Yes, yes, we have been slacking big time – but that’s because we’ve been eating out to bring you only the very best recommendations for a lovely Sunday brunch!
Bistro Bis: Tucked into the Hotel George near Union Station, we jumped to get reservations for DC Restaurant Week. The pre-fixed menu didn’t give us too many options but what stands out in memory (since this was over a fortnight ago) was the salmon, a perfect accompaniment to the table conversation of a friend’s impending trip to Alaska. For dessert, we tried an assortment, and the dark chocolate cake and three-cheese tray were as yummy as the mimosas.
Ardeo: Cleveland Park definitely gets my vote for the most variety of good restaurants and bars within a one-mile strip (thrown in with the best theatre to watch such cinematic wonders such as Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter). But then I may be biased since I used to live there! On a Sunday morning when you’re in the mood for comfort food like sausage, eggs and home fries, this place is probably a few notches above your local diner. I made the mistake of ordering an omelet with trout, red peppers and cilantro. Let’s just say I kept fishing for the trout. Others had better luck: our guest of honor tried the “shirred eggs” – essentially eggs broiled until the white is set, but the yolk remains liquid – or “I’ll take 3 baked eggs sunny side up in a ramekin.” The French toast and mussels in a coconut sauce were also excellent choices.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Cooking in the Summer
Lately I had been uninspired to cook ( maybe something to do with the fact that I am lazy!) . But reading this post in the New York Times has inspired my cooking karma... beware friends and family - some dinner invitations are en route!
Summer Express: 101 Simple Meals Ready in 10 Minutes or Less
If you do end up trying any of these recipes, do tell me how they turned out.
Summer Express: 101 Simple Meals Ready in 10 Minutes or Less
If you do end up trying any of these recipes, do tell me how they turned out.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Ole! to Theater and Tapas
Jaleo
480 7th St. NW
With the Capital Fringe Festival on in full swing, a bunch of us headed to the theater district for a play and dinner soiree. After catching the one-woman show “Butter” (a musical satire on Food Network and Paula Deen, in particular), we settled on Jaleo to satiate our appetites.
Jaleo has been around long before Cafe Atlantico and Zaytinya came on the block. They are apparently part of the same creative team so it's hard to go wrong on the menu here. They have a nice wine selection but everyone loves a pitcher of sangria.
After a small wait, we got our table and and rattled off our tapas order in quick succession: Pollo al ajillo con salsa verde (Grilled chicken with green sauce); Costillitas de cordero con salsa de romero y allioli (Grilled lamb chops with rosemary sauce and allioli); Patatas bravas (Fried potatoes with spicy tomato sauce and alioli); Tortilla de patatas al momento (Classical Spanish potato & onion omelet); Calamares a la Romana (Fried squid with allioli); Pimientos del piquillo relleno de queso y setas (Sweet peppers stuffed with goat cheese and mushrooms); Cazón en adobo al estilo de Cádiz (Marinated fried shark like people do in Cádiz). Also a stuffed garlic mushroom in breaded balls, whose name escapes me now. But all the dishes, without doubt, were ummm-mazingly delish. Every time I come here, I try to have something new and this time it was the shark tapas which came out a surprising winner (kudos to whoever ordered).
The atmosphere is great and the downtown location makes it perfect for not only the theater crowd, but office-goers and tourists alike. Reservations are recommended for lunch and limited to dinner between 5-6:30 p.m. for pre-theater patrons. The service isn’t bad and although yours truly wasn’t carrying a valid ID, I sneaked generous sips of the sangria without being glared at. A glass-breaking incident was also handled by management with minimal fuss. Yup, the sangrias were doing a Flamenco in some of our heads.
Cost: Average. Depends on the order.
480 7th St. NW
With the Capital Fringe Festival on in full swing, a bunch of us headed to the theater district for a play and dinner soiree. After catching the one-woman show “Butter” (a musical satire on Food Network and Paula Deen, in particular), we settled on Jaleo to satiate our appetites.
Jaleo has been around long before Cafe Atlantico and Zaytinya came on the block. They are apparently part of the same creative team so it's hard to go wrong on the menu here. They have a nice wine selection but everyone loves a pitcher of sangria.
After a small wait, we got our table and and rattled off our tapas order in quick succession: Pollo al ajillo con salsa verde (Grilled chicken with green sauce); Costillitas de cordero con salsa de romero y allioli (Grilled lamb chops with rosemary sauce and allioli); Patatas bravas (Fried potatoes with spicy tomato sauce and alioli); Tortilla de patatas al momento (Classical Spanish potato & onion omelet); Calamares a la Romana (Fried squid with allioli); Pimientos del piquillo relleno de queso y setas (Sweet peppers stuffed with goat cheese and mushrooms); Cazón en adobo al estilo de Cádiz (Marinated fried shark like people do in Cádiz). Also a stuffed garlic mushroom in breaded balls, whose name escapes me now. But all the dishes, without doubt, were ummm-mazingly delish. Every time I come here, I try to have something new and this time it was the shark tapas which came out a surprising winner (kudos to whoever ordered).
The atmosphere is great and the downtown location makes it perfect for not only the theater crowd, but office-goers and tourists alike. Reservations are recommended for lunch and limited to dinner between 5-6:30 p.m. for pre-theater patrons. The service isn’t bad and although yours truly wasn’t carrying a valid ID, I sneaked generous sips of the sangria without being glared at. A glass-breaking incident was also handled by management with minimal fuss. Yup, the sangrias were doing a Flamenco in some of our heads.
Cost: Average. Depends on the order.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Never Lets Me Down
A friend was visiting from New York and wanted to meet for dinner. Hmm, where can I take some one who is visiting from the Mecca of food? A co-worker suggested Tabbard Inn. A good suggestion, since it fits right into my plan of frequenting places I can walk to.
Since we did not make reservations, we could not get seated outdoors, instead got a seat where I had to face a wall. The fun and cosy atmosphere made up for that as did the appetizer, scallop ceviche. Juicy tender scallops marinated in coconut milk with a mild hint of lemon grass. I ordered the duck cooked medium rare that came with a fruit sauce and was delectable. My friend ordered the crab cakes with bacon succotash, which was just as yummy if not better. Having stuffed ourselves with the food we had no room for dessert, though the home made ice creams certainly looked tempting.
Average entree $21 and up
Tabard Inn
1739 N Street, NW
DC 20036
Since we did not make reservations, we could not get seated outdoors, instead got a seat where I had to face a wall. The fun and cosy atmosphere made up for that as did the appetizer, scallop ceviche. Juicy tender scallops marinated in coconut milk with a mild hint of lemon grass. I ordered the duck cooked medium rare that came with a fruit sauce and was delectable. My friend ordered the crab cakes with bacon succotash, which was just as yummy if not better. Having stuffed ourselves with the food we had no room for dessert, though the home made ice creams certainly looked tempting.
Average entree $21 and up
Tabard Inn
1739 N Street, NW
DC 20036
Monday, July 16, 2007
Waste of a Friday
What ever you do on a Friday, don't end up wasting it at Axis on U street. I had a strange feeling about the place that has now been open for the last 6 months and yet at 9 pm on Friday it was mostly empty. My friend and I ordered the Calamari that was served with a strange pink sauce. The Calamari was chewy, the serving staff was unfriendly and I felt like I was not at Axis but Antarctic. Upon requesting the waitress to turn the Fans down , we were told , oh the regulator is broken if we switch one off, they all need to be turned of... well how about fixing that?
The chicken sandwich my friend ordered definitely made me think that subway was a better option!
Axis Bar & Grill
1340 U street, Washington DC 20009
The chicken sandwich my friend ordered definitely made me think that subway was a better option!
Axis Bar & Grill
1340 U street, Washington DC 20009
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Rainy Day, Greasy Grub
Bombay Cafe
11213 Lee Hwy # D, Fairfax, VA - 22030
Since I've converted most of my co-workers to spice addicts (in a highly slow but insidious fashion), the die hards know where to head when it's time for a good ol' desi buffet. Bombay Cafe (20 mins. outside of DC) sits in one of those corner malls with large boxes of mithai decorating the windows. More importantly, it's about a 7 min. drive from my office. Forget the cheap plastic chairs, run towards the chaat. Everyday there's a new menu to choose from - although the south indian choices leave much to be desired - and today we had things like chhole, mutton curry, aloo shimla mirch and urad daal to choose from. Then there's the gulab jamun, which may be from the packaged variety, but does the job for satisfying your sweet craving. Back to work, people? Zzzz... afternoon siesta methinks.
Cost: Lunch buffet $7.99 (weekdays)
11213 Lee Hwy # D, Fairfax, VA - 22030
Since I've converted most of my co-workers to spice addicts (in a highly slow but insidious fashion), the die hards know where to head when it's time for a good ol' desi buffet. Bombay Cafe (20 mins. outside of DC) sits in one of those corner malls with large boxes of mithai decorating the windows. More importantly, it's about a 7 min. drive from my office. Forget the cheap plastic chairs, run towards the chaat. Everyday there's a new menu to choose from - although the south indian choices leave much to be desired - and today we had things like chhole, mutton curry, aloo shimla mirch and urad daal to choose from. Then there's the gulab jamun, which may be from the packaged variety, but does the job for satisfying your sweet craving. Back to work, people? Zzzz... afternoon siesta methinks.
Cost: Lunch buffet $7.99 (weekdays)
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