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sandynva

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Everything posted by sandynva

  1. sandynva
    i love their cheese herb biscuits! i think the ones at the gtown location are a bit better--the ones i've had downtown are often a bit sweet for my taste, perhaps because of the onions--but the big advantage of the downtown location is that they don't seem to run out of the biscuits unlike the mothership, which always runs out of them, and early.
  2. sandynva
    i don't know if this answers your q, but at the very least, i doubt the quality, to the extent it exists, vanishes, so much as it gets hidden. I'm definitely not one of those who assumes free range/local/organic tastes better but to the extent it does, doesn't whether or not the food suffers depend on the type of dish? i don't eat meat, but i'd imagine that in a plain roast chicken you might be able to taste some differences, but in say, a tikka masala, you couldn't, because really, who can taste anything underneath the sauce? i add tofu rather than paneer to my tikka masala sauce because i really don't think you can tell what's under there, much less differences in quality, and even to the extent you can, i want the sauce to shine, not what's under it. also, is it possible that whether or not there's a noticeable difference in quality varies based on type of bird and meat? with vegetabes at least it does. for example, local/fresh picked tomatoes taste much, much better to me than the stuff from the market, but many other things, like kale and fennel, don't really. so maybe in certain animals it makes a big difference and others it doesnt. But i do think you ask an important question--leaving aside all ethical issues and looking at it clearly from the point of deliciousness- what variants (i.e. local, organic, heirloom, etc) actually make a difference? which ones could you tell in a blind taste test? and, fwiw, though you posed multiple questions, i understood what you were asking.
  3. sandynva
    i really like the tofu from thann son, and get some to munch on while browsing and more to take home and cook with. they often have special items like spring rolls near the register and those are usually quite good. i wish i knew the name but there's a great boba/iced coffee place on the side of the mall perpendicular to Thanh Son (if you're facing Thanh son, it's on your left. i wish i could remember the name, but maybe someone else does). you can enter it from either inside the mall area, or from the parking lot (taking a few steps down). i love their iced coffee-so rich and sweet with both boba and little coffee jellies and i recently had a papaya drink there that was fantastic-clearly made with fresh papaya.
  4. sandynva
    I read the WaPo article about this place Friday and, since I was working from home that day anyway, and am on the hunt for Shaanxi-style food, ran there to get carryout before the storm hit. The place is brand new (the sign for the old eatery is still up), and although not fancy is clean and looks nice. The menu isn't that large, it seems mostly the "burgers" rou jia mo and noodles. The service was very friendly, and we quite enjoyed the food we had. The noodles were all strongly flavored (a good thing, imho) with noticeable heat without being too spicy. the texture of the noodles themselves was average, not particularly chewy, and the noodles had less vegetables in them than the pictures in the post. We had: --Liang pi noodles--different than the ones I remembered from Xian (which seemed to have a more sesame based sauce, and more vegetables) and even from the picture in the Post-- these were noodles coated with a red/orange spicy, slightly creamy sauce, with a few things that looked like croutons tossed in (they were soft and chewy). spicy and flavorful. --Hot oil noodles--These are quite similar to Peter Chang's grandma noodles, but--and I can't believe I'm saying this as I love the grandma noodles--these might be even better. the slightly chewy texture of peter chang's noodles is better than texture of the noodles here, but the flavor here was stronger, with a slick of vinegar or some dark sour sauce at the bottom that was great. --mung jelly in spicy sauce--these were broad noodles of mung bean jelly tossed in a not-too-spicy but flavorful sauce. the texture of the jelly was great--the ribbons were much more noodle-like and flexible than most of the jelly I've had, but they still absorbed the flavors and retained heat beautifully, which was perfect for a snowy afternoon --pork rou jia mo--I didn't try this but heard it was less strongly flavored than the noodles and quite greasy, but still good overall. One nice thing--many of the noodle dishes can be vegetarian, and they even have a vegetarian potato burger. Overall we really enjoyed the food and will definitely be adding it to the carryout rotation.
  5. sandynva
    I'm agnostic--I don't really know if they're capable of being delicious or not, rather than being firmly in the camp of those who are convinced they are not tasty. that article is a funny coincidence. I hadn't known about it until you posted it (thanks!) my q really was from watching top chef.
  6. sandynva
    From watching Top Chef at least it seems like carrots are a trend or at least becoming quite popular. They seem to be the focus of a lot of dishes, often seared or roasted. I've not been a huge fan of cooked carrots (mostly because they're sweet, and I prefer savory things) but admittedly I've mostly had them in soups and stews (where they were only ok) glazed with sugar (not a fan) or simply roasted (eh). I'm curious to see if I like some of the newer preparations. I was wondering-does anyone have any savory carrot recipes that they think might convert a carrot agnostic? thank you.
  7. sandynva
    they also sell their hummus here by the quart--for either $16 or $18 (i forget which) you get a quart of that amazingness plus 6 fresh pitas. the only catch is that you 1) have to order this 24 hours in advance and 2) then have to eat the hummus before it goes bad, which is faster than you'd expect as it has no preservatives. however, as i discovered this weekend, the hummus actually thaws pretty well. we got a quart a couple months ago and didn't have time to finish it so froze it. thawed this weekend it was still quite good.
  8. sandynva
    i think i remember reading the same thing about all red delicious apples--that all the trees that now exist are grafts of the original tree (or of its original grafts). The lack of genetic diversity is worrisome of course, but, to me at least, it's also amazing to realize that this whole crop came from one plant, and that all those trees out there are, in a way, the same tree.
  9. sandynva
    Is there any recent information on what waits are like?i had the vegetarian hozon ramen in nyc and loved it, and would love to have it again, but am not up for a huge wait, especially now that winter has emerged.
  10. sandynva
    i can't find it, but i would've sworn that in the past year there was an article in one of the locations where they asked a chef to prepare a meal with the high end ingredients he normally used and then with agreements from a local supermarket. does anyone remember this? i remember being a bit dissapointed by it because he ended up using different techniques to prepare the cheaper ingredients, so though (if i remember correctly) both meals ended up rated equally by the tasters it wasn't an apples-to-apples comparison. i would love to see the results of a similar experiment where the ingredients were prepared identically.
  11. sandynva
    I went yesterday for the very first time and am happy to report that the case seems to be working. we ordered some items from it (after examining them closely) and they were ice cold. We went because we recently went to xian and i fell in love with the stir-fried super savory cubes of liangfen they served there, and i've been trying to find similar ones in dc, and joes serves 2 kinds of liangfen so it seemed worth a shot. the service was really friendly and fast. we had the szechuan cold mung bean noodle with sauce and the hot and spicy mung bean jello. with both of them, we liked the seasoning a lot, we just wanted much more of it-next time we'll order it spicy i guess. the hot and spicy jello was in the same ballpark as what i was looking for but not quite the same. however, when i put the leftovers into a skillet at home so they could warm up, begin to brown at the edges, and also absorb the flavor more, they were much better. we were happily surpised by how stuffed with chives the "chive pocket" was. (i often think scallion pancakes don't have enough scallion). interestingly, it too was better that night when reheated for dinner, maybe the reheating cooked (and thus tamed) the chives a bit? the sauce on the pasta with hot and sour sauce is good, we just wished the noodles they served them with were better. We'll definitely be back, and next time will ask for the food extra spicy.
  12. sandynva
    Went to the rockville location again last week and was happy to see they've now added specials in addition to the regular menu. we had many of our standard favorites--hot and numbing shredded tofu (they've increased the portion size, which is great, as before it was really too small), grandma noodles, cilantro fish rolls, fried pork belly and double cooked pork belly--and they were all great. from the specials we had the hot and spicy lotus root and the tea smoked duck. the lotus root was less exciting than it sounded-slices of lotus root with the same batter and very similar topping as the fried eggplant. good, but we like the eggplant better. i didn't have any of the duck but i think people liked it.
  13. sandynva
    went there for happy hour recently and was sad to see that the new chef has taken the wok fried okra off the menu. I wish him luck, but boy did i love munching on those during happy hour....
  14. sandynva
    i've been to both the arlington and rockville locations in the past few months and while both were great, i was really surprised that the rockville location seemed notably better, so much so that i asked if chef chang was in the kitchen (he wasn't). we tried the vegetarian version of the hot and numbing flounder (they use tofu instead) and it is fantastic--a really flavorful dish with great broth. i still love the grandma noodles as well.
  15. sandynva
    I'm not sure if this is the right thread for this so please feel free to move it wherever it fits best. my husband looooves the homemade toasted pumpkin seeds we make after carving and the toasted seeds from any squash we eat, but really, there's only so much squash i can cook (or eat!). he's tried the davids pumpkin seeds from the store and didn't like them, and i've even tried taking the davids seeds, rinsing to get the salt coating off and re-toasting them. they were significantly better but still nowhere as good as the fresh ones. does anyone know how i can get a bunch of fresh, untoasted pumpkin or squash seeds (with the shells, not pepitas) so i can toast them at home? thank you!
  16. sandynva
    in high school, we went there every year to celebrate my friend's birthday. i was in love with the 'shrooms--the fried mushrooms stuffed with horseradish and cheese. i went to one in an airport about five years ago and had the shrooms again, and though they werent as amazing as i remembered, i still enjoyed them. but i love the combo of mushrooms and horseradish and also love anything fried, so i may not be an objective judge.
  17. sandynva
    We had a nice dinner here saturday, each of us had the 4 course "tasting menu." i put it in quotes because i think that if you think of it as restaurant week deal + $5 for an antipasti platter you're more impressed by the value. if you haven't been, you get four courses--a shared antipasti platter, a pasta, an entree and dessert. they put together the antipasti, for the other courses you chose between two options. Tom S apparently recieved antipasti that included hamachi and foie gras mousse. We recieved a generous portion of three cheeses, three meats, olives, apricots, a beet-bacon arancini, chicken liver bruchetta, and for me they were kind enough to add a falafel ball and chickpea bruchetta. the cheese portions were generous, the olives good, and the falafel really excellent-not dry at all crispy and strongly herby-i have to go back and try their falafel sandwich sometime. our pastas were delicious and so good that, like i do at graffiato, i wished that mike i would serve them as entree portions. the butternut/pistachio ravioli with brown butter and sage was one of the best versions i've had of the dish--the pasta had the perfect texture, the filling flavorful and creamy but not too sweet, and the sauce was strongly flavored. i don't even like squash ravioli and i wanted a whole plate of these. the pasta in my pasta with cauliflower ragu had the perfect texture and though the sauce was quite simple--mashed cauliflower, cheese, a hint of mint-it was very tasty. for mains we had cauliflower steak with little potato gratin diamonds (the "steak" was very good, and the potatoes like an excellent hash brown) and lamb on a bed of cooked greens over mushroom polenta. the polenta was rich, smooth, and delicious, and the lamb, while good, was a bit fatty. dessert was ricotta gelato with warm honey doughnuts and a cinnamon sauce (the menu said it was eggplant sauce but it tasted like cinnamon). it was tasty, though there was a bit too much salt sprinkled over it. we also had a slice of maple caramel buttercream cake, which was really good, like a great homemade cake. the service was good and attentive, and it was definitely a good value. We'll be back though next time i may skip the tasting menu and opt for two pastas instead.
  18. sandynva
    Is he paying less than the going rate for line cooks in nyc? for that matter, do the places you love in dc pay their line cooks substantially more than the going rate for line cooks in dc? unless the answer to either q is yes, i'm not sure why you're angry with him.
  19. sandynva
    i agree that the hibiscus margarita, is a pretty standard margarita, except maybe lacking the strong citrus flavor most margs have. The only thing i've had here was the cabbage slaw tossed with some sort of avocado/tomatillo dressing, and it was great.
  20. sandynva
    i've never eaten the food there, but i have had their adult milkshakes. and the chocolate ice cream +hazelnut is freakin delicious. it's not fancy, but i'd take it over many of the artisinal, handcrafted precious cocktails i regularly pay too much for any day. i think that there's nothing wrong with being simple or a diner, as long as you're delicious, which the adult milkshakes are. And i've personally never thought they were putting on airs or claiming to be anything but simple, good, food, i never thought they viewed themselves as providing "cuisine."
  21. sandynva
    rose's--I would be ok waiting like 30 min but am scared by reports of 2 hour waits little serow--I'm vegetarian and don't eat fish (or fish sauce) so the no substitution thing makes it a nonstarter.
  22. sandynva
    In Don's post above (for some reason I can't figure out how to quote it) he proposes a set fee on service for wine, regardless of the cost of the bottle, as it's the same amount of work. this brings me to a related point, which has always bothered me about tipping, and the dc dining scene--to me it seems unfair to tip based on the price of the check, because in very few instances do I feel that the price of the food I order correlates to the quality of service I get. There are some exceptions (Tosca, Rasika) but for the most part, I don't feel that the service at the more expensive places is so much better than at more moderate places like mandalay, two amys, Bangkok golden or even diners and ihop, and in fact I often feel that the service I get at the more moderate places is better--my water is more consistently topped off, the food is paced well, and I don't have to waive down the staff to get the check or to order an additional drink. However, the staff at the more expensive places get a much larger tip for doing, in most cases, the same amount or less work. I compensate for this to a certain extent by tipping more at small places and a lot more at places like coffeehouses and diners, but still, it doesn't seem fair to me at all. I don't know if this is due to a relative lack of good service in dc or just a failure of the system of assuming that a higher tip and customer discretion as to tip amount leads to better service. on the other hand though was just in Ireland where tipping is less common and the amount of the tips is lower, and service there, while extremely friendly and kind, was less attentive than it is here (and service in spain recently was similarly not as attentive as I'd like), so maybe the standard American tipping system does create better service.
  23. sandynva
    I adore their almond croissants. the service is still....lacking though, so I usually get them to go.
  24. sandynva
    raita? I've seen many recipes for a cold buttermilk/yogurt soup with cucumber and mint and they look delicious. I also take the (peeled) spears and either sprinkle with chili powder and salt (lime optional), chaat masala (if you have any) or splash with some soy sauce and wee bit of seasoned rice wine vinegar and let sit for at least an hour (you can also add some fresh grated ginger if you'd like).
  25. sandynva
    Just want to chime in on the ice cream, which I have always thought is probably the best in the city. Went there sunday afternoon for a post-zoo snack and had some suppli and ice cream at the bar. I dislike fruity ice cream, but their blueberry-chocolate (a flavor I was quite skeptical of) was so good I wanted another bowl. watermelon-lime sorbet was excellent too.
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