Chef Trini's Restaurant — Restaurant in Washington

SUMMARY: Enjoyed Chef Trini’s very much — but is Wagshal’s managing this establishment well enough? Very, very good, hearty and well-priced Caribbean food, but a number of rough spots cry out for management attention.

DETAIL: Dinner for 2 at Chef Trini’s on a very quiet Sunday night (only 2 tables occupied.) *Excellent: Mai tai cocktail — beautiful blend of fruits and rum. Salt cod fritter app with spicy mango chutney on the side: light and crisp-coated, savory interior beautifully set off by the fruity chutney which delivered a nice hit of heat. A delicate crème brûlée. *Very, Very Good: Wines by the glass. Oxtail stew, lamb curry, coconut rice with pigeon peas. The oxtail stew and the lamb curry had excellent ingredients, were generously portioned and were well-priced and well-executed. (We happily took home leftovers.) The dishes were so mildly seasoned, however, that the Caribbean lilt was all but missing. We asked for and eventually received hot sauce, which upped the flavor profile considerably. Would be lovely if Chef Trini’s served hot sauce and/or other condiments with the entrees, so that patrons could add punch if they wished. Alternatively, allow patrons to order their dishes spiced mild, medium or hot. The coconut rice side dish was beautifully seasoned, but the promised pigeon peas were sparse and warranted augmentation. *Misses: A number of items suggest haphazard management, at least during off-peak hours. The dining area was a bit chilly on a cold Sunday night. The “greens” side dish was actually a medley of mixed green vegetables. Disappointing that the dish was not the promised greens. Is the menu inaccurate or described insufficiently, or did the kitchen run out of actual greens? Iced tea was strong and bracing, but no refill was available. The kitchen, the server said, had run out. Our crème brûlée, while delicious, did not match the menu description, either (no sorrel was discernible, no ginger cookie was served.) Service was well-meaning, but slow. It was the server’s first night on the job, and they appeared to be in need of additional guidance from management. Conclusions: Chef Trini’s has the potential to be an extremely good restaurant, and is a welcome addition to the Spring Valley dining scene. We enjoyed our meal and the rough spots that we encountered could be easily rectified. We hope that management cares enough to make the necessary...

It’s been a while since we’d gone to Wagshals and I was excited to see the new format. But I was very disappointed with the execution. Food took about 30 mins to be served, despite there being only one other table seated at the time. Only one follow up from the server during this time and no explanation or apology. When the food came out, my sandwich was cold and the meat was of poor quality. My wife’s dish was equally bland, though hot.

Also, my wife ordered a mimosa, which was priced at $7 on the menu. When we got the check, it was priced at $12. I mentioned this to the server and, initially, she said the prices had changed since the menu was printed. I didn’t really care about the five bucks, but that was ridiculous. Fortunately, she did agree to charge the posted the amount and, overall, was nice.

There are lots of places to eat in DC. We won’t be...

If you’ve never had Trinni food or even Caribbean food, this is unfortunately not the place you want to be introduced to it because you still won’t have had the real experience. The food was just food. It was not Trinni food. It was not carribean. Just a collage of flavors from all over the world, not in a good way. There is no clear flavor that can be used to describe what we ate here. We had the phoulorie, doubles, and shrimp for appetizers and shared the oxtail stew. Nothing was extraordinarily delicious. Bland would not be fair just unexciting and not Trinni. I really wanted this place to be a winner. It unfortunately was not. Save yourself the trip and your money if you want the rich mouth pleasing flavors of...