bistrot du coin

bistrot du coin
1738 connecticut avenue NW (between R street & S street), washington, DC 20009
tel: 202) 234-6969
hours: monday-wednesday 11:30am-11:30pm, thursday-saturday 11:30am-1am, sunday 11:30am-11:30pm

what was consumed: mussels, mussels, mussels! and fries, pate, salad, and cassoulet (YUM) ...

among the great things about work, one of them is the close proximity of great places to eat - woohoo!

so, one day, my coworkers and i were looking for a nice place to eat - a nice ambiance, great food, and a place to dish about office gossip (haha - just kidding). we happily agreed on bistrot du coin and i, of course, began to do research on what to order, what to eat, what to look forward to. after my first visit, i had to share the deliciousness with others:

delicious!

at first, you walk into a large, high-ceilinged (yes, i'm obsessed with high ceilings) eating hall, of sorts. the walls are decorated with all sorts of memorabelia, both local and international. there's a sort of flair about the place that is so appealing. is it the "french bistro" feel table clothes? is it the servers who speak french? what is it? this was a goooood sign ...

the meal started with delicious bread and butter. be sure not to fill up on it, though, because entree portions are good sized and you're gonna want to enjoy the other things that you've ordered. the last time i went, it was a total mussels fest (this is also the place where we got marguerite to order (and enjoy) mussels! that was a feat in and of itself). i have had the mussels a couple of a times and have tasted all different kinds (i think my favorite, to date, is the moules pistou - steamed mussels with pesto, prosciutto and french ham), but i could always go for more. bistrot du coin has small and large. small really is enough (especially if you're going to soak up all of the delicious broth with the delicious bread), but the large come with fries ... i often order the small and then fries on the side which saves me a few dollars (and keeps me from eating too many fries - i love fries). then again, the large also leaves you with more mussels and more broth. hmmm. in the end, it's a 'win-win' either way.

this last time, though, while everyone else ordered mussels, i took the advice of my friend and ordered the cassoulet. i had never had cassoulet; i had only read about this delicious french stew (i even considered making it, but ... well, you know me and not being able to follow recipes). but you really can't go wrong with a white bean stew with sausage, pork, lamb and duck confit. come on!! i had it on a dreary day; a hearty stew really hit the spot. it hit the spot the next day as well when i had the cassoulet leftovers for lunch (yes, even with everyone digging in, i had leftovers. delicious, delicious leftovers).

the only beef i have with bistrot du coin is that once i went for a friend's birthday. he had made reservations (there were about 14 of us) and we ordered food and wine (i.e., a pretty large tab). not only was the service average to below-average, after about 2ish hours, they told us that we had to leave because our reservation time had come to a close. WHAT!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? that has never happened to me ... sheesh. for sure, i had a much much better time in a small group ...

but, in the end, the food makes it all worth it. i'm sure i'll be back at bistrot du coin again ^_^

online: http://www.bistrotducoin.com/