Oh My Yum!

Hello Miss American Pie

(Note to self: Never wear heels into DC unless you pack a pair of comfy flats. All you fashion bloggers with your perfectly mixed-and-matched outfits with to-diiiie sky heels, SPJ, Stacy London (You are my fashion icon and I adore you but, but and but) y’all can just…*blows raspberries*. Three hours of walking through the cobblestone streets of our Nation’s capitol in four-inchers and a epsom-salt soak have squashed any idea of repeating such a notion. Or maybe I should invest in several sets of those Dr. Scholl’s gel inserts)

April 9, 2011

It’s cherry blossom season in DC and as the blossoms reach their peak, DC celebrates the end of the pretty pink blooms with several events around the city, such as a street fair in Chinatown. While packs of tourists flock to the tidal basin to catch the last of the cherry blossoms, me and a couple of girls from work went to see an honor ceremony involving the military honor guards. And after (A rather painful) hour walk to the basin involving several detours and pictures and searching for a cherry blossom tree (Serves me right for wearing those four inchers. Even if they made my outfit super adorbs)…we made it to the Jefferson Memorial…just as soon as the honor guards left to go to the buses. We stayed at the memorial for a wee bit, disappointed that we missed the ceremony (I was mostly trying to ignore my aching toes. And after four years of basic and trick drill, I was good yet slightly disappointed).

One of the perks of living close to the city

We then decided to catch the metro to Eastern Market for coffee and crepes, and along the way I discovered some fabulous food finds.

Om nom nom noooom

Aside from cupcakes, one of the more recent foodie crazes is the gourmet food truck. Unlike the slightly skeevy…ier food trucks that serve the usual questionable tacos, hot dogs, and reheated old pizzas, there has recent surge in food trucks that serve fresh, savory, and oh so delicious dishes. And they’re quite fun to track on twitter for their current locations. And I had the good fortune of coming across three food trucks, Tasty Kabob, Red Hook Lobster Pound , and most exciting of all, Dangerously Delicious Pies (I practically skipped when I saw the Pie and crossbones. And it made my day when they said it made their day to see me skip so enthusiastically to their food truck).

I managed to convince my friends to split the lobster roll with me from Red Hook Lobster Pound (I learned that Red Hook won the Washingtonian’s Award for best food truck in DC so I had to give it a taste). I’m not a lobster fan, but for fresh lobster, I thought the roll was pretty good. The roll was hot and fresh, and for my very first lobster roll, I thought it was pretty good. I’m not sure I’d pay $15 for another roll, unless I split it with someone. But I would try find the truck again to try their lobster bisque, shrimp roll and their Maine Root beer. Mostly the Maine Root.

Red Hook Lobster Pound - ❀❀.❀

I love pie. And I mean, I LOVE PIE. Floating hearts and all. The flaky crust, the warm filling, and to top it off with whipped cream or ice cream. Perfection. And really, nothing and I do mean nothing, makes me happier than making pie. Rolling out the dough, preparing the filling, notching the crust…I went through a pie period in college. Big pies. Mini-pielettes. One of my favorite TV series, Pushing Daises, is a murder-mystery-dramady with one of the main characters is known as a pie baker. I might just bake a pie after I finish this post. While it broke my heart that I couldn’t have the chocolate chess pie, (And I do regret not getting the coconut chess pie), I opted getting the triple berry pie. The berries were fresh and I admire Dangerously Delicious priding themselves on using fresh and natural ingredients in their pies. I liked the crust the best, it wasn’t too dry and crumbly, but soft and had the right amount of flakiness. The only downside (Which is a downside to most food trucks) is the pie (While on the generous side on serving size) was a little on the pricy side. While Dangerously Delicious’ main store is a bit out of reach near Union Station on Capitol Hill, I’d follow their tweets and hunt down their black (And soon to be red!) trucks and day

Dangerously Delicious Pies- ❀❀❀

Next we continued down to Eastern Market, but first we stopped by Peregrine Coffee for coffee. Although I wasn’t too impressed by my first visit, I did admire the detail in my latte (But it would’ve been neat if the baristas did different designs for each of our drinks).

Replenished with coffee, we reached Eastern Market (And after meandering around the stalls) we stopped by the crepe stand, Crepes at the Market, and going against my better judgment, I decided on a mix between a sweet and savory crepe, filled with blackberries, raspberries and brie.

It’s hard to say no to the fluffy

While this combo would be tasty on a cracker or bread, I wasn’t so keen on it in my crepe (And I continue to stand by my belief that crepes should be sweet and sweet alone, see Gogi. Gogi.). But the serving was huge, I did enjoy watching Mr. Mitch of Mitch’s Crepes at the Market make my crepe, and I thought the price for my crepe was affordable.

Mr. Mitch doing what he does best

So I’ll probably come back to this stand to try one of Mr. Mitch’s dessert crepes (Especially once I’m off my chocolate Lenten fast).

Crepes at the Market ❀❀❀❀

Gogi. Gogi.

It’s hard to find good Korean food in MD (Another thing to add on my every increasing list of ‘Why I Don’t Like MD.’ Washington D.C. is probably the only redeeming factor. Sort of). So when I discovered Hwaro in Rockville (Via coupon on OpenTable), I figure it was worth a go.

With coupon, cousins, and rumbly tummy in tow, we headed to Hwaro. It was a quaint little restaurant with cushy seats and a barbeque grill for every stall (But my favorite Korean place to date was this little spot in the P.I. where I got to sit on cushions on the floor with a giant round wooden table and a grill in the middle). For barbeque, we ordered galbi (marinated short ribs) and pork belly (Probably hard on the arteries, but ohh so juicy gooood). And spicy tofu hot pot.

Pork Belly, why must you be so deliciouuuuussss?

The best part of any Korean Food experience is the side dishes. I’m not a fan of kimchi (Or a lot of things. I do realize this is one of my short comings as food blogger. I have the preferences of a three year old) but I did love the dried squid. And restaurant gave us a free sweet rice drink to finish off the meal to complement all the spicy, tangy, and smoky flavors.

While the meal was filling (I was stuuuuufed), even with the coupon, we paid an additional $20-25.00 to cover the meal. Was the meal filling? Yes. Would I come back to dinner? Probably not. Especially knowing that there are some very good Korean restaurants near my family home (And for very good prices). So for this little spot, 2.5 yums.

Hwaro - ❀❀.❀

Next, we decided to stop by Melt Gelato also in Rockville, for dessert, crepes and gelato, thanks to another coupon (Viva la Groupon!). I am very much a crepe traditionalist and believe crepes should only be served with sugar, fruits, or chocolate (And to be even more decadent with ice cream). Savory crepes kinda irk me. Now, while Melt Gelato does sell savory crepes (I won’t hold it against them), the selection of homemade gelato is diverse as it is fresh and delicious and crepes warm and yummy.

Oh me and my infallible sweet tooth.

Today, I decided to go the decadent route and got gelato with my crepe, caramel mascarpone pistachio and cinnamon sugar on my crepe (The no chocolate for Lent is killing me. 16 more days. 16 more days). Tasty, not too pricey, close proximity to my house (And I have another Groupon!). Would I come back again? Oh yes. Four yuuuums.

Melt Gelato - ❀❀❀❀

Cupcake Conundrum

The cupcake.

The dessert craze featured prominently in cookbooks, reality TV competitions, and bakeries such as Crumbs, Magnolia, and our local and ever so popular (with it’s own reality TV show) Georgetown Cupcakes.

Now (While I’ve occasionally fantasized and threatened to quit nursing school to open my own bakery) in my cupcake tasting ventures, it’s hard to find a good cupcake. Either the frosting’s too thick or too sweet and completely overwhelms the cake. Or the cake’s too dry and crumbly or has little to no flavor. But out of all the cupcakes I’ve eaten, I’ll have to admit (And I do admit this begrudgingly) Georgetown’s got the cupcake to beat.

The cake is moist and flavorful, and the frosting is sweet, creamy, and not too overwhelming. The only thing I have to complain is if I eat too many of these, I’ll probably find myself with an empty wallet (And a tighter waistband :P).

Will I ever join the ranks of cupcake aficionados and perhaps be a contender for best cupcake (And give Georgetown a run for their money)? Probably not (Too sensible). Give me twenty years and I’m ready to retire and start a second career (Or midlife crisis).

-S

Eastern Market Venture

March 12, 2011

While the rest of DC was celebrating Shamrock Fest and reveling in their inner Irish, I decided to drag my lazy butt out of bed and venture out to DC’s Eastern Market. After making plans, and getting stuck on the train for nearly THREE HOURS, my cousin and I made it to Eastern Market…Just as it closed (Insert sigh of defeat). Figures I picked the weekend DC Metro decided to make repairs on the Orange Line to go into the city.

Nevertheless, we continued to explore Capitol Hill, our first stop, Peregrine Espresso.

A refreshing change from Starbucks and Dunkin (Don’t get me wrong, I love the Dunkin), Peregrine offers several selections of beans (I was a bit baffled when the barista asked what kind of coffee bean I’d like to go with my coffee. “…Um, strong?”), and after you make your selection, each cup is individual brewed with it’s own micro-brew (Which I find fascinating to watch, as previously mentioned in the last post). But as fascinating as and eco/dog-friendly Espresso was (If someday I were to have a pup. Someday), I found my coffee to be on the weak and slightly water-down side. But I enjoyed sitting outside with my cuz while drinking our coffee.

Afterwards, we wandered down to Belga Cafe, a Belgian restaurant, one I was hoping to catch the end of their brunch hour and snack on their crepes. But it was a success, we managed to snag an outdoor table, and a couple dishes, beers, and desserts later, we left the restaurant very full and quite satisfied.

Belga Cafe is considered to be a Belgian-Euro infusion restaurant that also prides in their very extensive beer list (And I do mean extensive, I think the beer list was 3x thicker than the menu). While we weren’t in the mood for anything on the main entree list (Be forewarned, some of the dishes can be a bit on the pricey side), we decided to split a mussel pot with frites, bread pudding, and a plate of mini desserts.

Our mussels of choices were severed steamed in a green curry creme sauce mixed with garlic and bacon. My only complaint was that my plate was too small to eat them all (And it was good that we only ordered one pot, we were STUFFED). The bread pudding was warm and sweet, a good complement to the sweet figs and savory and stinky goat cheese (Which was quite strong and deeeelicous) served with it. And later we had the assortment of mini-desserts. Sadly, I could not eat the ones with chocolate since I had given it up for lent :( But there was Creme Brulee, which was most delicious.

For my choice of brew, I picked a St. Louis Framboise, a Raspberry Lambic, sweet, fruity and quite bubbly for a beer.

I am a girlie drinker. I like ‘em sweet. Plain and simple. I’m not a fan of strong liquor or stouty, dark beers. And once I find a drink, I stick to it (Of course, it poses a problem when I go out and they don’t have my drink of choice. I’m picky, can’t help it). But this, St. Louis, I like.

There wasn’t anything about the dinner I can’t complain about, and I’ll probably come back for brunch the next time I come to Eastern Market (Among a number of other restaurants I plan of visiting). But it was quite pricey and a bit far out location-wise, so I wouldn’t exactly make it a frequent dinner spot. Regardless, I’d give it three yums up.

Belga Cafe - ❀❀❀

-S

Fan-Pho-tastic

Pho (Or Phaaaa as a friend once corrected me) is heavenly. And the next darn thing to hangover cures since goodness knows what (Seriously, a restaurant that serves a soup with salty chicken broth with meats, leafy green veggies, carb infused noodles, and coffee strong enough to wake the dead. Yes. Yes, and um, YES). Any restaurant you go into, no matter how dingy or glossy the floors may seem, the soup is cheap and the servings are plentiful (And I mean plentiful, even when I order a small, the bowl’s bigger than my head).

And such is the case with Pho Hoa Binh in Rockville, MD. You can never go wrong with a hot bowl of Pho and I always do a little happy dance when I see my coffee/Ca Phe Sua Nong served with a Phin filter (See above). And I like to see the coffee filter through as it sits on top of the condensed milk before I take the filter off and mix it with the condensed milk.

But what really makes a restaurant on my hit list is not just the Pho, but the main dishes. I went for the broken rice special/Com Tam Thit Nuong Bi Cha and ordered a Pho and coffee bubble tea to go (I do love bubble tea). The broken rice special (Which I devoured before I could get a picture. I was really hungry. Really). It had an egg cake with shredded pork and grilled pork. Although it satiated my hunger (I neglected to have breakfast, having slept in that morning), it wasn’t quite as spectacular as a similar dish I had in a restaurant called Pho Royal. The coffee, however, was particularly nummy, and the coffee bubble tea on the way home was also delicious. And the Pho for dinner was also tasty. So overall, I’d rate the experience a 2.5 on the yum scale. While the Pho, coffee and bubble tea were delicious, I wouldn’t exactly go out of my way to eat here on a regular basis.

Pho Hoa Binh - 2.5/ ❀❀.❀

-S

Intro.

Food, since I was very young, has been one of the earliest and greatest loves in my life. And like most great loves, we have had our ups and downs, good and bad (Prominently during the awkward, hormonal teenage years where food was the enemy). But now as the edge of teenage angst wears off whilst I enter my semi-confusing young adulthood and the peak of my metabolism, food and I are reunited and it feels oh. so. good.

Like any traditional Filipino family, I was taught not only about the importance, but the wonders of food and the strong emotive connection we develop with it. Mealtime was usually the only time my parents could convince my brother and me to spend time with our family. And during those forty-five minutes (Intermixed with spoonfuls of guilt), we’d talk about our days while our parents reminded us to finish our plates (Because there were starving children back in the Philippines). Food was also an excuse for a get-together. Any get-together. Baptisms, farewells, welcomes, birthdays, illness, recovery, death. Something. Anything. And there was food.

We eat when we’re hungry. We eat when we’re happy. We eat when we’re sad. We eat when we want to gossip. We eat when we’re guilty. I think I was fed that the most. Food and guilt went hand in hand in my household.

“Are you coming home this weekend? I made you pasta. And fried rice. I know you don’t have time to cook for yourself. Are you coming home this weekend? We miss you! Your dad wants to see you. Are you coming home for church? I made you taho and bistek. Are you coming home?”

This is the typical conversation that occurs between me and my mother nowadays since I made the last minute decision to leave home. Any normal person would be a fool to turn down her cooking. I am a starving fool. Most of the time. Food and guilt. Food and guilt.

Don’t get me wrong, food and I have a healthy relationship (Now. I prefer not to relieve the years of ‘02-‘09). There’s nothing better than having a not-so-great day at work and coming home and having (And if I have the time)/making an awesome meal. Or awesome leftovers. Or going out with friends and finding a great restaurant that makes you want to come back to try something else on the menu or share with someone else.

Which brings me to what this is all about. DC isn’t exactly known as of the top culinary capitals of the US, but I’ve been to a couple of nummy (And not so nummy places), so I’ll be chronicling my savory exploits throughout the MD/DC/VA area, the good, the bad, the sweet, salty, and of course, the oh so yummy.

-S