sbarabu & topseller/shutterstock.com

Lovers Enjoy Sharable Dishes for Valentine’s Day

By Jennifer Whistler

A woman happily in love, she burns the souffle. A woman unhappily in love, she forgets to turn on the oven, a chef tells lovelorn Audrey Hepburn in “Sabrina.” Take the chef’s advice and let someone else take care of dinner. Treat your sweetie to one of Northern Virginia’s most romantic restaurants.

Restaurant Eve

Restaurant Eve sings with romance. From a cobblestone walkway lined with candles to plush booths inside, this Old Town fine-dining establishment offers charming service and elegant fare.

When Chef de Cuisine Jeremy Hoffman creates a special menu he uses lavish items such as caviar, truffles and foie gras. Presentation remains just as important. “I consider color a huge factor,” says Hoffman, incorporating holiday-hued beets, scarlet turnips, watermelon radish and rosewater.

Restaurant Eve, 110 S. Pitt St., Alexandria; 703-706-0450; www.restauranteve.com

L’Auberge Chez Francois

As a restaurant known for marriage proposals, celebrations and family memories, it’s no wonder locals vote L’Auberge Chez Francois as the most romantic area restaurant. Tucked away in the rolling hills of Great Falls, Head Chef Jacques Haeringer offers succulent dishes that couples can easily share. “Chateau Briand, salmon with puff pastry and rack of ribs, all made to be enjoyed together,” Haeringer says.

L’Auberge Chez Francois, 332 Springvale Road, Great Falls; 703-759-3800; www.laubergechezfrancois.com

2941

V-Day lets lovers indulge, and Chef Bertrand Chemel continues the tradition. The 2941 chef offers luxuries: “Lobster, fish, some Provencal black truffle [are all] things that people don’t get to eat very often,” Chemel explains.

After selecting five or six traditional items, such as filet mignon, the chef throws in a few surprises. Monchong anyone? “I play it 50-percent safe, 50-percent not,” jokes Chemel.

But that doesn’t mean the Falls Church resto will skimp on cocoa. Lovers can capture that cupid moment, as Chamel prepares “something for two that a couple can enjoy together.”

2941, 2941 Fairview Park Drive, Falls Church; 703-270-1500; www.2941.com

Photo credits: Anna Hoychuk/shutterstock.com (dates wrapped in bacon); Foodpictures/shutterstock.com (potatos gratin); holbox/shutterstock.com (bluefin tuna)

Memphis native Chris George brings his smoky Southern skills to Crystal City to dish out traditional barbecue like Memphis-style pulled pork, smoked in-house for 20 hours and served on a bun with a sweet and tangy homemade barbecue sauce topped with coleslaw. And, of course, a Memphis barbecue restaurant wouldn’t exist without ribs. Spare ribs and baby back ribs, available dry and wet, are smoked in the hickory-pit smoker and finished on the hickory grill.

Classic Southern sides—four-cheese mac and cheese, barbecue baked beans, Southern fried corn—and desserts—fudge blondies topped with kahlua, pecan pie with fresh whipped cream—are also on the menu.

George has also included traditional barbecue deviations in appetizers of pulled pork egg rolls and brisket enchiladas.

Late-night options include half-price appetizers at the bar until 1 a.m., along with eight specialty Memphis-themed cocktails and over 50 wines.

George grew up in Memphis but expanded his career in the restaurant biz at D.C.’s elite Occidental Grill before opening his own restaurant. “It’s an authentic taste of Memphis barbecue,” says the Memphis native.

The casual-upscale restaurant in downtown Crystal City is equipped for the lunch-break work crowd and will make use of its outdoor patio in warmer times. In the meantime, while it’s bitterly cold and snowy, you can snuggle up in a booth inside and warm up your body with the smoke and spice of Memphis BBQ heat.

320 S. 23rd St., Arlington; 571-970-2727; www.memphisque.com
Open for lunch and dinner daily, Saturday and Sunday brunch.

(January 2012)

By Warren Rojas / Photography by Kate Bohler

Pork chops and eggs with onion-topped hash browns

By all indications the smoking ban Virginia Governor Tim Kaine signed into law in 2009 has done nothing to extinguish the appetite for smoldering tobacco shared by those who religiously inhabit Moe’s Peyton Place.

The unapologetically smoking-friendly sanctum caters to those who favor a puff (or 20) as part of their dining experience, relegating the protected class (non-smokers) to an adjoining dining room while preserving the authenticity of the cloudy bar and lounge for those who have made the neighborhood restaurant their second home since current owner Mohammad Traish took it over in May 1971.

It’s unclear who/when someone slapped the American Cancer Society “Relay for Life” supporter static cling in their front window, but kudos to staff for successfully playing both sides of the field this long.

If you’ve never stepped foot in Moe’s, it’s perfectly understandable. The off-the-beaten path eatery operates in the shadow of the never-ending Mixing Bowl expansion, its pot hole-riddled parking lot an orphan of the regional roadway repair wars.

Geographic hurdles aside, Traish’s wife and business partner, Mina, claims there are a number of dedicated patrons who slide into the well-worn booths like clockwork.

Chicken-fried steak

“We have the same customers come in seven days a week,” she says of a carefully cultivated clientele that is now extending into the third generation of some families. “We have their drinks at the table when they walk in, and we know what they like,” she asserts. On any given day, Mohammad estimates he can count on recognizing roughly eight familiar faces for every 10 people that wander into the unassuming watering hole.

The décor is clearly nostalgic but hardly entrenched in days gone by. A dusty Redskins clock, gallery of framed Marilyn Monroe stills and a wall-sized flag inscribed with the names of the thousands who perished in the 9/11 attacks commemorate historical greatness which we’ll unlikely never relive again (sorry ‘Skins, fans), while a trio of high-definition, flatscreen TVs intermittently blasting local news or conservative commentators remind those seemingly wedded to the rarely vacant bar stools that the future is now.

House-made signs advertising their biker friendliness—Mina brushes aside all the stereotypes of thuggish, brute motorcyclists, noting that they serve doctors and lawyers who simply prefer to view the world from their two-wheeled, four-stroke engine-powered perches rather than from other self-enclosed, commercial conveyances—are littered throughout. And it, in fact, takes no time for a dyed-in-the-wool biker (clad from head to toe in faded denim, a well-broken-in leather baseball cap parked atop his dome) to saunter past us as we settled in for a mid-day repast.

Mohammad Traish’s signature broasted chicken

But we also spotted all types of other incredibly neighborly folks, including: a Boomer-aged single woman who popped by for a late-morning breakfast; the suit-clad business exec who drained multiple cups of bottomless coffee, one eye trained firmly on the daily schedule taking shape on his flickering laptop while the other stole glances at the constantly updating breaking news ticker crawling across the Fox News broadcast; or the elderly couple who planted themselves in what they obviously consider their booth, tossed dueling packs of Basics and Salems on the table and commenced to chain-smoke (these two were intuitively synchronized better than most Olympic duos) their way through dinner. Conversely, early risers made no bones about chasing formidable stacks of flapjacks or bowls of butter-soaked grits with frosty mugs of frothy draft beer.

Staff makes their own fun as well.

“Too much to eat? I just gave you a little plate,” one devilish waitress teased a customer who attempted to push back before clearing her plate. Another razzed a gaggle of bleary-eyed outdoorsmen, barking, “We’re closed for you guys—no hunters allowed!” when the coffee-deprived bunch tried to belly up to the bar. More often than not staff greet every single customer by name, preemptively fetching favorite drinks and teeing up standing food orders while peppering their conversation with miscellaneous updates about fellow regulars who’ve dropped out of sight (“Oh, he moved back to … ”) and general goings-on.

The menu is a grab bag of diner favorites, floating from traditional bar bites (burgers, wings, fried flotsam) to a rotating selection of slightly more elegant fare (grilled salmon, chicken Marsala, baked ziti with meatballs). Traish may claim sole proprietorship for the menu development, but the shelves buckling beneath piles of pre-packaged cooking aids—everything from pre-mixed Gold Medal flour to an industrial-sized crate of Stove Top stuffing mix—suggest Sysco has as much a hand in the daily breaking of bread as anyone else.

Mina says she retooled the menu about six months ago but continues to sprinkle daily specials and experimental theme nights as opportunities present themselves. Her monthly “Greek” night, which actually extends through the entire first weekend of each month, allows Mina to celebrate her culinary heritage, a showcase predicated upon flaky spanakopita, zesty tzatziki sauce, protein-packed stuffed grape leaves and generous slabs of oven-baked pastitsio. She conceded that Mohammad’s signature broasted chicken, however, remains the universal favorite.

The bird—which Mina maintains is gobbled up with reckless abandon by rowdy, tail-gating football fans and reserved restaurant-goers alike—is quite tasty. The skin is, by design, less crunchy than traditional fried chicken. But the marinated meat, particularly the succulent breast, makes a convincing argument for pressure cooking more foods. The house seasoning is perhaps less novel than more modern poultry preparations (artisan brining, double- and triple-frying, truffle oiling/stuffing/infusing) yet firmly places its stamp on the chicken enjoying experience. Traish even rewards those who seek out the fabled fowl by offering up all-you-can-eat broasted chicken on Monday nights at the unbelievably price of just $7.50 per person (about as much as one might shell out for a skimpy three-piece meal at one of the commercial chicken chains).

Breakfast offerings are available at any time. Our favorite eye-opener: the country-fried steak and eggs. The battered and breaded beef is so tender, it’s easily cut with the side of the fork. Of course, you still have to find the steak beneath the pool of thick, rich country gravy liberally poured onto the plate by what we safely assume to be a non-calorie counter.

An eponymous burger returns a smallish patty crowned with juicy tomatoes, zesty onions, melted American cheese, mayo, lettuce, ho-hum bacon (neither exceptionally crispy, smoky or fatty; just average bacon) and a glorious fried egg. The toppings trumped the generic beef. Still, it was refreshing to find a reasonably priced burger devoid of the pretension exhibited by the rising tide of would-be gourmet burgermeisters determined to flood the market with trendy takes on true comfort food.

—–

Moe’s Peyton Place
6516 Backlick Road, Springfield; 703-451-6620; www.moespeytonplace.com

Hours: Open for lunch and dinner daily.
Prices: Average entree: under $12 ($). Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.

(January 2012)

By Kris King

Eternalfeelings/shutterstock.com (bunny ears); Kletr/shutterstock.com (peanut); Yuliya Sysoyeva/shutterstock.com (wig); melkerw/shutterstock.com (mask)

If you live in Virginia for long enough—say, a week—someone, at some point, is going to give you a huge tub of Virginia peanuts. How the Virginia peanut became a go-to gift item for housewarming gifts or office Christmas parties is a bit of a mystery. Certainly it’s a great gift, but after a couple of fistfuls of the beefy legumes, peanut fatigue kicks in pretty quickly.

What else can you do with 32 ounces of peanuts? We quizzed Virginia peanut growers big and small to see what they do when up to their necks in the nuts. As it turns out, not much. “That is a tough subject for a peanut manufacturer,” Scott Stephens, sales director for Wakefield’s Virginia Diner, opines. “It’s almost like heresy to do anything with them.”

It turns out that among the peanut laureate messing around with the Virginia peanut isn’t far off from mixing soda with fine Kentucky bourbon. Dell Cotton, a kind of end-of-the-road authority on the subject and executive director of the Virginia Peanut Growers Association, treads along these purist roots. “I would rather enjoy [Virginia peanuts] the way they are, because you’ve got something there that’s very unique to start with,” he suggests.

Fortunately, not everyone is as revelatory of the Virginia peanut. The Good Earth Peanut Company often holds a recipe competition on their website (www. goodearthpeanuts.com) looking for the best way to try and stretch the Old Dominion’s signature product. Winning recipes range from soups to homemade chicken crust to fritters. “I have tried the peanut fritters; they are wonderful,” Good Earth co-owner Scott Vincent says, confessing that she favors adding peanuts to her stir-fries.

Even Cotton isn’t immune to getting creative with his nuts.

“There are many things in the kitchen that you can do to add any kind of peanut, but particularly you can add these, to spice up most any kind of recipe that you want to do,” he says. “You’re starting to see a lot more recipes incorporate peanuts whether it be the influence of Asian foods on our diet, which many of them use peanuts and peanut sauces, or … just adding them to a salad, but you can think of a whole lot of different ways to use a can of peanuts.”

(January 2012)

By Natalie Kaar

MNStudio/shutterstock.com

Just as having a doctor in the family can come in handy, same goes for a family oenologue. When the pressure is on to impress the fam with the perfect pour what do our pros prefer?

Like any good sommelier, Jake Parrott first considers everyone’s preferences. “White wine is the afternoon drink/aperitif of choice for most of the family, and so that makes the bulk of my wine-buying,” he shares. “This year, I laid in cases of two wines from one of the best importers of Spanish wines in America, José Pastor.”

Describing the first of his two selections, Parrott says, “The Señorío de P.Peciña Rioja Blanco Cosecha 2007 ($16) is not a simple wine. The nose gives off the almond, wax, lanolin, honey and poached pear accents of a traditional style Rioja.” He further illustrates, “On the palate, especially with air, this wine is considerably crisper, with clean apple fruit and just a hint of waxy complexity.”

Parrott describes the Benito Santos Albariño Rias Baixas Igrexario de Saiar 2010 ($18) as a little less difficult to get into, but still showing much more complexity than most albarinos in the U.S. market. “The nose is classic albarino, with rich peaches and flowers. The palate is similarly rich, but a laserbeam of minerality pokes through immediately, and the wine turns almost crunchy with quartz.”

An added benefit of the preferred pour is that it’s a good wine to please crowds of mixed wine aficionados and newbies according to Parrott, who remarks that the selection “rises above most albarinos, who have taken on a caricatured sameness similar to New Zealand sauvignon blanc.”

For Kelly Magyarics, the cornucopia of main dish options—“everything from roast turkey to standing rib roast, and from seared duck breast to baby lamb chops”—can be boggling. She thanks the wine gods for one “go-to versatile crowd pleaser that can hold its own”: none other than pinot noir.

Magyarics says she and her wine-loving friends tend to prefer the options coming out of Oregon these days. She also recommends paying a bit more. “If you step up the price point you usually spend by $20 or so, the bottles go from being good to great.”

In pinpointing specific especially pleasing pours, Magyarics refers to a recent Pinot Noir Showdown dinner at Bourbon Steak in D.C., where she sampled pours from California, Oregon and Burgundy to compare and contrast styles and food affinity. “One of my fave bottles that night was the 2006 Argyle Spirithouse Pinot Noir ($55), which I found to be a textbook example of what a great Oregonian pinot should be— bright cherry fruit and silky tannins, and the signature earthy aroma that is often lacking.”

Of course, as Magyarics points out, ham will be on many tables this winter, and she has the perfect pairing: “Riesling is a natural partner for ham, and a sparkling version just makes things that much more festive and mouthwatering.”

She offers, “The Germans surprisingly happen to consume more sparkling wine per capita than the residents of any other country. Their answer to Champagne is called sekt, and though they tend to keep much of what they produce … it’s worth seeking out.”

Her sekt suggestion: 2007 Peter Jakob Kuhn Riesling Sekt ($30), featuring riesling’s signature peach and floral notes but with a finish dry enough to hold its own next to a baked ham or pork tenderloin.

(January 2012)

Courtesy of Eat Good Food Group

Restaurateurs Cathal and Meshelle Armstrong introduce to the neighborhood Society Fair, a “multisensory retail shop,” according to John Wabeck, EatGoodFood’s wine director, who will be stationed at Society Fair full time.

Since 2004, the duo have changed the dining landscape of Alexandria with five unique properties (Restaurant Eve, PX and Virtue Feed & Grain). Now they have one more to add to their steadily growing list—a lifestyle food market and “epicurean emporium” designed for foodies everywhere. This one-stop shop combines a wine shop, bar, bakery, butchery and demo kitchen all into one gourmet market.

Their butchery features a rotating menu that carries unusual items (whole goat, anyone?); their wine bar and shop offers between 25 and 40 wines by the glass (a lot of sherries and Madeira); and their mixologist, Todd Thrasher, can whip you up six wine-based cocktails, offered at the wine bar (including one called, “I Want to Eat An Onion Tart,” involving onions and riesling.)

On top of that, a 12-seat test kitchen serves a limited number of guests each night using ingredients from local markets.

“More than anything, they want this to be an interactive experience rather than just an outing,” says their in-house publicist, Jennie Kuperstein. “It’s a neighborhood market with an old-style, European feel.” One where you get to know your butcher by name; where you can ask questions and learn about the products from experts; where you can shop for bread while sipping on a glass of merlot. Genius.

277 S. Washington St., Alexandria; www.societyfair.net
Open 7 a.m.-midnight. Doubles as a lounge in the evening.

(January 2012)

By Jennifer Whistler

Elena Elisseeva/shutterstock.com

Tired of drab dip? Sick of sleepy salsa?

Behold: Alicita Salsa—a locally grown product with international taste!

Founder and CEO Suzanne Fields is passionately committed to offering the best, freshest ingredients that satisfy every palate. The health-conscious consumer will love the all-natural ingredients and that it’s low in calories, while those with special food needs will love that it’s sugar- and allergen-free.

And did we mention the variety?

Fields’ scintillating salsas flirt with Japanese, Greek, German and Indian flavors. “We didn’t want to do just mild, medium or hot,” she says.

Alicita Salsa is available locally at Giant, Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond and TODOS (Woodbridge). To learn more about the gourmet salsas, visit: www.alicitasalsa.com.

(January 2011)

By Warren Rojas / Photography by Kate Bohler

Open-faced pork tapenade hummus sandwich

The world of high-end dining is currently enthralled by all things molecular gastronomy—a 25-cent word for the practice of, well, what most call cooking.

We’re more fascinated by the fact that a former biochemist is now preparing crepes and slow-roasting pork alongside her brother, a self-trained butcher, way in the back of a sleepy Winchester shopping plaza.

Sibling chefs Sandy Gallaher and Jim Parks don’t necessarily view themselves as epicurean trailblazers. But by virtue of following their career-changing dreams and founding the cooperatively run Butcher Station in May 2011, the duo have genuinely altered the ingredient gathering and casual dining landscape within their local foodshed.

“Our prices do not compete with Costco or Martin’s! Their products do not compete with ours!” the pair proclaim on the blackboard laundry listing their current slate of custom-trimmed meats, seafood and poultry.

Swiss chard bacon wrap

The butcher’s case, which remains the purview of seasoned hospitality vet Parks, displays a cavalcade of carnivorous splendors, including: house-made Italian and breakfast sausage, chorizo, pork belly, top sirloin, tri-tip, ground sirloin, Kunzler bacon, corvina, wild sockeye salmon and other seasonal scores. The pair pride themselves on buying local, turning to neighboring (White Hall) Angus beef baron Carl DeHaven for the majority of their meats, Briar’s Farmstead (Boyce) for their poultry, High View Farm (Berryville) for farm-fresh eggs, Trickling Springs Creamery (Pennsylvania) for dairy and United Shellfish (Maryland) for seafood.

“We live in a fantastic area and believe in taking advantage of it,” Parks says of their abiding commitment to locavorism.

The deli case is equally inviting, showcasing a treasure trove of ready-made sides and spices ranging from pantry staples like fresh lard and house-brined bread and butter pickles to exotic extras like hickory smoked sea salt and fresh green lentils.

Parks listed their dry-aged ground beef, hand-carved rib eyes and porterhouse steaks, and bottles of fresh Trickling Springs milk as perennial top sellers, though their house-smoked sausage is quickly becoming the stuff of legend. “Andouille sells almost as soon as it is done smoking if not before,” he warns of the highly prized pork product.

In terms of custom orders, Parks recalls being prodded to track down fresh moose meat. Gallagher, meanwhile, says they’ve experienced some ups and downs with fresh veal (languished after a swell of pre-orders, then flew off the shelves when bundled into a meatloaf mix).

Calamari salad

Of course, they can be forgiven a few missteps considering this entire process only really began taking shape back in 2009.

At the time, Parks was rounding out his second decade of bouncing around the restaurant scene, a career track that began with his flipping burgers on the Rehoboth boardwalk. But what started out as just another job eventually blossomed into an insatiable desire to master every facet of meal assembly.

“I collected and read any manner of cookbook I could find and tried every new style, region and tactic I was exposed to. I worked as the pantry chef, line cook and sous chef of some of my area’s finest restaurants. Trial after trial, I would try to duplicate the masters,” he says of his all-consuming quest.

Gallagher, likewise, began doing some soul-searching of her own following the birth of her first child in 2004. A return to the field of medical research became untenable. Instead, Gallagher elected to pursue an entirely new path: personal cheffing. “Having been a commuter who often wanted great fresh food, but was just exhausted when I arrived home, I decided to combine my desire to care for people and my passion for food into a new career,” she shares.

The nascent entrepreneurs eventually decided to join forces, and have subsequently built a loyal following among those who prize having a connection to their food above loyalty discounts or bulk shopping rates.

The shop is as modest as they come, boasting approximately a half-dozen tables, log-wrapped walls (very hunting lodge) and a sole, neatly tended book shelf stocked with back issues of Saveur, Gourmet and Fine Cooking, as well as copies of “Jamie’s Food Revolution” (progressive) and “The Southern Junior League Cookbook” (retro).

The carte, which Parks largely designs but Gallagher customarily executes, focuses on gourmet sandwiches, wraps and crepes plus a smattering of heartier offerings (pulled-pork barbecue, half-pound burgers).

House-made chili summons an OK brew of ground beef, kidney beans and saucy tomatoes. A side of spot-fried tortilla chips was toasty warm; though, we would have preferred to have had the crunchy complement shredded and incorporated into the chili.

The simple breakfast wrap is elevated to savory powerhouse courtesy of scrambled eggs tossed with wilted Swiss chard, chopped bacon, diced onions and melted baby Swiss. The loosely wrapped, slightly drippy bundle does right by all the collected ingredients. Not to mention that it’s a hell of a way to up your vegetable intake without sacrificing any of the other breakfast proteins we all so passionately enjoy.

Pork proved to be a bit of a mixed bag. We were smitten by the Mediterranean flourishes packed into one such number. The unconventional sandwich begins with a generous helping of freshly shaved pork, the meat carefully trimmed of excess fat but still mouthwateringly juicy. The real fun, however, begins when one discovers the briny olive salad. And then the creamy wonder that is the spice-infused hummus. And then the mellowing Muenster.

Their attempt at traditional barbecue, on the other hand, was too clever for its own good. The slow-cooked swine is braised in a coffee-cider vinegar bath that definitely tenderizes but does not effectively cling to the meat, producing surprisingly bland bites of shredded pork. Luckily, Gallagher rounds out each order with your choice of Golden Blends Barbecue Sauce. (The fabulously spicy, tomato-based Black Powder Blend gets our vote; native North Carolinians will likely tilt their heads toward the vinegar-packed Dry County Dip.)

Beef fared consistently better. Grilled roast beef marches out enrobed in roasted peppers, caramelized onions, more melted Swiss and tangy horseradish mayo, the surrounding slices of au jus-soaked rye doing their damndest to contain the salty, meaty, piquant experience within. The top-tier burger was pretty no frills but still wholly satisfying, rolling out a sizeable slab of cooked-to-order organic beef conservatively dressed with mayo, mustard, pickles, tomato and lettuce.

Seafood made us smile, whether it was a salmon burger bolstered by teriyaki sauce and spring onions or toothsome crab cakes threaded with carefully measured spice.

Parks promises that more tongue-teasing options are coming in 2012, like marinated calamari and arugula salads tossed in smoky tomato emulsions. Interactive cooking tutorials are also ahead. “Come hungry for food—and knowledge,” Parks counsels.

—–

The Butcher Station
3107 Valley Ave., Suite 106, Winchester; 540-662-2433; www.thebutcherstation.com

Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday.
Average entree: under $12 ($).

(January 2012)

By Warren Rojas / Photography by Kate Bohler

Hummus & Falafel

It’s not that we were totally shocked to find a rather progressive but still deeply personal Lebanese restaurant like Nora had sprouted up in an otherwise non-descript shopping strip along Gainesville’s main thoroughfare.

It’s who we routinely spotted dining there that ultimately blew us away.

For those who’ve not yet been, Nora is a dual-themed establishment owned and operated by veteran toque Walid Boustany.

Whereas his previous business pursuits entailed overseeing local outlets of the once-prominent Aladdin’s Eatery chain, Boustany has since turned his attention to this largely undiscovered gem—a passion project that aims to appeal to natives in need of a taste of home and newcomers looking to inject a little adventure into their gustatory travels.

The seemingly modest, suburban eatery also serves two distinct masters: those who shuffle into the booth-lined main dining room and favor the relative peace and quiet of subdued family meals, as well as lounge-bound revelers who flock to the sleek and sexy side room for prolonged drags of flavored smoke, a nibble of exotic eats and perhaps a glimpse of undulating flesh on evenings when scantily clad belly dancers wind their way through the clapping, leering crowd.

Cheese pie

The restaurant, which quietly crept onto the scene in late 2009, doesn’t appear to want to set the world on fire. Then again, it doesn’t really have to.

The novelty of the cuisine, we would wager, is enough of a draw for those who have grown weary of the fast-food circuit that cropped up along with the destination shopping complex that’s been the mainstay of this commuter community for going on a decade.

The main dining room is often perfumed by the lingering scent of foreign delicacies but appears perfectly non-confrontational, interweaving just a smidge of Lebanese art and Middle Eastern curio amid the standard table tents, local event announcements and otherwise mundane notices that otherwise blight suburban shop windows.

As noted earlier, the seats are regularly claimed not by famished Lebanese nationals or even unseasonably tan expatriates from the Mediterranean coast but by lily white nuclear families and groups of graying couples.

Granted, Gainesville is probably predominantly retirees, but we were still rather shocked to discover: 1) so many ethnic cuisine-loving, older Westerners lending their support to a newish establishment, and 2) the frequency with which said regulars returned to the fledgling operation (we spotted at least one repeat customer, if not more, during half our trips out to Nora). The nocturnal and cliquey nature of those attempting to shrink into the darkest corners of the adjoining hookah lounge made it harder to troll for familiar faces. But confidence is high; a substantive poll of the assembled lounge lizards would help trim the median age of the average Nora fan by at least a decade or two.

Home-spun hand pies made mouths happy no matter what hour we tried them. Open-faced pastries featuring tangy, crumbled feta baked to a golden brown atop rows of juicy, zesty diced tomatoes were all-around favorites. Half moons filled with cinnamon-spiked ground beef and sautéed onion ran a close second, while nutty tricornered offerings stuffed with lemon-soaked greens (highly acidic), crunchy pine nuts and earthy sumac struck a chord with vegetarians.

Chicken Soujouk

Protein-topped hummus proved to be the best of all possible pita-topping worlds. The garlicky spread arrives smothered with either thinly sliced steak, seasoned chicken, or both, along with sliced almonds and a rainbow of pickled vegetables (my favorite part of the multi-sensory experience). Beef and chicken were both good, but we would probably come down more in the poultry camp, while the pickled cucumbers and turnips were awesomely sour yet still pertinently crisp.

Chicken soujouk obliged us to burn through a whole basket of pitas, the mixture of finely ground chicken, minced tomatoes, onions and spices proving too irresistible to pass up.

Stewed lamb wants not for terrific company, revealing hearty slices of mouthwateringly tender lamb—rendered so thanks to the artfully carved ring of prophylactic fat left surrounding each magical morsel—nestled into dreamy bed of steamed rice, seasoned ground beef, minty yogurt sauce (brightened each mouthful) and shaved almonds.

A funky flatbread promises lamb, sirloin and pine nuts, only to deliver the same cinnamon-spiked ground beef spooned into various other dishes. But I still devoured every last bite, if only because I needed something to scoop up every last drop of the intensely spicy house hot sauce fashioned from pureed hot peppers and native spices.

Lamb kebabs were, sadly, rather hit-or-miss, yielding cubes of seasoned lamb that ranged from juicy and savory to dry and bland, or were just improperly deployed. Case in point: a kebab sandwich sabotaged nearly every one of the incorporated ingredients; the surrounding pita was too tightly wound and over grilled, effectively robbing the wrapper of much-needed elasticity and compressing all the underlying ingredients. The lamb was woefully dry, the hummus merely OK, and the pickled vegetables much less demonstrative than they had proven to be when left to their own delicious devices.

For all our explorations, the beverage carte remained wildly undiscovered country. The master wine list boasts over a dozen Lebanese producers specializing in everything from classic chardonnays and sparkling blanc du blancs to inky syrahs and tannic cabernet sauvignons.

Prefer something a little lighter? Wrap your lips around over a half-dozen fresh fruit smoothies (strawberry, chocolate-banana, mango+, guava+, Hawaiian) or any of the slew of freshly squeezed beverages (orange, carrot, apple, carrot-celery, orange-apple).

Nora Taste of Lebanon
14674 Lee Highway, Gainesville; 703-753-0233; www.norarestaurant.com

Hours: Open for lunch and dinner daily.
Prices: Average entree: under $12 ($).

(December 2011)

By Warren Rojas / Photography by Kate Bohler

Shake & Bake Milkshake

Upsetting the status quo isn’t necessarily what Ray’s ringleader Michael Landrum aims to accomplish with the unveiling of each subsequent restaurant project. But he sure does seem to enjoy it when it happens.

“People have predefined notions of why they’re coming to a Ray’s restaurant, and it’s mostly for beef,” the renowned steak baron acknowledges. “At the new location, I’m hoping to get a fresh start.”

That “new location” is Ray’s the Third (Rt3), the next evolution eatery that marries many of the growing restaurant group’s greatest hits with previously unencountered proteins and sweets.

Landrum long ago learned to manage the overwhelming expectations that envelop the eccentric epicurean’s every professional move. But that doesn’t mean he likes it one bit.

“My restaurants don’t get to open and evolve naturally. They open with a tremendous amount of pressure and to enormous volume almost immediately,” the battle-scarred restaurateur suggests. He chastises the entire hospitality industry for adopting the Hollywood blockbuster mindset, intimating that everyone expects huge opening weekends and land-office business every day thereafter, whereas he prefers to emulate the deliberate fine-tuning and adaptability exhibited by stage performers.

Fried Oyster Po’boy

Take Rt3’s fried chicken.

The rather juicy and delicious, Southern-fried bird was originally introduced at Ray’s the Classics. But Landrum decided to shake things up a bit, ultimately creating the companion “Hell chicken”—a marinated version inspired by Tennessee’s Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack. And even that remains a work in progress. “We’ve actually been gradually increasing the heat level,” Landrum confesses.

Same goes for the so-called “gushers” (Juicy Lucys by any other name). “That’s sort of the inevitability of my sick mind and that over-the-top product,” he says of the cheese-filled constructs that literally spray molten dairy and beef jus on those who brazenly rush right into the unapologetically messy meal (Rt3 – 1; dress shirt – 0).

Gushers will, at least for the time being, remain confined to Rt3—primarily because none of its sibling establishments is properly equipped to turn them out. “You can’t do that style of all-American burger without a flat-top grill,” Landrum asserts. And don’t expect him to get all freaky-deeky with the fillings either. “I’m pretty comfortable with the range that we have there,” Landrum says of the roughly half-dozen stuffed burgers he’s already put into service. “No need to get all Kama Sutra on it.”

No argument here.

Each gusher summons twin, five-ounce patties seared (medium or well-done are your only viable options) on a sizzling flattop, and sandwiched around the gourmet cheese—think: sharp cheddar, zesty pepper Jack, breathtaking Danish blue or decadent, double-cream brie—of your choosing. Toppings hounds can marvel at the sky-high accoutrements (melted Swiss, crispy bacon and a fabulously runny sunny-side-up egg) stacked atop the terribly-sloppy-but-oh-so-worth-it breakfast burger.

Hell chicken

Hell chicken proves quite heavenly, revealing a house-rubbed bird that’s fried but not battered, and escorted by quadruple-cheesed elbow macaroni and refreshing cole slaw. The featured bird is enrobed in cumin, paprika and other mystery spices, which are aptly complemented by the accompanying Hell sauce, a chutney-like construct forged from chipotle peppers, cayenne, onions and tomatoes.

The fisherman’s platter was—wait for it, wait for it—off the hook. The overly generous spread showcases cornmeal-crusted oysters (succulent and slightly briny), breaded shrimp (hot, crunchy and flush with tender meat) and thick, flaky catfish filets swimming in savory Creole sauce (bonus baby shrimp were, well, gravy).

Need something to temper all the spice the Rt3 kitchen is hurling at ya?

“Alkie” shakes to the rescue. Two film-inspired coolers include: the Kahlua-spiked Dude (Big Lebowski) and bacon-topped Shake & Bake (Talladega Nights). “I caught a late-night rerun of the Ricky Bobby story … and it just happened to coincide with when I was making the shake menu,” Landrum says of the reverse engineering that took place once Will Ferrell’s daffy race car driver’s mantra took possession of his brain.

During our visits, shakes were being drained in mere minutes and throughout the meal; fellow patrons were ordering one as an aperitif, one with dinner and another for dessert—and there’s no shortage of booze in each serving. The shake & bake featured vanilla ice cream infused with a long pour of Kentucky bourbon, sweetened by chocolate and caramel syrup, crowned with whipped cream and finished off with thinly sliced ribbons of crunchy, hickory-smoked bacon. It was clever, but perhaps a bit contrived. We much preferred the simple pleasure of vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce and freshly chopped strawberries.

Landrum shares that he was thrilled to learn that everything BUT aged beef was flying out the doors during their first few weeks in business. “I was giddy and gleeful with how many people were not getting steaks,” he recalls. Of course, as time passed, orders of steak frites continued creeping higher, higher and higher.

But why dwell on the past when there’s still so much to do, now and in the near future.

With his cheesesteak venture now in full swing, Landrum suggests that two other languishing projects, his wine bar (Ray’s the Glass) and bakery/coffeehouse (Ryse) concepts, could materialize in realtively short order. “They’ve both evolved into things that should be coming out fairly soon,” the always-enigmatic entrepreneur hints to us recently.

A standalone seafood operation, however, may be totally sunk. Both the timing (he pointed to that fact that chain sub shops are now doing lobster rolls as evidence that entire trend has jumped the shark) and eye-opening research into the sordid world of sustainable seafood seem to have convinced Landrum to finally cut bait on that dream.

“It’s just not something I’m comfortable with,” he suggests, deriding the “very artificial, delusional sustainability” of a lobster harvest predicated on the overfishing of cod (the shellfish’s natural predator).

Ray’s to the Third
1650 Wilson Blvd., Arlington; 703-974-7171

Hours: Open for lunch and dinner daily.
Prices: Average entree: $13 to $20 ($$).

(December 2011)