JayCobb1045

Several comments have been made about the website already, so I'll pile one more on! The "brunch" link on the menu reveals two items: breakfast and lunch. Must be run by the same folks who ran the diner in My Cousin Vinny...

Finally made it out to Mintwood Place this past weekend after reading and hearing over a year's worth of raves. It was delicious, though I must agree with some of the posters in this thread when I say that I left slightly underwhelmed. I will admit upfront that this may have as much, if not more, to do with the expectations created by the aforementioned year's worth of raves. I will also clarify that neither I nor my wife tried any of the mains, sticking to a sampling of "nibbles" and "starters." We tried the blistered shishito peppers and the escargot hush puppies for our nibbles. The hush puppies were amazing - crispy on the outside, moist on the inside, not too dense, and packed with flavor. I was afraid that the taste of the escargot wouldn't make its way through the dough, seasoning, etc, but that was not the case. I could sit down with a couple of cold beers and plow through a couple of orders of these no problem. The shishitos were good, but not great. They were cooked nicely and had a deep peppery sweetness to them, but I found them a little oily and slightly over-seasoned. I will note that I tend to enjoy my food on the more seasoned side, so for me to find it over-seasoned is saying something. All said, they are a tasty snack for maybe three to five peppers, but after that they're a bit much. This is as good a time as any to point out that aggressive seasoning and generous use of fat emerged as a common thread in most of the dishes we tried. That is not necessarily a bad thing, and, depending on the type of food you've eaten recently, the bold flavors might even be a welcome change, but I think it bears mention that "light" and "delicate" are not words that I would use to describe any part of what we ate. Before getting into the starters, I really should mention the bread and butter. It bugs me quite a bit when restaurants that put so much effort into most other aspects of their food just fall asleep at the wheel when it comes to bread - either omit it altogether or do it right. Mintwood Place does it right. Warm fresh bread, soft and fluffy on the inside with a beautiful crispy brown crust, topped with warm soft butter. It may just be that buttered bread is one of my all-time weaknesses, but theirs is damn tasty! Burrata is always a fresh, clean addition to a meal, and this dish enhances it with the addition of hazelnut, apple, and tamarind. If the dish stopped there, it would be a home run. Unfortunately, it is surrounded by a ring of fried kale chips that could have been ok if they didn't gush grease with each bite. I can actually see where the flavor of the kale would be a nice counterpoint to the rest of the dish, but man...I would order this dish again in a heartbeat, but hold the kale. The wood-grilled confit calf's heart dish is very good, if a little over-dressed (see the theme?). The calf's heart itself is tender, delicious, and balances nicely with the greens. The poached egg hidden below the greens in the bottom of the dish is a fun surprise that really puts the dish over the top. I would actually leave off most, if not all, of the (I think) mustard based sauce/dressing and just rely on the awesome runny egg to do that work, but then again I'm not a Food and Wine Best New Chef Mid-Atlantic so what do I know? I don't want my impression of this dish to be misunderstood - it is damn good. In fact, I would guess that if it wasn't for the shishitos and kale, I might not have felt like this was a bit heavy or over-dressed, but coming as it did, on the tail end of the meal, it was just a tad much. Drumroll. BAKED ALASKA FLAMBE! All you need to know is that this is on the menu and it needs to be ordered then devoured. So good. So, so good. Something that needs to be commented on is the cocktail list. Every place that thinks they're cool has a list of "interesting" cocktails, but very few of them actually deliver. No need to name names, but many local places that pride themselves on their cocktail lists, places that are primarily BARS, do not deliver anywhere near the level of effort (I know this because we began with a drink at the bar), variety, and execution that this place does. I had the Garden Preservation, the Smokin' on the Bayou, and the Manhattan Vacation and they were each excellent, different, and easily worth trying again. Service was great. I never felt rushed, my drink (water or otherwise) was never empty, the table did not get cluttered with plates, all the dishes came at the right times (they did not overlap or lag), and our server was pleasant and efficient. I would certainly go back, with my expectations properly adjusted, and I am confident that I would enjoy myself. In fact, I want to be clear that I enjoyed myself thoroughly this time as well - there were just a few elements that, in my opinion, brought down the quality of the meal from what I expected and from what it could be.

This past Sunday the wife and I were craving burgers. I don't particularly care for BGR (I find their rub or spice blend to be almost tongue numbingly salty), were't in the mood for Ray's Hellburger, and Good Stuff doesn't open in Crystal City until tonight, so I took to the interwebs and read some praise for this recently opened burger place. One article I read indicated that the owner is a recent George Mason grad who decided to throw his hat in the ring. Before you even walk in two things strike you: the delicious aroma of sizzling beef, and the somewhat slap-dash way this place seems to have been put together. The latter isn't altogether a bad thing, though. Maybe my view is skewed by the knowledge that this is a first venture for a recent college grad, but it has all the appearance of a project that included many of the owner's buddies agreeing to help out with the paint job in exchange for a six pack. This vibe extends to the restaurant's interior which is decorated with dorm room style posters, some laser printed photos of their food, and a flat screen tv playing sports. On to the food. The menu features lots of non-burger items that I would be interested in trying in the future - some citrus-chile wings, hot dogs with interesting toppings, and cheesesteaks are just a few things that stuck out in my mind. This is as good a time as any to mention that Wiinky's is open until 3:00am. This, together with the eclectic and energetic selection of music being pumped through the speakers, and the aforementioned no-frills college hangout vibe probably makes this a wonderful place to stumble into after the bars. I ordered the Wiinky burger - cheese, sauteed onions, bacon, and peanut butter (yes, I know...trendy, gimmicky, but delicious), while my wife ordered a simple cheeseburger with lettuce and sauteed onions. We shared a large basket of curly fries and would have ordered a few shakes but they don't offer milkshakes yet (the guy at the counter indicated that they were working on getting milkshakes in the future). I'll start with the negative which was the fries. Maybe it's our fault for ordering curly fries but they seemed very processed, frozen style curly fries with some coating (or was it the oil they were fried in?) that left an odd, unpleasant aftertaste on your tongue. If I went back I'd try their regular fries, but I fear they may follow suit. In a market where many of these burger joints hand cut fresh potatoes and fry them fresh it's nearly impossible for a processed or frozen fry to match up. Unless of course they're McDonald's fries. The good news is the burgers were delicious. The buns struck just the right balance of starting off hearty enough to hold in all the goodies, but ending up sticky and gooey once they've soaked up the juices. The patty actually tasted like meat! Delicious meat! And not only that, but I could taste the meat through the toppings - something that should be second nature but often isn't in this world of burgers topped with salsa, onion straws, avocado, barebcue sauce, and seared foie gras (says the guy who ordered his burger with peanut butter). The bacon was crisp without being overdone, the cheese was melty and delicious, and the sauteed onions added some sweetness and depth of flavor that I enjoyed. The peanut butter is something that should be tried at least once. I found that it added only a slight peanuty taste to the burger but enhanced the natural taste of the meat, and added an awesome richness and mouthfeel which was quite enjoyable. I'd order the same burger again. The one drawback of the Wiinky burger is that it lacks any other veggies - notably lettuce, which is a personal favorite on burgers. My wife's standard cheeseburger was exactly that, but well executed and delicious - my next order will likely be some version of the Wiinky but which adds lettuce and some ketchup or mustard to balance out the richness. If I had the run of the place I'd maybe play around with some lightly pickled onions, but that's just me. Unfortunately for ambiance and for the future of this business endeavor, it was totally empty when we were there. It was about 2:30 on a Sunday, so far from prime time, but it is always dismaying to be the only party in an entire restaurant. If you're craving burgers and are sick of the over-marketed trendy spots we've all seen/heard of/tried before, and want to support a local business at the same time, I would certainly suggest giving Wiinky's a try. I will certainly be back for more!

When all the Easter brunch reservations were booked until well past 3:00pm we set out to find a less conventional Easter destination. We ended up with reservations at the Bayou and I, for one, walked away pleasantly satisfied. Unlike dcandohio I am not from New Orleans, but have visited many times and am a devoted fan, if not connoisseur, of its cuisine and this place was very nice. Atmosphere gets points for letting you know you're in a New Orleans "jazztaurant" without slapping you in the face with Disney-esque theme overload. Downstairs they have a nice simple bar that I'd be happy to belly up to for happy hour on any given day, and the seating upstairs was comfortable, if a bit tight. Got there about a half hour before our friends and the wife and I decided to get a couple of drinks and enjoy the patio. The weather Sunday morning was gorgeous and althoug the patio is ok, I did have one minor issue - it was covered. Sounds silly to whine about a covered patio, but here's my thought - when it's nice out the wooden roof, sides, etc hide too much of the sun and when it's cold or rainy out you wouldn't want to be outside anyway, so I'm not really sure what purpose is served by the full-on covered patio. Just my two cents. More importantly, the bloody mary was very tasty. I was distracted while the bartender made it so I didn't see whether the mix is bought or home made but it had a nice flavor that so many "tomato juice plus tabasco" bloodies are missing. One tip - it wasn't spicy at all, so if you like it hot ask for it, or ask for a bottle of tabasco on the side to heat it up to your personal preference. The pickled okra is a great touch, and made me wonder if they ever mix it up with spicy pickled green beans like I've had in several bloody marys in New Orleans. Either way, I'm a happy camper. I ordered the bayou benedict surf n turf which is a standard eggs benedict with tasso ham, "cajun" hollandaise (not sure what made it cajun, but it was very tasty nonetheless), and fried oysters. This was delicious. Everything in the dish was done properly and tasted wonderful, but I really must mention the oysters. The breading was light and crispy - not greasy at all - and gave just the right amount of crunch to balance out the soft creamy oystery middle. I am excited for the next time we go to this spot to have a shrimp and oyster po' boy which I'm sure will not disappoint. I also could not resist from ordering a side of collards which were also excellent. Nicely smoky and not overdone or over seasoned. They had just the right amount of bite so you could still chew on them, and although I nearly always reach for the vinegar pepper sauce when eating collards, these did not require it. I think one good sign of a restaurant is when your order for next time is already settled before getting up from your meal. The Bayou passes that test - One shrimp and oyster po' boy, a cold beer, and maybe a side of collards if the occassion calls for it.

Is Tippy's Taco House the same as Tippy's Tacos in Fairfax on 29 and Jermantown? If so, I fall under the category of folks who weren't impressed. Several of the guys in my office grew up around here and one day they got to talking about a place they remembered from many a beer fueled meal - Tippy's Tacos. How good it is, how much they miss it, etc. Needless to say, by the end of the conversation we had all resolved to go there for lunch. I was not all that impressed. It certainly wasn't bad, but it also wasn't anything at all to write home about. The beef was bland, the cheese sauce seemed processed, the hot sauce was not memorable...just eh. But here's the thing - theys guys from my office loved every bite! From the mixed reviews above, I think this must be the kind of place that gets a "pass" on being slightly subpar from many of its guests because of the place it holds in their memories. For the rest of us...keep looking, I wouldn't go out of my way for Tippy's.

From the name of this place, I thought it was one of those places where you take out a raw pie to bake at home - a concept I never really understood - and from the descriptions and the reviews it sounds like I'm not any more likely to try it out now that I know they cook the pie for me. Has anyone had a positive experience they'd like to share?

Has anyone tried this place that has also tried Hot & Juicy Crawfish in Woodley Park? A side by side comparison would be interesting.

I work in the Fair Lakes area and have been to this place twice so far, and certainly plan on returning. I am Ecuadorian, and there aren't very many places to get Ecuadorian food around here so I was very excited when I found out about Don Churro. For those who like knowing a little bit about their food, their menu includes little flags next to their dishes to indicate what country they come from. I thought that was a novel idea that many "pan asian" restaurants could adopt to give us an extra tidbit of information about the food we're ordering. I have only tried their Ecuadorian dishes and those are pretty tasty, although their are some inconsistencies which lead me to believe that no one in the kitchen is actually Ecuadorian. One of my favorite Ecuadorian dishes are llapingachos - mashed potatoes flavored with achiote oil, rolled into patties, stuffed with a chunk of cheese, and fried until a crispy skin forms on the outside. I know, right? Well, Don Churro's llapingachos are pretty much on point. The cheese isn't quite the flavor of the farm cheese generally used in home recipes, but they can't really be faulted for that. I have ordered these both times I've gone and will do so again. Most, if not all latin american countries have their version of an empanada. The one unique contribution to this category that comes from Ecuador is the "empanada de morocho." Morocho refers to the grain used to make the dough, and in my experience these empanadas traditionally have a shredded chicken and olive filling. The filling may well vary, but as is evident from the name, the dough is the central characteristic. I may be wrong on this, and if I am, forgive me, but I'm pretty sure that they're not using morocho for their dough. This empanada tasted more like a deep fried saltena than anything else. It may not seem like a big deal, but if they're not going to do it right, why bother putting it on the menu? I also tried their hornado, which is seasoned roast pork, and this was quite good. Served with some mote (hominy), tostado (toasted corn described in ventworm's post above), avocado slices, and llapingachos, this was a real tasty plate. The pork was tender and delicious, the sides were on point, and as I mentioned above, the llapingachos really are worth the trip. One small quibble - the menu indicates that this dish includes "encebollado" which they mean to refer to the pickled thinly sliced red onions which are a traditional garnish on many Ecuadorian dishes. The only thing is, this isn't "encebollado," it is "encurtido de cebolla" or "cebolla encurtida." Encebollado is actually an entirely different dish which is more of a stew, often using fish as the protein. Again, not a huge deal, but it wouldn't be so hard to research things a little to get them right. Sort of makes me wonder how many things are labeled wrong on menus where I don't have the background knowledge to know better! The only hot sauce they provide is a green one which may be Peruvian in origin, and is quite delicious. The traditionalist in me longs for "aji de chochos" - traditional hot sauce made with tamarillo (tree tomato), chiles, and lupini beans - but I may be the only guest who would actually use it so I can understand why they don't have a tub of it on hand. All in all, this place is a welcome change to the standard lunch options and has consistently offered tasty, if slightly inaccurate, versions of some of my favorite Ecuadorian dishes. There are many more Ecuadorian options I'll have to tick off the list before moving on their other dishes, but I plan on returning often, so that shouldn't be too difficult!

I recently tasted this stuff for the first time and have been excited to experiment with it. Unfortunately my very cursory google search only turned up seeds for shipping, and my thumb is not green enough for that. Does anyone know where I can purchase oyster leaf locally?

I have to drive out to Harrisonburg about once a month or so for work and I've driven past this place each time, but never stopped in. I'll make sure to do so next time - hopefully the lunch offerings are as enticing as the breakfast menu sounds! I must echo the fact that 66 and 81 are quite beautiful as you make your way through the Shenandoah Valley. I'm not even a nature type, and it's always a refreshing change of pace for me to see mountains and abundant greenery. For other offerings in Harrisonburg, I have to say that I rarely make it out of there without stopping at La Taurina - a taco truck just up the road from Little Grill on your way out of town. No frills at all, but their carnitas and carne asada tacos always hit the spot, and at 3 for $5, you can't go wrong.

According to a recent interview with Huffington Post Local, Memphis BBQ owner Christopher George has several concepts that he plans on introducing to the area. Slow down, Chris...I think it's pretty clear barbecue is kicking your ass right now, so why don't you focus on doing that right before moving on to other "concepts?" They've only been open for about two weeks, so I won't dwell on the service too much, except to say that it was comically bad. Even though we were there around noon, our server kept referring to "this evening" and "tonight" like she memorized a script and couldn't wrap her mind around the time of day; she didn't know the difference between the dry Memphis style ribs and the traditional wet ribs offered on the menu; didn't know what I meant by "slaw" until I said "coleslaw," and she lied to the table behind us about the restaurant's opening date (maybe as a preemptive excuse for the meal they were about to not enjoy?). We were literally laughing out loud by the end. None of that would matter if the food was good, but... The meal began promisingly enough with a complimentary basket of jalapeno and onion hushpuppies. A little dry, but nicely crispy on the outside and not too dense in the middle. Most of their appetizer offerings try way too hard to be clever and unique, instead reading like a joke list of hacky 'fusion' dishes - pulled pork egg rolls and beef brisket enchiladas are two actual items on the menu. No thanks. This being a Memphis style joint, I came in knowing that I wanted to try their spare ribs and pulled pork. When I ordered, however, our server didn't ask how I wanted my ribs. This concerned me because I was sure that I wanted them Memphis style - dry with a little sauce on the side. When I said so, the server launched into a confused, and confusing, babble about how they're all Memphis style, you should get them with the sauce, when they're wet that means with sauce, everyone gets them with sauce, Memphis style just means how they're cooked, and so on. Mostly to stop her from talking I buckled and ordered them wet like she clearly wanted me to. My wife ordered the baby back ribs. When my plate arrived, it looked unappetizing - a sloppy pile of soggy pulled pork drenched in sauce, 'garnished' with a sad piece of parsley equally soaked in sauce, and a measly set of dry looking ribs with barely any meat on the bones. Both offerings tasted just like they looked. The pulled pork had ok flavor, but the mushy, pasty texture was awful. It's like the pork shoulder was pulled from the smoker three days ago, drenched in sauce, and left to sit under a heat lamp. Sort of like Lloyd's, the microwave stuff you get in a plastic tub at the market, but for about three times the price and not in the comfort of your living room. As I mentioned before, the spare ribs had very little meat on the bones. The small nuggets I was able to pull off were tough, chewy, and so overly salty that they left my tongue numb - these characteristics all came together to make the meat taste more like bad jerky than anything else. After wrestling with two bones I stopped trying. To be fair, the baby back ribs my wife ordered were the meal's highlight. Tender, smoky, and flavorful, with more meat than my spare ribs. I am a huge fan of sides, and southern barbecue sides are close to the top of my list. Not these. Collards weren't on the menu, which made me sad. We ordered mac n' cheese, baked beans, coleslaw, and onion rings. The Mac n' cheese was baked, not creamy, which may be more southern, but not tastier in my opinion. This version was way too eggy, with overdone noodles and a broken cheese sauce - tasting ok, but leaving a horrible mouthfeel that was like oily scrambled eggs. The baked beans tasted too much like their tomato base and not smoky at all. They also didn't have any bits of smoked meat in them which I always think is a plus. The slaw and onion rings were actually good - the slaw was not too sweet, with crisp fresh cabbage, and not overdressed, and the onion rings were not too bready and well seasoned. Now I'm just nitpicking, but the "high class barbecue" idea means that they have cloth napkins and no wetnaps on the table. Another misstep which on its own wouldn't be a deal breaker, but when added to the rest of the experience was just irritating. The brisket is really the only thing left on the menu which I should probably give a chance, but I won't. Nothing about this meal makes me think they'll do the brisket any better than the rest of what I ate. I was incredibly surprised to know that owner Chris George, and his father, the financier, are actually from Memphis! It's unfortunate because this is so close to home that it could have been a great game-day alternative to BW3 up the way, but I won't be back. I haven't tried Pork Barrel Barbecue in Del Ray yet, but my fingers are crossed.

Hello - I've been living in the area for a little more than four years now and just barely scratching the surface of all the great food in the area. Joined this site to hear what people had to say about places I have tried, and to get ideas for new places to try as well. I love talking about food, reading about food, making food, and of course, eating it. I'm a taurus. I don't think that has anything to do with food, but it seemed like people put a lot more detail into their introductory posts, so I thought I'd throw that out there.