beverage dinner restaurants: american pasta seafood silver spring soup
by Lindsey
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Jackie’s
Woot, an update! I’ve decided to just start with a more recent meal, since slogging through the folders of old food pics is getting a little daunting… And by recent I mean last night’s dinner! This must be some kind of record for me. (^__~)v
I admit I haven’t really dined much in the Silver Spring area, which by my own cursory observation, is mostly filled with chain restaurants that don’t warrant a special visit or blog posting. I’m not so confident that this is actually the case. There are probably a number of nice little places in the city that I’ve never heard of, and I was recently introduced to two such places within the course of a few weeks. One was 8407 Kitchen Bar across the street from the Metro station. I unfortunately didn’t take any pictures of that meal so there won’t be a post about it, but it was very good (and I hope to make another visit soon). The other place was Jackie’s Restaurant, which is the one I went to last night.
I think Jackie’s has been around for a while, because I’ve been seeing it for a long time from my train window as it pulls into Silver Spring station. I’d never actually been inside it until yesterday though! The interior is pretty cute, and very pink, with kind of retro looking chairs and comfortable booths stuffed with throw pillows. The lighting was pink as well, which was an interesting contrast to the rustic stone walls and almost warehouse like windows. I liked the open kitchen, but hated the ceiling. It’s one of those ceilings that are open, so you can see all the wires and pipes that should normally be covered up. I know people leave it there as a design element but I have always despised this look, as it feels very unfinished and I frankly think it’s very ugly.
Moving on to the food! I was kind of intrigued by the menu, which offered things that aren’t all that commonly seen in area restaurants, like wild boar and pheasant. I was curious about the pheasant, so I was glad when my friend ordered it. Pictured above: Pheasant ragout with black trumpet mushrooms over trofie pasta and pecorino toscano. I had a bite of it, and it was as the waitress described – like a hardy stew. It’s definitely a gamey bird, probably a good choice for a stew to bring out its rich flavors. I thought the pasta was interesting, as it had a dense texture to it. There were actually a few bones it this dish though, which I’m guessing was a mistake.
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beverage dessert dinner restaurants: cocktails d.c. mexican
by Lindsey
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El Centro D.F.
I actually have a whole bunch of posts that come before this one chronologically, but I promised to move this up my queue, so here it is! A couple months ago, I got an email from my friend Junk Food Guy asking me to help him set up his new blog. As a bribe, he would take me to a free dinner that he won via Urban Daddy at El Centro D.F., a new taqueria near U Street NW. I’m actually not a big fan of Mexican food, but I have a feeling that has something to do with the fact that I haven’t had very good Mexican food in my life. I remember thinking during Top Chef Masters Season 1 that I would like to try Rick Bayless’s Mexican cooking, because it looked so good! Maybe I was missing out on something really amazing, here. So I headed off to El Centro with “open heart and empty stomach.”
For the dinner special, we were taken down to a stony, almost dungeon looking room downstairs that serves as their “tequileria” – where they stock a huge number of tequilas at the bar. We had some time beforehand, so the bartender told us about the various tequilas they have there, and that you can order a “tequila flight” if you wanted to try a bunch of them. (He even showed us the shot glass tree thing they serve it in).
After waiting around for a while, we finally got around to ordering food. The dinner was in three courses. For the appetizer and dessert courses, they gave us a sampling of three items each. The entree course was the only one where we got to choose from a selection of things. I’ll begin with the appetizers, pictured above. There was a sampling of chicken flautas, chicken tamale, and steak huaraches. They were all very good! I think my favorite was the steak, though it’s a bit hard to see in this photo (it’s near the back). It was like a mini steak flatbread pizza. I actually don’t think I’ve ever had a tamale before, but I really enjoyed this one.
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Amalfi
Ah, finally back to posting about home! These first few posts are going to be kind of vague, since I didn’t really takes notes and it’s been a few months little while since I’ve had these meals. (^___^);;;
I’ll start with a lunch I had at Amalfi, a family owned Italian restaurant located in the back roads of Rockville. It’s apparently been there for a while, probably even back when I was taking my dogs to the veterinary hospital right next door, but I never knew about it! Funny enough, it also happens to be next to a bakery I discovered recently – St. Michel (cash only).
The decor is pretty dated but it’s cozy enough. Pictured above is the clams in garlic broth, which were simple and delicious.
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beverage lunch restaurants: bistro coffee hawaii oahu tea
by Lindsey
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Panya Bistro
My last Hawaii post takes me to Ala Moana shopping center, where I had lunch at Panya Bistro. Unlike the Panya I covered in a previous post, which was just a small bakery outpost, this one is a full on restaurant with savories as well as sweets on the menu. The food was not bad, though nothing to really call home about. Pictured above is the coconut chicken curry with fried rice. The curry was on the mild side, and creamy. I liked how the chicken was on the bone – it gave the dish a very hardy feeling to it.
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beverage lunch restaurants: hawaii kauai seafood soups
by Lindsey
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Hanalei Dolphin
A foodie friend of mine highly recommended the Hanalei Dolphin restaurant on the north shore of Kaua’i, so of course I had to go check them out! The drive up was scenic and lovely, though riddled with quite a few narrow roads and some one-way bridges that made me a little nervous at first. We spent most of the morning driving and stopping at various lookouts, and then stopped at the Hanalei for lunch. …And not a moment too soon! Half-way through the meal, it began pouring outside! Rain was coming down in sheets. Apparently this is pretty typical Kaua’i. (So, apparently, are the roosters that kept me up the night before with their infuriating cockadoodle doos!) The drive back to the airport after our lunch was pretty harrowing, but we made it back in one piece. Thankfully, we were able to make it back before some of those aforementioned one-way bridges were closed off from the flooding.
Pictured above is the poke – ahi with sesame. This was just okay. I don’t know, maybe I had heard too much hype about the poke, but it wasn’t as memorable as I expected.
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Caffe Coco
After our day-long boat ride to the Na Pali Coast, we headed to the hotel to get washed up and ready for dinner. (Actually, we had gone on the “sunset dinner” cruise, which sounds much more luxurious than it was. The “cruise” aspect of it was quite bumpy going and it took a long time to get to the coastline. The views were fabulous though, and on the way back we were joined by a pod of playful bottle nose dolphins! But I don’t have much in terms of “sea legs” and ended up feeling quite queasy near the end. Couldn’t even look at the food they prepared, which I think was kind of typical buffet style fare).
I felt so rejuvenated after washing up, but by then it was getting pretty late in the evening – by Kaua’i standards, anyway. All the restaurants close up around 9pm there, even on the weekends! The nice restaurant we’d made reservations at was a 40 minute drive away, and it was already well past 8. In the end, we decided to check out a quaint local restaurant (Caffe Coco) about 5 minutes up the street from the hotel.
Caffe Coco is one of those authentically Kauaiian local joints, kind of hippy and rustic, and run by the kind of proprietor who makes her liliquoi sauce from the trees she has on the premises. The dining area was outside under a tent, and there was a stage area where they had a live band and hula dancers. We ordered our food at the counter near the back, then found an open table where we sat down to enjoy the music and dancing. I loved the laid back atmosphere and outdoorsy feeling of the place!
Pictured above is the tofu potstickers, with gauva grilling sauce. I was surprised by how flavorful they were, considering they had no meat in them!
Pacific Place Tea Garden
After shopping around the numerous shops at the Ala Moana Shopping Center in Honolulu, my friend and I stopped at the Pacific Place Tea Garden kiosk for a drink.
I got the matcha (green tea) latte, pictured above. I’m not sure why I got the hot version – it was pretty warm that day, and Ala Moana is an outdoor mall. Still, it was tasty enough, and I always enjoy the calming flavor of matcha. It wasn’t overly sweetened, which was nice.
My friend got something called a pink bamboo float:
Wai’olu
Before dinner on Day 2, we stopped in at the Wai’olu lounge inside the Trump Hotel for cocktails. I felt elegant and sophisticated as we swept through the hotel lobby in our airy dresses and took the elevator up to the sleek lounge overlooking the sunset on Waikiki. It wasn’t quite next to the beach, but you could see the ocean in the distance before the sun went down completely. We’d heard that this place was known for its unique cocktails, so we each ordered one after much deliberation over the menu.
My friend got the Makai Mohito, pictured above, which had Bacardi gold rum, fresh lime juice, fresh basil and mango puree. She was very well pleased with it, and it was certainly a generous portion too.
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beverage lunch restaurants: comfort food hawaii oahu seafood smoothies
by Lindsey
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Crouching Lion Inn
Continuing along with day 1…
We drove from Honolulu, heading east along the shores of Oahu, stopping at various lookout points to admire the view. Around lunch time, we took a lunch break at the Crouching Lion Inn Bar & Grill, so named after a rock formation located behind it. (I don’t think they’re actually an inn where you can stay…?) It’s located right by the water, which you can view from the restaurant’s patio seats. They also had an indoor seating area, and in retrospect, we probably should have sat there. The view was just as pretty from the inside if you got a window-side seat, and more importantly – there would’ve been no mosquitoes. It turned out that the day before I arrived, it had rained a lot on the island. It had cleared up in time for my round the island drive, but it also called out all the mosquitoes in the area, and they just had a holiday under the patio table. I took the brunt of it, as I was wearing a dress. I was probably bitten dozens of times. (;____o) (I also had an allergic reaction, which wasn’t very fun). The people at the restaurant were really nice and let us borrow some OFF spray, but it was too late by then.
Mosquito Hell put a damper on the meal, but the food was still pretty good. Nothing out of this world or anything, but I liked it! (^__^)
Pictured above are the drinks we got – a mango smoothie and the virgin “lava flow” with pineapple, coconut and strawberry. I thought the mango smoothie could’ve had more mango flavor. The lava flow was extremely sweet, which I suppose is good if you want dessert in a drink?
For the food, the three of us decided to get three pupus (appetizers) to share:
beverage breakfast cafes: coffee hawaii indian oahu quesadilla
by Lindsey
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Bogart’s Café
Aloha!! You’ll have to excuse my long absence, as I’ve been living it up on the beaches of Hawaii for the last week and a half! I reluctantly left the sunny shores behind a few days ago, and I’m back at my computer ready to report on my foodie adventures in Oahu and Kauai. I tried quite a range of things during my trip, from local fare and classic Hawaiian comfort food to sushi and high tea. There were a few unfortunate low lights, but for the most part the food was excellent, and a delicious time was had by all.
I begin with Bogart’s Café, a cute little coffee shop not far from my friend’s apartment. We stopped in here on the morning after my arrival to get a pick-me-up before hitting the road to tour around Oahu.
My friends got a breakfast quesadilla to share, pictured above. You could pick the ingredients for the quesadilla, and I think my friends chose wisely with the mushroom and spinach combo. I had a bite, and it was quite tasty! A side of toast came with it.
I just got a coffee:
beverage lunch restaurants: japanese rockville sushi tea
by Lindsey
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Rolls ‘n Rice
I had driven past the Rolls ‘n Rice a number times while en route to the Whole Foods in Rockville and was rather curious about it…so one day, I stopped in there for lunch with my mom. The interior was nice, with wide spaces, high ceilings and warm colors that were welcoming. I liked the wood paneled shelves on the walls, but the large stone fireplace confused me a little, as it seemed more hunting lodge rustic than zen.
The format is the same as the Taipei Tokyo across the street – you order your food at the front, get a number, take a seat. They’ll bring the food to you. I never really know what I’m supposed to do with tipping in such places. I usually leave a couple dollars, since they do bring the food and then bus your table later, but it’s just a little confounding.
Pictured above is the sushi combo A (8 pieces of nigiri with California roll). Price point was pretty good at $12.95. I thought the fish was decent, though maybe the rice could’ve been more tightly molded.
Bar Pilar
I had the most delicious time at Bar Pilar for dinner a few weeks ago, and it’s definitely now on my top places to eat in the U Street corridor. It’s a narrow little neighborhood restaurant with lots of character and charm and serves small plates, tapas style, for sharing. Their website describes their cuisine as “New American” with a focus on organic and seasonal produce.
Pictured above is the whole grilled prawns with lemon, olive oil, and sea salt. It’s absolutely true that there is perfection in simplicity, and this is it. No fancy flairs to overpower the natural, wonderful flavor of the prawn.
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Tara Thai
Aah, Tara Thai. I used to come here a lot back in my college days. It’s relatively affordable, and it’s not sports bar food, which was usually the other option back then. I poked around their Yelp page today, and was amused by how varied the reviews are, ranging from “I love it!!” to “Worst Thai food evar omg!!” (paraphrasing). I can’t vouch for its authenticity, having never been to Thailand myself, but it’s fairly decent. I don’t think I’d go out of my way to dine here, but it’s a nice option if you’re in the area. Some people might find the underwater themed decor a little cheesy, but I don’t mind it so much.
My brother and I went to their Rockville restaurant last week when he was visiting for the weekend. I got the pad thai, pictured above. I think it was okay, if a little on the bland side.
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bakeries beverage brunch cafes: bethesda coffee juice pastries salad sandwiches
by Lindsey
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Le Pain Quotidien
My first encounter with Le Pain Quotidien was in Bryant Park, New York, a couple years ago. I loved it! Even the pesto sauce in my sandwich, which was unusual for me, since I had an inexplicable aversion to pesto. I was pretty excited when the chain finally made its way to the D.C. area, and I believe the first of their local branches was the Bethesda store. I’ve popped over there several times since it opened, but this would be my first time blogging them. (^__^)v This post combines a couple visits that I made there in the last few weeks.
The decor: I like the interior quite a bit. There are high ceilings throughout and a shiny counter filled with delicious looking pastries in the front. And of course, there has to be the signature communal table, a colossal slab of reclaimed wood that dominates the center of the room. The Bethesda store has two dining areas, each one with its own communal table. I like sitting at the communal table, as it’s more spacious and comfortable.
And now for the food: Pictured above is the grilled chicken and smoked mozzarella tartine “with arugula and basil pesto.” I’m not sure that I got any arugula, and I would know because I love arugula. There was definitely some kind of green leaf, but it might have been something else. Very tasty indeed, even the pesto. XD Although, I do feel like it’s a bit pricey for what you get.
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Cork
Cork is a little wine bar located near Logan Circle. I’ve wanted to try it for a while now, and last week, I finally had the occasion to go! I took my friend there for a birthday dinner, and it was quite lovely.
I ordered a drink at the bar while I waited for my friend, and by the bartender’s recommendation, I got a white sparkling wine – Domaine des Terrisses, “Cuvée Saint Laurent”, Méthode Gaillacoise. It was described as having a “caramel and apple nose” and “lightly sweet with flavors of apple and whipped cream.” It was definitely a sweeter variety, and you could really truly taste the apple! It was excellent!
Before I go into the food, a little bit about the interior: it’s definitely a cozy fit, and the lighting is fairly dark. We were sitting right by the bar, and by the time we got our meal, the dinner hour was in full swing, and it was LOUD. However, there are other tables in the back that might fare better in terms of noise level.
The food here is meant to be shared, which works just perfectly for me! My friend and I picked out 2 cold plates and 3 hot plates, all of which were tasty and fabulous.
First up is pictured above – roasted leeks with burrata, braised celery, bacon, and almonds. I loved this presentation! It looked gorgeous and tasted wonderful too, with the sweetness of the roasted leeks going perfectly with the salty burrata. The almonds added a nice crunchy texture.
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