Category Archives: Food and Drink

Food and Drink, We Love Food
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We Love Food: Dino (II)

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Dino Sinage by Shawn.L on flickr

Last August, Tom and Tiff checked out Dino for Restaurant Week. I was jealous. It sounded delicious, and the menu changes seasonally, so a group of girlfriends and I chose Dino as our big Restaurant Week pick this go-round. We certainly weren’t disappointed. Dino, unlike most other places, was offering their entire menu for RW diners, along with crostini and a complimentary glass of grappa, limincello or muscato. It was a truly thrifty deal, and cheesy tasty to boot! Plus I love it when places embrace Restaurant Week for what it is, and make it worth the diners time by allowing us to try anything we want off the main menu. It enables a place to show off, and I always think it’s admirable when a restaurant  decides it can handle whatever the crowds throw at it.

We sat down at Dino and were immediately impressed- the menu is huge, and the choices can be overwhelming. There’s antipasti, oggi, pasta, formaggi, secondi, and plentiful options for dessert. The menu is rustic Italian featuring the flavors of Venice and Southern Tuscany – we were in for a treat. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, We Love Drinks
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We Love Drinks: Tea at The Mayflower Hotel

Afternoon Tea

"Afternoon Tea" by Jenn Larsen, on Flickr

I’ve done my fair share of tea in this town. Afternoon tea has been a serious obsession of mine since I had the luck of spending several summers in England during college, basically living on tea as a poor student. It’s also a favorite way of my girlfriends to get together. Over the years in Washington I’ve had afternoon tea everywhere – Henley Park Hotel, Four Seasons Hotel (sadly no longer serving), The Jefferson Hotel, etc. Noticing a trend? Afternoon tea here is mainly a hotel thing, with Teaism being the notable exception (or Ching Ching Cha if you want an Asian tea experience). 

With my absolute favorite afternoon tea spot being closed for renovations (that would be the venerable Jefferson, where the scones came out warm and fragrant at the perfect time), I thought I would try The Mayflower Hotel. They serve afternoon tea daily from 3pm-5pm in Cafe Promenade, a soaring orchid and mirror filled room. 

There are many ways to enjoy teatime, and if your tastes run to the gleaming china and sparkling silver variety, The Mayflower delivers on the upscale. If you require attentive and charming service, you’ll definitely find it here. The tea selection itself is quite nice, all served loose in individual pots with lovely silver strainers on the side. The usual suspects are featured such as Earl Grey, darjeeling, and some great greens like sencha or oolong. They even have an enchanting wild blackberry tea that’s a black caffeinated blend, as opposed to the usual herbal tisane. The aroma drove me into a dreamy state, longing for spring…

So where does The Mayflower fall short? Well, frankly, the goodies.  Continue reading →

Arlington, Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Incoming: Le Pain Quotidien

Photo courtesy of
‘At Le Pain Quotidien’
courtesy of ‘TreyDanger’

Tuesday night Matt and I were on a run down the Clarendon strip in Arlington, and we passed painters and workers busy preparing the new store front of Le Pain Quotidien, the Belgian cafe & organic bakery poised to open under the Clarendon Gold’s Gym.

I’d never heard of Le Pain Quotidien (PQ for short), but upon further googling, PQ is another Euro import, one I’m getting pretty excited to meet. With locations already in Capitol Hill, Georgetown, Alexandria and Bethesda, Le Pain Quotidien operates under an organic philosophy (head on competition, Whole Foods) and is part bakery, part cafe. The bakery part is most exciting to me, as I was hoping for an uprising bakery trend in 2009. PQ claims to bake all their breads in-house, and knead by hand, to boot. They also offer pastries, alongside the breads. Then there’s the “communal table” – the cafe seems to be following in the Wagamama tradition of seating strangers together at big, long, cafeteria-style tables.

I’m thrilled to welcome Le Pain Quotidien into my ‘hood, I’m already picturing Sunday morning strolls for baked goods and coffee, and late night tete-a-tetes with friends over cider and tartes.

Food and Drink, The Features, Thrifty District
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Thrifty District: Dessert On A Dime

photo courtesy of flickr user 3liz4

photo courtesy of flickr user 3liz4

This edition of Thrifty District targets being cost efficient and strategic with food items you already have in your kitchen.

For instance, what about that half loaf of bread that’s a little too dry for a sandwich. You thinking about tossing it out? Perhaps you’ll wait for it to age into crouton territory? Or maybe you can feed it to some birds? Here’s a better idea.  Transform it into an amazing wintry dessert on the cheap and in just a few minutes. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, We Love Food
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We Love Food: Posto

"artwork" by ustreetgirl, on Flickr

"artwork" by ustreetgirl, on Flickr

“A modern Italian place to meet” is Posto‘s motto, and indeed its Logan Circle neighborhood has been eagerly waiting to meet it. The newest venture from executive chef Massimo Fabbri, of downtown’s lauded Tosca, it replaces Viridian next to Studio Theatre and has already escalated in popularity, evident by the full dining room on a freezing Monday night.

It’s a relief to find that Posto has warmed-up the walls of a previously minimal and rather chilly atmosphere from Viridian’s days. The decor might strike some as more Napa than Roma, with columns wrapped in glowing natural wood, but the large light installation murals of grapevines and various Italian scenes like Venice’s Campanile set the scene. Somehow these oversized murals, dancing the line between ironic and tacky, end up being rather joyous. And though many have commented on the decibel level, I found that though it was packed, our table of four could still carry on bantering without much problem.

For my first course I tried the Pesce Spada – swordfish carpaccio with tomatoes, capers and olives. I was surprised to have it come out with a heap of frisee on top (not so much a fan of twiggyness in food), but it matched well with the fish, which was delicate and flavorful. A friend pronounced the Granchio – lump crabmeat with peppers – “very yummy” – but another’s Insalata del Posto – arugula salad with fennel – was deemed “overdressed” (then again, he is a very picky German).

I’d heard pasta was the standout here, made in house by chef de cuisine Matteo Venini, and I was not disappointed. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, Fun & Games, The Daily Feed
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Where to find a good King Cake?

Photo courtesy of
‘King cake 2’
courtesy of ‘MGShelton’

You know, I have never really gotten into Mardi Gras, but what I CAN get into is a good King Cake. I love the sugary goodness of a delicious king cake – and of course, there’s got to be a little plastic baby inside. So where oh where in DC can you find a good King Cake? Well, I turned to the one and only source for trusted eating info – Chowhound.

The CH commenters recommend picking up your cake at Wegmans, Firehook, or Louisiana Express in Bethesda. But those are the only real “local” place they named – instead, most commenters suggested going straight to the New Orleans sources and having them shipped. But that’s not very locovore of us, now is it? So, readers, where can a girl get a good King Cake round these parts?

Food and Drink, The DC 100, The Features
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DC Omnivore 100: #48, Eel

Unagi Sushi (Eel) by Madman the Mighty (Creative Commons)

Have you ever been given someone something to eat, and been told “no, try it first, and then we will tell you what it is?”  Then you are a very brave soul, especially if you were in college.   I hope you survived the episode.

I’m guilty of this trick, especially when introducing my friends and co-workers to Sushi.  Eel, especially freshwater Eel (or Unagi) is one of my favorite pieces of sushi.  It has a much higher fat content than most fish, but it’s smooth flavor and texture make it a staple of most sushi trays and a lot of the better sushi rolls.

Unlike most sushi, Unagi (fresh water eel, the most common) is never served raw.  That’s not because it would kill you or anything – the sushi afficinados reserve blowfish for that – but because you would absolutely hate it.  Unagi has a fat layer in it that smells awful, and doesn’t taste all that great.  Continue reading →

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed, The District, WTF?!
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It’s not “Simply Potatoes and Listeria,” Giant.

Photo courtesy of
‘Potatoes’
courtesy of ‘ChodHound’

The latest nutritional scare affects the local DC area, as Giant has recalled a series of potato products because they may contain Listeria, which can make you pretty sick. So, if you bought hash browns, potato wedges or potato slices from Giant recently, you might want to check with Giant. Of course, their Recall page only has stuff on the peanut products, so, someone’s asleep at the switch over there.

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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New Java Green

Photo courtesy of
‘java green, washington dc’
courtesy of ‘tvol’

Oh, Java Green, how I adore thee. The earth-friendly, organic-til-the-end shop produces some fine, delicious food that makes me feel good about myself. The botomo sandwich makes me melt, and I could eat that vegan cake all day long, and be fat and happy. But the thing I hate about Java Green? The size. It’s as smooshy as an Orange line during the morning rush hour in there.

So I was thrilled to hear that Java Green is opening Cafe Green in Dupont Circle, 1513 17th street – I’ve not walked by the new local, but I’m hoping it’s giant and can serve all of us hungry for ethically-sound organic eats (sans the norovirus).  I’m ready for more Java Green, aren’t you?

Food and Drink, Fun & Games, The Daily Feed, The District, WTF?!
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Snuggie Pub Crawl

Photo courtesy of
‘Cult snacks!’
courtesy of ‘davitydave’

Do you like dressing up like the Polyphonic Spree to go drinking? Then we’ve totally got the Pub Crawl for you. DC will play host soon to the Snuggie Pub Crawl, where you and the closest 50 of your cultist friends can get plastered while wearing a WTF Blanket. But, in all seriousness, proceeds go to charity, and you can always wear a Slanket instead, just to mess with people.

Downtown, Food and Drink, We Love Food
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We Love Food: Equinox

Photo courtesy of
‘proof.glass.2’
courtesy of ‘Ghost_Bear’

Situated on Farragut Square in the Downtown corridor, Equinox is unassuming on the outside. With a glassed-in atrium, it looks like it was once a lunch eatery or an after-work bar spot that has been transformed, to the best of an interior decorator’s ability, to an upscale dining room. After having a wonderful time at Equinox in the fall, partaking in the fall happy hour, I was dying to try Equinox for a full meal, and Valentine’s Day was the perfect excuse.

We were sat, and the meal started out with bread. I love bread – it has the potential to set the tone for the entire meal. Bread can be a warm welcome, a fabulous place for a meal to start, and unfortunately Equinox’s bread fell flat. Well, not the bread so much as the hummus that came with it. I’m a big fan of interesting spreads (hello, honey butter, yogurt dill cheese or herb butter) and so I was excited to try the hummus that came with a pastry puff bread and some sort of fruit and herb bread slices. It was bland. It was mostly tasteless, with sort of a weird aftertaste. I tried it with or without the bread, and have to say, that hummus was a mistake for the chef to send out. I could have gotten better hummus at Trader Joe’s. But luckily, the hummus was the worst part of the entire meal, and everything just got better from there. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, Fun & Games, The Daily Feed
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Cooking Classes for The Rest of Us

Photo courtesy of
‘Day 14: Rachel Cooking’
courtesy of ‘InspirationDC’

My roommate and I regularly burn things, under-cook things, and generally make a mess in the kitchen. It’s sort of a trial by error approach to cooking, but hey – that’s how you learn right? Well, until now. Cookology, a recreational cooking school, opened out in Dulles Town Center on Valentine’s Day.

It’s the perfect place for those of us who look at a huge slab of roast and think: “um, what knife do I use” and “what do I do with this weird bone” and “is there a sauce that would go with this that I just don’t know about” and “do I put this in a pan or in the oven or can I just stick this mess in the toaster oven and be done with it?” – all those questions make me wish I could take my middle school home ec class all over again. Cookology is here to answer all the questions I wished I had asked back then!

The site has yet to post classes and prices (please be affordable, please please please!) but they’ve got a list of classes that they’re starting with, including my favorite: “Ready to Bake, take home an entire week’s worth of meals” as well as assorted others, “Make. Eat. (Guys night!)” and nutritional cooking. Cookology also offers wine tasting nights, product demonstrations (got a new gadget you wish you could test before you commit?) and every Friday is Date Night where you can cook with your significant other – perfect for Matt and I, we’re always trying to figure out new fun dates.

I love it, I’m excited! Where do I sign up!?

Food and Drink, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Free Z Burgers Today

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flickr user: midstreammom

Get them while they’re hot! The Z Burger chain in Glover Park (not sure if this applies to all DC Z Burgers) is giving out free burgers tonight. These burgers seem less greasy than Five Guys and more like the homemade from your backyard barbecue type. Choose from a long list of toppings. I learned about the GP giveaway from this month’s Glover Park Gazette, which is always a fun neighborhood read.

Food and Drink, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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RW Extender

Photo courtesy of
‘a vegan is crying…………….’
courtesy of ‘LaTur’

Last night kicked off one of my favorite weeks of the year, restaurant week. Places are slammed with people looking for cheap eats, and plenty of places extend their RW picks beyond just this week. WaPo’s GOG has the full list, but I’ve narrowed down my picks for you so you can make the best of the extenders.

First, I’d hit up Farrah Olivia, it’s a good deal. Jaleo is supposed to be delicious, and I will be finding out next week myself, when I head to Crystal City for the Crystal Couture event. Oya has upped the anty and is offering the $35.09 prix fixe menu through August (aka next RW) so don’t rush over any time soon, but mark it down to go for some special trendy night out on the town, cause Oya is delish.

PS7’s is one of my all-time favorite places in DC, so grab your spot now and you won’t be disappointed. Urbana and Willow are great, both fresh and tasty, though I’d do Urbana only for dinner because you can get it for much cheaper with the Urban Lunchbox deal at lunch. If you like Indian, which I don’t care for, Raskia is the place to be.

Ahh, affordable tasty eats are my favorite.

Food and Drink, Night Life, We Love Drinks
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We Love Drinks: Vinoteca

Malbec at Vinoteca

"Malbec at Vinoteca" by Jenn Larsen, on Flickr

So, here’s my question: the wine bar proliferation over the past few years – fad or fabulous? I mean, with all these places popping up everywhere, are people actually learning about wine? Becoming educated oenophiles? Or still just stabbing nervous fingers in an overwhelming list and hoping like mad they pronounce “viognier” correctly?

Seriously, dear reader, hasn’t it come down to one thing and one thing alone – the size of the charcuterie plate? Isn’t it all about the meat and cheese?

Well, maybe not. In a city like DC there really are a lot of wine connoisseurs who would be far more qualified to talk about this trend than me. I’m just lucky to have two neighborhood wine bars – Cork and Vinoteca – where I can hang out and slowly pick up some idea of what I like. Of those two, I think Vinoteca has evolved the most. It didn’t spring out of the gate fully formed as a Frommer’s pick. There were some hiccups along the way since its opening in fall of 2007. But after several recent sojourns with good service giving spot-on wine recommendations, not to mention one of the best charcuterie plates in the city, I’ve really warmed up to Vinoteca as a favorite drinks spot.

And maybe not just for the sinful duck prosciutto… or the fact that they have tasty venison, lamb, and bison sliders… though that certainly helps! 

Continue reading →

Arlington, Business and Money, Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Ray’s Opens Tonight!

Rays.jpg

It’s hard for me to say enough good things about Ray’s the Steaks. I’ve been a fan since my very first Cowboy Steak back in 2004. The tiny location in Courthouse, though, is history, replaced by a larger venue that opens tonight in the Navy League Building on Wayne Street between Clarendon and Wilson. I was passing by this afternoon as the wait-staff was meeting in the front of the restaurant. The corner slot across from King Street Blues has a ton of space. I counted no fewer than 40 tables, some as large as 10 people, which means that this place could be a huge success.

No word on what the menu will bring, nor on how the new “limited” phone reservation system will work. I’m hoping for the ability to call in a reservation, and get a nice tasty steak late next week sometime.

Food and Drink, The DC 100, We Love Food
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DC Omnivore 100: #11, Calamari

"Squid" by ajagendorf25, on Flickr

"Squid" by ajagendorf25, on Flickr (a shot from the DC Fish Market)

This week, our continuing quest to try all 100 foods a DC Omnivore must experience checks out calamari. 

Whenever I see fresh calamari, the first thing that comes to mind is Admiral Ackbar slurping, “your taste buds can’t repel flavor of this magnitude!”

Ok, maybe not. But this versatile cephalopod is truly a wonder of the sea.

There are a myriad ways to prepare squid – fried, grilled, stuffed, with the tentacles or not (no tentacles? wimp!). Squid ink makes a glorious rich pasta and salty sauce that can stain your tongue black as night. Raw squid as sushi can be disconcerting or refreshing, depending on your palate. My personal preference is sauteed or grilled. Perfectly prepared squid should not be overly chewy – it should have an initial ever-so-slight firmness that dissolves into a fresh from the sea taste. 

When I was a poor little match girl just out of drama school, I discovered I could get squid quite cheap and saute up a batch for both me and my cat (wow. that is a depressing memory!). But now if I cook calamari, it’s for a luxurious seafood pasta with squid, shrimp, and scallops. 

After the break, a more appetizing picture, and tips for rustling up calamari at home and eating out…
   Continue reading →

Food and Drink, Fun & Games, The Daily Feed, The Hill
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Local Baristas Clean Up

Photo courtesy of
‘Mocha’
courtesy of ‘box of lettuce’

Congratulations to baristas (baristae?) from Murky Coffee and Peregrine Espresso who swept the top four spots at the Mid Atlantic Regional Barista Competition. Katie and Allie rocked out the top two spots, representing Murky, and David and Jeremy rocked out 3rd and 4th from Peregrine. If you have any doubts about a well-poured cup of coffee in this town, stand assured, our baristas are best.

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Chocolate Lovers Festival


Moonstruck chocolates
Originally uploaded by eszter

The Fairfax, VA Chocolate Lovers Festival is this weekend, Feb. 7-8 in the Old Town part of the City of Fairfax in our fine Commonwealth of Virginia. It has been going on since 1992, is held the first full weekend in February and looks to be quite a big affair. From the festival’s web site:

Among the events planned each year are the Taste of Chocolate, featuring chocolate vendors selling their wares; the Chocolate Challenge, an arts extravaganza where the medium is chocolate; the Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast featuring chocolate chip pancakes; historic re-enactments; children’s activities; a craft show at Fire Station 3 sponsored by the Auxiliary to the Fairfax Volunteer Fire Department; open houses at historic buildings; and much more.

So who’s going? I know it’s all the way across the river for those of you in MD and DC, but it’s a celebration of nature’s most excellent resource. How can you not go?

Foggy Bottom, Food and Drink, We Love Drinks
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We Love Drinks: 51st State Tavern

51st state

When I worked in Foggy Bottom, I found it practically impossible to find a bar in Foggy Bottom proper that wasn’t overrun with George Washington and Georgetown students. Too bad I didn’t find The 51st State Tavern until now, because it’s the answer to my happy hour prayers.

Situated in a two story former row house (like oh so many bars in DC) 51st State is the perfect place to grab an incredibly affordable drink with a friend. Located where Penn meets L street, near 26th at that super funky intersection, I finally found the perfect Foggy Bottom/West End after work spot. It’s not crowded, nor is it overrun with frat boys and the girls that follow (at least during HH), and has the perfect short beer list with something for everyone. Continue reading →