Sweet and Sour in Boston

Happy New Years! Haven't posted since Thanksgiving, though not much has really happened to us culinary-wise. We did hit up a few places and here are quick hit reviews of them.

Tu Y Yo

We went with a big group to celebrate our boy Noah's birthday. They accommodated us but allowing us to take over the entire middle. They even separated checks out to us based on what table we were in, which is a great touch if you've ever been out to dinner with a large group and some people never know how much to pay. You won't be able to find guacamole here or other Tex-Mex treats. What you will find is authentic Mexican food which is absolutely delicious. I went with the Bisteces en salsa “Borracha” and it was fantastic. The portion was huge, the rice and beans that came with the dish was the perfect complement. In fact, I think I could eat their rice and beans by themselves for dinner. There are many items on the menu I want to try, especially their seafood offerings. I'll definitely be back. I give Tu Y Yo a 5 out of 5.



Lower Depths

Abby's brother has been telling us about this great beer bar with good hot dogs for a few months now. We finally went with Mike and Sam to check it out and it lived up to expectations. Tons of beer on draft and bottle/can form. A knowledable bartender that could tell us about all the beers. And a menu that includes hot dogs. I went with a couple of dogs, one with chili and one with kraut and pickles. Abby went with a specialty dog that had mac and cheese on it. We also go some tater tots. Everything was great. The dogs are $1 each and you build upon them with toppings that are mostly $1 each but some fancier ones are $2. Good cheap eats. I give Lower Depths a 4 out of 5.



Russel House Tavern

A gastropub with a good beer menu and a mixture of traditional pub fare with slightly more adventurous options. Service was great, our waiter being very attentive and knowledgeable about the beers and food offerings. We ordered some small plates to start: Crispy Pigs Head Parmigiana, Redondo Black Serrano Ham, Brandt Farms Marrow Bone. All of these were delicious. The pigs head came out looking like an arrenchini ball, but with pigs head meat instead of rice. Crispy and savory and surprisingly light. The serrano ham was salty with just the right amount of sweetness. The bone marrow was straight buttery goodness. The only problem is that the bread that came with the bone marrow was buttered and overpowered the bone marrow at times. Switching the bread that came with the serrano ham fixed this problem for us. For out mains I got the burger that I've heard a lot about (which when I ordered, the waiter told me it's on an english muffin and alot of foodies have been slamming the chef about using the muffin) and Abby got the duck. Both were great, though my burger seemed to have been seasoned a little too much with pepper. The fries were plentiful too. Overall, this is a place I definitely want to come back to and eat everything else on the menu. Service was good, though slowed a little towards the end of the night, but we weren't in a hurry so no biggie there. I give Russel House Tavern a 4 out of 5.

Holy crap I haven't posted in a long time. It hasn't been that we haven't gone out to eat anywhere, just been lazy. Here's some quick hits reviews.

Koreana

We got reservations for four on a Friday night for 8pm. Was told that if we weren't there by 8:15pm they were releasing our reservation. I can see why. When we arrived, it was freaking packed. The bar was packed, the sushi bar was packed, the entry way was packed. Our notoriously late friends (island timers) weren't there yet and it was only a couple minutes before 8. Luckily they showed up right on time and we were seated immediately. We ordered a lot of food and all of it good. Pros: bibimbop and bulgogi. The ok, but not as good: Wine Sam Gyup Sal and shrimp. Overall: a great night of food and friends. Definitely get a reservation when you go. I give Koreana a 3 and 1/2 out of 5.



EZ Grill

The greatest invention of all time? Maybe not, but it's close. The EZ Grill is the greatest tailgating accessory ever. Cooks fast, hot, and cleanly. I highly recommend. A 5 out of 5.







Pops

Went here for brunch. Not the cheapest spots for brunch, maybe a couple of dollars too much on each item, but the portions are huge. Huevos Rancheros had a nice touch with refried black beans and the Manwich was just crazy huge and filling. I give it a 4 out of 5. (This review is for brunch only.)





McRib

This is the greatest invention of all time!!!! I am so glad the McRib is back. 1 Million of out 5.




Home Cooking

Made bo luc lac and a Vietnamese fritatta with canned spicy tomatoes. Turned out really good.





I started buying sardines because Alton Brown said it's good for me in helping me lose weight. I made a sardine paste and put it on some toasted bread. Not a bad dinner.

Our recent trip to DC gave us some good eats. What we learned: there are at least two 5-star places in DC, breakfast is hard to come by, and a good bartender makes all the difference.

Ben's Chili Bowl

I've been here before. Abby hasn't. We are in DC, we had to go. There was a line outside the door. Ben's apparently has opened up a nicer place right next door which was empty, and since they serve the same food I'd probably go there if I lived in the area, but you just have to go to the historic location if you've never been. The line moved slowly, but was ok. There was a mix of locals and tourists in the crowd. Once we got to order we went with a chili dog, half smoked with chili, fries, and two chocolate milk shakes. When we paid we picked up two buttons that had the owner's face on it who passed away recently. We sat down in the middle back room and waited for our food to come. It didn't take that long, but it felt it because we were both hungry. Finally our food came and it was just as good as I remembered. Better even. The chili is a great beef/no beans chili and we knew right away we made a mistake not to put chili on the fries. The milkshakes were thick and rich and delicious. Sure we felt like we should run up and down the National Mall to make up for our lunch, but it was soooo worth it. I give Ben's Chili Bowl a 5 out of 5.











Gordon Biersch Brewery

A blah beer at a blah brewery. However, the restaurant itself is pretty nice looking with the columns and the ceiling. I give Gordon Biersch a 2 out of 5.





Oyamel

I must admit, I've had a Jose Andres chef-crush the first time I've ever seen him on TV a couple of years ago. His passion and love for food is just infectious, even from on the screen of my TV. I've been wanting to eat at one of his restaurants for years. Now I royally screwed up and was one-day off on trying to make reservations at Mini-Bar. So we "settled" for Oyamel, his Mexican small plates restaurant.

Everything, I mean EVERYTHING, was absolutely delicious. The service was incredible and nice and fast. We ordered the famous margaritas with salt air and it tasted like a regular margarita just with very fresh components. The salt air was nice and light and added just the right amount of salt to the cocktail.




We ordered the cactus salad, papas al mole, and four different tacos (baby pig, pork belly, beef, and grasshopper) to start. The mole was fantastic and sweet and savory. The cactus salad was a pleasant surprise...I've never had cactus before. This was a very palate cleansing salad. But the greatest items on the menu are the tacos. The grasshopper was spicy and crunchy, pork belly was buttery, the beef taco was the mother of all beef tacos, and the baby pig...well that was just a religious experience.







Abby had to order a second baby pig taco, so we got that along with a tuna ceviche and the huevos with pork belly. I also asked if they could give us a small plate of the pork rinds that came with the baby pig tacos and they said sure. Now here was the problem...we were stuffed. I scarfed down the pork rinds (which are second only to the pork rinds at Publican in Chicago in my book) and Abby wolfed down the baby pig taco. They accidentally sent out a red snapper ceviche along with the tuna ceviche. Abby liked the former better, but I preferred the latter. Finally the egg and pork belly came out and it easily could have been the best thing I ate that night, but I was too damn full to take more than 3 bites.





I had very high expectations for a Jose Andres place and I was not disappointed at all. I will be back to Oyamel next time I'm in DC. I give Oyamel a 5 out of 5.



The Diner

The Diner was just ok. I got the croque and dagger, which was a great name, and Abby got an Egg Sandwich. Both were ok, but nothing special. I give The Diner a 3 out of 5. (Again, like most places in DC, the architecture inside the restaurant was pretty neat.)








Martin's Tavern

Apparently a famous bar that we just happened to walk into for a beer and a snack. We got the crab cake sliders that were actually really good. Bartender was nice and personable too. I give Martin's Tavern a 3 and 1/2 out of 5.





Woodley Cafe

It wasn't that crowded when we went in for breakfast but service was very slow. While we were waiting for our food, the line out the door grew and grew. The place was severely under-staffed for a Sunday morning. Eventually a few more servers arrived and started seating all the people waiting. However our food took forever to arrive. Refills on coffee and water also took forever. Our food was luke warm when we got it. I won't be coming back to Woodley Cafe next time I'm in DC. I give it a 1 and 1/2 out of 5.



Capitol City Brewery

The beers were better than average. The prices for food were actually decently priced. But it was our bartender was fantastic. We talked NFL football and traded fantasy tips. He quietly slipped us two free beers and told us not to worry about it. I liked it. I give Capitol City Brewery a 4 out of 5.

Been wanting to go to Teranga since they opened last year. Finally went a couple of weekends ago and was not disappointed at all. We were greeted with the friendliest of smiles and sat down at the bar. After looking at the menu, I was slightly surprised (I say slightly because I read in passing earlier in the day about some Vietnamese influence in Senegalese cuisine) to see a few items that clearly had a Vietnamese twist to them. I asked the waitress how that came to be and she replied that as both were French colonized the mixture of cultures is evident in Senegal, which has a large Vietnamese community. Hm...learn something new everyday I guess.



A plate of toasted bread came out along with a dipping sauce that had hints of curry. We devoured this in seconds, not only because we were both starving but because the dipping sauce was highly addictive.



I had to order the Nem, which is Teranga's version of the egg roll. This came with a nuoc mam (fish sauce) dipping sauce. I have to say if you replaced the beef with pork you might be able to have this egg roll in a Vietnamese restaurant. Ok, the texture of the wrapping was a little different. Instead of being a lighter fried wrapper it had a chewier, ricey tasting wrapper. Not that this was bad, in fact, it was very, very good. Any future trip to Teranga has to include an order of Nem.




For our mains, I went with the national dish (Thiebou Djeun) which is a herb-stuffed white fish served with jasmine rice and some root vegetables. The fish came out looking a little dry, and it did taste a bit overcooked. The flavors itself were good, but I think I was expecting some bigger flavors. I've never had Senegalese food before, so my expectations might have been wrong to start, but I was thinking bold, spicy flavors. The rice was nicely cooked and the portion was huge.




Abby, who lately has been ordering a lot better (maybe luckier) than me, went with the Brochettes. This was grilled cubes of beef with yucca fries. Perfectly cooked beef with great flavors. She enjoyed the yucca fries a lot, but I thought they needed a little salt.



We weren't sure about dessert until our waitress described a rice pudding-esque one that comes with fruit. We both agreed that sounded fantastic and ordered it. The "sauce" of the rice pudding was very good and sweet and was complimented nicely with raisins and other chopped fruit. The "rice" was couscous and I wasn't a big fan of it, but Abby didn't mind it at all.



Service was very friendly and treated us great. Water was refilled in a timely manner, even though there were only two people working the entire restaurant. Some people had to wait because they had a large group (9 people I believe) but other than that it seemed like people were getting seated in a timely manner. Overall, I really enjoyed Teranga and want to come back to try other items. I do have to take half a point off because my fish was dry. I give Teranga a 3 and 1/2 out of 5.