DrXmus

No replies in over a year to an old stand-by like Anita's? Either it's because everyone knows what to expect there, or it's not on anyone's list any more. Mrs. DrX and I usually hit Anita's 1-2 times a year, but only for breakfast. Is there anything better than chips and salsa for a breakfast appetitizer? I'm gonna say "no". I had the Chorizo Huevos this morning. The menus says it's made with house made chorizo. I enjoyed the flavor, but it was hardly spicy or exciting. It was quite edible, though, but that's hardly high praise. At least the chips and salsa were good. I didn't get any "ketchup" flavor in the salsa, and never have, but maybe it's just me. My primary complaint was that the "home fries" were deep fried! They've always been cooked on the griddle creating some crispy edges, but generally consist of soft and tasty cubes of potato. Today, they were cubed french fries! At least it helped me limit my portion, but I would've enjoyed the old standby much better.

I realize it's been 3 weeks since this post, but I just saw chanterelles at Wegman's in Fairfax last week.

I was working at McDonald's when the McRib was introduced. I was 16 and would eat anything, but only ate one McRib sandwich:-)

Unfortunately, the only time our NoVA group could all get together and get into DC was Thursday, but due to some large groups at Galileo, we were unable to get a reservation that made sense for us (before 6 or after 8:30). It's really too bad. We were psyched about the great special Chef Donna was offering. Keeping my fingers crossed he'll extend just one more week:-)

Thanks for the note about the Pasty Co. I work a couple of blocks away (stop by next time) and live close-by in Vienna, so I've been curious about the restaurant since buzz started a few months ago. They just opened the doors for business last week, I believe. While your review was less than overwhelming, I look forward to giving the place a go soon.

Agree 100%. I guess we can't generalize to all pastry chefs, but this is a really whiny group compared to the flagship Top Chef cheftestants. I was having the same argument with myself that you were after the last episode with Seth's latest breakdown and the quitter. Should I keep watching this frustrating show or is the rest of it cool enough to tolerate the drama? I decided I'll keep watching, but I hope the producers find a better group of people for the next season, assuming it gets picked up.

Maybe it shows I'm not such a great person, but I gotta say I rewound and watched Seth whine that line several times, laughing and snorting the entire time. I'm going to guess that his mother isn't as proud of him in the show as he thinks she will be.

Say Hi next time. We were there at about 6:45 or so. The Suppli were good, but still underseasoned to our taste, but at least that's consistent. The Diavola pizza was great, as usual, if not a little heavy on "spicy sausage", a/k/a pepperoni. I've got Firestone Union Jack IPA in the fridge at home, but I love having access to it during a dinner out, too! In regards to the above post, I agree that there are some consistency issues, however this isn't McDonald's, where you expect the same dish no matter when or where you go. The important part is that it never is bad, it's just varying versions of good to great. I would expect that to improve over time, hopefully. When we came in last night I noticed that the guy I've normally seen at the oven was overseeing, not doing the work. It looked like a couple of trainees were learning the ropes, so that may be a reason for the changes in the pizza noted above. I didn't see Aiden or his wife in the building. My consistent complaint about Orso's though, and it's not a deal-breaker, is the inability of the kitchen to time our apps and pizze better. They come in rapid succession unless we order apps first and wait to order the entrees.

Mrs DrXmus and I shared a couple of cupcakes tonight after great pizza and beer at Orso's. We had a Red Velvet cake with cream cheese buttercream frosting and a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. The cake was moist and very flavorful, especially the chocolate. It was obvious that the chocolate was high quality and I wouldn't be surprised if there was a dose of espresso to help build the chocolate flavor. I loved the tang of the cream cheese buttercream, but Nancy wasn't as big a fan. She enjoyed the chocolate/chocolate cupcake better. The red velvet cake had a great texture, but I didn't get much chocolate flavor from it even though I tasted it before the chocolate cupcake. Overall, both cupcakes were fantastic. We were the only customers at 7:30pm, but the very sweet lady behind the counter said the owner's having trouble keeping up with orders. Apparently many people don't give advanced warning when they want several dozen for their office. She said they'd appreciate a 1.5 day advance warning if a dozen is needed. When you buy 12, the cost is $2.65 (IIRC) as opposed to the normal price of $2.95.

What does it matter? If you like it, drink it in moderation (or to excess with the requisite negative effects). Does it really matter how many calories are in your beer? Miller 64 and Coors light have 60-90 or so. Beer that actually tastes good has 150-250 or so. Seriously, drink what you like.

Benedictine and Brandy, after Pizzeria Orso and Firestone Union Jack IPA, after pre-dinner Negroni at Chez Xmus. Good night with good drinks and good friends.

I hope this is message in the the appropriate category, If not, please put it where it belongs! We've got a 10 foot tall x 3-4 foot wide bay tree that's getting too big for it's location. We've been hesitant to prune it because we hate the idea of trashing all those great leaves. Always the genius, Mrs. DrXmus thought of offering it up to DonRockwellians I'm not sure what else to say. This is a pick-it-yourself situation, although SWMBO will probably supervise because the plan is to prune the tree, not mangle it. You can have as much as you want. There are several hundred, if not thousands, of leaves on this bad boy, so don't be shy. As I'm sure you know, the leaves dry easily and will store for years. Message me for my address and scheduling details. We'd like the pruning to be done sooner, rather than later, like within the next 2 weeks. Sandy Christmus

I'll agree that some of the contestants are good cooks. I could never whip up food like they can. BUT, there is no way in hell all of those people could make a cupcake that looked like a cupcake without a recipe in front of them. My assumption is that they were given a basic recipe and then told to do what they wanted with it. I just can't see every one of them, especially the winner (who's never made a cupcake), formulating a baking recipe from scratch with precise measurements for leaveners, flour and liquids. There's just no way in hell!

I watched last week's show on DVR tonight. That'll be my last one. I erased the episode I had waiting for me from this week. I was hoping it'd get better, but when these "amateur chefs" couldn't identify more than 9 ingredients out of 25 for a challenge, I decided they're not worth wasting my time watching. I'm mean, c'mon,the ingredients were things like starfruit, blackeyed peas, chayote squash, lotus root, catfish, papaya and many others that anyone who wanted to be a chef should've known. When the correctly named the few ingredients they knew, like rhubarb, golden raisins, plantain, and rosemary, they were treated like geniuses. I'm so done with that piece of drek.

Anyone had the basic non-hot pot food at Uncle Liu's? I live very close and need a new take-out joint that my wife and I both like. Based on the menu, it looks like it may be authentic Szechuan with spice and numbing.

SWMBO and I hit Orso again yesterday for an early-ish dinner (2nd time). I thought it'd be packed, but there were still just 5 tables seated or so. Personally,I like having the place quiet ,but my wife and I were both thinking about how tough it must be to start up a restaurant and have enough reserve to wait for the business to start paying for itself (and the owners). I'm sure it'll catch on soon enough and we'll be dealing with lines and reservations. The potato crocce were better seasoned than my first trip, although we still salted a little more to our taste. Unfortunately, they didn't have that chunky texture that they had had a week or so before. I had really enjoyed that thicker grated texture. By no means did I not eat the little balls of goodness, I'm just saying...My wife had the Diavolo (pepperoni) and I have to say it's probably the best pizze I think I've ever had (except for Matthew's pizza in Baltimore). The peps were spicy and their "juices" ran all over the pizze to give the whole pie a fantastic flavor. I can't wait to go back and get one for myself! I had a special which included porcini, garlic and tomatoes. I'd give it a 5 out of 10. The tomatoes had a great flavor, but the porcinis didn't contribute much. The thinly sliced garlic was just OK, but they were huge cloves and didn't have a ton of flavor, either. The crust was pretty ashy on the bottom and it was a bit off-putting. The crust was super thin and cracker-like, which is nothing like my first pizze. I enjoyed the one I had last time with a little more chewy substance, personally. I have to rescind a comment I made in my first post about noise. We sat on the opposite side of the room this visit and I saw that some overhead panels weren't just decorative, but were probably sound-absorbers. I'm really excited that Orso is so near my house. We'll be there often, I'm sure, and look forward to it getting even better as the wrinkles get ironed out. My Italian wife is on the picky side when it comes to pizze, and were both loving Orso.

I'll concur with everyone else that Pizzeria Orso is a must-eat restaurant in the area. My wife, our friend and I hit it for lunch today (Saturday). We had the Suppli di Telephono and the Potato Crocche (potato/cheese croquettes) for appetizers. Complaint #1) they arrived about 60 seconds before the pizza (not great) and #2) they were horribly underseasoned. Otherwise, they were both very good with the Crocche winning the contest (with added salt). The potato was coarsely grated and still had some nice texture to it. The cheese flavor was subtle but tasty and present. Both would have been immensely tastier had the rice and potato been seasoned appropriately before being made into their respective finished dishes. They were fried perfectly. At the table we had a Margherita DOC, a Crudo and a make-your-own with ham, artichokes, olives and something else I can't remember. The crust was great on all of them. It was chewy and flavorful, with nicely charred edges and bottom. I really enjoyed the ingredients on the Crudo (prosciutto/arugula/Grana); they seemed to be of high quality. SWMBO's Margherita was good, but was a little light on the sauce. I understand the need to not oversauce a 'za, but the consensus was that it was not quite enough. We liked that the basil wasn't overdone. Nothing worse than a pile of basil on a Margherita pizza. Good job, there. The beer list is quite sufficient, with really good options available. I loved my Firestone Union Jack IPA on draught. What a great beer to have with great pizza! I can easily see hanging out at the bar and watching a game with a beer or two and an appetizer. Pizzeria Orso is definitely a place to visit multiple times. I can see myself trying several different pizzas that sounded great. The space is beautiful, but I can see how it'd get loud once they get busier and more crowded. It's all hard surfaces, except for the cushy booth seats (which felt great!). Kudos, pizza man.

Ugh. "Nice bittersweet herbiness" = nasty, pungent, always-detectable flavor that I detest. Sorry, it's just my palate. I'll agree that they grow up to be something I quite enjoy eating...let's just not rush the process and eat them before their time.

Really

SWMBO and I visited Casanova's for the first time today for lunch. It's in a space where Jerry's Pizza and Subs was in Hunter Mill Plaza near the corner of Hunter Mill and Maple Ave in Oakton. The sign in the window says "stone hearth pizza", but I couldn't see the oven. The grill's right behind the cash register and there's not much of a kitchen I could see. There are about twelve two- to four-top tables and one TV. Their mission statement states they're "specializing in Italian comfort foods using only the highest quality, fresh, wholesome ingredients & have a strong focus on environmentally friendly recycling practices." I would agree the ingredients seem to be higher quality than some sub joints, although (at least today) the unripe Roma tomatoes could've been left off the sub. I didn't see any hint of recycling practices out front and our meals came on plastic plates. Maybe they pick through the trash and pull out recycling...right. I had the Chicken Cheesesteak sub. The chicken was chopped breast and was grilled with nice spices plus onions. I chose not to have the green peppers, but the sub normally comes with that vile vegetable included. The bread was warmed and made crusty in the oven before the chicken and onions were applied. The bread was really nice...a good crunchy, tasty Italian sub roll. It is extremely similar to the bread that Luciano's (a few doors down) serves. I needed to add some salt and I would've loved some oil and red wine vinegar, but overall the sub was pretty good. My wife had a slice of cheese pizza. The crust was nicely charred on the bottom and very, very thin. It wasn't very crusty, however, and certainly wasn't like a cracker. The crust had good flavor and was fairly chewy. I guess this is personal taste, but I would've preferred a more crusty bottom with some chewiness, but overall I'd rate the crust a 3.5/5. The sauce was tangy and tomato-y and the pizza was not over-sauced. The cheese was fine...nothing exciting. Some of the white pizzas that were on the counter looked very good. The spinach was abundant and looked to be high quality. We're certainly going to go back. They're still figuring out what needs to be done, I think. The executive chef was our cashier and some young guns and he were discussing details of the restaurant while we were there. The young guns spoke Italian and the chef looks like he's Italian, too. My wife suggested oil/vinegar carafes and they agreed that would be good to have. They said they had to get red wine vinegar, though. (Shouldn't that be a staple in an Italian restaurant?) I'm curious how a whole pizza comes out of the oven, so that's in our future. I like the sub rolls, too, so I'll figure out what it takes to make the sub even better than it was. I'd bet the calzones will be good because the crust was tasty on the pizza. We'll have to give one a try sometime, too. Overall, I think Casanova's deserves to be on the list of Oakton cheap eats. (BTW, our sub/slice/2 fountain drink order was $15)

Yep, you may be right about just keeping pressure on when it's being served. I'm attaching a link to the Food and Wine blurb about kegged wines. Looking at the setup, there's a chance the kegs may be above the floor so they may be gravity fed. If that's the case, they could just allow enough inert gas to enter the keg to allow for prevention of a vacuum.

Not to get into a dissertation about balancing a draught system, but don't you have to consider the run from the keg to the tap? Assuming the kegs are more than a foot or so from the tap, the pressure needed would certainly carbonate the wine (not much if it's a short run, but my thought is it'd feel like a vinho verde). I guess you could depressurize the keg after every use, but that'd be quite the hassle and noise. I'll admit I may be thinking about this process all wrong, but after working on my kegerator system, I feel like I know enough to be dangerous.

Food & Wine published an article a couple of months ago about kegged wines becoming more popular. From what I can tell, they're using run-of-the-mill 5 gallon Sankey kegs. My question for you all is how do you think the wine is pushed to the tap? Room air will oxidize the wine. CO2 and Nitrogen will carbonate it. It doesn't seem like O2 would work, although it would oxygenate the heck out of the wine. Thoughts? Curious minds want to know. Sandy

My ideal last moment is in a seat at a United game with a $7 pint of watery beer in hand. I'll add to the statistics...but I'll be happy.

I've had the pleasure of being "served" gloppy, stinky Amarula at a friend's house. It was actually pretty funny, yet disgusting, watching him try to pour this liquid feta from the bottle. And, yeah, we could tell it was off.