DC Deb

The cashiers are terrible, though. They're nice, but they really, really don't care. They'll also tell you they're out of stuff when you can see the chef making them in the back and passing them to the window. You definitely need to be assertive.

I agree--really pitiful service.  I went to the Nats Dogs stand to pick up food for someone else.  I waited at the register after paying for 10 minutes before the cashier told me they were out of all beef dogs. Seriously,  when you only carry 2 kinds of dogs, you can't keep up?  This was at 5:45 in a game that started at 4. It was not even busy.  Also, the cashier took her time counting out her cash drawer before she told me they were out. 

I emailed Nats Park customer service and never heard back.  

Any on NoVA?

Surprisingly, the Springfield Butcher has pretty good fish.  Not a huge variety but fresh.

I wanted to go get G Sandwich, but the club level nacho bar was so close.

I don't think you missed much.  I was there for a game last week.  We ordered 2 sandwiches, a chicken Parm and an Italian hero, and they were both awful.  The sandwiches were completely dried out--I choked on the first bite.  I didn't think it was possible for a chicken Parm to be that dry since it has tomato sauce.

This was during the first inning--not at the end of the game.

My family and I are now addicted to this place.  We have all gone at different times and have yet to find a dish that we didn't like.

This weekend, my sister and I tried a couple of noodle soups (wonton and beef brisket) and the roast duck.  The duck was crisp but not Peking duck crispy.  The best part was that fat was rendered out. Nicely marinated meat and skin without the big fat layer.  (I know it sounds blasphemous to say that about duck fat.)

The brisket was very tender and well seasoned. Wontons were firm yet springy with large chunks of shrimp.  Be sure to ask for some of the house made chili paste, if you like spicy food.

We went to Corned Beef King and ordered our usual lunch, the giant onion rings and Reubens (one regular one Pastrami).  They were even better than usual today since the bread did not get soggy at all on the bottom.  They added a few more tables and can now seat about 12.

We chatted with the King himself and found out that he is considering a new location in Rockville.  He is looking at a spot in Rockville Town Center but it depends on the deal they offer him.  The new place would offer craft beers in addition to the current menu.  Can't wait.

I didn't realize there was ownership commonality between these two restaurants until this appeared on the 8407KB Facebook page recently: 

I didn't make the connection either.  That makes a lot of sense now.  The last time I went, Mrs. K's was a mess--over priced and mediocre.

We tried Noodle King Restaurant  last week.  It is on northbound New Hampshire Avenue, between White Oak and Colesville.  It's hidden between a pizza shop and a beer & wine store.  Parking and entrance are around back.  The cross street is Hollywood Avenue.  The lot is across Hollywood from JR Wright plant nursery.

They have been there for a few years but it was my first visit.  My folks heard about it from their firends.  Family owned, authentic Cantonese food.  Keep that in mind when ordering--they definitely do a better job with southern dishes.

Meal #1, dinner for 4.  We ordered:

beef satay--beef a little chewy, probably deep fried instead of charcoal grilled, would not order again

chicken wings--great crispy batter but served by itself, sauce (like Thai sweet chili) would make it better

Ja-Jain Mein(Beijing Style)--good egg noodles but sauce had muted flavor, not pungent with garlic and chilies like it should be; corrected with some of their house made chili paste

Beef Chow Fun (Dry)--great job, not too oily, just enough char on the beef

Seafood Pan Fried Noodle--outside of noodles was crispy but middle was soggy; sauce was watery and goopy at the same time.  I would ask them for sauce on the side next time.

Meal #2, lunch for 2.

sweet and sour spicy (pickled) cabbage

Diced Chicken & Salted Fish Fried Rice--great flavor, a little julienned lettuce for crunch; salted fish was reconstituted well and not too salty

Beef Chow Fun (Dry)--i liked it so much I had to order it again

On my next visit, I plan to check out their roast duck and Hong Kong style noodles.

How about:

caramelized onion and smoked Gouda

spinach and Feta

blueberry ricotta

duck confit and roasted grapes

Update:  Aaron Wright is no longer at Pesce. 

Ridgewells Catering is restocking its warehouse to make room for new inventory. Now is the chance to own items from DC's finest catered events.

Open to the public on Saturday, August 2, the catering firm will hold a sale of hundreds of linens, tables, chairs, glassware, china, platters and accessories.

The "Reagan red" tablecloths used for President Reagan's inauguration, china from State Department dinners, flatware and glasses from private parties and weddings "“ all on sale.

RIDGEWELLS WAREHOUSE SALE
Saturday August 2
9 am "“ 4 pm
5525 Dorsey Lane, Bethesda, MD

I love this site and enjoy being a part of it.  I trust the other members to give honest answers (even if we don't all agree).

Don is the one herding this bunch of cats.  It takes real dedication to keep at it. Thank you for creating this community.

I used to make soap and bought some of my ingredients at Smile Herb Shop in College Park.  You can give them a call.  Maybe they can even special order it for you.

http://www.smileherb.biz

If you go out that way, check out The Jerk Pit at Rt. 1 and University Blvd, just north of campus.

The Bullfrog is back!  Pop-up at Cake Love U Street starting on Thursday 7/17 and running for 2 weeks.

http://www.bullfrogbagels.com/

New offerings include sandwiches, smoked samon, whitefish salad, chopped liver and hummus.  Pre-ordering is your best bet.  Last time, they sold out in no time.

Since you have vegetarians, I suggest that you include something like a farro or wheatberry salad.  That can easily be made ahead and would taste better the next day.  At the risk of landing on the trite food list, a kale or Swiss chard salad/slaw would be good too.

I agree with the pulled pork.  So easy to do ahead and keep warm in a crock pot.  Classic sides like baked beans, potato salad and mac & cheese are always a hit.

If there are kids (or picky eaters) around, you might just have to grill some hotdogs. With the other stuff done ahead, it would be minimal time on the grill.

I ended up having lunch at STK on Friday.  My boss heard about it from someone (young sales rep) and wanted to go.  We looked so out of place (I'm early 40s and boss is in his 70s) but there weren't that many people to see it.  At 12:30, there were about 5 tables there.  The decor is definitely lounge and bar, not so much business lunch. Loud early to mid 2000s pop music was blasting. I don't even know why they are open during the day.

The server started out with the "bottled or just tap" water question then tried to push wine.  I had an iced tea.  The first glass was fine but when the pitcher ran out, they came back with some cloudy old iced tea. The server tried to tell me that it was because they steeped it too long.  Right.

Rolls came out in a small cast iron pan but it was cold and dry.  Chive-garlic dip was tasty and would have been good with non-stale bread.

Our sandwiches took a while to come out.  I had roast pork with Edwards ham sandwich and a side salad.  The salad greens were fresh and crunchy with nice contrasting peppers and radishes.  The sandwich was really salty and the roll was completely soaked and greasy.

My boss orderd a seared tuna BLT.  It looked pretty good but was way too thick for a normal person to bite into.  The slab of tuna was not sliced and difficult to cut up with a table knife.  At least the shoestring fries were crispy.

Dessert was the best part of the meal.  I ordered the mascarpone cheesecake.  It came with finely diced berries mixed with a little balsamic vinegar.  Nice sweet sour combo.  The cheesecake itself was very creamy but light in texture and not too sweet.  (It was almost as good as the chevre cheesecake Huw Griffiths used to make at Tabard Inn.)

I would not have chosen to go there.  I definitely will not be back on my own dime.

Tom Sietsema's First Bite from May 20th.

We drove home from Tidewater though the Eastern Shore this weekend.  We stopped at Blue Crab Bay Company to pick up more Sting Ray Bloody Mary mix (in 2 quart size) and their Skipjacks peanuts.  We asked for a recommendation for lunch nearby and they immediatley suggested The Island House Restaurant. It is about 4 miles east of Rt. 13, right on the water.

Co-owner Blake Johnson is a former Navy SEAL who move there in 2008.  They buy seafood from local fishermen and change up the menu according to availability.  I was thrilled to have my first softshelled crab sandwich of the season.  Nice fat crab, like we used to get when I was a kid. The beautiful green beans were local.  We also had fresh fried oysters.

Dessert was a homemade Smith Island-style carrot cake.  It didn't have as many layers as the real deal but it was super moist and rich with cream cheese frosting.  The server said that a local woman bakes these cakes at her house and brings them to the restaurant.  We scarfed it up too fast to take a picture.

If you are in the area, I highly recommend that you venture off the main road to check it out.

Jeremiah Cohen, former GM of Hotel Tabard Inn, has started making NY style bagels.  He will be selling them at Cork Market through this Sunday and next weekend, June 6 through 8.

disclosure:  I worked for him as special events chef at Tabard

We crossed the river to VA through Point of Rocks/Rt 15.  Driving back, we saw a little roadside stand selling kettle corn and barbecue.  Catoctin Popcorn Company from Frederick runs the stands which also sell The Kernel's BBQ.

I bought a bag of fresh (still hot) kettle corn and it was great.  It is much puffier than prepacked kettle corn.  The combination of salty-sweet buttery goodness was perfect.  I also bought some cinnamon candied pecans but did not like the taste. They were cloyingly sweet and tasted a little off.

While I was waiting for popcorn, BF was admiring the large smoker (large horizontal one on its own trailer) and bought some ribs. We ate the ribs standing by the trunk of the car.  The ribs were very tender and the meat fell off the bone. There was enough char/smokiness without being dried out.

We would definitely stop by again the next time we are out that way.  I need some reason to go to Leesburg again soon.

In the bar/club scene, brand ambassadors are the cute girls who give you drink samples and branded trinkets. Sort of like "booth babes" at trade shows.

We went to check out Sprig & Sprout for dinner last night.  We tried the pork spring rolls, beef and broccoli, and beef stew (bo koh).  All the dishes were very fresh and flavorful.

They are now offering a supper club--the next one is May 26th.  On select Mondays, they close the upstairs dining room and offer a 7 course tasting menu for $45.  Sounds like a bargain for the variety of food offered.

They are also going to offer limited delivery service.

Happy Mother's Day! 

I am making brunch for Mom and family.  Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon, asparagus, and green salad.  Also serving berries, cake and a cheese plate. I guess we will all need a nap after that.

Mom has a rosewood tailoring ruler.  I am still afraid of it. 

It's a real shame.  I was fortunate to have a wonderful birthday dinner there.  What a loss.

My first memory of wanting to cook was a food demo at a department store. It was for an immersion blender.  I was 7 or 8 and thought it was the coolest thing. 

I stopped by for a pain au chocolat and coffee last week.  It was early afternoon (around 2) and I was the only person there.  The staff was friendly and was able to answer any questions.  They had a sign saying that they cater but did not have any brochures.

I was not crazy about the pain au chocolat because it was not very flaky.  There was a thin layer on top that was crispy but under it was a thick layer of spongy dough.  There wasn't much filling (only 2 "fingers") and it was leaking grease on the bottom.  I realize that it was baked in the morning but it should have been flakier.

I also bought some mini pastries which were very good. The chocolate barquette was my favorite.