Dec. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Spike’s burgers, Eric’s bistro fare and Alain’s elegant meals are the newest dining options in Washington from celebrity chefs whose first names are becoming almost as familiar as Wolfgang and Emeril.

Spike Mendelsohn of television’s “Top Chef” show, Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin fame and Alain Ducasse, whose restaurant empire includes a location at the Eiffel Tower, each have opened D.C. restaurants this year, adding to the city’s expanding culinary culture.

The K Street location places Ducasse’s new restaurant, Adour, at the epicenter of the lobbying-and-law-firm district. Its prices -- a $26 appetizer and a $44 lobster entree -- are among the city’s loftiest. Its quality sends customers to the stratosphere.

Ducasse’s approach is less extravagant than at his former restaurant in New York’s Essex House, where he offered customers a selection of fine pens to sign for their oversize bills. The meals here are no less dazzling for being straightforward.

The show starts with a peppery cheese puff followed by savory zucchini ravioli in sweet pumpkin soup.

An appetizer of chilled lobster medallions ($26) includes greens and vegetable shavings with a terrific coral vinaigrette made from roe.

Probably the best dish on the $95 tasting menu is the ricotta gnocchi with mushrooms, seared lettuce and crispy prosciutto ($17). The ham shatters like glass at the touch, providing a salty counterpoint to crunchy greens, the tender puffs of ricotta and the meaty, earthy mushrooms.

Libeling the Cod

Yet calling it the high point libels the cod ($25), which is poached in olive oil and comes with peppers so sweet that they could be offered as a dessert. Another triumph is the duck fillet ($34), tender strips of meat accompanied by root vegetables and an impossibly creamy polenta.

Any quibbles? Yes, though minor. The majestic old wooden ceiling is mismatched with furniture that recalls airport lounges in the 1970s. And the dessert, usually a crescendo, brought me back to earth. The chocolate with orange zest and marmalade ($12) did as little for me as the chocolate and strawberry cookies presented to each table.

No matter. Adour, opened less than three months ago, is already one of the city’s finest restaurants.

Adour is at the St. Regis Hotel, 16th and K Street, Washington; +1-202-509-8000; http://www.adour-washingtondc.com/about_adour.htm.

Off Night

Maybe it was the night (Sunday) or the weather (damp), but something seemed to be missing from Ripert’s Westend Bistro -- the pizzazz.

For instance, one starter, salmon rillette ($12), is a miniature pot of fish served with slices of toasted bread. It was fresh-tasting yet unadorned and uninteresting. At least it’s better than the mini pork pies, ($10) which were dry as well as dull. The halibut ($34) was cooked to perfection yet accompanied by beans that added little to the dish. The ratatouille, French comfort food, is delivered in a cute little red pot.

The Chesapeake Bay stew ($30) had unimpeachable clams, shrimp and mussels, cooked to perfection above a small puddle of tomato saffron broth. Delicious yet minimalist in a way that suggests the chef’s attention was elsewhere. Apparently it was. The chef and two aides have resigned from the Westend Bistro, a restaurant spokeswoman said. Another visit is warranted once the kitchen upheaval is resolved.

Westend Bistro is at 1190 22nd St.; +1-202-974-4900; http://www.westendbistrodc.com.

Spike’s Place

While chef Mendelsohn may not have won the fourth season of Bravo TV’s “Top Chef,” his burgers are a hit among foodies looking for a bargain at his new Capitol Hill restaurant. Diners can get the smokehouse burger, loaded with applewood bacon, sharp Vermont cheddar and Vidalia onion rings for $6.69 and indulge in a super-sweet toasted marshmallow milkshake for $5.25.

Good Stuff Eatery opened in July and is co-owned by Mendelsohn’s parents.

“Business has been nonstop since the beginning,” he said. “We’re cranked at lunch.”

The restaurant was buzzing on a recent Friday night as a mostly under-30 crowd waited in line to order.

Mendelsohn relies on aides to lawmakers for a lot of business. Several large plasma TVs -- all tuned to different cable news channels -- remind diners of their close proximity to the Capitol Building.

In homage to election season, Mendelsohn created a special “Obama burger” with bacon, blue cheese, onion marmalade and horseradish mayonnaise and a “McCain burger” with chipotle mayonnaise, corn roasted red pepper salsa and jack cheese. Obama burgers outsold McCain burgers 1,315 to 428 as of Election Day.

Mendelsohn plans to open another Good Stuff Eatery in Union Station next year.

Good Stuff Eatery is at 303 Pennsylvania Ave. S.E.; +1-202-543-2222; http://www.goodstuffeatery.com.

(Jim O’Connell is an editor and Kate Andersen is a television producer for Bloomberg News in Washington. The opinions expressed are their own.)

To contact the writers of this column: Jim O’Connell in Washington at joconnell3@bloomberg.net; Kate Andersen in Washington at kandersen7@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: December 3, 2008 00:01 EST