joselito's

joselito's

660 Pennsylvania Ave SE, Washington, DC 20003
tel: 202) 930-6955

what was consumed: restaurant week menu! in a nutshell (and because i've forgotten the names of all the delicious dishes): mushroom soup, fish, roasted veggies, fried anchovies (always!), duck with creamy risotto

sometimes, you don't know what you're missing until someone points it out to you. that's who i felt with joselito's. kdk, the purveyor of all things delicious, suggested joselito's for their restaurant week option, and i was happy to oblige. if you're looking for a place that offers delicious small plates with wonderful flavors, be sure to add joselito's to your list! i'm glad we did ...

online: www.joselitodc.com/

little pearl

little pearl
921 Pennsylvania Ave SE, Washington, DC 20003
tel: 202) 618-1868

what was consumed: smoked brisket sandwich, fried chicken sandwich, greek panzanella salad ... and a DELICIOUS decaf latte (with white sesame milk!).

ok, so i'd very much enjoyed the delicious bites at pineapple and pearls some time ago. so when i heard that they had a cafe, i was super excited to try it out.

kdk and i met up for lunch at little pearl. i was still having my aversion to chicken (which has finally passed. yay!), so she took one for the team and tried the japanese fried chicken sandwich (which she polished off quickly and even despite her gluten sensitivity. totally worth it, she said). she did comment on how the chicken was a little sweet and that an entire dish of the fried chicken might be much. but in the sandwich, along with the complementary veggies, was just ... perfect.

my brisket sandwich was just ... so ... delicious. chock full of slices of perfectly smoked meat, along with the lettuce and pickles, it was definitely a lunch on the very filling side. i got mine without horseradish (because that's how i roll - don't judge), but for horseradish lovers, i  bet you will not be disappointed! also note that we also most definitely enjoyed the panzanella salad that had just the right amount of pickled stuff to enjoy with the rusk and other fresh veggies. 

and be sure to get some coffee! pay extra for the white sesame milk. it's super creamy and adds a touch of sweetness to your beverage. i can't wait to go back and enjoy the regularly caffeinated stuff. hehehe ... and, of course, their dinner menu. and maybe even other parts of their lunch menu that seems to be every changing!

online: https://www.littlepearldc.com/

chiko

chiko
423 8th St SE, Washington, DC 20003
tel: 202) 558-9934

what was consumed: chicken spring roll, cumin lamb stir fry (noodles), wagshal's brisket

short for chinese korean, chiko is a welcome addition to the DC eating scene. located near eastern market on barrack's row, this fast casual restaurant can get super crowded (no reservations!), but it is totally worth the wait.

bjl and i head over for my birthday. while this was a more casual meal for a birthday, i'd been wanting to try out chiko for some time. i'd heard that one of the chefs is also the chef/owner of mandu. definite bonus points, imo. we walked over right church, beating the large crowd that almost immediately followed us (great timing!). we were seated at the "bar" (it is a 4-seat bar that is usually reserved for those doing the tasking menu, which i wished we were doing), and that was great because we got to see the kitchen staff put together all the meals.

some of the dishes (like the wagshal's brisket) really reminded me of some dishes i used to eat as a kid (though, admittedly, what i ate was not as fancy as chiko's version!). but the slab of butter that binds the bowl together was not only delicious, but also brought back so many happy memories of yummy dishes my mom would make in my childhood. YUM.

bjl and i gifted one of the "kitchen counter" meals to c and j for christmas and they totally loved it. note that it's a little bit of everything on the menu, so be sure to have an empty stomach and be ready to gorge on some delicious food! i can't wait to go back.

online: chikodc.com/

pineapple and pearls

pineapple and pearls
715 8th St SE, Washington, DC 20003
tel:202) 595-7375

what was consumed: the day's set menu

everyone has been talking about pineapple and pearls (including the michelin folks). and i can see why. yes, it's on the pricier side. yes, it's more fancy than i'm accustomed to. but there's something about the creative, fun, and super delicious treats that are served at pineapple and pearls that make this a must-have dining experience. 

k and i had been wanting to go, so we nabbed a few reservations (mind you, weeks in advance) and looked forward to an evening of delicious bites and lots of chatter. upon arrival, we were greeted by a welcome drink (non-alcoholic varieties were also available) until we were escorted to our seats (at the bar. no worries - same menu at the bar!). pineapple and pearls proceeded to delightfully overwhelm us with an adventure for our taste buds. each course came out, timed perfectly, with a knowledgeable staff who explained what we were eating and, as appropriate, the recommended way to enjoy the dish. i could have relished in everything pineapple ad pearls had to offer, but (sadly) there's only so much room in my stomach. sigh. 

so save your pennies, find a fun person to spend a couple of hours with, make a reservation, and enjoy everything pineapple and pearls has to offer!

online: https://www.pineappleandpearls.com/

rose's luxury

rose's luxury

717 8th street se, 20003

tel: 202) 580-8889

what was consumed: the entire menu. seriously. we said, "one of each please." 

bon apetite named rose's luxury the best restaurant of 2014 (or something like that). i can totally see why.

the bunch of us decided to take others' recommendation and wait in line for the first seating. while some people say that a 5:30pm dinner time is too early, i prefer eating early. the only challenge is that everyone in our party has to be in attendance for the restaurant to seat us. sadly, that was the problem. but fear not! we parked ourselves at the upstairs bar, where all of the food options were still available, and began our plan of action.

there were enough of us for us to decide on a mini tasting menu of our own. minus a few of the pastas, we decided we wanted to try everything. so that's what we did. "minus xxxx and xxxx, we'll take one of everything." and being able to order like that? yeah, felt really good.

now, about the pastas. there was a little incident (we received some bad customer service from some of the wait staff and expressed our frustration to our bartender, mostly because we were shocked that that was something we'd experience at roses). nonetheless, our bartender/server brought out tasting plates of the pastas to soothe our wounds. wounds, what wounds? woohoo! we were happy with his genuine apology; the pastas were heaping scoops of cream cheese icing on the cake!

now, about the other food. DE-LI-CIOUS. i loved some dishes more than others, though i was happy to have tried them all. the egg dish i could have eaten a gallon of and i wished i had a larger stomach so that i could enjoy a whole order of the ginormous brisket dish (served for sharing). the presentation was comfortable, but classy. though that didn't matter all that much since all of our food was devoured pretty much as soon as the plates hit the tables.

the ambiance at rose's is also pretty spectacular. comfortable and casual, sorta hipster, sorta pretentious, sorta country bumpkin, sorta sophisticated, sorta avant garde ... all wonderful. and i enjoyed the family style, sort of farm-to-table sense that the restaurant oozed from its pores. but you know what? totally enjoyed it all.

rose's does a rotating/seasonal menu, so i will definitely go back to try other things. and maybe even dish out for the rooftop special dining situation ... yes! more delicious food please!

online: http://rosesluxury.com/

ted's bulletin

ted's bulletin
505 8th street SE (between E street & G street), washington, DC 20003
tel: 202) 544-8337
hours: monday-sunday 7am-10:30pm

what was consumed: walk of shame breakfast burrito (sirloin steak, scrambled eggs, hash browns, cheddar, green chile sauce (yes, it’s all in there), served with hash browns), 7:00am breakfast burger (english muffin, country ham, hash browns, fried egg, chipotle ketchup), the reuben (grilled marbled rye, corned beef, sauerkraut, 1000 island, served with hand-cut fries and pickle), green green salad of home (egg, cucumbers, tomato, onions, croutons, tossed lovingly with green goddess dressing) ... and a bunch of sides - corn bread, cheddar grits, bacon & blue cheese brussel sprouts

oh, barracks row, how i miss you. i miss you more now that i don't live in that area and i find it harder to make my way down there. which is even more sad because there are so many awesome places that have since popped up! shucks!

so, friends and i decided that we'd head out to get some breakfast for lunch (i took the day off - yeah!) and decided to check out ted's bulletin. w and k had been before and made sure to let me know that there was a new place on barracks row that had breakfast all day long! now, i'm not a huge fan of the breakfast foods, but my interest can always be piqued! on top of that, they have adult milk shakes, aka, milk shakes with alcohol. some people think about that and make yucky throw-up sounds. but the ones at teds, from what i hear, are different! t ordered a regular milkshake and said it was super duper delicious. and while we were pondering the different milkshake options, the individuals sitting at a table near ours insisted that the adult versions were delicious and way better than without (alcohol). hmm ... interesting!

non-breakfast folks! not to fear - they have quite a few non-breakfast items for your dining pleasure as well. their take on classic american fare is delicious and filling. fresh cut fries, a burger in between an english muffin. yum. as i was having a hard time making an entree selection, i opted for a series of sides. this allowed me some wonderful grits (one of my favorite breakfast foods ... though i guess it's not just a breakfast thing, especially when they call it polenta and serve it for dinner - ha!), roasted brussel sprouts (always delicious), and corn bread (my favorite of all the breads). of course, this did not detract me from tasting others' food, per usual.

overall, the food was fresh and well prepared, the service was prompt and friendly, and the ambiance was casual - all huge pluses. while some people may say that there's nothing special about ted's, but i would beg to differ - their take on the "normal," but doing it so well, definitely makes them wonderful! who doesn't like a local diner to go to and enjoy? i like it, i like it! oh, and i'm determined to go back to ted's to try one of their adult milkshakes, anti-lactose intolerance medicine in hand (tmi? i hope not. i'm just excited about the prospects! ^_^).

p.s. if/when you order take out from ted's, they have this cool take-out window that faces the street. neato!!

online: http://tedsbulletin.com/