Volt

Squeeee Top Chef restaurant trip!!!!  One of us had a plan to go to our favorite cheftestant's restaurant earlier this winter, but it was foiled.  Bryan Voltaggio was a close second, and his restaurant is a heck of a lot closer.  So off we went to Frederick with a pair of our most adventurous friends. 

I made the reservation over the phone--although OpenTable says that you can only book 30 days in advance, click at midnight of what would be the 30th day, and alas, it is booked.  You have to call (at least for now).

There are three (or really FOUR including the bar) areas in which you may dine:  a main dining room where you may order a la carte; the chef's dining room, where you are offered a 6 course tasting menu; and Table 21, where service includes--you guessed it--21 courses.  I know you're rushing to pick up the phone, but when I called T21 was booked through 2011.  Don't sigh with sadness just yet. Follow the chef on Twitter; he sometimes shouts out about last minute T21 cancellations, and a spot for 2 or 4 might just open up for you!  Just beware of weekday evening traffic up 270.

I'll run through what we had and then sum it up tastefully at the end.

The amuse--ahem, I mean chef's canapes--was a trio; a light crunchy poof of celeriac, a sunchoke soup (a fancier word for soup, but bear with me, it was liquid), and tuna confit on the right.  All different, all delicious.  This place is texture-tastic, as you'll continue to see.

  

Next, shiitake veloute with chili oil, basil, and pine nut sabayon.  Smooth.   Rich and delicate, at the same time.  We wanted to buy some jars of it before we left, but there were none available.  : (

  

Next course was a choice between a snake-shaped foie course that actually tasted like chocolate (I'm not kidding at all) and the goat cheese ravioli, which is what you see below.  The ravioli had some serious savory but sweet going on, with butternut squash and sage brown butter complimenting the still-firm pasta.  More!

Ever had fish that tastes like meat?  This shad (sitting on farro) has a dusting of dehydrated bacon, and the dish just doesn't taste like fish!  It's meaty and well-seasoned, and if you got a larger serving of this alone, you'd leave satisfied and convinced (aka, you'd "drink the Volt Kool-Aid").  The orange you see is carrot, and please, feel free to drag your fork of food along the various bright-colored purees that adorn these stunning dishes--it will never lead you astray.

NEXT:  I know, you're feeling full already.  BBQ pork shoulder with cannellini beans, glazed turnip, and pickled mustard.  If you like tender meat that falls apart at the fork's touch with flavor that makes your tongue write you a thank you note at the end of the night, then you like this dish. 

When J saw the bright colored fillings on these mashed potatoes, his first thought was HAMANTASCHEN.  After all, it was Purim.  But no, those were mashed potatoes, and although the one with the golden raisin filling was my favorite, they were not the star of this plate.  That would be the beef strip loin.  You know I'm not a big red meat person, and not really a big steak person--I'm the one who orders blackened salmon at Ray's the Steaks!  It's a texture thing, and it's part of the aftershocks of my former vegetarianism.  NO LONGER!  This piece was delicious, and I'd gladly eat it again.  On a daily basis.

White chocolate ganache, shaped into S-curves and chocolate ice cream, yummmm. 

 

We thought our meal was over, but these itty bitty ice cream sandwiches came out--dark chocolate, oatmeal raisin, chocolate chip---yum!

  

Swiped credit cards returned, we had one last gift--wrapped up lemon poppy muffins.  J generally isn't a huge fan of lemon (or poppy, for that matter) and he enjoyed his muffin.  ME TOO!!!

 

The waiters wear suits and Chucks (are you listening, fashion police?).  The wine (we did the pairing) was spot on and delicious, the sommelier quite cheerful. The place is modern and sleek without being sterile; it's comfortable, it's fun, and best of all it's unpretentious.  The bar has awesome lights, comfy and funky couches, and a TV that went from playing the Olympics to showing a view of the kitchen.  On this particular evening Chef Voltaggio was in the house, and in the Chef's Dining Room you can watch him (and everyone else) work--I was a little starstruck, but I held it together.

This is one of the best meals I've ever had.  I liked everything, and I'd have each and every dish again--you wouldn't even have to twist my arm.  Now my "Before We Move Away" list includes Minibar, The Inn, and Table 21.  Not so good for the wallet.

Have you been to Table 21, Minibar, and/or The Inn?  What reigns supreme in this town (and its nearby surroundings, of course)?  Any of these, Komi, Citronelle?  CityZen?

I leave you with the view from our table.

Volt
228 N. Market St
Frederick, MD
Metro:  Take the closest line to your house to your friend's house who has a car.  Ta-da!

Franklin's

First, SORRY to all the Google Reader subscribers who saw a Franklin's post the other day and got super excited, only to see it blank--I published by accident and even though I deleted it, I cannot control the feed.  AHHHH I AM OUT OF CONTROL. Please accept this apology, and this internet hug as token of my affection ::hug::

Ahem.

I drove past Franklin's in downtown Hyattsville literally hundreds of times before having lunch there recently.  And now I can't wait to go back!  Preferably after work-hours though, because by the way, this place is also a brewery, and the brewer, Mike Roy, started last month--he's blogging here.  On this particular lunch day I went for Franklin's root beer--not particularly fizzy, but a nice change from the old brand and name.  If it's local, I want to try it.


First E had a cup of chili.  I tasted it, and it was just delicious.  Really flavorful, not spicy, and filled with veggies and beans. 

Next came the sliderfest--I had a seasonal special: Chinese Barbecued Duck Sandwiches.  Three little sandwiches (on the most delightful cornmeal crusted buns) with shredded duck drenched in hoisin barbecue sauce. I LOVED that this wasn't one big ducky sandwich, because something shredded and saucy would have turned the bread into a soggy mess.  And there were THREE, so I could trade one with E for one of hers.   My shoestring-type fries were pretty good, but they weren't super hot.  I could see how piping hot they would be awesome, though.

E got the Nickel Curves--3 housemade merguez burgers, or lamb sliders, topped with tzatziki.  Super yummy lamby flavor, and a major texture shock after eating my sandwiches.  I was transported to a place quite Mediterranean, and if I made a giant bowl of Israeli salad I'd love to serve these little gems at my house. 

This place gets a big lunch crowd, but there's plenty of space.  Check out that upstairs!  With the TVs and everything!  And by the way, there's a "general store" connected to it--knick knacks, toys, tchotchkes, and also wine & beer.  And I spied this across the street, knitty friends.

Options in this area are slim, but if you work in the area or it's in between a friend's place and yours, definitely go to Franklin's.  There are at least half a dozen things on the menu I'd like to try next time--I should bring some friends. 


Franklin's
5121 Baltimore Ave
Hyattsville, MD
Metro: Red line to Rhode Island Ave or Green Line to College Park, then a Metrobus that gets you to Franklin's on Route 1.  There's gotta be a few.  Or drive!  Parking in the lot next door is 25 cents per hour--major bargain compared to the meters in Arlington.

Fridays are Fahbulous, and So Are Sesame Street Cupcakes

So the people have spoken (the people = YOU), and 16/26 (about 62%) of you say you'd go into Crumbs (one of the 9274 locations coming soon) and eat Georgetown Cupcakes to their faces.   Interesting!  Just don't start with anyone, readers.  Fighting is unladylike (and also, ungentlemanlike).  And now the week's (most important) news:

Speaking of cupcakes, heeeeey these cupcakes look like Sesame Street characters!  Via EBG.

A few weeks ago I read this article in the Times about growlers, and then on Saturday I saw one!  Thanks Shel for having friends hipster-ish enough (as opposed to old-school beerlovers, the other sect that seems to have 'em) to have a growler.  I love when I learn about something (I didn't know what a growler was prior to reading the article) and then encounter it shortly after--knowledge is power.

Announced this week on Twitter by Dairy G itself (herself?), Dairy Godmother will be featured on Tastiest Places to Chowdown: Presidential Edition, airing March 7 at 10pm.  Set your DVR accordingly.

In honor of the holiday, The Shiksa Blog brings us "Hamantaschen and the Story of Purim."  These treats are delicious and those of you who follow me on Twitter know how hard it can be to keep these little triangles CLOSED.  Via LB.

Yearning for summer Restaurant Week? Restaurants Unleashed Week, March 1-7.  The deal that caught my eye first was at Tabaq, yummm.

Also, watching curling is like drinking merlot, apparently.  NICE!  I guess watching aerials is like drinking 5 Hour Energy.

Have a great weekend!  It's supposed to be nice out, so go out for brunch--what's your first pick these days?

Cuba de Ayer

I'm sure you've gone to Cuba de Ayer for lunch after all of your curling excursions.  If not, you should go!  Honestly, I wasn't sure where to dine on this outer-beltway excursion, so I did what I always do:  ask the Washington Post.  I'm not sure I've ever had Cuban food (I can hear the clucking of my Florida friends from here--I'm sorry!!!), but I've been meaning to go to Cubano's in Silver Spring for a while--it just hasn't happened yet.   

First we shared the two orders of the papa rellena and tostones rellena.  The first is a lightly breaded stuffed potato with beef filling, the second came with 3 fried green plantains, again stuffed with beef.  These were both super tasty, but J liked the papa rellena better.  If these were hors d'oeuvres at a party, I'd totally fill up on them and not bother with dinner.  

 

For lunch we mostly got sandwiches, except for one veggie platter.  The sandwiches clocked in at about $7, and they were pretty huge.  SOME people couldn't finish theirs, but I had no issue (as per usual).  Curling can really work up an appetite, people.  I enjoyed the pan con ropa vieja (shredded beef in a tomato sauce on a baguette) and I'd get it again.  We even had a carafe of the very-fruit-filled sangria--if you don't like grape juice-type sangrias, then this one isn't for you.  But we finished it.

For a quick & cheap meal Cuba de Ayer really hit the spot.  Spelling sticklers, I apologize in advance.  The menu is rife with error.

Cuba de Ayer
15446 Old Columbia Pike
Burtonsville, MD
Metro:  You gotta drive.


Burtonsee6

Postcard from Austin

Austin.  WOW.  What a city---it's a constant barrage of breakfast tacos and food trucks (or trailers), and both are things I love.  I want to thank EVERYONE who gave me suggestions both on and off the site for places to go in Austin--first, thanks for even taking the time to respond to my open-ended question.  Second, thanks for leading me in the right direction, as you'll see below.  I couldn't get everywhere, but I hope to go back sometime in the not-so-distant future.

I'm gonna go through the highlights of where we went, throw in the links, etc.  Mostly I'm just trying to make you hungry, possibly early in the morning at work, and then you'll have to go to the vending machine and get something nasty.  Whoops.

First we went to the Saturday 4th & Guadalupe farmer's market. Some vendors had the most adorable names, like Seriously Sourdough.  We got a pumpkin spice mini loaf (bread, not cake, which is what is ounds like) that was chewy and tasty, a-ok to sustain you for 13.1 miles.  We also got some local olive oil and balsamic, and also jams from certified-organic Gundermann Farms.

Juan in a Million: Fresh chips, very creamy guac (not full of onion/tomato/cilantro like some people like it, so beware of your own preferences, ya'll), and DAMN some fine migas.  This meal provided my introduction to migas.  I ordered huevos rancheros, which was fine, but when I tasted my friend's dish I knew I'd messed up.  I made up for it a few days later at Jo's, though, so no worries.  Migas (at least in this case) = scrambled eggs with tortilla chips in them, onions, peppers, tomatoes, and cheese.  Dude. It sounds so simple, maybe even strange, but it's delightful!  Where oh where can I find Austin-style Tex-Mex migas in the DC area??? Anyway, there might be a wait, but JIAM is a great place.  Go for breakfast and go nuts.  We like their queso.

Saturday night we found ourselves at Annie's for a light meal at the bar.  We wanted some carbohydrates before the morning run but also something relaxed.  The restaurant was empty when we arrived, but the host informed us that we couldn't be seated because they were "all booked up for the night."  I looked around sort of puzzled, and asked if we could eat at the bar.  Several times during this trip we ate at the bar, and the hosts informing us that we a) couldn't be seated or b) had to wait at least an hour never suggested the bar option--both times we asked.  Hi, who wants to wait an hour and 20 mins if they can sit at the bar???  Not this girl!  Our pizzas (tomato, basil & mozzarella; prosciutto, arugula & parm) were yummy and perfectly personal-sized.  Maybe next time we'll actually go into Spaghetti Warehouse, instead of just laughing at the URL (meatballs dot com, ya'll).

On Sunday afternoon we were happy to find some cheap eats at mmmpanadas, conveniently parked alongside other food trucks after the race finish.  By then the sun was warming up the city and lots of sweaty hungry people were walking (or limping) around.  It shouldn't be a surprise to you that the empanada I chose had spinach, mushroom, goat cheese, and pine nuts.  Really.  It's as if I crafted it custom-style and called it the iEatDC-panada.  I'd love to try a sweet one, like Peach Cobbler or Mango Ginger.  MMM.

If I lived in Austin I'd be following them on Twitter for sure.

So I'm not sure about your travel strategies, but we made sure to check in with our favorite Travel Channel and Food Network stars before making any plans. So if Giada loves South Congress Cafe, then by golly, so do we.  And we did.  Ya'll, the mimosas are the bomb.  And have I mentioned that they serve brunch DAILY?  As in, every single day.  I basically licked my plate after I downed the smoked brisket hash--the chipotle adobo marinade gave it a nice kick, the fingerling potatoes were awesome, and I'm all about tortillas coming with every meal.  L loved her super omelet full of fun, but the real star of her plate was the smoked gouda potato pancake.  It was unlike any latke we've had before, with a rich creaminess and a tangy jab of flavor that was truly captivating.  We ate at the bar because of the hour+ wait, and it was plenty roomy, and the service was great. 

 


Next up was Hey Cupcake!  Like "Yahoo!" with the exclamation there.  With a hilarious menu and super tasty cakes, this truck has it goin' on.  I had the Michael Jackson, a chocolate cupcake with cream cheese icing.  And as if getting a cupcake to go wasn't enough, we stopped for ice cream at Amy's.  I really wanted to try pretty much every flavor, but I had to limit myself.  I went with dark chocolate and strawberry.  They were both REALLY good. The dark chocolate wasn't as dark as I thought it would be--I was picturing the deep dark super chocolatey sorbet at Boccato.  They had a bunch of toppings and even "crunch in" situations (like blend-ins at Thomas Sweet), but I wanted to taste the flavors for what they were.  If you want a crunch in, be specific, otherwise it seems like your topping will just be...a topping.  

 Dinner time! There was a limited menu at La Condesa because of Valentine's Day, but on regular days the menu is HUGE, and the appetizers look amazing.  Along with our round of margaritas, we started with the pork croquette (crispy browned outside!), red lentil salad (::raises hand guiltily:: Yes, that's so something I'd order).

The salad was a little low on the flavor I expected, but really--salad?  I could do better.  For dinner L enjoyed the seared scallops and I had the grilled Texas quail, topped with a fried quail egg, huitlacoche (remember the diseased corn?) and ancho-spiced fig marmalade.  This dish was super delicious, and had so many things I love--eggs in my food, fruity jamminess...it was an easy pick, considering my last quail experience.  Besides some complimentary homemade marshmallows & cookies (sort of a lovechild of the Oreo and whoopie pie), we also enjoyed the chocolate-orange flan with champagne sorbet. We ordered this without the menu and L's fine palate discerned and named the champagne!  We knew there was something going on in there!

Service was super friendly (our waiter suggested we hit up Pie Slice for migas, but there was no time!), food was delightful, and the location was convenient.  And I know if I go back to La Condesa with eNJoyNJ, I know we'll be getting the huitlacoche again. 

Jo's is a great spot for breakfast, lunch, or whatever.  We split a migas plate and had endless mugs of coffee while being stared at by adorable babies on a Monday morning.



On to the barbecue.  When close friends make suggestions, they cannot go ignored.  Even if we need their parents to pick us up and physically bring us to the suggested place.  I'm talking about the Salt Lick.  C's fabulous family made sure that we had our fill of delicious barbecued meats and even some cobbler and ice cream.  If you don't want to go for the $14.95 All You Can Eat (at lunch), then settle on the meat plate, which is pretty much All Most Of Us Can/Should Eat.  Brisket, sausage, ribs, potato salad, cole slaw, and beans.  We also shared a side of turkey (I know, why?) but to be honest, after all the real meat, turkey just seemed goofy.  I was like, "Oh, hey turkey!  Yeah I usually like you a lot, it's just that everyone else on my plate is 10x more awesome than you. <3xoxo."  The sauce was awesome, and they sell bottles there so you can go home and get all Salt Lick on your kitchen.

Did I mentioned this joint is Bring Your Own?  Oh, we brought it.  And can we discuss the cobbler for a second?  Not the thin crumb top that you may remember from cobblers from the now-distant past, but a thick, bready, cakey, top that would be delicious (and could stand up) on its own, without the fruit!  But with the fruit it's just a double whammy of awesome.  We had half blackberry and half peach.

If you're at the Salt Lick in Driftwood, you may as well stop at Driftwood Vineyards for gifts, the view, and of course some wine tasting.  I was doing little comparisons in my head v. the Virginia wineries---the viognier seemed much sweeter at Driftwood, for example.  I'm all about going to wineries in unexpected places.

On our last morning we stopped in the Hideout Theater for a coffee, muffin, and the obligatory breakfast taco (spinach and cheese, stocked by Torchy's).  We decided it would be a great place to sit if you were looking for a super hipster boyf.  They have improv shows every single weekend all year round, according to their web site, but it was 9am, so no improv was found.  But my latte was decorative.


I'd like to also thank L for her food opinions, planning, and patience--she rules.

Happy travels, everybody.  Who's going somewhere tasty for spring break???