The Washington Post Dining Guide

ALWAYS LOOK FORWARD to a meal at Equinox. Its chef-owner, Todd Gray, serves seasonal American food that is very much to my taste, reflecting an imagination grounded in classical training. In Gray's pastas, I can taste the years he spent cooking at Galileo; his local ingredients and stylish arrangements remind me that he was taught well by a few of southern California's culinary masters, too. If you are tired of gimmicks and looking for an honest plate of food, Equinox is where you want to be.

A welcoming nibble from the kitchen - say, crab fritters with a dab of anchovy mayonnaise - gets a meal off to an elegant start, and what follows is no less special: Recent fond memories have been made from sweet scallops on a puddle of polenta, robust venison lapped with a racy "fondue" of olives and tomatoes, and brioche-crusted cod enlivened with (surprise!) diced pineapple and caper butter.

Aside from a charming wine room in the back and two cozy rear booths, though, the interior remains one of downtown Washington's lesser sights for the price; the glass-enclosed front room, with its sloping floor and skylights, feels too much like an unfinished solarium. And the tables for two are small fits for large frames.

Yet the staff is so attentive, such true believers in what they're feeding you, that all I can do is look the other way - at the fine wine in my glass, a perfect side dish, or one of pastry chef Lisa Scruggs's quietly inspired desserts.

~ Tom Sietsema
Food Critic for the Washington Post