DanielK

For a nice variation, although I haven't tried making it myself, there's a place called Boudro's in San Antonio that makes their tableside guac with salsa instead of tomatoes and orange juice for the citrus.

I use pico de gallo in my guac, which covers you on the onions, tomato, and cilantro.

In fact, just made some the other night, with tomatos and cilantro from the garden...

Brownie at Christiania? 

You know, I started to Google that, thinking it was an odd name for a restaurant in Denmark.

Problem is, Rocks, if I go there, then I REALLY need dinner...

For the sake of accuracy, it was an Armenian eggplant dish.  Armenians are very different from Ukranians; we hold our liquor much better and do not adore pork lard like they do.

Also, Armenian rock vs. Ukranian rock.

The Royal Mile Pub in Wheaton has haggis on the menu.

They've been around for 20 years, but I haven't been there in over 10, when I actually lived around the corner for a few years. I remember it as being a pretty authentic Scottish pub. (I've been to Scotland several times, so I do have a frame of reference to compare it to.)

Alas, I have no specific recollection as to the quality of their haggis. Probably because I made it through much of this list instead.

Does anyone know if the Vin et Ole Got is still there?

I didn't see a listing for it, but I just got back, so I wasn't looking for it either!

I did find two places this trip, once of which I would definitely return to. Zeleste is in the downtown area, a block from the Nyhavn restaurant area. Very very good food, decent service, and reasonably priced (for Copenhagen). Three of us ate a 3-course meal and a bottle of wine for about US$225, which is moderately priced for Copenhagen.

The night before I ate at SALT in the Admiral Hotel. The food was far more inventive, and the service was miles better, but I think I actually liked the food at Zeleste better. I certainly liked the prices better - the bill was about the same for only 2 courses and less booze.

I'm not a frequent brunch-er, but I had a great one last summer at Bistro Bis.  I like the feel, too - swanky enough but solid, unfussy cooking.

Seconded. I had a wonderful breakfast there before a Nats game a couple of months ago. We were there with kids and baseball hats, and we mixed right in with the more swanky crowd and space. Fabulous food, very reasonably priced.

Three stars from Tom-- congratulations!

Indeed, but yet another 3-star review that seems to read much like his two star reviews. Maybe he needs more gradient in his scale?

I take it they weren't doing a meshoui in the parking lot out back? 

No, but the valet guy was missing for about 15 minutes when we left the restaurant, and he eventually showed up in a cab (???) with a hot blonde whom he had "escorted to her car". She went back into the restaurant, and he sprinted off to get my car. I'm not sure what to think, though I saw The Aristocrats this afternoon, so I had a lot of very sick ideas.

Oh, and the wine list is beyond awful. Service is good, and it had better be, since they add 18% automatically, and take only cash. The dancer was pretty good.

Where in the area would you say is the best place to find quality Moroccan food, where they pay attention to the food and not the entertainment? I'd be curious not only for what has the best food, but also which restaurant is the best value, too.

I think everyone knows the answer is not Marrakesh in DC. I go there every few years for the experience, but the food hasn't changed in the nearly 20 years I've been going there. It's currently $27/person, or at least it is on Sunday nights.

Just by coincidence I was there this evening. The salads were very nice. The chicken in the bastilla was softer than the egg (and there was more powdered sugar than anything else.) The roast chicken with olives and lemon was decent - a bit more lemon would have gone a long way, and you really can't have too many olives on that dish. The lamb shank with honey and almonds was good - tender and sweet from the honey, and the almonds were added late enough that they still had crunch. Couscous was fine, a fruit bowl is a fruit bowl, but the baklava was pretty weak.

Boy, now that I write that, why did I go? Several years from now I suppose I'll forget, and go again...

<edited to add: I'm a clam!>

I'll also put my two cents in for Brickskeller on 22nd and P NW, Mr. Henry's on 6th and PA SE

I'm not sure Bricks qualifies as a dive - that was the place when I was an undergrad at GW that we went to when we DIDN'T want to go to a dive bar. Which, coincidentally enough, was Mr. Henry's, though it was the 21st and PA NW location, which I think is now the PEPCO building.

Anyone have a recommendation for good fish in Mont.Co., MD?

I’ve been less than impressed with Whole Foods and Balducci's.

Thank you!

River Falls Seafood, at the corner of River Rd. and Falls Rd. in Potomac, has absolutely stunning seafood.

At absolutely stunning prices, and I don't mean that in a positive way. I understand that this is simply what you have to pay to get seafood of this quality in Potomac, but it still has to be a special occasion for me - I can't afford to shop there on a regular basis. Prices are generally 30-50% higher than other places, but the fish is more than 30-50% better than other places.

On a food related question, does anyone know of an orchard that has Cortland apples? They're all over the place up in Massachusetts, but it doesn't seem to be a popular apple down here. In the event apple picking season is in swing at that time, I'd travel a good distance to get fresh Corts!

My favorite place is Larriland Farms, but they don't list Cortland.

Ginger Gold - mid August

Gala - late August - mid September

Red Delicious - mid September

Magnolia Gold - mid September - mid October

Jonagold - mid September

Empire - late September - early October

Golden Delicious - late September

Cameo - early October

Fortune - early October

IdaRed - early October

Stayman - early October

Mutsu - mid October

Suncrisp - mid - late October

Braeburn - mid - late October

Fuji - late October

Enterprise - late October

Granny Smith - late October

Pink Lady - early November

The place where the guy pulls the noodles is Chinatown Express.  6th and H maybe?

746 6th St. NW

The dumplings and the noodles (either stir-fried or in soup) are the only things truly worth ordering. The BBQ is ok, as are various veggies, but the rest of the menu is pretty ordinary.

I plan on being there, with wife and kids (ages 5 and 8).

No idea what we're going to bring food-wise, but I will bring soccer balls, cones, nets, etc. for the kids, and a nice bottle of single-malt that I just brought back from Scotland for the adults.

I travel once a month to Copenhagen, Denmark for work. There are two 1-star Michelin restaurants there (names escape me) which are ridiculously expensive. Copenhagen is one of the most expensive cities in Europe, so a 1-star here is the price of a 2- or 3- star elsewhere in Europe. Can't slip that one through on the expense report.

Anyhow, I've found a decent Argentinan steakhouse there (Fuego), but only mediocre Italian, Spanish, Thai, and pretty awful Chinese.

Any chance someone has been there that can steer me otherwise? (eGullet was no help, FWIW.)

We actually did a group lunch here with a crowd from one of those other boards. Very successful outing, and I remember the total coming to well under $20/person.

A couple of lessons learned from that gathering:

1. Don't get too large a group. The restaurant is really, really, small.

2. Go off-hours. There's no way that they can accomodate a large group at mealtime. Mid-afternoon on a weekend worked just fine.

3. Call ahead, and warn them we have a large group coming.

4. Order a bunch of food as soon as the first few people get there, and then order more as you go. Otherwise the food comes too quickly.

And count me in!

Is La Sirenita too far off of your route?

Don't forget that the Glen Burnie outpost of La Sirenita, same owners same menu, is a mere blocks from BWI! If you head here, note that their address is 702 Crain Hwy N in Glen Burnie. They seem to be mis-listed as 702 Crain Hwy S in a lot of online databases, which tripped me up the first time I went there.

Also, bring your pointing finger if you don't speak Spanish. While the staff has always been gracious, they rarely have someone on staff who speaks English.

My Dad likes to go every year for his Bday, but it has to be on a Thursday 'cuz that's the only day they serve goat. (at least in Bethesda) From what I understand, the rest of the menu is pretty much run of the mill. Has anyone else tried the goat?

We were there a few months back, and the Thursday goat was no longer on the menu. Don't know if that was a temporary thing, but you might want to call first.

In the past, the goat was very very good. In fact, it was the only thing that differentiated Rio Grande from any of the other chain Tex Mex places in the area, IMHO.

B.J. Pumpernickels, in Olney, does one better than the bowl of pickles on the table. They have a pickle bar, and it's all you can eat with your meal! They have 4 or 5 different kind of pickles, from half-sours to butter slices to garlic dills, along with pickled tomatoes.

I think their deli meats aren't as good as Celebrity Delly in Potomac, or what Krupin's was a few years back when I was last there, but their chicken in the pot was pretty decent.

Of course, when I head for Olney, I usually land up at Le Mannequin Pis instead...

15 years ago, when I was an undergrad at GW, Zed's was where I went.

Then I discovered Adams Morgan, and until I moved to the burbs, Fasika's and Meskerem became my regular haunts.

About 4 years ago, I discovered Langano in Silver Spring, and that's where I've had most of my Ethiopian feasts recently. I know the U St. corridor is supposed to be the best these days, but I just haven't made it there yet. I do go to the AFI Silver theater frequently, so Langano is very convenient.

However, last night before catching a film at the AFI, I went again to Langano. Maybe it was just me, but I thought everything seemed off (except for the injera, which was great as usual.) Wats didn't seem as spicy as they've been in the past. Collards and other vegetable dishes just didn't have the same kick they used to. The lentil dishes, which are usually so interestingly spiced, seemed bland. The lamb was actually chewy, not tender.

Rocks, I know you've recommended Langano in the past - been there recently? I tried to ask one of the servers if the chef had changed recently, but didn't get a straight answer.

So where SHOULD I be going?

No can do tomorrow, but I'm also going to the Nats afternoon game on Thursday, and would love to swing by afterwards.

OK, so I'm a couple of weeks late on the report.

Let me give you the executive summary, before I go on to the details. And it's one you all knew. Four simple words. Go to Ray's instead.

One nice start is that it's on the east side of the Bethesda downtown area, so there's two parking garages right next to the restaurant. For those of you who frequent Bethesda on Friday and Saturday nights, you understand why this is such a big deal.

Even walking in the front door was a let down. Because it's hard to actually find the front door. The whole restaurant is wrapped in tall glass, but there aren't any signs telling you where the entrance is. So we walked around to the left, and saw only the office building and a coffee shop. Walked around to the right, oops, just the parking garage. Walked back around to the left, went IN to the office building, and there's the entrance to Old Homestead. I looked around afterwards - there is no sign or clue that you need to enter the office building to get to the restaurant.

We were greeted pleasantly and led immediately to our table. The dining room is very airy, with very tall ceilings. It's one floor, but tiered, so the space is open, while individual tables are cozy but not cramped. Very tasteful - not very "steakhouse-like". This was around 7pm on a Saturday night, and the restaurant was at most 25% full, though it was pretty busy when we left near 9pm.

Our starters were Fried Calamari, and the house salad. The calamari was cooked perfectly, and tasted very fresh, but the breading was odd - neither crispy nor soggy, but also not interesting. The house salad had a lot of different tastes and textures - 3 weeks later I can't remember exactly what was in it, but I do remember thinking that I wouldn't have chosen to throw these tastes and textures together, and that I wouldn't order it again.

My wife ordered the 18 oz. Kansas City sirloin, and I got the house signature, the 24 oz. "Gotham Rib Steak". We also got mushrooms on the side, and would have gotten the garlic mashed, but they were out. Who has ever heard of a steakhouse running out of that?

The steaks were very good. Clearly very well aged, prime beef, cooked exactly as ordered. However, and especially the Rib steak, they didn't seem to match the advertised sizes on the menu. I can tell you that if I order two appetizers, two steaks, and two sides at Ray's, Morton's, Charlie Palmer, etc. for my wife and I, we're taking half of the steaks and sides home, and maybe considering dessert. Here, we completely polished off the steaks, ate half the mushrooms (sauteed in oil with almost no seasoning, so we were bored halfway through), and were ready for dessert. Though I can say that the onion strings that came on the sirloin were magnificent - I could have eaten two plates of them.

Dessert was a first-rate key lime pie (and I grew up in South Florida, so my standards are pretty high), and the "Old Homestead Ho Ho", a reconstruction of the Hostess classic snack cake. I was down with the Kit Kat desconstruction idea, but this didn't work for me because it tasted almost exactly like a Ho Ho. It didn't taste like an $8 Ho Ho, it tasted just like the $0.75 version.

Total for the dinner (2 apps, 2 glasses wine, 2 steaks, one side, 2 desserts, 2 coffees) was just over $180 including tax and 20% tip. Service throughout the meal was efficient and pleasant. Our server had an oddly annoying voice, which I'm not complaining about in any way, but it was odd enough that 3 weeks later I remember the voice more than the service.

The summary, again: Go to Ray's instead.

Signed, desperately awaiting Ray's Classic.

P.S. Got the website wrong in the previous post. It's http://www.theoldhomesteadsteakhouse.com/

I just posted this over in the Palena topic, so excuse the cross-post.

I'm meeting a friend at the Uptown at 6:30pm on Monday, so I thought I'd swing by Palena first and try the much adored chicken. I've eaten in the dining room, but never the bar before.

Anyone want to join in?

I remember being on my honeymoon in Alaska in 1993, and seeing "Halibut McNuggets" on the menu at McDonald's.

And they have the McOz in Australia, which, best as I can tell, is a quarter pounder with a slice of pickled beet on top.

Does this place have a website?

http://www.oldhomesteadrestaurant.com/

Though the site seems to be down at the moment. When I checked earlier in the week, it was up, but only mentioned Bethesda as a future location. I'm going on Saturday night, so I'll report back.