Thaiphoon & Afterwords Cafe

I met up with Miss. Erin and her plus one, Paul, for dinner and drinks last night. I took the recommendation of my boss and we went to Thaiphoon in Dupont Circle. The location was ideal, the restaurant was trendy looking, however I ordered a Mango Daiquiri and almost spit up my first sip of it. I tasted like really cheap vodka without any flavoring! After getting support from Erin I traded in my mango disaster for a mojito...which had the same cheap alcohol taste. I ordered a chicken green curry, which came with too little rice and was generally a disappointing dish. Overall impression...I won't be making the effort to go to Thaiphoon anytime in the future.

Afterwards we went to Afterwords Cafe. We strolled down Connecticut Ave and found a bookstore that Erin had heard had a cafe and bar in the back. We had gotten there around 9pm and were lucky enough to get three seats right at the bar. The whitty, well thought out menu is enough for you to fall in love with the place from the start. I decided to switch to a beer since the lingering taste from my bad drinks at dinner was still in my mouth. I took Carly's advice and tried the Rogue Dead Guy Ale, which was described as "Hearty, Rich, Balanced" and held true to its excellent recommendation. The beer list was organized from light to dark, which was a really nice feature when picking a beverage. I finished with an Original Sin Cider from NY which I think is a local cider favorite. Described as "Light, Dry, Fruity", it was a delicious finish to the evening. Some other noteworthy drinks on the menu:

Top Shelf Long Beach Iced Tea
Absolut,Bombay,Cuervo,Bacardi, Cointreau,Cranberry Juice, Sour Mix
Limit-2 Per Customer

Electile Dysfunctional Cocktails

BarakStar Martini
Van Gogh Dutch Chocolate Vodka, Godiva Chocolate & White Chocolate Liqueurs
"The One" drink that's been soaring on promises '...yes you should' try it

Biden Bluster
Mango Puree, Strawberry & Lemonade Blended w/Ice
Sip slow on a fast train

The McCain Maverick
Bacardi Peach Rum, Mango Puree, Lemon Fizz & Soda
It's not what everyone else is having

Palin Long View
Rogue Dark Rum, Triple Sec, Fresh Lime Juice, Orange Juice and Sour
Enough of these & you'll swear you can see Russia from here

You can see more of the menu on their website

Now I was already sold on the place before I discovered the Desserts. I was attracted to the listing for Pumpkin Pie with Cinnamon Ice Cream. Cinnamon ice cream is one of my favorites so I couldn't resist. Well while the ice cream was excellent the pumpkin pie was by far the best slice of pumpkin pie I have ever had. It was unbelievable smooth and rich and the ice cream with a little whipped cream was a great combination.

On the way out I got distracted by the actual book store. The children's book selection is wonderful (ps if you have never looked at a "Lion in the Library" and you are an ADPi, you really should go check it out, you will love it). But there is an awesome book selection as well and I will have to go back just to check out the books and maybe grab a cup of coffee!