In this day and age, a restaurant whose main focus is preparing a fresh new menu everyday and presenting it in an unpretentious manner at a reasonable price seems a bit prehistoric. It’s not that there isn’t a desire out there; it’s just financially infeasible for any chef. But hark, a “new” trend is unfolding where a chef has his or her more casual moneymaker paired with a smaller, more upscale place elsewhere. This place becomes the chef’s toy that keeps him sane, and is a haven where he can freely express themselves. The particular duo that we are speaking of is 2 Amy’s and its counterpart Obelisk, in Dupont Circle. We say the trend is “new,” but Obelisk has been around for several years and has become a hidden favorite of many Washingtonians.

Obelisk is one of those places that transports you into a different state of mind with its friendly and attentive service, unassuming décor and hand written menus–oh and of course the food. The restaurant offers five courses for $65 a person, not including drink, tax, or tip. The menu changes daily which is good and bad: good because there is always something new and bad because it’s like a one night stand, chances are you won’t see it again, even if it’s really good. We instantly fell in love with the spring greenraviolis in anchovy-butter that they were serving up the other day. Instead of savoring every bite like it was our last supper on death row, we decided to capture the recipe so that we could have it again and again and again.

For this recipe we know it seems a bit labor-intensive to make fresh pasta, so if you’re stressed for time or just can’t take the challenge, we’ll let you cheat. You can make the filling and simply wrap it in Gyoza (dumpling) skins and then use the same cooking procedure. Also if you have trouble finding any of the greens, just substitute with another seasonal green.