Inaugural Year in Review

With the first year over and gone and summer in full swing, the MDC is in recess until the upcoming year's list can be filled and finalized. Looking back at the inaugural year of the club, it's hard to find fault with any aspects of this fledgling social group. The people are friendly, the food is great, and all is well. Expansion of the club has occurred naturally, primarily through word of mouth. Though the influx of new faces has been steady, the party size for each outing has not exceeded any number that would be too large for a simple reservation phone call.

Depending on how much the club increases in the upcoming year, new facilitators and a secondary restaurant list may be necessary, in accordance with the original intention of the club. However, for now, the club is content to remain a small but formidable force in the dining world. This is not to say that expansion has not occurred in other manners. For instance, the ancillary trips to dim sum brunches and wine outings has led to a generation of ideas for MDC-sponsored visits to vineyards, beer tastings, wine tastings, and various other culinary tangents in tandem with the usual restaurant line up. The scope of the club has also seen some ideas come into play. Instead of merely enjoying the food, some members have proposed judging it as well. Certainly, there is already a good bit of discussion of which restaurants top the charts and which were disappointing when compared to expectations. Additionally, rumors are circulating of beginning other MDC chapters in other major metropolitan areas. Yes, the MDC is still fresh and new, but the inherent potential of this little club is abundant.

As for the restaurants visited in the past year, there is a list of links provided below.

• David Craig
• Zaytinya
• Duangrat's
• Tavira
• Rasika
• Faccia Luna
• Black's
• TenPenh
• Restaurant 3
• Grapeseed
• Tallula
• Fogo de Chão

Certainly, there is a range of different cuisines reflected, but some clear favorites stand out prominently. Most notably worthy of mention are Zaytinya, Grapeseed, and Rasika.

Zaytinya is the perfect establishment for a large group that intends to share the myriad assortment of delicious and flavorful mezze dishes.

Grapeseed wows the diner with a magnificent wine selection (it has a wine bar, if one isn't hungry) and amazing food from its homey open kitchen. As an added kick, Grapeseed does the work of pairing most of its dishes with one of their nice wines for the customer.

Rasika is the place for gourmet Indian food. For people who do not typically like Indian food, it would behoove them to take a trip down to Chinatown for a meal at Rasika. The fried spinach melts like a savory cotton candy and is their signature appetizer for good reason and everything else on the menu is fantastic as well.

It has been a magninficent year and all that remains is the anticipation of next year's menu.