Last night (Sunday) my wife and I went to the Cottonwood Cafe on Cordell Ave near Woodmont Ave in Bethesda. The food was delicious. My wife started out with the "Cowboy Potstickers," a crispy dumpling made from a flour tortilla and a chicken paste. Yummy! I had the "Verdes Frescas," a mixed greens salad with a raspberry vinaigrette and sunflower seeds. Surprisingly, in March, the cherry tomatoes were flavorful. For dinner, my wife had the "Yucatan Duck." This had a delicious blueberry & sage sauce. Steamed squash was served in a red corn tortilla dish, along with "Navajo Bread," a kind of forked breadstick. I had "Mesquite Pork." The slices of dry-rubbed pork tenderloin were juicy, tender and smokey and accompanied by a brown barbeque sauce they called "pico barbeque sauce." Spicy steamed spinach and a sweet mango chutney rounded out the plate, and the whole dish had a cornmeal cake on top. Including two margaritas (rocks & salt--the only way to go!), the whole dinner came to $53.45 before the tip. The service was fine and the atmosphere was a kind of subdued southwestern. Not the cheapest dinner in Bethesda by far, but for a special occasion, it was great. Give it a try! Damon Riley [email removed]
Washington, DC
The Cottonwood Cafe
After reading the various reviews, I tried this place. I cannot recommend it. The Duck was tough, the sauce bland (for a berry sauce - that's hard to do). The dessert was returned (hard as a rock , tasted like Mrs. Smiths pies) it was the Chocolate Pecan Pie. I must admit the menu was daring, and interesting. The presentation was colorful and inviting - but then the FOOD STANK!! Only one try, and maybe it was an off night, but I tried 2 different plates of the same food. (returned the first Duck, returned the Second Duck), wound up with just the salad. (By the way the salad - southwestern Cesar, was also disappointing). ****************************** My opinions are my OWN Jack M. Maisel |:-[]} IBM Federal Sector Company (301) 564-7322 [email removed] ******************************
I have to second Jack Maisel's negative opinion of the Cottonwood Cafe. I go there periodically because (a) it's close to work and (b) other people like it. It appears to me that they are trying to both be innovative and please the generally stodgy Bethesda restaurant crowd. I think the dish that best captures what I mean is the "snake bites" appetizer. This is a jalepeno, stuffed with cheese and a shrimp. It's a variation on a dish I like a lot (crab stuffed jalepenos), and it is beautifully presented. But somehow they managed to drain all of the bite out of the jalepenos (maybe by soaking them in water for a long time?), and appear to be using the equivalent of cheese-whiz for the stuffing. Nothing I have had there in too damn many visits was really worth the high-for-mexican-food prices. I have settled into the Tuscon Chimichanga (which is filled with turkey and fruit) when I find myself there -- although it isn't transcendent, it is at least unusual and nothing about it is obviously wrong. If I were to recommend a mid-priced southwestern place in DC, it would have to be the Austin Grill (and Austin Grill West in VA). For cheap and authentic in Bethesda, try Chela's (lunch take out only). For price-is-no-object creative sw-inspired cuisine, I'm still quite fond of Red Sage. [I've been out of dc.dining for a while, but I hope to get back to it soon... I had a disappointing meal at Citronelle last week which I could write up, but I'd really like something positive to get back into the swing with.] Larry