Another seminar. Ran into someone at church at the conference. I was told that the food was all cooked and served by the Finn and Porter restaurant that is part of the hotel.

  • Croissant – First flaky croissant I’ve had, unfortunately moist are moist and soggy. though flaky, a little hard, like they were sitting out for a while,
  • Cranberry Muffin -Standard fare, cranberries were a bit uneven throughout the muffin. not the hard muffin tops that I would like though.
  • Coffee -Nice coffee, has a kick but not bitter and it was hot.
  • Potato Salad – A little too much mayo on this one, with sliced potatoes.
  • Southern Potato Salad – this was with the mustard and diced potatoes. Very soft and the flavors were good though the salad was a bit more yellow than one would expect.
  • Salad – Greens with baby tomatoes which were sweet. Sliced carrots and cucumbers. had choice of dressing. It looked like ranch and vinaigrette. I choose the vinaigrette and it was flavorful without being overpowering.
  • Tuna Salad – Way too salty. Good mixture of onions and celery in it though.
  • Pasta Salad – Wasn’t a big fan of it, the pasta and veggies and olives just weren’t a good mix.
  • Portobello/Red Pepper on Fiocca Bread – Was first disappointed that this was the only sandwich available (cause the meats ran out at first), but this was the best of the three. the mushrooms and peppers were roasted well without charring and the pesto and sun-dried tomato paste meshed everything well together.
  • Roast Beef on Croissant -Beef was too chewy, also the horseradish mayo was too much.
  • BBQ Chicken Wraps – Nice chicken, lettuce in creamy BBQ sauce. Though the thing wasn’t really wrapped that well. Stuff was falling out after one bite.
  • Italian Sampler Plate – (Pruscuitto ham, Salami, cheese, & olives) The cheese ran out to quickly, though it went well with the meats. I think it was Mozzarella with herbs. the ham was so-so, the salami was great. Olives seemed to have been soaked for too long.
  • Tomato Broth – Too much pepper, though otherwise this simple broth with bits of tomato and onion was a good palette cleanser.
  • Fruit – Mixture of fruit for dessert. It was so so. Not really that sweet and great.
  • Chocolate Mousse Cream Puff – At first glance, it was ordinary. However this Bun contained divine chocolate mousse. Light and fluffy and with the right amount of chocolate taste. It went really well with the cream puff pastry. One of the best desserts I’ve had.
  • Orange Cheesecake Squares – Tiny cheesecake squares that had a hint of orange. Ok dessert but once you had the cream puff, everything pales in comparison.

Decor: Very nice setup. Two separate rooms, one room for the seminar, one for food, and vendors, etc. The seminar room was a bit cramped in terms of row placement. Staff was so so in terms of friendliest and helpfulness. The rooms at first are impossible to find cause they are buried in the basement.

Overall Assessment: ($$$$, 4/10) I couldn’t find the menu on the site, though I would assume it was expensive. The setup was good, some of the food was better than others. However this is definitely a step up from other hotel seminars/conferences that I’ve been to.

Website: http://www.finnandporter.com/dc/index.cfm
http://embassysuites1.hilton.com/en_US/es/hotel/WASCCES-Embassy-Suites-Washington-D-C-Convention-Center-District-of-Columbia/index.do
Location: 900 10th St NW, 20001
Reservation: 202.739.2001
Takeout: No
Hours: Mon – Thurs; 1100 – 2200, Fri; 1100 – 2300, Sat; 1200 – 2300, Sun; 1700 – 2200