jaleo480 7th street, NW, washington, dc 20004
tel: 202) 628-7949
hours of operation: monday 11:30 am-10:00 pm, tuesday-thursday 11:30 am-11:30 pm, friday and saturday 11:30 am-12:00 am, sunday 11:30 am-10:00 pm, brunch is served on sunday
what was consumed: lots of tapas (we usually have each person choose 2 and then share – sharing is caring!), paella, lots of sangria
one of the first places christine took me to when i first visited DC was ‘jaleo.’ i hadn’t had a whole lot of tapas in my life (which i now wonder why because i love them so much!) and she told me that this one place had some great paella in addition to the delicious tapas. she already had me at “let’s go eat ...” so i was very much looking forward to going. fast forward about a year and i finally found myself at jaleo once again, this time introducing this spanish restaurant to other friends of mine.
the meal starts off with a tapas-sized dish of olives and cucumbers. what is it about these salty goodies that draws me closer ... the bread that comes with the meal at jaleo is also very delicious. be sure not to fill up on the bread because the tapas are so tasty~
so, this is how we usually do it. each member of the party will choose 2-3 tapas (depending on how hungry he/she is). then, we will share all of our selections (making sure not to double up on any one thing, that is). the selection is high and wide! everything from the vegetarian dishes to red meat dishes to seafood. in particular, among a long list of others, i recommend the brussel sprouts, mussels (the broth of the mussels works double time as a great soup for dipping the bread), and the chorizo on mashed potatoes. delicious! be sure to make sure you leave enough room for paella, especially at jaleo! the paella with chicken and mushrooms is delicious, especially if there are non-seafood eaters in the group. personally, being partial to seafood, that is the paella i recommend. each order of paella serves quite a number of individuals – be sure to ask the server to be sure. oh, and dessert! i don’t have a huge sweet tooth, so my first inclination is not to order dessert. but the time that i did, boy was i glad! they have a lightly sweet and creamy flan – traditional dessert! and a great chocolate mousse that was light and flavorful. definitely a nice end to a grand meal.
when you go, be sure to have the sangria. the combination of red wine, brandy, vodka, and fruit in this traditional spanish beverage is so delightful! a large bottle of sangria yields about 4 glasses of sangria. be sure to ask them to go easy on the ice because otherwise, you’ll end up with glasses filled with ice instead of being filled with the fruity goodness.
now, i have only been to the DC metro location, but i imagine the others are as fine in terms of the food. i look forward to eating at jaleo again!
online: http://www.jaleo.com/
