All Mussels, No....

Ah cable. It is a glorious thing. A place where any foodie can sit down learn something new and not be in a kitchen. Or if you are like me, it is background noise. But I don't have it. Like I said in my last post. I don't have cable, budget doesn't allow for it. So I make due without (although, I believe I am going crazy without). I read now. I read gastronomy.
Oh yes, right now I can recite a lot about Chinese food because I just got done with The Fortune Cookie Chronicles, learning too much about the fact that the Fortune Cookie is from the Japanese. But where am I going with all of this?
Nowhere, really. I got sidetracked. Back to cable. So life without cable is boring, and when visiting friends, I seem content to just sit on their couches and watch Food Network there. I know I am a horrible guest, but I miss it. I miss Throwdown with Bobby Flay, Ace of Cakes, Iron Chef, Good Eats, etc. So when I went and visited a friend in D.C. this is what I did. (No, I didn't veg out the whole time- we did things that normal 20 somethings do.)
But while, we were watching the food channel. We came across Throwdown with Bobby Flay and wouldn't you know it, he was in D.C. for an episode-mussels and fries at Granville Moore's. I was ecstatic and told my friend we had to go, plus the chef was extremely cute (added bonus points).
So on Sunday evening, my friend and I hopped in her car and took the winding ride to the other part of town. Her comment was "if this place is in a shady neighborhood, we are leaving." Slightly bummed, I agreed. But soon we realized that it wasn't that shady and parked. Outside was none other than the chef himself- Teddy. I smiled and told him we saw him on the Throwdown and I was to go eat my first mussel.
Now you maybe shocked that this is my first mussel. Yes, folks, indeed it was. There are only a few people who like seafood in my family-my father and I. So the rare occasions I got it as a teenager (don't make me explain that either), I always ate salmon.
We were soon informed that there were no tables. It was around 6 p.m. on a Sunday. We shrugged and sat at the bar. On the wall was the list of beers. My mouth about dropped at some of the prices. Thirty to forty dollars for a bottle of beer, but people spend thousands of dollars on wine. So I shouldn't be so shocked.
Soon we got our menus, I looked at the wine list and tried a 2006 William Pinot Blanc, a fabulous light white with a slight tropical taste.
I soon chatted with the bartender, learning they sold out of mussels Friday and Saturday night and had a fresh load in the back. My friend and I were shocked, here we were on a Sunday night going to dine on mussels that arrived that morning. I asked Teddy, who was sipping a beer at the bar, how many pounds they received, he said, "150 pounds." They had gone through 220 on Saturday and close to 180 on Friday he told me. He estimated that they went through almost 500 pounds this past weekend. Very close to their record. All of this because Bobby Flay and the Throwdown?
That is what was speculated because, when I saw the episode it was only the second time, it had run.
But don't think Granville Moore's is a two trick pony. Yes, their fries and mussels are excellent and fresh. His blue cheese, bacon, mussels that I tried converted me to mussels and their spectacular taste (I'll be making them at home). Plus, you can never go wrong with bacon! But also, on the menu was a bison, which I am a HUGE fan off. And they had daily specials.
Being partial to bison, my friend and I ordered it medium-rare. The burger came out nicely cooked with the correct pinkness to it. It wasn't over cooked or tough. It didn't need ketchup or mustard. It was perfect plainly dressed.
Oh and the fries! They were perfectly crispy with great seasoning. The hints of sweet and spicy hit your tough when you bit into a fry. It's great to see a place doing much more than just adding salt to french fries these days.
So I suggest trying out Granville Moore's, not just for the mussels, but the other menu items as well. They are truly a place worth going back to. I know I'll be heading back the next time I'm in D.C. and this time I'll have a beer.