Fellow DCFUD-blogger rj3, who regularly blogs over at Smorgasblog partner DCSOB has posted the list of Washington DC’s 28 Most Loathsome People. Coming in at #17 is the Jeff Tunks, owner of Ceiba, TenPenh, and DC Coast. RJ3 has this to say:
17. Restaurateur Jeff Tunks: Have you ever wondered why downtown eating sucks so much? Blame Jeffy, owner/partner of the fusion trifecta of Ceiba, TenPenh and DC Coast. Each of these joints are one carefully-planned degree from the traditional Washington power steakhouse, calibrated for expense-account lawyers and lobbyists to have a good meal at a posh setting without having to deal with any of those scary New York/LA restaurant trends (sitting on the floor, raw food, Lindsay Lohan puking in your soup, etc.). So take your Malpeque oysters and your cr*p on a stick (sorry, skewers) — I’ll be at Ben’s.
What’s your verdict? Is the CEIBA/TenPenh/DC Coast conglomerate truly loathsome? We, of course, have our own opinions, but we’d love to hear yours.
5 Responses
yeah, I’d say that conglomerate is truly loathsome.
I must disagree. All three are very similar to each other, but no one does yuppie fusion like Jeff Tunks.
No it’s not authentic, no it’s not super high quality. But it is very tasty, and that’s all I require of a meal. He can have my reservation any day.
I agree. Good food, and some of the better restaurant week deals in the city. Not actually sure why he’s getting picked on, except he’s successful and I guess animosity toward fusion food is kind of the affectation du jour.
My beef against Tunks’ stuff is that it has a super-high-quality price tag that does not match the product. I’ve in fact never had a meal at one of his places I really liked, and have been outright irritated by the service on a few occasions.
I have nothing against fusion food, when done properly (see, for instance, Heritage India’s brilliant ‘Silk Road’ menu).
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