Spork and Knife

All About the Atmosphere 

This past Saturday D and I ventured to the Penn Quarter for dinner at Oya and discovered a great place to meet friends for drinks and appetizers, but NOT for main courses. (Click on the Oya link to see pictures) 

We walked into the restaurant at 8pm and I became giddy with excitement.  The setting was dim lighting in an all white interior with the wall between the kitchen and dining room replaced by a frosted over waterfall.  In other-words, the place gave off a very clubby vibe complete with patrons dressed in black pants, slinky dresses, stiletto heels…you get the picture.  Think Sex In the City or Entourage meets trendy young professionals.  While I wasn’t planning on hitting Club Love for the after dinner party, a change in pace from the traditional D.C. dining culture was nice.

We sat down and proceeded to order the talked-up sushi as appetizers.  I went with the tuna tempura roll and D, the spicy crunchy shrimp.  We couldn’t have gotten more than 5 minutes of chat time in when our waitress placed the appetizers in front of us.  Now I’m all for speedy service, but this was a little much.  I generally like to finish chewing the complimentary cheese roll before being served my first course. 

D and I gave each other a “Wow, that was a bit fast” look and dug in.  I’ll preface my description of the sushi with, since I wasn’t eating at a sushi restaurant, sushi quality rolls were not expected.  That being said, both appetizers were a pleasant surprise and the sauce accompanying the tuna tempura roll was a welcomed accent.  I’m not sure how much fish was actually present in the rolls, but when you throw tempura into the mix things tend to taste good. 

Keeping with the speedy trend, the serving staff cleared our appetizers and not a second later replaced them with our orders of Atlantic Salmon (parmesan gateau, cucumber shiso salad) and Undon Noodles (vegetable melanage, dashi basil broth, ginger).  Now when I ordered my salmon the waitress asked how I would like it cooked.  Being thrown off by this question (generally equated with steak, pork, etc.)  I went with my usual medium rare.  I like my food cooked, but not to the point that it ruins the original flavor.  

Note to all: When asked this question, inquire further.  I did not, and ended up with salmon that was cooked on the very outside layer but cold and raw after the first bite.  Uggh.  I like sushi, but this was more of a confusing mix.  One that I do not recommend. 

D’s Undon noodles, well they can be summed up in one phrase.  Salty chicken noodle soup.

Desserts followed quickly, and since I left half of my entree on my plate (There’s a first time for everything) I was hoping for something satisfying.  The banana bread pudding and Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate (Chocolate mousse) were both good worthy of getting rid of my sweet tooth, but nothing more. 

After signing the bill, D and I looked at our watches and realized it was only 9pm.  Exactly 1 hour from the time we arrived.  Not sufficient time for a dining experience.  We both walked out of the restaurant thinking, “Did we really just eat or was that all a hallucination.” 

In the end, I would go back for drinks and another sushi roll.  Oya is just the right atmosphere for a girls or guys night out.  Skip it come next restaurant week. 

OYA

Penn Quarters

777 9th St. NW

Washington, D.C. 20001

202-393-1400