43 replies to this topic

[Tweaked]

Menu.

I am intrigued - $20 Tuesday anyone? The staff at Banh Mi So #1 were enthusiastically talking this place up last night...

I would be interested in a $20 Tuesday...just not next Tuesday (5th) or the one after that (12th).

[ktmoomau]

Menu.

I am intrigued - $20 Tuesday anyone? The staff at Banh Mi So #1 were enthusiastically talking this place up last night...

I'd be in, we did a Chowhound lunch here and it was great.

[TheMatt]

I can't seem to see the menu (getting a 404)! But I'd probably be in.

[goldenticket]

I'd be interested as well, probably +1, depending on the date.

I couldn't get to the menu either, but found this one on menu pages.

[goodeats]

Can we throw out some dates? Dormant thread = sad face.

June 11 or 12?
June 26 or 27?

[Tweaked]

26th...maybe...depends if DC United wins tonight.
27th...as far as I know right now that works.

But if more people want to do 11/12 party on without me!

[ktmoomau]

Can we throw out some dates? Dormant thread = sad face.

June 11 or 12?
June 26 or 27?

I have trial June 11 and 12 so the later dates would be better.

[goodeats]

Does Wednesday, June 27 at 7 or 7:30pm sound good with folks?

[DanielK]

I'm available on the 27th.

[TheMatt]

I'm free on the 27th.

[DonRocks]

27th it is! 7 PM at Rice Paper.

And just to make sure everyone is sure: This "$20 Tuesday" is on a Wednesday. (N00bs, stick around - you'll catch on quickly.)

[monavano]

+2 for me and Mr. Monavano.

[goodeats]

Starting a list!
agm +1
catharine +1
DanielK +1
goldenticket +1
goodeats +1
monavano +1
TheMatt
thistle
Tweaked

(15 so far!)

[Tweaked]

me please.

[goodeats]

Bumping - new members, please consider joining us!

[goldenticket]

I'll be there, +1

[agm]

We're in.

[TheMatt]

I'm afraid I'm out now, as Antonio Burrell has moved his vegetarian dinner to the 27th as well.

[DanielK]

Assuming Antonio sticks with his (third) date, should we reschedule this to avoid the conflict?

[DonRocks]

Oh, FUCK. I didn't notice the overlap. Don't cancel yet - let me call Antonio. We've already got 12 people, and that's too good of a group to rearrange - let's keep this on the 27th, and I'll actually talk with Antonio about an alternate date at Masa 14.

Gosh darn it.

On a related note, I just spent 30 minutes helping to link together an employee with an employer, and yet again, I did it for free. Sigh ... I guess you'll be hearing about it in a press release.

[TheMatt]

Welp, I'm probably back in again. Huzzah!

[DanielK]

Thanks, Don.

Matt, you probably weren't the only one who would have bailed...

[catharine]

We're in. (Me +1)

[thistle]

I'd like to join you guys, if there is still space...

[ktmoomau]

I might be in if there is space, the next day is my companies party so would have to come sans the hubby so he could watch the dog.

[Anna Blume]

How public-transportation friendly might the destination be? I'd love to go if there's both space and accessibility.

[DonRocks]

How public-transportation friendly might the destination be? I'd love to go if there's both space and accessibility.

It's about one mile from East Falls Church Metro, with buses running down Sycamore/Roosevelt - I'm certain someone could meet you at the Metro Kiss & Ride if you give them your cell phone and alert them when you arrive.

May I also suggest walking down to Thanh Son Tofu as a group and having the experienced people teaching the N00bs how to purchase the best homemade tofu in the area here? I personally prefer the mushroom to the lemongrass, but an array of both flavors and both sizes (they offer small cubes and large rectangles) can fill up a container for about $3 - it's good, and ridiculously cheap, and you may want to try some fresh tofu milk, oftentimes still warm from just having been put into the container. Well worth a 10-minute group detour! They keep in your fridge, and reheat nicely in your microwave so you can just pop them for a snack (they can also be stir-fried into things, of course). This is one of my "secret hideaway" places that I use to astound tourists that they're not in Kansas anymore.

[Tweaked]

Don, I was already planning to hit up Thanh Son! I've been trying to track down this mushroom tofu..."loaf". It came packaged in an aluminum tray and the consistancy was sort of like a dense pudding, made from tofu and mushrooms.

My description doesn't sound appetizing, but it was really good...and it is my undertanding it came from Thanh Son. btw, looks like they close at 8pm, so I'm arriving early.

[catharine]

Sorry, but I need to cancel. Maybe next time.

[goldenticket]

Anna Blume
agm +1
DanielK +1
goldenticket +1
goodeats +1
monavano +1
TheMatt
thistle
Tweaked

ktmoomau - are you going to be able to join us?
How about you, Anna Blume?

Do we need to call ahead?

[DanielK]

13-15 people, I think calling ahead would be smart...

[Anna Blume]

Please count me in!

There is a slight possibility that I don't get back to town in time/shape to go, but I am looking forward to this.

[TheMatt]

I hate to do this so late in the game, but work has decided that Wednesday will not be a day for me to go to a $20 Wednesday. I now plan to live vicariously through descriptions...

[goldenticket]

Any other takers? I'll call tomorrow morning, so speak up before then. The more the merrier - and the more things we can try.

Anna Blume
agm +1
DanielK +1
goldenticket +1
goodeats +1
monavano +1
TheMatt
thistle
Tweaked
Koolpaw

See you all ^ tomorrow at 7pm.
Don't forget to bring cash.

[agm]

Does anybody know where this is? Eden Center is a big place, and I've spent far too little time there.

[Koolpaw]

Please add me to the list.

Sheldon

[Ericandblueboy]

It's not in the interior. It's one of the restaurants near the water fountain, IIRC (the water fountain itself is quite new). If you're facing the market/grocery store, it's too your left.

[Anna Blume]

It's about one mile from East Falls Church Metro, with buses running down Sycamore/Roosevelt - I'm certain someone could meet you at the Metro Kiss & Ride if you give them your cell phone and alert them when you arrive.

Thanks for the tip. Since I plan to go early for tofu (thanks for reminder , too!) I consulted Trip Planner which for some reason insists that I take a 15-minute bus from Ballston even when I plug in "East Falls Church" [Metro station] as my point of origin, then 6775 Wilson Blvd. as the final destination. Is it reading the Wilson Blvd. address incorrectly, or should I follow this advice?

[goldenticket]

Maybe because it's a straight shot down Wilson Blvd from Ballston, whereas EFC might require a longer bus ride (and another stop or two on the Metro). I think it's reading it correctly and would go with it.

[goldenticket]

Please add me to the list.

Sheldon

Done. Table is under "Jackie"

[Tweaked]

14 DR-ers Chowed Down and stuffed our Gullets last night at Rice Paper. When we arrived the place was empty, but by 8pm or so every table was full. Overall a very satisfying meal was had. I have no idea how many dishes we ordered or what was ordered. Menu

Perhaps one minor "complaint" about eating at Rice Paper v. the Chinese restaurant we have visited for $20 Tuesdays is the lack of large round tables. At Rice Paper they cobbled together several tables to form one long table. 1) a long table becomes more segregated in both converation and ordering 2) at the Chinese restaurants we have been to the food is the center piece and has a more communal spirit 3) At a round table everyone knows what is being order as opposed to "what is the other end of the table ordering." 4) The dishes at a Chinese restaurant are served up "family style" and better designed for sharing where as many of the dishes at Rice Paper were presented more along the lines of an entree for a single or two people. Despite all that, many of the dishes made there way around the table and I think everyone was able to at least get a sample taste of most everything.

Dishes I enjoyed:

Fried spring rolls (#3 on the menu). I love spring rolls and these were good.
Grilled beef in grape leaves (#8). These were excellent, perhaps the best appitzer we ordered.
Cabbage salad with various chicken pieces parts (#18). Crispy and refreshing.
Duck congee with duck salad (#53). Mellow but complex flavor...There was a lot of duck liver with the duck salad, so if duck liver is not your thing, then maybe not get this.
Crispy tofu with lemongrass (#95). The tofu is molten hot...be careful!
Crepe stuffed with shrimp, pork (#106). May have been best dish of the night for me, crepe was super thin and crispy with a subtle coconut flavor.
Ox tail dish (not sure of the number). Also excellent, great flavor, lots of cartilage and numby pieces of oxtail to gnaw on.

There were several seafood dishes and grilled meat skewer dishes ordered at the other end of the table but not sure what they were. I sampled some of the grilled meat skewers and thought they were all good. Many dishes are served with large piles of lettuce, herbs, dipping sauces etc. This is definitely food for making bundles and dipping into sauces.

Overall I thought it was a good $20 Tuesday and I would be happy to good back. With over 100 items on the menu there is certainly a lot more to explore. When we were leaving a small group were tucking into a giant communal hot pot soup (numbers 84-88) and that looked pretty damn good.

14 people stuffed to the gills...$22 with tax and tip.

[thistle]

I enjoyed this dinner, too-I was at the other end of the table. I ended up sampling the cha gio, the rice paper wraps w/ grilled shrimp & scallops, & the fried tofu. For some odd reason, although I'd been looking over the menu all day, I wasn't that hungry when I got there (this NEVER happens with me), so I didn't sample as much as I normally would have. The flavors were more subtle, compared to the lunch at Bangkok Golden ( I think I tried almost everything ordered there), but what I had was delicious, & it was great seeing everyone...

[monavano]

Mr. MV and I enjoyed dinner so much! We will definitely be folding into the fray for future dinners. The company was wonderful and the food quite good. Believe it or not, although we live in Alexandria, this was our first foray into Eden Center. Pathetic, I know! But, we're going to go more now, thanks to you all.
Loved the crepe, the grape leaf-wrapped beef, the tofu and and fresh rolls.
Thanks for pulling this together and facilitating the dinner-in-progress!

[Anna Blume]

You had to have been there to know how just how high a mark Tweaked sets with the review posted here.

I never would have thought about the difference between a round or long, rectangular table when an largish group is sharing, for example, but the point is spot-on. The family seated around a smaller round table near the front window seemed to be having a great time with one of the clay pots that appealed to many of us as we read the menu. In general, the appetizers worked best as something to share.

I thought the fresh garden rolls (#4) were pretty bland. However, cf. menu for the steamed rolls w pork and pork skin (#5?) which might have been the more interesting choice. Grape leaves (favorite of all dishes period that I tried) and tofu stood out. In general, street food-options worked best just as they do in this area's numerous takes on small plates, though I concur w Tweaked re exceptions and now appreciate congee more than in the past.

A few of the entrées were less successful just because the process of bringing together a number of traditional Vietnamese foods to serve as a single "Western" (best PC option?) main course seemed a bit forced. I ordered lemongrass chicken wrapped in tofu skin w sausage (one of the rice dishes, 30-something, if not quite what is listed online) and a long, half sausage and two small squares of chicken arrived on a large bed of plain, white (not even Jasmine) rice with what seemed a random collection of garnishes that didn't do much for the plate. FWIW, do note that the interior of the restaurant seems to have been much more glamorous when Rice Paper first opened, judging by one photo glimpsed online.

This was my first $20 Tuesday and like Ramona, I am glad for the push to get to Eden Center. Thanks, one and all!