sandynva

I got carryout from there this weekend and enjoyed it; i wish i lived closer to this place. We had samosas (very good), okra, paneer mahkani, and naan. the naan was just ok-but the paneer mahkani as more complex than usual, with a nice hint of heat, and the okra was really good--i've had okra with pieces of tomato before, but this was okra in a tomato-onion sauce that complemented, but didn't overwhelm the carmelized/fried okra. also had a madras coffee which was, as usual, delicious and reminded me of melted coffee ice cream.

speaking of squirrels, does anyone have a good way to deter them? we've had small issues with them before (eating tomatoes) but this spring, possibly related to my inadvertently removing a squirrel nest from my topsy turvy, they've/it's gone nuts. about every other day i come home to multiple plants and bulbs uprooted, all my dahlia bulbs have been eaten, and the little beasts have even dug up all my pots where i planted lettuce and chard. i may just get chicken wire to form cages, but i was hoping for something a little less visible. or, i was wondering, if i put out sunflower seeds for them to eat, will that satisfy them so they don't dig up stuff or just train them to associate my deck with food (and to continue digging stuff up)?

We went in november. we had a lovely meal at atelier joel robuchon--they even have a vegetarian menu and it was actually less expensive than many places in dc (only about $150 for food). we went to tim ho wan, which my husband really enjoyed, and i enjoyed the few vegetarian items they had (that cake is amazing!) but afterward was still hungry so went to mak's noodle, which was very good. ended up eating there twice actually as they have a second location on top of victoria peak, which seemed like the best available lunch option.

I was afraid you'd say that! I can't now because i am really totally slammed, but i could probably do it in a couple months, like in july.

I went there a couple of weeks ago and had a great lunch. The vegetarian hozon ramen was delicious, as good as the version in NYC, but happily less salty (though don't get me wrong, i was still very thirsty after). I also really enjoyed the shitake buns, i was surprised by how flavor and umami packed they were, particularly with a little bit of the ssam sauce. i could quibble about the value of only getting 2 (essentially a large appetizer size) for the price, but if i did it would mostly be because i selfishly want them to be cheaper so i can eat a lot more of them without feeling guilty. what we really liked was how the edges of each mushroom slice were crispy, yet the rest of the slice was tender. we were trying to figure out how they do this--does anyone know? we thought they might deep fry the mushrooms whole, then slice and season them.

Don, I'm sorry for the late reply, for some reason I didn't see this until now. a vegetarian meetup is a great idea, and it'd be awesome to do this, especially maybe at a place that either has a ton of veg options that we can all sample or a place that traditionally isn't that veg-friendly but maybe could be persuaded by a large group of vegetarians to offer a few more veg. dishes one night. But i know you've got a ton of stuff going on right now, so if you think you'd like to table this idea for a bit that's totally understandable.

great article.

reading these comments it seems to me that "authentic" is often used interchangeably with "traditional" and it shouldn't be. very few indian restaurants here are, strictly speaking, traditional. i looove woodlands, but i have some south indian friends who rant about how serving dosas, traditionally a breakfast food, at dinner, is just wrong. and they don't ever seem to serve food on banana leaves. but i wouldn't call woodlands non-authentic because of these things. not 100% traditional, yes. most north indian restaurants serve dishes from a variety of indian cuisines--chole from punjab, hydrabadi biryani etc. in india this is far less likely as these are different cuisines--it's like seeing cassoulet and pasta on the same menu. and biryani in particular is often made at biryani only places by people whose families have cooked biryani professionally for generations. so really, any place serving a mishmash of dishes (or possibly even giving customers forks) is bucking tradition, but i don't think that means the food is inauthentic. As Simul mentioned indian food isn't just the dhabas or home cooking, and while there's fusion (indo-chinese rocks!) there's also just more modernized food, and there has been for a while. for at least 35 years, each time i've been to india we were taken to at least a couple of restaurants where we had what i'd characterize as "modern indian cuisine", traditional flavors and techniques, but for example they have appetizers and food presented in courses (not really a traditional indian thing) or might make things with mushrooms, which many people traditionally shunned. If you told most of the patrons (or my relatives that took us there) that the food wasn't authentic, or was somehow less indian than the dhabas or street vendors, they would've laughed at you. but they'd agree that they weren't the most traditional places. authentic is so tricky, especially in places where there has been a lot of western influence for a lot of time. For example, my husband's family makes marzipan, breaded lamb cutlets, and all sorts of breads. i think a lot of people who claim rasika isn't authentic would think those dishes aren't authentic. but goans and east indians have made them for hundreds of years. similarly, there are all sorts of anglo-indian things around --cutlets, mulligatany soup among others-- they're clearly the result of cultures mixing but they've been eaten in india for hundreds of years. are those authentic? it's just so hard. And i have to agree with Simul on another thing--my parents, their friends, and many of my indian friends all love rasika. I don't think i've ever heard any of them claim it wasnt authentic.

I've never been to maketto, but hope to. that being said, I 1) agree with lion's point above and 2) would be interested in learning about other, more authentic places in the area serving Taiwanese food if anyone has any reccs. i also wanted to respond to another comment above about rasika having westernized indian food. I've said it before and i'll say it again--i disagree with this, i'd actually say that in many ways they are one of the less westernized places around. yes, the plating is western, and the heat level is mild. but so many of the flavors are actually more traditional than the typical north indian place here--the mustard greens in the saag has the same flavors (although more muted) as a traditional punjabi dish (of pure mustard greens) which i haven't seen on local menus. the use of amchur for sourness rather than lemon like many places. their gujarati lasagna is admittedly new in presentation, but the kadi is straight out of a gujarati home, and i haven't seen another place do it as well since nirvana closed. they used to have a dish of kofta in a chickpea flour kadi, basically a version of the gujarati home dish of rasia dhokla, a dish i've never seen on another restaurant menu, even in new jersey. a version of the palak chaat was a popular "fancy" dish at dinner parties when i was growing up. And this is just the stuff i've noticed, because as a gujarati i'm just more attuned to those flavors,my guess is that people from other parts of india have noticed similar things. some of my bengali friends have praised a fish dish with mustard oil (sorry, don't remember which one it is). My husband, raised in an east indian/goan family was delighted to see something with "bottle masala" on the menu-he says he's never seen that on a menu before. I agree that Tom S' praise for it is insane--has he never been to new jersey?--but I think it's excellent and deserves kudos for presenting something other than the normal (and usually mediocre) palak paneer/chicken tikka/chole stuff.

i have the same issue and most places will make things without fish sauce for me. i actually haven't been out for thai in a while, but some places i know have done it in the past are kao thai, thaiphoon,rice, and bangkok 54.sadly little serow will NOT do things without fish sauce (or fish for that matter) so don't take them there. thip khao (not thai i know, but if they like thai, they'll probably like this too, and it's a little more unusual) specifically says they can make things vegan.

this is way too late, i know, but maybe it will help someone in the future-- last summer we went to the Barnes and had lunch at pizzeria vetri. literally just a few blocks away (walkable) and tasty albeit totally casual and i doubt they take reservations. also, not that close to the barnes and rittenhouse, but not that far either, is dizengoff, where you get bowls of the zahav hummus with pita and toppings. quite tasty, but my fave thing to do there is to get a quart of hummus and some pita to go (but you have to order it 24 hours ahead)

fyi--park seed is having a sale on their annual plants, which includes some herbs. i haven't ordered herbs from them before but their tomatoes were a decent starter size, and in my experience they've been quite good about replacing plants that arrive in bad condition. i bought a 6 pack of arp rosemary for $11.86, and was tempted by, though ultimately did not get, a 6 pack of sage for $10. in addition if you order $40 worth of stuff shipping is free. on a related note--my thyme and sage didn't survive the winter, even though they are supposed to be hardy. does anyone else have luck getting them to survive or are they just one of those things the labels claim are hardy but really aren't?

I really like Mandalay, the Burmese place. Love that ginger salad. Paccis does a nice margharita pizza.

home depot had lettuce, kale, and broccoli about 2 weeks ago, 9 pak for $3.50. they looked pretty good, i bought kale and broccoli. they also had some rosemary and sage, but they were like 2.25 in pots for $3.50, not a great price. i had ice lettuce for the first time and loved it so bought some seeds. has anyone grown this before and have any tips? or, as it's apparently some sort of iceplant, does anyone have tips on growing iceplants from seed? thanks!

one great thing about peter chang--on just about any dish you want, they will substitute tofu for the meat/fish, so you can get a vegetarian version of most things on the menu. my current fave is the hot and numbing flounder (with tofu instead of flounder) the broth is just so tasty! the one bummer is that they charge the menu price for the item regardless of whether you've downgraded to the cheaper tofu, but still, i'm delighted to have that option. As a vegetarian (no seafood/chicken/meat, but eggs and dairy ok) i think it's interesting that you've found vietnamese places more veg friendly than chinese, as i've found plenty of things to eat at a & J and joe's, and many things at sichuan jin river, while on the other hand in my limited search i haven't yet found a vietnamese place where i can eat much (so if you know of one please tell me!).

thanks for posting. wow, the service sounds problematic for any place, and especially so for a place with the Inn's prices and reputation.

i checked out the link and the stuff looks awesome. i rarely go to balducci's though so if anyone sees it elsewhere i'd be interested in learning where.

And Peter Chang

the only place i've found them is eden center. my hmart (georgia ave) does have some packaged fresh wide noodles in the refrigerated produce case, in a little shelf above the produce, i've never tried them though, they kind of seem a bit dry. but maybe if you steamed them they'd be rejuvinated?

I'd be interested in hearing your recommendations as well, because I've really enjoyed Momofuku in New York at least and apparently there's even more deliciousness to be had and even cheaper! Bonus points if you remember any dishes or places that are particularly vegetarian friendly.

Does anyone know Kwame, his GM, or his investors? I am coming from the position of someone who really liked Kwame and wants him to succeed (so i can eat his food!) and i'm getting a bit worried by all of these comments, and the ones on the wapo article. Many of the members of the DR community seem to eat at fine dining establishments more than most of the people i know, and spend more money on dining out, yet not a single comment above was even ok with the pricing. only one of the 13 wapo comments seemed ok with the price. if i were kwame, this would worry me, as if even the people on DR, who have demonstrated a willingness to pay well for excellent food, think you are very overpriced, he may have a real problem. maybe this is naive of me to ask, but do you think Kwame or his team know what people are saying? he's on the post chat today too, i'm wondering if anyone will mention it to him....

After the Post listed their cheese pie in their cheesy-dish guide i thought I'd stop by and get some carryout, and i was glad i did. The shop seems mostly designed for lunch--they close at 6. they have a number of savory pies, and a couple sweet ones too, and at least one cake and some salads in a case. the savory pies come in spirals and rectangles, and large and small sizes, so if you want you can sample more than one pie. most of the pies feature cheese and most may be vegetarian--i've had plain feta, spanakopita, cheese and olive, and cheese potato and leek. They were all tasty. They make their phyllo in house and you can tell--it's quite different than the usual stuff, thicker, you can taste the olive oil, and just overall much more flavorful. it's hard to explain but usually i feel like phyllo mostly adds crunch. theirs is an ingredient, not just a wrapper, and adds its own flavor as well.I was slightly apprehensive about getting an all-feta pie, but their feta (as the sweetheart of a proprietor informed me) is from greece and quite different. she was so proud of it she gave me a mini pie to try right there to show how mild it was, and she was right, it's very good. It was also lovely to talk to someone so proud of what she was doing, and her ingredients that she just had to have you taste her product. if you get carry-out, you pop the pie into the oven for a few minutes and it crisps up beautifully. i think that with a salad, one pie is more than enough for dinner for one person.

i had a surprisingly nice lunch there today. they have a 3 course lunch for $20. I started with the quinoa salad, which was large (big enough for a light lunch on its own) and delicious. we really liked the addition of the crunchy fried quinoa and the tangy quinoa was punctuated with interesting little tidbits--one bite you'd get some nice potato, another you'd get these delicious little peppers. then i had the aeropuerto which was very good as well. it's not grondbreaking, it's like a typical fried rice except a lot more vegetables, but it's a really good fried rice with lots of toasty flavor either from the wok or the charred brussels in it. and it did have lots of fried carrot threads in it, which added a nice crunch. for dessert i had the grapefruit sorbet, which was creamer, and less tart than expected. i should have gotten the suspiro limena, as my friend did. it came with some passionfruit sorbet on top and that with the almost carmel flavored custard was great.

"His food sounded wonderful, and I'm quite interested in trying it, but not at that price point when it's a fixed menu (and you don't know the menu)." exactly. And the emphasis on foie, etc baffles me a bit--i was a big fan on top chef, but what seemed great on the show were his sauces and spicing, and i would think those would overwhelm things like lobster and foie (but as i don't eat either i don't actually know this). I wish him luck, he seems a great talent and i am really hoping this concept doesn't end up hurting him.

surprisingly, i actually like a lot of their more standard dishes, including the okra, spinach, and the dal (at west end, i haven't had it at penn quarter yet). in my experience many of the standards are worth ordering, either because they put a nice twist on them or it's a really excellent version, like a great home cook, and i don't get that level of cooking often here. I normally don't order either dal ( i make this well at home, particularly if i allow myself to use the typical amount of cream or butter for the mahkani) or palak, (in my opinion it's not that flavorful and tastes of mostly spinach..). however, was with a friend who ordered the spinach, which i actually tried to dissuade her from doing. she didn't listen and i tasted it and loved it. it has fenugreek and hints of mint and for me those transform the dish. it's now my go-to, unless the butternut bharta is on the menu. and i love the okra because it's very like my mom's.unlike most places locally, they add amchur, sour mango powder, and it's great. (it always amuses me when people say rasika is doing fusion indian, as so many of the dishes are really traditional, just different than the standard punjabi food at most places). i went to westend recently and loved the dal dhungaree. i've never had that preparation before, and don't know what it's supposed to taste like, but this was like a really excellent mahkani. rich and creamy and comforting, but more highly flavored than the dish usually is. we also had the sweet potato samosa. on one hand we were dissapointed because the sweet potato was somehow not sweet and tasted like normal potatoes. and the spicing was utterly traditional--but again, a really good version. i'd happily get them again. nothing groundbreaking at all,, but at a level of tastiness you probably only get in like the top 15% of home cooked versions.