The Best Cocktail I've Ever Had

At Firefly, Madera Hotel's restaurant off of Dupont Circle, I had the best cocktail - something I've always been looking for. It's called the

Pointsettia Americana: "blue coatamerican dry gin and absolut vodka, freshly muddled grapefruit, cranberries and rosemary."

Wow! Not sweet whatsoever; just enough to offset the herby bitterness of the rest of the mix. And while it was hot pink in color, fiance and I both agreed it wasn't a girly drink at all.

There was another pretty cool drink there though called the

Salsa Verde: "patron silver tequila infused with fire-roasted poblano peppers, cointreau orange liquer, garden cilantro, agave nectar, fresh lime, peppered salt rim."

Did they make this drink with me in mind? -- tequila, hot pepper and lime? Holy crap, I love you Firefly. Even so, I probably couldn't drink more than one in a row. It really tastes like you're drinking a pepper - that fresh vegetable taste comes right through.

Both drinks, I have to say, were strong enough (and delicious enough) to justify the price of $12.50 each. They were also fairly big - my Pointsettia Americana lasted me through the meal, which is usually pretty impossible.

While the dessert was unbelievable (the Brown Betty), we left wanting something more satisfying after dinner. The funny part is that Firefly is all about amazing, satisfying comfort food, and everything was perfectly cooked, but almost too simple. Fiance got the Mini Pot Roast, which has been favorably described by food critics, and this was definitely the case with his. Somewhere there should have been more flavor. My Braised Lamb and Pampardelle was butter in my mouth, but again, all the flavors were mild. The domineering one in my dish was the lamb, despite the pasta sauce and marscapone. Lamb flavored pasta just wasn't enough. I wanted just a little more to savor. Overall, we weren't satisfied, which is why we went fordessert.

That said, Firefly is absolutely worth a visit. An added plus was the clear lean towards organic, fresh-made and eco-friendly practices and ingredients. The atmosphere is intimate, chic, but also not intimidating. It has a tree in the middle of the room, which everyone seems to write about (see images), but I thought the wall of trees was more impressive.

And, despite my review, the food is still so creative and interesting, that you'll want to try it just to see what each combination will bring. Plus of course, the drinks!