When you walk in, the place decidedly sweats an open kitchen sort of thing.  I recall there being a lot of white, and the cheeses of the day and the wines on the blackboard.  The Riesling they had was a touch on the sweet side, but certainly a solid choice.  I ordered their duck confit soup, with garlic croutons.  This was pretty excellent – an improvement over chicken soup on par with the improvement that duck represents on chicken generally.  Here, Brabo actually stays fairly true to a homey chicken soup – but the richness of adding duck comes through.  LG’s mom ordered a beet salad which was excellent, especially with the goat cheese (that she preferred to not have on the salad but on the side since she claims to taste the goat – is that tin can?).  For the entree I ordered a homemade bockwurst sausage with chili.  The chili was surprisingly unmessy, really just spiced ground beef, and the sausage was solid average – good texture though taste could have been better.  But the rest of the table split mussels with shallot and garlic.  This was lovely, great smell and the mussels seem cooked well.  The liquid and butter made a splendid pool to sop up with the bread they gave.  Just a fun experience.

Instead, I’ve been eating out…a lot!   One of my new favorite places is the Brabo Tasting Room in Old Town, Alexandria.  Robert Wiedmaier’s Tasting Room is cozy, casual, and as charming as all of the lights in Old Town.  I’m not usually a fan of walk-in seating only, but somehow it’s different when you feel like your walking into a friend’s living room.

All of the dishes at the Tasting Room are really fresh and very reasonably priced.  My friend and I decided we could try more things on the menu if we split a bunch of dishes.  A girl after my own heart!  We each started with a bubbling bowl of the Five Onion Soup.  The inviting soup had bold beefy flavor and included cooked onions and fried onions for texture.  I loved the buttery Gruyère cheese and crisp croutons.  Way to start the meal on the right note!

Next up was the bright Roasted Butternut Squash Wood Fired Tart.  This was basically a flatbread that featured seasonal roasted squash, blue cheese, bacon, arugula and sage pesto.  All of the flavors worked beautifully together and I loved the idea of using the sage to make a fallish pesto. 

If you’ve ever been to another one of Robert Wiedmaier’s restaurants like Marcels or Brasserie Beck, you know I had no choice but to order the mussels for our third course.  We selected the Chorizo and Fennel Mussels, and as usual, these did not disappoint.  They were cooked perfectly and I had to request extra bread to dip in the tasty broth. 

I shouldn’t have had any room for dessert.  Frankly, I almost didn’t, but then our waiter mentioned their seasonal Pumpkin and Chocolate Cheesecake.  That smart man forced my hand!  I just wasn’t in a position to say no after he described it.  The cheesecake was light and airy.  I loved the chewy nut crust and of course the winning combo of pumpkin and chocolate. 

My overall rating is an A for the Brabo Tasting Room.  I recommend you add this to your list of restaurants to try in 2012.  Oh and let me know if you need a dining companion to join you.  Happy to split a few dishes . 

Last weekend Gabriele took me to Brabo’s Tasting Room in Old Town to celebrate my birthday. The Brabo restaurant next door didn’t have any tables available, and my friend and fellow wine lover Anglea told me she had a good time at the Tasting room.

The room had a great vibe when we walked in — bright, lively but not crazy loud or frantic. The only seats available right away were at the bar, and we took them. Sometimes we hesitate to sit at the bar, because at many places the level of service can take a dive. Here our bartender was a pro and delivered consistently excellent service throughout the meal.

True to it’s name Brabo offers “tastes” as well as full glasses of wine. So you can try lots of different wines without too much damage to your wallet, though there are no steals on the list.

So that’s just what we did. Here’s what we had:

• Wild Hog Vineyard 2006 Barbera – very weird bouquet but tasted more typically Barbera, with earth, currant fruit, some tobacco and spice on the finish
• Icario Rubi 2006 Super Tuscan – more interesting bouquet than taste, very mild and light
• St. Siffrien 2009 Rhone — Grenache dominates, light bodies, smooth, some vanilla lingers on palate
• Cellars Cecilio 2004 — Grenache, Syrah and Cabernet blend from Spain, tart, peppery, tasted a bit off balance
• Summers Andriana’s Cuvee Cabernet 2007 – Smooth, mellow for a Napa Cab, some creaminess and vanilla on the finish — got a glass of this one
• Ridge Zinfandel Blend 2006 - 70% Zin with a bunch of other varietals, light body with a thicker feel on palate, dark fruit and nice tannins, I tasted cranberry on the long finish

The fare at the Tasting room is on the lighter side, and we enjoyed everything we ordered. The mussels were fantastic — large with just the right texture and flavor. Something called a “napatizer” is a mix of savory spreads with excellent flatbread, delicious and a little different. And Gabriele had french onion soup which she declared some of the best she’s ever had anywhere.

Of the wines we tried, I can only give the Summers an unqualified recommendation. Yet the food, the service and the ambiance carried the evening for us. So check out Brabo next time you’re in Old Town.