January 2004

This cozy French restaurant in a Woodley Park townhouse is a joint venture of brother-and-sister team Cecile and Frederic Darricarrere and chef Oumar Sy, all of whom worked together with Bruno Fortin to help run Bistrot Lepic in Georgetown. Neighborhood regulars flock to Petits Plats to enjoy the friendly greeting and the dependable comfort of Sy's good cooking.

Artichoke soup with scallops is a good beginning on a winter evening, as is the onion soup, hot and savory-sweet under its crust of cheese. Seafood is very good here. Mussels in a variety of preparations--and with terrific frites--are a specialty. Main-course winners include grilled rockfish with braised leeks and a balsamic-vinegar sauce, monkfish with fresh thyme and garlic, and a very good bouillabaisse, chock full of calamari, shrimp, and scallops and served with croutons spread with garlicky aïoli. Desserts include a good lemon tart and a deliciously comforting floating island.

Petits Plats, 2653 Connecticut Ave., NW; 202-518-0018. Open Tuesday through Sunday for lunch and dinner.