strawberry basil

The Inn at Little Washington

I still have my Williamsburg posts and a slew of other backlog, but I’m skipping ahead for this momentous occasion: dinner at The Inn at Little Washington. I finally had occasion to go, and it being The Inn and all, I wanted to blog about it while it was still fresh in my mind. I had, of course, heard amazing things about this place for a long while, but its location (an hour and half drive into remote countryside) and price tag always suggested that this would be for special occasions only. Somehow though, one has to make the occasion, and that in itself becomes special. I think yesterday was the ideal time to go: taxes were done, old friends had been met, and the weather was gorgeous. Why not celebrate, just because?

The drive down was lovely, as we took a hilly two lane road through miles and miles of farmlands and vineyards (I’m sure we passed several farmer’s markets and wineries..) It was scenic and felt like we were really far out there, an escape from the city. We arrived a few minutes early, so we popped into the gift shop next door to the inn, and also walked around the patio behind the restaurant to admire the koi pond and tulip garden.

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Blue Talon Bistro

Some friends and I took a weekend trip down to Williamsburg, Virginia a few weeks ago, and I’m here to give you a full report on the food that was had! We took the train down on Friday night, then ventured out the following day for an early brunch. We stopped in to Blue Talon Bistro, located in historic downtown Williamsburg. Everything is pretty close together in the town, and there are lots of cute shops and restaurants just in that area.

The interior of Blue Talon was absolutely adorable, with warm blue, red, and yellow hues that made the place very nice and inviting. Of course, there were a number of rooster decorations propped up around the restaurant, and in the area where we sat, they had a pretty tin ceiling with a design pounded into it. The whole atmosphere was airy, country chic.

As for the food: pictured above is my dish, the Belgian waffles with smoked bacon and fruit compote. This was the best waffle I’ve had in forever! It was incredibly soft and light on the inside, but with just enough crispy on the outside. Loved the compote, which was made with blueberries and had a nice tartness to contrast with the syrup.

The rest after the jump:

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Eola

Eola has been on my list of places to try for a long while. It’s always on The Washingtonian top places to eat, but more than that my friends have consistently given praises for this place. And to me, that’s the best testament. Eola is described as modern American cuisine and as having a “cozy and unpretentious interior.” I suppose it fits the bill in that regard – the restaurant was small and charming. We sat upstairs where the lighting was decent (not too dark, though I still needed a lot of flash for my photos), and the ambiance was relaxed and homey. It was also relatively quiet, which is a rarity in DC. The downstairs seemed a little louder but it was hard to tell from the foyer.

It seems like there’s some confusion on Yelp, but Eola only offers a pre-fixe menu, so make sure you’re prepared to spend $61-$65 on a five course meal. The $61 is for the vegetarian or the offal menus. $65 is for the standard menu. Aside from the few chef’s bites in the beginning, you get a choice of about four items each from appetizer, pasta, main course, and dessert courses. My friend and I tried to mix it up as much as possible so we could taste a wide range things. =)

Pictured above is my main course – the Border Springs Farm lamb roast with farro, mustard greens, turnips and long lamb’s jus. I had it done medium rare, so it came out quite juicy and tender. I thought it was very good! I don’t think there was anything particularly remarkable about this dish, but was definitely satisfying. I liked the texture of the farro and the slightly tangy mustard greens.

The rest:

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Honey Pig

My friend T had been talking up a storm about Honey Pig forever. A few months back, we finally took him up on it and drove out to Annandale with a group of hungry meat lovers to get our Korean BBQ on! The place is apparently open 24-7 (except Mondays 2am-11am) and you can almost always find some kind of crowd in there whatever hour of the day. The decor is pretty bare bones, almost industrial looking with cement floors and sheet metal panels on the walls. You can tell they’ve just forgone the extra frills and you just go there for the good eats.

We were seated fairly quickly upon arrival, which was surprising since I’d expected to wait a while. (We did have a reservation, but I had heard that sometimes you still have to wait). We ordered an obscene amount of food to share with the table and sat back to wait for it all to roll in.

Pictured above is the seafood pancake, which was pretty tasty. Imagine a scallion pancake but with all kinds of savory seafood chunks like shrimp and squid. It came with a dipping sauce and i thought it was a great thing to nibble on as the meat was being cooked.

The rest under the cut:

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Sushi Taro

Okay! I’m going to start posting some of my restaurant pics from 2010 that I never got around to, so do bear with me as I bumble through with my faded memories. A few months ago, I finally got around to trying Sushi Taro in Dupont Circle. I know it’s been a while since they changed over their interior design and menu concept, but I hadn’t actually dined there since the switch. I was really curious to see how they would fare, since I’d heard quite a few mixed reviews. I personally loved the former Sushi Taro, so I was a bit sad that they’d changed, but still hopeful that their new menu would delight.

I walked in and the interior was remarkably different from before. The former homey look with the tatami mats was gone, replaced by a very natural, wooden design with a fresh and modern feel. I liked it, actually! And it was well lit, which isn’t something you can say for a lot of restaurants in DC. (And this is one of my pet peeves…why so dark, DC restaurants? I’d like to see my food too!)

You can order from the menu or ask for the omakase kaiseki-style tasting menu for $80. (You can get it with the wine (sake?) pairing $138). Kaiseki is traditionally a seasonal meal, so this particular menu – from October – reflected what was fresh from the market at the time. If they’re doing it right, you won’t see the same menu now if you stop in for their kaiseki. By the way, if you get the tasting menu on a Tuesday, you get a free bottle of Sushi Taro sake (normally $30), which is what we did!

Pictured above is actually the second course – the “signature dish” of goma (sesame) tofu with uni (sea urchin). I love fresh tofu. I’m used to the grocery store kind, but a homemade tofu is creamy and delicious in ways that you could never imagine tofu could taste like. Apparently my mom used to make tofu fresh, back when I was a kid and you couldn’t just go to the supermarket for a ready-made block of this stuff.

The rest of the meal under the cut!

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Ren’s Ramen

Aaah, ramen! Nothing like a hot and tasty bowl of the good stuff when you have a salt craving. I finally got to try Ren’s Ramen a little while ago, after hearing that it reopened in Wheaton. The place is located in a tiny strip mall on a side street. (The parking lot is pretty small, so it’s better to park on the street).

The ramen comes in one size, ranging from $10~11. Slightly pricy for ramen if you ask me, but it’s not like there’s a plethora of ramen shops to choose from in this area, so I guess it’s a markup for the novelty of it. They have the classic choices of miso, shoyu (soy sauce), and shio (salt) in addition to things like tonshio (I’m guessing it’s a mix of tonkotsu – pork bone stock – and salt), and a spicy variety.

I got the tonshio, which came with bean sprouts, pork, bamboo shoots, and scallions. I ordered corn for an extra 75 cents. In all, I think it was really tasty, though for this price point, I’m not sure about how often I’d come. I actually felt a bit ill afterward too, but perhaps it was just that I haven’t too much oily foods in a while.

Ren’s is cash only, and no reservations, so you might have to wait a few minutes to be seated!

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.

The rest:

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Dickson

Dickson Wine Bar on U Street is a bit tricky to find…I walked right past it, even though I was specifically looking for it! But it’s worth the trouble all the way. I stopped in there for dinner and a glass of wine (a lovely Muscadet domaine de la Foliette 2008) and enjoyed every moment. The restaurant itself is small and narrow, with a few floors (3, I believe). My friend and I took a table on the middle floor by the bar. The place was dark and cozy, and on the night we went, it wasn’t very crowded. It was a nice change from the rowdy places I’ve been to in the vicinity. The service was attentive and nice.

Pictured above is the braised leek and goat cheese flatbread, my favorite dish of the evening. The leeks were absolutely delicious, sweet and simple. It came with a nice fresh green salad with a light vinaigrette.

The rest after the jump:

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Dirty Martini

Dirty Martini, located a few blocks up from Farragut North, describes itself as “a unique, upscale, sophisticated and casual place to enjoy great food and drinks, do business and more importantly have a good time!” I suppose a place can be “upscale” and “casual” too, but it does seem like they’re trying to be a whole bunch of things at once. On the day that I went, they were trying to be a night club in addition to restaurant. They had a live band playing near the back, which was anything but fun times. It was so loud I could barely hear a thing over the din, even though I was sitting in a nice rounded booth so it wasn’t as though I had to yell across the table or anything. The fact that the bar area was right next to the dining tables didn’t help the noise level either. Service was just okay, ranging from a little absent to overly eager. I guess this contrasting service is a reflection of their own confused identity. We would ask for extra plates for sharing, get them, and then some other waiter would walk by and sweep them away! (Perfectly clean plates, mind you. Why would they do that?? Clearly those plates were sitting there for a reason!) I was a bit flabbergasted after the second time that happened…

The food, however, was actually quite good. Pictured above is the chipotle honey glazed Cornish hen with grilled papaya salsa, sauteed vegetable medley and orange zest infused yellow rice. It was absolutely delicious. The glaze did amazing things for that Cornish hen, leaving the skin crispy and golden while keeping the meat tender on the inside.

The rest:

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Tabard Inn

There are plenty of places in DC that offer brunch on the weekends, but I’d heard especially good things about the Tabard Inn. According to their website, it is recommended that you make brunch reservations two to three weeks in advance. I think I’d ended up making them only one week out, so my reservation was on the tail end of the brunch hours. Metro being…Metro, I was terribly delayed and was afraid I wouldn’t get there in time! Thankfully, they were nice enough to seat my friend, who got there on time, and she went ahead and put in our orders so the kitchen wouldn’t be closed by the time I arrived. The staff there was really nice about everything, and didn’t rush us through our meal or anything. (^__^)

I loved the decor, with the quaint black and white tiles and cozy atmosphere. It was so welcoming and warm. When I arrived, the housemade doughnuts were already on the table. ♥ My friend was so good about this and didn’t start in on them until I had a chance to take my pictures. XD I actually felt kind of bad about this, because as a result of the wait, the doughnuts didn’t taste as freshly fried as they could have, had we eaten them when they first came out. Still, they weren’t bad!

The rest of the brunch under the cut:

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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.

The rest after the jump:

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Bistro D’OC

Bistro D’OC is a little southern French restaurant near the Ford’s Theater in downton DC. They have a nice and relatively affordable menu of items that were all very thoughtfully done and tasted comforting and warm, like bistro food ought. Pictured above is my main course – squab roasted with chanterelle mushrooms and fingerling potato with a gratin of turnips. It was decent, though I was a bit disappointed by how little meat was actually on the bones (though I do realize it’s a small bird..). And it didn’t quite hold up to the squab dish I had at Citronelle, which made me a squab fan to begin with!

The rest of the meal:

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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.

The rest after the jump:

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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.

And the rest!

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Hiroshi

All right, I’m finally at my penultimate Hawaii post! I can’t believe it’s taken me 6 MONTHS to get through these posts. I’m ashamed to say I still have DC posts from November that I haven’t blogged yet. I’m a failure! (;___;) Will have to console self by remembering the fabulous meal that was my last dinner in Honolulu.

My friend has fabulous taste in food, so I was expecting nothing less than spectacular when she took me to Hiroshi, one of her favorite restaurants in Hawaii. Hiroshi serves Eurasion [sic] tapas, which I guess is Euro/Asian fusion food? Whatever it was, it was delicious. The fish was fresh and perfectly prepared, and everything that came out was beautiful to look at and bursting with flavor. I would definitely go back there again the next time I’m in Honolulu!

I couldn’t get a nice shot of my drink (lychee soda), but it was absolutely amazing – refreshing and sweet, but not too much so.

Pictured above is the Crispy Skin Thai snapper (they weren’t serving moi that night). It was served with “Mrs Cheng’s tofu,” edamame, Kahuku corn and Hau’ula dried tomato-hijiki broth. An amazing dish altogether. Loved the crispy fish that paired wonderfully with the smooth tofu. The broth had a lot of flavor and I just wanted to drink it all up!

The rest:

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