Albert Yi

$225 is an absurd price. You're competing with Alinea and the three starred restaurants in NYC for that much. I kind of understand the idea of increasing prices to match the demand, but that price point just displays a kind of hubris that's off putting.

Had a good dinner with friends. Grilled shrimp was excellent: tender, salty, and charred just right, paired with that buttery polenta (agree I could eat a bowl of that stuff). Pompano and rice and carrots was just a crazy mix of textures and boldly flavored. Only miss for me was the squid: the chorizo pieces were great but the texture of the squid wasn't too appealing after the fifth bite, and I don't think it absorbed the sauce that well.

I don't know if they've toned it down since I visited but the Spicy Miso ramen at Sakuramen, when you ask for it spicy, is pretty intense. As someone who regularly goes to Korean/Szechuan places I couldn't finish it.

I stopped by after a film screening at the Korean Cultural Center (which was eyerollingly melodramatic). Jon Harris was manning the bar and served me a great Manhattan (granted I've probably had fewer than 6 in my life). The deviled eggs I ordered with them were suitably decadent, although a bit unidimensional in their flavor profile. The shrimp and grits was a miss: the grits themselves were creamy and delicious, but the shrimp was small and terribly overcooked. I'm not sure if the shrimp is supposed to be chewy but that's what it was here. But the drinks were good enough that I'd come back here to explore what else they offer.

Can't say I'm surprised. With PIzza CS, Matchbox, and Mamma Luciana nearby this place just didn't offer a compelling enough product. IMO the crust was too thick (and underseasoned) to be really called NY style. Their steak subs were miserly too.

I've been here a few times in the past few months and all my visits have been excellent. I've tried the lamb biryani which was mind blowingly good, and on another visit a Nepalese kebab dish that I enjoyed. I definitely consider Shangri-la to be one of the few restaurants that are better than average in Bethesda. Great food and attentive service.

I guess I have mixed opinions about this place. I've been to both locations now. I think most Korean restaurants have this ambiance that's really unpretentious. Wooden tables and benches, spacious, harsh florescent lighting, and in general you just feel like you're walking into a cafeteria. Mandu in comparison felt trendy: close, intimate, and dark. I guess that's one reason it'll do well downtown. The first time I went to the K-Street location after a late night at Columbia Room. I was a bit inebriated so my memory is hazy. I can't remember anything special about the mandu, other than that predictably the pork ones were the best. The fried wings, while nothing like the ones you might eat at Bon Chon, were great. The pajeon was also nothing like the ones I've eaten at other Korean restaurants and in my opinion it was inferior: the seafood was minced so you didn't have any big pieces of squid or scallop or shrimp to provide a nice textural contrast. It was crunchy, that was good, but it lacked the briny taste of really good haemul pajeon. The second time was at the 18 st location. This time we were served banchan which I found mediocre. I prefer my kimchee to be rancidly sour so these were a disappointment. The cucumber kimchee and the black beans and the eggplant were not memorable. For some reason I got a pineapple sojutini. I have no idea why restaurants would want to use soju as a mixer. It's far too weak and my drink basically ended up tasting like pineapple juice. Mandu serve the standard Korean macro brews like OB but in my opinion these are bad, you're better off getting Kirin. But they also serve DC Brau which was a nice surprise (this is what I drank after the sojutini). For my entree I got the ddok bok gi. The mix of bulgogi, shitake mushrooms and onions was nice but I found the sauce to be cloyingly sweet: it tasted like they just mixed in a jar of gochujang and sugar and called it a day. But it had a decent amount of heat and I enjoyed it. I was still a little hungry so I orderd the goo jeol mari, which are crepes with vegetable/egg/beef and served with a mustard dipping sauce. This was a total miss IMO, the fillings had no flavor and the sauce wasn't good enough to compensate. For dessert I got the standard mochi ice cream which was good, if not exactly authentic. The prices are not bad (especially during happy hour) but I did not find the food good enough to justify a lengthy trip. I don't think 1.5 stars is too far off the mark.

Two words: toasted brioche. One3five is a food truck that sits where the old Alibaba Falafel truck was before they got kicked out, by the Women's Cooperative Market on WIsconsin and Willow Lane. Unlike other food trucks they don't really roam. These guys are consistently making the best sandwiches I've eaten in Bethesda. My favorite so far is the ironically named Knot Kosher, which is roast pork, bacon, slaw, and chipotle mayo on butter toasted challah bread. The Turkeylicious is also great: it's your standard bacon turkey sandwich except on brioche with avocado and cranberry mayo. They also have great soups. I've enjoyed the clam chowder and the squash soups. A combo with a sandwich, side soup and soda is $10. If you're ever in Bethesda for lunch and don't want to spend too much, then give these guys a try. http://www.one3fivecuisine.com

Another great meal, Jeff. The grilled fig and prosciutto salad was great. An excellent blend of flavors: mustardy greens, salty prosciutto and the muted sweetness from the figs, all with a light balsamic dressing. The porchetta ravioli in roast chicken and fennel broth was great. Nice texture to the ravioli, and it absorbed the delicate broth well. The grilled branzino was my favorite course. Perfectly cooked, with a crispy skin for contrast. I had to close my eyes to savor each bite. The mushrooms also had great umami flavor. My only complaint would be that some of the larger pieces of brussel sprout were arduous to eat, but they tasted great. For everyone's sake I hope you keep doing these. It's a joy to eat such refined cooking.

I paid a visit for a Meetup with some internet strangers and had a good time. The six of us showed up on a Friday at around 7. The place was busy but there was plenty of room available so we didn't have to wait to get seats. Since everyone here raved about the moist brisket, I got a half pound of that along with a side of green bean casserole, mac n cheese, and some corn bread. First off, my BBQ experiences are sorely lacking. I've been to Stubbs in Austin (not very good) and Urban BBQ here in Rockville (decent but not really memorable). But the brisket I had at Hill Country was definitely the best. The slices I got were meaty and well marbled, but still had some texture so it wasn't like biting into mush. There were bits that were a little burnt and crispy. They had a great smoky flavor although I enjoyed them better doused with the BBQ sauce. There's a sweet version and a vinegary spicy one. Both enhanced the brisket without overpowering it. I gobbled up the green bean casserole. I eat a pound of this stuff every Thanksgiving and the version served at Hill Country is solid. I was less impressed by the mac n cheese which lacked any sort of punch compared to all the other strongly flavored food I was eating. The corn bread was dry and I didn't eat much of it. For dessert I had the banana cream pudding, which was decent. For all of this I paid $25 (only drank water). Overall I enjoyed my experience here. The main reason to come here is the meat, and the meat delivered. Our waitress was attentive and friendly, although I felt a little bad for her wearing such a tight low cut blouse. The location is convenient, and it's right across from Oyamel! I'll have to check it out before the Day of the Dead stuff expires.

I plan on going this Saturday as long as Hurricane Sandy stays away...

So I've started coming here before shows at the 9:30 Club since the location is convenient. Tonight I had the grilled mackerel pike (saury) and the cold soba. The saury was served with some grated daikon and (I believe) a shishito pepper. It was okay. I think it needed more salt but it was fine on its own. Be aware that you'll spend a lot of time picking out the cartilage. I'm more used to the canned version where everything is calcified enough that you can eat it all comfortably. But my mom used to serve saury a lot and this dish brought back some fond memories. The soba was fine. Dressed with more grated daikon and some scallions. I think the dip was a bit too salty but it's easy to adjust. I drank all of this with an Orion, which was mediocre, typical of Japanese macro lagers. Seki does have a decent Japanese craft beer list (Coedo and Hitachino are well represented) but the bottles are ridiculously priced. $11 for Hitachino White? I didn't pay that much even in Bethesda. I was more impressed by my previous meal which included ankimo, bacon wrapped scallops, and kakiage. The ankimo was a little mealy and cold and honestly there wasn't enough yuzu dressing to balance the flavors. The scallops were pretty conventional but good. The kakiage was outstanding, crispy and not at all greasy. I'm eager to try their karaage.

Korean Korner (on Viers Mill and Randolph) isn't as large or as clean as H-Mart or Lotte, but it's a short drive and they stock a lot of the Korean goods I need. The produce is...okay. But very cheap. 50 cent bundles of scallions, $2 for a huge bunch of basil. But like I said I mainly come here for Korean goods. Their prepared kimchee is good, although I usually need to age it an extra week or two before it becomes as sour as I like it. They have a great fish section. You can buy whole snapper, spot, sea bass, Spanish mackerel, etc. Like most other Korean supermarkets they also stock a lot of Chinese/Thai/Vietnamese/Latin foods. There's also an attached cafeteria I find to be decent and inexpensive. I like the grilled mackerel and the hwedupbap.

I'd been looking for an excuse to visit Grapeseed and this special tasting menu offered a perfect reason. Since I have no friends I made a reservation for 1 at 6:30 on a Friday night, about an hour before things started to get hectic. Service was prompt and attentive, no complaints there. The amuse bouche was grilled shrimp on some chilled noodles. This was good; shrimp had a good smoky salty flavor. Although I think I was supposed to eat everything in one bite, it was a little unbalanced otherwise. 4/5. Next was grilled portobello with a small arugula salad. This was excellent. Just the right amount of seasoning to bring out the flavors of the arugula and the mushroom. Nothing overpowering, balanced just right. 4/5. Then came the sauteed pompano with lobster mushrooms and lobster cream sauce. This was actually the highlight of the meal for me. The pompano was perfect: flaky, tender, with a crunchy salty crust. I thought the mushrooms were a little mealy but they did a good job of soaking up the sauce. Just a great balance of flavors. 4/5. As a side note, I'm by no means a wine connoisseur (more of a beer fan and was tempted to order the Allagash Black but decided three glasses of wine would be enough for me) but the pairing for this dish, the Jean-Paul Paquet Pouilly Fuisse, was exceptional. Bright and tart. Next was grilled lamb chops with chanterelle mushrooms. This seemed kind of average to me. The mushrooms didn't really add much. The lamb chops were fatty and prepared well, but not memorable. 3/5. For desert I had pumpkin ice cream with oatmeal cookies. The ice cream had a decent pumpkin flavor and the cookies followed the ubiquitous trend of adding salt to sweet things. But after three glasses of wine I can't really remember much. Overall the meal was great and I'm eager to return to try more. I have photos here: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151166908804655&set=a.10150686072999655.414670.775279654&type=1&theater

Hello! Long time lurker, currently living in Rockville and working in Bethesda. I'm always excited to visit new restaurants and try new things.