If you’re looking to add some culture to your routine, the National Mall’s various scientific, historical, and artistic attractions have all you need. And the National Gallery’s Garden Cafe is the place to head if you want to supplement your cultural nourishment with some actual food. The Garden Café marries art with cuisine, especially when, for particularly special exhibits, it recruits renowned chefs to create new, complimentary menus.
Now through March 20, chef Gabio Trabocchi has reworked the café with a traditional Italian menu to fit the museum’s exhibition of paintings by Venetian artist Canaletto. But although the selection makes a meal there a nice complement to a gallery visit, the café’s light fare and steep prices make it unsuitable for students looking for a serious meal.
The offerings are fairly straightforward: a $20 buffet, some antipasti dishes in the $12 – 14 range, and several dessert items. The buffet offers a mix of breads, cured hams, and parmesan cheese and jams, along with an arugula salad and several light pasta dishes. But while a number of courses are available, the entire buffet fits on a single 12-foot table—not exactly a smorgasbord.
Among these selections are a savory and satisfying paccheri and oxtail, which pairs nicely with the lighter baked eggplant. The carpaccio di bue, with its delicious combination of balsamic vinegar and radishes, makes a good accompaniment for any dish on the buffet. Even the more standard items are executed with detail and flavoring which keep them from getting dull—fresh salad with marinated olives that are appetizing without being too oily, and parmesan blocks which nicely compliment the fig and strawberry jams.
But despite the food’s quality, the issue for students seeking a full meal is that, while most of the buffet offerings are tasty, they are not particularly filling—even sampling every buffet offering won’t leave the visitor entirely satisfied. The menu’s separate, a-la-carte items, like caprese salad and tortellini with mozzarella, force one to fork over at least another $12 and are not much more robust.
This said, the cafe’s food is flavorsome if somewhat overpriced. While a visit to the Garden Café no doubt supplements the experience of the gallery’s Venetian exhibit, the trip might be better enjoyed on a parent’s credit card during a family visit than at the mercy of your own budget—or stomach.
