By DCist contributor Evan Caplan
What’s the best way to welcome the 2016 Washington Nationals season? With a selection of delectable balls, obviously. While the Nats were hosting the Marlins at their home opener on Thursday, nearby Navy Yard restaurant Osteria Morini decided to get in on the action, drafting a winning lineup of fellow D.C. chefs, who joined the game by lobbing some pretty tasty meatballs to an enthusiastic crowd at an event aptly titled “Chefs Play Ball!”.
Going around the horn:
Host chef Matt Adler of Osteria Morini went all strategic, tossing out authentic meatballs from the mound. Simple and straightforward, made of prosciutto and mortadella, topped with shredded parmesan and cradled in housemade pasta, Adler quipped “What’s meatballs without pasta? A travesty!” His goal for the event was to do something fun for friends, family, and fans for the home opener, saying, “”We wanted to throw a party where we brought together a bunch of our friends to showcase their talent. We tried to put together a very diverse group showcasing many types of cuisine, Greek, Japanese, Korean, and more.”
Mike Isabella took a Greek route at the plate, serving meatballs ground with cumin and allspice. At the helm of several of D.C.’s favorite restaurants, he exited early to help cook gyros at Kapnos at the Park. Yep, that’d be Mr. Top Chef himself slinging dripping pieces of meat into fluffy pockets of bread for hungry baseball fans. And new this season at the park: Isabell’s Catchfly Kitchen, named for a flower but cleverly appropriate for a stadium concession, serving up quick Southern fare. “Who doesn’t like ribs and fried chicken?”, Isabella asks. “It’s easy to eat and lots of fun. Lets you concentrate on the game and enjoy good food.”
Daniel Perron of Whaley’s threw a far-East curve that we didn’t see coming. Since the forthcoming spot is on the water, Perron went for fish, giving us an outside-the-box shrimp meatball (shrimpball?). He also swung for the fences with a housemade sweet chili sauce, using an imported fish sauce with a closely-guarded secret recipe.
Del Campo put plenty of spin on its pitch with chef Victor Albisu’s veal-lamb-pancetta concoction that also happened to be gluten-free. The stunning plating was a crowd pleaser, set next to a baby squid salad and atop salsa verde and chili flakes. Salty, sweet, spicy, savory: bases loaded.
Batting cleanup, Mandu’s Danny Lee didn’t disappoint. “I played baseball as a kid, and did pretty well at second base,” he said while spearing a pork-and-shrimp ball. It didn’t mess around: double-fried, dredged in sweet potato starch, and tossed in a sweet and spicy glaze.
Erik Bruner-Yang brought serious heat with dumplings from Maketto, and, given the rain, these were designated as “meatballs wearing a raincoat.” Or a poncho. Good thing, because the porky dumpling-balls arrived doused in a spicy garlic-ginger sauce, bringing down our average in napkin-less eating.
Chef Nathan Anda of the nose-to-tail Red Apron and The Partisan led off with a hearty mini-sub: a Mexican-inspired ball of chorizo, laid atop salsa verde and whipped avocado.
Yona’s Jonah Kim made Japanese chicken meatballs, saying “It’s what I see as the perfect baseball meatball. Something grilled and summery, with lots of texture.” It was painted with a housemade sauce of sake, red wine, rice syrup, and kelp extract.
Ed Scarpone of DBGB decided that the chilly weather deserved a Winter Ball theme, offering a lamb tagine meatball laid over a bed of nutty couscous. Hearty, saucy, spicy, earthy, and plenty warming during an early April rain delay.
Patrick Curran gave us lots of savory spice in a super-saucy chicken meatball from Momofuku. They were topped with scallions and sesame seeds and a clearly Nats-inspired tomato-less red sauce.
Coming from the bullpen as closer, Osteria Morini’s own pastry chef Alex Levin lobbed fresh bomboloni alongside housemade gelato. The bomboloni were stuffed with chocolate ganache, housemade raspberry jam, or lemon curd; the gelato came in chocolate crunch, Tahitian vanilla, and Mandarin prosecco.
Since everyone hit it out of the park, we’ll just say the full lineup won the MVB award: Most Valuable Ball.
