Book'em Dano Cafe

Jim Zorn is losing his mater chef title.

A month ago the Redskins were a culinary delight reviving the Book’em Dano Cafe. They didn’t serve a French cuisine, but the hearty meat & potatoes fare.

The Rib Eye of Quarterback Jason Campbell covered with the Clinton Portis special sauce. On the side a string bean and onion blend of Santana Moss and Chris Cooley. All surrounded by a mountain of fresh Yukon Gold mash potatoes of Chris Samuels and the offensive line. We’re talking a solid meal.

For desert a double scope of vanilla of run stopping lineman and linebackers covered with a home made chocolate & caramel sauce of a defensive backfield. Nothing fancy but the sauce was outstanding.

The Book’em Dano Café doesn’t take reservations and there was a line around the block. Now the line is gone and tables are available. Each week Chef Zorn enters into competition against old and new establishments.

This week people are talking about another new chef in town, John Harbaugh, at the hot-spot Club Ravens. There is a hip new taste of quarterback Joe Flacco. Of course, there is the steady fare of deserts with the crowd favorites of linebacker Ray Lewis and safety Ed Harris.

So far this season Chef Zorn has done well against the road challenges, its on the home front where he is losing clientele. And after Sunday flat Blue Plate special of the Giants, the faithful appear to be in search of a new place to chow down. Some are switching to Club Ravens.

The doubters are saying there are things wrong with Chef Zorn’s ingredients. Maybe it’s what he’s serving. They don’t think the potatoes are Yukon Gold but standard Idaho. Also, the mash is now lumpy and inconsistent. There are no sides to compliment Moss & Cooley vegetables. They question the choice of vanilla ice cream, suggesting something with more stunning taste that can provide a better pass rush.

There is also quite a conversation by regulars on who is to blame for the decline in quality. There are those who blame Dano, the owner, who throws a lot of money at presentation with no apparent plan on how to improve taste. Others are saying it’s Vinny, the shopper who bring Chef Zorn the stables from which he creates. Others are now saying it is the Chef himself who promised more taste like touchdowns, but fail to deliver.

Can it be long before people start wondering how long Chef Zorn is going to be around? After all, one of Dano’s favorite remodeling projects is hiring a new cook.