Takes Two

One to cook, one to eat, right?

At Tango, midway between downtown and Capitol Hill, the "cooker" is Michael Bruno. And the eaters are happy indeed. Take, for example, his smoked salmon ceviche: cured in salt, tequila and vanilla, served with onions, red peppers and wasabi beans. Normally $10, it's half-price during happy hour. Mojitos are also $5. My fave, though, is the driest of dry sherries, a Hidalgo "La Gitana" Manzanilla, served in a huge shot glass, $6.

It was supposed to be a ceviche tasting, so we sampled the crab & portobello mushroom [with basil and habanero aioli], the mixta [clams, mussels, calamari and baby octopus in a horseradish-cucumber vinaigrette], the Ecuadorian [shrimp and scallops with tomatoes, avocado, lime and chiles] and the surf-&-turf [sirloin carpaccio dressed with lobster oil].

Ceviche is a catch-all for a style of South American "cooking" with citrus and other acids rather than heat, although sometimes there's a bit of poaching involved as well. And Chef Bruno isn't a purist about his recipes; he's inspired by the ceviche tradition, not just copying recipes.

We're not done by a long shot. Gotta try the Cheap Date [madjool dates wrapped in bacon, drizzled with balsamic vinegar, plated on slices of roast eggplant] and the lush, lush duck confit with spinach, fried onions, walnuts and a pomegranate vinaigrette.

Bruno's ["everybody just calls me Bruno"] take on gazpacho was the happiest thing about our time at Tango: a tasty blend of yellow tomatoes, bright canteloupe and smoky roasted garlic, drizzled with a bit of ancho chile oil and sherried vinegar.

Tango and its sibling, Bandoleone, are owned by Danielle Philippa. She sure knows how to run a restaurant: Tango's been around for almost ten years.

Posted by Ronald Holden at June 23, 2005 1:34 AM