DC Restaurant Week 2010

Forget the diet this week! Like every year in the District, restaurants are putting out three course menus for lunch and dinner, all showcasing prime selections from their overall fare. Whether you decide to use it as an excuse to make your boo take you on a date, or decide to do it Sex & The City-style and dine with girlfriends, you can enjoy a fabulous lunch at most DC hotspots for $20.10, and have a four course dinner for $35.10 (the ten cents representative of the current year...yes, it took me a second, too). Save your pennies, kids; It only comes once a year, and for the week, you can dine like a fancy pants on a plebe budget. But don't get too excited- Some restaurants are offering significantly better choices than others (or so I've heard through the grape vine). Below are the DC eateries that are supposedly outstanding for this year's Restaurant Week celebration:

• Rasika: Excellent Indian cuisine with large entres that accommodate an array of palates. However, this is NOT the type of place you'll want to go to if you're looking to have a romantic night in afterwards... we all know what happens when you eat too much curry. 
• Tosca: Go for the sea bass tartar or the saffron ravioli. Plus, it's super expensive here, so you can take advantage of an affordable price for the week.
• Cafe Atlantico: I know I always recommend this place, so if you have yet to go, now's the time! Try the roasted beets, portobello mushrooms, or fresh guacamole. Plus, the atmosphere is beautiful  and the waiters are all Latin (=hot).
• Blue Duck: AKA Obama's favorite restaurant. Though all of the reservations are already taken, you just may be able to finagle sneaking yourself in there. This classic fare is amazing, but beware;  filled with all old business men, you might be at risk of meeting your future sugar daddy. 
• Zaytinya: Because what's better than Greek food? Try small tapas and filling larger plates in the midst of an interior decorated like a Mykonos on steroids. The beef tartar is my favorite, along with the 'avgolemeno', or lemon chicken soup. 
• SEI: Not only will you get to try excellent sushi rolls and phenomenal entres, but will receive a liquid amuse to compliment the dish that you select at this Japanese-fusion eatery. 

What to stay away from?

• Teatro Goldoni: And this doesn't apply only during Restaurant Week. I've created a post about good DC Italian cuisine, and Teatro? No way. 
• Mie N Yu: Though I love it here, the restaurant week menu is ridiculous and entirely limited. Plus, aren't you supposed to showcase the best items that your restaurants have to offer? I feel like they gave me their scraps here. 
• Rosa Mexicano: Another place I love usually, but decided to have a boring, limited Restaurant Week menu. 
• Butterfield 9: Countless complaints about poor service. And let me tell you; I was a waitress for over two years. I know how it goes. It's restaurant week, servers! Drink a five hour energy, take an adderol, and suck it up!

Regardless, take advantage of exposing yourself to a spot that you wouldn't normally have an opportunity to. While I'll be enjoying RIS with girlfriends for lunch this week, I'll also be having deja vu and serving at my old stomping grounds that needs extra support for the wild weekend. And I'm sure gorging myself on sushi in the process. Hey, it's Restaurant Week, and no diets are allowed!