yeuxblu

Visiting the VA wineries is one of our favorite activities for out of town guests. The land is gorgeous and there are some real gems to be discovered. It's also a great time to relax and chat. Linden is my personal favorite. They do some wonderful whites and the barrel tasting is definitely something you should try. The reds are slightly more difficult to find, but they are there. We have a few bottles of Linden reds that are the begining of our slowly increasing wine collection. I have yet to buy a VA wine outside of the wineries. Part of the enjoyment has been opening a bottle and remembering the visit. I haven't seen the wines I like on the shelf. They also change so much given the season. Each year is an exploration. Guess that gives me another excuse for a drive out of the city. "Oasis I've always thought was dreck (though I've never had a chance to try their highly touted, by them, sparklers)." Couldn't agree more. I've tried the sparklers and would place them above their wines, but I don't think either are worth the drive. Emily

I'll throw the La Lomitas out there for discussion along with Anita's and El Paso Cafe. I should preface that when I think of Tex-Mex, I think of cheese ladden enchiladas, big as your head burritos, home made tortilla chips and the euphora that goes with a carbohydrate binge. These are the places I visit but don't necessarily take company with me, but most of my company is visiting from South Texas and are interested in having sushi or Ethiopian food. It's been awhile since I went to El Paso Cafe, but I'd rank it as a typical San Antonio Tex-Mex restaurant. It's tucked away on N. Pershing Street in Ballston. It's the type of food that brought San Antonio to the top 3 on the nation's most obese cities list and is South Texas in so many ways. The decor is pretty funny with random sombraros and other such kitchy things. A warning for the mariachi haters, they do show up on occasion but they aren't as aggressive as the ones at Oyamel. Again, it's been awhile since I visited but I remember it being pretty good. The food is heavy and filling. The enchilidas stand out in my mind as classic San Antonio- meat, sauce and cheese with a side of rice and refried beans. The various fajitas were delicious. I think we ordered a different type each time we visited. Unless they've tweaked their recipe I'd avoid the frozen margarita and order one on the rocks (my preference anyway.) It's not fine dining nor is it very complex. For me it's definitely comfort food cheesy decorations and all. Anita's I like for breakfast. They have a pretty good Platos Cubano and is just so convinient for the Fairfax/Vienna crew. If only they made migas, I'd be there more frequently.

It's been a few years since I was in London but I still have the business card for Zeina at 9-10 Market Place, London (Tel: 0207 323 0776). It's a nice Middle Eastern Restaraunt and bar. We had a fantastic Morrocan wine there and a delightful evening.

Don't forget the torillas: flour, lard, salt & water. Mmmmm...animal fat.....

Coming from Texas, it is difficult to find good Tex-Mex (as every Texans likes to lament.) Rio Grande's steak fajitas rank as my favorite up here. I may have tried other items previously but it hasn't been worth doing again. The meat marinade is well done with that hint of lime and they do a nice job of cooking the meat so it's a nice rare to medium rare. Of course no good tex-mex meal goes with out the home-made flour tortillas. The Fairfax location has done a consistently good job with margaritas on the rocks. They've been well-balanced. It was a nice gesture by the waitress to ask our preference between Grand Marnier and Cointreau although I always thought the type of tequila would indicate the liquor. Taco Bell: Tex-Mex :: Cracker Barrel: Southern Food.

I think we forget here are a lot worse wines out there at similar prices. Most of the $3 wines that come to mind are so much worse. We have tried the various 2 Buck Chucks (2bc). I agree with everyone that the quality control is not stable. Personally it gives me with a headache after a glass or or two. 2bc is cheap, unpretentious, recognizable and available. The financial risk is incredibly low and the price has remained constant. Chalres Shaw has received a lot of press thanks to this wine. I was a wine drinker in college. The party option was Bud Light or trash can punch. If you are buying wine in college, you've already committed to drinking something for more than just the buzz. There's plenty of options that are cheaper and easier to consume rapidly. There are still plenty of cheap wines in the $5-10 range that are less brutish than the 2bc. The problem I ran in to during college was when I found a cheap good wine, eventually everyone else did and up went the price. 2bc and Trader Joe's hasn't done changed the price. It was a constant challenge to find new/different cheap wines. I still remember my first Boony Doon's Big House Red that I bought for $6 in college. It was by far the best one my roommate and I had found. We split a case we were so excited, making it the first case we ever bought. Seems there is a similar excitement surrounding 2bc.

True but all you would need to do is present a fake ID stating you are 22 or older to avoid the whole form issue. I doubt we'll be headed back, especially when she's back in town (next week). We went primarily for the individual beer selection since we are slowly working her up to wine and away from Bud Light. She's not a huge fan of wine but when she listed a couple that she tasted, I understood why. Heck, I drank better wines in college but I would sacrifice using electricity for a good bottle. Thanks for the responses. Out of curiousity what wines do you like to introduce to non-wine drinkers? (Maybe that should be a different thread.)

I have to admit I have a soft spot for Il Raddichio's lasagna. Dr. Dremo's use to serve up a superb hummus at least until the roof fell in a couple years back. Emily

"I'll tell you what Katsen needs to do: He needs to remove Schweaty Beer Guy from the stands." We saw Schweaty Beer Guy on Friday night at the game! We were contemplating buying a Bud Light until we saw the sweat fall from his visor in to an open beer bottle. Part of me was disgusted and part of me wonders would sweat alter the taste of Bud Light. Oh Schweaty....

We took my boyfriend's sister in to Total Wine in Fairfax. She's newly 21 and we wanted to pick up a sampling of beverages for her to try during her visit. The cashier upon seeing her ID handed her a form to sign verifying that she is 21 years of age. When we asked about it, the manager came over to explain that it was company policy that all people born in the newly 21 year (1985) sign the form every time they purchase anything from the store until the year (2006) expires. I mentioned that it was the first time I've heard of a procedure like this and it was a bit odd. Making the visit even stranger, the manager explain to us that the policy was not odd and we were wrong. Policies are policies and I understand that but I don't believe this is a common practice. That being said I haven't had my age questioned for a number of years so I haven't had to deal with the oddness of being 21 and the efforts to combat underage drinking. So my question to the group is has any one heard or experienced this? Is this normal? Thanks, Emily

Does anyone have experience with an ayurvedic cooking? I've been thinking about trying a different approach to food and the dosha concept is definitely a different way of thinking for me. I was looking at "Eat-Taste-Heal: An Ayurvedic Cookbook for Modern Living" as a possible introductory cook book. Any suggestions or other resources?

The art museum also has a cafe/cafeteria that is below and between the 2 buildings. Its pretty good and would be my first suggestion (although I haven't tried the Native Amer. Museum's cafe). Hidden between the Labor Department and 101 Constitution is an alleyway with a couple of shops near "My Brother's Place". Inside 101 Const. is a cafeteria that is open for breakfast and lunch. Food is okay but probably safe for the children partial to familiar foods. At lunch, they do have Mac & Cheese on occassion and its one of my favorites. On the same street, there is also a little coffee shop above the sushi restaraunt that has some muffins and basic sub sandwiches. There is a cafeteria in the Capitol which I haven't eaten at in a number years but maybe some one else can chime in on that idea. Emily

Good Eats is one of my favorites. I'll toss out Nigella Lawson from the Style network on to this list. The way its filmed is quite nice both angles, lighting and it appears to be filmed like a movie. I really miss Two Fat Ladies. Emily

Sad for Clarendon. Good for those of us out in the NoVA burbs. I love Lazy Sundae's and have been lamenting the ice cream since we moved out of that area. Have they posted where in Falls Church they are moving?

We've used Windows for a number of events at my office and have been really pleased, especially with the service and flexibility. The staff has always been great to us, especially our rep Carl Price, although I'm not sure if he deals solely with corporate events. About a year ago I was pricing an office event and spoke with Susan Gage (also dealing with Joe Carpenter). They were prompt, professional and courteousy. There menu was more intriguing and I would have liked to use them but other factors took over. Emily