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Showing results for tags 'Fast-Casual'.
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It doesn't look like there'a a thread for it yet, so I wanted to start one for Bandoola Bowl in Georgetown, at 1069 Wisconsin Ave (just towards the river from M Street). Bandoola Bowl specializes in Burmese and southeast Asian - style salads, recently adding noodle and rice bowls as well, at least on a seasonal basis. Opened and run by the family that used to run Mandalay in Silver Spring. I am totally rooting for this place to succeed. Everything I have eaten here has been fresh and delicious, including the ginger salad, roasted pork salad (both the salad and noodle bowl), and chicken salad -- flavors and textures both great, and everything is customizable though they'll definitely make recommendations. All of the dressings I have tried have been excellent (the green "garden" dressing that comes on the chicken salad is a definite favorite - I asked what was in it, and the answer was lots of herbs). Everyone who I have come across that works there is unbelievably friendly and helpful. If you're a return customer, you'll likely be welcomed back with a smile and asked if you've tried something that may be new on their menu or a special. If you're new, you'll likely (based on personal observation at least, definitely) be offered tastes and recommendations. I totally love this place. It's unique in Georgetown, and the friendliness of the folks here is just overwhelming. https://bandoolabowl.com/- 2 replies
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- Georgetown
- Fast-Casual
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I got takeout from the fairly new Brgz hamburger place across from Eastern Market last night. The fries were thin, crispy, and good. The burger I got was okay. The dipping sauce ("spicy ranch") that came along with what I ordered was not good. It was watery thin and tasted more of sour than spicy or ranch. The concept behind the restaurant is that the "toppings" are mixed into the meat, so they are not actually toppings. It put me in mind of the mix-in ice cream places that used to be popular (or maybe still are?). Before embarking on my visit, my tiny poll of two people I know who had eaten there resulted in one person who thought the food was fine but too expensive for what it is and the other absolutely HATED the concept. This is not the place for someone who wants bacon and cheese on top of the burger. I got the signature Buffalo Burger, which included the following: Celery, Carrots, Scallions, Blue Cheese, and Buffalo Seasoning. I swear there were small bits of pickle in this burger. Either than or something in the seasoning quick pickles the celery bits or scallions. I couldn't figure it out because I knew it didn't have pickles listed, but something sure tasted like tiny pieces of pickle. In addition to the 8 signature burgers, they also have a build your own option. All the burgers are $9. I can see this being a good place to go to if some people want vegetarian or non-red meat options. In addition to beef (which I got), they have chicken and impossible burgers. So if you want bacon mixed into your vegetarian burger, it appears you can do that. The concept worked okay for me. I didn't love it and didn't hate it. The only outright bad thing was the dipping sauce. The price could have been lower, but it wasn't obscenely expensive. I'd stop by for the $4 fries again.- 3 replies
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- Local Chain
- Eastern Market
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Newk's Eatery is also in Gambrills and Annapolis.
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http://www.falafelinc.org/ We took a group of college kids to the new Spy Museum via the Alexandria water-taxi to the Wharf. After the spy museum we walked down to the Wharf for dinner. We had a vegetarian in our group, and all the group agreed that Falafel Inc sounded good. It is fast casual, with a little machine that pops out falafels to order. The drink options seemed a little limited. You could get a sandwich (in a pita), or a bowl (salad), with add-ons like hummus, zataar fries, tabouli, etc. I think there was a small confusion on what a bowl and sandwich were for the group when we first walked in. It seems like they could just say pita or salad. There are no tables inside, but outside there were high tops and tables you could stand/sit at to eat. They have sauces you can add after you get your sandwich- those have names, but the names don't really correspond to what it is- I would prefer if they just said like cilantro sauce, mild spicy, spicy, etc. I figured the bright orange was a hot sauce of sorts and got that, I was right and I quite liked it. Anyway, the naming could be better, but the sandwich really was pretty decent with the sauce. Fries were good, not quite as good as those from Lebanese Taverna Market, enough for at least two to share. I can't remember if the sauce descriptions were on the hanging menu, they were likely on the printed one, if there was a sign right above the sauces that would help. But also having one that says it can't be described is a bit trite. Anyway, good for a not too expensive grab and go at the Wharf with a vegetarian.-
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- Local Chain
- Fast-Casual
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From the owners of Northwest in College Park, this place is essentially Cava or Chipotle with awesome tasting Chinese ingredients, made into a "burrito" in a pancake or as a rice bowl. I can't find a website but this Diamondback article describes it pretty well. "College Park's Latest Chinese Restaurant Has Build-Your-Own Meals" by Julia Lerner on dbknews.com My lunchmates and I covered 3 proteins and 6 "side" ingredients, and other than general agreement we would skip the raw garlic next time, all were tasty. I had lamb, spicy sauce, eggplant, and bean sprouts. The lamb here is "lamby" (don't say gamy) much like it is at Northwest; I don't know what cut but it's awesome. They also have a Jones Soda fountain, which I haven't seen before. I don't drink much soda but Green Apple Jones from the tap? Sure.- 4 replies
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- College Park
- Fast-Casual
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Newk's Eatery is apparently opening their 1st location in Virginia (Sterling). FIRST NEWK’S EATERY IN VIRGINIA COMING TO STERLING by Chris Wadsworth, Theburn -
Pardon the late notice but I spotted this forthcoming Asian food hall a few weeks back. Streat Side is claiming three slots (6343-6347) in the Center Ridge strip mall, setting up shop between the pending Coast Guard Exchange store and chain eatery Choong Man Chicken. The owners haven't responded to emails about their plans for the new venture, but their web page promises a 4,000-square foot space that sounds a lot like Annandale's Block: 6 food stalls, a dedicated bar, and a "lively and cozy space." I've heard construction crews working their magic inside but can't tell if this newbie is going to pop before the new year. There's no shortage of Korean, Thai, or Chinese-American take-out in the area. But nothing wrong with welcoming a worthwhile mash-up such as Balo Kitchen to the area.
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- Centreville
- Centre Ridge Marketplace
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Souvlaki Bar has multiple locations in the DMV, I couldn't find a thread, if there is one, please merge. We have gone to Souvlaki Bar a few times now as it is super close to the house. We took Mom there the other night as it has really good salads that are a pretty generous portion that you can top with lamb, chicken, pork or falafel. Last time I went I had a greek salad with chicken. I thought the chicken was a nice texture of juicy, flavorful and crispy. So the other night I got the kale and spinach salad with chicken, and I enjoyed it as well. The kale was nice and tender, the salad greens were very fresh, again the chicken was good. A girl had a wrap beside us that looked good too. I don't think they are per se better than like Plaka, and they don't have as big of a menu, BUT they have really nice salads and at least the chicken has been delicious, I will try a wrap with gyro meat next time to see.
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- Local Chain
- Fast-Casual
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Mason’s Famous Lobsters to Open Next Week in Reston Town Center by Fatimah Waseem, RestonNow
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I love that the menu has allergens/ food avoidances simply listed. Because the actual Leon website is annoying as hell, I link to Eater which has a copy of the DC sample menu. About 2 blocks away, there's a fast-casual taco place on K street that won't be there long...
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- Downtown
- Farragut North
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There's a new Poki DC on L st...btw Ct and 19. Couldn't find it on the web. Soft opening today was tasty. I found this Poke more than OK. Very nice people there everything was what it was supposed to be. Fresh, cold, warm, soft, crunchy...It is a bowl of rice with stuff on it but I pretty much love rice with stuff on it.
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You know who really pushed the price point up in DC for fine dining? Fabio. I distinctly remember a Facebook post of his that was self-musing about what the big deal was about paying $40 for something ... I think it was lamb. It wasn't anything critical, but I recall thinking that he was going to make a play to get prices up in this town (and I'm not sure that's a bad thing; just reporting something with a foggy memory, before I fly out the door).
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Multi-unit deal brings crave-worthy chef-inspired fast casual seafood dishes to the East Coast. I believe the first location will be located at One Loudoun and opening in June. Several locations planned for Reston, Ashburn, Fairfax, Tysons and Merrifield.
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Rasa Grill opened in SE in Navy Yard in December. It's fast casual Indian (or more like Indian-ish), locally sourced ingredients, and some fun fusion (Masala Gin Tonic!). They have pre-made bowls, or you can make your own. Really beautiful space, fun colors, neat design. Great back story, too. They made Eater's hot list for this month and review have been good. Anyway, I won't say too much, since I'm an investor, except that I think it's pretty darn tasty, and you should try it out and let me know what you think!- 18 replies
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- Navy Yard
- Nationals Stadium
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Anyone know anything about this chain of sushi joints? Its about to open in Lancaster, Pa. I need intel. Help! Hungry, kat -
Sunday night we went with my SIL to Rolls n Rice. She likes getting sushi here because you can get soy wrappers and she isn't a seaweed fan. The sushi isn't in competition for best of the DMV, but it is affordable and they have a nice selection of bento, normal sushi (very close to like quick made conveyor sushi in Tokyo, I am sure they use a machine to make the nigiri rice and they do it for speed, not for quality of the sushi), noodles, soup, etc. It is a fast causal order at the counter place. We have been before and the people who work there are very nice. They are really fast at making sushi. Once you order you get a number, they bring you salad, some dishes also get miso soup. I got a combo bento box with 3 pieces of nigiri, 4 pcs California roll, beef bulgogi, rice, 2 tempura shrimp and some tempura vegetables. It was really too much food, but I managed to eat it all. I should have saved the sushi for lunch today, as Matt overate his sushi and said we should have packed up a few pieces. The tempura was just as expected. The bulgogi was saucy, but good. This is definitely like fast-casual Japanese food, but it's affordable and a nice quick stop for dinner. We like going here, we think it's fun and we can swap things from each person's order to try.
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Enjoyed a good meal at this new fast casual place in Mosaic a few weeks ago. The three of us each got different meats with sides (lentils, etc). The Naan was well made and buttery. I don't recall all the details, but it was hearty and reasonable. Sauces were not too spicy but flavorful and unboring. I do recall this weird automatic hand wash contraption thing in the dining room. It was awesome. -
I tried out Meggrolls last night. It's in the former Five Guys space at 107 N. Fayette Street in Old Town. The space is pleasant -- navy and white, with a touch of dusty orange in the dining area, blond wood tables and chairs, and a bunch of framed '80s album covers in the dining area. Right now, they're open for dinner hours only, at 5:00, so they can get a feel for the flow. The menu is small, about a half dozen Meggrolls offered, plus some cole slaw variations, french fries, and chili, and the chalkboard advertises that pies are coming soon. The chalkboard also says that 1 roll is a good snack and 2 is a meal. Well, 1 roll and a side of slaw would be more than plenty of food for me; I did the 2 rolls (no sides) and it was a stretch -- remember, it's all deep fried. At $6.75+ per roll (sides are a la carte), taking the chalkboard's advice gets pricey pretty fast for what is, at its heart, tasty craft junkfood. The rolls are a cheeseburger, buffalo chicken, gyro, mac-n-cheese, and chicken parm. The rolls are expertly fried, and fried to order. I could see into the frying area and each chamber of the fryer was labeled for each type of roll so none of the flavors mingle. They're using some sort of iPad register system and it looks cute but I wonder how it's going to hold up over the medium term, let alone long term. Because it's done to order, and a small kitchen (one fry cook/roll splitter and one dressing the rolls at the pass, it can get backed up quickly and one even small order gone wrong can throw the whole thing into the weeds. Case in point, I was in a mini-rush of folks getting off work and arriving about 5:45, and was 3rd or 4th to order and 10th or 11th to get my 2 rolls, one of which was done many minutes (and several intervening pick-ups) before the other. The rolls were dark brown, crunchy, not greasy, and held up well to a 30 minute car ride home, but I certainly wouldn't recommend that sort of holding time. I tried the spicy buffalo chicken roll and the gyro roll. The chicken was a mild-to-medium spicy piece of chicken that appeared to have been pre-cooked in the spiced coating, then egg roll wrapped with a little something else inside the roll, deep fried and then split lengthwise and topped with a small celery stick and dressed with bleu or ranch dressing (I had the bleu on the side since it was a to-go order). I would have liked it a bit spicier and with more of a celery kick to it. The gyro was a spiced lamb patty, sort of like kofta, deep fried, split lengthwise and topped with (a very bland) tzatziki, shredded lettuce and halved grape tomatoes. I liked this one a little better than the buffalo chicken, but felt it was a bit out of balance with too much yogurt/not enough herbs compared to the lamb. The flavor of the lamb was good. I scraped off most of the tzatziki and ate it with the tomatoes instead, and a punch of fresh herbs and garlic would have done it good. Overall, it was a fun meal but I'd really put it in the category of a well-made junky treat and not something I'll eat very often.- 1 reply
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- Alexandria
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"As Shake Shack Reopens Flagship, Danny Meyer Becomes $600 Million Man" by Brian Solomon on forbes.com
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I'm normally a purist when it comes to burgers, but Hubcap Grill has made me rethink that stance. Over the course of a few visits to the Heights location now, I've had a standard cheeseburger (unless you are an NFL linebacker or Olympic athlete w/ massive caloric requirements best not to go for the double), the seasonal hatch chile cheeseburger, the guacamole swiss, and the philly cheesesteak burger. The relatively thin (but massive in diameter) 1/3rd pound freshly-ground patties are cooked more or less to medium, with a nice crust. The buns are custom-made specifically for Hubcap, and accomplish the impossible feat of remaining intact despite the onslaught of drippy toppings and glorious fat. I started things simply, with the house cheeseburger. Served with standard toppings, you get a real sense of the quality of the beef, and of the deftness of the hand that is seasoning it. So far, so good. I'd come back again and again for the simple deal, though I could imagine that sometimes I might want to opt for a "lighter" meal with a smaller, skinnier, fast-food style burger, like Shake Shack (or apparently the soon-to-open FM Burger just of Washington Ave). Of the specialty burgers, the only one I wouldn't be in a hurry to order again would be the guac/swiss. Not that it was bad by any means, but it just didn't do enough for me to sway me from the plain jane. The hatch chile was a thing of beauty that will leave you blissful, sated, and wrecked. There is no skimping on the chiles here, and this is Texas, so there is no skimping on the spice level of said chiles. You will need more than one beer (or Topo Chico) for this. Order appropriately up front, so you aren't waiting in line to get another beverage, mouth ablaze. I was VERY skeptical of the Philly cheesesteak burger, but after hearing it's praises sung by Alison Cook from the Chronicle, and Texas Monthly, and then being steered that way by owner Ricky Craig himself, I had to do it. Christ almighty was that a sandwich. It's a mess, and it's huge, and you might die when you finish it, but dammit, it's good. This is a thing that if done wrong, would be the worst of 2 worlds: a shitty cheesesteak, and a shitty burger, or maybe worse yet: a good burger ruined by a shitty cheesesteak. Alison Cook recently encountered a less than stellar version, and wrote about it, lighting a fire under Craig, who went around to each of his locations to retrain (and offer free burgers to folks to prove the quality was back). I am glad to have avoided the off-day, and whatever Craig did to whip his team into shape certainly seems to have worked. Also of note: the sliders come 4 to an order, and are topped with grilled onions. Great size for the little people, but are great in their own right. Simple. Delicious. Fries are hand cut and mostly great (my last order was greasy and a bit on the undercooked side). Sweet potato fries excellent as well. Strong selection of local beers in cans and bottles.- 2 replies
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Sometime close to ten years ago, I noticed that there was a cluster of restaurants developing on 14th Street, north of P Street and Logan Circle (actually Thomas Circle), but south of U Street - it pretty-much started with Cork Wine Bar. I began a discussion thread about what, if anything, we should call the 14th Street Corridor, before I realized we weren't agreeing on anything, and unilaterally decided on 14UP - a name which is absolutely descriptive and appropriate (it's 14th Street between U and P Streets, but a name that the rest of the media has been "resilient" to pick up on and use - I'll leave their reasoning up to you. It doesn't matter - I'll be using this term for the rest of my life, even though Eatonville threw me a curve-ball, several years later, by opening on V Street - it's still better than anything that anyone else has come up with. "14th Street Corridor" is so ambiguous as to be meaningless, and has about as much character as "Dupont Circle." During that time, the rise of "Quick-Serve" or "Fast-Casual" restaurants has been every bit as dramatic as the rise of Food Trucks replacing those nasty hot-dog carts - it seems as if I have about half the threads tagged "Quick-Serve," and about half tagged "Fast-Casual," and I'd like to propose choosing one over the other, and sticking with it. This doesn't need to be a permanent change, but I'd like to try and stay with it for a few years. Instead of making a unilateral choice, I'm going with a group vote - they both seem to be equally popular, and there may in fact be a technical difference between the two (if there is, someone please chime in pronto). I have no strong feelings about one over the other, so I'm going to let people here decide what they should be termed, and go with the majority vote. Go ahead and vote on any of the four choices - more than one if you'd like. 14UP is here to stay, and it would be appreciated if you could use that term going forward - I was the first person (not here, but anywhere) who spotted the trend, and proposed giving that corridor its own name. It's just as good as SoHo or NoLIta and certainly a lot better than DUMBO. Have at it. If you vote for #4, please state your reasoning with a post. I have a slight preference for "Quick-Serve" because none of the words are in either "Fast Food" or "Casual Dining" - there are six different words for those three different terms, and no chance of getting them confused. I also understand that some "restaurants" (Subway, for example), fall in-between Fast Food and the Quick-Serve / Fast-Casual model, so this isn't like we're trying to come up with a cure for cancer. Cheers, Rocks
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Shouk is a fast-casual eatery serving 100 percent plant-based deliciousness!!! Here is the menu: - the restaurant opened May 3rd. On Sunday, May 15, 2016, I enjoyed the following: Shouk Pita with roasted fennel, crispy potato, red pepper, pistachio pesto Polenta fries with tomato tahina Shouk Salad with lots of fresh & roasted veggies, crunch, tahina vinaigrette
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- Mount Vernon Square
- Convention Center
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New Jerk Chicken place opened up, "Dat Jerk", in Waldorf. Jamaican chef and owner, they are from California. The website is very professional - not too many businesses in Southern Maryland are that savvy. It's a jerk chicken fast casual, modeled after Cava Grill/Chipotle/etc. You pick your protein - jerk chicken (mild or spicy), curry chicken, jerk pork, beef jabobs (not a spelling error - maybe they mean Jamaican kabobs?). Two sides (rice and beans, red beans, plantains, vegetables, few other things). I saw them using legit wood charcoal in the ovens. The place smelled heavenly. Got lunch for my medical assistant and the locums physicist. I got the spicy jerk chicken. It was basted with a scotch bonnet pepper jerk sauce. Tender dark meat chicken, excellent seasoning, and that sauce was spicy. I got some on the side and burned my mouth off. The sides were fantastic, I don't love plantains, but these were tasty, caramelized, and soft. It was empty, but I think they do decent carry out business. It's a good concept. They should open a few more, add some Caribbean beers, Red Stripe, and I bet it would kill it in DC.
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Coming soon to Rockville. "The Habit Burger Grill Coming to Rockville Pike" by Andrew Metcalf on bethesdamagazine.com- 11 replies
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From the sounds of things, it seems that Little Sesame is a separate entity getting its start in DGS's lower-level, with a common co-owner in Nick Wiseman. Thus, it will also get its own thread. Congratulations to the whole team, Nick, Robin, and everyone else - please stay active here and let us know when you expand beyond lunch, get a beer and wine license, open another location, etc. All these pop-ups and restaurants within restaurant are parallel to recent college graduates living with mom and dad for a couple of years because they can't afford to pay rent (heck, I did it for a year - I think it's a great idea, and it can even bring the family closer together).
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- Downtown
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