Lick Your Screen: Put A Fry On It Edition
Posted by Stefanie Gans / Monday, May 14th, 2012
Photo by Stefanie Gans
Plaka Gyro, a pork and French fry sandwich | Plaka Grill | Vienna
[Do you have a lick-worthy photo? Send it in: food desk]
Posted by Stefanie Gans / Friday, May 11th, 2012
Having trouble reading through May’s Nectar column? Need more help pronouncing that funky, super-fruit acai? Ahh-sigh-ee. Here you go.
First Night Report: Good Stuff Eatery Opens in Crystal City
Posted by Sally Traynham / Thursday, May 10th, 2012
Chef Spike Mendelsohn outside Crystal City's Good Stuff Eatery. (Photo by Sally Traynham)
Last night, while the team at Good Stuff Eatery finished up last minute preparations, Spike Mendelsohn‘s dad was outside chatting up the crowd of about 20 anxiously awaiting burger lovers. Inside, Chef Spike Mendelsohn, former Top Chef contestant, joked with his staff and hung out with his mom and sister amid rolling cameras. Mendelsohn once again joins the cast for a BRAVO show, this time capitalizing on his growing restaurant empire in Life After Top Chef. (Projected 2013 air date.)
As the clock reached 5 p.m., this family operation opened the doors of its second location on the commercial strip of Crystal Drive.
Be Gentle! (Photo by Sally Traynham)
Regardless of the sign outside, or because of it—warning all Good Stuff eaters that they might be captured on film—there was a constant flow of hungry people on opening night. With new items like the Steakhouse burger, American Wedge salad and Salty Caramel Kiss milkshake, customers appeared eager and content waiting ten minutes for a burger and shake. (Perhaps the “Be Gentle With our Staff” signs helped calm the impatient.) Meanwhile, some scoured over the “dip bar,” which includes old bay mayo and mango mayo.
With his second GSE opened, and a third in Georgetown debuting this fall, Mendelsohn is all about expansion.
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Palates Behind the Plate: William Walden of Goodstone Inn & Estate
Posted by Joey Hernandez / Thursday, May 10th, 2012
Photo courtesy of FREED PHOTO
A series dedicated to the palates behind NVM’s 2011 Fifty Best Restaurants. We know what they serve, but what do they eat?
Restaurant: Goodstone Inn & Estate
2011 Rank: #10
Executive Chef: William Walden
NoVA’s best dish:
The best dish I’ve eaten in a non-chain restaurant was a “Dragon Roll,” compliments of AOBA Sushi in Sterling. Delicious!
Never would I ever eat:
I love everything under the sun! No dislikes!
After work grub:
I snack on yogurt and granola with wild flower honey, as I want my figure back!
At home cooking:
I made lasagna last Tuesday for my seven year old little prince, upon his request, using only San Marzano tomatoes and fresh basil.
Burger, burrito or bahn mì:
I would choose bahn mi as I like Vietnamese food and that sandwich.
For Your Momma: Breakfast in Bed for Mother’s Day
Posted by Sally Traynham / Wednesday, May 9th, 2012
joingate/Shutterstock
Turn the house into a cozy bed and breakfast, perfect for treating you mom to a special morning of relaxation. Here are some easy, no-mess recipes that will win over any mom—and are ideal for in-bed eating.
Drinks
Blueberry Soda[food network]
Iced Caramel Macchiato [tasty kitchen]
Ginger and Honey Iced Tea [real simple]
Pastries/Sweets
Banana scones with Whipped Honey Butter [raspberri cupcakes]
Berries with Citrus and Vanilla Mascarpone [sundaysuppers]
Chocolate-Chocolate Chunk Muffins [browneyedbaker]
Savory Mains Read the rest of this entry »
Bacon, Egg and Arugula Pizza [the year in food]
For Your Momma: Edible Gifts for Mother’s Day
Posted by Joey Hernandez / Wednesday, May 9th, 2012
Flowers are great and all, but what can’t be eaten isn’t really worth it, right? Here are some edible gift ideas for mom on Mother’s Day.
Ayrshire Farms, for charcuterie, cheese, herbs, jam and jellie gift baskets and more.
Mom’s Apple Pie Company, for rhubarb pies, macarons, sunflower crunch bread and more.
Cupcakes Actually, for a 4 pack of flower cupcakes.
Rumored Creations, for customized gourmet gift baskets.
Karin’s Florist, for chocolate, gluten free, kosher gift baskets and more.
Edible Arrangements, for chocolate covered fruit arrangements.
Chicken Chatter: The Most Extreme Comments from the Arlington Urban Farming Debate
Posted by Sally Traynham / Wednesday, May 9th, 2012
Mark Lorch/Shutterstock
After months of discussion, the backyard chicken debate is on hold.
In January, Arlington County Board’s new vice chair, Walter Tejada, announced his focus for the year: creating sustainable and affordable food options, including the possibility of changing zoning ordinances allowing backyard chickens. Currently, Arlington’s code states that residents can raise poultry on residential property only if the hen house is located 100 feet from the lot-line in each direction. In densely packed Arlington, very few residential lots offer this much space.
There are interest groups sprouting up on each side of the urban-meets-farm discussion.
And after a recent meeting, the Arlington County Civic Federation tabled the chicken debate for another month. Jim Pebley of the Waycroft-Woodlawn Civic Association and Ed Fendley of the Arlington Egg Project debated the issue, but now it’s reached the world of nasty online comments. Here’s a look at some of the more interesting/opposing/angry/ugly/funny comments from the readers of ARLnow.com
Want more background info? Check out our past coverage about the backyard hen debate and the opposing points-of-view.
Pro-Chicken:
E2DAV says:
I am assuming Jim Pebley has never been around chickens…they smell no more than dog waste. It’s not like anyone is proposing a factory chicken farm…And, only a true suburbanite would think Arlington will get louder because a handful of chickens are around.
Zoning Victim says:
I was around farms where people raised most kinds of livestock (cows, pigs, goats, chickens and sheep) for their own food for most of my childhood, including living on one for years. None of them have ever smelled for blocks or even five yards. Giant farms can be smelled from a long way away; a few chickens don’t smell at all unless you lock yourself in the chicken coop. Since you’re deathly afraid of sickening the masses, I assume you wouldn’t do that to yourself…If you have to make up a bunch of inane garbage and call it fact to make a point, you never had one in the first place.
Anti-Chicken:
Elmer says: Read the rest of this entry »
This illustrates why the chicken proposal is not a good idea. If we can’t trust dog owners to be responsible enough to pick up and properly dispose of their dog poop, why compound the public “pooper problem” by trusting chicken owners to properly remove and dispose of their chicken poop?
For Your Momma: Hire a Personal Chef for Mother’s Day
Posted by Joey Hernandez / Tuesday, May 8th, 2012
mangostock/Shutterstock
My Mother’s Day wish is a day of rest. Mother’s Day celebrates our ability to cook dinner, drive the kids to soccer practice, work a full time job, do the laundry, pick up groceries, drop off prescriptions, bake brownies for the bake sale, read stories and generally, make life work. Looking to show your appreciation to mom? Don’t make her do any of that, especially the cooking.
Pamper mom and hire a private chef to come cook in your home. Not only will this be a great way to show your appreciation for mom but the family will all get to enjoy a great meal without having to do the cooking or the dishes. Here are some local options:
The Custom Kosher Personal Chef, for kosher
The Palate Pleasers, for vegan and vegetarian
Chef Paul Cooks, for American cuisine
Chef Bernard, for French cuisine
Cuisine on Demand, for Spanish cuisine with a modern flare
Food for Love, for American, Seafood and Italian cuisine
Posted by Stefanie Gans / Tuesday, May 8th, 2012
From The Brewer's Apprentice / Photo by Stefanie Gans
I drank a bunch of beer for the beer story.
I talked to my beer geek friends. I talked to my beer-obsessed fiancé. I talked to homebrewers. I talked to professional brewers. I basically stalked Bill Butcher. I attended a Greg Engert lecture on beer and then spent a few hours after class with the teacher arguing about what local means in a beer context. (A restaurant is “local” when it uses locally sourced ingredients. A brewery is local even if it imports all of the ingredients. There is really nothing local about it besides its location. Although, there are breweries tapping into local hops, local fruits, local oysters…)
I read through The Brewer’s Apprentice to learn about beer-making. I drove on dirt roads. I passed a llama. I sat in traffic. I sat in a lot of traffic.
I drank beautiful beer in an old farm house. I drank a Miller Lite in a dive bar. I drank beer that I will remember for a long time. I drank pretty damn terrible beer. I drank beer that made my nose twitch. I drank beer that I couldn’t understand. I drank a lot of beer. I drank beer from Ashburn and Alexandria. I drank beer from San Francisco, St. Louis, Maui, Michigan and Maine. I drank a lot of beer and it was awesome.
Earlier this year, we posted a poll soliciting ideas for the area’s best. We asked some pretty detailed questions about bars, retail shops, bar staff, breweries and brewpubs. After about six weeks, I compiled the answers into an excel and used the responses as a starting point for the coverage. The beer cover story is partly curated by our readers, by local beer experts (check out the awesome beer glossary and big thanks to: Nick Anderson, Kevin Bills, Jon Brandt, Thomas Cizauskas, Brett A. Robison, Michael Stein, Andrew Nations, Greg Engert), and me, the dining editor.
The issue is out now. The lists are set. But the beer story in Northern Virginia is just beginning. Like I wrote in the introduction, we’re at the start of turning Northern Virginia into a beer region. This year we will probably see new breweries and brewpubs emerge. We will see more bars and restaurants carry craft beers. We will see breweries able to sell beer for onsite consumption, a move that signals that beer is serious. Just as serious as drinking wine at a vineyard.
I was really excited when my editor told me that I would get to work on a beer cover story this year. And I’m really exciting to keep on drinking beer here. Especially here in Northern Virginia.
The Beer Issue
Gripes about the coverage? I want to hear everything.
From Fancy French to BOGO: 2941 Offers Lunch Special
Posted by Sally Traynham / Monday, May 7th, 2012
Photo by Stefanie Gans
Back in January 2941 relaunched with an upper-scale, a la carte Mediterranean menu. Chef Bertrand Chemel blames the decline of diners to the downward economy, of course, as well as the crippling construction on 495. Set in an office park, 2941 relies on drivers instead of foot traffic making it a frustrated experience to get to the Falls Church restaurant.
Now five month’s after the remodel, 2941 couldn’t be any further than its former persona of fine-dining and haute French cuisine with its recent BOGO (buy one lunch entree, get one entree free) coupon in the Sun Gazette.
Because 2941 “switched from [primarily] a destination restaurant to a neighborhood restaurant…the BOGO deal is a progressive marketing piece,” explains Jonathan Schuyler, manager and sommelier at 2941. “We’d thought we’d reintroduce ourselves, get the people who haven’t seen us before, be able to come in and take a sneak peak.” Previous promotions since the renovations have included half-priced wines and half-price burgers at the bar during March Madness.
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