ktmoomau

FYI I am meeting up with three very nice Chowhounds (Not sure if they are on here, if not they may be after tomorrow night) tomorrow at Nam Viet in Clarendon at 7:30, if anyone would like to join us please feel free just PM me so I know what to make the reservation for. Of course if you are anywhere near Silver Spring or can get there you should do the $20 Tuesday up there it looks like it will be pretty tasty. I think we will do Minh's at a later date for comparison.

I smell a bribe. Seeing how well the NOVA happy hour at Eventide went I think we could easily stir up some NOVA love. It has been adequate time since our last event and Falls Church is pretty accessible, I could certainly take anyone who needed a ride from Arlington metro (esp Ballston).

Would organize if no one else is interested?

So missed out on hot chicken due to limitations of the group I was traveling with, but a bit more to report. As a note all the following places were not picked by me, but the person arranging the bachelorette party that was going on that weekend. Neely's BBQ- as we pulled up to this place I thought to myself, oh no, after joining FN and this really being a spot you should visit in Memphis I did not have great expectations. But everyone else was very excited. But the pulled pork had a mild smoke flavor and was still very juicy (although topped with so much sauce it could really hide a lot of imperfections unlike Jack's where you got just meat and added sauce if you wanted). But all in all the pulled pork was actually pretty good. I wouldn't say to seek out this place, but if you happen to be there get pulled pork. Service was awful. But baked beans had good flavor in the sauce and the mac and cheese was good. The portions are huge, a small platter could serve two and a large serves three, unless you are really hungry. They serve it with slices of plain toast, which didn't do anything for me. 1808 Grill- If you stay in the Hutton Hotel, and unless you have an aversion to modern boutique hotels with amenities that go way beyond the expected and have extremely wonderful customer service, you should stay there. Or even if you don't stay there, 1808 Grill isn't a bad place to catch a bite. I was there for a quick lunch before hitting up museums and had the romaine salad with roasted yellow tomatoes, bacon and blue cheese. The dressing was really good and all the ingredients freshly prepared. Not a huge portion, which was good, it made a nice starter or was nice mixed with one of the other smaller plates. The flatbread was really good. Goat cheese, pine nuts, roasted sweet tomato, mushrooms and leeks. It had a nice dough and the ingredients made it very balanced with crunch, sweetness and savory. Made for a very nice lighter lunch after all the bbq and etc. Was talking to the bartender that says they get their fish flown in fresh daily and that they get it within 2-3 days of being caught. That is probably not the norm for Nashville. Taco Mamacita- This place was fun and the tacos were good (except you didn't get a choice between soft or hard taco or between flour or corn, which would have made it so much better). I got the Gyro taco, which really was just a gyro (with not great meat) in a flour tortilla instead of pita, but tasty. The fish taco was excellent though with nice slaw, fish that was nicely pan fried with a thin thin layer of breading for crunch, tender inside and freshly cooked. And the drinks were well made and prices cheap. Also got a side of corn and black bean salad which was fresh and the dressing had a nice tangyness to it. Pancake Pantry (Again...) this time had the Grill Cooks medley. Their awesome hash browns with ham, tomato, onion, green pepper, swiss cheese and egg over easy with salsa. This really hit the post out on the town spot. Also had a plain buttermilk pancake with cinnamon syrup that was light and fluffy with a nice subtle buttermilk flavor.

I find myself recording more and more cooking shows off the "Create" shows on Public Television. Looking forward to having Two Fat Ladies back and possibly some other real cooking shows.

I think Againn might need to be added to the list, but noting it is more bar and less lounge, but there aren't really people standing and the food is excellent as well.

Reports from the road: Jack's BBQ- although there may be better barbecue the appeal of Jack's is it is right downtown, has long hours and is pretty darn good, and one benefit of Nashville BBQ is that it doesn't have one style. In terms of meat, here the brisket and pork ribs were the way to go. The brisket was smokey with great juice, smoke ring and crunchy outside texture. The ribs again had a nice crisp outside layer while they were bursting with juicy flavor once you bit in. I found the pulled pork a little dry and lacking in flavor. As a person who didn't grow up in BBQ country I like mixing flavors. I really liked the brisket with the Carolina mustard sauce at Jack's (it was so good I might buy a bottle to take home and I generally don't love a lot of mustard, but this had wonderfully balanced flavor. On the pulled pork the Carolina Vinegar sauce was great and really kicked it up a notch as Emerald would say. The other sauces were ok, but those were my two favorite here. Also they had good potato salad that was a nice cool tangy balance in flavor to the smokey richness of the BBQ. The only downfall is it has been so hot and sticky the smoke smell let on you after eating it all haunts you as you walk around stuffed and hot as hell. City House- It was very composed and good, but it didn't have anything you couldn't get in DC, EXCEPT the most amazing desserts. They had a compact but nice wine list with very moderate price points. We started with wonderful housemade salami that had the texture of lox it was so soft and supple. It was served with a Parmigiana cheese from Wisconsin that I might have to get the name of the company because it was excellent. I ordered Margherita pizza because it was so hot. Perhaps had I ordered for instance the house made sausage dinner would have been more of a revelation because if it was prepared as well as that salami.... mmm. But it was so freaking hot and humid I just couldn't eat like that. The pizza was perfect neaopolitan pizza with light pillowy thin crust. I added arugula on suggestion of the server and that was the right choice. For dessert we had a cornbread, peanut butter panini with buttermilk ice cream and rhubarb preserves. The sandwich was sweet, warm, crisp and gooey, while the tangy cool ice cream and tangy rhubarb cut a lot of the sweetness. I am going to thoroughly miss this dessert.... to the point I am already craving it. It was a southerners dream dessert. Composed, but down to earth with excellent ingredients that all most Southerners love. The service here was excellent, we pretty much closed the upstairs, but out waiter never pressured us in fact he talked to us about where to go out this weekend and was just lovely. He made our night a lot of fun. Pancake Pantry- I hesitated about going here to be honest. I could eat pancakes once a year and be happy (unless Talulla brought back their sour cherry ricotta pancakes that is). I like buckwheat pancakes, I like blueberry pancakes if the berries are fresh and there are a lot of them, and that is about it. And it was lunch time when we got there. But my friend said you had to do it in Nashville and there was no line for lunch today so it was a sign. I ordered cornmeal cakes with bacon, cheese, green chilles. They came with salsa, sour cream and butter on the side. These have now made the list of pancakes I will eat. They had a great outside texture and crispness, while light and fluffy. They were savory and just a bit spicy. I ate most of them with just a little butter and the salsa and sour cream, but I did try a few bites with maple syrup and that was actually good in a really strange but way. I wouldn't want the whole plate that way, but perhaps 1/3 with syrup the rest with salsa and sour cream. They were different, and well made, which I really appreciate. We had a side of hash browns which were some of the crunchiest hashy version of hash browns I have had. Although not as good as Matt's Big breakfast in Phoenix, may be my second favorite hashbrown in the country. Oh and the bar at the Hutton Hotel has really nice bartenders and is really comfortable. Although I love this hotel in general now. Will post more notes from the road as I explore more. Am hoping for a hot chicken experience, although may have to settle for Bolton instead of Prince's due to time constraints and location (the hotel has complimentary car service for guests for anything within 3 miles).

Waynesboro; Staunton Wanted to report that McAllister's Deli in Waynesboro is not a deli. And in fact they put cheese on my Mufaletta. I was not happy. We picked up sandwiches on our way back to Ivy and perhaps it was the drive that they didn't fair well, but their sweet tea which is very good. The cold make your own sandwiches are probably good, the selected sandwiches though just weren't very impressive. They were ok, just not great. Next time will stop at the Greenwood Grocery. Also at Downtown at the Clocktower in Staunton. It was ok. Hubby seemed to like his BBQ sandwich. I had the portabello sandwich on pretzel roll. It was very good, except the pretzel roll was smushed and got soggy on the bottom. The whole sandwich seemed a little... flat, literally. All the bread seemed to be smushed down which I don't particularly like, and it seemed the sandwich got smushed too. But the flavor of the sandwich minus soggy bread was good. The fries, however, were odd. Something about them tasted sweet, and it wasn't good, I think the the sweet potato fries were better. I also think they use a sweet ketchup, probably Hunts instead of Heinz, and I really was not fond of it. Not gourmet or high end like the Grocery, but wasn't bad either. And considering how much was closed it was probably our best option at the time.

No problem! Sounds like you ate better than I did this past weekend. I had some bust meals, except for Duners which was good. Had the hanger steak with garlic reduction that was very tasty. Had a red wine from Pollack at Duners that was ok, a little fruity with not a huge amount of body, but much better than some of the wine I have drank at Pollack. Although rumor is they are getting better. We went to Flying Fox and I was once again impressed with the amount of wine I like there. Some of it needs a year or two of age to be really good, but that is why you pay less if you buy it at the winery and then you can hold it yourself. All the 2006 bottles are now sold out so I am glad I scooped some of them up while I still could. The wines of that year really benefited from the drought. But still some great wine (although prices have risen somewhat with their rise in popularity, I think there are still some very good bargains) and they have a really nice cheese plate if you want to sit on the patio and enjoy, I highly suggest getting the Viogner for that. And of course meals fixed at home were great. Most of the bad eating was from other areas outside of Charlottesville in Waynesboro and a so-so meal in Staunton that I will post on their respective threads. Next time will stick to some more eating at places I want to go in c-ville.

Can anyone confirm if there is any outdoor seating or not?

Wanted to post here that Buzz Bakery is having their Bark Bash 2010 on June 27 from 6-8. If you don't have a dog for the event earlier that day they are having adoptions... I can't seem to find the details on their website, but I copied the details from their email onto this blog post: Bark Bash Details . I will post more details as I receive them.

I agree to be very careful about the shrimp. My Aunt grew up eating lobster and seafood all the time. One night at a nice dinner out on vacation she ate lobster and had to be rushed to the hospital. It came upon her very quickly. And now she cannot eat most seafood. Good luck with everything. I am hoping for the best for you.

I will be down this weekend too! Maybe we will eat together without knowing. I know we will go to Duners and Flying Fox.

I should update that thread I go to Charlottesville all the time to see my inlaws. I seem to be posting a lot recently on Chowhound about Charlottesville though. Places worth checking out: Zocalo- dinner Maya- brunch The Local- dinner Blue Mountain Brewery- lunch Duners- dinner Breadworks- (if you need picnic lunch for wineries) or The Greenwood Gourmet Grocery which is a fun stop anyway I used to love ThreeNotchGrill in Crozet, but I heard it might be slipping. Bodo's Bagel- breakfast Crozet Pizza- pizza with great crust Sheebeen- pretty good, but not as good as some of the others Guadalajara- a small Mexican chain in Charlottesville that if you order more off the gringo path has some really good things, and on the gringo path the tacos al pastor are great too. The Ivy Inn is pretty good for a nicer dinner, but I kind of like going more low key as they do mid-range very well in C-ville. Splendora's- coffee and wonderful gelato Places my in-laws like, but I haven't been: L'etoile Mas Fellini's Ten Zinc BTW: you might see if King Family Vineyards is doing anything special. They normally have events on holiday weekends like polo matches or etc. Wineries I really like: Flying Fox White Hall Barboursville King Family Veritas is ok, but I find a lot of their wines overly sweet Jefferson Vineyards

Thank you everyone so much! It was so nice to put faces with people I hadn't met in person yet. Matthew (my husband), Adam (my brother) and I ate so much good food. There was nothing I ate or drank that wasn't just lovely. Particular favorites for me were the brisket, haggis, cucumber-avocado salad, the ventworm and the fresh spring rolls. And of course the pig. And the unhopped beer, I don't really like beer, but I liked this. But really bite after bite was so good. Thank you everyone. Can I ask the person who brought the brie and other two hard cheeses (I believe one was jarlsberg) what the other hard cheeses was? Please please post your recipes as I really loved so much of what was made! Oh and I really loved the salty chocolate bars. If whoever made those hasn't posted the recipe can you please? I made the trifle and posted the recipe.

I adapted this recipe from the most recent Martha Stewart Living for the trifle. Instead of roasted fruit I used 3lbs strawberries and 1/2lb pineapple. I doubled the custard/cream recipe, but in two separate batches. I also added some hazelnut liquer to plain pound cake, but have made it with the almond pound cake they suggest and that turns out just as good. I am so hoping to get the recipes for deviled crab and the cucumber/avocado salad. I am sure there are more that I would like but my brain still can't think about food.

Ironicly this month's Washingtonian features them in the cheap eats section.

I don't really like Oceanaire at all, they drive me nuts, BUT getting simply grilled fish with veggie side dishes would be very healthy. And they do have fresh fish that is good simply grilled. I would prefer Blacksalt, but that is out of the distance range. Also Zentan might have some options for you between the sushi and regular menu. And actually Zaytinya might be good too.

Second batch of lemon custard is chilling for more trifle filling! I am interest in how the goat testicles are being prepared myself

I needed some preparations for the DR picnic tomorrow and was running errands in Tysons so stopped in the Whole Foods on the way back to Arlington. I picked up a huge 4lb package of strawberries for $6.99. What amazed me is I bought about 7-8 items and it cost me the same or less than it would have at the Harris Teeter (maybe even Weggies). That never happens to me. And I got a nice wine sample... mmm.

Ok, after drooling over the website flavors I have to cast some votes because my mind is fixated on Dolcezza goodness: Black Cat Tiramisu, Honey Tangerine and whichever strawberry flavor you think is best. That's my vote. But really I would be happy with anything. As a note every time someone posts what they are bringing I am salivating in anticipation. Is this as close to heaven as a foodie ever gets??? Right now I am salivating over both scrapple and gelato which would make a strange combination, but somehow my brain is making it work.

Would love some!

Put me down as confirmed on a berry trifle of some variation of berries I acquire, instead of pie. I just saw a very good looking picture of one and it put me in the mood to eat trifle.

Acadiana has doggy Sunday brunch with their own dog menus. I haven't been but I got the ad. Also the Hotel Monaco in Alexandria still does doggy happy hour.

Arlington is wonderful for dogs. Most places in Clarendon with outdoor seating allow dogs (and the shops too if they are small), Willow does, so does Uncle Julios, Grand Cru and Big Buns. We have taken Max with us to Whitlows, Liberty Tavern, Mexicali Blues, Earls and Rocklands too. Max really loved when we took him to Heidelberg pastry shop as they have the grill outside and picnic tables. He was really disappointed not to get any Wurst. Shirlington is not as puppy friendly as the dogs must be tied to the outside of their fences and my pup will just not stay on the outside of the fence when I am on the inside. Although their dog park is nice, so is the one on Glen Caryln. Anyplace with outside seating in Bethesda and Georgetown are dog friendly too. Raku in Bethesda was especially nice. We have also successfully taken him to Georgetown on weeknights, although they don't have as much outdoor seating, we got Tacklebox and ate on their outside benches. They have a really nice park now down on the waterfront. The stores are nice about taking dogs in (although Max is small and I can carry him). And Annapolis and St. Michaels are wonderful dog day trips. Lots of outdoor seating, dog stores and dog friendly people.