Nest Cafe - Bethesda, MD

One of my coworkers has been raving about this American-Mediterranean inspired restaurant for months, so finally the bf and I had our 1st meal there. Nest Cafe is near all the commotion of downtown Bethesda, but is far enough on the side that it is also peaceful. There is metered street parking and metered garage a block away. The closest metro stop is Bethesda on the red line.

As you can see from the above photo, they have an outdoor eating area. It's almost as big as the interior. The small dining room has nice cozy decor. I love dark wooden tables without table cloths, simple flatware and glasses. There's something casual, yet about classy about it.

My coworker loves their wine selection and 1/2 price bottles on Mondays and Tuesdays, so as a tribute to her, I had a glass of their 'pinot noir (99 Vines Mendencino County CA 07)' for $6.95. There are about 7 wines served by the glass. I feel like my glass had a decent amount of wine, which was great. The wine itself was light, but tasted diluted.

They gave us jalapeno rolls with garlic butter. It was an interesting and unexpected twist considering the menu didn't have anything Mexican-inspired. I don't think I finished mine, but the bf liked them.

The bf ordered the 'Carne Pizza (pepperoni, prosciutto, and sausage)' for $13.95, which was my coworker's recommended dish. The bf thought the pizza tasted like Pizza Hut, though I thought it reminded me of Pandini's. I liked the prosciutto the most out of the pizza and that was his least favorite part (reminded him of chewy bacon).

Ordered the 'Sausage Rigatoni (Slow cooked pork sauce with sausage, fennel and shallots)' for $ 13.95. I subbed Whole Grain penne for $.95. The same sausage that was on the pizza was in the pasta, which I would've preferred without the casing. I thought the sauce lacked depth of flavor, but the bf liked it, so we ended up switching plates halfway through our meal.

Our server was super nice and friendly. Surprisingly our food arrived at lighting speed, which makes me wonder about the food preparation. Lots of families with kids were there, and it was a nice space for them. The food was good but nothing really impressed me, which was a slight bummer because my coworker loves the place so much. The outside has a younger and fun vibe, which is enhanced by the live band that plays Friday and Saturday evenings.

4921 Bethesda Avenue
Bethesda, MD 20814
(301) 718-6378
www.nestwinebarcafe.com