The 4 best dishes we ate in DC last month

Some dishes you'll try once and find yourself obsessed, thinking about them when you're awake AND asleep. These are those dishes. These are the four best things Thrillist DC consumed in November while training for turkey over-consumption. As you've likely figured out, you should eat them, too. As an added bonus, everything in this crave-worthy quartet tops out at $12 bucks, starting with Slipstream’s epic eggs Benedict.
 

Slipstream (address and info)
Logan Circle
Forget the standard brunch menu staple that soccer moms order when they’re feeling naughty enough to have some of the "bad" kind of cholesterol. Eggs Benedict is now an art form, and no one does it better than Slipstream. They top buttery brioche with smoky pork belly, mustard cheese, poached eggs, and hollandaise sauce. But not just any hollandaise sauce. Slipstream’s version is boosted by the umami flavor of uni (aka sea urchin).

Slipstream’s Chef has a Japanese background and manages to work his magic in a kitchen that doesn’t have all the bells and whistles, making this dish equally impressive. Since you’re trying this during weekend brunch, get it with a coffee cocktail; they’re so much more fun than mimosas, and serve as a symbol of the café’s intensely creative coffee program.
Price: $12

Mama Rouge (address and info)
Georgetown
There’s a good explanation for why you can get a bánh mì on a croissant at Mama Rouge. The new Georgetown restaurant is a Southeast Asian and French fusion restaurant, combining French technique with bold Thai/Vietnamese flavors. Chef/Owner Aulie Bunyarataphan is a bonafide Francophile. No dish encompasses this happy marriage more deliciously than brisket piled high on a buttery croissant. The brisket is cooked, for like EVER, meaning it’ll fall apart in your mouth. The smoky meat contrasts nicely with the fresh herbs and crunchy pickled vegetables.

If you want even more excitement, dribble on some of Aulie’s house-made sauces like sriracha and spicy mayo. Sure, bánh mì purists can get it on a baguette, but once you go buttery, you never go back.
Price: $9

The Partisan (address and info)
Penn Quarter
Love your whiskey-stocked bar too much to try using brown liquor in your home cooking experiments? Head to The Partisan and leave it to the professionals, like Chef Ed Witt. He braises his addictive lamb ribs in Old Overholt for an hour and a half, using a half-cup for every four racks of ribs. When they arrive at the table, pick them up and prepare to get messy -- not that you'll notice, since you'll be too focused on the perfectly gamey flavor and notes of caramel, thanks to the whiskey. They’re served with a roasted onion purée and crispy shallots, and are ideal for noshing on alongside a stiff drink.

The Partisan recently upped their whiskey list to 88 offerings, including 17 bourbons from Buffalo Trace’s experimental series, so you have some work to do.
Price: $12

Second State (address and info)
Dupont Circle
Every culture has their own version of dough filled with tasty stuff, but the Polish really nail it with pierogies. Try Second State’s take on the dish and you’ll see. An order of cheddar pierogies will fill you up for a month, because they’re as dramatically oversized as a California king bed. Potato and cheddar form the filling, which is impressively smooth. But the magic happens on top. Each pierogi is anointed with sautéed bacon, caramelized onions, brown butter, and sour cream. Unfortunately, Mrs. T’s Pierogies can’t say the same.

In addition to being Polish, pierogies are tied to Pennsylvania -- the entire theme at Second State. They’re so popular in Pittsburg, there's even a pierogi race during Pirate’s games.
Price: $8

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