Agora (Dupont Circle)

With no intention of actually having a good meal last night, I ventured out to 17^th Street with two friends, Andrew and Dr. Mike. Why there? We wanted to say hi to our favorite bartender who left Annie’s to work at Level One. No restaurant on 17^th Street including the two aforementioned are anything more than a place to grab a quick bite because you happen to be walking by or you want food in close proximity to the bar at which you intend to drown yourself. Hank’s Oyster bar gets a pass, however, given it is not technically on 17^th Street. In our attempt to have edible food, we tried to go to Hank’s, but with a 45 minute wait on a blistering summer evening, we opted for any of the lesser establishment options.

One of my companions mentioned Tom Sietsema recently reviewing a new Turkish restaurant on this strip, which now occupies a space that has changed hands every time I have changed my air conditioner filter. In what was once Peppers is now Agora. There were two restaurants that were briefly there in between these two – Jack’s and something about a French pig. Given how often the place has had to redecorate, I was skeptical, but my friends assured me that Tom gave it glowing reviews. Regardless, I wanted meat and a small-plates Turkish place sounded as if they’d have some so I agreed to go.

“Checking in” with my new stalker friendly iPhone ap there resulted in comments matching my skepticism… “Really? You’re eating on 17^th Street? Did you lose your job or something?”

Eyeballing an open 4-top on the patio that was taken by the couple in front of us, we were fortunately made to wait at the bar for an inside table. I say fortunate because I would not have discovered and spent such time with their wine list had we gone immediately to the table, nor would I have ventured inside to discover a quite nice atmosphere.

A brief comment in the wine list caught my eye regarding the proceeds for tastes of their by-the-glass selections. The restaurant offers 23 wines by the glass, all of which you can order a one-ounce sample for $1, 10 cents of which is donated to an animal rescue group. So I opted to try their Pinot Noir, a Turkish red, and a Zinfindel. The latter two were too potent for my pallet, but their Pinot was excellent. Having said that, when we sat down at the table intending to order a bottle, I stumbled onto their recession wine list – a brilliant marketing concept to push less expensive wines. There, we found a quite good Sangiovese for only $28. As the dinner went on and the wine disappeared, the restaurant ran out of this brand, but honored its price for a more expensive bottle of merlot. The customer service and attention paid by the young sommelier impressed me.

On my next visit though, as I wait for a table, I will be tempted their Turkish drink that has figs in it.

As Andrew and I engaged a happenstance friend of his, Amber, dining nearby, Mike took it upon himself to order some spreads to go with the ballooning, still-steaming flat breads delivered. By far, my favorite of the three ordered was the Patlican Kozleme, a charcoal smoked eggplant with green and red peppers. The smoky flavor really came out, overpowering my taste buds and also bringing out some of the more complex intricacies in our wine selection. We also had the Htipiti, which was roasted peppers, feta, and spices; and the mashed fava beans. For those with a lactose aversion, bring your pills because the Htipiti is not to be missed. Otherwise, suffer the consequences because it will end up on your table, you will be tempted by it and you will love it.

With my attention now turned from the wine list to the menu, a number of cocktails flowing through my blood stream, and my desire for meat, I grabbed the waiter and just pointed to the two most recognizable meat dishes without reading much past the word “meat.

The first dish to arrive in surprisingly quick haste given the crowded restaurant was the Kofte: small sautéed ground lamb and beef meatballs on sour cherry sauce. This was easily the best dish of the night. When the waiter tried to take away the empty plate, I smacked his hand, wanting to relish every last drop of the succulent, tart cherry sauce. The other dish I ordered was a very lemony, juicy shish tavuk. For the un-Turkish… that’s chicken. Our other small plates were the kibbeh (crowned best kibbeh in town by me just now) and one of their fish dishes, which to be honest I paid little attention to as I bogarted the meat from my diner companions.

The desert selection was somewhat disappointing with only two selections, as was the small taste I took of the Turkish pastry that Andrew and Mike ordered. I couldn’t resist taking home a baklava sample though, which didn’t hold up overnight, yet had an amazing zest of orange kick to it.

The service as Agora was impeccable. The wait staff was Johnny-on-the-spot with clearing the empty dishes, refilling our wine and giving us attention. One of the more surprising features not seen elsewhere in DC, is the fact that fresh spring water con gas or no con gas is complimentary. Take note DC restaurants… since our local water sucks, this was a very nice touch!

Not having ever ventured past the patio into Agora’s predecessors, I can’t tell you what they did inside. However, the concrete floors, dark wood furniture, brick work and rustic details impress an atmosphere expectant of the more posh side of Georgetown. The mood was lively, the food was spectacular, the service impeccable.

As Mike mentioned, it must be a good restaurant if the only thing Andrew found to complain about was the cleanliness of the bathrooms, which did need some attention. Having said that, we were on 17^th street and I’m not surprised the clientele of that neighborhood are pigs in that respect.

Reading over their website today, I’m not surprised to learn that Agora has relations with my former favorite Mediterranean DC restaurant, Neyla, as Executive chef Ghassan Jarrourj hails from there. Congrats Agora, you have toppled the nearly 10-year reign of Neyla as the best Mediterranean restaurant in DC for me.