Texas de Brazil Churrascaria

Posted on 2009/02/17 by .

Texas de Brazil Churrascaria, web site, 11750 Fair Oaks Mall, Fairfax, VA, 703-352-4111 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [WaPo | Yelp]
How bad can a churrascaría be? This place is fun but I found the meats a bit salty for my taste. So not the best churrascaria around but maybe worth a visit if this is your area. This is a chain.

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Indian City Grill

Posted on 2009/02/12 by .

Indian City Grill, web site, 9984 Main Street Center, Fairfax, VA, 703-385-4800 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Yelp]
Opened in January 2009, from the folks who brought you Connaught’s. It still tastes like Connaught’s, though the new version is less upscale. It still tastes good, but a lot has happened since now and then and this place is no longer the market leader it once was.

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Posted in Fairfax, Indian, Virginia | 4 Comments

Hai Duong Restaurant

Posted on 2009/02/05 by .

Hai Duong Restaurant, 6795 Wilson Blvd., #7-9, Falls Church, VA, Eden Center, 703-538-5289 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Washingtonian | Yelp]

Again, on the inside corridor in Eden Center near Wilson Boulevard. This place is just first-rate. My favorite dish is the #31, Sizzling Fish Filet in Northern Style; you need to put all the pieces together on top of the chip for it to make sense. #10, Beef Underdone with Lime, is the best around and you should order this special dish if you don’t already know it. The soups are very good as are the crushed rice dishes. Excellent atmosphere: Go, go, go.

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Posted in Eden Center, Falls Church/Seven Corners, Pho, Vietnamese, Virginia | 2 Comments

What is the best food produced en masse?

Posted on 2009/01/31 by .

Ben, a loyal Marginal Revolution reader, asks:

What is the preferable type of food to eat when it is produced en masse? I.e., for what type of food does the quality not diminish significantly when it’s produced for a buffet? How much worse is Panda Express from “real” Chinese food vs. Fast Food Mexican from “real” Mexican?

Indian food, produced en masse, sits relatively well, especially the non-meat dishes and the ground meats. It can sit and stew for a long time. Chinese food, which usually should be cooked at high heat and served immediately, wares about the worst. Barbecue can do fine, if it is cooked properly to begin with (not usually the case, however). At Chipotle the carnitas are pretty good and they are cooked sous vide at a distance and then reheated in the restaurant. But the top prize goes to Korean vegetable dishes, many of which are fermented and pickled in the first place. Natasha and I catered our wedding party with Korean vegetables (and a bit more, including some cold meats) with no loss of culinary value.
Originally posted on Marginal Revolution.

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Komi

Posted on 2009/01/31 by .

Komi, web site, 1509 17th Street NW, Washington, DC, 202-332-9200 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Washingtonian | WaPo | MenuPages | food-plan | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]

A mix of fine dining and Greek-American. The best place in DC right now, by far. $90 for a two and a half hour extravaganza. And yes it is much improved over the previous incarnation, in case you had tried that and found it wanting. Along with CityZen, this is right now DC’s only truly excellent restaurant. I feel I could bring anyone here and impress them.

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Posted in Current Favorites, DC, Downtown, Fine Dining, Greek, The Best, Top Five | 4 Comments

CLOSED – Korean Traditional Cake and Porridge Restaurant, also called Dduk Sarang

Posted on 2009/01/26 by .

Korean Traditional Cake and Porridge Restaurant, also called Dduk Sarang (or Dduck Sa Rang), 4231 Markham Street, Annandale, VA, near Shiney’s, 703-916-0006 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [MenuSarang.com | GeekSqueak]

CLOSED

Currently the most innovative restaurant in Koreatown. Mostly they serve porridge, porridge, and porridge. You never knew Korean porridge could be so good and so comforting. My favorite is the tuna and vegetables porridge but they are very good across the board. Very good dumplings. The beef soup, as portrayed in their photo, is the best around. Very charming décor. Definitely recommended.

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Posted in Annandale, Korean, Virginia | 2 Comments

Palm Springs bleg

Posted on 2009/01/23 by .

I have a few hours there tomorrow, do you have any information about the place which can improve my life? I thank you in advance.
Originally posted on Marginal Revolution – click to see comments and suggestions.

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Blue Duck Tavern

Posted on 2009/01/21 by .

Blue Duck Tavern (in the Park Hyatt), web site, 1201 24th Street NW, Washington, DC, 202-419-6755 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Washingtonian | WaPo | MenuPages | insiderpages | Don Rockwell | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]
By far the nicest eating space in the whole DC area, truly beautiful. It looks too immaculate to serve food in. Most of the food, however, is mediocre. I thought the Bratwurst was quite good and I had a very good appetizer, was it the herring? The visuals save this place and with wisdom you can have an OK meal too.

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Banh Cuon Saigon

Posted on 2009/01/16 by .

Banh Cuon Saigon, web site, 6795 Wilson Blvd., #54, Falls Church, VA, 703-534-4482, open 9 am to 8 pm, Eden Center (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [City Paper | Yelp]
This small eatery is inside what has rapidly become the best corridor of Eden Center, namely the new inside corridor that is quite close to Wilson Blvd. itself. The shrimp soup, given as one of the specialties, is first-rate here.

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Han Gang Korean Cuisine

Posted on 2009/01/11 by .

Han Gang Korean Cuisine, web site, 7243 Little River Turnpike, Annandale, VA, 703-256-7077 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Yelp]

This place offers a “fine dining experience” in addition to serving Korean food. It costs more than the others, and has nice décor and service, though it is still affordable compared to a typical non-Korean place. For beef dishes it is a clear first choice for all the Korean restaurants in this area. Get the $60 combination of meats; it is an order of magnitude better than any other Korean meat dish you can get around here. Truly yummy. Go even if you think you are tired of all the other beef dishes at the other Korean places. They also have the best local Jae Chap. I would say it is important to go here with a large or mid-sized group and get a spread. Their sauces are also the best around.

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Posted in Annandale, Korean, Virginia | 2 Comments