横濱人
〒231-0861 神奈川県横浜市中区元町１丁目31 (ie, 〒231-0861 Kanagawa-ken, Yokohama-shi, Naka-ku, Motomachi, 1-chōme−31)
tel: 045-681-5225
what was consumed: japanese bar food!
when good friends come to town, you take them someplace where they'll get a taste of the local cuisine. d took the train from tokyo to see us in yokohama; we, in turn, took him out to japanese food.
my experience with washoku, at least until this point, had been limited. there were things i knew because of my various experiences around the world, but is that really japanese food? who knows. that said, i was once told that if there are "salary men" who dine at whatever location you're at, especially during the week, that restaurant is probably a safe bet. lucky for us, when we got to 横濱人, we joined quite a few other tables of salary men.
i can't say that 横濱人 offered dishes that were incredibly out of the ordinary; it felt like a typical japanese restaurant. but that was exactly what we were looking for - a little bit of sushi, a little bit of tempura, some agadofu, and of course onigiri (which i love). they had both the more typical onigiri as well as the grilled onigiri. both of them, please!
時遊陣
address: 〒231-0861 神奈川県横浜市中区元町３丁目141
(3-chōme-141 Motomachi, Naka-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 231-0861)tel: 045-641-2224
what was consumed: washoku (aka japanese food). as we couldn't read the menu (and still can't read many japanese menus for that matter :/ ...) we asked for recommendations and then took them all. we had sashimi, roasted dry fish, shu mai, chicken wings ... and it was all pretty yummy.
first meal (out) in japan!
i've been looking forward to eating in japan. with some new additions/changes in my life, however, eating out had taken a back seat over the last 6-ish months (and from here out on, child-friendly dining options are going to become the norm). that doesn't mean we can't have good food, though, right? right.
soon after arriving, while MIL was still in town, we got our first chance to go out and eat in yokohama. BJL and i met up with our colleague friend who arrived in yokohama a few months earlier than we did. we told her, "dealer's choice," and suggested we go anywhere she hadn't been. so, by chance, we ended up at 時遊陣.
時遊陣 isn't on the main motomachi road; rather, it's on a side street of a side street. like many washoku places, they have a bar and just a few tables. the server spoke some english, but they didn't have an english menu. in japanese, we asked for recommendations, but the server responded with a few words in broken english until all of us told him that japanese was ok (this is usually how it goes).
a good first go at eating out in japan, imo. and when we saw some salarymen/women enter, we were reassured that our selection was legit (haha).
online: http://www.m-jiyujin.com/
timber pizza co.
809 Upshur St NW, Washington, DC 20011
tel: 202) 853-9746
what was consumed: the mina (salad), the green monster, pretty in pepperoni (mix and match! that's ok!)
more pizza please!
and while there are lots of options in most of DC's quadrants, be sure to visit timber pizza co., preferably more than once. all of their pizzas are made to order in their wood fire oven. what's more, they used to be a food truck and now they have their brick and mortar location! yaaassssss ...
online: http://www.timberpizza.com/
cafe divan
1834 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC 20007
tel: 202) 338-1747
what was consumed: mixed mezze platter, doner kebab, iskender kebab (with yogurt!)
k wanted turkish food (note: k also spent a foreign service tour in turkey, so her opinion and expectation for turkish food is much much higher than average), i wanted anything that a preggers lady could get her hands on (haha). cafe divan it is!
cafe divan is a great little turkish restaurant in georgetown. cafe divan offers a wide variety of turkish dishes. i loved that we could get a sampler appetizer plate with the lentil kofte that is just ... so so good. and be sure to get lots of yogurt with whatever you order. it's just so delicious that way!
online: http://www.cafedivan.com/
the smith
1314 U St NW, Washington, DC 20009
tel: 202) 250-3900
what was consumed: crab cake tots, kale caesar, daily special (fish and chips) ...
i passed the smith out on u street countless number of times, wondering what it was all about. japanese language partner and i decided to check it out. note: be sure to specify which of the 'the smith' locations you're meeting at so that you don't end up at the chinatown/penn quarter location while the other is at the u street location. just sayin'.
the smith has a pretty traditional american fare menu, imo. they do a good job with what they offer and the service is great. i do like that the u street location has a seating section that is inside, but outside at the same time (the street-facing wall of windows opens up! great feature). one don't miss thing, though, are the crab cake tots. if you're a fan, definitely grab the few bites that makes up this dish. the tot-shaped crab cakes, along with the dressing and the toppings, are super delicious bites!
online: https://thesmithrestaurant.com/location/u-street/
convivial
801 O St NW, Washington, DC 20001
tel: 202) 525-2870
what was consumed: happy hour! cheese plate, spicy lamb sausage, bacon cheese burger, panisse (chick pea fries), floating island (dessert)
yay for happy hour! friend k and i head to convivial for some delicious eats and good conversation.
even on their HH menu, you can sample so many delicious things, as well as get a sense of the creativity that those in the kitchen offer their patrons. the chick pea fries, for example, are a great and creative alternative to traditional fries and the dipping sauce! oh so delicious.
be sure not to skip out on dessert! we wanted something interesting and opted for the floating island dessert - a meringue ball in a pool of delicious caramel "soup" topped with crunchy nuts. a great way to end our delicious meal!
online: http://www.convivialdc.com/
momo yakitori
2214 Rhode Island Ave NE, Washington, DC 20018
what was consumed: Tofu to Rukkora Salad, yaki onigiri, hang 10 (chef's choice of 10 skewers)
yakitori (aka grilled chicken) is a staple in japanese cuisine. so when my japanese language partner heard from someone at hana market (the local japanese market in the city) about a new yakitori place opening up, we were intrigued. momo yakitori is located (what seems like) a thousand miles away, but it's well worth the trip if you fancy japanese style grilled things.
we opted we opted for the chef's choice of 10 skewers, which was fine, but i'd also encourage you to take a look at the menu and pick and choose among the interesting items. and definitely get the onigiri (though i could have easily eaten two orders on my own) and a salad.
most of all, i loved the little details and the ambiance of momo yakitori. the dishes that were used, the charcoal used to filter, etc. very japanese ;)
online: https://www.momoyakitori.com/
chloe
1331 4th St SE, Washington, DC 20003
tel: 202) 313-7007
what was consumed: sheep's milk ricotta, crispy cauliflower, bok choy, crispy fingerling potatoes, spicy beef hummus, russet potato gnocchi, crispy whole fish, meyer lemon tart, cheese plate
i'm so glad chloe was introduced to me! in the midst of all of the fast casual places (or just straight up places to get sloshed) in and around nats stadium is this gem of a restaurant. their food is delicious (flavorful, creative, varied), their service is superb, the ambiance is welcoming and lively, and and and ...
friends and i went and opted to order a bunch of different things from the menu. all of our dishes were delicious (we definitely did everything but lick our plates), but the sheep's milk ricotta, the crispy fish, and the meyer lemon tart (which we ordered by accident!) were the highlights for me.
i can't wait to go back!
online: http://restaurantchloe.com/
横濱人
my experience with washoku, at least until this point, had been limited. there were things i knew because of my various experiences around the world, but is that really japanese food? who knows. that said, i was once told that if there are "salary men" who dine at whatever location you're at, especially during the week, that restaurant is probably a safe bet. lucky for us, when we got to 横濱人, we joined quite a few other tables of salary men.
i can't say that 横濱人 offered dishes that were incredibly out of the ordinary; it felt like a typical japanese restaurant. but that was exactly what we were looking for - a little bit of sushi, a little bit of tempura, some agadofu, and of course onigiri (which i love). they had both the more typical onigiri as well as the grilled onigiri. both of them, please!
