Yesterday marked the official (albeit soft) opening of Columbia Heights newest eatery: CommonWealth. The premise is upscale English pub far (think English food, but not gross).

Here's what I thought:

This place was pretty good. The decor is cool. It was only the soft opening, so they didn't have everything (like the double chocolate beer float).

Everything that we had was delicious. We got the butcher block (a mix of cheeses and meats). The menu says that you can get 3 things for $24 or 5 for $32. We thought you could choose, but apparently its their picks (you can get each selection for its indicated price). However, they gave us our picks for the stated price, but warned us for the future.

The chips/fries were delicious and appropriately English. The green bean casserole was probably the highlight (fresh green beans and delicious onion crunchiness). The jacket potatoes with English cheddar were solid.

I got the stuffed trout, which was quite tasty. My dining companions got the bangers & mash, the london broil, and the steak & oyster pie; all cleaned their plates. Desert was OK (lemon trifle and chocolate cake were both adequate, though not amazing). I would've liked to try the double chocolate stout float.

We spent a pretty penny, but I plan on returning, if only to try to tofu shephard's pie, their full selection of beers, and that damned beer float.