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Thanks - Tazza was the only thing we could think of, but it does not look amazing. (He finds it more appealing than I do.) Ooooo - I had not heard about the thing in the REACH. In the past we have picked up a sub and eaten on the terrace, but the boy wants to try the places down there before the weather gets bad. It will be one of these. I will report back.

OK folks - symphony tickets for this season for us begin tomorrow. And Campono has been our go-to for a while. Now what?

How do you keep the graham crackers from getting soggy?

This is the recipe I have used, from David Lebovitz. I think I served it with assorted shortbread.

Lemon verbena ice cream is delicious.

It's been a mix of cooking and repurposing here this week. Went to the Nats game on Sunday, so simple that night - Italian Wedding soup from the freezer with grilled cheese sandwiches. (Harvest grain bread and Jersey Gold Cheese from Spring Gap. Note the website there is VERY out of date. They are only at SS and Mt P farm markets these days.) Monday was stir fry night - chicken, broccoli, peppers, peanuts. Also, salad (not stir fried). Tuesday we reaped the benefits of the grilling night, with chicken taquitos. Lots of guacamole. Also, salad. And tonight was a kind of modified sate. The only difference from the recipe - didn't skewer it. Cooked in the grill pan and served over brown rice with shredded Thai basil. Also, salad.

Aperitivo hour, outside on Friday. 3 of us. The menu has been updated for summer, although the website menu still shows the last menu. It was tasty, the drinks were nice. I really think this is a great deal.

Wednesday was leftover pork turned into quesadillas. Also, salad. Thursday was leftover buffet. Then on Saturday, we grilled. Company, so dinner was followed by games. The boy was happy, because he got to make a beer can chicken, along with corn, squash, and carrots. Also salad, and a baguette. A delicious peach pound cake for dessert, with vanilla ice cream. I used leftover grilled peaches in the cake, along with a few leftover, not-grilled, plums. Vanilla ice cream on top. I will make this again!

Tonight was chicken salad with fennel and dates. Was really tasty, but a bit odd. Will do it again. Also, got a South Mountain delivery last night, so ice cream for dessert. I had "birthday cake" and it was BLUE but quite tasty. The boy and the friend who is staying with us at the moment had "snappy pumpkin." I do not like pumpkin. They said it was quite good.

Tonight we had Chicken Tinga (from the crock pot) Also, salad. The tinga was very tasty. It involved corn! Sadly, I have run out of dessert.

I love places that I like that have outside seating. None of us really want to eat inside right now. (I hope this can change soon.) So, 3 of us on the patio on Friday. We ate a TON of mezze. We considered getting a grilled entree to split, but the mezze were enough. Hummus, baba ganoush (I think they make the best in town. So smoky!), lebneh, sojuk, cheese, olives, and the pickled veg, cheese rolls. Extra pita! Sadly, the kibbee naya is not on the menu at the moment. Nice bottle of cheap lebanese wine. I was the only one who wanted dessert - the boy was full and the other doesn't eat nuts, which limits his dessert choices there. So we headed back to our side of town and had beer at the Derby for dessert.

Thursday was Derby burger night for us. Ran into some neighborhood folks that we haven't seen since the pandemic started, people we used to see at Domku all the time. That was LOVELY! The burgers and beer were also good. The service was excellent. I know Sasha is having the same problems as everyone getting fully staffed, but everyone there is so good and they do keep up so well.

Oh, I haven't been here in a while. Here and Zenebech are my two favorites these days. They make very nice kitfo.

Another 2 grilling night weekend - he was so happy! (Also, the Nats won today.) Last night was hot dogs (I made meat sauce too!) And corn. Also, lettuce salad and potato salad. Brownies and rice krispie treats for dessert. Today was grill every damn thing day. Our pepper plants went a little wild. So he grilled a LOT of peppers. Then I gutted and chopped them. So now we have a lot of chopped green chilis freezing. (1 pound 6 ounces specifically.) Then he grilled some chicken for a recipe later this week. Then tonight's dinner - pork and peaches, more corn, squash (he has moved to winter squashes now and boy do I hate chopping those up) and carrots. Also made salad. Later, leftovers from last night's dessert.

A few weeks ago I made a sheet pan cashew chicken. I had to run to H Mart for chili garlic sauce. So while I was there, I got some other stuff, including some frozen dumplings. (Anjinamoto vegetable gyoza.) So tonight was salad and dumplings. They were fine, and very very easy. Later, more of Sunday's cake and ice cream.

Friday we stopped at Silver Branch early - just the 2 of us this time. Grabbed an outside table, and tried the newly released Oktoberfest. Excellent beer. We ate there too. They are running specials on cincinnati chili at the moment, and it was fine. Not hot enough though - and I don't mean spicy, I mean it was cooler than it should be. I like my food hotter than many people (temp, not spice), but even the boy thought it should be warmer. Anyhow, warm enough to eat. And tasty. And the service was very good - they are keeping up well!

Funny - we were there Saturday. 7:00 reservation in the alley. It was nicer than expected. I mean, it is an alley, and we did see a few rats run down the side along the walls. But it was like a courtyard, and we really enjoyed ourselves. First time here in far too long. I had the chilled Avgolemono, while he started with oysters. We were both very happy with our choices. I too hesitated because the Avgolemono was chilled, but it was so very excellent.Then I had tonkatsu, and he had the tuna. He loves that tuna, and had high praise for the rice. I enjoyed the tonkatsu. I don't like cabbage, but I enjoyed that cabbage that came with it. (Sometimes it can be hard for me to order there, as I do not eat seafood. Was fine on Saturday.) Started with cocktails, had a nice bottle of chardonnay (recommended by the waiter, and very nice) with dinner. A glass of port with chocolate banana dessert for him, and a glass of sauterne with blueberry tart for my dessert. So lovely to eat here again, and so waiting for the return of inside dining and the bar! (Yes, I know, inside dining exists. I'm just not comfortable inside at the moment, even with both of us fully vaxed.)

So yesterday was a grill day. Had a friend over, and the boy grilled corn, carrots, squash, and a porterhouse steak. I made corn muffins and potato salad. Also salad. Plum and apple olive oil cake with mascarpone ice cream (David Lebovitz's creme fraiche ice cream, with mascarpone in place of the creme fraiche)for dessert. Very tasty. Tonight was peach meatballs. Very good, although I left the second round of cumin off, as last time it was a little too much. Served over brown basmati rice cooked in coconut milk. Very tasty. I forgot about that recipe from last peach season. Glad HE remembered! Also salad. Later, more of last night's dessert.

And tonight was pork chops with gingered plum sauce. The important thing - it cooks MUCH faster than the recipe says. Also, this time we replaced using star anise with adding 5 spice powder to the rubbing of the chops. Also salad, and more english muffins. The boy read the recipe when it was in Gourmet, or maybe another magazine, many years ago. Every year as soon as the prune plums come in, he NEEDS this for dinner. Later, ice cream floats - found some birch beer in the cabinet and have some vanilla ice cream left.

Tonight we had corn carbonara. It was delicious. I know we are coming down to the end of corn season, so we had to have as much as possible this week. Also salad. And English muffins. The boy had a good weekend - he got to grill twice! So Saturday we had some folks over, and grilled saffron chicken. It was quite good. And in shopping for ingredients, I learned that the Columbia Heights Giant actually carries lavash. Also grilled carrots. Also salad. And peach pie with vanilla ice cream for dessert (I departed from the recipe a bit, and made the top a lattice rather than a full lid. Since we had a nut disliker at dinner, I left out the almond extract, replacing it with some cardamom and some vanilla paste. Sunday he just grilled for us. Pork chops with sour cherry sauce, corn, summer squash, more carrots. Also salad. And more peach pie.

Takeout again - but not for zoom this time. Had folks over, got takeout, played games. And it was good. The 2 hotheads had MaLa dishes, and the others had more American-style. But it was all tasty, and the portions are giant. I have been eating kung pao tofu for lunch all week. Have one more day's worth. I wish it was a little closer, as parking down there is a trick. But it is worth it!

It's peach season, so I wanted peach salsa. So I made a version of this chicken with peach salsa. Used the salsa recipe. Used the rub. But made chicken thighs, roasted for about 35 minutes at 425. It was delicious. Also salad. And used Pat's brilliant idea of English muffins for side bread. And it was tasty. Dessert was leftovers. Over the weekend I made chocolate caramel tart. Served it with raspberries and whipped cream. There were 2 slices left. We are very sad that it is all gone now.

Sunday we hit up Jaleo on the way to the Building Museum for the summer exhibits. Sat outside. 4 of us (not our usual 4. Me, the boy, and some college friends.) The brunch menu was not on, as it was restaurant week. 4 choices per course (except for dessert). So we got one of each in each course, and had a marvelous lunch. The service was a little slow, but the one guy was doing the entire outside. And he was sooooo pleasant and helpful. First time back since the pandemic, and very glad to have made it.

Another stop here last night, this time on the patio after dinner at Taqueria Habenero, right down the block. Saw some folks. Had a few beers, had more peanut butter whiskey, and a pleasant evening.

How does this place not have a thread yet? OK, Taqueria Habenero. 3710 14th Street NW, in the same block as Mezcalero, Red Derby, Lyman's, Anafre, etc. A long list of good tequilas and mezcals. Short beer list. Good drinks. Tasty tacos. Good entrees. Nice apps. Too much cilantro. Inadequate dessert. Delicious house made tortillas. 3 of us had dinner on the patio last night. One assorted tacos, one chicken mole poblano, one chicken mole enchiladas. Shared queso fundido and the included chips and salsa to start. A pitcher of classic margaritas. All was quite good. We really need to remember to order extra tortillas with the queso fundido though. One per person is NOWHERE near enough. I eat here semi-regularly. Being in the same block as Mezcalero, which has the boy's favorite shrimp and chorizo quesadilla does give it some competition for our dining schedule. But other than that, menus are comparable. And the food and service are quite good. Service used to be a lot less organized, but has improved greatly. And they are open for lunch, so I hit it with friends for lunch on my own.