Slushy Snow Storm + Rush Hour = Madness

I think I was too complacent about Wednesday's storm forecast. Unfortunately multiple factors combined to create a massive headache as people struggled to make it home from work.  Fortunately we had taken metro to work so we were not stuck in traffic for hours.  The only hiccup was the shuttle had stopped running, so we were forced to walk through the slushy snow.  Would have been much better in proper snow boots, but I was woefully unprepared.  

 

 We made it home safely together.  After a hot chocolate and a hot bath, it was time to decide what to eat.  I like having a package of frozen seafood, frozen shrimp or frozen fish from Trader Joe's in the freezer for times like this.  Some onion, mushroom, celery and carrot along with the seafood mix helped make a robust pasta fra diavolo.

Picked up a bottle of single malt scotch this week in recognition of Burn's Day.  The owner of the liquor store on 32nd and M Street recommended Tomintoul as an alternative to Macallan 10.  Very smooth and perfect for sipping while watching a little HGTV and relaxing during the storm.

Carrabbas in Ft Myers

Our final night in Ft. Myers, we went to Carrabba's Italian Grill with my parents.  It's owned by the same group as Bonefish, but we all liked Carrabba's better.  We called ahead to put our name on the wait list, so our wait was not too long. http://www.carrabbas.com/ The portions are large, and all entrees come with your choice of soup or salad. 

We started off with the Cozze in Bianco.  Nice and plump PEI mussels steamed in garlic, white wine, basil and lemon butter.  (Full or half sizes available.)

Lobster Ravioli in a white wine cream sauce.

Linguine Pescatore - mussels, sea scallops and shrimp in a spicy marinara.

"The Johnny" - Sirloin marsala and Chicken Bryan (chicken topped with sundried tomato, goat cheese and lemon basil butter).

Crab cake with sirloin and sauteed spinach.

Thai Old Town

With hectic post-holiday work catchup and packing up my office for the big move this weekend, it's been a bit stressful.  My boyfriend has been really sweet.  He's been driving us to work, and picking me up afterwards.  We have a chance to chat, which has been nice.  Last night he suggested we go out to eat instead of cooking at home.  We went to Thai Old Town at 300 King Street in Alexandria.  It's a bit nondescript, but the staff were friendly and you could choose how spicy the dishes were.

Seafood Ka Prow - Hot

Green Curry with Vegetables - Hot

We also had an order of vegetable spring rolls and a very spicy Tom Yum soup with shrimp.  The green curry is my favorite, and it was nice to order it a bit spicier than normal.  Everything was bright and fresh, excellent scallops.  With a Singha beer, it was just what I needed.

Pesce Restaurant in Dupont

For an office dinner, we headed to Pesce in Dupont Circle.  http://www.pescedc.com/home.html It used to be located further down P Street a few storefronts.  Now it is in the space vacated by Montsouris and Johnny's Half Shell.  With a name like Pesce you expect and the restaurant delivers some lovely dishes based on things from the sea. 

 The Menu.

The restaurant eschews printed menus in favor of a blackboard listing appetizers in white and entrees in red.

 Carpaccio ($12)

Tuna, salmon and flounder with frisee and lemon oil.  Very light and lovely.

 Steamed PEI Mussels in white wine sauce ($9)

While the bread basket's baguette slices were a bit hard, they was perfect for dipping in this broth.

 Crabcake with greens ($14)

Baked crabcake with a nice composition of beet greens and onions.  The weakest of the 3 appetizers.

 Salmon with haricot vert and mashed potatoes ($22)

Grilled to medium rare. 

Penne with tuna, chorizo, black olive and tomato sauce ($20)

The chorizo gave this a nice spicy kick.

Spaghetti with shrimp, broccoli, tomato, corn and a white wine sauce.  ($20)

***

It's a casual neighborhood restaurant with some lovely seafood dishes.  It can get loud, but works well as a date place, office dinner, or a nice meal out with the ladies. 

Inti Is A Hidden Gem

When you're walking up 18th Street NW, you could join the masses waiting for some machine-made margaritas and Tex-Mex food at Lauriol Plaza, or you could duck into a cute Peruvian restaurant next door and enjoy a relaxed and delicious meal on their patio out back.

http://www.intirestaurant.com/

I was lucky to go one time with a Peruvian friend who pointed out some of the more interesting dishes to try. I enjoyed the anticuchos de corazon, beef heart skewer, ($9.95) and highly recommend them to meat eaters. I would skip the 1/2 chicken with side ($10.95), it's not nearly as juicy and flavorful as El Pollo Rico in Arlington, VA. I have the best time when I order a few appetizers and a Pisco Sour or two.

Ceviche de camarones ($13.95)

Fresh and bright flavors from the lime juice, excellent shrimp.

The sweet potato and Peruvian corn (with its giant kernels) were nice accompaniments.

Yukita relleno a lo Inti ($8.95)

Fried yuca stuffed with beef, hard-boiled egg and olives, served with a huancaina sauce.

***

Pisco sours are light, frothy and nice to drink with the meal, but be forewarned that they take quite a lot longer to make than to consume.

***

3/31/11 Update:  Inti has unfortunately gone out of business.  Truly a shame.

Eating at Super H Mart

I love going to Super H Mart in Fairfax, not only for the plethora of Japanese and Korean staples and less expensive fresh seafood and produce, but also to have something delicious to eat. When you enter the supermarket, to the right-hand side there is a mini food court of Korean soups/stews, pastries and sushi. Each soup/stew is served with a few side dishes of pickled kimchee and rice.

http://www.hmart.com/ 10780 Fairfax Boulevard, Fairfax, VA 22030

Yuk Gae Jang - spicy hot red pepper beef and vegetable soup with kimchee and rice ~$8

Mul Kal Guk So - Noodles in a white seafood soup ~$9

Jjambong - red pepper soup with noodles and seafood ~$9

Peking Gourmet Inn

Eddie Tsui and his wife started Peking Gourmet Inn in 1978. It's located in the nondescript Culmore shopping center in Falls Church and serves mostly northern Chinese food, including its politically-incorrect moniker, Peking duck. http://www.pekinggourmet.com/about.html

The Tsui family continues to run the 275-seat establishment and sources many of its vegetables from Robert Tsui's farm, Grass Root Farm, in Purcellville, VA. The restaurant does excel at cooking a crispy duck which is carved table-side. Some of the menu items are hit-or-miss, but I do love their pan-fried dumplings and the pan-fried seafood noodles.

silky egg-drop soup
mmmm
fiery chilies dressed in soy sauce
pan-fried Chinese leek dumplings

Peking duck, cucumber, scallions and hoisin sauce wraps. At $38 per duck, it's not exactly inexpensive, but the ducks are expertly carved tableside by experienced waiters. At a rough glance, I'd estimate the restaurant serves 500 ducks a day.

Massive platter of pan-fried noodles with seafood ($26). Snow crab, scallops, jumbo shrimp, bok choy, mushrooms, snap peas and toothsome noodles that taste handmade. This dish was large enough for two meals for us.

***

We normally over-order. This time we used a little more restraint than previous visits. We still left with a heavy bag of leftovers. Perhaps we venture to PGI at off-peak times, but we haven't had to wait extremely long for a table. The decor is definitely dated, and it can be a bit unsettling to dine surrounded by faces staring at you from framed and signed photos on the walls. While a particular favorite spot for the Bush family, that fact should neither encourage nor discourage a visit. If you venture there at peak dining hours, expect a long wait in a cramped entrance way.