Komi *****

You will note that I have added some asterisks to the title of this posting. I have decided to start adding a rating system (out of five stars) to my restaurant reviews. For Leslie's birthday recently we went to Komi Restaurant in DuPont Circle, and fittingly for the first restaurant I rate, it garners five stars out of five.

Komi is the restaurant of Johnny Monis in a converted row house on 17th street, just above Massachusetts Avenue. We originally thought Saturday would be good, but more than a month out, only 9:30 pm was available. So we went with Leslie's actual birthday on Tuesday for a 6:30pm reservation. And that was a lucky turn of events. The dining room is spare -- I would call it farmhouse chic because of simple tables combined with very little decor and a bare, distressed dining table used to hold open bottles of wine and a tall server along the wall. The menu is simple, but deceptively so. We opted for the dinner (mezze, pasta, main course and dessert for $84) with wine pairings.

Komi's cuisine is mediterranean, though there is some emphasis on greek. Half of the wine list is greek wine, but by some circumstance, all of our wine pairings were either Spanish, Italian, or American (a pinot noir from the Finger Lakes). We had a spanish sparkling white similar to a blanc de blanc with our mezze, all of which were wonderful with only the odd off note. A medjool date stuffed with creamy mascarpone was divine, once the excess salt is taken off. A whimsical cone filled with beef tartar and topped with a parmesan foam, quail egg, and a bit of parmesan at the bottom was excellent. We also had a small gyro like no other. I was worried we would get too full just on mezze, but luckily we moved on to the pasta course. I had beet ravioli with feta, candied pine nuts and maple, which might have been too sweet but for an excellent pairing with a cabernet franc. Leslie had fava bean caramella with charcoal grilled octopus. When I tried it my mind immediately screamed "flamed broiled Whopper." It was very smokey, perhaps a bit too much.

Our main courses were monkfish with fenugreek (the flower, not the seed) for Leslie and local Iberian pig done three ways for me. I had the pinot noir with the pig, which came as a trio: delicate tenderloin, blood sausage with clove, coriander, and fennel, and pork cheeks in the style of pork belly. The pork came with fresh, crunchy peas and carrots, including a carrot puree. My dish was delicate and rich at the same time, while Leslie's monkfish was delicate and lightly sweet, making me realize that monkfish really can be the poor man's lobster when done right. The gruener veltinger from Tirol was light and short-lived on the tongue.

Finally for dessert I deferred to the birthday girl, letting her have the bittersweet chocolate mousse. Leslie had ordered a port, but the sommelier felt bad when we pointed out that we had not tried any greek wines, that he changed her order to a greek vin santo that paired well. I had a white port with my basil panna cotta with a rhubarb compote (firm and crunchy, almost halfway to a candied rhubarb) and shortbread.

Overall, this was a wonderful experience (minus the woman who brought up her gynecologist in conversation with her husband loud enough for the whole room to hear) and service was attentive without being overbearing. I have read reviews on-line from people who felt slighted on service (though on a busy Friday) and that the portions were tiny. I left the restaurant very satisfied, but not bloated and full, which I appreciated. Komi is highly recommended, particularly during the week when it is not packed.