gcdc

gcdc

1730 pennsylvania avenue NW, 20006
tel: 202) 393-4232

what was consumed: the kim-cheese-steak, the mediterranean, loaded tator tots

in the vein of food trucks turned brick and mortar establishments, gcdc is another example. an eatery that specializes in grilled cheese sandwiches? what's not to like? yes please!

bjl and i were lucky with our timing as we nabbed a seat right before the hordes of worker bees descended upon gcdc for lunch; the line was out the door and around the block. and once our selection arrived, we were happy to devour our grilled cheese sandwiches.

gcdc has come up with some creative grilled cheese sandwich varieties. gone are the days of only cheese between two slices of bread (that still exists as well, don't worry). different meats, veggies, spices, and sauces have been added. like kimchee! i want to tell them that i've been eating sandwiches with kimchee since i was a kid, but i wasn't the first person to make it a thing. drat!

gcdc is also liberal with their cheese, maybe to a fault. but let's be honest - i loved that the cheese was oozing out of my sandwich and i could later pick it off my plate when it cooled. YUM.

re: tator tots. they reminded me of the delicious tator tots i used to enjoy when having weekend breakfasts with mom at carl's jr. it also gave me some good ideas on how to make some delicious loaded tator tots. tator tot bar, anyone

nom nom nom ... YUM.

online: http://grilledcheesedc.com/

maoz

maoz
1817 m street NW, washington, DC 20036
tel: 202) 290-3117
hours: monday-thursday 11am-11pm, friday-saturday 11am-3am, sunday 12pm-9pm

what was consumed: maoz (falafel sandwich), fries (both potato and sweet potato)

i'm lucky to work downtown where there are so many dining options. i love falafel. i've made both of those comments before, but i'm making them again. i will trek long and far (is walking 20 minutes long and far? maybe) to enjoy falafel. so when a peculiar basement space opened offering falafel that's a mere 5-minute-walk away from work, my curiosity was piqued. now, the first time i went to maoz, coworker k and i were on our quest for a snack. i think he had heard from someone else that maoz should be considered, so we were off!

we walked to the the sort of hidden basement space (i think it would be pretty easy to miss them, even though they have a big sign out front) and immediately got in line. while waiting, we took a quick look at their menu (which isn't too large - this is good. yay specialization!), and ordered. our falafel sandwiches came out soon after. i got the junior maoz which just ha the falafel balls in the pita. if you get a regular maoz, there's some lettuce and hummus in the pita (along with more falafel balls). anyway, once we received our sandwiches, i flattened out the falafel and proceeded to add topping from their topping "bar." they have lots of different things to add to your falafel sandwich to spice it up. there are some of the toppings that i love (like their couscous topping and their variation of cole slaw). BUT i have to remember not to get the spicy chili "sauce." it's good, but there's a lot of parsley, a bit more than i can handle (but that's just me).

so, after i added all of my toppings, i was ready to eat! the falafel sandwich is surprisingly filling. after eating part of my sandwich, depending on how much i want more toppings (always), i revisit the topping sbar to add toppings that will accompany my falafel (and it's encouraged at maoz!). you can see how one's belly will easily filly up. especially if you get fries, it's a lot of food. coworker k and i will usually share an order of fries. i do also like that, if you are so inclined, you may opt for sweet potato fries. yay options!

turns out, maoz first opened out in amsterdam and have opened franchises throughout europe. they have since crossed the atlantic and have brought deliciou falafel sandwiches to us. yay yay yay! maoz is also totally vegetarian. i'm way not totally vegetarian, but i have friends who are sometimes frustrated with what they say is a dearth of options (i just tell them that they need to eat meat. hahaha).maoz is great for a light lunch, or a hefty snack ... both of which i've done. yummy~~~ i wouldn't say that maoz is my all time favorite falafel sandwich place in the area, but it's solid and highly recommended. i will most definitely find myself there again, and again, and again.

online: http://www.maozusa.com/

blt steak

blt steak
1625 eye street, NW (between 16th street & 17th street), washington, DC 20006
tel: 202) 689-8999
hours: monday-friday 11:30am-2pm, monday-saturday 5:30pm-11pm

what was consumed: bar snacks (popcorn, olives, almonds), chicken liver pate, popovers, himachi (with avocadoes, tomatoes, jalapenos), and (of course) delicious beverages

there are quite a few steakhouses in the dc/metro area, but i've been to very few of them (i haven't been to ray's the steaks yet!) if any. i think it's because my friends and i find ourselves grilling our own steaks instead. anyway. on one of those illustrious bbq days, there was some conversation about popovers. one thing lead to another and we agreed to meet and enjoy popovers at blt. not steak. popovers.

so, friend k and i met up at blt steak post work (and all other "fun" stuff) to sit at the bar, enjoy some good libations, and have some yummy eats. we started off with some bar snacks (delicious salted and roasted almost, seasoned olives (omg, DELICOUS! i wanted to eat the entire bowl, but agreet to share with k ^^;; ), and flavored popcorn - YUM) to accompany our drinks. i had a refreshing and delicious house cocktail (fruity, but not sweet, with a spalsh of club soda) that came with a garnish of candied ginger and mint. yum~ perfect for the hot hot DC summer day that was tuesday (100+ degree weather! yikes).

after we put in our order, we were served a small mason jar with a bit of chicken liver pate. i love pate and was super excited to see that this was a part of the meal at blt (and secretly wished for more). in fact, k and i contemplated asking if we can each get a jar. hahaha ... the pate was so smooth and creamy, i wanted to slather it on everything that we were served.

our (hot) food began coming out (yay!), starting with the popovers. bw (the bartender) suggested that we share one popover. our response was to look at him with eyes that said, "but there are two popovers. and there are two of us. why should we share?" he just walked away, laughing. we kept looking at him, confused. now, about these popovers. i'm usually not a huge bread person and usually go easy on the bread when available, especially if i know that carbs will appear in another form. but there's something about these popovers that are just so delicious. they're light and fluffy, but super moist (i think it's the guyere cheese that is listed within the ingredients - yes, the popovers came with a recipe!) and not rough-ish in texture (as bread sometimes is). they came out, warm, smelling delicious, and just melted in my mouth. i went between slathering my popover with the chicken liver pate and butter with salt (on an aside, blt has some really rad, albeit rustic looking, salt shakers! k and i wanted to smuggle one out of there, but opted against it as these salt shakers literally were the same size as pint glasses).

we ordered the himachi to share as neither k nor i were super hungry (despite ultimately eating what ended up being boatloads of food). the himachi wrapped a sort of seasoned avocado mash, topped with jalapenos and some other veggies, in a small pool of a light citrus (though a bit too citron-y for me) soup. citron-y or not, totally delicious. as k said, the fattiness of the himachi and the avocado just brought out the creaminess of the entire dish, that ultimately just melted in our mouths.

my stomach is growling (again) as i write this ...

k and i opted to sit at the bar. and i'm glad we did! bw was awesome, as were other members of the bar staff (though we kept hiding our dish of olives from one of the guys as he insisted on taking it away! hands off, mister, we're not yet finished). great conversationalists who know their food and drink (that is the best!). in addition to everything else, they totally made me want to go back and visit them. i will!

one day, i'll have to go back and actually try the steak. rib eye, please. but in the meantime, i will dream about the chicken liver pate and delicious popovers that accompanied our meal. mmmmm~~~~

online: http://www.bltsteak.com/

dc slices

dc slices
tel: none
no address - they're mobile! track their location online: http://twitter.com/dcslices

what was consumed: pepperoni pizza, soda

lunch trucks are all the rage!

do you remember a time when people would say "lunch truck" and you would think jr. high cafeteria food for adults, or "roach coach," or ... these days, people also think kogi tacos, bulgogi carts ... and now, pizza (yes!!!)

today, from what i understand, was dc slice's inaugural day. and my food lovin' friends let me tag along (ironically, i had also brought pizza for lunch today). some argue about whether or not this is the "first" in DC, but it seems that the discrepancy is deep rooted in whether or not "DC" means just DC proper or includes MD and noVA ... that is a whole other conversation. as far as i'm concerned, this is the first i've seen (convenient that it's close to my office), so it's the first for me!

so, around lunchtime, we walked over from the office over to farragut square where dc slice was to have parked for lunch service. today was a nice, warm, and dry day, so i was doubly excited to head out of the office for some good eats - yay! and after blocks and blocks and blocks of walking (ok, so it was actually something like 5 blocks), we finally saw the truck ... to which we bee-lined to, like moths to a flame.

when we finally made it to the truck, we quickly made our selections (i like how they have one window for ordering and another for receiving your order ... though it looked like the same guy working both. ha!) and were soon served. thin crust slices of pepperoni pizza with the option of fresh basic on our slices (yes please). the crust was light, the sauce was tomato-y, the cheese was stringy. YUM! accompanying our pizzas were ice-cold cokes. a perfect meal on such a gorgeous (albeit a little hot for me) DC day ^_^

when we first arrived, they were also playing music through their speakers. i didn't notice it as we were leaving, but that could have well been because i was not paying attention and more engrossed in their fares. they also spelled "slice" incorrectly on their menu board today (i don't know if that was intentional or not - just thought i'd note it here), but i found it funny and endearing more than anything else. they offer wifi as a wireless hotspot, so bring your mobile device along with your appetite and look foward to a delicious lunch downtown!

online: http://dcslices.com/

g street food

g street food
1706 G street NW (between 17th street & 18th street), washington, DC 20006
tel: 202) 408-7474
hours: monday-friday 7:30am-3:30pm

what was consumed: banh mi (traditional vietnamese sandwich - roasted free-range pork and pickled vegetable on a baguette), open sandwich speciality (i forget which one it was, but it was delicious), side salad, fries (of course)

i feel really lucky that there are lots of really yummy places to eat around where i work. one day, christine mentioned going to a place the kera mentioned to her at the restaurant. so, despite the 7ish block walk (ok, ok, 7 blocks is not a lot. but i was still sure not to bust out the highest of my heels), christine and i head out to meet for lunch.

at first, we couldn't really figure out where g street food was. the storefront is rather unassuming and at quick glance, i imagine most (like us) would pass it by. this downtown area, while filled with lots of really great places to eat, is also filled with the standard "cafeteria" fare in the form of a "pay by the pound" sort of place. i'm so glad g street food is not like that!

once we found the right place, we walked in and was welcomed by an open kitchen right behind where we were to place our orders. this proved to be convenient for us in that we were overwhelmed by the menu (as we usually are. their menu isn't super huge, but every single option looked so delicious!) and we had the opportunity to ask any and all questions directly to those who were to make our meals, which they happily answered. we ultimately decided on a couple of sandwiches, salad, and fries as we giddily went to pay for our food.

our food came out soon after and we quickly devoured the delicious morsels. and the bread! now, i don't know a lot about bread. i've mentioned before that i don't crave it like some others do and as a result i'm not as well versed in it as others are. nonetheless, the bread that g street food uses is just plain delicious. crispy crusts, chewy and soft middles. the meats added incredible flavor to the sandwiches and the veggies were so fresh/refreshing! i don't know how else to describe it, but do you see the photos? do they make the food look delicious? yes, the sammiches tasted better even better than they look! i want one now. sigh.

per usual, the clientele at g street food consisted primarily of other office drones (or maybe i'm the only cube-dwelling office drone - haha) who call the farragut square area "home." there was also a surprising number of families. but now that i think about it, because g street food is close in proximity to some of the sites on the nat'l mall (relatively, of course, is there anything (outside of the hot dog carts) that are really really close to the mall?) and loads of people have mobile devices with information at their fingertips, i imagine many will seek out g street food.

i can't wait to visit g street food again and try something else. where is christine?!? let's go! let's eat!

online: http://gstreetfood.com/

el chalan

el chalan
1924 i street NW washington, DC 20006
tel: 202) 293-2765
hours: monday-friday 11:30am-3pm, 5:30pm-10pm; saturday 1pm-10pm; sunday 1pm-8pm

what was consumed: lomo saltado (stripped beef sauteed with fried potatoes, onion and tomatoes), arroz a la chiclayana (rice with chicken cooked in beer, cilantro and spices)

when i first started at my current position, my coworker took me out to lunch as a sort of welcome as well as an intro to the team, to the work. he told me about this peruvian restaurant that he was fond of, which i was happy to visit. it wasn't until just last month that i got the chance to visit el chalan again (thanks, chris!) and boy, was it a treat!

el chalan, located near the world bank, is often filled with world bank employees (i'm not sure what that means, but coworker was sure to mention that to me. perhaps as a sort of warning? haha). also, if you don't look for it, you might just miss it. they have a small sign that directs you downstairs. and while your first impression may make you wary, don't fret! some really tasty eats are comin' your way!

i'm not really sure what authentic peruvian food really is/is like (seeing that i've never been to peru). but according to el chalan, peruvian food consists of meaty stews on a bed of rice. chicken, beef, goat, you name it! YUM. the flavors that we (or i) often associate with hispanic foods manifest themselves in the flavorful stews at el chalan. delicious.

the last time there, i had the lomo saltado. strips of grilled steak in a delicious savory sauce, accompanied by some veggies. and what else? french fries! or what they called 'fried potatoes' ... all mixed together! and when you mix the sauce coming from the beef and veggies and such with the rice, it makes me wolf down the entire serving of rice. all the way down in to my belly~

i look forward to visiting el chalan again! i have to remind myself that it's there when i think of good eats in and around the office, and at other times too! yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum ^_^

online: i can't find it! that is, there are sites that reference el chalan's website, but the website doesn't work. bah~ there are quite a few articles, though, so ...

nando's peri peri

nando's peri peri
1210 18th street NW (between M street & connecticut avenue), washington, DC 20036
neighborhood: dupont circle
note: there is also a location in gallery place/chinatown on 7th street nw (between H and I, i think), but i've only been to the one on 18th street ...
tel: 202) 621-8603

what was consumed: whole chicken, sides (cole slaw, garlic bread, rice), chicken wings ...

a friend of mine once mentioned that there was some south african chicken place that was supposed to be good. turns out it was nando's peri peri. and when one opened up by work, i was excited to try 'em out! so excited that i got a group of work people together to check out the fine fares of south african (grilled) chicken and all of the fixin's that come along with it.

we walked in and immediately got in line. in the long, long line. maybe it's the hype? maybe it's the food? we would soon find out! anyway, you order food sort of like in a fast food restaurant - take a look at the menu, tell the person at the counter, pay your money. they then give you a number and you go and sit down (at least we did - we had planned on eating at nando's). they have "food runners" who come by with your plates of food. well, it was plates of food for us. we ordered grilled chickens, wings, sides, and even a wrap (that was marguerite). i often find value in ordering a variety of things - this experience was no different. yay for a number of people going so we could get lots of different things!

now, nando's is famous not only for their grilled chicken (which we ordered), but also for their peri peri sauce. i'm not a huge sauce fan, but nando's does have a wide selection and i wanted to try some of them. there are spicy sauces, garlicky sauces, regular peri peri sauces (i'm not really sure hot to describe the peri peri sauce. maybe a south african version (of sorts) of bbq sauce? but not as smoky/tangy?). nando's has a number of "bars" throughout the restaurant (usually located next to the beverage stations) with large bottles of the sauce. we grabbed a few to accompany our meal. grilled chicken, chicken wings (that included both the wing and the drumette - yeah!), and a bunch of sides.

my thoughts on the food? the grilled chicken was pretty good. in fact, i'll probably find myself at nando's again, enjoying their chicken. i like that the wings are both wings and drumettes, i like that you can adjust the sauce to your liking, i like that the chicken is grilled (don't get me wrong - i love me some fried chicken! does anyone have any recommendations?). the sides, however, were ... lacking. i love side dishes (come on, now, i'm korean!), so having good side dishes to accompany my meal are total bonuses. that isn't to say that the sides were inedible. they were all right; i was just expecting more. but maybe that's the thing - high expectations. sigh ... all in all, individuals in my group left nando's full and happy - always a good sign!

i don't know if nando's is still as popular as it was when i made my little visit. i imagine it is. i'll have to check 'em out out. this time, i will order the chicken livers! haha ...

online: http://www.nandosperiperi.com/

mio

mio
1110 vermont avenue NW suite 1 (between L street & thomas circle), washington, DC 20005
tel: 202) 955-0075
hours: lunch: monday-friday 11:30am-2:30pm; dinner: monday-thursday 5pm-10, friday-saturday 5pm-11pm; bar/lounge: monday-thursday 5pm-12am, friday-saturdya 5pm-1am; happy hour (selected house drinks and draft beers): monday-thursday 4pm-7pm

what was consumed: restuarant week - beet soup, egg & clap appetizer, salad, grilled chicken with rice, mini burgers, skate, desserts~

as the summer 2009 restaurant week is upon us, i'm reminded of a time in the recent past when my co-workers and i head over to a delightful downtown eatery: mio.

so, christine met up with the rest of my co-workers as she was green with envy at all of my stories of the good food we were eating during restaurant week. of course she was always welcome to join us, but it wasn't until this trip that she finally took us up on our offer. after making the short trek from the office to vermont avenue (which felt longer than it actually was. yes, we are wimps), we finally entered a pretty empty dining area that was mio. now, i don't think it was empty for any other reason than us getting to the eatery right when it opened (literally, we saw the people unlock the doors right before we reached over to open them to enter) to ensure that we would get a table (one of my (now former) co-workers refuses (with us, anyway) to make reservation. yes, you know who i'm talking about - hee hee). additionally, there were 5 of us hungry hungry hippos - not relaly a pretty sight (i.e., the servers may need extra help to accomodate us hooligans).

4 of us decided to participate in the restaurant week menu while one of us decided to get the mushroom and veal ravioli (which was tasty, but not a part of the restaurant week special. shucks). anyway, we started with a cold beet soup (c was working at domku and i imagine i had recently left my position there; we couldn't help but make comparisons. our conclusion? both are delicious in their own way. yay for diplomatic answers! haha), a poached egg with clams (i ordered this one!), and a mixed green salad (i'm sure there were fancy names for all of these things, but i have since forgotten). can you ever really go wrong with clams? there were also bits of bacon/ham in the mix and everyone knows that everything is better with bacon.

for our entrees, we had an assortment of things: grilled chicken and rice (2 of us, one of whom was me ordered this), mini angus burgers, and skate. the burgers were fantastic, as was the skate. even mr. i-don't-like-burgers (who is also the same mr. i-don't-make-reservations) even said the burgers were delicious! and oh, wow, the onion rings. deep fried onions? delicious. the grilled chicken and rice was cooked "oaxaca style" (i don't really know what that means) was tasty as well, but a bit salty for my liking. yes, even me who prefers the savory over the sweet. it was just a bit salty. of course, that didn't prevent me from eating the whole thing because it was still so freakin' delicious.

and then, dessert. the dessert lovers always fight for whatever they love and i usually get what's left over (for tasting). since there were 4 of us and 2 options, we got 2 of each. a tart lemon flan like custard thing and chocolate cake. the lemon dessert was quite tart, causes faces to pucker just a bit. but, you know, some people really like it. once you get past that sourness, though, it's such a refreshing (albeit on the sweet side) dessert. the chocolate cake was good too, but i think it was a german cake (i'm not so much a fan). of course, that didn't prevent all of the people in our party from polishing off all of the desserts - ha!

during the meal, there was very little talking (if i remember correctly) beyond compliments about the food and the sharing. that's a good sign of deliciousness, but does not lend to as entertaining of a post. just look at the photos and wipe the drool from your mouth please (oh, wait, that's just me). gawd, this is making me hungry ... per usual.

in the past, mio has extended their restaurant week specials up to a month (thus the appeal for us - if i recall correctly, we visted mio after the official restaurant week was over). looks like they're extended it this year (summer 2009) as well. in fact, looks like they're doing different "restaurant week" menus every week. definitely something to check out! YUM.

online: www.miorestaurant.com

spezie

spezie
1736 L street NW, washington, DC 20036
tel: 202) 467-0777
hours: lunch monday-friday 11:30am-2:30pm; dinner monday-saturday 5:30pm-10pm

what was consumed: restaurant week - chicken salad, gnocci, radiccio and pear salad, quail, seafood pasta, mushroom risotto, creme brule, tiramisu, fruit tart

on my way to and from the metro near farragut park, i pass spezie. and when i look in, i always see happy people drinking wine, eating good food, and generally looking like they're having a good time. so, when we saw that spezie was on the list for restaurant week (AND their entire menu was open for selection), we were happy to dish out the moola for a nice little restaurant week eatin'~

our meal started off with small appetizer plates. i was SO happy to see gnocci on the appetizer list - you know how i can't resist. that way, i could get gnocci AND something else! what a great day - yeehaw! spezie has a nice combination of flavors and options for appetizers - some are heavier than others, but all are delicious.

our meals continued with entrees. so many options, but diminishing space in my stomach (sadly). i opted for the mushroom raviolis not only because mushroom ravioli is always delicious, but also because it was with crushed pistachios (and who doesn't love pistachios?). friends had the quail and the seafood spaghetti, both which were delicious. i'm glad we all shared (because sharing is caring!).

for dessert, we got one of each offered. being the non-dessert person of the group, i let the others choose first and i ended up with the fruit tart. i tasted all of the desserts and they were divine! rich, creamy, sweet, delicious. but those 3 bites were enough for me. worked out well for friends because they polished off my fruit tart without a problem.

so full!

i'm curious to see how spezie is during non-restaurant week times. probably delicious. i will have to visit again! i look forward to it~

online: http://www.spezie.com/

cafe promenade

cafe promenade (in the mayflower hotel)
tel: 202) 347-2233
hours: breakfast - daily, 6:30am-11:30am; lunch - monday-saturday 11:30am-5pm; dinner - monday-saturday 5pm-11pm, sunday 5:30pm-11pm; afternoon tea - reservations only - monday-saturday 3pm-5pm, sunday 3:30pm-5:30pm

what was consumed: restaurant week - carpaccio of roasted beets, seasonal mesclun salad, pistachio crusted rainbow trout, paillard of beef, fresh fruit tart, white chocolate mousse, coffee latte cream brule

a few restaurant week seasons ago, my co-workers and i head over to the mayflower hotel (soon after the whole elliot spitzer scandel) to enjoy the culinary fares of the hotel's cafe promenade. this was actually my first experience with restaurant week (as well as the hotel altogether), so i was looking forward to dining sensation, good times with good people - what more can you ask for?

we made reservations for lunch (despite the protests of some in our group) primarily because we didn't want to spend too much time waiting. good thing, too, because the place filled up pretty quickly, and despite getting there at an earlier time. we sat in a large dining area, well lit by open skylights and decorated with some fancy shmancy chandeliers. we began our meal with the standard bread and butter. loved how there were little herbs on the butter! man, it's all about those little touches.

then came our appetizers (or what the french call entrees. i know, totally confusing! i will err toward the americans being the ones who got confused - haha). i had the lovely beet carpaccio. i'm new to the world of beets, but let me tell you ... DELICIOUS. the combination of flavors made things not too strong, not too bland, not too salty, not too sweet. even their "standard" spring mix green salad had a lovely vinegarette-ish dressing (how come i can't make anything like that at home!?!?).our selected entrees for restaurant week quickly came out. i, of course, chose the option that came with fries - the paillard of beef. and it's beef - what more can you ask? cooked just right so that you don't even need a knife to cut it. it also came along with this fancy butter that made the meal that much more rich in flavor (that is, i remember it being rich in flavor. maybe i'll have to go again to refresh the memory ^_^). others had fish (which i was considering as well, but i couldn't pass up the fries) that was in a pesto sauce. also yum!!!

and then, of course, dessert. now, let me make a comment here about dessert and restaurant week. i'm not a big fan of desserts so i usually don't order them (i'm sure i've mentioned this before and i'll mention it again). but as a part of restaurant week, the 3-courses includes dessert. many a time have i wished i could exchange the dessert for an appetizer (and you can be sure that i'd ask!), but the answer is usualy no. sigh. oh well~ i have to admit, though, i have had quite of number of completely delicious sweet treats.

of course, our experience here at cafe promenade would not be complete without photos. not only did i take photos of the food, but of us as well. many of these photos ended up on our work intranet page as the lighting of the restaurant was so wonderful. hahaha. people ask where we were when they see the photos on the intranet; we just tell them it's a secret (haha).

i have to admit, as we were leaving cafe promenade, we wondered who the people were around us. why did they choose to stay at the mayflower hotel? and, of course, we couldn't help but to wonder if any of them were following in the footsteps of other scandal makers - ha!

online: http://www.marriottmodules.com/restaurant/hotels/hotel-information/travel/bwiih-marriott-baltimore-inner-harbor/cafe_promenade/ (hey - i didn't know the mayflower hotel was a marriot hotel ... )

chop't

chop't
1105 1/2 19th street, NW, washington, DC 20050 - there are a number of different locations here in DC (and, apparently, in NYC), but i've only been to the one near work ... su's dprk encounter (encounter? confrontation?) happened at the chinatown location, in case you were wondering ... if you don't know about su's experience, let me know and i will happily share - haha ...
tel: 202) 955-0665
hours: monday-friday 10:30 am-9pm, saturday 11am-5pm

what was consumed: chop't salad - make it yourself, folks! i usually put spinach and mesculun mix, corn, tomatoes, chick peas/garbonzo beans, mushrooms, and broccoli with a little bit of the texmex ranch dressing

growing up in so.cal, the idea of salad bars was pretty ... normal. that is, there were always salad bars (even in the carl's jr.s! ahh, i miss carl's jr. ...) and the idea of "make your own" was found everywhere. when i first came to DC, this was one (of many) things i missed because salad bars are no where to be seen. not really, anyway. i mean, there are places that will make salads for you (e.g. cosi), but nothing really comes close to souplantation/sweet tomatoes!!!

then, i started seeing chop'ts everywhere. they sort of reminded me of cosi with their plastic containers and the like, so i didn't think anything of them. then, one day, i had a hankering for a nice salad (as i often do - i will always take a salad over dessert ... even if i've already had salad - ha!) and thought i'd give chop't a try ... and then i proceeded to visit them 2 more times that week. i will have to say, then, that chop't is good to go in my book!

so, for those of you who don't know (or who've never been), it works like this: you pick your lettuce, you pick your fixin's, they chop up all of the different ingredients (thus their name), mix in the dressing, and then you eat. simple.

though, if you go during lunch, there is usually quite a line. the line moves pretty quickly, but you'd better know what you want by the time you get to the middle of the line (i say middle because that's where they begin taking your order). if not, the people behind the counter will move onto the next person and when you get back into line, people behind you get all mad. don't mess with hungry cubicle folk during lunch! haha ...

chop't also has a variety of pre-set combinations. you tell them you want "---" on the menu and they will make it (i.e., they're not pre-made; rather, the ingredients are just already pre-set). in addition to salads, they also have wraps. something for everyone! i think the reason i like chop't better than some of the other salad places is because i can make the salad the way that i want, with the ingredients that i want, at a pretty reasonable price. they have lots of fixin's, lots of dressings, so if i wanted, i could get so many different combinations (this is starting to sound like a math problem: how many combinations of chop't salads can i get if i have 4 lettuce types (no half-and-half as grace does), 4 of the 15 fixin's, and 15 dressings, provided that even something as little as changing the dressing changes the option ... ? any takers? haha ...)!

and while i have yet to go again this week, i imagine they will be seeing more of me now than they have in the past. hooray for salad!!

online: www.choptsalad.com

founding farmers

founding farmers
1924 pennsylvania avenue NW, washington, DC 20006
tel: 202) 822-8783
hours: monday-wednesday 8am-10pm; thursday 8am-11pm; friday 8am-12am; saturday 12pm-12am; sunday 10am-9pm

what was consumed: skillet cornbread, bacon lollis, heirloom cheesepuffs, meatloaf, pan fried chicken, prime rib dip sandwich, macaroni with meat ragu, farmer's salad, fries~

sustainable development, sustainable food ... it's all in the news today. so, when i read about a restaurant that focuses on sustainable food, i had to check it out (on top of it being just blocks from work - total bonus).

as of right now, i've visited founding farmers two times. both times, i enjoyed a filling lunch (i.e., i have yet to try out their breakfast or their dinner, both of which i've heard good things about). the last time i went, i made reservations for lunch. it was a good thing!there were lots of people and we were ready to eat. we were quickly shown to our table and greeted by friendly staff sometime after that (christine, willie, and i were preoccupied with the menu, so it's hard to tell how long we waited). i recommended the foods that i had the first time i visited (cheese puffs, meat loaf, pan friend chicken, fries) and those served to be the basis of the decisions that day.

we ultimately decided on a smorgasboard of small plates and entrees. definitely more food than we could handle, but you know how much i (and christine) can eat. we are champions! the food tasted fresh, well seasoned, and full of flavor. if you love corn bread (and i do), you will love the cord bread at founding farmers - not too dry and chock full of actual corn pieces. and the bacon lolly? i mean, can you really go wrong with bacon? not really, but when the bacon pieces are nice and thick, with a great flavoring, it makes it all the better. and, of course, the heirloom cheese puffs. essentially, it's a cream puff but instead of the cream, there's a delicious, savory, and light cheese filling. i loved how the macaroni was cooked just a bit al dente with a ragu meat sauce that had a lot of real meat. and the au jous for the prime rib sandwich melded the flavors of the onion and cheese just right. the pan fried chicken went so well with the gravy. additionally, the chicken was not too dry and the crispy covering was just right - not too heavy, not too oily.

at the end of my last meal at founding farmers, willie and i had great fun talking about the cool dyson air curtain hand dryers. try it out!

a couple of random thoughts ...
i was speaking with a coworker of mine who mentioned interest in waiting tables there. ditto. i wonder if they're hiring? they often seem short staffed in that it takes some time for orders to be taken and drinks to get refilled (though the food seems to come out pretty quickly. or maybe that's because we were stuffing our faces with food, i don't know).
i recommend making reservations. even with our lunch past 1pm, the majority of the tables were filled. maybe we were there on a busy day? maybe not. better safe than sorry!
oh, and those pickling jars with veggies? just for decoration. oh well~

i'm sure i'll find myself back at founding farmers sooner than later, pickeled veggies or not. next time, i want to try (among other things) their rotisserie chicken - YUM!

**edit**

i really want to like founding farmers, but after this last experience, i may have to reconsider.

don't get me wrong - the food is still good. in fact, the food is fresh and delicious ... that is, when the food actually comes out and when the food comes out as ordered. my parents were in town and i wanted to take them to some restaurants that i enjoy. founding farmers came up. so, our relatively larger group (we ended up with 6) made a reservation for dinner. we got there almost 30 minutes before our reservation time and were promptly seated once our reservation time came around - that's good. we ordered our drinks and ordered all of our food. after a weekend otherwise full of gluttonous meals (and imbibing, per usual), we didn't really feel up to having drinks - should that even matter? it seemed, though, that that fact affected the service we were to receive. in any case, our appetizers came out and we began to enjoy our meal. after we finished the first course, we waited no less than 30 minutes for our salads (which were drenched in salad dressing, despite my request for less dressing) to come out and even more time after that for our entrees. am i being unreasonable? scary images of chef gordon ramsey in 'kitchen nightmares' began to fill my head (i need to watch less tv!). hmmm ...

we were also charged twice for the sodas that we had, even after we asked if they had complimentary refills (we were drinking club soda), to which they replied in the affirmative, and after they went into a pretty lengthy explanation about their double filtering water machine that makes their own carbonated water. hmm ... despite all of these things, of course, we left a sizeable tip. after all, there were 6 of us that needed to be appeased ...

so, maybe it was just the service this time around, but the slow and less than satisfactory service from previous times as well makes me increasingly hesitant to recommend and consider FF as a top dining experience. my former serving experience makes me more compassionate towards the work that servers do, but it also makes me a more critical patron because i wonder how/think/know i can do a better job. maybe i just need a FF break ... o_o ... tbd~

online: http://www.wearefoundingfarmers.com/

pasara thai

pasara thai
1219 connecticut avenue NW, washington, DC 20036
tel: 202) 223-3777

what was consumed: spring rolls, papaya salad, appetizer sampler, spicy pork dish, pasara fried rice, other curries (i forget which) ...

it looks like there are a number of pasara thai locations, but it wasn't until a location opened in dupont circle (south) that i found out about this delicious thai restaurant.

there are a number of thai restaurants near where i work. when pasara thai opened, we had to check it out. it's near the old dragonfly (which i'd been to only once, almost in passing) next to lucky bar and julia's empanadas so i had passed it by a number of times after its opening.

pasara thai is hip in decor (as is the style of dupont circle, i suppose). they have quite a large dining area on two levels along with bar seating (and the bar has these really cool bar stool chairs - sort of like sitting on a bunch of thick elastic bands). i also enjoy sitting next to the windows that face connecticut avenue (i love sitting next to windows). someone once commented to me that pasara thai would probably be a good location (decor wise) for some happenin' night life. beats me about that, though ... haha ...

pasara thai has a large thai menu, as is the case with most thai restaurants. when my friend chris and i visited, we started with the appetizer sampler - what a great way to try a number of different things! and all of them fried. yum! there's nothing like fried wonton wrappers on all sorts of different fried fares~ they also have a number of salads, of which i've tried the papaya salad. i always thought of papaya as being something sweet (with it being a fruit and all), but this salad was far from it. it was fresh, flavorful, and delicious.

now, while i look at a good pad thai as the indication of whether or not a thai restaurant is to my liking, i have not had the pad thai at pasara thai (or any other noodle dish, for that matter). upon asking the server, however, he mentioned that the pad thai was something he enjoyed, as well as many of the restaurant's patrons. the first time, i opted for a spicy pork dish, which our server recommended as well. it was a nice combination of pork with a variety of vegetables, all in a spicy broth-like sauce. definitely spicy, definitely delicious! i've also had their fried rice a number of times. pasara thai has a number of fried rices. and while a touch of hot sauce would probably make the dish better, but that's my take on most foods (i love hot sauce).

i recently visited pasara thai again with some co-workers who had been fans of other thai places. after our meal at pasara thai, they've collectively decided to visit pasara thai more often. i will as well. yummy thai food~~~