Merkado Kitchen (DC - Logan)

I stopped into Merkado last Tuesday. Being that it is August and most of DC is either at the beach or spending time with their constituents back home, we were seated immediately.

We decided to make a meal out of a mélange of starters, including:

- Raw "Ahi Tuna Crudo" on Boniato Frita, Wasabi Crema & Caviar
- Seared White Tuna Sashimi in Miso-Sake Reduction & Truffles
- Wonton Skins w/ Sesame Ground Beef, Manchego Cheese & Wasabi Crema
- Shrimp Tempura w/ Seaweed Salad & Tobiko Remoulade
- Tortilla Sopa w/ Adobo Chicken & Fresh Udon Noodles

The two tuna dishes and the wonton skin nachos are old favorites that I have chronicled elsewhere in these pages. All three were solid, with the nachos batter than on previous visits (more meat, fresher, etc.) but the tuna dishes perhaps a little bit shy of previous versions (a little too much tobiko in the Ahi Crudo and the White Tuna was a little beyond seared on this particular evening).

It is important to note here that chef Kim was not present in the kitchen this evening.

The Shrimp Tempura were good, but not my favorite. I was expecting classic, crunchy, flaky tempura, but instead got shrimp that more closely resembled a corn dog - very heavy, thick, chewy batter. The remoulade was a delightful pairing, but I had real trouble getting past the dutch funnel cake-esque shrimp "tempura."

Conversely, the tortilla sopa might be my new favorite dish in the neighborhood. This dark, spicy bowl of broth, adobo seasoned chicken and udon noodles, garnished with tortilla strips, is serious comfort food. The smoky richness of the broth washes away the stress of the work day and the delightfully moist chicken permeated by adobo punctuates the end notes with a combination of garlic and black pepper. The udon noodles are fun to slurp and offer some chewy body to this East meets West dish.

I am a little concerned about the kitchen faltering in Kim's absence (the two tuna dishes and the shrimp), but if you can't get away with some slack on a Tuesday night in August, when can you?

Once the cold weather sets in, I will be calling the kitchen and begging them to allow me to "carry out" quarts of that tortilla sopa.