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pras

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Everything posted by pras

  1. pras
    This past weekend we visited friends in Baltimore. They asked us if we wanted to go to the "Salmon Guy" and buy some wild salmon. There is this guy that lives in Baltimore who heads to Alaska every season to fish for wild salmon. He owns his own small processing plant where he cleans, prepares, vacuum seals, and freezes a portion of his catch and ships it back Maryland. In addition to un-cooked salmon, he cold smokes a bunch for 4 varieties of lox in a smokehouse in his back yard (traditional, maple, cracked pepper, and citrus). When we were there he had king and sockeye, along with roe, heads and carcasses, and what I call the "wings"). We bought the traditional and black pepper lox ($20/lb), a piece of un-cooked King ($22/lb), wings, and roe. We had the lox for breakfast, everyone raved, we also tried the roe which I thought had a very good flavor (better than the bland stuff at a sushi bar), and for dinner the "wings", which had alot of meet on them. Pricing for sockeye fillets is $14/lb, the carcasses, heads, and wings are $5/lb. He has some other presentations, but I am not sure of the prices. He is a very nice guy who will talk your head off if you let him (I would have stayed and chatted for longer, but my wife and daughter were ready to go!). If anyone is interested, I can email you his information/arrange an introduction.
  2. pras
    I went for a private party several weeks back and thought it was pretty decent. I didn't order off the menu, but I thought it was a nice space and the service was good. Parking is in the underground garage, so a drive by will never give you the full picture of what's going on. Several friends have eaten there and generally like it. I agree with Daniel that it is a good spot for the less adventurous.
  3. pras
    While I generally agree with everything you wrote, I think you are a bit harsh on the Lakelands (and I am certainly biased). It still has the vibe that Kenlands has in the residential neighborhood and encourages people to get out of their houses and ditch their cars on the weekends. The houses are diverse if you look a little deeper, although not as diverse in the Kentlands, and architectural controls were loosened (you can have an asphalt roof and vinyl/aluminium siding in the Lakelands), but does have housing diversity and variety (we visiting probably 9 totally different model of townhouse during our search), with singles/townhouses/condos/rental apartments mixed throughout. Their is certainly a great pride of ownership in the Lakelands (drive around during Halloween and Christmas to see all of the decorations). The HOA provides a great variety of activities for people of all ages. Their has even been recent attempts to try and unify the Kentlands and Lakelands through shared activities, swimming pool reciprocity, etc. All in all, both are great neighborhoods which provide a high quality of life. I believe one of the main commercial owners is currently trying to sell their entire portfolio. Perhaps the next owner can complete Alfandre's vision and make it a truly remarkable neighborhood.
  4. pras
    I don't know why, but I have never been a fan of Fat Tire. I never really got it. This dates back to 1999 when I traveled out west for a college class over the summer. We left from Bethlehem PA, in a caravan of vans and once we crossed the Mississippi River, everyone rushed to the nearest store and started buying it by the case. I always thought New Belgium sucked until they made it east a few years ago and I learned that they weren't a singular brewery. It should be noted that Sierra Nevada now has a brewery in Asheville, NC and New Belgium has one under construction (although NB may have opened and I am behind a bit). All in all good news as they both make some of the best beers out there and having an East Coast presence only means more of their beer locally and it should theoretically be fresher.
  5. pras
    Opening in Bethesda for Lunch on March 7, per Bethesda Magazine.
  6. pras
    This video is a walking tour with Joe Alfandre as he talks about the process in developing the Kentlands, the planning process, and where it falls short. When I said "everyone is entitled to their opinion", it wasn't meant as a jab, it was quite the opposite, that I didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. This history details what happened and where things derailed. Essentially Alfandre ran into some hard times and the development was taken over by the lenders. I also beg to differ regarding cookie cutter houses. I invite anyone to come and walk the neighborhood with me. There is such diversity of houses and attention to detail that is apparent if you look. There is also a sense of pride and community. I agree that the commercial/retail areas leave a lot to be desired--I don't think you will find a person who will disagree. I wish I could find a link to it or some information, but I read in the past year that the city of Gaithersburg has changed the zoning to allow for the redevelopment of the commercial areas. This would allow an increase in density, get rid of the paved parking lots, and finish off the Kentlands the way they were intended. This is certainly just an idea at this point and may never come about in my lifetime, but you never know.
  7. pras
    What's the problem with the architecture? If you take a walk through the neighborhoods, and open your eyes, you will see that there is great diversity in the architecture of the houses. This certainly does not hold up for the majority of the commercial areas (where Lowes and Giant are located), this is where Joe Alfandre's vision ended (much has been written about why this happened). The Kentlands is widely regarded as one of the most successful examples of new urbanism. But, like I said in my original post, everyone is entitled to an opinion. From a dinning perspective, the Kentlands has faltered lately, and I don't know the real reason why. Some say the rents for restaurant spaces has risen too high. Some say that the density isn't enough to support the offerings. There is still some really good places to eat, Le Palais, Pacifica, YoYogi Sushi (good for what it is), Boulevard Tavern, Giuseppie's Pizza. The other nice thing is that on Friday night, I can park my car and leave it parked for (most) of the weekend. If I am doing a home improvement project, it's faster to walk to Lowe's. If I realize I am missing an ingredient for the stew I am making, I have Whole Foods and Giant in walking distance. I can go on and on.
  8. pras
    I have always gone with the sniff test once opened.
  9. pras
    I failed to mention in my post above that I love all of the pieces in the set. The round pot and the dutch over run circles around similar pieces in my collection from All-Clad.
  10. pras
    While I agree with the comments on the restaurant based upon the merits of it's food, I have to disagree on your assessment of the Kentlands. I know that everyone has and is entitled to an opinion, but I think you are overly harsh on the Kentlands/Lakelands. Both are a great friendly neighborhoods, with lots of amenities, friendly people, all in a walkable neighborhood. I really can't understand what is so Truman Show about the neighborhoods. It is not sterile, there is lots of variety of houses and a really nice place to raise a family. Sorry to veer off course of the goal of this site, and I may be biased because I live here, but I completely disagree with your assessment of the neighborhood.
  11. pras
    Coming soon, per Bethesda Magazine. I am going to file this one under very interesting as I can walk to this spot in about 5 minutes. With another location of Potomac Pizza within delivery distance, it doesn't really change a thing for me (my family ranks Potomac Pizza towards the top of our list).
  12. pras
    Opening at Montgomery Mall per Robert Dyer.
  13. pras
    In.
  14. pras
    The Williams Sonoma outlet in Leesburg also has good deals from time to time. I was in the right place and the right time and lighting stuck, as I walked by the clearance rack as they were putting a 12 piece set on the rack. Because it was on the clearance rack, it was 50% off the marked down price, and on top of that we got the 40% employee discount, which brought to to something like $120. Oh, it was missing the square grill pan, but it did have the round frying pan, so I guess it was an 11 piece set. Bottom line, we love the pots, although they are too heavy for my wife to use.
  15. pras
    I picked up a case at Wegmans in Germantown. Pretty tasty, not so sure about if they are worth the price though.
  16. pras
    I confirmed with Scotty that they show every Nats game.
  17. pras
    So I went here today for their Chinese New Year celebration, complete with dragon dancers, drums, and fire crackers. They gave all of the children lucky money which my daughter fed to the dragon. We arrived early (10:30) and had no trouble getting a table, although the place definitely filled up. I had so much food I can't even remember. Highlights were the black bean bun, shrimp balls, salt and pepper shrimp, and turnip pancake. I thought they were really on their game. Everyone was nice, the service was good and it was a really enjoyable lunch.
  18. pras
    Has anyone been here lately? If so, what has the experience been like?
  19. pras
    The Lerners developed it, but sold it years ago.
  20. pras
    Mike Isabella about to embark on his most ambitious project yet. (credit Washington Post)
  21. pras
    Per Robert Dyer, it looks like construction is progressing.
  22. pras
    Yes. I have only gotten carry out. Very hard to get a table.
  23. pras
    My good friend went to school at University of Wisconsin in Madison, had a keg delivered, was supposed to be Spechers beer. By the time they were ready to tap it, it was late and the store was closed. They delivered a keg of the root beer instead. Not a happy evening for them.
  24. pras
    I disagree with Jose Andres specifically (I was going to say avoid his restaurants). He does not have changing table in the bathrooms. When my daughter was diaper age, I remember having to awkwardly balance her in the bathroom to get the diaper changed. Certainly a big deal at that point in my life.
  25. pras
    What about Continental in Kensington?
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