Ellington

Description

The main entrance is through the Arts Center gift shop, off the main lobby, where a specials board lists the soup, dessert and special du jour but which is canted slightly away from the entrance so if you don't know where to look for it, you might miss it. You can also enter through a small courtyard on the Arts Center's Ninth Street side.
The food is at least as artistic as the menu would lead you to expect. So is the plate presentation, not surprising considering the restaurant is also a sort of front for a catering company (Simply the Best).
You're greeted at sit-down with a small plate of olive oil and black pepper into which you can dip your large chunk of warm, fresh, rich ciabatta bread.
Appetizers, aptly titled "First Impressions," include a soup of the day and a selection of salads. "Next Impressions" includes specialty sandwiches and entrees. That includes a first-rate Toasted Turkey & Brie sandwich ($8.95), with a cranberry relish and sun-dried tomatoes on garlic bread, and a very lively Blackened Tilapia Ciabatta ($9.95), a Cajun-Creole spiced filet topped with a fairly thick layer of melted cheddar plus Roma tomatoes, lettuce and a spicy Creole mustard sauce on thick ciabatta slices.
Sandwiches come with choice of chips or "Seasonal Fruit," which is, in the bleak midwinter, a generous cup of grapes, pineapple and some melon dusted with poppy seeds. A nice option is a half sandwich and cup of soup for $9.95.