Las Placitas

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

Las Placitas, web site, 517 8th Street SE, Washington, DC, 202-543-3700, no weekend lunch (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Washingtonian | WaPo | City Paper | openlist | Yelp]
Overpriced Salvadorean food, with real napkins and tablecloths. Pretends to be a real restaurant. For that reason, the only Salvadorean place many people would go to. The food is still good enough to justify the price, just realize you’re paying twice what you have to. Good for those stuck near Capitol Hill.

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Posted in DC, Salvadorean, Southwest | 1 Comment

Pupuseria El Buen Gusto

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

Pupuseria El Buen Gusto, 10012 Main Street, Fairfax, VA, 703-218-3489 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Yelp]
Surprisingly good, their tacos are excellent and fairly authentic. No one there speaks English. Limited menu. Very good chicharron (fried pork) with yucca. Worth a visit. N.B.: Restaurants in this locale tend to be yummy but don’t usually last long.

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Posted in Fairfax, Salvadorean, Virginia | 1 Comment

Sarita’s

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

Sarita’s, 2794 Graham Road, Falls Church, VA, 703-533-9448 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Washingtonian | City Paper | Yelp]
Authentic, to say the least. Plus you can find Sarita’s II in the Culmore Shopping Center on Rt. 7, west of Bailey’s Crossroads: 6013 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA, 703-820-2700 [Yelp]
A good rule of thumb is the following: just about every El Salvadorean place in the area is worthwhile if you order well. Which means getting the pupusas. In Sarita’s II they dress the waitresses to maximize the number of leering male customers, so beware if you go.

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Posted in Falls Church/Seven Corners, Salvadorean, Virginia | Comments Off on Sarita’s

El Zunzal

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

El Zunzal, 917 W. Broad Street, Falls Church, VA, 703-532-9372, also 5900 Columbia Pike, Falls Church, VA, 703-379-5100 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Falls Church News-Press | City Paper | Yelp]
A good place for El Salvadorean food, and more accessible to non-Salvadoreans than most, without selling out on the quality side. There is no doubt what you should order here: two mixed pupusas, one corn tamale, and perhaps a side order of beans. That makes for a great five dollar meal. Some of the other menu items are good here as well, but I am never really tempted to deviate from the above.

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Posted in Falls Church/Seven Corners, Salvadorean, Virginia | Comments Off on El Zunzal

Restaurante El Salvador

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

Restaurante El Salvador, 4805 Columbia Pike, Arlington, VA, 703-521-3225 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [City Paper]

One of the best Salvadorean places, in a universe of dozens. Juicy pupusas, nice atmosphere. Also get the corn tamales, tamale de elote. When going to an El Salvadorean restaurant, always order the pupusas. Always order the pupusas. Always order the pupusas. A Pupusa, for the uninitiated, is a Salvadorean “pancake,” made of corn-based bread, stuffed with meat, cheese, or both. Make sure you put lots of spicy cabbage on the top (called “curtido“). The cheapest good meal around, also. They have some Peruvian dishes, too.

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Posted in Arlington, Salvadorean, The Best, Virginia | Comments Off on Restaurante El Salvador

Atlacatl & Pupuseria

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

Atlacatl & Pupuseria, 4701 Columbia Pike, Arlington, VA, 703-920-3680, usually open (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [City Paper | openlist | Yelp]
In decline, and no longer the best El Salvadorean in the area. The herb pupusas are still good, though. If you’ve never had this kind of food before, still good enough to be a revelation. Nice funky décor, too.

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Posted in Arlington, Salvadorean, Virginia | 2 Comments

Russia House

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

Russia House, web site, 790 Station Street, Herndon, VA, 703-787-8880 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [WaPo | City Paper | food-plan | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]
I drove to this place once, but it looked boring and overpriced. So, I reoptimized and opted for Peruvian chicken in a nearby strip mall, I think it was called Pollo Inka.
See also under Serbian.

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Posted in Herndon/Reston/Ashburn/Chantilly / Dulles Airport, Russian, Virginia | Comments Off on Russia House

Temari

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

Temari, 1043 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD, 301-340-7720 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Washingtonian | WaPo | City Paper | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]
Highly authentic, too authentic some would say. Right next to a Japanese store and Japanese supermarket; patronized primarily by Japanese. More a cafe than a restaurant. If pork cutlet doused in ketchup is your thing, this is the place to go. Here you will encounter the other side of Japanese food.

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Posted in Japanese, Maryland, Rockville/Gaithersburg | Comments Off on Temari

Blue Ocean

Posted on 2006/05/21 by .

Blue Ocean, 9440 Main Street, at Pickett Road, Fairfax, VA, 703-425-7555 (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [City Paper | Yelp]
Excellent, and attracts a largely Japanese clientele. More than just the usual teriyaki dishes, also. Worth having in the repertoire.

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Posted in Fairfax, Japanese, Virginia | Comments Off on Blue Ocean

McCormick & Schmick’s

Posted on 2006/05/20 by .

McCormick & Schmick’s, web site, branches at Tysons, Reston, and K Street NW. National chain (Metro Trip Planner – opens in new window) [Washingtonian | WaPo | City Paper | Don Rockwell | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]
In the Legal Seafood mode, but tries to be sexier at the same time. Better, though, at times comes close to fine dining despite the generic nature of the product. The fish is simply very tasty. This place will definitely make you happy, subject to the price caveat. Not up to Oceanaire, though.

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Posted in Seafood | Comments Off on McCormick & Schmick’s