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Europa, Italian-Mediterranean From The Fuentes Family, Owners Of Reston's Former El Manantial - State Street in Herndon - Closed


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On 9/23/2014 at 1:07 PM, LauraB said:

According to the El Manantial website, the owners, the Fuentes family, are closing El Manantial in Reston and reopening at an address in Herndon: 790 Station Street, Suite 1000.  The name of the new restaurant appears to be Europa Restaurant.  

 

Europa is now open in Herndon, seven days a week for lunch and dinner.

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Europa is now open in Herndon, seven days a week for lunch and dinner.

My Herndon - Reston rotation will now include Europa. It's a small rotation (PassionFish, Grenada ... ?).

About 8-9 years ago, I asked Tom Sietsema by email for a recommendation for a business meal in Reston, and he shot back El Manantial within about 20 minutes. I loved it ever since.

My first date with Lady KN was there in 2008. It made a good impression. As you know, we were then engaged at Monty's in Springfield on Valentine's Day in 2013....

P.S. We're getting married tomorrow.

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Click!

Edited by DonRocks
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Lady KN and son and girlfriend joined me for dinner at Europa this evening. Lady KN and I originally met in 2008 at El Manantial, and we ate there often. Now that El Manantial is basically Europa, and Lady KN and I are now married all of 8 days, it seemed fitting to 'return' to the culinary roots of our relationship. It was an enjoyable meal all around.

The owner greeted us and noted that we looked familiar, and explained that the spare plaza where El Manantial was located had steadily gone downhill as a venue. They decided to relocate, rename and reboot. The new location, in the old town area of Herndon, right across the street from Zefferelli's, is a lovely spot. (Note to Rocks, Zefferrelli's deserves a solid #2 on the Herndon list.)

Appetizers were lovely, if a bit small. The calamari with pickled red peppers were delicious, and the duck pate was a hit. The mussels were meaty and the red sauce left behind in the plate was an incredible dipping sauce for the kitchen's fresh bread.

Mains were quite good. I had the Cassoulet special, and I'm now farting with wild abandon! The slightly firm white beans were dotted with land, duck, chicken and sausage, and the dish was quite hearty. Lady KN's Bronzino special was a bit on the dry side, but the flavor was good. Her son had the Paella and declared total satisfaction. He also ordered a Caprese salad, which was presented somewhat uniquely - the whole plate covered in layers of sliced tomatoes, with sliced mozzarella splayed on top. Son's GF had the Chicken Parmesan and it was hearty enough for her to take half of it home.

Missing from the original El Manantial were the tapas and the items that came out of the wood fired oven at the original, like pizza. But the appetizer menu can satisfy me any time, what with the duck pate as well as frog legs.

Service was very pleasant if a bit slow. The same Fuentes family members from El Manantial were all over the dining room, and Enrique was running the kitchen. All in, four covers, two bottles of wine, tax and a good tip, came to about $70 each. Definitely a fine dining experience, worthy of repeated visits.

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