Simul Parikh

Anyone been here recently? Any "must gets"?

Baan is so good. So good. Went before the Judd Apatow show on Friday for an early dinner. Got the pork - peanut skewers and golden fried pockets to start. The skewers were very tasty, and the sauce that it comes with wasn't even necessary. The fried pockets are really cute and tasty, comes with a sweetish sauce. Entrees were the stir-fried noodles with shrimp (on the summer menu) and the pork picnic. Both were delicious, great flavor, heat but not overwhelming. Only criticism was that the pork was a bit chewy. With a couple of drinks, barely hit $80, and we were stuffed. Ordered the right amount - we had nothing leftover. And then watched Judd kill it. Perfect!

There is a debate about this on The Sporkful podcast.

Interesting ... I'm more cost conscious when dining, much more than regular posters... but, in my experience, Mirabelle just didn't get that level. You go to normal steak houses that charge this much.. and ...The Fiolas. Metier/Kinship. Convivial. Le Diplomate. Omekase at Sushi Taro. Izakaya Seki. P&P. As mentioned above, Komi. Many more... I'm not even a huge fan of Mirabelle's cuisine, but hammering on them for price seems a little odd. It was expensive. As dining in DC tends to be. Nothing over the top... EDIT: Just read Megan's article. She's right. They do high end, standard food well. Maybe perfectly? Idk... I see enough $2.75 oysters and $45 steaks and $38 fish and $13 Brussel sprouts that aren't amazing that I really don't think price is keeping people away. 1789, Marcels, Fiola/Casa Lucca, and many more are the same price. It's stuffy, that's what keeps me from making it something I want to go to soon. But, wouldn't deny its great, and a reasonable value compared to much of non-Asian DC...

Maybe the sloppy part is the criteria for Bib Gourmand? We are lucky to have this place ... could easily get to $60-70 and will be worth it because of how unique / special it is.

Wow. It sort of does sound like a hell trip. One that I'd like to go on, though. Thanks for that

One of my favorite hike days in the area ... okay, it's 1 hour from DC .. but close enough (Billy Goat takes basically 40 min to get to, anyway)... Start with 1. Hike Sugarloaf Mountain ... has a very mild-moderate hike, with a nice view at the top... if you take it slow, about 2 hours, but probably could finish in a lot less than that... Then, 2. Drive down the road to the Sugarloaf Winery - has pretty good wines for our area, cheese/hummus/cured meats, live music, a nice outdoor area. Then .. 3. Go to your favorite Rockville Chinese restaurant Perfect Saturday in the DMV! Or, I guess just the M -S

Makes sense. Only will be in Bangkok a day or two, I found it to be such a tedious city with traffic/pollution. Rest of the time on beaches and the Mae Hong Son loop. I think one of the repeated major complaints was about the wine list...

Anyone go to Gaggan in Bangkok? On the top restaurants in the world lists. Have a reservation in December, but reviews seem hit or miss.

In the city to see a movie (The Big Sick - go see it!) and in the mood for some Chinese and we were starving, so we went to Sichuan Pavillion instead of going to Falls Church. Pretty empty, as it was not yet 5pm, just us and a Chinese family. Got 1/2 carafe of some terrible red wine for $12. The prices are really high compared to the Sichuan places in the suburbs, $14 for Dan Dan Noodles (WTF) and most entrees were $18-20. We got dumplings in Sichuan sauce, skins were good, filling was boring. Then, for entrees, got the chicken with dry chilis and the cumin lamb. Chicken was pretty good, didn't have the sichuan pepper so not tingly like HKP, and the chilis weren't stuffed. But, not bad. I liked the lamb, it was a saucier version than I've had at Bob's or HKP, but tasty, nevertheless. Decent. I'd rather drive out to the suburbs, though.

Totally agree... overall lousy. But, what you do for your beer snob friends...

Hmm... bummer. I like that place and the people that work there. Well, their Oyster special at happy hour is good! I think it's same sourcing as the Union Market guys.

Dr. Randy Kim was my friend before he was my dentist. We met at a tailgate for a Pitt football game. We ended up moving to the DC area at about the same time. My mutual friend told me to go to Randy, but I was hesitant to see a friend in a professional role. The first dentist I went to in DC was pretty good, but the wait was long, and he didn't seem up to date. The second one I went to was in Del Ray. His hygienist did everything, and he came in for 5 minutes to discuss an acute problem, and he said he couldn't handle it, I'd need surgery, and referred me to a subspecialist. Also, they don't deal with insurance, but will help you file a claim. The visit was over $400. So, I finally went to see Randy, as a patient. He evaluated my films, and said, yeah he could take care of my problem (he's a general dentist, not a subspecialist). And, he did a great job, saving me from a trip to oral surgery and general anesthesia. He runs on-time, he's friendly and funny, he doesn't talk too much (dentists always talk too much, and you can't respond !!). His hygienist helps, but you are still being treated by him. He's an excellent dentist and a good friend. Go see him! His office is in Upper NW, and phone number is (202) 362-5596 Simul Parikh

Sarcasm? It's economics. High demand, low supply = scarcity. Which means either high cost, lines, long times for reservation, or people not getting the resource. Just gotta create ways to reduce the above, and not make it worse. Bad systems make it worse or create secondary markets. I remember being at a pizza place in Chicago, Great Lake, which at the time in 2003 or so was considered the best pizza in America. They sold out every evening so fast and people would attempt to buy your pizza as you left the restaurant.

Missing the point. A wait that is long that is effective and satisfies the customer versus a wait that is long and that enrages the customer. If the Bread Furst System is what Veil Brewery used, it would take 6 hours

Ugh! Go home!

Absolutely agree with Eric's assessment. What a disaster. It's an incredibly beautiful place, with such a gorgeous view from most parts of the restaurant. Really, an incredible architectural experience. And then, it falls apart. Didn't have a reservation, but were going early to make it easier on the staff I was taking out. Called at 5:02pm, "Can I have a table for around 5.30P?" "How about 5pm?" "Well, it's already 5pm, so ... what about 5.30pm?" "Um, next table at 7.30P". "I'll take the 5pm, then." Get to the restaurant at 5.10pm, my friends are already there at the bar, checked in, and were told can have a drink and then transfer it to table. I asked for a dry white, and was offered a riesling (hmm... ) and Chenin Blanc. Took the latter, crisp, refereshing, nothing amazing. About 5:30pm, place is still rather empty, and we decide to go to the table. Bartender was fussy about transferring the check (I really didn't care, my coworker was TOLD to do this by the host), she said they don't really like to do that, but went over to the host stand and took care of it. I think the worry is that she would lose her tip? No, dear, we are not going to screw you over, we left her money. Got to the table, mind you looking at several empty tables inside and out.. We ordered some things and told that they were out of sea urchin. And then, I asked about the geoduck (huge fail on pronouncing that!), which they were also out of. But, they did have hush puppies. Real corn inside them, honey butter pretty good. Also got the mussels in chowder. So... huge mussels, a little chewy. The sauce was not really chowder, thin, no body, not a whole lot of flavor. And, yeah, as a sauce, probably don't want true, full on, thick New England chowder, but I'll get back to that. Got a dozen oysters. This really annoyed me, because he asked what kind I wanted - MD, VA, other? I said, how about a sampler? They came back with them with 2 separate plates of 6 oysters and a set up of 3 sauces (cocktail, hot, and vinagery something). I asked both of the guys that brought them over to tell me which oysters were which. They were stumped. One mumbled something made up completely and walked away. The actual waiter came back, asked him. He had no idea. THIS IS A SEAFOOD RESTAURANT. Wow. Like if I ordered 2 bottles of different red wines, and they came unlabeled, and no one could tell me what they were. Anyway, the biggest ones were good. I was kind of fuming, b/c not only do I hate paying non-happy hour prices for oysters, I really hate not knowing what I'm getting, especially at $3 an oyster. Then, they came to clear the table. When they cleared the mussels - which took two people - both people were rough with it and spilled the "chowder". Mine missed my sleeve, but my dosimetrist had chowder on her dress. Hardly an apology. Remarkable. We ordered 3 entrees for the 4 of us. Lobster, grilled. Was good. Not big, probably closer to 1lb than 1.5, and at about 4 times the price you get it in Maine. It's basically shelled for you. Fried porgy. I liked this, it was like the Tiger Fork whole fried fish, where they fry it, and then take out the pieces inside, and then fry those. Salmon, actually not bad for someone that doesn't really care for salmon. It's cut vertically instead horizontally (like a CT slice of a fish), and they were able to make the skin very crispy. So, there were some positives, but the whole experience really annoyed me. And, I figured out why. At a Jose Andres restaurant, if the food is amazing or if it is a disaster, the service, efficiency, knowledge of the staff, and the EXPERIENCE is always so good that I want to go back. I miss Zaytinya like I miss an old friend, I think wistfully of my food at China Chilcano, even when I did not adore my meal at Oyamel, I still had a good time. But this ... no. Not going back. I also didn't understand why they were so inflexible with reservations - they do a remote service (the person was in a different time zone, she said) - and I don't get the sense they know what's happening on the ground. It was still really not full when we left at 7.30p. $320 with tax and tip for 4 people, and I was hungry afterwards, so went to Sushi Lounge in DR with the lady and stole some of her edamame and rolls.

When the city is named, it's Muh-drahs' When talking about my cool patterned shorts I'll be wearing this weekend it's Mah'-druss .. even though it originated from India. S

This place looks good - Capo Deli Pictures on Yelp look great, especially the bread, and prices are not obscene. $9 a lb for eggplant parm. $9 for smaller sandwich, and $11 for sandwiches that appear to feed two hungry people. Open til 3AM - 4AM on weekends. 2007 me would be so happy right now.

Yup. Exactly. You pay $16+ for Neapolitan pizza, $11 for Brussel sprout, and $35-40 for a steak regardless of quality. It's rents and what people with pay, also money going to corporate for larger groups, and paying for celebrity executive chefs.

Thank you for pictures !!

Good idea! The Block is great. A food court with options would be a good setup right there...

you right!

Adjacent to Gaithersburg, Yu Zhou Cafe in Germantown is good. Sichuan-ish.

Having been to China and India, I've been to ridiculously crowded places that have a SYSTEM in place where it's not frustrating or difficult to get served. Clearly, the questioner's comment struck a nerve, and the owner couldn't help but blame the customer. Veil Brewing in Richmond has crazy lines, but an efficient way to get food and beer to everyone without causing chaos. I did have to wait two hours, but it was an orderly process, and I got what I wanted. You line up Rose's style at 3ish. Bunch of bearded hipsters, cute girls with tats and cowboy boots, and a few radiation oncologist beer snobs. Once you enter into the building, a lovely lady with an iPad takes your order with an iPad. She has a Square, so you pay directly at that moment. You take your receipt to the register. The register person verifies you paid and tells the order to the runner. He gets your weird, rare releases in cans, a pint to drink, and your cheese plate. You sit down and crush an unfiltered soft and hazy IPA. And it's not annoying at all. Except for the wait.... but... during the wait you can go over to the tap room to get pints while in line or to the food truck to get tacos or whatever. Boom.