Rogue 24 came up repeatedly in our search for molecular gastronomy in Washington. D.C. The restaurant, opened less than 2 years ago, offers a distinctive urban fine dining experience with innovative cuisine led by Iron Chef Competitor and James Beard Award-winning Chef/Owner RJ. Cooper.

We learned later on, through Chef Cooper’s article in the Huffington Post: Molecular Gastronomy: We Call It "Modern Cuisine" that molecular gastronomy' is a term long since abandoned by most chefs.

“What menu?” Dara Jimenez, the Maitre d’ asked when we made a reservation for two people. Rogue 24 has 3 menu choices: The Journey (24 courses), The Progression (16 courses) and The Pre-fixes (4 courses).

We decided on Progression with pork products as our dietary restriction and could not wait to experience what the eatery describes as a progression of small dishes that excite the senses, tantalize the palate and awaken culinary curiosity.

Rogue 24 is located in an alley near Washington Convention Center. Once inside we were amazed by the interior, a combination of unpainted brick walls, wooden tables, comfortable chairs, modern kitchen and techno lights. The background music was Indie Rock genre. Music from groups such as the Strokes and Muse played loud enough to hear but soft enough for guest to have intimate conversations.

When our first four courses came on an exotic wooden plate, we wondered why sweets were served first as there were 4 pieces of macaroons. The brown Parisian treats were in fact filled with liver, porcini and tomato and the filling of the white ones were gin botanicals, smoked trout, caviar and meringue.

Course no.5 was one that we have never tried before in our lives. Bison meat complemented with leek, arugula, sorrels and gomasio (sesame salt). The dish like the previous courses was delightfully savory. As bison spend their lives on grass, according to the National Bison Association, they are not subjected to questionable drugs, chemicals or hormones.

Two servers came carrying stones and giant tweezers for course no. 9, sugar toad with oyster, nettles and seaweed. This was our hot tasty dish for dinner and quite filling too.

While slowly devouring dish after dish from time to time we watched how the Rogue 24 team prepared the foods for all guests at the station in the center of the restaurant. Although there were quite a number of people cooking and attending to the guests, there were no loud noises. All went smoothly and we did not have to wait long before our next course.

Such efficient operation, was illustrated in Forbes magazine interview with Chef Cooper: “You must create like a god, command like a king, and work like a slave.”

Prior to establishing Rogue 24 Chef R.J. Cooper already had a quarter of a century experience in restaurant business, moving from Atlanta, New York and Washington D.C.

We stopped for a while, admiring dotted greenish ceramics where course no.9 sits in the middle. The peas with vines, onion, lemon, and lamb have several levels of sensation: foamy, leafy and chewy, but a harmony of tastes.

Lamb collar, course no. 11 was a slow food dish. It was also our second hot and filling dish. Its texture is like beef rendang, Indonesia’s famous dish but without the caramelized strong spices.

A string of sweet desserts began with course no. 14, cucumber meringue with tapioca, pineapple and coconut. As with all the dishes, this one was decorated with tiny leafs, each has distinctive taste that complement the major ingredient.

The last dessert, course no. 16 was a warm mini churro with parsnip and Oregon hazelnut. At this point we were almost full but Rogue 24 has more surprises for us.

The ongoing surprises in our culinary experience surely came from the team’s creativity. In the Forbes article Chef Cooper revealed that everyone who works at Rogue has to read a book a month and every couple of days they talk about the book they are reading.

At the end of dinner, when we have been at Rogue 24 for almost two hours, another plate came out, appropriately titled Happy Endings. They were chocolates and cookies of different tastes from orangy to peanuty. We were very impressed when seeing that the Happy Endings was decorated with Happy Birthday.

The visit to Rogue 24 was actually a treat to our youngest blogger. It was Maira’s birthday. We didn’t think even for a second that the very busy culinary team at Rogue 24 would spend an extra time making their guests happy.

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Images: Omar Niode Foundation