The Washington Post Magazine
October 2004
The Dining Guide


Newcomers to this Federal Manse all have the same question. "What are bay bugs?" they ask their servers, who inevitably smile and explain that the menu item is not what they assume but, rather, slipper lobsters from Australia (and delicious, by the way, done up with anchovy butter and mango chips). Chif Andrew Evans's cooking, staged in a serene space, is full of similarly unexpected notions. Steak tartare shows up as a starburst of pointy shards of lavash flat bread around a cool, sesame oil - flavored mince of fresh ground beef; and Cobb salad is rethought with moist squab instead of chicken. His lamb, edged in bright herbs and sliced over a sheer disk of potatoes sandwiching creamed spinach, is quiet bliss, as are soft shell crabs suspended in tempura and poised over thin noodles with wood ear mushrooms. The seasonal menu, inspired by the chef's time down under, changes every three weeks but is always fascinating, as are the inn's details. Russian Impressionist art graces the cool green walls, and in lieu of flowers on the table, you get a glass bowl of Japanese fighting fish.