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angelo

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  1. While a bit of a hike from DC, if you're already in the burbs then KBQ has been turning out some really good smoked bbq in Bowie. Their ribs and brisket were top notch when i had them, as was their broccoli salad and key lime pie. KBQ Website
  2. I made a last minute reservation last night to satisfy my craving for Dino's delectable fare. The 3 Cheese Polenta with Braised Pork was luxuriously creamy last night, with just the right amount of cheese for a nice depth of flavor. The pork was nice although I think I prefer the mushroom version of this dish. My +1 ordered the Balsamic Porcini Flan, which was amazing. I loved the texture, temperature and the way the flavors melded and melted in your mouth. I was tempted to order this again instead of dessert, but was talked out of it(several times...). For my entree I tried the Triple Rack of Wild Boar and my +1 had the Hanger Steak(nice tender cut with some delicious rabe). The only noticable problem with our meal last night was the length of time for our entrees compared to appetizers, which was most likely due to a mixup in the kitchen since the dish I was originally served consisted of fish. The waiter quickly took care of this and my entree appeared after only a few more minutes. It was a bit on the tough side, despite having ordered it medium rare to avoid what naturally happens to boar when cooked, but it did have that gamey boar taste that is so hard to come by in the US along with a nice flavor rub. For dessert, I ordered the Vanilla Ice Cream with Balsamic Vinegar after reading the rave reviews from others. I wouldn't have thought it would work, but it was a truly delicious combination of flavors that probably only works when made the way Dino's does( with vanilla ice cream(that tastes of vanilla beans) and properly aged, thick Balsamic vinegar).
  3. The Fallsgrove location is probably my favorite from the 3 that I've eaten at for lunch in the past few years. The original location on Nicholson is my least favorite, but the cheapest. The other one just up the street on Rockville Pike is decent, but the Fallsgrove seems to be their "high-end" location, with a much more extensive menu and higher prices to match. Their dishes range from medicore to good. I liked the Thai/Chinese noodle dishes at the Fallsgrove location along with some of the stir-fries. Most of my lunch companions tend to go for their lunch sushi special which they generally find enjoyable and fairly priced.
  4. After reading a few recommendations about this place from Chowhound (Link), I decided to give this place a visit before fighting the hordes at the College Park Ikea. Its located in the Safeway Shopping Center on Fairwood Pkwy and reasonably accessible from 495 (~30 mins from rockville). Its in a fairly new stripmall, similar to Urban BBQ, with about 10 small tables and brisk takeout business. Very clean, including the bathrooms, with very helpful and friendly staff. They were almost empty on a Saturday for lunch at 1PM, so it seems to be a great place to go on the weekends for a hearty meal. Here's a link to their website: KBQ Website with directions and their menu in PDF format. Like most BBQ places, they focus on a few meats, along with a nice selection of sides and 2 choices for dessert(if you have room that is). I've been craving some good ribs, so went with the Half-Slab platter, which was more than enough for two people and maybe enough for 3 with the 2 included sides. I had the Broccoli salad which went very nice with the bbq, and the Mac N Cheese which was ok but nothing special. My friend went with the same platter but with Cole Slaw(good) and Potato Salad(egg and potato really, but also good). We both chose the Jalapeno Cornbread topped with a few shreds of melted cheddar. The bread was fluffy and had a nice balance of jalapeno and cornbread flavors but was a tad dry. I bought a slice of key lime(i'm a bit of an aficionado), and tried a bit at home. Good, not too heavy, but not as good as the one at Ray's the Classics (which I consider to be pretty decent). The star of the show here is the meat, and this is indeed some darn good bbq. A nice amount of dry rub flavors the meat along with the help of slow smoking to give the rib that characteristic flavor and color that comes from traditional southern bbq. The portions are enormous, including the rib proper and the end meat including the rib tips, expertly sliced and ready to enjoy with one of their two house-made sauces. The original was a smoky tangy barbeque sauce while the Sweet and spicy was just that; both were delicious and didn't overpower the pork flavors but enhanced them when used. And these ribs were moist and flavorful enough to enjoy all on their own without being baked to blandness or charred bone dry, an all too common occurrence in most restaurants. This is by far the best barbeque I've had in the area, and with the ridiculously low prices for the quality and quantity of food, this is now on my must-visit list whenever remotely in the area and highly recommended for anyone craving some good ol' BBQ. Be warned, visits likely to cause some form of food coma.
  5. I had lunch here with my +1 and a friend on Friday. Like Dean, I must have driven past that center hundreds of times while doing my phd at UMCP, but never knew it was in there. Its a shame I didn't, because I really liked what I ate there Friday. I love Dol Sot Bi Bim Bap, and many places make a mediocre version(and many a pretty poor one). Often the stone pot just isn't served hot enough, so not enough char gets imparted to the rice and vegetables while it cooks at your table. This makes the dish a soggy mess, as can the vegetables themselves when some off ones are used or when used in wrong proportions to the rice, egg and (most often) each other. Yett Goel's version was light, tasty and hot enough to cook properly while nibbling on their panchan. Their egg was correctly served, in that it was almost raw and not cooked or fried into rubber like many places tend to do, doing a nice job of binding flavors between the rice and vegetables when mixed in the sizzling stone pot with plenty of chili paste. I'm one of those that scrapes a good preparation clean to the bowl so as to not miss the crunchy rice mixed in with the softer textures of the dish. Their panchan were the same four dishes mentioned by Dean ( Kimchee, Kakdugi, Bean Sprouts, and Watercress) all very good. The Kimchee added a nice tang to the BiBimBap, as did the Kakdugi. I was served a small bowl of Seoul Long Tang with the BiBimpBap, which was wonderful with some sea salt sprinkled in. My +1 had the Kimchee Jigae, loaded with Kimchee and with a few large slices of tofu and some pork mixed in. A light, tasty stew with the right level of spice. I also think its better than Lighthouse Tofu in Rockville, which is also very good. Our other friend had the spicy beef stew, which he enjoyed despite not being used to the spice level. I like that they didn't automatically tone it down to Disney levels upon seeing non-Koreans ordering.
  6. After hearing about this place on Chowhound, I decided to give it a try for a quick lunch today while running errands in the Rio Center. While this is definitely not a restaurant, I thought it was worth a new topic for those craving some quick Mexican near 370 in Gaithersburg. Its easy to find and thats about the best thing I can say for its location, since it is inside a Chevron gas station. The lot is cramped, but on the plus side you can fill up your tank and buy soft drinks or snacks at the main store while waiting for your order from the Taco Bar side retail space. The Taco Bar portions half its space to beer and wine sales, so the dining area is fairly small. They do have 4-6 small tables with chairs. Take out was very popular the entire time i was eating there. The kitchen itself is efficiently layed out, and I personally like the large window area that looks directly into the kitchen so you can see that its clean and well manned by a few Mexican women. Their best dish and the reason I went was the Pozole with Pork. To me, this is the Mexican version of Pho, a very popular hearty homestyle soup served throughout Mexico. This is a long-simmered stew made with Hominy and Pork traditionally, although I think they also had a chicken version if pork's not your thing(it really makes the stew in my opinion though). Their version includes a mild chili sauce mixed in, a Tostada(fried tortilla) for crumbling into bits and adding for crunch, and plenty of lettuce and cilantro on top.. Add in some lime and onions from their condiments bar, and you'll have a wonderful meal full of Mexican flavors for a bargain $6. I also ordered the Chicken Taquitos Platter, which came with four fried chicken tacos topped with shredded lettuce, Mexican Crema and Queso, along with Refried Pinto Beans and Yellow Rice. Their combos all include these two sides and a can of soda for $8. The taquitos were just so-so, somewhat bland, but well fried and they perked up well with some hot sauce and lime. The beans were very good, thick with a strong bean flavor that most places just don't get right. The rice was also cooked well and fine for soaking up other flavors. Finally, we had some Tacos al Pastor(pork and pineapple), Tacos de Bistec and Tacos de Suadero(shredded rib meat). These were all tasty and worth ordering, with two nice firm tortillas used for each taco. The Tacos al Pastor were my favorite, although all 3 were on the dry side, IMO. Again, adding some Pico de Gallo and Salsas fixes this as the flavors are great. Judging from the 10 orders placed while eating next to the register, their Tortas are also very popular and certainly smelled good. If you want fast, inexpensive and fairly authentic Taqueria food, this is a great place to go. I still like El Tapatio II near Shady Grove for other foods, but the pozole here is better and certainly cheaper.
  7. I have to agree with you guys on the Szechuan beef soup. It used to be spicier and more flavorful from when I had it a few times in 2006, but I just stopped by a week ago for a quick lunch and was terribly disappointed in the bowl I was served. The red-hot dumplings were still tasty and had some kick, but I doubt I'll be ordering the soup there anymore. Then again, the rest of their small dishes are still tasty, particularly their cold small plates, but for Szechuan-style food go to Joe's.
  8. It seems that every time I go to Ray's the Classics, I fall in love all over again and wonder why I don't go there more often. With the recent addition of the outstanding bar bistro special, I no longer have any reasonable excuse not to go(except perhaps my lack of self-control with such tasty food). I went last night with my +1 and another couple for a low-key birthday dinner, and we all decided to try the bar special since the lounge area was not very busy. Despite that it was only the bartender(didn't catch his name) working the area, service was very friendly and efficient as always at RTC, and he was calm , friendly and professional the entire night with us and the other people eating or drinking at the bar, never overwhelmed and with no mishaps in course delivery or timing of service/clearing/refills. We began with a very decent bottle of Chianti and my +1's usual Cosmo(she loves them there). Although I tried to restrain myself, I do love their spicy cashews and the salted focaccia was also delicious. The other couple is Italian, and the wife was particularly impressed with the bread. None of us were able to resist asking for a bit more of the nuts and of course the bread, as it was wonderful for soaking up flavors from the appetizers and entrees. After reading the rave reviews about the Lentil Soup with Spicy Lamb Sausage, I had to order it. This is perhaps one of the best soups I've had in the past year, particularly suited for the winter season. The lentils were hearty and well-cooked, with a surprising amount of lamb sausage mixed in. The sausage itself was not too dense had a wonderful mild flavor that went well with the lentils, providing a nice level of heat and flavor that worked with the soup instead of overpowering it. I'd go back just for a large bowl of the soup alone(with some bread of course) and be perfectly content. Two orders of the Crab Bisque were well-received and were blessed with a generous amount of crab meat, but I can't personally comment on them as I have an aversion to seafood. The Mixed Green Salad was had by our fourth, and he commented it had a nice balance of balsamic vinagrette and greens. Now, the main reason I love RTC's is that they consistenly offer excellent cuts of beef at ridiculously reasonable prices, while cooking the meat perfectly to order every time. My +1 and I each ordered the Hanger Steak with the mushroom cream sauce. In summary, Delicious. The portion was huge considering the bargain price of the bar special, well-cooked, and most importantly, tasted of quality beef that was easy to cut into and seemed to melt in your mouth after those wonderful first moments of carnivore mastication. The Mushroom Sauce itself was also a step up from the last time I had ordered it, and hopefully they'll continue this rendition, as it was a very nice accompaniment to the steak and mashed potatoes. Also new to me was the 3rd side of of Garlic Mashed Potatoes, which was delivered to our table with the traditional Spinach and Mashed Potatoes. All three were great and well received by all. The other couple had the Bacon-Wrapped Filet Medallions and Chopped Steak. All I can say on these is that they disappeared before I was able to tear myself away from my loaded plate, and both were given rave reviews. Finally, we tried to completely stuf ourselves with some dessert. I'm a sucker for Key Lime Pie, having grown up in Miami making frequent pilgrimages to the Blond Giraffe and other local sources. I've had the RTC version several times in the past, and last night's continued the homestyle flavor. Buttery graham cracker crust, with a generously thick portion of key lime custard served atop,lightly baked and properly chilled, with a very nice vanilla whipped cream on the side. Although I think they could use some more tartness in their recipe, it was still a very very good rendition and one the rest of my companions approved of. Two order of pie and two order of berries and cream(also tasty) all good enough to be consumed on top of the large meal by our table. In summary, while RTC was already a great deal before, but with the addition of the bar bistro special, anyone who hasn't gone in a while or has never been needs to go and experience it for yourself. I'm seriously debating making it a weekly trip to take different friends so we can all enjoy a lovely dinner at a bargain price, while supporting Michael and his staff for their generosity in keeping RTC a real gem of a restaurant in MoCo.
  9. "Promote literacy. Buy a box of fortune cookies today" This is by far my favorite fortune and has garnered a special place on my fridge in my past few apartments
  10. I went here to grab some quick lunch today and while not quite up to the same level as the original, this location is definitely worth going to for more authentic mexican than many other restaurants in the MoCo area that make the same claim. Being a quick lunch, I only tried a few of their offerings. Their Tacos al Pastor were quite tasty, with the pork chopped into fine pieces with a medium amount of flavor from the marinade, and the tortillas are a notch above the typical store-bought tortillas(ie: plastic) every other "Mexican" restaurant uses. The goat taco(Tacos de Birria) was ok, with "large" chunks of meat, but lacking in flavor(which does let the goat taste come through very clearly though), and for which the included sauces came in handy to spice it up. The Carnitas(beef) taco was also ok, but again larger chunks of beef than appropriate and also lacking the flavor punch of the Pastor tacos. Both sauces which they included for the tacos seem to be made in house, with very enjoyable flavors without a large amount of heat. In summary, these were a cut above the tacos served at Pepito's Bakery and Taqueria in oldtown G'burg and will hopefully improve as they settle into the new location. I also sampled two of their Tortas(sandwiches). Their sandwiches are great deals, as each is about $6 and includes a sandwich and fries, making it a good lunch portion on its own. The Torta De Chorizo was tasty, with a nice portion of crumbled mexican-style chorizo(much less spiced than Spanish chorizo), along with lettuce, tomato and a slice of avocado, which was a nice touch. The Torta de Milanesa de Pollo was also nicely put together, albeit a bit bland and requiring the addition of lime and sauces to enhance its overall flavor. Both used a nice sandwich roll, although its not the typical Mexican bolillo bread they're made with in Guadalajara. All in all, a good start for their new location, and one I'll be going back to for dinner at some point to try their heartier entrees, like mole and chilaquiles.
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