PollyG's Profile
Lao menu at Bangkok Golden in Falls Church - Report
As Steve said, Lao dishes tend to not use coconut. The only Lao dish I can recall that did were some astonishing pork ribs we had at a now-defunct Lao place years ago at a chowdown; the one member of our group who had declared that she did not like coconut scarfed down more than her fair share of those.
Staff at Bangkok Golden are eager to share their joy in their native cuisine, and if you tell them you do not care for sweet or coconut, they will steer you clear of it.
Lao menu at Bangkok Golden in Falls Church - Report
Hillbeans, what is it about Thai food that isn't doing it for you? What have you tried? On the whole I find it a very accessible cuisine--I love the citrus and heat, and the lightness of many of the meat/veggie/noodle salads, which tend to be more marinated than oily. A lot of the Lao dishes at Bangkok Golden are like this--heavy on the flavor, not on the oil.
My sister-in-law, who did Peace Corps work in both Thailand and Laos, tells me that a lot of the Thai dishes that I love so much for the interplay of lime, lemongrass, ginger, and heat are really Lao dishes.
That being said, I've had some pretty awful food claiming to be Thai, mostly not in this part of the country.
Looking for dinner that specializes in adorable, miniature, tiny, or bitesize in DC
Makoto serves 8-10 courses which are just a few bites each and beautifully presented.
Moving to Pentagon City-a summary, please
On the upscale side, the Jaleo in Crystal City is nice, and they have a happy hour half-price selection of some of their best tapas at the bar, which may prove very useful for eating during the "kid's hour" between 5 and 7 once your little one has arrived.
Peruvian Corn
It is widely available frozen or dried at Grand Marts in the region. I have never seen it fresh.
best place to buy fish in NoVa
The H-mart at 13818 Braddock Rd, Centreville, VA 20121 will probably impress you with its selection and pricing. However, if you are concerned about knowing exactly where your fish was caught, which is often a factor if you are trying to buy only sustainable seafood, you might be better off at your closest Wegmans or Whole Foods.
The one thing I'd be careful about buying at H-Mart is mussels. If they are still carrying the Mar brand, I have found that producer to be far inferior to Great American Mussel or the PEI offerings.
Garlic Chive giveaway
If anyone wants to make the garlic chive soup featured in today's Post food section (http://projects.washingtonpost.com/recipes/2012/04/18/chilled-garlic-chive-soup/) and would like some free, organic garlic chives, contact me at pkg@flock.org. I'm in the Herndon area and you are more than welcome to come harvest from my chive-infested yard. I will be taking a weed whacker to a good portion of them next week.
gizzards in DC area
Grand Marts may well have them fresh--I see them on occasion at mine in Sterling.
Passover desserts question
One year I spiced up some Concord Grape wine with cinnamon and cardamon and sugar and used it to poach peeled pears. I caramelized some sugar and laced thin strings of it over the poached pears. Served it with cinnamon ice cream, but you could skip that and be 100% parve.
Moving to Herndon
Moby Dick also makes a very tender chicken breast kabob, though the one at Grenada in the K-mart plaza in Herndon was even juicier.
NOVA: Best options for Korean Barbecue
We also get the bones grilled there--but we usually get them grilled at the table. The grilled spicy pork is also quite good there, and not terribly hot.
Honey Pig in Annandale definitely provides a small dish of garlic slices and hot pepper slices. However, as many others have said, be prepared for a really disappointing set of banchan there. What they provide is okay, but it is usually just 3 banchan. I guess we got spoiled back in the 90's when we lived near Hee Been (before it converted to mostly buffet), and they'd bring us a dozen banchan.
Thai iced tea (mix? leaves?)
Any of the larger Asian markets in the 'burbs may have it--I know I can find it at Super H in Fairfax and my local Grand Mart in Sterling. In addition, World Market has Thai Iced Tea bags, which make a pretty decent version. If you used those, you'd probably have to steep your other liquid with them, since they are not a powder.
Closer to DC, chances are good that the Thai markets operated by Thai Square and Rabieng will, too.
ISO quiet restaurant in Fairfax, Reston, Vienna
There are a lot of smaller ethnic places in Herndon that do most of their business during the day and seem to be nearly empty in the 6-7 pm time slot. Nippon, Hama Sushi, and Harvest of India all come to mind. Not a one of these is a chain, and all have very acceptable food.
Ariake in Reston is a bit more crowded at dinner, but it is a step up in quality from both Nippon and Hama in my opinion, and it is still quiet enough to have a conversation.
You'll notice that none of these are hipster places--the industry thinking is that the young dining crowd likes a lot of noise and they actually design restaurants now to amplify sound. My deaf ear and I don't approve.
tysons chain hell
There's a lamb dish that is excellent. This will sound odd, but a lot of their daily specials have a very homey stinky garlic-fish sauce as a major flavor, which I like a lot.
Layover at Dulles 5pm - 9pm
The timing will indeed be tight. Herndon/Reston might be your best bet. Hama Sushi is decent and has the benefit of being fairly fast and right off the toll road. (2415 Centreville Road Herndon). Reston Town Center has a Ruth's Chris, a Morton's, and the outstanding Passionfish. You would need to let all 3 of those know about your time constraints.
Dulles has improved its security lines tremendously, but I still leave myself a good 90 minutes thanks to some hour-long security line experiences.
tysons chain hell
Second Thai Pilin. It is a bit of a hole in the wall, but the food has a nice home-cooked feel to it, and the line is out the door at lunch for carry-out for a good reason.
Tandoor in Arlington - Report
Thanks for taking one for the team. How do these places stay in business? I guess the same could be asked of the numerous insipid strip mall carry-out Chinese places which serve Chinese-American food from the 70's.
Moving to Herndon
To clarify a few things:
There are two "clocktower" buildings in the vicinity of Herndon. One is in Herndon, the other is in Sterling. Minerva and Hama Sushi are in the Herndon Clocktower plaza, while Betty's is in the Sterling clocktower plaza.
We have some very good Indian food in the area. In addition to Angeethi and Minerva, Paradise on Elden Street, near the K-mart plaza, makes huge, tasty dosas and has an Indo-Chinese section on their extensive menu. There are several less formal Indian places where you can get a good, cheap meal as well, such as Hot Breads and Chutneys.
Our Vietnamese restaurants are second-rate in comparison to what you will find if you go to Eden Center. That being said, May Saigon is okay, and we eat there often for the convenience factor. For Korean, Edoya offers a limited menu of Korean dishes along with a bigger sushi menu. Staff there are really trying (the place is new), but I'm not sure if they are going to make it. There is some very good Korean to be found where 28 and 29 intersect, but that's a good drive from us.
I'm a fan of Mikuku and Ariake for Japanese; we have several other places (Hama Sushi, Nippon) that are okay, but the first two are a clear cut above in quality.
If you go for wide noodle dishes and fried items, it is hard to beat Thai by Thai. Someone in the kitchen really knows how to wok. Ask for the Thai menu, and go for the Chinese broccoli with fried pork, the fried pork ribs, the pad see eww, and the chinese chive cakes.
Sahara, the Lebanese place in the Sterling Clock Tower, is also very good.
Interesting places in Dunloring/Fairfax/Tyson's Corner
I think your son might love Neisha Thai, which is around the back side of Tysons Corner Mall, accessible ONLY from the outside of the mall. It is not a tiki bar, but it is decorated to look like a jeweled cave.
The pineapple fried rice is served in a pineapple and it is actually quite good. They have non-alcoholic fruit smoothies for the kids and alcoholic versions for the grownups. The menu has a few real gems among the Thai fusion dishes--the Yum Eggplant is going to blow you away if you like smokey Chinese eggplant, and all of the noodle dishes in clay pots are good.
Wanted to add that Uncle Liu's has a specials menu that includes some of the Hong Kong Palace sichuan specialties, though not executed quite as well in my opinion. If you can stand some heat, the cumin lamb is very nice. For comparison purposes, my 12 year-old will eat it while proclaiming that it is too spicy (and going back for seconds), and my 73 year-old mom ate and loved it too, but friends of ours have found it past the edge of tolerance.
Last Dinner Before Baby
Why not one of the tasting menus? You will probably be looking for places that will have you in and out in 90 minutes or less once you have the little one (even the feed before leaving the house, let baby fall asleep in the car, and watch them sleep through the meal has its limits), so Volt or Eve might be good choices. Search on "tasting menu" or "chef's table" here.
Also, I'm not sure what your limits are on food, if any, other than the usual concerns about raw fish and runny cheeses. I couldn't stand the aroma of cooking fish during my pregnancy. Coupled with my unusually acute sense of smell, this created a problem in a few restaurants with open kitchen arrangements. If you have any pregnancy related food aversions you might want to call ahead and make sure the chef knows that they might need to make some substitutions.
Also, despite what Dennis says above about a long wait before exposing your newborn to the public, we made it a full 5 days post-partum before we had Naomi, now a healthy, food-loving 12 year-old, out for dim sum. Somewhere I have pictures of me offering fried shrimp heads to a sleeping newborn. (She was full-term and very healthy, obviously if she had any health concerns we would have been more cautious.) My husband was a stay-at-home dad and took her out for lunch almost daily; by the time she was 15 months old she was getting pho broth over ice in her sippy cup.
What is the best Korean restaurant in Centreville, Virginia?
Any particular specialties you're seeking? I ask, because most restaurants in Korea have specialties, while most in the US have a somewhat broader menu. There is, for instance, a place in Centreville that is soups only, very authentic, but if you are seeking grilled meats, it would be a mistake to go there.
Drinks in Reston Town Center
You won't be able to hear at Arties's, the GAR offering there. Passionfish is a good suggestion.
What is your single worst meal ever in the DC/Baltimore area?
When I was a kid, my dad and I would crack open the drumstick bones with our teeth to get the marrow. I assume this was a behavior dad learned from his own parents, who raised 3 boys during the Depression. We never ate the bones themselves, just the marrow.
Edoya--Ssambap in Herndon
Edoya has opened up in Herndon in a space previously occupied by a series of Korean-owned Japanese restaurants (150 Eldon St.), specializing in Japanese and ssambap. Ssambap are grilled meat dishes served with a heaping platter of assorted greens, used for wrapping the grilled meat. Momofuku's version was highlighted in last weeks New York Times.
We went last night, braving their opening night jitters, because Herndon has been without a Korean restaurant for far too long. The menu is a mix of Japanese and Korean dishes, with a sidebar section about the ssambap. 3 types of ssambap are available: pork belly, bulgoki, and beef brisket. We went with the pork belly. It was unmarinated and grilled at the table. I would have liked thicker slices, but with all the vegetables, you can eat pork belly and fool yourself into thinking you've just had a real healthy meal. Greens included kale, red Swiss chard, mustard greens, baby choy, steamed cabbage, shiso/perilla, red leaf lettuce, and romaine.
We spoke a bit with the manager, who overheard us chatting with the waitress about the NYTimes article. She had not read it, but he had, and feels that David Chang's success can be replicated.
Edoya is a promising start. I'm sure I could do better in Annandale, but this is 5 minutes from the house in Herndon, and we will be frequent customers. I suspect that we'll be able to talk them into doing some special pre-orders for us, such as the raw oysters that are often served as part of a bo ssam platter.
Seeking Chinese bakery in Oakland or Millbrae, long hours a big plus.
Thanks to everyone---looks as if this will be a challenge unless I get out of the Thursday afternoon meetings early. The 7:15 flight out of SFO is not one I can change. Fortunately, most of the Chinese pastries I'm after (except any with meat products) will hold up okay for a day or two.
Seeking Chinese bakery in Oakland or Millbrae, long hours a big plus.
I'm in the Bay area next week and want to bring some care packages of Chinese baked goods back to my bakery-deficient family. I'm looking for the big traditional Chinese bakery, with dozens of different bean-paste filled delights, some gelatinous rice treats, etc. Bao to eat on my 7:15 am flight would be a big plus--I'll have a fridge overnight.
My challenge is that I will have very limited hours to hit a bakery before my flight back--most of my daylight hours are booked. The easiest locations for me to reach the night before I fly out (and I need to assume I won't be at a bakery prior to 7 pm) would be in Oakland or Millbrae.
Many thanks, and I hope to help you all out some time when you're visiting the DC area.
Korean BBQ with charcoal grills--Annandale
I, also, have never been blown away by mandu. The fried ones at Soo Pong (place a door or 3 down from the big Lotte on Metrotech Drive in Western FFX County) are as good as we've had. My 12 year-old likes them, but if you gave her the choice between those and the pan-fried pork dumplings at A&J, she'd go with A&J every time.
Heading to Eden Center tomorrow, need advice
I'm also a big fan of the shrimp paste noodle dish at Nha Trang. However, Huong Viet, on what I think is the south side of the parking lot, a few doors down from Than Son Tofu, serves consistently good food from its large menu. Their cha gio set the standard, and they grill meats to perfection.
Than Son Tofu's bubble drinks are pretty good (some places use a powdered mix that is nasty) and get a dollar's worth of each of the fried tofus to munch on your way home.
New Dim Sum - Hong Kong Pearl Falls Church
We had dim sum at Hong Kong Pearl this last Saturday (12-10), arriving just about noon, and were seated immediately in a mostly full dining room. We were impressed by the food; this is the best dim sum we've had in NoVa in many years, and we'll be back. The first cart that came by had a stewed tripe and turnip dish and what I think was pork skin, though we were told it was tripe. The pork skin was our only failed dish; one or two pieces were enough because it just didn't have sufficient flavor or texture to fill up on it. We also had:
--gingered tripe from the steam cart, which was very tasty, but could have been cut into smaller chunks
--steamed shrimp dumplings, very good, with a nice mix of chunks and smooth paste
-- clams in black bean sauce, an exceptionally good rendition of the sauce
-- Fried chive dumplings from the hot fry plate cart; my daughter did not care for these (usually a favorite elsewhere), complaining that the chive taste of the filling was too strong. The adults thought it was excellent.
--fluffy steamed meatballs from the steam cart--sort of like Lion's head without all the veggies. These were amazingly light.
--fried eggplant stuffed with fish/shrimp paste. The paste was a lot fluffier than we're accustomed to getting with this dish, but it worked well.
--fresh tofu in ginger sauce
--baked char sui bao from the dessert cart. Probably a little too sweet, and would have been better hot. But my husband said that he really liked having them served without a piece of paper welded to the bottom.
We didn't see any pineapple buns, alas. The wait staff were very helpful when we started making inquiries about desserts; the tofu cart had disappeared and they brought that out special for us and also brought some gelatin dishes to show my daughter when she inquired about mango pudding, which they do not have.
Has anyone spotted the double-fried shrimp there? That's one of my mom's favorite dishes.
Chinese in DC for Thanksgiving?
And get the new dumplings from the menu--the ones that come 10 to the serving. They're lovely half-moon shaped dumplings in an excellent Chengu sauce.
My family is also pretty wild about the Cumin Lamb, but all the cumin dishes are good.
We live out in the far Western 'burbs and Hong Kong Palace is about a 35 minute drive for us, but it is our Chinese restaurant of choice for full entrees. Steve lives 5 minutes away if all the lights are in his favor. And speaking of that, if you are going to come in via 66 or 50, you may want to use both a map and GPS. You may have to use an intersection called 7 Corners which is more than a little bit of a nightmare. The road signs are correct, but turn lanes are too short. It can be a frustrating experience. If you are coming West on Rt. 50, your best bet would be to turn left on Patrick Henry, then right on Route 7 and avoid that intersection entirely.
From Route 7 going West, watch for a Shoppers Food Warehouse on the right and turn into that plaza, and look at the strip mall on your right. HKP cannot be seen from Route 7.
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Hong Kong Palace
6387 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22044
