It is the best of times. It is the worst of times. There’s matzoh ball soup and the apple-and-nut goodness of charoset, but then there’s arid sheets of matzoh and denser-than-dense Passover desserts. If you’re a kosher-for-Passover diehard, forget about eating out—that’s a situation filled with chometz (what’s forbidden on Passover) pitfalls. We can remember many times of being halfway through the breadbasket before realizing that Moses wandered through the desert around this time of year.
We at DCist understand your need for some culinary enjoyment during those bread-free days. Here’s a list of some locales where you can dine with a nod from the rabbinate (depending on how strict your rabbi is). Slaying of the first born not required.
• Rosa Mexicano is hosting a cooking demonstration and three-course lunch of Mexican-inspired Passover dishes on April 15 for $50 a person. Maybe those chipotle matzoh balls will rear their heads again this year. Passover menu additions also can be had from April 13-15.
• Bethesda’s Tragara (4735 Bethesda Ave., 301-657-9077) will be serving kosher-for-Pesach-style cuisine from Italy and the larger Continent from April 12-19. Basically stuff—salmon, veal chops—without bread.
• Felix (2406 18th Street NW, 202-483-3549) in Adams Morgan will serve up matzo ball soup and brisket on April 12 and 13. What’s not to like about that?
• Breadline (1751 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 202-822-8900) is saving D.C. Jews from throat-scratchingly dry unleavened bread with it’s own lighter, crispier version. They will be sold by the pound starting April 12 and will be available with lunch orders. The price has not yet been set, but last year the bags sold for $16.
• If you can’t stomach the thought of another salad for lunch, Lawson’s Gourmet Provisions (multiple locations) will be serving its sandwiches on matzoh by request.
And maybe you can ease up on the restrictions this year. According to Cleveland Park’s own Joan Nathan, you may not have to skip the leavening altogether.
Photo by flickr user Christine Liu.
