FunnyJohn

I've never tried a restaurant simply because of its urinals, but now I must.

Probably the only reason to visit this place -- so ladies, don't bother. Ok perhaps a litlle harsh, but this is a very average bar/streak house joint. It may have the look of the real PJ Clarke's, but not the feel. I went last night with a group of members of the Red Meat Club to pay our respects to one of us who decided to hand in his lunch pail last week. Most of us ordered the hanger steak frites cooked to varying degrees of doneness -- I was glad I ordered mine bleu. The steak was fine but no finer than can be had in any number of other establishments (on the menu they tout the fact that their steaks come from Murrey Farms). What was not so fine was the "frites" which turned out to be a mess of potato slivers which had no taste on their own and were too small even to put Ketsup on. They also offered an array of sauces to accompany the meat and I had the Maitre d'Hotel which turned out to be a small vessel of melted garlic flavored butter -- or maybe butter flavored synthetic dairy product -- couldn't really tell.

On the plus side, the service was very attentive --- when our food orders seemed to be excessively long in coming to the table, two managers visited to apologize and they compted the table with two orders of real frites. And the aforementioned urinals are truly Wilt Chamberlain sized.

As noted upstream, Murky Coffee had wi-fi and Northside Social still has it. With regard to another post on this thread about much of Clarendon being a hot spot -- I haven't found that to be the case. Does anyone have any further info on whether there is an Arlington Co. wi fi project?

Yippee!

october 1?

They have a web page but it sheds no light on their opening date other than it's supposed to be this month -- and we're running out of days...

Any word on whether this place is opening any time soon?

Location? Anyone remember Omega ?-- now that was Cuban food served with the appropriate political pov.

Went last night -- no crabs. So, instead we ordered some of the pea shoots with the promised Malaysian style sauce. Close but not red enough (meaning not primarily chili sauce -- but still had some kick) and also not sweet. For the pea shoots the lack of sweetness was appropriate, but for crabs or other seafood would want to see some mo' sugar. I pointed out to the owner that in Malaysia the crabs are basically the Pacific version of our blue claw -- not big dungeness crabs. She said that her customers complained that the blue claws -- being smaller and requiring more dismantling to get to their meat -- were too messy. I said, the whole point of eating crabs was to be messy

Good idea to call ahead and see what's available.

Could this be the chili crab that I really want to try and can't find anywhere within driving distance?

Assuming you are referring to crab chopped into pieces and stir-fried in chili sauce (the way they do it on Old Kelang Rd in KL) -- I certainly hope it is and will go tonight to ascertain. Will advise.

That's a surefire way of getting fined next time the inspector comes around. Getting the sign back won't do much good if Arlington doesn't change its rules (where you gonna put it?).

During the Depression, folks were hired as human sandwich boards to walk the street in front of the establishment advertizing. Now the economy may not be that bad today, but at least they couldn't take a person and through him/her in a dumpster.

To return to the subject of this thread: BURRATA Go Now and get some!

Merchants in Old Town Alexandria went through similar nonsense for a while. Eventually, the city (in a rare business-friendly move) allowed sandwich boards, specifically to allow businesses that are off the main drag (King St) a way to make potential customers aware of them. Hopefully the Clarendon area merchants will be able to get similar allowances from Arlington County.

(seems like a win-win to me: more customers=more revenue=more taxes in the county coffers)

What's really annoying is that the County Commissioner claims the ower was given threee notices that the sandwich boards were a violation, but Wendy says, "show em to me." She never heard a thing from the county. Even if there was a serious reason for this ordinance, there must be a better way to handle enforcement than confiscating property. Simply snatching the sign and depositing it in a dumpster smacks of the tactics of "les petites fonctioneres" of the Hapsburg Empire.

A new menu (both in content and in format) has been produced for the patrons of Lyon Hall. First the format -- it still retains the bistro/antique style, but much easier on the eyes in both layout and font. As for content, there is now an emphasis on "la grillade": skirt, strip and rib steaks + Shenandoah lamb rib chops. Less of the seafood, but there is, in addition to mussels frite or piperade, a tartine of snails as hors d'oeuvres, as well as oysters, a shrimp cocktail and crab bouillabaisse. Also featured now under the hors d'oeuvres are several seasonal salads (ingredients locally sourced) featuring a melange of fruits and veggies. For fans the selection of sausages still are offered as well as a good selection of cheese. There is now also a plat du jour ranging from $15-$35 (that's for a roast chicken dinner for two on Sundays). For dessert have a beer ice cream float. Bon appetit.

I find it interesting how food likes/dislikes evolve in young children. I know it was in the case of both my daughter and myself, that between the time we had enough teeth to chew, and around 3 1/2 years we both ate several foods (spinach and other veggies, for instance) that we refused to eat afterward until we got to be early adolescents. I have a theory that the human body's nutritional requirements will sometimes control what tastes good, as in the case with the phenomenon of a pregnant woman's "cravings" for certain kinds of food at certain stages of pregnancy.

I am interested in what self-professed food lovers find gross, or are scared to eat. And I am not looking for obvious answers like McDonalds or Miracle Whip, or for people getting abused by everyone saying "I can't BELIEVE you don't like that! It's the best EVER!"

I'll start. Whole fruits make me nervous. I hate biting into whole fruits; anything larger than a strawberry almost always gets cut up. And bad or mushy spots completely squick me out. I don't recall having any traumatic worm in my apple episodes as a kid, so there's no telling where this came from.

I have some dislikes -- liver (unless fois gras) and probably a lot of other kinds of entrails. Definitely brains (but not sweetbreads). But otherwise I don't think I have any redlines in food. Of course, being married to a Chinese, may cause me to revise that statement. (Have you ever seen what's in a Chinese apothecary?)

You have to have great deal of pity for anyone suffering from this -- and I don't believe I know anyone who does:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704699604575343130457388718.html?mod=WSJ_hp_mostpop_read

Celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary at Eventide tonight. First time for us eating on the 2nd floor. I waited for the arrival of my wife, daughter and BIL at the bar. Daughter arrived first and I introduced her to Steve as one of the most skilled mixologists in the area, and told her she should order a cocktail if she was going to imbibe with us. She told Steve what her preferences were and placed herself in his hands, and he produced an apple accented Sidecar -- apparently fit the bill. My wife arrived a few minutes later and provided an even more vague indication of her preference (nether wife nor daughter are big time drinkers, for the record), and Steve again came forth with an excellent pineapple rum concoction (the curious may inquire with Steve). When we left the bar there was probably a miscommunication, because I thought they would send the half finished cocktails up, so we left them at the bar, but Steve mixed new ones and sent them up after we were already upstairs and awaiting them for awhile -- a nice and unnecessary gesture on his part. Upstairs we enjoyed excellent service from Laura. The crab salad, white gazpacho, fois gras torchons and bison tartare were shared among us -- the crab salad and tartare being almost a meal in themselves. For mains we ordered two loin of lamb and two beef tenderloins, both executed perfectly -- one lamb ordered medium rare and the other rare and you could see the difference -- albeit slight -- in the redness of the meat. IF you are a dessert person I would recommend trying the house gelato, really flavorful and rich -- good to share. Really appreciated the special gesture from Miles who sent out a cheesecake ball and chocolate truffle platter in honor of our Anny. Really great night and many thanks to everyone at Eventide for their contributions.

I think you are taking it a little too far FunnyJohn. But knocking over a 7-11 is a violent crime, or at least under the threat of violence, and so O'Leary is also taking it too far.

I stand by my observation, [and Don I'm not going to say anything furhter about it, here].

Another article from Carmen in the City Paper. I guess he has not started making restitution yet. I wonder how much time he has.

I have to wonder if he is required to pay taxes on his cooking classes. If so, is he paying those?

I find the quotes attributed to the Arlington County Treasurer, Frank O'Leary, in the article to be particularly galling. Comparing Donna to a kid knocking over a 7 Eleven and saying that he's "stealing our money" is typical of the political class in Arlington and elsewhere, but Frank, what Donna is doing may be illegal, but he's not stealing your money -- he's simply unwilling to part with as much of his money as you are empowered by the tax code to take from him.

I had a Ben's Nat's Dog ($4.50) with chili and cheese today. Somehow, the ambiance just isn't the same as the U Street location. The diner has a choice between ladled nacho cheese and "hand-drizzled" shredded plastic - I strongly recommend the latter.

Cheers,

Rocks

I went to Nats Park for the first time on Saturday (my Brother's bachelor party). Sat in the nosebleed seats and watched one of the worst games I have ever sat through. The experience was made complete by the two $5 hotdogs I foolishly purchased at the same time and wolfed down. They need to have Pepto or Alka Seltzer dispensers at regular convenient locations throughout the Park.

From yesterday.

Damn! Glad I decided to book our 25th Anny Dinner at Eventide next week, instead of Vidalia. But I sure hope RJ is able to get his own place open quickly. Such a great talent. Look forward to hearing the details about his new venture when he feels like sharing.

Negdorsement- noun When the only comment on a thread about a new service is that the service can't deliver the goods

DaMoim Restaurant at 7106 Columbia Pike in Annandale opened a couple of months ago, and last night one of my Korean friends who knows the owners took me. This is a nice spot with a clean bright interior located at the end of a small strip mall. The menu features traditional Korean served with an upscale flare and some Korean "fusion" dishes such as Kimchi Quesadilla and a Galbi Taco. I stuck with the traditional last night -- the galbi which was a generous portion of savory marinated short ribs. We started with an assortment of apps including saewoo pama -- shrimp with fried garlic -- absolutely delicious and a savory crepe-like vegetable/seafood fritter -- called haemool pajeon-- also quite good although the fritter was a bit doughy. They are building a wine list. We were compted a bottle of Hall Merlot, the managing owner said he'd welcome some advice on building his selections. I'd welcome the comments of others on this place which looks to have some potential. Website

As for the music...I just checked the SIRIUS radio that we have linked to the dining room. It looks like it was indeed not changed over from the station the servers were listening to yesterday during setup and it was on the disco channel. Doh! We usually just play adult contemporary music in the dining room. (I am sure that the staff probably noticed at various points through the evening but probably thought it was a nice change of pace. I was at home last night caring for my daughter with my wife out of town, so I wasn't at the restaurant to notice the oversight.)

Had I been there, it would have been playing Adult Contemporary...or Death Metal.

What to do when you have Disco Staff, but Rock 'N' Roll Customers?

Here's some food for thought:

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/04/26/attention_whole_foods_shoppers

"In Europe and the United States, a new line of thinking has emerged in elite circles that opposes bringing improved seeds and fertilizers to traditional farmers and opposes linking those farmers more closely to international markets. Influential food writers, advocates, and celebrity restaurant owners are repeating the mantra that "sustainable food" in the future must be organic, local, and slow. But guess what: Rural Africa already has such a system, and it doesn't work. Few smallholder farmers in Africa use any synthetic chemicals, so their food is de facto organic. High transportation costs force them to purchase and sell almost all of their food locally. And food preparation is painfully slow. The result is nothing to celebrate: average income levels of only $1 a day and a one-in-three chance of being malnourished.

If we are going to get serious about solving global hunger, we need to de-romanticize our view of preindustrial food and farming. And that means learning to appreciate the modern, science-intensive, and highly capitalized agricultural system we've developed in the West. Without it, our food would be more expensive and less safe. In other words, a lot like the hunger-plagued rest of the world."

This is riveting news.

Indeed. I stopped in last night while making the rounds in the neighborhood. Had a nice plate of oysters -- they have my favorites, Kumamotos, and Wellfleets. A plate of a dozen (mix and match) was $20. For the beer fans out there there is an impressive list of mostly Belgian beers. The wine list is very bistro-ee, but a fair price point on the by-the-glass side. There will be a DJ in the house on the weekends. I had to bitch out the mannager for not knowing what channel the Nats game was on -- oh well they lost anyway. This place is a welcome addition to the neighborhood and will do very well -- says my crystal ball.

I was going to recommend Lebanese Butcher, although it would involve a trek to Falls Church for you. (Sounding like Johnny One-Note, since i also recommended LB for its lamb in another thread here). But having read Bruce's interesting and informative post, I'm not sure where LB would get its poultry at this time of year -- probably still local but not "free range" if that's what you're really interested in. FWIW: I think putting any locally produced bird, or actually almost any other bird up against a Purdue, would be unfairly rigging the contest in favor of the non-Purdue. In other words, Purdue birds SUCK!

[ETA: a more fair contest might involve your local against an Empire chicken which is purveyed at Trader Joes and Whole Foods, but since the freshness of the bird would maybe account for about 75% of the taste quality, any locally raised chicken obtained from a butcher who gets his birds daily, would probably beat out any supermarket-obtained chicken.]