The Gist: http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants/fine-dining/3941
The Why: While many seem to enjoy criticizing Wolfgang Puck and his multitude of restaurant concepts I personally have never had a bad meal at one of his restaurants; a memorable family trip to Spago before the renovation and an exemplary dinner at CUT Beverly Hills before catching a plane being the highlights. With the NHL playoffs on my mind, a downtown festival I wanted to check out, and the Newseum on my ‘to-visit’ list The Source seemed like an obvious choice – particularly for the Saturday Dim-Sum brunch where I was assured by a quick phone call that they’d be more than happy to turn on the hockey game at the bar if I desired.
The Reservation: I made one, though I probably did not need one – arriving around 1:30pm and lingering until nearly 4:00 the restaurant was never more than half full.
The Service and Setting: With a lot of glass, fitting the layout of the Newseum perfectly, lush leather seating, and polished tile floors the restaurant has a very modern feel to it without being cold – the upstairs a bit more posh and the bar/lounge downstairs a bit more sleek. Opting to sit at the bar in order to watch the game while I dined I was taken great care of by the bartender as I watched him make any number of elaborate cocktails and was even offered a quick tour of the double decker wine wall and private dining room during an intermission. Having mentioned the quality of the bartender I will simply say that the rest of the service that afternoon was a bit of a disaster – servers bringing the same plates twice on two occasions and once bringing an egg that had clearly sat too long as what was once poached became luke-warm and rubbery; mistakes that led to me receiving 11 dishes as opposed to 8 when accounting for duplicates.
The food: 8 dishes for $42; coffee which was refilled frequently and comped by the bartender for the tepid egg.
Barbecued Lamb Samosas with Yukon Gold Potato and Toasted Cumin: With dishes arriving as they were prepared in the kitchen I can’t say this intense dish would have been my choice to serve first given its heft of flavor, but given the crispy golden shell and rich lamb tempered by lightly salted potatoes these were actually quite good, the lightly minted chutney proving a great match for the smoky sweetness of the barbeque, though a little certainly went a long way.
Pork Belly Pot Sticker with Black Vinegar and Chili Oil: Another heavy hitter in the flavor department (and one of the two dishes where I inexplicably received a second order by mistake) these were excellent – the wrapper thin and nicely textured, the pork belly fatty but not overly so, and the sauce spicy without being overwhelming.
Maryland Crab Cake Benedict with Old Bay Hollandaise: Not at all Asian but instead fitting the ‘brunch’ theme, this was a dish that read well and tasted great but as I mentioned above the first service proved to be quite overcooked and tepid thus resulting in a Crab Cake English muffin the first time around and later a proper benedict with sweet lump crab pairing as nicely as you’d guess with the rich and briny hollandaise.
Crystal Chive Dumplings with Kurobuta Pork and King Crab: The fail of the afternoon for me not only because the wrapper was a bit too gummy but also because the crab and chive were largely undetected beneath the richness of the pork. Admittedly not one to quibble about quality pork, I’d already had a much better dish (twice) in the pot stickers and had hoped for something a little more interesting here.
Singapore Style Tripe with Chinese Sausage Bread Crumbs: Far better than the above this was tender tripe cut into noodles and teaming with spices ranging from cumin and mustard to clove and pepper while the beefy breadcrumbs provided a nice textural contrast. Small portion, great flavor.
Turnip Cakes with Szechuan Sweet Soy: Where other dishes were quite nicely portioned this one was a belly bomb largely because of the heft of the cakes but also because of the oil involved. Crispy on the outside and smooth within the flavor here was nice as the ginger and soy worked in harmony, but a little went a long way – definitely a dish best shared.
Duck Bao Buns: The other ‘mistake’ course in that two plates arrived instead of one I was happy to indulge here as the pillowy bao, crispy skinned duck, and lightly pickled vegetables were all excellent.
Bao Bun Napoleon with 5 Spice Cream and Fresh Berries: Having already indulged in a number of sweets that day and still with some leftover I opted for a single dessert and almost instantly wished I’d ordered more when this item arrived featuring a stack of three crisply fried bao buns stacked high with light pastry cream and a dusting of powdered sugar. Lightly sweet, beautifully textured, and quite unlike any interpretation of the Napoleon/Mille-Feuille I’d seen prior or since this is a must-order.
The Verdict: Unable to comment on the quality of the food or service in the main dining room I can’t say that I particularly agree with the restaurant consistently being named amongst DC’s five best, but perhaps there is a bit more polish to dinner service. While there were certainly missteps during my visit to The Source there were also some truly innovative and delicious dishes that I’d return for, particularly as a casual lunch/brunch at the bar while watching the game.