Jessica Strelitz

Update: Fortune went dark for “renovations” many weeks ago, with a report of plans to reopen earlier this month, but is now closed permanently from what I can tell. I haven’t been since HK Pearl opened years ago (and never thought quality was great), but I know it’s been an institution in 7 Corners for decades & it’s always sad to see a longtime business go dark. 

Update: Working on a story and just got confirmation that chef Luc Dendievel (hired in 2014) recently left -- he was a big proponent of their 'foodie in training' kids' dining program, which looks like it will be changing or going away entirely. Too bad -- it was a nice menu and dedication to young diners. 

3 minutes ago, Marty L. said:

Saffron was amazing before it changed hands, or since?

It JUST changed hands, I always loved it but havent been in the last month or so. 

6 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

Now I need to talk you into retrying Mazagan.

One bad and 2 "eh" meals there, plus a really creepy vibe from staff and male ownership -- it would be a miracle to get me back there with all of the other great options around. 

16 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

Now I honestly wonder if there are two Kohinoor Dhabas, or two standards of cooking at Kohinoor Dhaba. I let my friend come to her own independent conclusion without trying to dissuade her - she was so hungry that she was almost in tears, and I had to console her, saying there was no way she possibly could have known, being new to this area.

Well, I just did an Indian piece for Arl Mag, so you can send it to your friend with options for the future (if she can overlook the Kohinoor Dhaba mention), Also, I didn't include this because it just changed hands and I wanted to see if things changed, but Saffron is Falls Church is amazing. My go-to for sure.

PSA: Kohinoor Dhaba still has a buffet. The last update above, before yours, Don, indicated it was gone, but I definitely have eaten it several times since 2013. 

Damn. I have always enjoyed my food from Kohinoor Dhaba, the buffet has always been excellent (though it has been a few months since I last was in) and their kulfi is fresh and lovely. Very sad to read this. 

Great sentiment but was this meant for today? It's 12:38 and the site is still up.... (maybe not meant to be inside pages?)

On 2/9/2017 at 2:06 PM, DonRocks said:

I have it on good word that Jason Maddens is no longer at Clarity.

On 2/28/2017 at 10:19 AM, jpbloom said:

This would appear to be the case.  He is doing a pop-up this week at Stone Tower Winery and is apparently planning a restaurant in Leesburg to be called Ah-So (as in the two-pronged cork puller).

On 2/28/2017 at 10:19 AM, jpbloom said:

This would appear to be the case.  He is doing a pop-up this week at Stone Tower Winery and is apparently planning a restaurant in Leesburg to be called Ah-So (as in the two-pronged cork puller).

Really hope he rethinks that name. 

Not many details on their FB page: https://www.facebook.com/WaterWallRestaurant/

Hope that this community can help the displaced staff -- as I am sure Tim and Joey are also working to do. 

As a writer and resident of the area, it's so disheartening that the few higher-end restaurants in Arlington continue to struggle. I am begging for a new Willow to step up. I want to give you my business.

Update, and a juicy one ..... Jonah Kim is out, and so is the uni ....

"Chef Jonah Kim Splits with Mike Isabella and Yona" by Jessica Sidman and Anna Spiegel on washingtonian.com

"Jonah Kim and Mike Isabella Part Ways" by Laura Hayes on washingtoncitypaper.com

PayPal isn't eating anything. If you setup a recurring charge the money is processed by PayPal and the recipient has a valid account (according to my view her account is still active and has a status of verified) the money will get transferred to her, minus the service charge. You need to cancel the recurring charge, which I did right after I realized that the magazine was never going to be coming.

This +++++

Does anyone have an email contact for the following spots:

Rocco's Italian, McLean (website contact bounces)
Bob & Edith's, Arlington  (no site)
McLean Family Restaurant, McLean (website contact bounces)

Calling has not proven effective so far, and I have some quick questions to cover -- any contact help is welcome!

Melissa --

To be 100% clear, nothing fell through the cracks in my situation. I wrote three articles for Flavor and was paid for them -- loved the concept and the editing. I then was contracted to write a piece for Inspired (via Flavor) in June 2012, delivered it and sent my invoice for that piece on time in the fall of 2012. After not receiving payment for several months, I was directed by my former editor Pam Hess to connect with you in Feb 2013. I have since been emailing you -- for more than one year -- about my payment owed. You told me on 2/18/13 -- "We are trying to get our final payments from the company who contracted us to do the Inspired publication. I apologize for the delay." That was your first and only ever response to my repeated inquiries.

Absolutely everything is documented and I was a contracted writer. At no time was I told that I needed to request payment under bankruptcy filings, or that, in fact, Flavor had even filed for bankruptcy -- simply that Flavor had become Foodshed an was moving on under that new title/direction.

While you refer to the monies owed as a "we are talking about a couple hundred dollars here" -- freelance writers rely on the honesty of the publishers and publications with which they contract. It may not seem like much to you, but it is everything to us.

I am happy to email you directly about this matter, but the only email I have for you is now bouncing -- as the food-shed domain is no more. Please provide another point of contact.

Jess

Oh, and there's this craziness too: http://www.rappnews.com/2012/01/19/flavor-investor-barred-from-contact-with-publisher/57093/

I can confirm the "subscriptions and advertising were not generating sufficient income to pay contributors" part. My email to Melissa this morning -- checking again on delinquent payment of $250-- bounced. When I am in Jamaica in May for a wedding, maybe I'll run into her on the beach ...

Unreal.

What about paying the folks who contributing before this transition? Still no replies to queries about that, and the money has already been made off of those issues.

Yes, they owe me payment for a story I did on Lost Rhino Brewiing, which actually ran in a publication they were contracted to produce called Inspired Magazine -- it ran a year ago this falll.

I've emailed the folks at Flavor/FoodShed repeatedly, and the last I heard from Melissa was in February, saying they were waiting on payment from a third party. No word since then.

I realy enjoyed working with Pam Hess while she was there. It's a shame that the contributors and readers are being treated the way.

Will do, Don. And to confirm, LACF does have an on-site garden for the restaurant -- wish I could include them!  Thanks again for everyone's help.

Great  suggestions! Unfortunately, Great Falls is not in the distribution area -- nor is Alexandria -- only Falls Church, Arlington and McLean.

Noted.

As someone who frequently writes about VA wine, and has been for the last 5-6 years, I often cringe when I see these headlines because it's nearly always a rehash of information everyone around the region already knows -- with all the usual suspects. Not with this piece. Though Dana didn't step too far outside of the well known "elite" wineries in NoVa, she brought a ton of great research to the table and is a great story teller -- the photos were icing. Glad I bought all that Hodder Hill when I did!

Thanks so much, Don! I hadn't heard that about Peking Gourmet -- Ill check it out. Deadline is Jan. 1.
Many thanks for any help you or the rest of the DR crew can offer. 
Always appreciate the mind-boost!
Jess

I am working on a story on restaurant gardens in Arlington, McLean and Falls Church, and have recently discovered that one of the places I was going to include in the profile no longer maintains their rooftop garden -- sadly, Eventide droppped the program with their new chef.

Does anyone know of any restaurant that has an onsite garden, herbs, veg, etc - or any sort of on-site farm to table program in Arlington, McLean or Falls Church. I am already have connected with 2941, Harth and Main Event Caterers.

Many thanks!

Jess

Awesome for Mark! Congrats, sir!

Does anyone have a favorite sommelier -- especially in the Arlington Co.(Falls Church, McLean) area? Lots of great wine lists, but not a lot of dedicated somms around.

Jess