I've been spending a lot of time in DC lately, and been meaning to post about a couple of my favorite places to eat.

For a typical lunch-on-the-run between meetings, I hunt down one of the several branches of Chop't, a fast food salad chain which is in DC and NYC. I hope they will make it to Chicago one of these days. Not gourmet eating, but very fresh ingredients, put together as you watch. You can select a pre-set salad, or design your own, and they have a good range of dressings, including several that really hit the spot for me. They chop up the ingredients after you select them, so nothing has been sitting cut up for hours, adding a bit of extra freshness. The quantities are huge, and the prices are very reasonable. The "bread" they serve with the salad as a option is a mystery to me -- something thin and "Indian" which I had once, and really do not understand-- it's flavorless and the texture is not desirable either. Oh well, no need, there is plenty of salad. When my meetings are going either really well and I feel like celebrating, or really badly and I need a treat, I get a salt caramel -- really excellent.

Chop't locations in DC and NYC: http://choptsalad.com/StoreLocator/StoreLocator.aspx

For a great dinner and cocktails, I highly recommend Eatonville Restaurant. This is a three year old place at 2121 14th St NW (14th and V), this is a somewhat upscale place in the African-American community, owned by the same man who owns Busboys and Poets. It has a Zora Neale Hurston theme, with murals from her novels painted on the walls. The room has a two-story ceiling, with two glass walls, and chandeliers, and exposed heating ducts above the chandeliers. The food is upscale southern, fried chicken, po boys, catfish, but they also have pan-seared tofu and Cajun mushroom loaf. I had shrimp and grits. The shrimp were fresh and cooked just right; the grits were flavored with jalapeno and gruyere and could not have been tastier. There were andouille sausage bits, and the whole thing was surrounded by smoked tomato butter sauce; I had no idea what to expect from that, but it was one of those meals that you eat more and more slowly because you can't bear the thought that it is going to be gone. They have a large and creative cocktail list; what I drank was tasty, but I drink cocktails pretty rarely (despite posting about this and Scofflaw both today). http://www.eatonvillerestaurant.com

And last but not least, why do we not have THIS in Chicago???

Both sides of a long block are parked full with food trucks, with every kind of ethnic food you can imagine - okay, not every kind LTH'ers can imagine, but seriously, Ethiopian berbere, a bi-bim-bap truck, etc. And a few blocks away, another park and more food trucks!! This photo was taken at Farragut Square, between I and K at 17th Street.

More trucks were at Franklin Park, between I and K at 13th Street NW. I've only eaten from the trucks once -- the bi-bim-bap truck, which serves a large bowl of freshly assembled bi-bim-bap, with or without an egg, in about two minutes. It was a very decent version -- not the best one you ever had, but very good and the best one you ever had from a food truck, and one I would be eating almost daily if I had such a truck near my office. The only downside to these trucks is that they are clearly aimed at people who have offices to return to, and I don't in DC; and it has usually been too cold to think about sitting in the park eating. I'm looking forward to spring trips to DC!

Why don't we have rows of food trucks like this in Chicago???

Looking for current tips for my Uncle and Aunt who will be staying very close to the Woodley Park Metro stop. they are up for any type of ethnic cuisine although high end and American probably out. I know they are willing to walk to Adams Morgan and a short red line trip would be cool too. Thanks!

Within a one-minute walk of the Woodley Park metro station are two excellent middle-eastern restos, the Lebanese place across the street (forget the name) and the Afghan Grill on Calvert Street just across the street and around the corner. Both are absolutely worth a visit.

Geo

Thanks, is the Afghan Grill in the same spot as the old Khyber Pass? Kind of up a half flight above street level?

Yup, that's it. Marvelous grilled lamb accompanied by superb rice sides.

Geo

Geo wrote:Within a one-minute walk of the Woodley Park metro station are two excellent middle-eastern restos, the Lebanese place across the street (forget the name)

I think you might be referring to Lebanese Taverna (and second that it is visit worthy!)

lawoman wrote:

Geo wrote:Within a one-minute walk of the Woodley Park metro station are two excellent middle-eastern restos, the Lebanese place across the street (forget the name)

I think you might be referring to Lebanese Taverna (and second that it is visit worthy!)

and it's becoming an industry with ten locations.

lawoman--

Yes, it's the Taverna. And that's amazing, JoelF--but isn't the Woodley Park store the first one?

Geo

Not sure if its the first, but Woodley is where I first encountered it. I was not knocking it by saying its an industry, just pleasantly surprised.

If the quality stays up JoelF, more power to them.

Geo

I think they would like both of these options. Any ideas about Adams Morgan? I recall some fine Ethiopian but I was literally a kid last time I was in that neighborhood.

First of all, I need to give a shout out to the good people at http://www.DonRockwell.com, which (for those who don't know) is essentially the equivalent of LTH over in DC. They were very helpful to me when I was looking for someplace to eat for lunch during a conference visit. Don Rockwell himself made a point of giving me a few tips which were invaluable. I was staying at the Washington Hilton in north Dupont Circle.

Here's my report of places I tried in that area. This was originally posted on the donrockwell.com site.

Day 0 (travel day):
Dinner at Food Place Kabob House on P street. The place was pretty busy on a Sunday night, with only two people working (one taking orders and preparing salads, and the other manning the grill). The meat (I had lamb and beef) was a little on the dry side, but the green sauce on the side was really excellent. Portions were a little small for the price considering the type of joint it was. Still, it was pretty tasty.

Day 1
Lunch at Teasim in Dupont Circle. I was really impressed with the food and the vibe here. This is the perfect lunch spot if you've got an hour to kill at a Washington Hilton conference.
Dinner at Bistrot du Coin on Connecticut Ave NW. Opted for the Moules Normandes (appetizer size) and a side of frites. The mussels were plenty for one person. A dinner-sized portion could easily be shared. One of my mussels was off (texture-wise). I don't order them often, so I'm not sure if this is typical. The fries were fine, though nothing to write home about.

Day 2
Breakfast (carryout) at So's Your Mom in AdMo on Columbia Rd NW. I had a solid egg, bacon and cheese sandwich on a bagel here. I opted for the everything bagel, which was a step too far. I should have stopped at sesame. Still, it was filling and much better than I would have gotten closer to the hotel. I think I heard a microwave running after I placed my order, but I'm trying to block that out of my mind.

(skipped lunch so that I would be hungry for...)
Dinner at Little Serow. Arrived at 5 pm and got into line, which was 18 deep by that time. Was seated at the bar and had truly exceptional service for the entire evening. The food was as good as advertised, and my only quibble would be the high volume of the music. I would go back in a heartbeat.

Day 3
Lunch at Amsterdam Falafelshop in AdMo. I had a really tasty lunch here and probably would go back despite the fact that the space is about 1/2 as big as would be necessary for a comfortable ordering and dining experience. Unless you're all alone in the restaurant, the people waiting for their orders get in the way of the people who are trying to use the toppings bar who get in the way of the people who are trying to place an order. It's truly messed-up. The falafel were spot on and the toppings were great, though. I got some attitude from a guy at the counter when I asked for a receipt, though.

[edited out extra text here]

Day 4
Breakfast at Keren Coffee Shop at Florida and U St NW. This unassuming restaurant is really nicely located for those staying at the Washington Hilton, though it didn't open early enough to be a breakfast option during my conference. I opted for the ful with an over medium egg--asking for it to be spicy. It was a tasty and filling meal. I could have (and probably should have) skipped lunch after eating here. I think modest neighborhood ethnic places like Keren are the way to go. Give it a shot if you enjoy Ethiopian. Eritria is next door to Ethiopia and their food is very similar, I have come to learn.

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In another post on DonRockwell.com I spoke of an Ethiopian place recommended on DR called Zenebech Injera.

Based on the feedback in this thread, I chose to go to Zenebech Injera, though I ended up going at lunchtime rather than dinner. As soon as I walked in, I knew that this was my kind of place. I was greeted warmly and offered a taste of some bread by a gentleman after I placed my order for Awaze Tibs-Lamb. A truly dinner-sized portion was placed in front of me a few minutes later, and the guy who offered me the bread showed me that I should ladle some of the tibs directly onto the injera (duh, in retrospect). All-in-all it was tasty and a very good experience. It was pretty close to the Shaw stop (maybe 4 or 5 minutes).

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Finally, if you're staying in Alexandria, VA in Old Town, I suggest eating breakfast or lunch at a diner called Jack's Place. Here's my post regarding my experience:

I've seen a couple of mentions of Jack's Place (222 N Lee St, Alexandria in Old Town) on here, but I think it deserves it's own thread. If I'm wrong, feel free to fold it back in with one of the others. I highly recommend Jack's Place for breakfast. This local-centric diner serves some really great fare. The owner is a salt-of-the-earth sort of guy who is particularly fond of the Bronco's during the Elway heyday. I've read that outsiders can get a bit of grief from Jack and his crew, but I didn't find that to be the case during my visit. When I first arrived and sat down at the counter, a woman came in shortly afterwards and gave me a slightly uncomfortable (though not unfriendly) look. "Oh, is this your seat," she sheepishly admitted that it was, so I happily relinquished it. That's how local this spot is.

Grab a paper menu from the counter when you arrive iI've seen a couple of mentions of Jack's Place (222 N Lee St, Alexandria in Old Town) on here, but I think it deserves it's own thread. If I'm wrong, feel free to fold it back in with one of the others. I highly recommend Jack's Place for breakfast. This local-centric diner serves some really great fare. The owner is a salt-of-the-earth sort of guy who is particularly fond of the Bronco's during the Elway heyday. I've read that outsiders can get a bit of grief from Jack and his crew, but I didn't find that to be the case during my visit. When I first arrived and sat down at the counter, a woman came in shortly afterwards and gave me a slightly uncomfortable (though not unfriendly) look. "Oh, is this your seat," she sheepishly admitted that it was, so I happily relinquished it. That's how local this spot is.

Grab a paper menu from the counter when you arrive if you aren't familiar with the offerings. I ordered a "breakfast usual" sandwich, which had bacon, lettuce, tomato, cheese and egg (i went for over-medium). I got it on Italian bread. It may have been the best breakfast sandwich I've ever eaten, and at $6, it was a bargain. I was pretty hungry, so that could have factored into my memory, though. Anyway, give Jack's a shot sometime.f you aren't familiar with the offerings. I ordered a "breakfast usual" sandwich, which had bacon, lettuce, tomato, cheese and egg (i went for over-medium). I got it on Italian bread. It may have been the best breakfast sandwich I've ever eaten, and at $6, it was a bargain. I was pretty hungry, so that could have factored into my memory, though. Anyway, give Jack's a shot sometime.

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Several of the places I ate in DC and VA are squarely in the LTH wheelhouse. Zenebech Injera, Keren Coffee Shop and Jack's Place would be well-loved by many here if they were in Chicago. In addition, any spice-seeking food lover would be missing out by not going to the incredible Little Serow restaurant east of Dupont Circle. It was the highlight of the entire trip.

Cathy2 wrote:Vital Information, on the Chicago board, has been raving about Lebanese Taverna's Grilled Chicken with garlic sauce as something outstanding and not available in the Chicago area. I am always interested in trying something with such credentials and maneuvered a group of friends for a try last weekend.

Hi,

I visited the Bethesda location the other night hoping to enjoy their grilled chicken with garlic sauce. At least at this location, it is not available as I previously experienced it. Instead there was a boneless half chicken, which the waiter explained was a chicken breast and a boneless thigh. It did not include the garlic sauce. However, for $6 I could order a condiment plate of harissa, tahini and garlic paste. I was not interested in this combination, though the waiter brought a sample of the garlic paste.

Are there locations of Lebanese Taverna, where I can enjoy grilled chicken with garlic sauce? Did I visit the wrong location or is this a shift away from what Lebanese Taverna once was? This is my third visit in eight years, so anything can happen since I was last there.

Regards,

GAF wrote:Half-smokes are a local DC thing. They are not high-end hot dogs, but surprisingly coarsely-ground hot sausages. I was glad that I had one without feeling the need for a second.

Like the rest of the universe, they are described on Wikipedia: Half-smoke

Hi,

I was in DC, though the closest I got to a half smoke was buying some to take home at the grocery store.

I found this video on how to prepare a half smoke, which included some information on the origins. Those sausages were originally breakfast sausages, which may account for the coarse grind.



Regards,

jnm123 wrote:And now for something completely unexpected...

I was following the GPS from Baltimore/Washington airport to a client in a rundown area of DC, and had an extra hour. Under a dingy Days Inn sign near my destination, the words, 'Joe's Noodle House', and 'Pho'. What the hell, I stopped in. Maybe I'll get lucky.

It being 11:30, they were just opening, I was the first customer. Ordered a Chinese-style hot & sour soup and a chicken lemongrass with rice noodle, bun ga. Oh, with a traditional Vietnamese iced coffee. That came out first, with the kind of metal filter I used to see at at the old place Mekong on Broadway & Argyle.

But the soup and the bun ga were absolutely stellar, the soup chock full of goodies and flecked with egg strands, just spicy enough. Wonderful stuff, I could've slurped a gallon. The bun ga was lemongrass-marinated chicken thigh strips, juicy & flavorful, over hot rice noodles and the requisite cold cucumber & green leaf lettuce with shredded carrots, with a generous bowl of nuoc mam vinegary sauce. Wow, as good as any I've tasted.

Apparently they haven't been open that long, and need some apolitical love.

Joe's Noodle House
2700 New York Avenue NE
(at N Bladensburg Rd)
Washington, DC 20002

(202) 534-1620

Sadly, this place closed not too long after this post, to be replaced by "Panda Gourmet" with a sign that screamed Chinese buffet chain. I drove past it numerous times with my friend who lives outside DC and who I stay with when I do meetings in DC.

Well, there's an update now, and it's all good (mostly).

http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-08-29/news/41574860_1_sichuan-peppercorns-panda-gourmet-shaanxi

My friend tried this place, based on having heard from me that the previous place was good, and then seeing the above WaPo review, and also because they added some Chinese characters to the cheap looking panda logo, making it look less chain-like.

She can testify that the clientele is almost entirely Asian, and the food is seriously hot. She bought take out, and after a long discussion with the person at the cash register, requested it mild. Alas, she got the food home and discovered it had so many peppers that she could hardly eat it. Now, did the kitchen screw up, or is that their idea of mild? Only a visit from an LTHer can tell! If anyone else is in the area and has tried it, or will try it, I'd be curious to know!

Any recent intel on DC? Any musts? I'll be out there this weekend on Friday and Saturday.

Both may be touristy, but I really enjoyed breakfast @ Habesha market (they have a sampler, to which you should add the Ful) and fresh oysters/clams @ the Captain White.

Bardo for a pretty original outdoor beer garden setup.

U street appears to be one of the hip places in town.

Two words: Bad Saint.

Bad Saint was on my list but my wife has a more, ehhh, sensitive palate, so we skipped it. We did really enjoy the food at Copycat Co, a cocktail bar with a small but good selection of skewered meats, potstickers, and bao. Meat skewers and potstickers were excellent but the bao was so so at best. Drinks were so good I didn't really mind.

Copycat Co
1110 H St NE
Washington, DC 20002

I have a co-worker moving to DC shortly and, as a going away gift, I'd love to front him a meal at a restaurant in town. I'm looking at about $100. That doesn't have to cover the whole meal but enough of it. I've scanned the thread but it's kind of hard to tell what might be a good fit. Both he and his wife are adventurous eaters but I think they're more Randolph Street than Argyle, if that helps. Any thoughts?

I haven't been to DC for a while and don't know which of these restaurants would be in the right price range, but maybe it would be fun for your coworker to have a meal at one of the places on Washington's DC's first list of Michelin-starred and Bib Gourmand restaurants.

Thank you, Katie! I actually did Bad Saint, since it's also gotten some love here, even though they don't have reservations. I think they'll like it. Appreciate the help!

Anyone been to DC lately? Heading there later this month, staying near Metro Center.

I haven't been recently but there is a 36 hours in DC piece in the New York Times from just a week ago. It had some interesting sounding places.

Got back from DC a few days ago, didn't get to try nearly as many places as I wanted to, but had a great time. Lots of NY high end imports I noticed this trip (i.e. Momofuku, the Smith).

I ended up at Momofuku CCDC twice and Milk bar an additional time. Having been to Ssam Bar in NY (had the Bo Ssam for 10 ), I was excited to try this place and I had two different groups of friends who wanted to go, hence me visiting twice. First night - the Ginger Scallion noodles were great, huge portion, we had the Shrimp bun and Pork bun, both as good as I remembered. Prawn Curry (wouldn't order again), Smashed potatoes were amazing, and the broccoli rabe was very good. We went at Happy Hour and noticed that the happy hour portions were much smaller for the buns and the wine pours. Crack pie with cereal milk soft serve was great, though my favorite dessert was the chocolate covered pretzel soft serve with crunch topping. 2nd night at CCDC had the Ham Plate (delicious), Beet Larb (amazing!!), Branzino Ssam- highly recommend, clam toast (very good) and the Ramen (very good, but had better), Potatoes (again, yum!). We chose much better the second night! I went back to Milk Bar a third night for the chocolate soft serve.

We did Daikaya ramen the third night, no reservations accepted, we were there around 530pm on a Friday and waited about 20-30 minutes for a table, enough time to grab a cocktail at a little rooftop bar a couple doors down. They had about 7 different ramen options and then the option to add extras. The only app was gyoza. Very small place, super simple menu. We all ordered the Shoyu, I added extra vegetables, it was excellent. We also had the gyoza, which were super fresh, but came later in the meal, which was kind of odd.

Had lunch one day at Shouk, which is a fast-casual Israeli vegan place. It was excellent, I had the Shouk burger and I have no idea what was in it, but it was crunch and chewy, and delicious, served in a pita, added sweet potato fries with cashew labnah, it was incredibly filling and delicious.

Ate a Clyde's with a small group one evening, which is a Northeast chain, I had the pork sandwich and we ordered some oysters (wellfleets and white points I believe), mac and cheese and spinach. It was all good, but nothing truly amazing.

Last day I stopped for breakfast at the Smith. Ordered the BLT + E (gg) on croissant. It was excellent, I was solo, the place was pretty empty on a Monday morning. The Sandwich was absolutely delicious, as were the potatoes on the side. They brought a little biscuit over as an amuse, it may have been cheddar and jalepeno...it was good. Coffee was strong. I would love to go back for lunch or dinner sometime soon. Service was excellent. I had been hearing about it all week (another NY restaurant), but only was able to squeeze in breakfast.

Next time I hope to check out one of Jose Andres' places, I tried to go to China Chilcano but no one in my group was game. There were also TONS of food trucks parked by Metro Center every day, they looked amazing, but I wasn't able to get back over there for lunch.

Momofuku CCDC
1090 I St NW, Washington, DC 20001

Daikaya
705 6th St NW, Washington, DC 20001

Shouk
655 K St NW, Washington, DC 20001

Clyde's
707 7th St NW, Washington, DC 20001

The Smith
901 F St NW, Washington, DC 20004

Bad Saint is a stunningly good Filipino restaurant that should be on top of everyone's to do list when they visit DC. The problem - be prepared to wait. Despite being open since 2015, long lines still form for the tiny 24-seat restaurant. We got there just before 6:00 on a cold and rainy Sunday (they open at 5:30) and we got our seats at 7:30. It's easy enough to pass the time at the Rule 11, a very good cocktail bar a couple doors down owned by the same people. One warning - almost all of the seats are stools, so if no chair back is a deal breaker, don't bother. I can't praise the restaurant any better than Bon Appetit, the Washington Post, or the New York Times, so I'll just share some pictures. The menu changes regularly so there's a good chance these specific dishes won't be available.





The cocktails are almost as good as the food. The Good Neighbor was fantastic. It has rum, banana, oloroso sherry, lime, and blacknut walnut bitters.

Don't bother saving room for dessert as none are available. They used to offer it but nobody was ordering it (presumably because they were too full from going to town on dinner). The restaurant gives a sweet bite with the check. In our case it was chocolate rice cake with sweetened condensed milk. It wasn't on par with the rest of the meal but it was nice to end on a sweet note.

Seconding Bad Saint: it continues to be among the most exciting restaurants in the country. The food is electric.

Some good place from this weekend's trip to DC:

Tail Up Goat: This is a Mediterranean influenced, but very modern restaurant, in Adams Morgan. It was fantastic. One of their innovative items are their "bread" dishes and we had these two:
red fife sourdough, burnt bread sauce, stracciatella, basil
focaccia "spanakopita," feta, kale, pine nut halva, paprika
Also had a fantastic lamb rib dish for two.

Union Market: This is what the French Market wishes it was. There are a dozen or more excellent looking food stalls, but also quite a few vendors selling local meats, produce, bread and other items. We went for breakfast so we only sample a few items, but this is a fun place, particularly in good weather as their is outdoor seating.

Requin (by Mike Isabella): This is a modern take on a French bistro. The food was all good, although nothing was terribly innovative. The restaurant is located on the newest development in DC, the Wharf. After dinner you can take a very charming stroll along a channel. So I highly recommend the place as a way to explore this new area.

Jonah wrote:Requin (by Mike Isabella): This is a modern take on a French bistro. The food was all good, although nothing was terribly innovative. The restaurant is located on the newest development in DC, the Wharf. After dinner you can take a very charming stroll along a channel. So I highly recommend the place as a way to explore this new area.

I have no idea how the food is and don't want to get too far into politics, but I'd encourage people who are considering eating at a Mike Isabella establishment to at least read this before making a reservation.

Add Thip Khao to the list of must-visit restaurants in DC. This Laotian restaurant in Columbia Heights brings the funk and, if you insist, the heat. When we ordered, we asked that some dishes be spicy and some not for the sake of one person in our party. The kitchen took that to mean that we didn't want anything particularly spicy, which was certainly a reasonable interpretation especially in light the the decidedly non-Laotian clientele that appears to form the overwhelming majority of the customer base. Everything was very good, but when we asked them to turn up the heat on our final dish, laab e'kae, I think we got a much better idea of what the food was supposed to taste like. The minced alligator came with green apple, toasted rice, chili, banana blossom, lemongrass, galangal, cilantro, and rau ram (coriander), and was just stellar. The heat was a bit painful, but this was a perfectly balanced plate of food. Our server says it was a 7/10 in terms of heat, which was about my upper limit.

Our other dishes we tried were:

CHUENH PEEK GAI - crispy chili-glazed chicken wings (recommended)
KHAONOM MUN FALANG - yellow curry potato puffs, sweet and sour sauce (not recommended - perfectly fine but not remotely exciting compared to the rest of the menu)
KUA KHAO JAEW BONG w/ pork belly (shrimp, sausage, and tofu versions also available) - fermented chili fried rice, fish sauce, egg, zucchini squash, thai basil, pickled cucumber & radish (highly recommended even with minimal spice but I think it would have been extraordinary with more heat)
CHUENH PAA SA MOUN PAI - crispy catfish, spicy fish sauce, lemongrass, mint, cilantro, cashew, fried shallot (very good but I'd try a lot of other items before coming back to this one)