The Beaune Yard

June 29^th, 2009

Finn & Porter – Hilton Hotel in Alexandria Va - Dinner

I was drawn into this restaurant for two reasons.  First, Alexandria is a bit new to me and without a car I did not have many options at the time I was looking for some food.  The second item that drew me in was the fact that they had a Sushi bar. 

I entered very close to the closing time for the sushi bar and was informed by the very friendly hostess that they would take an order if I could place it quickly.  I was handed the traditional pencil and sushi sheet and marked my order accordingly. 

Unfortunately it took over 10 minutes to get a drink order in, even when I had asked for a wine list.  In addition, the wait staff that night could only be described as surely.  It was obvious that he was not happy about something not related to my table but it was affecting everything he did.  Add to this a very bright table and the ambiance that is attempted through the dark wood panels and sophisticated appointments was lost in an instant.

The bright spot was that the sushi was well prepared, fresh and very tasty.  Had the service been faster and less surly I would probably be able to give this restaurant a good review but as it stands right now, I would avoid Finn and Porter unless you have no other options and then just plan accordingly.  Try the sushi, you shouldn’t be disappointed.

I did also get a bottle of the Rombauer 07 Chardonnay from Carneros which is covered in a later review.  A good note is that they had a decent wine list with several 375 bottles to accommodate the single diner.

Remember that life is too short for bad wine or bad friends.