lesan's Profile
Thai//Vietnamese/Asian Grocery in DC or Arlington
are you looking for ready made thai tea or a tea mix?
for thai tea mix, there is a thai grocery store next door to bangkok 54 on columbia pike in arlington. it's related to the restaurant so they also have food packed to go in their refrigerated section. they definitely sell the tea mix there because i've bought it there before and they probably also sell tapioca balls, too. i don't think the grocery store sells the tea ready made but i'm sure you can get it to go from the restaurant. it's $2.50, i believe.
Moving to DC - please help!
do you mean le cheval in oakland? i've never heard of chevalier and when i google it, it comes up in as serving french food in lafayette.
i've heard from other people that eden center is the largest vn shopping center on the east coast or something like that. um... that's... kinda sad. i'm glad that it's there but i spent a lot of time in orange county while i was growing up where you have entire city blocks filled with a gazillion eden centers. so coming from a place where little saigon is the standard, eden center is... puny. but i'm still glad that it's there so i can buy vn food at prices twice as much as what i would pay in ca.
Moving to DC - please help!
haha! i just saw there's another thread that shares many of my observations, "Jaded California food snob seeks like-minded fusspots to recommend good DC restaurants"
Moving to DC - please help!
fyi, dc farmer's markets lost all credibility for me when i saw that one vendor was selling driscoll strawberries (from watsonville, of course). wtf?!
Moving to DC - please help!
as i wrote before, i don't think that every place sucks. i do eat out and there are some places that i like to go to, but i don't really try new places as much as i used to. you can always find bad food and good food in any city, but i'm talking about a general trend. pick a random place in sf and pick a random place in dc. i think you're more likely to have a better meal at the random place in sf than you are in dc. i think more places suck in dc than don't. one of my best friends took me to the famous peking gourmet inn and she was raving about how good it is. was it good? no. i didn't even have the heart to tell her that i thought it sucked. but she loves it. i have no doubt that there are many people out there just like her who love certain places that i think are awful. i'm glad that you're happy with the eating scene here, but that doesn't mean that everyone is or should be.
Moving to DC - please help!
raids- would you say that dc is a top tier food city, on par with sf and ny? where do you see it being placed?
and you know the expression, "fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me"? that pretty much sums up my experiences on dining out here. time and time again, i've eaten at these "oh, you gotta eat here! it's so good!" places and eaten mediocre food while spending considerably more money than i would have spent while dining out in sf. mediocre food is worse than bad food because it's edible but totally forgettable. at a certain point, it's reasonable to draw some conclusions from your experiences if they're consistent. when i eat out, i look for value. rich people can always find expensive restaurants to blow their money on. but if i want to eat good food, should i really have to pay through the nose? i don't know, maybe everyone else is ok with paying more than what i'm comfortable with, but i'm used to good food for cheap. i used to live in hayes valley and down the street was this great german restaurant, suppenküche, that had good food without being pretentious. but i didn't eat there that often because their entrees were $17-20 and that was more than i wanted to spend on a wednesday night for dinner because i was too tired to cook. i would rather have gone to ali baba's cave and gotten a big ass falafel wrap for under $7. that's how i roll because i was unemployed for many months before i was a full time student, and i was raised in an asian family where we just didn't pay a lot to eat out because we didn't have to. so maybe y'all have way bigger budgets and tastes than me. yes, the gyro at greek deli is good, but that's $9 for a gyro and $9 is a lot to spend on lunch.
off the top of my head, here are some places that i went to and i wasn't crazy about:
Oriental East Restaurant - mediocre to bad
Mark's Duck House - bad
Fortune - bad
China Garden - mediocre to bad
Peking Gourmet Inn - people are on crack if they think this is good and their prices are insultingly high considering the bland food
Liberty Tavern - mediocre
El Charrito Caminante - mediocre
Well Dressed Burrito - bad
Pho 75 - mediocre
Joe's Noodle House - mediocre
Hong Kong Palace - mediocre
Sushi-Ko - mediocre
Co Co. Sala - mediocre
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Hong Kong Palace
6387 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22044
Mark's Duck House
6184 Arlington Blvd, Falls Church, VA 22044
Oriental East
1312 E West Hwy, Silver Spring, MD 20910
El Charrito Caminante
2710 Washington Blvd, Arlington, VA 22201
The Liberty Tavern
3195 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22201
Sushi-Ko
2309 Wisconsin Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20007
Joe's Noodle House
1488 Rockville Pike Ste C, Rockville, MD 20852
Peking Gourmet Inn
6029 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041
Moving to DC - please help!
i have given up because 1) i have spent way too much money to be disappointed time and time again, 2) i have small kids now so dining out is not enjoyable or easy.
i'm not saying that absolutely everything here sucks. there are some bright spots. but that's it -- they're only spots.
Moving to DC - please help!
your glass is half full, mine is half empty. i just know that when i first moved here from sf, i was excited to try new places and find good food. my experiences taught me that people here don't know what they're talking about on yelp, and i was spending a lot more money for food that was less in quantity and quality than what i found back home. when i talked to my ca friends who had lived in dc, they confirmed for me what i had been thinking but wasn't totally sure i could conclude -- that the restaurants in dc suck. i am not impressed. dc dining may impress others, but not me and i'm not exactly alone in that thinking amongst my circle of californians. i just wish someone had told me to lower my expectations (waaaaay lower) before i moved here, so that i could have avoided the extreme disappointment and depression from the bad food. so from a californian to another californian, i just want to help manage SouthToTheLeft's expectations. i am fully aware that every city is unique but comparison is inevitable when you've lived in cities a, b and c. how are they the same? how are they different? when you live and eat in the bay area, you are spoiled. so i'm sorry if i come off as a food snob or dc hater, because i am. bad food makes me sad and i am very sad here. if the bay area is your only point of reference, your expectations/standards are probably high and they definitely won't be met by dc. especially on a student's budget.
i will say that living here for the last 3 years has made me a much better cook.
Moving to DC - please help!
i agree that the "ca/mission style" taquerias here are not right. and when they're not right, they're just an embarrassment. i don't know why no one can make a good burrito but one can dream.
Moving to DC - please help!
sf. korean food in sf is pretty sad. i ate at a korean tofu place on geary a couple times and it was bland. bland korean food is just wrong. but i did eat some pretty good korean bbq in sunnyvale. i agree, nothing tops korean food in la, not even in korea. generally, i've found vietnamese and korean food to be better in southern than in northern ca. i never cared for the vn food in sf. it was better in san jose, but even better in oc.
Moving to DC - please help!
It is totally possible to find restaurants in SF that are not only high quality, but inexpensive. To find that in the DC area is difficult, if not impossible. No, northern CA isn't known for Arab, Turkish or Greek cuisine, but what it is known for is fresh, quality food that you don't have to be rich to be able to experience. If you want to blow your money on expensive dinners at expensive restaurants, that's just as easy to do in SF as it is in DC. However, DC seems to be nothing but an "expense account" restaurant town and when you've got bills being paid by someone other than the diner, you're spending a lot of money for crap food. Who eats at Gary Danko or French Laundry every other week? No one because it's expensive. The issue isn't fine dining. I'm talking about the dearth of quality, inexpensive restaurants that you go to on a Wednesday night because you don't feel like cooking. DC has no discernible food identity. It's identity is that it's searching for an identity. My point is, in SF, you don't have to spend a lot to get good food. In DC, that's not the general case. Most of the restaurants are just bad and if you don't know any better, than you don't know any better.
Moving to DC - please help!
You were correct in your first assessment that the food in DC is really expensive and not flavorful. Even in the suburbs, I'm not that impressed. I moved to Arlington from SF a few years ago (after living in SF for almost 10 years, and I'm a southern CA native), so you have my condolences as you realize that DC is, at best, a 3rd tier food city. There are some bright spots, but bright is relative. It won't be as good as in SF and it won't be as inexpensive. So expect to pay more for less.
Korean food in Annandale (VA) is better here than there. I like Honey Pig and Lighthouse Tofu. Going there would definitely require a car.
My absolute favorite thing in DC that is pretty good, even by SF standards, is Amsterdam Falafel (Adams Morgan) and Moaz Falafel (sort of near GW). It's delicious falafel sandwiches (about $5) and fries.
But I am convinced that if I wanted to become a millionaire here, I would open a good taqueria or a good Cantonese place. Prepare yourself for the worst Chinese and Mexican food you've ever had.
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Amsterdam Falafelshop
2425 18th St NW, Washington, DC 20009
Planning a trip to D.C., have a couple specific food questions...
VN food in SF is pretty sad. It's definitely a weak spot in the SF culinary scene, but at least it's better in San Jose, which isn't too outrageously far. But of course, nothing compares to Little Saigon on Orange County. Everyone talks about Eden Center being this beacon of good food but I'm just not that impressed by it. I'm glad that it's there because it's better than nothing, but I also grew up in Southern CA and spent quite a bit of time in Orange County, where Eden Center would be just a speck in the landscape of Little Saigon there.
But here is my point -- why come from SF to here to eat food that you can get better back home? It's a waste. Sure, you can find "pretty decent" Asian food here, but why bother when you know that it's still 10 times better back in CA?
When you're here, eat MD crab cakes, and go to Ben's Chili Bowl (the food is greasy American and is pretty good but not mindblowing... more of an experience), 2 Amy's (good pizza), and Amsterdam Falafel.
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Ben's Chili Bowl
1213 U St NW, Washington, DC 20009
Eden Center
Falls Church, VA, USA, Falls Church, VA
Little Saigon Restaurant
6218 Wilson Blvd, Falls Church, VA 22044
Amsterdam Falafelshop
2425 18th St NW, Washington, DC 20009
Planning a trip to D.C., have a couple specific food questions...
I moved here from SF 2.5 years ago and here is my advice to a fellow San Franciscan re: Question #2 --
Do not bother eating Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai or Indian food here. You can get superior food back home for less. Trust me.
Everyone tells me that the Ethiopian food here is really good. I'm not a huge Ethiopian food fan so I cannot vouch for the authenticity of this claim. That's just what I've heard.
While Mexican food is ubiquitous and delicious back home, in this area, it's very hard to find but what you can find is lots of Central American cuisine, like Bolivian and Salvadorean. I would say that Central American is one of the stronger ethnic foods here that is lacking in contrast to SF.
For a "local" experience, I'd recommend ordering a dozen or so crabs at a seafood place. It's messy but good, and definitely something you don't do back home, except at a crab feed, but these crabs are smaller than the Dungeness ones. I've been to the Quarterdeck in Arlington, but that may not be convenient for you in DC.
Where to Buy Vanilla Beans?
I bought a bottle with a 2-3 beans from BJ's. I can't remember how much exactly they cost but according to my husband who was with me, it was a "good deal."
Vietnamese Party Catering?
I've never ordered from Song Que but a friend of mine ordered party platters for her rehearsal dinner from Saigon Cafe, which is in the shopping center across the street from Eden Center. She ordered cha giò, goi cuon, bánh bèo, chao tôm, bánh Ít nhân tôm, green papaya salad with beef jerky, and other things I can't quite remember but it was all pretty tasty. My friend lives in DC but she had a fellow party guest who lived in NOVA pick up the food for her on his way to her house. The food arrived in standard foil trays covered with plastic wrap or foil. They also provided all the dipping sauces, etc.
http://www.saigoncafe-va.com/
As for prices, my friend is an attorney at a big law firm so I don't think price was an issue for her. I am VN from southern CA, where quality VN food at low prices is plentiful, and when I showed Saigon Cafe's catering menu to my visiting mom, she just about had a heart attack at their high prices. So it's expensive by Orange County standards but since this ain't Orange County, you take what you can get.
Authentic Asian Food and Asian Markets
I've found the food at Eden Center to be just ok and more than I want to pay for Vietnamese food (I'm just used to eating in OC, which cannot be topped with quality or price). Let's just say that after moving here, I've become much better at cooking Vietnamese food. When I go to Eden Center, I mostly get food to go (fresh tofu, cha lua or banh mi). I rarely go to sit down at their restaurants. There's a pretty decent pho place practically across the street from my house (Golden Cow in Falls Church) so convenience ultimately wins. My favorite pho place is Pho 50 on route 50, but why drive out of the way when I can walk across the street?
Authentic Asian Food and Asian Markets
I haven't had much Sichuan here. I stopped eating out for Chinese food once I hit Mark's Duck House, China Garden, Bob's Noodle 66, Peking Gourmet Inn, Fortune, Hong Kong Palace, Chinatown Express and they've all been so-so. Life's too short to eat mediocre food and I avoid driving long distances. It's just not practical for me to drive from Arlington to Rockville to eat.
Authentic Asian Food and Asian Markets
I, too, am a SF transplant and while you will try, you will not find really good Asian food here, and if you do, expect to pay more $$ than you would in SF. I never eat dim sum anymore because the places that people say are "the best" (as in Mark's Duck House) are actually crap. I have stopped eating Chinese food because the Chinese restaurants here are just not that good. I have found one pretty good Thai restaurant (Bangkok 54 in Arlington) but it's no Thai House Express as in, it's more expensive. The one bright spot that I think is better here than in SF is the Korean food, but since you don't have a car, it's going to be pretty difficult for you to get to Annandale, VA. And if you ever make it to Eden Center, you might find it laughably small. I spent a lot of time in Orange County growing up, so when I moved here and everyone told me, "you've got to go to Eden Center!," my reaction was "this is it? this is what people drive for miles for? but it's so small..."
As for grocery stores, I go to Grand Mart here in NOVA but again, it's not metro accessible.
We were spoiled in SF. We could find plentiful places serving tasty and inexpensive food. Give up on finding the same quality at the same prices here. Get used to disappointment and spending twice as much for food here that is half as good as what you'd find in the city. Ditto for the produce.
And don't even get me started on the burrito/Mexican food situation.
Coming Soon: Ping Pong Dim Sum
I've never been to any of their locations but I saw their new "coming soon" location and my prediction is that it will be expensive and mediocre. It will continue the trend of expensive and utterly mediocre DC area dim sum.
