Freeze Jag: Effee’s Frozen Favorites

Posted by Warren Rojas / Friday, August 26th, 2011

August is historically the steamiest, stickiest, sweatiest month of the year–brilliant move, Founding Fathers, building the nation’s capital on a swamp–in these parts. We’ve tracked down 31 frozen treats (one a day for the rest of this month) to provide you with some temporary, and often insanely delicious, relief.

The place: Effee’s Frozen Favorites – 5051 Lee Highway, New Baltimore

The prescription: Tye dye igloo. A true roadside stand–Constant din of commuters buzzing by on Route 29? Check. Handful of umbrella-topped tables for those inclined to recline after promenading/pedalling over? Check.–Effee’s deals in chilled-to-the-core comfort. Take their signature igloo. The two-fold treat begins with ribbons of Effe”s “ice”–a frosty goo that management insists is non-fat and non-dairy, yet manifests sherbet-like consistency–piled upon by good old fashioned vanilla soft serve. The specialty ices tend to skew towards splashy fruit flavors (lemon, mango, watermelon),but we couldn’t resist giving tye-dye, a kaleidoscope of sweet-tart-sour (blue raspberry, lime and lemon, respectively) fun.

The heat stroke-averse tend to pull up to Effee’s wide and welcoming front porch, leave their vehicles running (a/c cranked, no doubt), tick off their order, retreat to the climate controlled womb of their conveyance, watch for the teeny bopper servers to wave them back over, dart out to snatch up their goodies and then whole back up in their vehicles.

Do yourself a favor: order big. Sit down. Catch up. And, most of all, savor the moment.

–Warren

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Keep tabs on the month long Freeze Jag trek here.

Hurricane Chow That Isn’t Terrible

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Friday, August 26th, 2011

IRENE NOOOO (Image shutterstock/ostill;Vladislav Gurfinkel)

I used to live in D.C. and I already got a phone call this morning from PepCo telling me that they basically plan on letting everyone down this weekend. Aside from the fact that I should probably tell them that I’ve moved, that call heralds that special time of year where both our infrastructure and basic government services fail us outright, leaving us to fend for ourselves in a post-apocalyptic hellscape—at least until Monday.

So, if you’re like me and you have yet to stock up on ANYTHING other than a big bag of candy, a pile of awesome movies and a bottle of alcohol, maybe you should consider heading to the store to make sure that you aren’t stuck contracting rickets over the weekend.

For that we’re here to help. Linda Holmes over at NPR’s Monkey See blog already has you covered on what to do when the lights go out (reading a gigantic book, for instance), so we’re going to help you with what to eat. Disaster food can be pretty terrible, especially when you consider that it has to weather potential power outages and preparation constraints. So here’s a selection of things to snack on while you try not go insane from boredom.

Snacks:

Texas Caviar

Canned goods are a good bet in dire times. You can eat them cold, they’ll last forever and you don’t need to worry about keeping them refrigerated. But room temperature veggies can be pretty unappealing, so you need to get clever with them to make them palpable. One thing you can do is mix canned black beans and corn (both drained) with your salsa of choice. It doesn’t require any cooking and is an easy way to make use of your canned goods. Eat it with that bag of chips you bought.

Potato Masher Hummus

A can of chickpeas, a jar of tahini, lemon juice, garlic salt and oil is all you need to make a halfway decent hummus. Though most recipes call for a blender to mix the goodness together, it’s just as easy to grind the stuff with a mortar and pestle, a potato masher or  a fork. Because the ingredients don’t need refrigeration before you make it, it’s a safer option than just buying the stuff pre-made, which requires immediate refrigeration.

Dinner:

Just Eat All of the Meat You Have.

If your power goes out, you’re going to have to deal with a lot of potential spoilage. To avoid that, go ahead and cook all of the meat you have in your fridge. This is especially great if you have a gas stove and oven so you can cook well into the storm (if you have frozen meat and the power goes out, keep that in the freezer, it will be good for up to 48 hours. Once it thaws though, cook it.) Since grilling is clearly out, pan sear your steaks; fry up that bacon and roast those chickens. A nice meal of Turf n’ Turf won’t kill you. This stuff isn’t going to keep forever, so remember: gorge, gorge, gorge!

–Addendum: If you don’t have a gas oven and stove, you might want to go ahead and just all of that meat now. Might as well.

Desserts:

Eat All of the Ice Cream

Like meat, dairy does not hold up when the lights go caput, but it doesn’t keep terribly well in a cooler like meat does either. Solution? Just stop what you’re doing and eat it right now. If you delay and you find that your ice cream is getting soft, make a milkshake using a cocktail shaker and your no doubt soon to be spoiled milk.

S’mores

The old camping classic rears its head around when the lights go out. Graham crackers, chocolate, marshmallows and fire is all you need for this simple treat.

Booze:

Cellar or Room Temperature Beers

Stocking up on water is always a good idea in emergency situations, so it’s always a good idea to keep a whole bunch of water on hand to maintain cleanliness and keep you hydrated. After you have that stocked up, go ahead and ignore it in favor of some beers that maintain a good flavor at higher temperatures.

Cooler space is important when keeping food fresh, so you’re not going to want to waste space on keeping beers cold. The last thing you should grab while you’re shopping is a case of watery domestics. Those things need to be served as cold as possible to hide their unfortunate flavors. Even if you opt for nicer brews, some stuff just won’t taste right if it’s not cold enough. Avoid lagers, pilsners, and hefeweizens in favor of richer beers whose flavors benefit from heightened temperatures. Things like English ales, porters, Bocks, Scoth Ale and IPAs taste best at cellar temperatures (54-57 degrees), while brews with higher alcohol content like Barley Wine, Quadrupels, Imperial Stouts, Imperial IPAs and Doppelbocks taste fine right at room temperature.

You could also drink a nice bottle of red wine too.

Hope this helps! Don’t die!

- Kris King

Freeze Jag: Kline’s Freeze

Posted by Warren Rojas / Thursday, August 25th, 2011

August is historically the steamiest, stickiest, sweatiest month of the year–brilliant move, Founding Fathers, building the nation’s capital on a swamp–in these parts. We’ve tracked down 31 frozen treats (one a day for the rest of this month) to provide you with some temporary, and often insanely delicious, relief.

The place: Kline’s Freeze – 8200 Centreville Road, Manassas; 703-368-2013

The prescription: peanut butter dipped cone. Not to steal the 69 Boyz thunder, but dipping really is contagious. Don’t get me wrong: regular soft serve is great. But once you’ve experience a properly dipped cone–your choice of soft serve dunked in quick hardening chocolate, a la that mysterious commercial goop known as Magic Shell (molecular gastronomy for amateurs)–there’s really no reason to settle for anything less than candy shell coated fabulousity. And Kline’s just happens to carry one of my favorite dip flavors of all time: peanut butter. Which means I can get my frosty-chocolate-(twist works well, too)-enveloped-in-crispy-peanut-butter on any time I please. And I please quite often.

Were I ever to tire (never gonna happen) of my ersatz peanut butter cup in a cone, though, I guarantee I could find solace in Kline’s Boston shake: a custom cooler featuring a full fledged shake–mixed in candies, soft serve and milk are all part of the package–crowned with a single-topping sundae (it’s pretty damn tasty).

–Warren

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Keep tabs on the month long Freeze Jag trek here.

McLean Philanthropist’s Donation Means Respite from Produce Fee

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, August 25th, 2011

Thanks to McLean philanthropist William E. Conway Jr. of the Carlyle Group, area food pantries will cease paying a 10 -cent-per-pound fee on fresh produce. Hundreds of pantries and non-profit organizations had begun paying the fee July 1 to the Capital Area Food Bank, the region’s primary supplier of food for the poor. CAFB was forced to introduce the fee in order to cover its own skyrocketing transportation and food costs.

The $1 million gift was announced on Tuesday at the construction site of CAFB’s 4900 Puerto Rico Avenue facility, a project that Conway jump-started with a previous donation of $5 million.”[Fresh produce] is a luxury for some people,” Conway told the Washington Post. “I wanted to try to help.”

Fresh fruits and vegetables account for 46%, or greater than 13 million pounds, of the 30 million pounds of food distributed by the Capital Area Food Bank this fiscal year.

Conway’s latest donation will not only buy food pantries a year without the produce fee; it is also enough to reimburse all produce fees paid since July 1. In the meantime, area pantries will continue to look for creative solutions to reduce costs associated with the provision of fresh fruits and vegetables.

And speaking of other solutions, you can help Food for Others feed more Northern Virginians by volunteering for the Harvest for the Hungry Project. Volunteers will harvest crops from the USDA Agricultural Research Center’s 3,000-acre farm in Beltsville, MD, which are then transported to a warehouse for distribution. Both children and adults are welcome. The project is still seeking volunteers for the upcoming dates:

• Sunday, August 28
• Wednesday, August 31
• Wednesday, September 7
• Wednesday, September 14
• Wednesday, September 28
• Wednesday, October 5
• Wednesday, October 12

To register for one of the above dates, email harvest@foodforothers.org. For additional information, click here.

Food for Others
2938 Prosperity Avenue
Fairfax, VA 22031
(703) 207-9173

-Johnisha M. Levi

Rent-a-Cow

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

According to WTOP, there has been a significant increase in the popularity of raw milk. For those who may not be aware, raw milk is milk that has not been pasteurized yet.

While the Food and Drug Administration states that there are harmful risks associated with drinking raw milk, those who support raw milk see it differently. The supporters believe that it can help cure digestive tract conditions, tastes better, is a great alternative to breast milk (for any mothers who can’t breast feed), and is overall, much healthier. This is because farmers who sell their cows generally have a small amount of cows. This means more attention to given to each cow, they are hand milked, and no hormones are added. Raw milk supporters also believe that the process of pasteurization kills most of the nutrients in fresh milk.

Since it is illegal in Virginia to sell raw milk, so instead, some farmers are selling cows in order to get around the law in a perfectly legal way. A farmer buys a cow and then sells a certain amount of “cow shares.” A cow share is about $35 a month plus additional fees. This will guarantee the buyer one gallon of milk per week.

I have personally never had raw milk before, but I’d love to try it at least once. The way people describe it, it sounds so rich and buttery.

Read the rest of the article here.
Washington City Paper also wrote about raw milk not too long ago here.

- Mai Nguyen

Bay Crabbers Fight Back

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

(Image: Shutterstock/Aleksey Klints )

Earlier this summer we caught a glimpse of the unrest amongst Bay watermen who are in financial trouble thanks to potentially needless regulation and a troublesome market. Now they’re fighting back, according to the L.A. Times, via The Baltimore Sun, banding together to push back against harrying regulators and the cheap, imported crab meat that undercuts their already stupid expensive product.

Over the past half-year, dozens of watermen have formed the Blue Crab Design Team, which sounds more like a cute name for a design firm rather than a collection of surly crabbers. The team gets together to craft ways to tip regulations away from sustaining crab populations into their favor. While crab numbers have increased since the dramatic glut of a couple of years ago, preservation measures are still intact, which causes grief for watermen that are strapped for cash.

One such regulation that Team member Richard Young points out is one that forces crabbers to head home 7.5 hours after sunrise, which means that crabbers would be heading home at around 2 p.m. today, cutting their day significantly short.

It’s not all big government punishing the working man, though. The article also reveals that many crabbers have been smudging their numbers out of fear that if they caught too many crabs then the government would limit their catch. Lacking reliable numbers, the government limits catches anyway just to make sure that watermen don’t empty the Bay of crabs again.

No concrete word on how much the design team will be able to accomplish in the long run, but I’m going to go ahead and venture a prediction: watermen will continue to be unhappy and underpaid, regulations will still be questionable and we’re still going to have to pay too much money for a bushel of blue crabs.

It’s been an entire summer and I’m still upset about paying $120 for half a bushel of crabs. $120! Come on!

- Kris King

Freeze Jag: Goolrick’s Pharmacy

Posted by Warren Rojas / Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

August is historically the steamiest, stickiest, sweatiest month of the year–brilliant move, Founding Fathers, building the nation’s capital on a swamp–in these parts. We’ve tracked down 31 frozen treats (one a day for the rest of this month) to provide you with some temporary, and often insanely delicious, relief.

The place: Goolrick’s Pharmacy – 901 Caroline St., Fredericksburg; 540-373-9878

The prescription: Cherry Coke ice  cream float. I don’t drink a lot of soda (too sugary). But on those rare occasions when I do indulge, I REALLY want to get my money’s worth.  And Goolrick’s delivered. No canned goods here. Each beverage begins with three firm pumps of cherry syrup, a steady stream of Coke from the fountain, two glassy scoops of vanilla ice cream–Goolrick’s dishes vanilla, chocolate and strawberry PET ice cream exclusively–and a dollop of whipped cream. The old school syrup works like gangbusters, infusing every drop of effervescent soda with stupendously sweet cherry flavoring. Even after siphoning every bit of soda through the straw, my journey into pleasure continued with every cherry froth-covered spoonful of eggy vanilla ice cream I fished from the depths of the fluted glass.

What’s most fun about Goolrick’s, however, is watching worlds collide. “Oh hey, can I use your iPhone?” a scruffy-faced collegian sporting multiple piercings asked a buddy as he plopped down on a blue vinyl-topped swivel stool that in all likelihood predates his parents. What’s old is new again. And the truly delicious, well, it’s always in style.

–Warren

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Keep tabs on the month long Freeze Jag trek here.

Crop Rapport: Quail Hollow Farm

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Jaanine and Steve of Quail Hollow Farm (Image: Johnisha M. Levi/Northern Virginia Magazine)

A is for Anise Hyssop
B is for Boneset
C is for Chinaberry
D is for Dusty Miller . . .

When it comes to herbs, you name it, and the odds are that Jaanine Glascock’s got it. If you aspire to create a Shakespearean garden, you are particularly in luck. Othello’s hyssop, Hamlet’s rosemary, Romeo & Juliet’s wormwood, as well as the lemon balm, calendula, rue, rosemary, tansy, wormwood (and much more) appearing in the bard’s other plays are here for the asking.

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree in this case, as Jaanine isn’t the only one in the family who has a green thumb. Jaanine’s son Mark has been farming for many years. He sells produce (including pitch perfect peaches—the best of summer for me—honey crisp apples, nectarines and peppers) year round at the Burke, Reston, Ashburn, Cascade, and Sterling markets.

Nectarines (Image: Johnisha M. Levi/Northern Virginia Magazine)

It was after Jaanine quit her job working for an attorney that she began to assist Mark at the farmers markets. Her herb garden took root ten years ago when her husband Steve inherited a portion of his family’s West Virginian farm. “It was a total learning process,” she explained smilingly. She started by buying up all the herb varieties available at Lowe’s and reading catalogs. You’ll now find her selling well over 100 plants (a count that does not include the various varieties of herbs like mint, rosemary, and parsley) at the Leesburg Market, the Berkeley Springs West Virginia Farmers Market and Quail Hollow Farm itself from May through September.

(Image: Johnisha M. Levi/Northern Virginia Magazine)

Along with her herbs and plants, Glascock dispenses plant literature, recipes, and lots of plant care advice. The most frequently asked question? Customers want to know how they can keep their cilantro alive. She’s taken to giving out cilantro seeds and counsels them to replant every two weeks.

While basil is her best seller, I’ll bet on mint every time. If you are a tea lover, you will especially appreciate the multitude of mint varieties, with evocative names like chocolate, lemon, pineapple and orange. Glascock encourages customers to blend the herbs, in either their dried or fresh form. Lemon balm, for instance, pairs particularly well with any of the mint.

Pineapple Mint (Image: Johnisha M. Levi/Northern Virginia Magazine)

Some other notable plants you’ll find for sale beside your garden variety herbs include:
-Sorrel (rich in Vitamin C; used in soups, sauces and salads);

Sorrel (Image: Johnisha M. Levi/Northern Virginia Magazine)

-Favorite condiments horseradish and wasabi; and

-The paw paw (think cross between banana and mango; rich in Vitamin C and antioxidants).

Paw Paw (Image: Johnisha M. Levi/Northern Virginia Magazine)

For the full alphabet of Jaanine’s herbs and plants (only the letters K, Q, U, and Z appear to be unrepresented) or for farm visiting hours, click here.

Quail Hollow Farm
5285 Highland Ridge Rd.
Berkeley Springs, WV 25411
(304) 258-0584
www.qhfherbs.com

-Johnisha M. Levi

Northern Virginia’s Farmers Markets and Hours

Annandale Farmers Market • 6621 Columbia Pike, Annandale – Thu, 8-noon
Arlington Farmers Market • N. 14th St. & N. Courthouse Road, Arlington – Sat, 8-noon
Ashburn Farmers Market • 44036 Pipeline Plaza, Ashburn – Sat, 8-noon
Ballston Farmers Market • N. Stuart St. & N. Ninth St. – Thu, 3-7 p.m.
Brambleton Farmers Market • 22875 Brambleton Plaza, Ashburn – Sun, 9-1 p.m.
Burke Farmers Market • 5671 Roberts Parkway, Burke – Sat, 8-noon
Cascades Farmers Market • 21060 Whitfield Place, Sterling – Sun, 9-1 p.m.
Clarendon Farmers Market• 3100 Wilson Blvd., Arlington – Wed, 3-7 p.m.
Columbia Pike Farmers Market • S. Walter Reed Drive & Columbia Pike – Sun, 9-1 p.m.
Community Farmers Market • West & Main Streets (Sat), North St. & Old Lee Highway (Sun), Fairfax – Sat: 8-1 p.m.; Sun: 10-2 p.m.
Crystal City Farmers Market • Crystal Square Arcade between S. 18th and 20th Streets – Tue, 3-7 p.m.
Culpeper Farmers Market • E. Davis & Commerce Streets – Sat, 7:30-noon
Dale City Farmers Market • Dale Blvd. & Minnieville Road, Dale City – Sun, 8-1 p.m.
Del Ray Farmers’ Market • E. Oxford & Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria – Sat, 8-noon
Fairfax Farmers Market • 3720 Old Lee Highway, Fairfax – Tue, 8-noon
Falls Church Farmers Market • 300 Park Ave., Falls Church – Sat, 8-noon
Fredericksburg Farmers Market• George and Prince Edward Streets, Fredericksburg – Mon-Sat, 7-6 p.m.; Sun, 12:30-4 p.m.
Frying Pan Farmers Market • 2709 West Ox Road, Herndon – Wed, 8-12:30 p.m.
Great Falls Farmers Market • 750 Walker Road, Great Falls – Sat, 9-1 p.m.
Haymarket Farmers Market • 1500 Washington St., Haymarket – Sat, 8-2 p.m.
Herndon Farmers Market • Lynn and Station Streets, Herndon – Thu, 8-noon
Kingstowne Farmers Market • Kingstowne Center & Kingstowne Blvd., Franconia – Fri, 4-7 p.m.
Leesburg Farmers Market • 20 Catoctin Circle S.E., Leesburg – Sat, 8-noon
Lorton Farmers Market • 8990 Lorton Station Blvd., Lorton – Sun, 9-1 p.m.
McLean Farmers Market • 1659 Chain Bridge Road, McLean – Fri, 8-noon
Middleburg Farmers Market • 300 W. Washington St., Middleburg – Sat, 8-noon
Mount Vernon Farmers Market • 2501 Sherwood Hall Lane, Alexandria – Tue, 8-noon
Nokesville Farmers Market • 13005 Fitzwater Drive, Nokesville – Sat, 8-noon
Oakton Farmers Market • 3200 Jermantown Road, Oakton – Wed, 8-noon
Old Town Alexandria Farmers Market • 301 King St., Alexandria – Sat, 5:30-11 a.m.
Old Town Manassas Farmers Market • 9201 Center St., Manassas – Thu, 7-1 p.m.; Sat, 7:30-2:30 p.m.
Nokesville Farmers Market • 13005 Fitzwater Drive, Nokesville – Sat, 8-noon
Purcellville Farmers Market• 751 E. Main St., Purcellville – Sat, 8-noon
Reston Farmers Market • 11400 Washington Plaza W., Reston – Sat, 8-noon
Smart Markets – Centreville • 5875 Trinity Parkway, Centreville – Fri, 3:30-6:30 p.m.
Smart Markets – Fairfax Corner • Grand Commons Ave., Fairfax – Tue, 3:30-6:30 p.m.
Smart Markets – Gainesville • 13297 Gateway Center Drive, Gainesville – Sun, 10:30-1:30 p.m.
Smart Markets – Herndon • 460 Elden St., Herndon – Thu, 3:30-6:30 p.m.
Smart Markets – Oakton • 2854 Hunter Mill Road, Oakton – Sat, 10-2 p.m.
Smart Markets – Reston • 11890 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston – Wed, 3:30-6:30 p.m.
Upper King Street Farmers Market • 1806 King St., Alexandria – Wed, 3-7 p.m.
Vienna Farmers Market • 131 Church St. N.E., Vienna – Sat, 8-noon
Wakefield Farmers Market • 8100 Braddock Road, Annandale – Wed, 2-6 p.m.
Warrenton Farmers Market • Branch Drive and Warrenton Village Center (Wed), S. Fifth & Lee Streets (Sat) – Wed, 7-1 p.m.; Sat, 7-noon
West End Farmers Market • 4800 Brenman Park Drive, Alexandria – Sun, 9-1 p.m.

Or click here for our full list of local farmers markets

Red Meat: Rock Harper

Posted by Warren Rojas / Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011

What’s a reality TV-anointed cheflebrity to do once the camera’s glare has receded? Rahman “Rock” Harper now basks in the adoring gaze of aspiring culinary students:

(Image: Urszula Stern)

Having logged countless hours behind the burners at various high profile, local restaurants (B. Smith’s, Ben’s Next Door, The Carlyle Club), Harper now dedicates his time to academia–he currently shares his accrued hospitality knowledge with those enrolled at Stratford University–and his burgeoning cookbook catalog.

WR: Salt. Pepper. What other culinary elements could you not live without?

RH: Tough one but I would go with garlic. It is amazing in flavor and a little goes a long way so you don’t need much. I also love the fact that it is extremely healthy for you!

WR: What’s the very first dish you ever mastered? How long did it take? Do you still make it today?

RH: Don’t know if I have mastered anything, because it can all be improved. My fried chicken is pretty close to perfection though. Over 15 years I would guess. Absolutely!

WR: What seasonal ingredient(s) get your creative juices flowing?

RH: Peaches and tomatoes!

WR: My latest cookbook obsession is …

RH: “Hallelujah! The Welcome Table: A Lifetime of Memories with Recipes” from Dr. Maya Angelou. I’ve owned it for a while but after thumbing threw [sic] it the other day I am determined to cook everything in it! She speaks, teaches and writes with such passion and love; her cooking is just as amazing.

WR: What’s the most challenging dish you’ve ever attempted? Would you make it again?

RH: Foie gras torchon from Michael Mina’s book. Yes, I have and I got it, but it was challenging indeed.

WR: If I could the spend the day working alongside any local chef, I’d love to collaborate with …

RH: Wow, that’s tough. We’re a “top 5″ dining city in the country now! R.J. Cooper. I’ve had his amazing cooking before, but I would love to see how he executes Rogue24 from top to bottom.

WR: What’s the easiest/quickest–but still wholly satisfying–meal you make for yourself?

RH: Scrambled eggs, a sharp cheese, chives, summer tomatoes, on toasted wheat.

WR: In the next six months you won’t want to miss my …

RH: Next book! Rock Your Kitchen Rock Your Love Life: Building a Successful Relationship Through Passionate Cooking

WR: It’s quitting time. I’m pouring myself …

RH: Big and beautiful California cabernet

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Just so you know, chef, I’m totally stealing your breakfast of champions.

Come back next Tuesday for another helping of Red Meat.

–Warren

Freeze Jag: Breeze Bakery Cafe

Posted by Warren Rojas / Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011

August is historically the steamiest, stickiest, sweatiest month of the year–brilliant move, Founding Fathers, building the nation’s capital on a swamp–in these parts. We’ve tracked down 31 frozen treats (one a day for the rest of this month) to provide you with some temporary, and often insanely delicious, relief.

The place: Breeze Bakery Cafe – 4125 Hummer Road, Annandale; 703-462-9093

The prescription: fruit bingsoo. I know, I know. If you’re gonna bother to eat bingsoo you HAVE to get the red bean paste-laced variety. To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t feeling red bean-y when I strolled into Breeze. In fact, I almost settled for one of their single serving fruit pops. Until I spotted a gaggle of giggling, pony-tailed Asian co-eds gleefully chipping away at a mountainous bowl of bingsoo. I opted for the same and was rewarded with a Technicolor treat loaded with a cornucopia of vivacious fruits (orange, kiwi, strawberries, honey dew melon, pineapple, cantaloupe), wildly sweet fruit syrup, condensed milk and big chewy globs of mochi (very marshmallow like). The syrup turned the shaved ice hot pink and intensified the latent sweetness of the complementary produce, while the sweetened milk gave the entire enterprise a decidedly dairy edge.

Solo diners should probably stick to the aforementioned fruit pops or gelato, as the bingsoo is clearly meant to be shared (preferably with a team of seasoned competitive eaters). Still hungry? Snag one of the ultra crunchy sweet cream twists from the self-serve bakery bins.

–Warren

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Keep tabs on the month long Freeze Jag trek here.