Proof (CLOSED)

Former tax attorney Mark Kuller turned his passion for great food and wine (his home cellar boasts some 7,000 bottles) into his first foray into the restaurant business: the wine-focused Proof. (He followed up with Estadio in 2010.) This hotspot is a tough table to snag at the last minute, so plan ahead to get a taste of chef Haidar Karoum’s excellent cooking. His ahi tuna tartare with wasabi soy emulsion makes the cliché dish fresh again, and his veal sweetbreads are some of the best around. The wine director is Joe Quinn, who was part of Proof’s opening waitstaff and became its sommelier in 2010. A seat at the bar in front of the shiny Enomatic wine dispenser comes with a side of culture—the flat screens overhead display a mesmerizing rotation of artwork from the neighboring National Portrait Gallery.