The Diner

Of all the great cuisines present in Washington, DC breakfast is one that is sorely under-represented (much like DC, itself, in Congress). If you're inclined to get some waffles or pancakes, you can swing by IHOP in Alexandria, or you can go to The Diner.

There are a couple of other diners spread out in DC (though very heavily in the far NW). Then there are the ubiquitous cafés to pick up a bagel, croissant, or a bacon, egg, and cheese (more on those later). Finally, you’ll sometimes find yourself out for brunch and find an occasional breakfast gem on a menu—think eggs Chesapeake at Old Ebbitt. But, on the whole you’re going to have a devil of a time to find a monte cristo (pictured above) or a heaping plate of waffles.

Enter The Diner. Located in Adams Morgan among a melting-pot of other cuisines The Diner is a perennial favorite for a somewhat reasonably priced, late Sunday meal complete with bloody marys.

There’s almost never a time that you’ll stop by The Diner and be seated immediately. Expect to wait at least 10 minutes, but the prompt service will compensate for the wait. It’s not surprising to find food on your table in less time than you’ve been standing in line. The customer service is not going to win awards, and the atmosphere is loud of bustling; but, you don’t go to The Diner because of its three Michelin Stars, you go because you’re hungry for delicious, terrible-for-you food.

The last time I stopped by The Diner I had a monte cristo with home fries and a bloody mary on the side. The home fries were cooking thoroughly, but remained crisp. The monte cristo was everything you’d expect. The bloody had Old Bay on its rim, and everything was consumed without hesitation.

If you’re looking to pick up some tasty treats on the weekend and aren’t in the mood for CoCo Sala or Old Ebbitt’s take a trip to AdMo and get some good, greasy fare. It’s hard to go wrong.

The Diner

2453 18th St., NW

Adams Morgan

http://www.trystdc.com/diner/

The Eden Center Part 2, Pho Xe Lua

My Co-blogger and I took a trip out to the Eden Center in Virginia this weekend to visit one of the best Vietnamese food emporiums in the United States. For those of you living in Washington, DC who are like myself (loathe to go into Virginia) I must say that this place is not as far away as I thought it would be when my co-blogger and I planned

this voyage.

I, like many others, am a big fan of Vietnamese beef noodle soup, called Pho (pronounced fuh). This delicious food is a traditional breakfast/early lunch meal in Vietnam that is made with hot, bone marrow based broth, beef parts, noodles and various spices. It is usually cheap, filling and flavorful.

Because of the large amount of Vietnamese living in the DC Metro area, we are blessed to have a large selection of Pho places in the region. My co-blogger and I both have a place we usually go which will be reviewed on this blog at some point in the near future I am sure, but we both figured that if the Eden Center is the Mecca of Vietnamese food in the area, then the best Pho must be hidden amongst the many small food and jewelry shops in the sprawling Northern Virginia mall.

Pho Xe Lua is a small shop in the Eden Center, and its interior decor makes it feel almost like you are in someones home. Old books are stacked in large bookshelves against the wall, and images of Vietnamese politicians and soap stars are hanging on the walls. The seating is cafeteria style and the menu is short and to the point offering several different kinds of Pho.

I ordered my standard favorite, Pho Tai, which is Pho mixed with very thinly sliced beef that cooks while in the soup. They also brought the usual additives, including bean sprouts, jalapenos, basil leaves, and vinegared onions. I also had a coconut milk drink which was very sweet and tasty and complimented the hot spicy soup perfectly.

The key to Pho is the broth and the meat. The broth at Pho Xe Lua was fantastic and flavorful, however, I believe that I mis-ordered on the meat. The Pho place I normally go to brings out the meat already cooking in the hot soup, whereas at Pho Xe Lua they offered me the option of having it raw or having it slightly cooked and then put in the soup. I though I would order it raw in the traditional style however, this led much of the beef to be undercooked (or not cooked at all) by the middle of my meal. I am going to chalk this up to my own poor judgement, but keep this in mind when you are ordering raw beef with your soup.

On the whole, Pho Xe Lua provided tasty food in an interesting environment. That being said there are Pho places of equal quality and with better prices much closer to Washington, D.C. If I do find myself in the Eden Center again I will likely return to Pho Xe Lua...only this time i'll have my meat cooked slightly before being put in the soup.

(703) 533-3130

Falls Church

6765 Wilson Blvd

Falls Church, VA 22044

The Eden Center Part 1, Song Que

Over the weekend this blog's co-author and I took a nice Saturday drive out to The Eden Center in Falls Church, VA. For the uninitiated, The Eden Center is a 120 store, 24 restaurant Vietnamese emporium. It is run by Vietnamese and caters to a Vietnamese clientèle. Walking through The Eden Center I felt very much like I was back in a strip mall in China--in a good way.

Despite feeling mildly out of place among the crowds of Vietnamese speaking customers, there was no acknowledgement by the shops that my-cowriter and I did not belong. We began the afternoon with pho, to be reviewed later, and finished it at Song Que Deli.

Song Que Deli specializes in banh mi sandwiches but also has a variety of bubble tea flavors and iced cream that would rock your world. If you think that I'm joking, then muster the courage to try some durian iced cream and you'll know what I'm talking about.

Along with the deli options, Song Que offers a wide variety of prepackaged foods to pick up, typical Vietnamese fare packed on styrofoam and wrapped in saran. The selections looked pretty great, and I might pick some up in the future, but it was the squid jerky that caught my eye. It is exactly what it sounds like and tastes just like you might imagine it would. In Japan it was used all the time as a beer snack and it is right at home in my cabinet being used for the same purpose here in America.

Given the rare of find spicy squid jerky I was prepared to be blown away by my bahn mi. I ordered the Vietnamese ham and pâté, my accomplice ordered the shredded pork with pork skin.

The sandwiches game with the traditional garnishes of jalepenos, pickeled, carrots, fish sauce, cilantro, and few other goodies. They were $3 a piece and extremely reasonably priced for what I'm accustomed to pay for a sandwich. I'll say, though, that despite the parts being delicious, the whole fell short. It was a failure of one ingredient and one ingredient only. The bread. It took a lot of effort to chew through the very dry and firm crush and get into the ingredients. And, given the overwhelming amount of work it took to chew the bread, I lost out on a lot of the goodness that would have been in the sandwich because I was so distracted by flying pieces of bread crust and the herculean jaw muscles I needed to eat the bahn mi.

My bottom line on the Song Que deli is this, go for some bubble tea, some squid jerky, and maybe even some ice cream (though I didn't try any) but think twice before grabbing a sandwich, even if they are only $3.

Dupont Market

The Dupont Market is a small grocery store and sandwich shop in North Dupont at the foot of the hill leading up to Adams Morgan. Aside from the tables and chairs in the small front patio you might miss it entirely if you didn't keep your eyes peeled.

Once you venture into the store it is hard to miss the excellent wine selection and bustling employees making sandwich after sandwich in many delicious varieties. Although the space is cramped, a huge amount of dry goods, candy, wine, chips, crackers, ice cream and specialty drinks are packed into the store.

The sandwiches range from healthy and fresh to greasy and wonderful so Dupont Market can really cater to your lunch desires. Many of the subs are commendable, particularly the Deborah's Special, the Italian (try it hot), the Roast Beef and Valfrais cheese and the Cheese Steak with peppers and onions. I believe they offer other kinds of bread but the wise choice is to get all your sandwiches on the their delicious Italian Ciabatta bread.

My favorite sandwich is the Smoked Turkey and Gouda with Bacon. You really can't go wrong with this sub. If you want something to go along with your sandwich they offer a number of different chips and sides including the healthy and flavorful Bistro Blue Cheese Pommes. For a drink they have your standard fare of soda and juice as well as an interesting assortment of specialty teas and Italian sodas (I recommend the grapefruit flavor).

Their wine selection is excellent and their owner Kevin is happy to make recommendations. The only complaint that can be levied against this establishment is that their prices aren't great, including charging a full $1.50 extra for bacon, and other ad-ons. In a sense you pay for what you get, because the food is always well prepared and fresh. But this isn't a bargain deli by any means.

I have eaten many sandwiches from this local Dupont business and I will no doubt eat many more. I highly recommend it for lunch or a nice bottle of wine.

Neighborhood: Dupont Circle
1807 18th St NW

Nando's Peri-Peri

I walk past Nando's Peri-Peri in Chinatown on an almost daily basis. For the past 8 months I've wondered what sort of chicken would be in store for me if I went in, but it wasn't until yesterday that I ventured into the tastefully decorated chicken dispensery.

The restaurant was fairly empty when I came in--though I'm sure that's a byproduct of the time of day I went and not the quality of the food. "Cupcake" who greeted me was helpful and pleasant to order from for my first time.

I ordered a half chicken, prepared "hot" and a side of coleslaw. After placing my order I picked up a fork, some napkins, a glass of water, and a bottle of the Nando's Extra Extra Hot Sauce and sat down at the table.

Over the corner of booth I could see the chicken I'd ordered being toss on an open flame and was almost salivating with anticipation. The chicken came about 8 minutes later and I dug right in. (At Nando's the encourage you to eat with your hands and even supply a sink in the middle of the restaurant for cleaning purposes once you're finished.)

The skin was crisp, the chicken was moist, and the flavor was great. The hot level of spiciness was indeed spicy, but no so much so that it overpowered the other flavors in the chicken. Even dipping it in the Extra Extra Hot Sauce didn't mask the flavors.

The coleslaw proved both crisp and creamy. It was a great dish to have by my side when I needed a respite from the heat of the chicken.

It was 10 dollars and change for half a chicken with a side. While not the least expensive lunch I've had, I will be back at Nando's and regret having not ventured there before.

Neighborhood: Chinatown
819 7th St NW
Washington, DC 20001

http://www.nandosperiperi.com/