turbogrrl

Depends on where you are. Mr. Chen's in Woodley Park turns out adequate chinese-american food. I say adequate because, really, I'm spoiled for homemade Chinese food and don't really like standard chinese-american restaurant fare.

Generally I go here when I want a quick sandwich or burrito- open 8am to 10pm, it's nice place to pick up some beer or wine, too. Favorites: El Humberto (avocado, turkey, sprouts, lemon juice, salt, tomatoes on toasted ciabatta) Roast Beef and Valfrais (when I'm feeling extra cheesy, I make them put Provolone on it too. Don't ask me why.) Chicken Burrito- with lots of jalepenos, it's got a nice kick to it. If it's saturday or sunday, I have them add egg to the mix to make it a brunch burrito. But then it really wants more cheese. The owner, Kevin, swears by his hamburger with an egg on it, but I've never yet had the desire for a hamburger in the middle of the day so I don't know about that.

Oh, believe me, I'm all about the Super Chicken. But they close earlier, and if I'm going to *eat in*, I prefer EPR to Super Chicken. The latter is for taking over to my friends house and eating while standing up in the kitchen so we can taunt the cat. Which is why I was El Pollo Rico again last night. Mmm, fries and drumsticks.

last night- midnight dinner at the diner. the mojitos were strong, and went down too easily. lunch today- a brunch burrito at The Dupont Market. (brunch burrito, my creation= chicken burrito, with the works–peppers, beans, jalapenos, avocado, cheese–, with an egg scrambled in, too boot.) dinner tonight- mmm, noodly goodness at A&J. And pork buns. Mustn't forget the pork buns! now.... homework. argh.

Finally got my ass out the door around 9pm last night. Thank god El Pollo Rico is open until 10.

What with exams and final projects and papers, oh my... I forgot to eat today after half a salty oat cookie in the morning. Got out of the exam around 3:30, started to wend my way home, realized it was possible that I might eat part of my car if I didn't get something quick. So I pulled into Pho 75 on University in Langley Park, brought my bag o homework, and sat down. 'Number 9,' I said, without looking at the menu. 'Oh, and an iced coffee.' Small? 'Yes, small.' My coffee came out, prompting me to put my work away, and the skirt steak and brisket pho soon followed. I let the coffee sit in the cup with the brewer on top, and attacked the pho. It was good. Sated, I addressed myself to the coffee. It's assemble-your-own iced coffee. The condensed milk is on the bottom of the coffee cup, and the coffee is brewed on top. So if you don't want the result to be sweeter than cotton candy, all you have to do is leave the condensed milk alone. I stirred lightly, then upended the mug over the glass of ice. (Hrmm, I could use more practice with that.) The condensed milk stayed mostly in the mug, like I wanted. I took another teaspoon of it, stirred it in to the iced coffee, and drank the coffee down. Total with tip for the much-needed soup interlude: $9.

A long day; a failed midterm, and other vagaries. Met my good friend in Dupont, and our wandering feet led us first to tea, and then to the rock creek, where we fished out some trash and watched ducks. Then we walked up the long hill to the zoo, where we mocked an ostrich and ogled a pygmy hippo and meowed futilely at the big kitty cages. Finally, we turned even further north, and settled in at the bar at Dino, where Chris made us some very fine drinks and we tried not to terrorize people *too* much. For the record, we weren't the ones who held up and attacked a ribeye like it was a large lollipop. We didn't even suggest it; they did it all on their own. But the char was lovely. As is a bar where perfect strangers will offer up bits of their food.

mark- thanks for your detailed replies! As for not commenting at the time- our energy levels fell rapidly and you were wrapped up in something at the time we finished, so we deemed it prudent to go home and get some sleep ;-) best of luck in everything!

True, and I loved it when I lived out there, for completely different reasons than I love Adams Morgan. But now this is diverging into philosophical feelings on what constitutes a neighborhood, and how each individual balances contributing to the community versus maximizing their own profit. I'm going to dislike a something that overwhelms its ecology regardless of whether the individual who owns it is "local" or not. I admit my feelings on neighborhoods verge on the quixotic, and I get to indulge that by patronizing establishments that are better integrated into their environment. That said, I will freely admit that my words, quoted above by others, were in many respects overly harsh; I apologize for that. My father is in the hospital- I thought I was coping, but clearly my stress found a convenient target. I don't know that I'll ever give their food another chance, but I'll endeavour to withhold any further commentary on the place itself until I do.

It *is* a huge restaurant. That's a large part of the problem. It overwhelms the locale- they just don't have the infrastructure to deal with the large crowds they do attract. And their presence edges out other, smaller restaurants; there is no spillover from LP, as you're urged to have a drink as soon as you walk in, and people will demonstrably stand around and drink rather than walk into a nearby restaurant with tables. (I still miss Wazuri terribly.) If I'm coming home at dinner time I have to drive several blocks out of my way to avoid the traffic jam at T (which is only exacerbated by the terrible light timing at florida and U) or else get stuck for an extra 5+ minutes achingly close to home. If I'm trying to walk to the bookstore I have to elbow my way through oblivious herds of people who assume that it's perfectly fine to blockade the sidewalk. And while I have once or twice recognized locals sitting outside enjoying a drink, it's been quite rare in my experience. I've never had a neighbor exclaim 'wow, LP is just such a pleasant time!' As for the tolerance, it has built up after many years of living nearby. LP is just an annoying neighbor: one who may be an affably decent guy, but who is constantly throwing loud annoying parties, and whose guests park on your lawn and block your alleys and wander tipsily around the neighborhood just a bit too loudly. Sometimes, it's not about the food. (And yes, one can say the same thing about the strip in A/M, but that's *expected* to be a nightmare, and it's all compressed and contained. The reason LP stands out is because all of the congestion is visibly only due to them- cause and effect laid out at the feet of one perpetrator, rather than distributed between several dozen restaurants and bars.)

Ok, so you walk in and they immediately start pushing the alcohol. Then, they feed you exceedingly salty food, so you keep drinking more alcohol, and get buzzed enough that you don't notice or mind that hey- the food is a flavourless salt lick! The servers all have to wear awful outfits, and I'm doubtful that the restaurant provides them for free. (I run into staff from LP all the time, and they never look happy. Except when they're sneaking beer into a coffee cup on their smoke break.) Then there's the fact that the people that go to LP invariably *drive*, and are the cause of interminable traffic jams because OMG, they have to block the middle of the intersection to get into the valet lot because all those other cars on the road are clearly trying to just jump in line for the valet lot. And then there are the oblivious dingbats that think the sidewalk exists only to allow them to stand around and smoke and wait for a chance to get a margarita at the bar. And then there are the snailspacecruising doubleparking cabbies vainly hoping to lure one of those drunk patrons into *their* cab, when those same people are clearly just waiting to either get a table or have their SUV brought around. LP is a blight on the landscape. Even if their food were decent, I'd hate them for the awful crowd they attract night after night after night. And there's no upside. At least the people going into Madams Organ are scantily clad.

Ate in Bethesda, drove home through Woodley Park. The streets were littered with limousine abominations of every stripe. It's Prom Season, folks. Run and hide. Run. and. hide.

Nick didn't finish working on his car until 9 or so this evening, which meant we were in Bethesda and tired and had to figure out where we wanted dinner. We'd vaguely thought about hitting up The Diner, but we had two cars and I only have one parking space. Like we were going to find another parking space on the street in A/M on a clear Saturday night. I'd rather have a winning lottery ticket, thanks. But considering The Diner and what we'd likely order reminded me about the Burger Joint. Of course, there were no hours nor a phone number on the website, but we were going to have to drive through 'thesda on our way home to DC anyway. Was worth a shot. Found it on our second time around the block; it's on that wedge of land that breaks fairmont at woodmont. And they were open. Both of us ordered bacon cheeseburgers (one rare with tomato and onions, and one medium-rare with tomato). We also got one order of fries, a soda, and after some misdirection, a vanilla milkshake. Total for dinner: $30. The burgers were... ok. Probably decent. I liked the flavour of the bacon, and they weren't overcooked, but they weren't exciting in any way. They also came with pickle on them, which was an unpleasant surprise, since I'm allergic to dill. Easily extracted though, as they were on the bottom of the bun, and thus not mired in cheese. The fries were possibly saltier than even Nick would have liked, which is saying something. (I usually have to rescue food I intend to steal from his over-salting ways.) The milkshake, once we got it was... light and frothily bland. Also it had gobs of whipped cream on it. My stomach is gurgling and reminding me that it really hadn't wanted such heavy food this evening. Otoh, everyone was nice and friendly and seemed excited to be working there. Interesting feature: there is a Purell foam dispenser by the door, above the fire extinguisher. The proprietor is still futzing with the hours, but he thinks it'll be 11-11, and is considering being open until 2am Thurs-Sat. phone number: 301-358-6137

Was heading north on Rockville Pike when a glance at my watch said 20:53 and I got a sinking feeling in my stomach that A&J closed at 9. Pulled into the parking lot to be sure while I tried to mentally review my options. Yup, closed at 9. We started to turn the car around, when the manager dashed out the front door and waved at us. Really? You're sure? We didn't need to be asked twice! Parked, dashed in and ordered what we always order: fried chicken noodle soup. buddha's delight. pork buns. braised pork with egg. It's amazing how happy that simple wave made me. "See you tomorrow!" she called, as we stumbled out the door. Hrmm. I *do* get out of class 2.

See, I figured that they'd just been saving their pennies and had funds left over. Naive me.

I wasn't- we got the gyros the last time. *This* time it was mini burgers. Both tasty, both different. Lets see- I'm trying to remember all of the desserts, but we'd gotten a bit silly by that point. There was a mango, cayenne, and yoghurt drink... there was a goat-cheese sorbet, I think, paired with strong cherries, and I remember a caramelized sugar-structure filled with a creamy chocolate substance, and a perfectly-dense cake that I only got a microscopic bite of, and a fortune cookie that I got none of.

You haven't said if you are of wine-quaffing age yet. ;-) Wine or cocktails can add a significant bit to a bill- figure ~30$ per person, and so that's going to cut into what you can get and where you can go. If you're not drinking alcohol, then you have more flexibility. Personally, I'd recommend Dino- the steak-eaters can get a lovely hangar steak, if they so choose, and the more adventurous can order from nicely varied menu. Also, it's on the red line in Cleveland Park, so it's easy to get to, and the advantage is that I generally have to work hard to break $100 per person. The bistro at Restaurant Eve in Alexandria would be a fine choice as well if you can stick within your budget. (It's also a bit harder to get to, as its a decent walk from the King Street Metro.) Have fun, whatever you do!

I've been trying to figure out what the optimal spacing between Komi visits is. We went again last night, and in early March before that. Which was *almost right*.... I'd been looking forward to dinner- well, ever since I made the reservation- but I think that every month and a half is perhaps a hair too frequent. I think I've figured it out, though. One summer course at the university is roughly equal to 6 Komi visits for two. If I eschew taking a summer course, I'll both have time to sleep in all summer *and* I'll have indirectly funded my Komi addiction. Done and done. Derek's London Special- port, sparkling wine, earl grey bitters, and orange peel- could make an addict out of me. Everything was wonderful, and I think that Nick's parents are really regretting ignoring my excellent advice to just go to Komi already when I suggested it 8 months ago. So much so that they're *already* plotting to go without us. New to me from last time: -Slow-cooked egg in shell, presented with bottarga piled on a small cracker on top. Mix the bottarga in, and go to town with a tiny spoon-scoop. -Mini goat-burgers with sauteed onions wrapped in pita. Mmmmm! -Grilled octopus- so tender! -a foie gras puff next to a pillow of goat cheese that started out buttery smooth but finished by reminding you that yes, this was Goat Cheese. There were a couple of other new bits, but those were the ones that stood out for me. We had the degustazione and got the spit-roasted goat again, which worked really well because Nick's parents never would have ordered it and they were utterly surprised to adore it. I am fat and happy.

OhMiGod it's open, it's actually open! The funny thing was, I wasn't really all that excited about this. Possibly because I've been driving past the "coming soon" sign for three years. But now that it is actually open? Bliss! Fruit that I can carry home and not have it be half-spoilt. Shelves that are actually stocked with normal, useful things like toilet paper and paper towels. Wine and beer. Best of all? there are now people walking up and down my street at all hours that *aren't* drunk or selling drugs.

Oh god. Komi last night, and we're going to Dino tonight. Sunday we're going to a cheese party. I'm going to die of too much food. But I'll die happy.

had to go to alexandria last night for other reasons; flipped a coin for dinner and went to the Majestic. A nicely spicy seafood stew, and a four-cheese ravioli were delicious. As was the French 76. The chard was a bit of a disappointment- I guess I've just imprinted on Coppi's chard and ricotta. No room for dessert, sadly. Service was uniformly great- friendly, earnest, and unobtrusive.

hey now! I said The Diner did well for hamburgers and milkshakes. I've never had a steak there, and my lawyer advises me not to comment about the blowjobs.

Some people reminded me that today is Steak and Blowjob day. Well, I had the steak yesterday with my lovely girl porcupine (and a fine steak it was), so today I made a new holiday: Hamburger and Milkshake day. The Diner in adams morgan does well on both fronts, not to mention the eyecandy. Huzzah.

Bubble Mix got sold, and reopened between semesters as Yami Yami. They still have good bubble, and also offer a few sushi rolls and salad bowls- typical college fare. I prefer their bubble to the CPK Ten Ren- I will frequently go to TR for food and around to Yami Yami for bubble.

sturgeon is in. we didn't have it, but a table near us last night did and were raving about it. Have not had veggie pasta, either (sorry, can't stay away from the boar), but the bean risotto was nice. I don't think there was any meat added to it...