TheMatt

Yeah, I went there a week or so ago and noticed the same thing. So...weird. I mean, I can't imagine bori cha is crazy expensive or labor intensive. And then bottled water must be more expensive than just...tap.

Indeed, I've tried many a times to duplicate the A&J cucumbers...and I keep failing. Too hot, too mild, too much garlic, too little, etc., etc. They are just too addictive! One of these days, maybe!

Dang. That’s sad. To Sok Jip was a monthly visit for me. I hope they can rebuild.

Went back to Taiwan Cafe this afternoon with my parents. We once again got our two standbys: tomatoes and eggs, and cabbage with garlic. This visit, however, was prompted by my mom reading an article about their three-cup chicken. So we got that, and it was good! Maybe the best rendition I've had in the area. Though I have to say, it's a bit "exciting" when you bite into some ginger without expecting it.

I won't say Balo Kitchen does everything perfectly, but the dishes they do well, they do *very* well. I'm a fan of their chicken nuggets!

Mmm. Pandan soft serve sounds good to me!

I've had good experiences getting carry-out with Enat a few times over the last few months. I always get the vegetarian combination and get food enough for two meals. Here's a pic of what I get: I think there were two little containers of shiro in this. I don't mind that though as I like shiro. Everything else was unique. I also had a good experience with Sora Market as well, but I tend to stick with Enat.

Huh. You are right. I guess I just think of that area as Vienna...incorrectly. Not sure how to change the title...

I didn’t see a topic here on it, so I thought I’d make one. Namely, I’ve visited Bing & Bao (https://www.bingandbao.com) a couple times and so far, I like what I’ve had. It’s a small joint specializing in, as the name says, jianbing and baozi. Each time I’ve gone, I’ve gotten pretty traditional jianbing (second time, a two-egg one because...egg good) and I’ve been satisfied each time. one can definitely fill you up! I also tried the veggie bao and thought it was good, but the main attraction for me is the jianbing. From what I can tell they use the mung bean and millet batter that I’ve always liked the best in the limited amount of jianbing I’ve tried. (I’m sure someone more knowledgeable than me can inform me on what part of China that is common in.) It’s located in the Idylwood Plaza center with the Whole Foods just south of the Beltway on 7. I recommend stopping by if you are in the neighborhood and trying it out.

The best breakfast!

I pretty much get the same thing when I've gone to B&E: turkey and eggs. Not turkey sausage, mind you, but turkey. As in deli sandwich slices of turkey griddled on the griddle.

I forgot to make a post about this last weekend. Odd considering it was one of the first dining out I'd done in a while. To wit, I was in Annandale thinking of getting a crazy Korean corn dog at Siroo Juk Story when I saw a new restaurant in the old Blue Sand Seafood spot: The Stone Tofu House (website, Instagram). The are nominally a soondubu jjigae (spicy soft tofu stew) joint with the added bonus that they apparently make their own tofu everyday. That would put them one up on Annandale stalwart Lighthouse Tofu (which I'm pretty sure does not). Now it being a zillion degrees, I didn't do "regular" soondubu but I did try curry soondubu which was new to me. And it was good and different. Not as spicy and I'm a fan of curry, so thumbs up from me. Unlike Lighthouse, though, The Stone seems to have a much more comprehensive/varied menu. They have a few more odd flavors of soondubu (like curry and jjajang), intestines, and even biji jjigae which is made with the pulp leftover from making tofu. Beyond that, many dishes including some focused on tofu that I'd like to try sometime (though it'd probably be better/easier with more people). As for COVID awareness, since it was newly open and early in the day, I was definitely separated from the few other diners. All the servers wore gloves and masks as well as it should be.

I think for the moment it’s due to the fact that there is so little passenger traffic that it’s not cost effective to use air shipping. But, yes, shipping chocolate in summer is wary at any time!

I was going to suggest online through omgjapan which has things like this variety box, but it looks like Japan Post isn't shipping to the US at the moment (at least by air).

The two places that first come to mind are Hana Market in DC and Maruichi Grocery in Rockville. The are the two Japanese markets I can think of. The other place is that candy store in Tysons Corner Center...Lollipops? Something like that. They have weird candy from all over, but not sure if anything in the mall is open.