eatdrinkmore

Our restaurant critic had a great time at Galileo III last night. Not a place you will go everyday, but a nice spot for a power lunch, expense account or a special occasion.

http://eatmoredrinkmore.com/2010/10/07/galileo-iii-a-lovely-evening-of-fine-dining/

Not sure if you have selected your next host, but I use HostGator and love them. They are pretty cheap, and have great customer service.

Ok, ok really the best croissant? Right down the street from me? And you had to tell me after I am supposed to be cutting gluten out of my diet... This is a big, HUGE, temptation.

Don't worry their croissants are gluten and carb free (that is what I tell my diet!)

I am thrilled that people are checking this place out.

You're right about the coffee, it's illy coffee but it is not as tasty as the illy coffee I have had at other coffee shops.

I really hope they open one in Arlington. The dearth of non-pizza, non-asian delivery options is pretty severe, and there are a lot of yuppies (yours truly) who would be regular orderers.

I couldn't agree with you more.

Oh, I tried their risotto balls today.......................Wow....unbelievable. Made my day.

Well I guess I know what I am doing this weekend.

Do you know of any other good places? Marvelous Market - Terrible. Starbucks - even worse.

Upper Crust Gourmet is a small cafe/coffee shop in Ballston (Across from IHOP). They have been open for a while and they have changed their name a few times, Upper Crust Gourmet => Cafe Amity => back to Upper Crust Gourmet. (Terrible name in my opinion)

They serve illy coffee, which is a big plus for me, and they have a variety of middle eastern options for lunch that are decent. They recently hired a new chef and are adding new specials to the menu.

The real star is the croissant. I am a bit of a croissant snob, and I absolutely love their croissants, I have not had a better croissant anywhere in Arlington, or DC for that matter. If you are in the area, I strongly suggest you try one of their croissants fresh out of the oven.

Welcome to the Hotel California.

A little sad we did not get invited to the soft opening.

Jenna made it over last night, and the food looks incredible. I am really excited to give it a try.

Has anyone tried the pizza yet?

My only minor quibble on the last visit was that the arugula salad came with a container of balsamic on the side rather than being served pre-dressed with that nice light lemon dressing I'd enjoyed on previous visits.

I had the same thought when I got my arugula salad this weekend. That being said, I freaking LOVE this place. I am also sad to see they are not using the pizza boxes with their cute kid on the top.

The pizza was fantastic, I think the crust has improved since the last time I had their pizza and the risotto balls should not be overlooked on your next visit.

We just posted a huge guide of restaurants that are opening in the DC area. If you are a regular reader of Don Rockwell, You probably already know about a bunch of these restaurants but I think it is pretty cool to see them listed all together.

http://eatmoredrinkmore.com/2010/09/03/dc-dining-scene-the-guide-to-whats-coming/

apparently it is best to take a tag team approach to waiting in line.

I am only kidding, I know it is not that far. I need to head over there. I am really anxious to try out their fish market.

That's a rather extreme example, no?

The blogger is local, the restaurant is local, it wouldn't be that much of an effort to get a meal in before the interview for some context.

I plan on going, just have not been yet. Plus I live in VA, going to the Palisades seems so far . Much easier to stay in Arlington and go to Ray's or Pupatella. The "interview" was quick, I only asked were he liked to eat Breakfast Lunch and Dinner.

In reality, EatMore DrinkMore tries to interview local DC chef's, post recipes and several restaurant reviews every week. Ideally, we would have time to vist the chef's restaurant before the interview, but often times the time frame between when we hear back from the chef and when we need to post the column is very tight. Plus I wouldn't want to exclude interviewing chef's from DC's pricer restaurants simply because I had not had a chance to dine there yet. With our blog income of $0.00, it could get very expensive, very quickly.

Today we are giving away a $40 iGourmet.com Groupon to the reader that provides the best answer to

“If you had to smell like one food (or dish) for the rest of your life, what would it be? Why?”

I hope DR.com readers will enter.

We interviewed the chef at BlackSalt today on EatMore DrinkMore. Sadly, I have not made it over to BlackSalt.

Is it really the best seafood restaurant in DC? I have heard a ton of great things about the place.

As of today the plan was to open on Wednesday.

Fear not, I spoke to them this morning and they are selling bread again. You can also buy their milk which comes in those cool old school glass bottles ($6 but you get $2 back for the bottle).

Had a fantastic breakfast sandwich there this morning. Oh so delicious, the egg was poached perfectly.

Just curious if anyone has tried their food lately. The food was great when they opened, then it went downhill with the expansion. I was wondering if they fixed their kitchen issues they were having during the relaunch. It is a great bar, hopefully the food is good now too.

Washington Business Journal just confirmed they are bringing their over-cooked burgers to DC in the old Fuddruckers space in Dupont.

Argh, if DR doesn't like Shake Shack, I am a bit deflated at this news

May be a bit premature to start a new thread for a 'rumor', but I was pretty excited to read that Shake Shack may have signed a lease to come to DC.

I have only heard glowing reviews of the NYC Shake Shack. I think this could give several of our burger chains a run for their money. DC really is becoming a burger mecca.

 

Dear Rustico,

When are you opening? Ballston needs your deliciousness and your ample beer selection immediately.

Thanks,

EatMore DrinkMore

Not much to add here, except last night was my favorite DC al fresca dining experience ever. Very relaxed (we were 3 of 6 people on the patio, which seats about 50), gorgeous Tuesday night, in a peaceful part of the city. I agree with Pat and dcandohio's accounts of the onglet. Going forward, this place will be our first choice for outside dining (unless one of youse guys convince me otherwise!).

You just convinced me. I am going to buy the WTD Deal for Bistro Cacao and head over and eat outside. I know several people that got engaged at Two Quail, I am happy that their replacement is still a great restauarnt.

Prince of Petworth is reporting a RUMOR that Ray's Hellburger is opening a location on K Street in the CityVista building, anyone know anything about this?

http://www.princeofpetworth.com/2010/08/seriously-sweet-mt-vernon-square-scuttlebutt-chipotle-and-rays-coming-soon/

I went back for lunch too. The smoked salmon crepe was awesome. Definitely will be visiting this cart regularly.

Review is up on the site now as promised.

Solar Crepes opened today outside the Ballston Metro. Right smack dab in front of the Nature Conservatory building. Which is fitting considering they use produce from local farms and use solar panels to lessen their carbon footprint. The menu and the cart looks great, they use an Ipad as a cash register, which makes them pretty cool in my book. They really won be over with their Newtella crepe w/ rasberries ($6). Absolutely delicious, the newtella is homemade and very well done.

I will post a full review on the blog sometime soon, but I wanted to do a quick post on DR first.

Bonus points for the cheesy slogan "This place is giving me the crepes"

http://solarcrepes.com/