Casa Mia, Lalibela, 3111 Columbia Pike, Arlington, VA not too far from Glebe Road, 703-920-9500 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [openlist | Yelp]
The second best Ethiopian place in Northern Virginia. Reliable, and adequately spicy. Not as good as what you find in DC, but a good introduction to the cuisine. In 2002 they moved into their larger quarters, in a former Italian restaurant. Incongruities abound, but they add to the charm of the place.
Rinconcito Chapin, 303 N. Glebe Road, Arlington, VA, in Buckingham Center, 703-807-0025 or 703-525-3836 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window)
The menu here is like that of an El Salvadorean restaurant, except without the Pupusas. So why go? You might want to say you have been to a Guatemalan restaurant. Otherwise this place, while not bad, is not up to the competition.
Havana Breeze, 1401 K Street NW, Washington, DC, 202-789-1470, closed weekends, closes early, 5 p.m., Monday through Wednesday [Washingtonian | Yelp]
I resent them for their hours, but I have never been to a bad Cuban place in my lifetime. Except in Cuba, that is.
Update May 26, 2006: A commenter says this place is closed.
Update September 2006: Now the Lima Restaurant.
Mai Restaurant, 6763 Wilson Blvd., Falls Church, VA, Eden Center, # 9 inside the mall, 703-237-2020 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Small Picture]
They don’t have crabs “out of season,” so call ahead. You might call this place Vietnamese. They also do good things with packaged crab meat.
Update September 2006: The best crab place in the immediate area. Fresh. The proprietor likes to talk. Only crabs. Crabs, with ginger and scallions, tamarind sauce, plain, or salt and pepper. I like salt and pepper best. Recommended.
See under the specific African cuisines, such as Senegalese, Ghanaian, Nigerian, as well as West African. Not to mention Ethiopian, and Sudanese.
I hereby offer formal apology to all Eritreans for lumping them in with Ethiopian, but I simply cannot tell one cuisine from the other.
Karaoke Idol, 7151 Lee Highway, Falls Church, VA, 703-533-0024 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Falls Church News-Press]
The name alone makes this one worth a try, but frankly I am terrified. Recommended by a reader is the lumpia, Pancit, the tocino (sweetend cured meat), and longaniza. I’ve now gone, and thought it was “good for a Filipino place,” but stil I can’t fall in love with the cuisine, at least not in its restaurant versions.
Aling Pacing, 2311 Price Avenue, Wheaton, MD, 301-933-7070, not always open for lunch on weekdays (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window)
Is this place closed?
See the remarks above on Filipino food under Little Quiapo. This one looks less appetizing, however, although it is easier to find. Oxtail and peanut sauce are often good Pilipino dishes, adobe too.
Ju Mak Jib, 6531-C Little River Turnpike, Alexandria, VA, 703-642-0331, west of I-395 and Landmark Mall, further east on Rt. 236 than most of the Korean places, across from the Salvation Army store. (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window)
Hardly anyone comes here, but this is one of the best Korean places around. The goat dishes are especially recommended, don’t forget to use the mustard sauce. You should get the bone marrow special as well.
Misora, 1315 Old Chain Bridge Road, McLean, VA, 703-356-6200 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window)
Another good one.
Is this closed? Or another name?
Hijole Restaurant, 11280 James Swart Circle, Fairfax, VA, near Fair Oaks Mall, 703-278-7933 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window)
A reader tells me this one is not bad, though I am suspicious of the fact that they have their own web site. www.hijolerestaurant.com. (Update May 21, 2006: web site dead).
