weezy

Pizza stone (bottom rack) and cast iron skillet (top rack) in the oven, preheated for +1 hour at the highest temp it goes (495). Got the dough at Giant in the deli section, turned it out in a light oiled bowl and let it rise for an hour, punched down & turned, let it relax and then tried to stretch it out. Finally got it on my peel in something approximately a roundish shape and wiggled it to make sure it would slide, put the toppings on quickly, tried to put it in the oven and it started sticking and getting misshapen. Got it loose and on the (cornmeal-tossed) stone and baked until done, and it stuck to the stone and finally had it chisel it off with a big metal spatula. Like I said, it was tasty, but it sure was an ugly mess.

Bought some pizza dough and still had a massive crust fail. Tasty ugly heap of food. After many, many failed attempts, I will leave pizza to the pros from now on.

My sister and I had dinner here last night about 7:30-ish. It's a small place -- seats maybe 30-35 fully packed? There were about four tables taken when we arrived, but by the time we were served, we were the only table left. However, there was a fair amount of take-out business going on, and folks obviously were familiar with the owner b/c everyone was chatting with him when they came in. Very friendly, very pleasant fellow. It's a place where you at the counter and they bring the food. I got lamb biryani and sis got tandoori lamb chops. Mine was nice, not as spicy as some biryanis I've had and I actually appreciated it, because the last couple have been so hot that I couldn't taste the other flavors. Owner came over and explained that the raita is a more modern, non-traditional accompaniment; that in India, typically biryani is served with a brown onion gravy on it (which sounds delicious as well). Sis enjoyed hers but did say the lamb was seasoned with so many spices that it didn't really taste of lamb, it could have been any meat. Hers came with naan, dal, a mint chutney, and a third dish that I don't recall, but she liked it overall and it smelled very good. The naan was nice, too, as she was willing to share a bit of that with me. Lots of yummy looking cake slices and creamy filled things in the bakery case but we were so stuffed we didn't get anything sweet. It's on the way home if I take that route, so I imagine I'll be picking up some take-out from time to time in the future. I'd like to explore the menu some more.

I just use one of my small knives, grab it al a Psycho, and gently tap tap tap with it in the fat end of the egg until I get a hole thru to the air bubble, and twist the tip and egg a little bit to round it out..

Made a nice mushroom & sweet potato & aged white cheddar risotto with thyme and sage, sprinkled the top with some pecans. An unoaked chardonnay to go with.

Interesting to know. I had been about a year ago with a friend and we were both unimpressed with our meal -- things were overcooked / dry or dense across the board (when two choco-carboholics leave most of a shared chocolate bread pudding behind, you know it's far below par). I will say that we were there on a Tuesday night (they are closed on Mondays) and it was a very slow night for the restaurant, so I doubt the first string was in the kitchen. I will have to try it again, and later in the week so I have a better chance of getting the head chef at the helm.

It's been sold to Shoja-Maddahi Seyed Hossein / Northeast Land and Investment Co.

Ate here today with a friend and thought it was pretty good. I will say I'm a bit of a sushi novice, but I do know if fish is fresh, and everything I tried had a light, sweet, clean slightly briny flavor. By happenstance, we ended up being the first arrivals at 11:30, but the place was packed by noon. Even getting there at the opening bell, I was too late to the side of the buffet line that had the eel nigiri. And by the time I remembered that I had intended to get some, I had eaten so much of everything else that it wasn't appealing to go back and try to find a piece or two. On the hot side of the buffet, they had a grilled calamari salad that was just lovely. Simple flavors and the calamari was cooked very well, a slight chewiness with no rubber band effect. Also, they a few different green mussels preparations and I think I tried them all. Meatiest mussels I've seen in ages. I also missed the udon noodle soup because I was just so unfamiliar with the layout, but next time will get some, for sure. Service, such as it was for a buffet, was very good. Every time we left the table, we came back to refilled waters and steaming hot cups of tea, dirty plates cleared, and cheerful, polite greetings, interactions and good-byes from all the staff. Eye-opening food? No. Worth $20? Yes, very much so.

The 1106 King Street LLC is delinquent in its corporate filings, but that's a very small fish in the scheme of things. Do you remember which realty company's sign was in the window? The realtor/broker may have some info that can be shared.

This year I did less dining out and fewer dining adventures than in the past, but the standouts I did have were: Arancini, and the proscuitto & arugula piazza at Pupatella Risotto with white truffle at CityZen Oyster po-boy at Hank's (Old Town)

mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, puddings if he has a sweet tooth, of course zucchini and eggplant preps. I wonder if loose grain puddings such as grits, polenta, farina, etc., qualify?

Probably, but I'm open to suggestions.

I've seen it at the two Giant stores in Annandale recently. Each has a small section of Brit foods and it's either there, or it's with the honey and Karo.

Let me start by saying that I wasn't expecting greatness from this place. However, The office holiday dinner was held here this past weekend. We ate here for the 2009 Xmas dinner party as well. In 2009, it had pleasant but non-whelming food & drinks. Both times, we had the same private room and it was a nice space for the group and the service was very personable but much better executed in 2009 than 2010. This time around, the waiter was a likeable guy but English wasn't his first language and there was at least one disconnect somewhere in the chain and possibly more. For cocktail orders, he got only half of them right on the first try (rocks instead of up, tonic instead of soda, white instead of red, etc.). We ordered several different appetizers to share among the table and those were okay. The calamari was nicely fried although the sauce with it was unmemorable. Dumplings were standard frozen gyoza that I can pick up at H Mart (but I like those, so it didn't hurt my feelers). Cheese plate that was supermarket quality cheeses, although the fig jam was very nice. When it came to the entrees, though, things really fell apart. They didn't have the lamb at all. Everyone who ordered pork chops was disappointed because they were terribly overcooked, dry and stiff. Ribeye ordered, strip steak arrived. One person ordered a filet mignon medium with lemongrass rice plus bernaise, and got a horrible hash-marked thoroughly gray hockey puck that probably was a piece of top sirloin from the looks of the grain of the meat , and it sided by plain, watery rice all topped with a sauce that was a shade of yellow not seen since the late '80s discos. Sent back, of course -- it never should have left the kitchen, let alone gotten on a plate. Potato rissole arrived as mashed potatoes. Salmon overcooked. Filet ordered "blue" arrived medium rare. The sides in general were underseasoned and I suspect all frozen stuff because they had that lack of flavor that comes from not being cooked from fresh. Oh, except the broccolini, which was a very odd shade of green-verging-on-black that was incredibly tough (unpeeled) and very, very bitter. Desserts were pre-packaged stuff, nothing of note. The best part of the evening (other than the company and someone else picking up the tab) is that the coffee was quite good and actually decaf as ordered, so at least I wasn't up until 3 in the morning.

2006 Rosso Piceno Superiore Found this description in the Parker's Wine Buyer's Guide: "The 2006 Rosso Piceno (70% Sangiovese, 30% Montepulciano) is a fresh, perfumed wine with a pretty core of dark fruit and good overall balance. It is an approachable red to drink now and over the next few years. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2010." Fixed a ribeye steak for dinner and this was the only bottle of red on hand, so opened it up to have with dinner. I like the wine but it did not pair well with the steak. (I'm a little spoiled right now, the last time I had steak, someone else treated the table to a delicious Caymus). Is this wine better with tomato, such as a bolognese-sauced pasta, or perhaps lamb or rabbit? I'm at a loss here. Good wine, good steak, bad couple.

I like a rolled, stuffed pork loin as an impressive but easy dinner main in the winter. But that duck Wellington sounds fabulous!

Fingers crossed for a smooth transition!

I have to pick a restaurant for my bookclub of 10 members to have a comfortable, able-to-converse lunch on December 11, but it has to be right in the heart of Great Falls due to the artisan craft show at the library. Checking out what's there and open for lunch (and have websites), these two seem to be the only reasonable choices. Is one particularly better than the other? Thanks for any input!

I've been able to freeze my pecan pies, which have chess-style filling. I like the looks of that recipe -- would not have thought of adding vinegar to cut the sweetness in the pie. Thanks!

Virginian born and raised. This is actually a by-request from the hostess. My family always made apple & pecan pies for T-giving, and I still make a fabulous pecan pie, but my host & hostess don't feel the love for a fine nut pie. I was a bit disappointed in the outcome tonight; I let it cook a little too long and it started developing that sort of spongey texture. I marked the recipe to start checking 5 minutes sooner. I'll also reduce the sugar by a couple of tablespoons.

In a little bit, I'll get a chocolate chess pie going. I'm spending Thanksgiving with a crowd that isn't into pumpkin. Fine with me! I prefer chocolate, too.

Majestic is probably going to be too small for your group. I would second Columbia Firehouse for traditional American that will give you some Old Town Alexandria atmosphere. Bond 45 at National Harbor and Ruth's Chris in Crystal City are the closest two steakhouses to Old Town.

That's right on my way home from work, so I'll certainly be up for it.

Ready for a lazy Friday night. Ham steak heated up in skillet, griddled onions with escarole, topped with a mustard & wine pan sauce; Rye bread from Bread House. Leftover turnip gratin. I think i've got some sort of German-style beer in the fridge.

I think the $77 is food only, not inclusive of paired cocktails.