the ingredients warrant me paying $60-70+ (app+main+sides) for my meal not including my drinks. But the price did reflect the atmosphere and location (G'town=$$$). Pretty cool place to eat but the food wasn't all that great. At Taberna del Alabardero I though the food tasted good (not great) but the service made up for anything that lacked in the food. Service and atmosphere was superb.

I'm in the same boat as you, I hope for more fine dining in our area. Like to spend my money on the local economy. Hate driving up to Balitmore for great italian food. Forget Little Inn of Washington, we need the Vienna Inn of Ashburn. Cheap beer and chili dogs.

-Teak

 

Let me know when you guys are done dropping names and trying to out-DC the other...geez.

 

Awww yeah... the Vienna Inn rox! Mmm Chili Mac! =) And of course right down the street Knossos... I lub gyros.

Brim get over it... I guess some people are into computers, some into golf, some into fine dining... to each their own =)

 

I'm guessing most people here haven't been to the chic/haute cuisine restaurants mentioned above so trying to compare Ashland 321 to them is pretty unreasonable and really doesn't help the casual diner looking for a comparison they can relate to.

 

I have been to several of those establishments and I am glad they "name-dropped" so that I have some sort of comparison. Oh, but wait Brim, you want them to compare 321 without really comparing I guess.

 

I would just like to mention that high end restaurants don't always reside in DC.

Case in Point: The Russia House in Herndon. It's fairly $$ but great for a night out (homemade frozen Vodka anyone?). For those that know of the Serbian Crown restaurant in Great Falls (again, not DC) this is comparible to that & I believe started by some who used to work at SC.

 

That's the point (as I think some others have made less directly). I don't think any of us were name dropping or trying to out-DC each other (and if you didn't know, the Little Inn at Washington is not in DC, it's in Washington VA). Bottom line: there really is no comparison in this area. With some very</u> limited exceptions in Herndon and Vienna mentioned by others, you really have to go into Tyson's or DC to get a comparison. In other words, Ashland 321 is not really for the "casual" diner, which is not meant to sound snobby but is just a reflection of the type of establishment it is.

 

I am personally glad to hear all these names being dropped. I have a something coming up soon that will be requiring a special night out and it's nice to hear about these places I did not know about.

 

FWIW ... the owner of the restaurant was trained at the CIA (Culinary Institute of America), and I believe the head chef was trained in France and the US.

This is a fine dining establishment in the vein of Lightfoot in Leesburg, Maestro's in Tysons (which I've been to .. very nice atmosphere, great food, on a price scale of 1 to 4: $$$) Not quite Galileo's in DC, but that is a whole different experience.

We have not yet been to this place, as we're waiting for a special day to go. As was mentioned, its not going to be on the 'weekly dining' list in many homes, but it will be on the 'special dinner' list.

As others have mentioned, it is really nice to have a place where one can go and 'DINE', rather than just eat.



Neil Z.
Resident since 1999

 

This will be an interesting experiment. When we moved to Ashburn, we were amazed at the lack of something other than pizza places and national chains. Was it because others hadn't discovered this market, determined for whatever reason that there was no market , or tried and failed?

 

For those that have been, do they have a good Cesar Salad? By good I mean, mouth wateringly potent w/real Cesar ingredients (not mayonaise) and made at your table side?