Biotech

We went last week after they had been open less than a week. Outstanding and authentic pizza. Owner is super nice and accommodating and service was fantastic, especially for a business that just opened its doors. I've been a big fan of the Tyson's Crust, so when I saw they were opening a Herndon location, I was stoked. We ordered the Aroncini, which were good, but I prefer the ones at Vollo in DC. Nothing wrong with them at all, just have a preference for the others. We ordered a straight forward pepperoni pizza, and man, oh man, it was so dang tasty. For dessert we ordered the cannoli. I loved them, but my partner doesn't like lemon. When I asked for a to go box for the second cannoli and explained why, the owner graciously offered to bring her a tiramisu at no extra charge. He did not have to do that as the cannoli was perfect. The tiramisu was outstanding! Totally coming back to give the pastas a try as well.

Our Mom Eugenia in Great falls has an absolutely perfect octopus appetizer. It's pricey at $16, but it's a generous portion for an appetizer (two tentacles) and has the right amount of char. The restaurant is relatively new, but we had a fantastic meal there last week. 

On 7/21/2016 at 2:52 PM, DaveO said:

Now some more background--also a little real estate related.  4500 East West Highway got its first, largest and main tenant, the American Pharmacists Association via their association's relocation from 7272 Wisconsin Avenue, a building their 501C3 had purchased and owned since 1992.   The building had been built and delivered around 1990, one of the worst times for commercial real estate developers in modern history.  I recall that building and its plans.  I had worked on selling sites in Bethesda around that period, and was engaged in for me, one of the more dramatic experiences when interacting with big time developers.  For me at least it resurfaces as a vivid memory as we watch Donald Trump, TV personality and real estate developer perform in front of the entire US.

In any case the Pharmacists were able to buy the relatively new 7272 Wisconsin Avenue for a great price...at that time and going forward--between $21 and $22 million.  That price enabled the Association to occupy the majority of the office space at 7272 for a very reasonable rent I suppose.  24 years later, the possibility of the Purple Line rail system in Montgomery County effected an effort by the county to demolish 7272, build a newer building, expand the lower levels to accommodate a rail system Access/Exit station.  With all that they also provided the ground holders with an extraordinarily high development density that made the property at 7272 infinitely more valuable. and even more valuable than the discount price that the pharmacists purchased the then newish building.

So the pharmacists were able to sell 7272 Wisconsin for over $105 million to a new developer, allow for its demolition for an all new massive development...and move into 4500 East West Highway...and probably rent the space at pretty danged high Bethesda rental rates.....and still make out with a huge financial windfall. 

On top of all that, they are getting a brand new spanking Peter Chang restaurant on the first floor....rather than some chintzy McDonald's.       Hmmm...I think the Pharmacists 501c3 or its successor should underwrite lunches for the staff.  (just my opinion)....but what else are they going to do with the money?

Of course all of this is irrelevant to the proposed restaurant and quality of the food, but so long as Don is writing about suburban strip centers and their various food offerings...I thought I'd add a little real estate context to this new restaurant. 

One point of clarification. We (don't know why I say "we" as I'm not a pharmacist) are actually the American Society of Health-Systems Pharmacists (ASHP). The American pharmacists Association (APhA) is downtown renting space in a State Department Building. We're very different associations (some may say friendly rivals). ASHP has been a fixture in Bethesda for decades  - even before we bought the building at 7272 we had rented space on Montgomery, I think. 

Food Wine & Co was the default restaurant for ASHP to hold business lunches at. I suspect Q will be the same. 

We are one of the tenants of the new building. It's really nice. I'm pretty excited about the new restaurant moving in as our choices are pretty limited over here. 

I work for the non-profit that sold the building last week.  Some of us moved to the new space in temporary quarters since the terms of the sale require reduction in occupancy. My guess is that extended to our tenants as well. The rest of our staff aren't moving until January or February,  so that's the only thing I can come up with. 

There's actually quite a few options in the area for Asian. Off the top of my head, there are probably 3 pho joints, 6 Chinease-American, 4 sushi/Japanese specific places, and two thai restaurants in the Bristow/Gainesville area. 

There's also one opening up in Bristow for the country folk like me. 

So we dined at Clarity last night. Bottom line is that it's a solid win for Vienna, or anywhere for that matter. I made a reservation online through Yelp the other day. Simple to do and Yelp confirmed my reservation both via email and text. We got there a few minutes before 6 and the place was about 1/3 full. In the reservation I just mentioned it was our second anniversary and everyone from the hostess to our waiter to the manager, Tom, came by to wish us a happy anniversary. Nice touch.

Their water service is either still or sparkling. I was surprised to see we weren't charged for sparkling when we chose that, but maybe they give away one bottle per person. After we were done with that they refilled us with still, which clearly wasn't tap, another nice touch.

Our waiter, Ivan, was very attentive and friendly, coming by within minutes to greet us and take drink orders. For appetizers, I had the octopus and my wife had the tempura shrimp. The tempura shrimp were good, but nothing out of the ordinary. They were hot and crisp without a lot of residual oil. The dipping sauce was fairly bland and really didn't do much for the shrimp. The octopus was a good sized portion for an appetizer, slightly charred, tender, and resting on a bed of eggplant and bok choy. It was very good. I'd order this again.

For main courses, I had the 14oz pork blade chop and my wife had the snapper. The pork was excellent. It was seared nicely on the outside and the middle was probably close to medium. I'm happy to see someone not cooking pork to within an inch of its life. This came with some roasted brussell sprouts and a horseradish cream. The horseradish cream didn't really have much of a horseradish flavor, so that could be kicked up a little to complement the pork better, but all in all, a solid dish. I also ordered a bottomless side of duck fat roasted fingerling potatoes. They were fantastic, although I was too stuffed to go for seconds. My wife's snapper was nice as well and not overdone at all. The tomato relish under it was good as well.

We decided to splurge for dessert and get the crepe stack and two french press coffees. Getting that took quite a bit longer than expected, but by this time the restaurant was packed with only one table empty. They said it's been like that every night since they opened a week and a half ago.

Dessert was fine. Nothing outstanding, but really, it was crepes. The bill came to $100 even for two bar drinks, 2 appetizers, 2 mains, one dessert, and two coffees before tax and tip.

Since the menu changes daily, I'm planning on making Clarity a regular in my not-as-frequently-as-I'd-like dining out rotation.

Each time I went to Orso, I walked away happy. I really do hope that Will does stay in the area and continues to make the magic he made at Orso. His pizzas were absolutely my favorite in the area. "Effective Immediately" usually means an abrupt departure, and I hope Will wasn't hung out there considering he made Orso what it was. Without proper direction, I can see this becoming just another overpriced and underwhelming office building restaurant.

Vace in Bethesda is one of my go-to's for lunch when I'm craving an Italian sub. Bethesda is expensive for mediocre food, but Vace is surprisingly reasonable for their subs. It's been years since I've been to the CP location even though my parents live within walking distance, but I remember the staff at CP being a tad bit friendlier than Bethesda. Regardless, they have a nice selection of things to pick up for dinner or to stash in the freezer for those nights when we aren't sure what to cook.

We were heading out to Centreville to run an errand last night and decided to give Manna a shot. We were the only table at 7:15 in the back of the bistro and we ordered the vegetarian sampler, an order of shiro, and beef tibbs. The veggies were innocuous enough. The "new" dish of a chickpea concoction that they were trying out was not good. Very dry, mealy, and reminded me of mashed potatoes sans cream and butter. The rest were standard fare. The red lentils were the standout. The beef tibbs was fairly tough, despite being touted as tender on the menu. It was loaded with jalapenos and spices and flavorful, just chewy. The shiro was a bit runnier than I've had before. The shells on the sambusas were very thick and the contents a bit dried out and skimpy.

The service was very friendly, albeit a little slow. Our total came to $41 before tip. We could have probably eaten for half that (Their combos for two are a good deal), but we wanted to try the shiro and the tibbs, both of which are excluded when picking the items for your combo.

The odd thing was their "specials" - all tacos, tortas, and empanadas on a chalkboard in the front. The front of the bistro had four tables of rowdy individuals who were slugging back south american beer (one table had at least 15 empties on it for 2 people). This was very out of place for the rest of the menu and bistro. It felt a little like we were in one of those dicey Manassas joints rather than a mom and pop restaurant.

The food won't have me racing back, Maaza 29 in Gainesville is better for us in the far out burbs. The owner was very sweet and I'm likely to try their baked goods if I'm back in the area again

The Nando's is pretty good. We went soon after they opened and service had a few hiccups, but they seemed to have ironed some of those issues out. The food is consistently good at this location. The BJ's is nice, but a bit small, so it lacks some of the ammenities of larger clubs. We've also got a pretty darn good pho place out by us and better than average for the area american-chinese restaurants, two decent NY style pizza places, and more and more family owned or non chain options are popping up. Of course, the mediocre chains continue to thrive. Our running joke when a new shopping center is under construction is that it won't officially be open until a Subway, Papa John's, cleaners, nail salon, and a Tae Kwon Do studio open up.

I've dined here. I did not try the Italian fare, but opted rather for the Ethiopian menu. It's very good. It's not the absolute best I've had, but it certainly is up at the top of the heap including most of my DC Ethiopian experiences. The Sambusas were pretty good, but the sauces stole the show. I like their injera better than others', as it wasn't overly sour and overly fermented. We shared an order of the vegetarian platter and awaze tibs. I like that they made each entree to order. My previous DC experience with a hole-in-the-wall was an oily gristly mess. This was great. This isn't the greatest location being on 29, but Nora has survived in that strip. Maaza took over the space from a failed burger joint. They had a pretty interesting beer list as well since the owner is a craft beer enthusiast.

Thanks Joe. We've been to the Ashby Inn right before the chef change and decided we made the best call. We're more likely to try Patowmack Farm before returning to Ashby. We're sort of planning on what you are suggesting - pointing the car that direction and driving.

Ha! I will do a head to head comparison. We have a gift certificate for Red Fox, thus the reservation on Friday night. Saturday we're planning on just taking a ride and actually discussed going to Hunter's Head.

No, Joe, I know what I'm looking at, and they are not consistent on Yelp. I am asking here, because it's pretty clear that it was "fine" and fairly innocuous from the above reviews and I'm just seeing if anyone has had recent first hand experience.

Has anyone been here recently? We are going Friday night and reviews online are all over the board.

We went last Wednesday night. My assessment is overpriced and underwhelming. It was one of those meals you pay for at the counter....and then again later, if you know what I mean.

There's a Smashburger now in Gainesville in the new Promenade shopping center on Linton Hall Road. It should draw a fairly good crowd from the new movie theater literally right next door.

Gainesville now has one as well in the new Gateway Promenade. A Nando's Peri Peri is also opening here as well.

What is the dress code or "norm" for men and women?

"smart casual." I took this to mean business casual. I was wearing dress shirt and khaki dress pants with a jacket. Jacket not necessary. Most others were wearing dress shirts or polos and khakis. Women were in dresses or skirts and blouses. I saw one guy in shorts, but he was the exception.

Absolutely amazing dinner last night. We snacked on the bacon and cashew brittle, a pickled green bean tempura dish with labne, and a carmelized onion parfait. I had the watermelon and rhubarb soup with pickled feta. Excellent cold soup with the sweetness of the watermelon countered by the salty goodness of feta. My wife skipped an appetizer and went with the beef loin which was very tender and had a real richness about the beef that was lacking in my lackluster lunch downtown earlier in the day. I had the roasted pork shoulder which had tortilla dumplings and oddly enough, was served on a bed of popcorn and roasted corn. For dessert we split a hazelnut dish which really rounded out the meal very nicely. I often skip desserts because they are such an afterthought at most restaurants - even high end ones. This did not disappoint. It was muggy, but cool so we opted to sit outside. It ended up being pretty windy as the storm rolled in, but it was actually quite calming to have the backdrop of the hills and pattering rain while we ate.

I'm glad we got there before the chef moves on to Patowmack. The only minor negative was that it took a bit of time to come greet us and get our drink orders, and then another longish lag between that and bringing the drinks/taking our order. After that, however, everything was paced nicely.

Just booked our reservation for this Friday night. I'm surprised at how much availability there is on Open Table.

Since I moved out to PW county a few weeks ago, I've been surprised that I've found some very tasty local options in a sea of chain restaurants. We stopped in a Pho Ha Linh on Friday night after we dropped the to-be-step daughter off at a party. I set expectations appropriately for the place, but was very happy all around. Pho Ha Linh is clean, the staff are extremely friendly, and the menu is pretty comprehensive.

We started off with:

Fresh Spring Rolls (Gá»i Cuốn): Soft rice paper filled with poached shrimps, sliced chicken, lettuce, cilantro, and vermicelli noodles served with a side of peanut sauce

For $3.99 these were a bargain. Two very generous spring rolls with 3 large shrimp per roll and plenty of chicken. Very fresh. They have a variety of rolls on the menu and I wouldn't hesitate to try making a meal out of the appetizers alone.

I had:

Phở Hí  Linh: Slices of round eye steak, well done steak, brisket, tendon, tripe, and beef meatballs

This was a big bowl for $8.95. Before adding any of the accompanying cilantro, sprouts, chili peppers and the like I tasted the broth. It was very good. Not greasy, watery, or muddy like some I've had in the area. I admit to having pretty limited experience with pho, but this seemed very balanced to me. Meat was tender and lean. What fat there was was not chewy or stringy. The tendon was very soft. I've never had tendon in a pho before and I really enjoyed it.

My SO had:

Bíºn Xí o Singapore: Stir fried vermicelli noodles with bean sprouts, eggs, and scallion in a curry sauce

I admit it's not the most adventurous dish, but it was pleasant. I thought the shrimp was generous and there was enough noodles left over for a lunch the next day. I don't remember the price, but I think it was in the $12 range.

Service was prompt and friendly. We walked out spending less than $30 before tip including two non-alcoholic beverages.

Definitely a winner in a Bonefish wasteland.

http://phohalinh.com/index.html

Nora is now on my list....thanks for the field report.

Are you one of my peeps? I need to gather us all up and have a feast at one of the local places sometime soon. Hey Bart, are you in? Anyone else out there?

Nora has been consistently good for the burbs - and especially that far out. There are a few duds on the menu, like any restaurant, but in general, it's a good meal at a reasonable price. Staff are pretty friendly, it gets busy on the weekends with the Lebanese crowd, is family friendly, and has some decent specials from time to time.

I'm Lebanese by way of my mother's side of the family. Dad's side is Polish. Makes for an interesting mix of food.