u-bet!

Sections 401 & 402 are reserved for day-of-game sales at the stadium ticket windows. All seats in these sections are $5.00 apiece. The six-rows-from-the-field seats Diannesh got would not have been $5.00 tickets (unless something went horribly wrong with the ticketing system).

Spotted on ballparkguys.com: From today's Sports Business Daily: quote:The Nationals and concessionaire Centerplate have completed a deal for Five Guys Burgers & Fries to operate an outfield plaza stand in the team's new ballpark. It will be the second location in a sports facility for Five Guys, founded in '86 in nearby Arlington, Virginia. The Five Guys stand at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa has become one of the NHL arena's top-selling concessions since it opened in October.

Are the Dominic's carts still set up in the concourse, or did they go the way of the Nats?

Fontina Grill in King Farm (Rockville). Decent-size HD TV at the bar. Try the rockfish salad!

Wondered why there was an all-male line out the door...

So if I show up for dinner at around 6 tonite (no res, so I would be dining solo at the bar), my chances of snagging an order of the sturgeon are...?

That, or change the picture.

Not sure if this will help, but I had a great cup of brewed decaf this week at, of all places, the Dogfish Head Ale House in Seven Corners. It might be worth a shot to call and ask them where they get their decaf.

From today's Washington Post, on page A2 under CORRECTIONS: "The Good to Go column in the Feb. 13 Food section incorrectly said that the pastrami served at Parkway Deli & Restaurant in Silver Spring is made on the premises. It is made by Saval Foods."

So... given the weather and driving conditions, I'm guessing that, if one can manage to make it to Ray's tonight, the chances of being seated sooner rather than later would be better than on the average night?

English side ruined... must use French instructions... Le Grille? What the hell is that ?!?!?! Don't say I didn't post when called upon to do so.

How about if we combine both and ask Michael if we can come into the kitchen sometime and watch him make the sausage?

I've got two: Big Joe's Broiler No. 4, which used to be on Parklawn Drive in Rockville near the intersection of Boiling Brook Parkway (I have no idea what ever became of Big Joe's Broiler Nos. 1 through 3). This was a family-owned diner-style place which served the biggest, juciest, most fixins-laden hamburger I have ever had. I believe the family that owned it was Korean, but the fare was classic American - dishes like chicken fried steak, meatloaf, and spaghetti with meat sauce also made an appearance on the menu - but oh, those burgers! Great fries, too. The cause of many a post-lunch nap when I used to work in an office a little further up Parklawn Drive. Also, Kum San Oak Korean restaurant, in the shopping center on Boiling Brook where the big Kosher supermarket is (was?) located. My introduction to such Korean delicacies such as Bulgogi, Bi Bim Bap, and a delectable seafood soup made with a spicy pork broth, thick noodles, and big pieces of very exotic-looking sea creatures. I was partial to the lunch specials, which were mostly Chinese dishes, but were served with a variety of panchan, including pickled radishes, cucumber kimchee, and bean sprouts in sesame oil. You also got a small bowl of soup when you ordered the special. They served a great cup of gunpowder tea, too. I miss you both!

Liberty Tavern in Clarendon. The communal table is in the bar area, so it can get pretty noisy when it's busy, but they offer the full menu. Also has a good view of the HDTV screens, if there is a particular sporting event you might be interested in keeping tabs on.

I'm somewhat surprised that there isn't already a thread about this place (unless I did my search wrong and it's here somewhere). Is it really that much under the radar, or have people been and found it not worth posting about? I, for one, have developed a strong attraction to a few select menu items over the years. Dishes I recommend are 1) The Steak and Cheese Burrito, 2) Fajitas (steak, chicken, or shrimp on the regular menu, specials sometimes offer lamb, pork, and tuna), and 3) Chimichangas (shredded beef or shredded chicken). Most dishes are served with Mexican rice and refried beans. They offer a list of five or six specials which changes weekly, including things like applewood smoked bacon quesadilla, pork adovado burrito, and a chirozo-stuffed baked Vidalia onion. During the Hatch Chile Festival in Hatch, NM, special dishes are prepared with peppers flown in from Hatch. One of my favorite things about this place is the complimentary chips and salsa - SO much better than anywhere else I've tried! The chips are a mixture of gold, blue, and red corn tortilla chips deep-fried and cut thicker than I've had at most of the usual Tex-Mex places. The homemade salsa is more of a thin sauce than a puree, with a distinct cilantro flavor, and usually very spicy. The beers on tap include Victory lager and Dominion ale. They previously offered a wonderfully hoppy red ale which was brewed for them by Dominion, but was unfortunately discontinued after the takeover of Dominion by Anheuser Busch. This is a casual neighborhood place, with very friendly service and even friendlier prices. I believe the owner, Kip Laramie, was a previous owner of the Santa Fe Cafe in College Park, but no longer owns that one (not positive about that). Again, this place is more Santa Fe than Tex/Mex, but it might fill the bill for those of you looking for this kind of food, and wanting to try something other than Rio Grande, Guajillo, etc.

El Chico?

I don't eat them myself, but I hear they're very good (someone had to say it).

Should I be worried that the flashing neon sign outside now says "Ray's the Vegan Tofu Carryout"? That's some tweaking...

The space now occupied by Willow in Ballston used to house a restaurant called Gaffney's, which was somewhat oriented toward New England-style seafood, from what I remember. The few times I ate there, I remember it being OK, but nothing to write home about. Not sure if there is any connection to the one in Bethesda.

Normally I would question something like this, but it didn't really register until I was already out the door. I think this is because the way the bill is calculated is somewhat confusing; namely, each item is listed at full price, and then a single amount is subtracted from the total and noted as "50% discount". This was for the Tuesday ribeye special, but the total I paid was about $38.00 and change (before tip), and the discount amount was listed as $10.00, so I'm pretty sure that couldn't have included the happy hour beer prices.

Dinner Tonight at Eleventh Street: This was my second visit here. The truffled deviled egg appetizer was as good as I remembered from my first visit last summer. The bartender was charming. I also ordered a Delerium Tremens to start, after which I noticed that the Goulden Carolus was listed on the menu card as a 1/2 price happy hour special, so I switched to that. For the main course, I ordered the ribeye ($11 on Tuesdays, dontcha know) and, to my disappointment, was told that the sweet potato fries which used to accompany this dish are now a mix of sweet potato and regular fries. Nothing wrong with the regular fries, it's just that I had such fond memories of the sweet potato fries from my first visit, I was quite looking forward to having them again. Getting what amounted to a half portion left me feeling a little cheated. The ribeye itself seemed a little thinner than I remembered and somewhat stringy, although it was flavorful and cooked to order (rare), and the mixed greens with vinaigrette (a very underrated part of this menu item, IMO) were just as tasty as I remembered. BUT... there was no anchovy/olive butter, as the menu states there should have been, and as I remembered having from my last visit. This, combined with the adulterated potatoes (which were also cold, BTW), significantly diminished my enjoyment of this entree. I then decided to order dessert, and had my eye on the chocolate cake which is mentioned on the Web site (and a few posts upthread) , only to be told "we don't have that anymore". Being a chocaholic, I was crestfallen. I opted for the pecan pie and a decaf coffee, until I was told "we don't have decaf". Hmmm. Well, then, how about regular coffee? "We don't have that, either. How about espresso?" All right, then, I'll just pull an unexpected all-nighter. A good 30 minutes later, after no sign of my coffee or dessert, I asked for the check. The bartender said she would take the dessert off my check. Really? You mean to tell me you're not going to charge me for something I was never served? Oh, thank you Jesus!!! The bill came, and listed each of the happy hour beers at $7.00 each. So I felt really special having just had three $14.00 beers for $21.00... until I realized that $7.00 was probably the full price, and that I didn't get the happy hour price after all, and then I didn't feel quite so special anymore, I just felt like I had been cheated. I should have been suspicious when the bartender warned me that happy hour was over as I was ordering my last beer, even though the menu card said that happy hour lasted until 8, and I had placed the order a little after 7:30. So, to recap, my second visit to Eleventh Street was an exercise in unfulfilled (albeit low) expectations, with a little false advertising thrown in for good measure. But at least the music was good...