Tail Up Goat feels like one of those places where you’d want to be a regular if money or waistlines were of no concern. Luckily, the staff will make you feel like one even if it’s your first time in the door.
The new Adams Morgan joint is brought to you by Jon Sybert, Bill Jensen, and Jill Tyler, former employees of Johnny Monis’ much-adored Komi and Little Serow—and it shows, though in ways one might not expect. There’s no chef’s tasting menu here, just carefully composed dishes with a strong Mediterranean influence. There is, however, that singular blend of impeccable service and a chill vibe, a hallmark of Monis’ restaurants. Despite having opened just last week, Tail Up Goat already feels like an old neighborhood hand: homey, relaxed, and humming along like a well-oiled machine.
Like many a new restaurant these days, Tail Up Goat has dispensed with the typical menu labels. Here’s what diners need to know: Bar bites are up top, followed by fancy toast, seasonal vegetables, pastas, and entrees. If it’s not an entree, expect a dish small enough to serve an an starter, side, or otherwise sharable item.
Tail Up Goat is a haven for carb lovers, and it’s here that the kitchen’s creativity really shines. The house made breads are particularly inventive, from a charred chocolate rye to a toothsome sourdough shot through with little green crinkles of seaweed. Instead of providing fodder for a bread basket, the thick, hearty slices are used to showcase a variety of schmears and vegetables. Think of it as a kind of bruschetta, though probably unlike any you’ve tasted before. The seaweed sourdough version is topped with warm dollops of ciccioli, an Italian spread made of fatty pork, and sprinkled with pickled fennel fronds, a lovely marriage of the earth and the ocean.
Pastas provide a similar background for unexpected flavor combinations—imagine an octopus ragu or gingerbread crumbles over rutabaga ravioli. If it sounds a bit twee, trust me when I say that it just tastes plain good. Each bite of the maltagliati (squares of flat pasta) is an alternating dance between sweet and savory thanks to delectable crumbles of sausage and drizzles of honey. Sautéed pea shoots come along for the ride, offering a vegetal bite and necessary counterpoint to the creamy sauce.
Two of Tail Up Goat’s four entrees are designed for sharing, including a whole stuffed fish and a riotous pile-up of lamb ribs atop yogurt-swaddled onions, baby beets, citrus, and fresh herbs. Similar to the dishes preceding them, the desserts blend bits of the familiar—like a tender, not-too-sweet almond cake—along with some unexpected twists. For a dessert and nightcap in one, consider the roasted pineapple float made with tepache, a Mexican fermented pineapple drink.
Tail Up Goat is located at 1827 Adams Mill Road NW and, yes, they do take reservations. Hours are Tuesday-Thursday 5:30-10:00 p.m. and Friday-Sunday 5:00-10:00 p.m.
