the hitching post

hitching post restaurant
200 upshur street NW, washington, dc 20011-4848
tel: 202)726-1511
hours of operation: tue-sat noon-midnight

what was consumed: half fried chicken dinner with 2 sides (i had the steamed broccoli, baked potato, both were smothered in butter ... just the way i like it. hahaha ... jess had the macaroni & cheese and cole slaw while amy had the macaroni & cheese and french fries – a heart attack in the making) ... but oh, so good~
$10.95 + tax & tip
$4 beers (bottled – none on tap)

after reading a review in the paper, jess (with amy) invited me to eat at a “local favorite” (according to the paper). apparently, they had been meaning to try this place out, especially because there’s not a whole lot right around where they live. so, i made the trek out to the northwest, met up with amy, and drove out to “the hitching post” (though, mind you, we could’ve (and should’ve) walked to the restaurant that was just about a mile away from where they lived ... and after the meal, a nice walkin’ would’ve done us some good!).

we walked into the place and noticed that i was the only asian and jess and amy were the only white-folks. it didn’t make me feel uncomfortable and initially, i didn’t even notice (it was only in retrospect that we actually made that observation). but here’s the thing – the ethnic make-up of a particular restaurant is important in that if the place is filled with those who are of the “place” from which the food that is being served originates, then the food must be good. in this case, that statement was once again correct and we were not disappointed. the hitching post is run by the owners – it looked like the wife of the fine establishment did much of the serving while the husband did much of the cooking/frying (though, my guess is that they share in the different roles. it’s just that the wife was the only one who came to our table).

all three of us ordered the fried chicken dinner. our server asked if we didn’t want to order a variety because three chicken dinners equals a whole lot of chicken (and she was right – each chicken dinner was to come with one-half chicken, fried, and 2 side dishes. of course, when i thought side dishes, i thought a standard scoop of mashed potatoes or a small helping of broccoli. but no, it actually meant a whole head of broccoli and a bowl of macaroni and cheese). the thing is, the review said that the fried chicken was most excellent and we all wanted most excellent food, so ...

with our meals, we ordered a few beers – standard dining procedure. we received our beverages, but waited a good 45 minutes for our chicken to arrive. but let me tell ya, it was totally worth the wait! the chicken was fried in the classic “fried chicken” way – not too bland, not too salty, not over fried, not under fried. ‘now THIS is fried chicken!’ was the thought that passed through my mind. not to mention the sides ... as stated above, i ordered broccoli and a baked potato as my side. i received, literally, almost a whole head of broccoli that was stuck with slabs of butter (that’s the best way to eat it! and yes, i ate all of my broccoli). the baked potato oozed with melted butter and sour cream that was beginning to seep down the sides of the potato, the result of the potato’s inner heat. amy, the mac ‘n cheese connoisseur, said that the mac ‘n cheese was some of the best she’s ever had and jess gave the cole slaw two thumbs up (saying something along the lines of “you can tell a good place by it’s cole slaw ... this is a good place.”). we all rolled out of the hitching post, doggie bags in hand. oh yeah, seeing that we visited the eatery toward the end of the year, the folks also provided a cottage calendar for us as we began our departure.

oh, hitching post, i shall visit you again~

the aftermath ... after consuming the fried chicken and butter filled meal, i felt much better the following day. i think that when sick (in the future), i will consume food such as that of the hitching post in order to appease my body of it’s ailments. and what of the leftovers? jess said it best: “fried chicken = good cold.”