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Showing results for tags 'West Alexandria'.
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Thought people might be interested to hear about Chef Guo, a new restaurant featuring Chef Guo Wenjun's take on Chinese banquets. This is probably the closest the DC area has had to Chinese fine dining, and I'm interested to see how it fares. The chef serves a selection of two tasting menus, the Banquet of Eternal Bliss Hot Pot ($68 lunch, $98 dinner), and the Banquet of Peace and Prosperity ($158 dinner only), both of which feature 10+ courses in the style of imperial cuisine. Scroll through the website to see the full menus, pictures of the dishes, and a press release detailing the overall concept. So far there hasn't been much buzz about this place outside of the Chinese community, but some friends who have gone reported it to be luxurious, visually and conceptually unique, and a lot of (too much?) food, mostly very good to excellent. There seems to be a mix of traditional cuisine and modern/Western techniques. If I understand correctly, the dinner they attended was a special event combining dishes from both menus, with all of the guests at a shared table and Chef Guo himself coming out between each course to explain the concept behind the dish (in Chinese); it's not clear to me how different the experience will be once the restaurant gets settled in, but from their website it seems like they are definitely interested in catering to non-Chinese clientele as well.- 20 replies
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Just bought a condo offf Seminary road and will be moving shortly, I'm not going to be far from Del ray but wanted to know if anyone knows good food to be found near Duke street between Old Town and Landmark, or thereabouts -
This place has opened up in the place formerly occupied by Chef Chen's. The space is much bigger than Tempt Asian but still kind of drab despite a remodel. We have been there a couple of times. They have a "Chinese menu" that is translated and easily available along with the usual Sino-American fare. We have had the spicy fish pot that was Excellent. Also loved the Nanjing salty duck, bamboo cumin fish (although the cumin could have been more pronounced and beef in dry pot. The spicy dishes are hot but not unbearable so. Talked to the owner's son one evening before he went back to school. He said they have high hopes for this location and might even consider moving the whole operation here. Asked couple of different people but didn't get an answer to why they didn't just name it Tempt Asian II. My little corner of Alexandria desperately needed a good Chinese joint. I am excited. Looking forward to reviews better written than this one. -
We just had lunch at Cafe Shiraz, a little Iranian place in the Bradlee Shopping Center on King Street, and I wish we had been going more. We were served by the owners, who were very gracious, and the food was great. I ordered hot tea and it was Persian black tea brewed from leaves. (Bells and sirens are going off in any tea lover's head right now. The absence of the insipid Lipton Yellow Label is enough to recommend any restaurant.) The yogurt is made fresh in house, the yogurt sauce with dill was fantastic, the chickpea salad was wonderfully fresh with mild onion, mint, and what I assume were lemon and olive oil, and Mr. lperry's chicken kabob was pronounced "really good." He also enjoyed the rice, grilled onion, and charred tomato that came with his dish. Truth be told, I originally thought it was a wine bar or store because of the name, and I wish I had peeked in sooner rather than later. If you are in the area, they are a great choice. They are working with fresh, quality ingredients, and the food is simple and very good. -
I got home tonight to find the neighborhood listserve abuzz with news that the bagel shop in Bradlee Center has been served notice of eviction. There was a link to this petition for signing, and I'm curious if there is any way to find out the facts about what has happened.
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Simply to ensure it does not continue un-reported in the Dining Guide, prior to a dance class last night, I had dinner at the bar at Nick's nightclub on Pickett Street. On tap, Shiner Bock ($2.50, i guess the HH price) and Bud. Several other offerings in bottles. Looking at the bottom shelf, they must sell a helluva lotta cheap flavored vodka. Probably 30 half-gallon bottles of the swill were lined up in all their various flavors. It makes me think there must be a whole lot of 16-17 year olds masquerading on fake IDs in there on the weekends. The barman said most of it got mixed into pineapple juice things. <shudder> Menu is pub grub with a Tex-Mex slant. I decided to try the BBQ quesadilla. The runner who brought it out claimed to have smoked it himself. He did not menion if he was smoking anthing else. It came with bagged tortilla chips, some sour cream and salsa. The salsa was very pureed in texture and tasted mostly of lime juice. The beef was tender and chunky, the sauce a sweet smoky tomato-based thing, but the overwhelming taste was that of pickled jalapenos. After a couple of bites, that was the only flavor I could discern. I didn't come across any chunks of the jalapeno, so someone must have thought it a good idea to dump the juice into the vat of BBQ meat. No cheese and the sour cream did nothing to improve things. I've got 7 more weeks of this class. It's supposed to be 1/2 price burgers on Wednesdays -- none of the fancy ones, just reg. hamburgers & cheeseburgers, so I may try one of those next week. Verdict: If you want really sweet cheap drinks and to ogle underage wannabe cowgirls, this may be the perfect spot. Otherwise, just be glad I'm taking one for the team.
