TheGut

Had a wonderful meal at Amoos on Saturday night. 

1. Koobideh, Chicken Tandoori, and Lamb

2. Saffron Ice Cream.

Agree on Ovvio.  Went once when it opened and thought it was okay. Then the Chef left.

I live next to the Mosaic and visit Requin from time to time.  Jen has been there every time I have dined there.

Went to Alta Strada.  They need some time to work out the kinks.

If I am working from home, I go during lunch time and usually to grab a sub from Taylor, a salad from Sweetgreen, or now visit Choolah for a quick wrap. 

I am planning on dining at the new Virginia location of Alta Strada tonight.  Looking forward to it. 

13 hours ago, Pat said:

Just a note to say I love your food photos. They're fantastic.

thank you!

14 hours ago, thistle said:

That chicken sandwich looks the best-(of course, as a home smoker, I feel free to say that brisket does not look appetizing at all). What's the stuff in the lower left corner of the photo?

 

that is the green chili hominy.

some more Fed Pig food porn for everyone.  Was there this past weekend and the brisket was singing to me.  Also do not sleep on the music city chicken sandwich.

I have visited the new DCity Smokehouse three times now and have come away disappointed.  The quality has dropped.  Even my beloved wings are not the same anymore.  Yes, they are juicy but that smoky goodness is no longer there in any of the meats and on one night got straight up cold chili.  The new space is nice.  Ample room for diners. It is a shame.  For me at least it has lost the luster that made it one of the best BBQ spots in the area.

On 2/12/2017 at 11:19 PM, lion said:

Stopped by and tried the new fast food Indian BBQ place at the Mosaic. It serves a mix of the classic American style Indian restaurants dishes in a fast food Chipotle style. They have bowls (Biryani), salads, and tandoori style wraps in this vein. I found the Chicken Tandoori wrap to be made of good quality ingredients and tasty however it seemed to lack a certain heat to the taste. A very good surprise was that they had a salted lassi in addition to the regular mango one. Probably the thing I found the most pleasing was the Yellow Lentil Daal. I didn't try the kulfi and look forward to getting it on a future visit. 

It reminded me of Banyan Tree South Asian Grill in their overlapping menus and design. I went at a non peak time so the place was a quarter filled and the employees were quite attentive.  

 

I have gone a few times to Choolah.  I too like their chicken and lamb wraps.  The mango lassi was good as well.

Went to Sfoglina back in December for a bday lunch.  Here are some of my pics from that meal.

19 hours ago, Josh said:

The "smoke ring" is really more of an aesthetic thing, and not at all an indication of the quality of the barbecue.

"The Science of the Smoke Ring" by Daniel Vaughn on tmbbq.com

Agreed.

the ribs were perfect. better than the brisket.

I have visited Federalist Pig three times now. The beef short rib when available was the best item.  The brisket needs work.  I know that the pit master is experimenting with different types of woods.  I would like to see more of a smoke ring on the brisket.

Federalist Pig is now open by the former pit master of DCity Smokehouse.

Just now, Nadya said:

Thanks for the zabhiah tip, that's helpful.

no problem.  Another tip, pretty much all the lamb that comes from New Zealand is halal and it can also be purchased at Trader Joe's too.  So when you see "New Zealand lamb chops" on the menu, good chance it is halal.

1 minute ago, Nadya said:

I am an immigrant married to an immigrant, and a mother of two children with weird names so they are as good as immigrants. So trust me when I tell you that I have nothing but respect for immigrants, for those who work three jobs, and bust ass to create better lives for their family by opening businesses in a tried-and-true mold.  This isn't the point.

How the cuisine isn't inclusive: Say I'm someone who only eats halal.  Where can I get a fancy French meal? A well-made pizza? Awesome Chinese? A damn burger? A steak?  Why must I be limited to kabobs and karahis? Halal isn't a cuisine. Muslim isn't a cuisine. But the facts on the ground are that those who opt for halal-only diet must necessarily, more often than not, limit themselves to a set of restaurants of a particular origin.  And that doesn't have to be the case. 

There's nothing wrong with styrofoam containers, and with two small kids, I need all the paper napkins I can get. All I'm saying is that I once in a while want to go to a restaurant that has actual cloth napkins and good silverware.  There are very few restaurants that use halal meat and fit this description, compared to other types of restaurants. I don't see how acknowledging this is in any way controversial. 

thank you for the clarification. 

There are many places that are fine dining that serve halal meat.  Quick google search on Creekstone Farms will lead people to restaurants that Creekstone Farms beef in the DC area (Del Campo, Blue Duck Tavern, Osteria Morini, RPM Italian...).  People who only eat halal (I  do not eat halal) use the zabihah app, which helps them locate restaurants.

5 minutes ago, Nadya said:

It's not the clientele. The cuisine isn't inclusive. Halal is just a way to butcher meat. It doesn't HAVE to come with a particular way of preparing it. 

The alcohol thing doesn't help, either, but Iranian restaurants are usually a happy, civilized exception. 

I am not following on how the cuisine is not inclusive.  Can you explain what you mean by inclusive?

9 minutes ago, Nadya said:

Here is the dialogue I have with my DH on a biweekly basis that illustrates two main problems with the halal restaurants.

"Let's go out for dinner tonight".

"Not the fucking kabob or chicken karahi again."

"Oh come on. It's a restaurant."

"But are the napkins made of cloth?"

I will break it down for you. 

The first problem with halal restaurants is that they operate in a ghetto of their own making, confining themselves to the known.  This is typically the Indopak and the Middle Eastern variety, with little imagination or effort to get creative with other cuisines or thoughts. That's not to say that one doesn't ache for a good karahi at some point, just that it doesn't HAVE to be that way.

The second problem with halal restaurants is that they are *typically* lowbrow, with the majority making ample use of styrofoam containers and paper napkins. There is again nothing wrong with that, but it pigeonholes them into a box where they really have to be. I don't always want to eat in strip malls for the sake of keepin' it zabihah. 

Now the bright sides and happy exceptions, in no particular order:

 - the Iranian-owned restaurants offer *usually* a more refined tradition and approach to dining where one is more likely to find well-composed menus, able service and real utensils

- the same is sometimes true of the Iraqi restaurants but there's fewer of them

- some dishes are worth it. As are some holes in the wall. Jerusalem in Falls Church. Khan Kabob near Dulles does awesome karahi and lamb brain curry.  Kabob Corner in Tysons does dependable Afghan, with vegetable standouts. I'll have some more names tonight.

- random fact that the goat thing at Komi turned out to be halal

 

"The first problem with halal restaurants is that they operate in a ghetto of their own making, confining themselves to the known.  This is typically the Indopak and the Middle Eastern variety, with little imagination or effort to get creative with other cuisines or thoughts."

I think people tend to forget who these immigrants are and what they had to go through to open their own establishment. I know from growing up in this area that a lot of the original kabob places that opened were by immigrants who were former taxi drivers.  People who worked maybe two-three jobs to save enough money to open their own place.  So when they do open their own place, of course they are going to trend towards what they know and that is their native cuisine. 

I don't see why if you are a kabob joint that you should now need to serve say pad thai or something along those lines to be inclusive.  You are not going to go to a kosher deli and ask them to make you a nice Italian sub with all pork.

Plus, say a place like Ravi why would you want to change?  They have customers lined up from the minute they open the doors to when they close out night.  It is a business and their customers have seemed to enjoy it for the past twenty years.

"The second problem with halal restaurants is that they are *typically* lowbrow, with the majority making ample use of styrofoam containers and paper napkins. There is again nothing wrong with that, but it pigeonholes them into a box where they really have to be. I don't always want to eat in strip malls for the sake of keepin' it zabihah."

what is wrong with styrofoam containers?  I don't see people complaining or saying these types comments towards say sandwich shops that operate in the DMV.  Or are you expecting them to provide higher quality containers?

6 hours ago, Kibbee Nayee said:

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I tend to treat Halal restaurants as carry-out, almost exclusively.

For me, and especially for Lady KN, alcohol is the show-stopper. It's just too hard to enjoy an hour or more of sit-down dining without a glass of wine or two.

And at the fear of sounding a little Trump-like, but noting that I am ethnically a Middle Easterner, Halal restaurants tends to be less inclusive in terms of clientele. The counterexamples, like Me Jana in Courthouse or Afghan Bistro in Springfield, draw a decidedly diverse crowd because they offer non-Halal dishes and alcohol.

Going to have to disagree with you on halal restaurants not being inclusive.  You can go to many halal places during lunch time and most of the clientele will be non-muslim, non-halal eaters.  Maybe during dinner time the demographics might change but to say these restaurants seem or are not inclusive, is incorrect.

Now, if having a glass of wine is required with dinner, then yes you will be out of luck at most Halal restaurants.

Went to Ravi Kabob this weekend with the folks and had some great Chicken Karahi and tandoori lamb chops.

1. Tandoori Lamp Chops with Choley and Palaak

2. Chicken Karahi

I finally made it back to Jimmy's to try their cheese steak again.  It did not disappoint.  Was as delicious as it was on the first visit. 

My co-worker got the Gyro sandwich with fries.  He said it was average.  The gyro meat looked a little dry.

1. Gyro Sandwich

2. Cheese Steak

3. More Cheese Steak

I first heard about this vegetarian Indian restaurant back in April but never had an opportunity to check out the place until today.  This place is located in Herndon off of Fairfax County Parkway.  If you are on the toll road you can take the exit for Fairfax County Parkway.

There was a steady stream of customers during lunch time.  I decided to go with the masala dosas and channa bhatura.  The dosa was spot on.  Probably one of the better dosas I have had in the DMV.  I was not that impressed by the Channa Bhatura.  I think the version at Punjabi by Nature is better.

If you are vegetarian or looking for something besides the usual kabob joints, I would give this place a look.  Tim Carman of the Washington Post recently did a write up on the place.

1. Masala Dosa

2. Channa Bhatura

9 hours ago, DonRocks said:

This is one restaurant where a picture is worth a thousand words - that looks like a tasty cheesesteak.

it was a great cheese steak.  I need to get back out there for lunch and try some more items.

Last week I was craving a deli sandwich but did not want anything to do with the sandwiches that are served at the client site cafeteria.  Started doing some research and came across this place.  I have gone two times within the last 10 days.  High quality sandwiches.

1. Pastrami, corned beef, coleslaw, cheese and hot peppers (they were buried at the bottom)

2. Turkey and roast beef sandwich with onions, hot peppers, and pickle.

9 minutes ago, Tujague said:

Ouch.

There were some highlights:

"An early delight is sweet king crab poached in garlic butter, a luxury enhanced with shavings of sea urchin bottarga, or cured roe. Later in the meal, Steak & Eggs gives the diner staple a luxe makeover. The Shaw Bijou’s upgrade features a fold of richly marbled, dry-aged Wagyu beef. Standing in for the egg is onion soubise circling the pickled yolk of a quail egg. Clever."

And then the Ouch:

"A younger Onwuachi sold candy on subway trains to raise money for his catering business. House-made versions of his best sellers serve as post-dinner bonbons. Honestly, though, a real Butterfinger is better than the chocolate-robed salt lick served here. And the “Skittles” are a waste of tamarind and cranberry powders, not to mention palm oil."

I bet Sietsema will have a First Bite Column out about the restaurant within the first two weeks.

13 hours ago, Gadarene said:

Pineapple and Pearls is actually one of the best damn bargains in the city, especially if you sit at the bar.

$150 inclusive of tax and tips, plus whatever a la carte drinks you want.  That comes to around $115 for the food (+$11 tax and $24 tip) for a guy who has more than established himself.

Compare that with Shaw Bijou, which is $170 for the food alone, not counting the 20 percent mandatory gratuity and the 10 percent tip (and the mandatory wine pairing, for all I know; who knows if you can order just one glass).

P&P is so much cheaper than Shaw Bijou, it's silly.

I am planing on dining at P&P for my b-day and I plan on sitting at the bar.  $150 is a steal for a two star Michelin restaurant.

2 hours ago, Waitman said:

 (nitrogen-cooled cocktail glasses, the members-only club)

Convivial uses the same method to chill their cocktail glasses.  It is a current trend.  Nothing out of the ordinary.