| The bald-headed
bouncer at the door seems like overkill. So does valet parking.
This is the suburbs, after all. Why pay to park? So put the
Saab around the corner of this low-slung commercial building.
It's just a few steps further and you'll park free.
Trip
through eCITIE's front door and veer left and the
rationale for the bouncer becomes clear. This is one roaring
bar scene in a room that goes on forever, with ceilings
two stories high and banners trumpeting dot-com firms hanging
on the walls. Tysons singles have found new roosting grounds.
So have local high rollers in for a cigar and single malt
at a small bar way in the back. Not to mention those hip
twentysomething techies clustered at cafe tables round the
sushi chef, downing flavor-infused sake and spicy-salmon
rolls.
Head
to the right after stepping through the door and the tableau's
different. A low table with blue votives and magnums of
wine gives off low-key shimmer. Polished-wood booths line
both sides of a dining room. Yes, you can hear the buzz
from the bar, but there's a more intimate feel. Foursomes
laugh at something one of the waiters has said. A snazzily
dressed fellow stops at a couple of tables to say hello.
Couples lean conspiratorially over their wineglasses-the
wine list, though oddly arranged, has some unusual bottles
and by-the-glass picks and is more interesting than the
beer roster.
eCITIE's
owners, a group that includes veteran restaurateur Paul
Loukas of Madeo fame and heavyweight tech lawyer Harry
Glazer, are aiming for a supper club for the Net age.
For the most part they succeed. Except for the occasional
glitch in service, the roar from the bar as it gets later,
and prime tables that appear to be reserved just in case
a VIP shows up, eCITIE is one of the best things
to happen to Northern Virginia's dining scene in a while.
Here
is a Modern American restaurant with food that can hold
its own with the best of DC. The whiz in the kitchen is
Jamie Stachowski; most recently of
Pesce, but with credits running from Ma Maison in Los Angeles
and Le Perigord in New
York to Jean-Louis and Madeo locally. Stachowski's
conceptions make sense. No combining ingredients for the
hell of it.
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