It’s nearly August, which means summer Restaurant Week season is ramping up. It was just announced that DC’s Restaurant Week will happen August 24 through August 30. But you can get a jump-start on the (usually) bargain eating by heading to Bethesda or Chevy Chase: Their version of Restaurant Week—$12 to $15 two-course lunches and $25 to $30 three-course dinners—kicks off today and ends on Sunday, August 2. High on our list are the Cali-inspired restaurant Redwood, eclectic wine bar Grapeseed, and Asian-fusion spot Raku. Cheap Eats favorites Faryab, Jaleo, and Passage to India are also taking part, but dinner at those places is usually less than $30 a person anyway. We’ve got a few of the menus below and will be continuously updating them throughout the week.
Assaggi Mozzarella Bar
$12 lunch menu: The appetizer is a choice of chilled carrot/tomato gazpacho or summer lettuce salad with Sherry vinaigrette.
For the main course, choose between goat-cheese/arugula ravioli with tomato sauce; chicken Milanese with heirloom-tomato salad; or mild Italian sausage, braised fennel and tomato, and arugula salad.
A dessert—the selection changes—may be substituted for an appetizer.
$30 dinner menu: To start, choose between buffalo mozzarella with tomatoes, olives, capers, and basil; fennel-stuffed calamari with Neapolitan-style escarole; or summer lettuce salad with goat cheese and red-wine vinaigrette.
Main courses include sea bass with tomatoes, olives, capers, and broccoli rabe; braised veal breast with mushroom gnocchi and cream sauce; and rigatoni with mild Italian sausage and porcini mushrooms.
Dessert is a choice of summer-berry cake with vanilla sauce or goat-cheese crème brûlée with pistachio gelato.
$30 dinner menu: Starters are a choice of gazpacho; house salad; or shrimp in white-wine/garlic sauce.
Main courses include grilled mini filet mignon and grilled shrimp with vegetables and Champagne sauce; baked chicken breast stuffed with spinach, serrano ham, and Provolone; or mixed paella with meat and seafood.
Dessert is a choice of crème caramel with dulce de leche; tiramisu; or Argentine crepes with dulce de leche.
This Bethesda wine bar is extending their lunch and dinner deals through August 9.
$12 lunch menu: Appetizers include house salad with sherry vinaigrette; arugula salad with goat cheese, olivevs, and feta; Caesar salad; soup of the day; shrimp with tasso gravy and grits; fried calamari with guacamole and salsa; and mussels steamed in beer with whole-grain mustard.
The main course is a choice of grilled-fish tacos with spicy slaw, avocado, and lime; turkey burger with grilled onions and Caesar dressing; fontina-stuffed meatball with marinara and basil flatbread; grilled pork tenderloin with fries and housemade steak sauce; grilled salmon with spinach-and-shiitake salad; shrimp with arugula pesto and parmesan flatbread; mussels steamed in beer with fries; chicken-and-portobello sandwich; Thai grilled-chicken salad with cucumber and lime.
$30 dinner menu: The appetizer is a choice of fontina-stuffed meatballs with polenta; wild-mushroom fricassee with truffled polenta; fried chicken livers with habanero jelly; cornmeal-fried oysters with bacon beurre blanc; sauteed calamari with tomato, lemon, and chorizo; gnocchi with shrimp and pesto; mussels steamed in beer with whole-grain mustard; grilled Caesar salad; cherry-tomato salad with corn and basil; field-greens salad with sherry vinaigrette; arugula salad with olives, feta, and white-balsamic vinaigrette; and soup of the day.
Main courses include pan-seared rockfish with corn chowder and herbed croutons; portobello-mushroom chilaquiles with squash, tomatillo salsa, and queso fresco; pan-roasted filet mignon with horseradish mashed potatoes and oxtail-mushroom ragout ($10 surcharge); balsamic-roasted chicken with Hayman sweet potatoes, red grapes, and Italian sausage; grilled salmon with spinach-shiitake salad and redskin smashed potatoes; and pan-seared scallops with Yukon Gold puree, carrot-almond sauce, and cauliflower ($8 surcharge).
Dessert is a choice of bittersweet-chocolate pudding with salted caramel and caramelized hazelnuts; warm blueberry crisp with cardamom/pine-nut streusel and orange-buttermilk ice cream; and housemade pineapple, raspberry, and mango sorbets.
$15 lunch menu: Start with chilled cream-of-cucumber soup with dill crème fraîche; baby-lettuce salad with heart-of-palm, tomato, and mushrooms; or seafood terrine with fine-herb sauce.
Main courses include pan-seared bistro-steak medallions au poivre; grilled mahi mahi Provençale with mashed potatoes; and penne with vegetables and Parmesan.
A dessert—crème caramel; bittersweet-chocolate mousse cake; or raspberry sorbet—may be ordered instead of an appetizer.
$30 dinner menu: Starters include fricasee of snails and wild mushroom Provençale; chicken-liver terrine with port; warm crab-and-broccoli custard with tomato coulis; onion soup with Emmenthal cheese; chilled cream-of-zucchini soup; chilled asparagus with creamy vinaigrette; Caesar salad; and mesclun salad with heart-of-palm, tomato, and mushrooms.
Main courses are a choice of panko-crusted halibut with ratatouille; fricassee of monkfish, shrimp, and scallops with fettuccine and lobster/tarragon sauce; grilled salmon with cauliflower puree, wilted spinach, and Dijon-mustard sauce; pan-seared chicken breast with wild mushrooms and sherry-wine sauce; grilled flatiron steak with pommes frites and white-wine/shallot sauce; sauteed veal with sundried-tomato/basil cream sauce; sauteed pork chop with Calvados and mushroom-cream sauce; sauteed calf’s liver with caramelized onions and Sherry vinegar; or penne with vegetables and Parmesan.
Desserts are a choice of warm summer-berry bread pudding with vanilla ice cream; bittersweet-chocolate mousse with walnut brittle; mango sorbet with fruit salad; honey-vanilla crème brûlée; and tomme de savoie cheese with dried fruit and nuts.
For its $25 lunch and $30 dinner, Geoff Tracy’s Friendship Heights Italian restaurant will let customers choose from nearly the whole menu.
$30 dinner menu: Appetizers include soup of the day; summer lettuce salad with breakfast radishes, cherry tomatoes, fresh herbs, and white-balsamic dressing; and grilled-octopus salad with farro, fresh herbs, cherry tomatoes, lemon, and paprika vinaigrette.
The main course is a choice of market fish with summer-corn succotash and Chesapeake crab butter; roasted beef coulotte with gruyere-potato puree and red-kale pesto; roasted pork loin with crushed new potatoes, rapini, and figs; or cheese tortellini in fresh-herb broth with summer vegetables and grana padano.
Desserts are summer fruit soup with white-chocolate gelato; goat-cheese panna cotta with orange and honey-glazed figs; or chocolate bread pudding with strawberry coulis and sweet creme fraiche.
Restaurant Week is extended here through August 31.
$12 lunch menu: Appetizers include Caprese salad; roasted sweet peppers with garlic and olive oil; grilled portobello mushroom baked with tomato and mozzarella; mussels with Verdicchio, herbs, garlic, and tomato sauce; minestrone soup; romaine salad with focaccia croutons and Parmesan cheese; or mixed-greens salad.
The main course is a choice of warm shrimp salad with endive and radicchio; Boston lettuce salad with smoked salmon, mozzarella, and capers; agnolotti with Parmesan-cream sauce and cappellini Napoli; penne with tomatoes, basil, eggplant, and mozzarella; orecchiette Puttanesca; grilled chicken breast with tomatoes, basil, and olive oil; and grilled salmon with broccoli rabe.
$30 dinner menu: Appetizers are a choice of Caprese salad; roasted sweet peppers with garlic and olive oil; prosciutto with melon; grilled portobello mushroom baked with tomato and mozzarella; mussels with Verdicchio, herbs, garlic, and tomato sauce; minestrone soup; romaine salad with focaccia croutons and Parmesan cheese; or mixed-greens salad.
For the main course, choose from agnolotti with spinach and Parmesan; penne with tomatoes, basil, eggplant, and mozzarella; orecchiette with broccoli rabe and jumbo-lump crab; linguine with shrimp, shiitake mushrooms, and roasted garlic; grilled salmon with smoked salmon, fettuccine Alfredo, and arugula emulsion; chicken breast with sweet peppers, olives, and mushrooms; veal Scaloppine; and flank steak with shallots and Barolo.
Dessert is a choice of pastry, gelato, or sorbet.
Visions
$30 dinner menu: For an appetizer, choose from kalamata-olive tapenade with focaccia; trio of seasonal soups; steamed mussels with bacon, black beans, and leeks; crawfish egg rolls with Thai peanut sauce; grilled-vegetable bruschetta with sweet-red-pepper sauce; mesclun greens with balsamic vinaigrette; and grilled Caesar salad with Parmesan crisps and lemon-balsamic reduction.
Main courses include crab mac ’n cheese; Cuban-style salmon with plantains, sofrito black beans, and rice; chicken Scaloppine with linguine; penne with roasted chicken and spinach in garlic-cream sauce; penne with salmon and asparagus in basil-pesto cream sauce; and Israeli cous cous with roasted vegetables, rosemary potatoes, and asparagus puree.
Desserts are fresh fruit with crème Anglaise; sweet-potato pie; chocolate crème brûlée; and tiramisu.
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