PS7′s Restaurant (the name comes from a combination of the owner/head chef Peter Smith and the address at 777 I St NW) has made a name for itself as being one of the haute coutre restaurants and bar scenes in DC in the recent years. The very name of the restaurant has evoked a very fanciful experience to me, having heard about it for many years (the doors opened in 2006 after Peter Smith left Vidalia).

The truth is, Restaurant Week really gives an opportunity for local residents to check out places to dine that wouldn’t normally occur to them on any given day.  So after making our reservations on Open Table for 9:00pm, Jen and I headed over to the restaurant for a nice dinner after a long day for both of us.

We arrived just a few scant minutes after 9, and were politely informed that our table would be ready in about 20 minutes.

Really?  20 minutes after a reservation time?  Already, PS7 was not making a favorable impression with either Jen or me.  We generally arrive already on the border of famished, and this was the first time we’ve been asked to wait for such a long period of time.  Isn’t that what reservations are for?

So, having no other option than to agree to wait, we found a small table at the bar section and entertained ourselves through amateur anthropological studies of DC socialite scene, a veritable bacchanalia in full swing.  A giraffe was discussing the finer points of wearing seersucker in the summer with a rhino. A fawn gently played a pan flute for a maiden with long, golden tresses and emerald eyes. A republican eagerly hammered out the details of a universal healthcare plan with a democrat. Then again, I might have been hallucinating from the hunger pangs I was experiencing.

25 minutes later, we were picked up by the hostess (literally, the 100 lb. girl grabbed the two of us, powercleaned us simultaneously, and carried us)  and we were off to our table.  The reservations were late enough that we were catching the last few lingering patrons on the restaurant side, but it was still considerably packed given the time.  We quickly put in our orders, and were off to our evening’s gastronomical adventure.

First up, the bread basket:

Er, bread duo.

While the breads were pretty chimerical in themselves, one being a bacon laden biscuit, we were disappointed in the fact that there was more butte delivered to us than actual bread.  The photo here might not exactly do it justice, but each roll wasn’t more than two inches across.  I probably should be grateful for food gratis, but this simply wasn’t a good sign.

For appetizer’s, Jen ordered Sarah’s Salad and I ordered the Tuna Sliders; the former, a mixture of mixed field greens, candied hazelnuts, dried cranberries, and mascarpone lemon dressing; the latter, a trio of spicy tuna tartare in sesame seed buns with white miso aioli, and cucumber-cilantro slaw.

Sarah's Salad

Tuna Sliders

I’ll admit that the tuna sliders were about the size I was expecting, somewhere between a bite and two bites for each, but Jen’s salad wouldn’t be considered sufficient for an anorexic jackrabbit with a bad meth habit.  A Victoria’s Secret model would have sent it back demanding more being put onto the plate.  As we sat there, contemplating eating the rest of the butter (until the waiter came to clear the plates and the butter, damnit) the restaurant began to clear out considerably, with the patrons likely heading to other destinations for the evening.

So we sat there, and contemplated some more.

And some more.

And we waited some more.

Normally, I could understand an overwhelmed kitchen, but really, the din of the establishment had died down to intimate conversations at several tables, including ours.  I didn’t put a stopwatch on, but I did consider running over to McDonald’s down the street and getting a Big Mac in the interim.

With a small fry on the side.

Because I’m trying to watch what I eat. Y’know.

After what seemed like a semi-enternity, our entrees arrived.  I had been deterred from my original order of the Pan-Roasted Rockfish after being notified that they were out, so I was pleased with the a comparable substitute, the Pan Seared Trout, served with root vegetable “ribbons” and thoughtfully decorated with a bacon Coca-Cola gastrique.  Upon inquiring what exact a “gastrique” was, the waiter described the technique of harnessing ancient medieval alchemical techniques to fuse the powers of white wine with the sugar acidity of Coca-Cola.

So…you’re telling me you tossed some white wine in with a can of Coke in a pan and boiled it down over an open fire? Neat.

I’ll say that the portion of fish was much larger than I was expecting, but maybe that’s because I had already been set with the precedent of micro portions from everything that had been delivered to us thus far.  The fish was perfectly prepared- tender, flavorful, and just the right amount of sauce.  The ribbons were well executed as a presentation, although, this dish for all intents and purposes, was completely devoid of a side to complement the fish.

Jen’s Risotto with Mushroom (which does not appear on the normal menu) seemed to fall a bit short of expectations.  The dish would have honestly been a better side dish, perhaps to my Pan Seared Trout.  But as an entree?  It was glorious.

Mushroom Risotto

Another disappointment for Jen, and she finished this uninspired dish in but a few minutes.  If I haven’t explained this before, Jen’s a very light eater.  It really is no exaggeration that it takes no amount of food to make satiate her appetite, and all the food up until now had done nothing for her.

But wait!  There’s still dessert!

However, the desserts aren’t listed on their website online, so I am given no other option but to make something up in its place.

Skidmark Candy Bar

If I remember correctly, Jen ordered what amounted to a gourmet Snicker’s bar.  The soft chocolate exterior housed a cream chocolate mousse inside, topped with a light cream and sprinkled with crunchy candied bits.  Again, a great execution, with fantastic presentation, but staying the course, this dish simply did not satisfy in the manner that even a grocery store candy bar would.  The light textures and ingredients gave no gratification whatsoever.

Creampuff with Cherry Roadkill

I had a deeeelightful creampuff with a vibrant and cherry reduction that was pleasing to the palette, but somehow remaining unremarkable otherwise.  To be quite frank, had I not taken a photo, and given the lack of dessert descriptions on their website, I would not be able to recall exactly what I had for dessert.

Suffice to say, Jen also finished the dessert with ease, and for her to go through four courses without feeling overly full, well, that’s a rare occurrence, and not necessarily a celebrated one.

Me?

I followed up this meal at Jen’s with a protein bar, a bowl of cereal in almond milk, a bit of beef jerky, a few handfuls of macadamia nuts, and half a pint of ice cream.  Ps7, for all it’s hype, fails to rise to the occasion.  The dishes, while well prepared, take a good amount of time to perfectly prepared, and the portion sizes, for the majority, lean towards the diminutive. For $90 (without drinks), you’d expect more out of dinner for two.

I do hear that PS7′s bar scene is much better though.  Not being a drinker myself, I can’t vouch for it, but at least you could go somewhere else for a good meal afterwards.

See PS7′s on a map here.

Recommended for:

• Hyper-light eaters
• Time Killers
• Scenesters

Not Recommended for:

• Everybody else

Crepe shops have been popping up everywhere in the District since our trip to Paris, whether a simple matter of good timing, or zee Frenchies following us back home, neither Jen or I am are complaining. That was one of the great simple pleasures about Paris- fast food that was prepared right in front of you. No line assembly, no deep fried starches, just batter, a hot plate, and whatever you’d like to go inside.

As of late, Jen’s made Crepes-a-Go-Go a regular destination on her walks around town, and she’s definitely not the only one.

With three locations in the area (one in Gaithersburg and two in DC, propah), it’s clear that the owners have a good idea of what works to bring people in. Our weekend visit had us waiting behind a line of about 10 people, although orders are taken quickly at the register. There’s a small seating area at the back of the restaurant (Jen tends to usually visit the location just west of Dupont Circle), but you can just as easily have your order to go.

The options here are plentiful, and potentially overwhelming. You start with your choice of batter: regular, or whole wheat; and then from two monstrous lists that run the gamut of sweet or savory choices. Sweet options include Nutella, Chocolate, Raspberry, Banana, Apple, Brown Sugar, Honey, Cinnamon, and Coconut, just to name a few. The Savory choices include several cheeses, avocado, tomato, spinach, caramelized onions, mushrooms, ham, smoked turkey, roasted eggplant, and zucchini. The plethora of choices is undoubtedly half the appeal of grabbing a bite here, and there’s something for just about everyone.

I don’t think most people really take the time to watch their crepes being made, and for that, they’re missing out.  We’re so accustomed to having our food prepared behind grease stained velvet curtains that many ignore the simple pleasure of watching someone practice their cooking craft in front of you.  Although if that’s not enough to appease you, then these crepes ought to do the trick.

The price is about the same as a fast food meal, although the taste is exponentially better, and you won’t have that dirty feeling you get after having a McRib, where you want to take a shower.  On the inside.  Saturday afternoons can get a little busy, but it’s never too long before you can fill your gullet.

As one passerby outside the shop said to his wife after seeing Jen’s freshly made meal, “mmmm….Crepe.”

Crepes-a-Go-Go in Dupont Circle can be seen on a map here.

Recommended for:

• On the go lunches
• Weekend treats
• Vegetarians
• Cheese Eatin’ Surrender Monkeys

Not Recommended for:

• Vegans
• Paleo heads
• Zone Dieters
• Those who still regularly use the terms ‘Freedom Fries’, ‘Freedom Toast’, and ‘Freedom Kissing’

The Bombay Club is nestled comfortably along the K street corridor, easily going unnoticed unless you were specifically looking for the establishment.  I have probably walked by it more times than I could count on both hands, but it just doesn’t exude a presence from the outside.  Once inside, however, you’re treated to something that is clearly a favorite haunt of policy makers and lawyers alike.  The atmosphere inside is a cross between a contemporary spa and an old colonial English hunting club.  Candles flicker in pattern-printed glass walls with your gaze to the left, and bagged Bengal tigers on black and white safari hunt photos are worn by the walls to your right.  If there were any uncertainty as to whether everything around you really was fascinating or mildly disturbing, the food erased any reservations I had about having dinner there for Restaurant Week.

Aloo Tikki Ragda

Jen started her three course hunt with the Aloo Tikki Ragda, a dish of potato, white peas, ginger, cumin, and date chutney.  Delicious, fragrant, and very rich, a great way for her to start whittling down her appetite.

Bombay Sev Puri

I had the Bombay Sev Puri – potato, mango and onion puri dumplings, fully coated in a delectably fashion crisp flake and then covered in chutney and spice.  The dumplings were actually very light in taste, allowing the absolutely cataclysm of textures fully overtake your mouth.

Jen’s main course was a wild assortment of exotic flavors: creamy dumplings, spinach sauteed in ghee, spicy curries, and a pride of small dishes that each were presented in sterling silver bowls, brought over on a sterling silver plate.  Clearly such an entree would have to be so rare and different that it came disappeared from my collection of photos, and doesn’t even appear on their menu.  In guise of it’s poorly lit photo, here is a monocle wearing velociraptor riding an old-timey bicycle instead.

For my main course, I ordered the Mixed Grill- an assortment of grilled salmon, chicken and spiced beef, served with a spicy dipping sauce and a bit of rice.  Neglecting the rice, I pounced on the meats…and was fully impressed with them.  The chicken were chunks of dark meat, succulent, juicy, and perfect.  The salmon was also well prepared, soft and giving at the slightest pull of a fork, and charred on the outside, but just so.  The seasoned beef, while tasty, wasn’t particularly outstanding, just a standard preparation that played more of a supporting role than as the star.

Mixed Grill

Our desserts equally made a favorable impression on the both of us, yet once again, Jen somehow picked the better dish.  Hers, the Rabri- a sweet yogurt like dish served with fresh blueberries in a martini glass, a concoction that was just the right amount of sweet in just the right portion.

Rabri

Mine, the Carrot Halwa –  an Indian carrot pudding cake, served with a cinnamon anglaise.

Carrot Halwa

That’s not to say that my dessert wasn’t good and completely obliterated from existence in a scant two minutes, but it didn’t hold a light to the clearly suprerior Rabri.  I swear, the girl always picks better dishes than I do.

Well, unless it comes to meat.  Served in a meat sauce.  With a side of meat.

The Bombay Club simply is not what you’d expect of an Indian cuisine restaurant, and that is a good thing.  While it does have the roti, the naan, curries, chutneys, and other fanciful dishes that make Indian restaurants so great, they serve it at a slightly more upscale experience, which really makes this a destination worth going.  Prices aren’t cheap, but they’re not expensive, either.  Three course price fixe Restaurant Week deals are absolute steal, and I might just have to go back here again to check out their lauded Sunday Brunch sometime soon.  The dishes are, as you can see from the photos, presented in a fashion that isn’t commonplace at many Indian restaurants, and it makes each dish that much more of a delight.  The service is on point, and acclimating to your every request.  While you don’t have to show up in a blazer or haute coutre dress, I wouldn’t roll up in a t-shirt and jeans, either.

Check out the Bombay Club on a map here.

Recommended for:

• Curry Queens
• Naan Noshers
• Vegetarians
• Pescetarians

Not Recommended for:

• Paleo Heads
• Carb Counters
• Steak’n'Potato’ers
• Screaming Children

UPDATE: I found the photo of Jen’s dish after all!

Blue Moon Diner is much like one of the first girls you kissed in high school – unpretentious, fun, and filled with all sorts of liquor.  By day, it serves as a local trough for the masses, with the four hallmarks of any good diner worth its salt : a kitchen half obscured by two swivel doors, shelves covered in an assortment of liquors, bar seating at a long formica bar that extends the length of the establishment, and several tables of seating, for those who have to have a proper dining experience when they’re eating out.

But who cares about any of that?

What brought me here on a sunny winter afternoon is the promise of the most impressive looking pancakes this side of the of the Mississippi.  I could care less about the shelves upon shelves of Elvis memorabilia, carelessly shelved wherever there was space, or the two elvish waitresses, scuttling about the floor, armed with pots of hot java, dressed in tattoos and makeup.

Which is not to discredit the coffee here.  It’s nothing to write about in your correspondences to you friends in Tokyo, but it’s good enough to keep you warm and asking for refills again and again.

That’s not to discredit the omelets here, either.  Three eggs with a cheese of your choosing (cheddar, feta, swiss, provolone, gouda, $1.00 for aged parmesan, blue, or goat cheese) and any number of other toppings available (tomato, red onion, sweet peppers, spinach, zucchini, button mushrooms, or sour cream at $0.50 each, or bacon, ham, sausage, wild mushrooms, and salsa at $1.00 each), I was very happy with my order, a simple omelet with gouda, served with hashbrowns and toast.  It’s refreshing to go to a diner that offers so many ways to make exactly what you want, that strays from the typical selection of toppings you’d find at most other diners.

But as I had previously mentioned, what I’m here are for the pancakes.  Three buttermilk griddle pancakes, served with powdered sugar.  These pancakes were well above my expectations – fluffy, buttery, Homer pancakes.

Yes.  Homer pancakes.  Or as I’d like to call them, ‘Auuughghghghghghghggh’.

Apparently the cook behind those swivel doors has a rack of stencils, everything from George Costanza to Dr. Dre to, well, the most beloved dysfunctional father on prime time television.  The sheer novelty brought me in to Blue Moon Diner, but the batter they use for these hot griddle pancakes is off the chain good.  So much so that I wouldn’t hesitate to say I’d happily go back there on my next trip to Charlottesville just to have these pancakes again.

Blue Moon has long hours and an even longer menu selection, which can be seen here.  The staff is friendly and the owner can strike up a good conversation with just about anyone.  Quirks are in abundance here, but in a good way…and isn’t that what makes a restaurant great? Stop by, and tell them Norm sent you. They’ll give you a weird look, because they have no fucking clue who I am, but hey, at least you’ll get a good meal out of it.

Blue Moon Diner can be found on a map here.

Recommended For:

• Greasy spoon lovers
• Simpsons fanatics
• Hangovers
• Vegetarians
• Paleo heads
• Zone Dieters

Not Recommended For:

• Vegans
• Copyright Infringement Lawyers
• Weight Watchers
• Germaphobes

Most of us in the professional world are constantly on the go, so it’s reasonable that having the luxury of making a Paleo or Zone meal on the spot isn’t necessarily the most reasonable thing in life.  So what if you’re trying to start up on Paleo, and don’t even know where to begin?  The idea is that it’s not too difficult to make good Paleo or Zone choices on the road, or at the office, but it does require some amount of effort by you.  Nobody else can realistically make these decisions better than you.  Admittedly, Paleo is a good bit easier to do than Zone, so I thought I’d give a bit of a Paleo Primer, which is by no means comprehensive, but enough to really get you going.

Following the Paleolithic (Paleo) diet means cutting out a few things that are in abundance with the modern, industrialized culture that we live in, namely:

• Grains (Rice, Flour, Wheat, Wheat Germ, Corn, Rye, Barley, Oats, Buckwheat, Alcohol, etc)
• Sugars and Sugar substitutes (Sugar, Fructose, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Molasses, Equal, Sweet’n'Low, Stevia, Splenda, etc)
• Legumes (Peanuts, Cashews, Beans, Soy)
• Dairy (Cheese, Milk, Butter, Cream)
• Caffeine

This might seem a bit daunting, but as with anything related to diets, the level of strictness applied is directly related to the results you’d see in the end.  While the Zone may require a good deal of Weighing and Measuring (WAM) that tends to deter people, there is greater freedom in what you can eat.  However, with Paleo, there is absolutely no WAM required, but your options exclude a number of things that you can have on the Zone.

With Jen, it’s even trickier, because she really has no time on the road, coupled with the fact that she’s a vegetarian.  We agreed that allowing soy products in her diet a necessity, so she can maintain a sufficient level of protein.  Protein drinks are also allowed, although many of them are made of casein or whey protein, which are derivatives of dairy protein.  She has, for the most part, taken out a lot of the grains and sugars in her diet, which makes me pretty damn proud of her when she goes over what she’s eaten in the course of the day.  While she doesn’t follow Paleo to a T, the reductions of these things in her life makes her immeasurably more healthy, and less prone to develop diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, hypertension, heart disease, and diabetes.

How about some examples of what is Paleo and what’s not?  These are a few starter ideas for those of you out on the road:

Paleo Approved Proteins:

• Beef Jerky – A staple for me.  A great protein source that’s available just about everywhere, from Haute Coutre grocery stores to basement level bodegas that reek of patchouli and hemp, this is a life saver.  The important part here is to find a brand that really minimizes the amount of sugar used in the curing process.  Avoid ‘BBQ’, ‘Teriyaki’, ‘Mesquite’, and other high sugar jerky.  Go for ‘Original’, ‘Black Pepper’, ‘Garlic’, or something along those lines.
• Hard-Boiled Eggs – Whether you make these at home, or pick them up at a salad bar, another great source of protein.  The yolks contain the bulk of the nutrients, so you’re missing out if you don’t eat these, but you’re still doing great if you just want to stick with the whites.
• Smoked Salmon – Another great protein source.  Steer clear of ‘Farm Raised’ or ‘Atlantic’ salmon, these are the types that are called out on having high mercury levels.  Keywords like ‘Pacific’ and ‘Wild Caught’ are indicators of quality.  Don’t forget, quality costs money!  But it’s only your body, right?
• Canned Fish – Canned fish such as tuna, kipper snacks, mackerel, and sardines are superb choices, and all it takes is a can opener to get it open.  Avoid flavored canned fish choices, which are generally high in sugars.
• Grilled Chicken Strips – Another great protein source, and usually they come pre-cooked.  TJ’s and Costco both have great options, with TJ’s in their frozen food section, and Costco in their deli meats section.  Make sure you don’t pick up a package of breaded chicken, though.
• Deli meats – This one’s tricky.  You don’t want a deli meat that’s been cured or processed with nitrates and preservatives.  Honey Baked Ham is bad.  BBQ Chicken is bad.  Roasted Turkey Breast is good.  Roasted Chicken Breast is also good.  Hopefully that’s enough of a guideline, but a good general rule is that if it’s flavored in anything other than just herbs or pepper, it’s probably loaded with nitrates.  And shredded Chinese newspaper filler.

Paleo Approved Carbohydrates:

• Vegetables - When you think of where you’re getting the bulk of your carbs, they should be from vegetables.  Organic sweet peppers are great, can be easily sliced and ready to go.  Celery is another great veggie, and also simultaneously cleans your breath as you chew it (it can be a little bland by itself, see the fats below for ideas on making it a little better). Sliced tomatoes with a bit of sea salt are delicious.  Salad bars are plentiful pretty much everywhere, just make sure you don’t stray with a poor dressing choice.  Olive oil and vinegar is always a perfect complement.  Carrot sticks make an excellent food choice.  Lettuce works as a perfectly acceptable substitute to wrap meats in instead of breads or grain based wraps.
• Fruits - Go organic if you’re eating it whole or with the skin, but the sky’s the limit here.  If you’re trying to be green, buy what’s in season.  Apples, strawberries, grapes, oranges, pineapple, pears, blueberries, kiwi, etc…
• Unprocessed or Raw Honey – There is some debate to whether being raw matters or not, but if you can take the slightly extra effort to find a large portion of raw honey, you’ll be set.  There’s always using Google on the interwebs.  Moderation is key here, but there’s nothing wrong with having a TINY bit of honey in your cup of tea, although I don’t recommend dumping a pack of honey into every cup of tea you have.

Paleo Approved Fats:

• Nut Butters – If you’re on the go, I HIGHLY recommend picking up a large quantity (20+ packs) of Justin’s Nut Butters.  These single serving packs of nut butters go great on just about everything, including celery, carrots and apples .  Steer clear of the peanut butters though!  They’re readily available at Whole Paycheque, but you can find slighly better deals online at e-tailers such as Amazon.
• Nuts and Seeds – You can pick up a large bag of nuts anywhere, but avoid peanuts and cashews, which both fall into the legume category.  Almonds, hazelnuts, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, filberts, macadamia nuts, pecans, etc, are all very good fat choices.
• Avocado – If you can stop into a grocery store, usually you can dig out one that’s just about ripe and ready to go.  A little bit of sea salt and pepper goes a long way, and a dash of lemon juice will take you even further.

Paleo Approved Alcohols:

• Grape based alcohol such as wine
• Agave based tequilas

Two or my favorite and most trusted condiments are mustard and hot sauce.  You can’t go wrong with a dash of these, especially on canned fish.  Avoid honey mustard that’s been produced with sugar, but german mustard or stone ground mustard is perfect.

Some of things you’d normally take to enhance the flavor of your foods just aren’t Paleo.  Ketchup has lots of sugar.  Soy sauce is made with wheat.

If you’re fiending for a drink, these choices are going to be better for you.  Alcohol should be consumed in moderation, and these two choices are at the top of the list.  If you have to drink though, and neither of these two options are going to work out, liquor is a much better choice than beer.

Remember, almost everything you buy that comes in a package is going to have the Nutrition Facts and the Ingredients listed somewhere.  Pay attention to the ‘Sugars’ under Carbohydrates, making sure to get the lowest number possible.  Zero grams is an ideal number.

Another fantastic practice is to really slow down how fast you eat your meals.  You want to eat until you are not hungry, but not until you are full.  This was one of my greatest challenges in changing my diet, because for the longest time in my life, I was conditioned to believe that being full meant I was no longer hungry.  These two things are not one and the same.

By and large, consider all of this a guideline.  If you do some searching on the topic of ‘Paleo diet’ out on the Googoracle, you’ll find a considerable wealth of information, with entire blogs dedicated to the lifestyle of eating Paleo.  You’ll also find some small bits of contradicting information out there.  For instance, some people suggest avoiding canned meats altogether.  However, it comes down to how much effort you want to exercise into following your diet and getting the results you want to see.  Ideally, I’d like everybody to live longer lives, and be around to eat to eat a few more meals with me.

Anatolia is a Mediterranean restaurant just off of Restaurant Row in Orlando.  The menu boasts a variety of dishes, with plentiful vegan and vegetarian options, which is a rare treat for non-meat eaters and omnivores alike.  Lunch specials appear on the menu there, but not online-  which is a shame, because these really are a fantastic deal.  You can get a four course meal for under $20, including soup, salad, an entree, and a dessert.  My Dad took up the offer, ordering the Lentil Soup, Shepherd’s Salad, Gyro, and Sutlac (Rice Pudding).  I went with Dana Sote (Beef Saute), which was a perfect Paleo pick without an ounce of bulgur wheat, couscous, or bread.

Every seated guest also is treated to a complimentary dishes of kalamata olives soaked in olive oil and herbs, and a sour cabbage that I can only describe as ‘yuck’.

The Lentil Soup and Shepherd’s Salad came out next, with my Dad taking the former and giving me the latter.  The Lentils were actually blended rather kept in their bean form, which gave it a very exotic and rich consistency.  However, it still fell a bit short of expectations, so this is another dish where I’d suggest giving it a miss.

The Shepherd’s pie doesn’t come with any surprises, just a really good salad.  Tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, and onions in a lemon and olive oil vinaigrette.  This dish is full of great tasting fresh vegetables, and seemed perfectly proportioned throughout.

The Gyro (at least I remember it as being a gyro, so if it’s not, boo on you) that my Dad ordered seemed a little…flat.  And non-substantial.  After a closer inspection of the contents, it appeared that the majority of the contents were potato wedges rather than meat, which was really disappointing.  All filler and no substance, and I give this one a big thumbs down.  My Dad liked it well enough, but he agreed that it was definitely more potato and bread than meat.

My Keyser Sote dish looked pretty enough, and definitely tasted great.  Lots of spices in the sauce, and well decorated with paprika garnished around the plate  as well as fresh cilantro on top.  But again, where’s the actual meat of this dish?  For the price, the substance is really lacking.

Then onto dessert.  The Sutlac is unquestionably just rice pudding, despite the fancy description provided by the restaurant.  They give you a good size of it here, though, what would amount to probably a pint of what’d you’d pick up at the store.  I remember the days when I used to pick up pints of Kozyshack Rice Pudding and Tapioca Pudding and absolutely decimate it in a single sitting.  It’s prepared with lots of sugar here, and definitely a dessert that that’s easily shared between two people.

Overall, Anatolia is a great place to eat…if you’re a vegetarian or vegan.  From either of those two perspectives, this place is a nice find, tucked away in Orlando, with a large variety of dishes to choose from.  However, the meat dishes do not come close to satisfying or making you feel as if you’ve really gotten a good meal at a good value.  The tend to be very light on what you’re actually ordering.  The presentation remains excellent on everything served here, but just not what I was hoping to get out eating here.

Recommended for:

• Vegan
• Vegetarians
• Mediterranean Aficionados
• Zone Zealots
• Paleoheads

Not Recommended for:

• Raptors
• Carbophobes
• Carnivores

See Anatolia Mediterranean Cuisine on a map here.

The Original Pancake House is a chain of diners with locations all over the country.  These diners are in the same vein as IHOP, but the primary focus at TOPH is without a doubt, pancakes, and lots of them.  The variety extends not only to unique creations such as the Bacon Pancakes or Georgia Pecan Pancakes, but they also serve Wheat Germ Pancakes, Swedish Pancakes, Gluten Free Pancakes, as well as a raft of other choices.

On this particular visit, I decided that I should give one of TOPH’s house specialties a try.  They offer two pancake specials:  the Apple Pancake (optionally served a la mode) and the Dutch Baby, of which I opted for the former.  The Apple Pancake is made with Granny Smith apples and pure Sinkiang cinnamon, while the Dutch Baby is served with whipped butter, lemon, and powdered sugar. Both are placed in the oven and baked to perfection. It’s only one pancake with each order, so, I went for the Apple Pancake a la mode.

Naturally.

With a side of turkey sausage links.

I mean, how much food could a single pancake really be, right?

Sweet merciful crap, if I’ve ever said that you can’t have too much of a good thing, I take it back.  Babies wail at the whisper of the order.  Old ladies faint at the sight of it departing the kitchen.  Virgins…heh.  Well.  Virgins must be sacrificed to the great pancake God Pancaykahthopalu for such a thing to be created.

Really though, this was a thing of beauty.  Not really the fluffy type of pancake you expect, but this thing comes off more as a giant dish of bread pudding topped with cinnamon apples. It was just…a little overwhelming.

The six scoops of ice cream didn’t exactly help, either.

It seemed that with a dish that’s so over the top, everything else would come as sub-par.  But no.  The coffee here is actually reasonable, and the wait staff occasionally saunters by to top you off, making each visit to TOPH a four cup minimum.  The sausage was tasty, but in retrospect, totally unnecessary.  This thing makes a better shared dish if you’re going to go for it, but make sure that you’ve got plenty of time to nap after.  Believe me, you’ll need it. The coffee will only suffice in getting you home without falling asleep at the wheel.

The Original Pancake House can get busy in the morning on the weekends, but late morning/early afternoon brunches are perfect.  The place closes at 3pm, so don’t wait too long to get in and have a good meal with good friends.

Recommended for:

• Pancaykahthopalu Zealots
• Brunchers
• Binge Eaters
• Diner Junkies

Not Recommended for:

• Carbaphobes
• Weak-willed dieters
• Screaming children
• Impatient Gastronoms

The Original Pancake House has numerous locations all over the country.  Find your local one here.

During the winter months, it’s easy to catch a cold and feel absolutely miserable for days. One of the best natural remedies that comes to mind is (thanks to heavy advertising on Campbell’s part) nothing more than a simple bowl of Chicken Noodle Soup.

But most of us are grown-ups, and a mass produced 80 cent can of soup with more sodium and water than anything else isn’t really going to take us very far.  So I’ve come up with this recipe, that emphasizes re-inserting the things that really make you feel better: plenty of fresh vegetables, and chicken broth.  You can always make your own chicken broth from scraps, but if you’re a little pinched on time, getting a tetra-pack (avoid cans) of low sodium chicken broth will do just fine.

I’ve also take enoki mushrooms and used them as a substitute for the pasta noodles normally called for in this dish.  You get a similar texture to regular chicken noodle soup, without the useless carbs, AND the added benefit of what mushrooms normally have to offer: potassium, B vitamins, and amino acids.

So with that, here’s my solution to helping you get over that winter cold.

Ingredients:

• 1 package of enoki mushrooms, with roots trimmed
• 1 cup of carrots, cut into 1/2″ slices
• 1 cup of celery, cut into 1/2″ slices
• 1 cup of red onions, roughly chopped
• 2 cups of low sodium chicken broth
• 1 cage free egg, beaten
• 1 tbsp walnut oil or olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

Directions:

1. Place a medium sized saucepan on the stove and turn the heat to high for 3-4 minutes.
2. Add the walnut oil, garlic, and then immediately followed by the red onions.  Stir the onions and let them cook until they’ve started to turn a slight golden color at the edges.
3. Add the celery and carrots, allowing them to cook for approximately 5 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add sea salt and fresh ground pepper at this point if you’d like.
4. Add the chicken broth to the saucepan.  Once the chicken broth begins to heat up and boil, reduce the heat to a medium-low.  Add the enoki mushrooms and cover.  Let it simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, which should give the mushrooms, celery, and carrots time to cook a bit.  Occasionally stir the contents of the saucepan.
5. Turn off the heat, uncover the sauce pan, and slowly add the egg to the soup, stirring a tiny bit so that the egg gets a bit of distribution.  Serve poste haste.

This recipe works wonders, and even travels well in a thermos.  You can add in any additional meat to meet any Zone requirements, or serve meat on the side.  If you’d like to make this vegetarian, you can always substitute vegetable broth, although you won’t garner the benefits of the chicken broth in fighting off colds.  Just the vegetables, which is still a good start.  Lastly, you can always reduce the about of oil to just 1 teaspoon, but make sure to watch your vegetables so they don’t get burnt.

Zone Blocks:

Protein: 1 block

Carbs: ~4 block

Fat: 9 block

Ping Pong is just two blocks north of the Chinatown/Gallery Place Metro on the Red line, close enough to still be considered a part of Chinatown DC proper. If you’re not entirely sure of this fact, look across the street. Even the Hooters has Chinese script on their sign out front. Have you ever seen Chinese Hooters?

No?

Me neither.

I’m not writing this post to talk about Hooters though, it’s about the latest addition to Chinatown’s actual Chinese food offerings.  I can’t remember the last time that’s happened.  So what makes Ping Pong so great?

Dim Sum.

All.

Day.

Long.

It’s almost my fantasties come true (throw in a pool noodle, a ping pong paddle, lots of bacon grease, and some bunny slippers, and we’re a lot closer).   I love yum cha.  Why?  It’s my gastro-fascination with compartmentalized food, which is clearly a result of my upbringing.  Yum cha was a regular event when I was growing up, so I was frequently exposed to steamed buns, dumplings, all all sorts of delicious Chinese delicacies.  So when Jen and I were walking around town, I made it with no unclear terms that we MUST eat there.

The decor is sleek and modern, outfitted as a modern Chinese teahouse.  Black paneled wood adorns the walls as well as the furniture, and seats are either stools or benches, just like you’d find in China.

Maybe in 3000 BC.

Still, it’s not a discredit to the efforts of the decorator-  everything is tastefully done.  The restaurant has a very open and expansive feeling, and nothing comes off as gaudy or cheap.

The food is admittedly a bit more expensive than what you’d pay at any other local yum cha-ery, and you don’t have quite the same experience.  Little steel cart mavens are not weaving between tables, hawking steel containers of delight. Tour buses do not drop off traveling, hungry, bug-eyed Chinese tourists here.  The bathrooms are not nuclear hazardous waste dump sites.

Definitely not quite the same experience.

The restaurant here wasn’t completely quiet, but perhaps us coming in at the tail-end of lunchtime helped.  We were immediately seated, and I dove into the food menu, as Jen did the same with the drinks.

It’s hard to recall exactly everything we ordered, as yum cha usually involves a large wide swath of destruction reaped on the food as soon as it’s brought to the table.  Jen and I did just that, like two raptors viciously tearing into a fallen T-Rex.  a raptor tearing into a T-Rex, and an ankylosaurus, gently nibbling on some trees.  We found it easiest to each go with a set menu that had a variety of things to try, and then added a few additional dishes a la carte.  All the fixed menus come with two baked vegetable buns, stuffed with mooli and spring onions.

Jen had the Vegetarian Lunch (2 golden vegetable dumplings, 1 vegetable bao (white bun) , 2 spicy vegetable dumplings, 1 vegetarian sticky rice parcel) and I went with something, well, more appropriately named to my fixation on yum cha.  The ‘Dumpling Fix’.

Dumpling Fix - 1 chive dumpling, 1 shrimp dumpling, 1 scallop and shiitake dumpling, 1 seafood dumpling, 1 golden vegetable dumpling, 1 spicy chicken dumpling, and a sticky rice parcel

We added several other dishes, like the Char Siu Bao (BBQ Pork Bun) for me, some vegetarian spring rolls for the two of us to share, and even some Valhalla Chocolate Buns for dessert.

Char Siu Bao

Spring Rolls

Valhalla Chocolate Buns

I was very happy with the food here.  The dishes are excellent, and some of the modern twists and uses of high quality ingredients are evident with every bite.  Jen enjoyed the food as well, but maybe not to the same levels of fanaticism displayed by me.

I’d highly recommend Ping Pong to anyone who enjoys Chinese food (and who doesn’t enjoy Chinese food? Maybe the Taiwanese)  and the all-day availability is a huge bonus.  Steamed prawn dumplings at 11am?  No problem.  BBQ pork buns for a mid-afternoon snack?  No problem.  Sticky rice parcels at 9pm?  No problem.  A Chinese hooker who claims she has your baby after your last visit to Shanghai three years ago?

Well.  That’s definitely a problem.

So what gives?  Why is this place so different from your typical American yum cha establishments?

It turns out that Ping Pong is actually a chain, imported straight over the pond from London, where they boast 12 locations throughout the city full of limey blokes, wankers, and chavs (just kidding, I actually love the Brits).  And the universal truth of British gastronomy still stands- The only good food you’ll find in London is either going to be Indian, Middle Eastern, or Chinese.

Ping Pong can be seen on a map here.

Recommended for:

• Dumpling whores
• Chinese food lovers
• Vegetarians
• Germaphobes

Not Recommended for:

• Budget diners
• Chopstick klutzes
• Zone Dieters
• Paleo heads

Not being a devout vegetarian myself, I wasn’t quite sure how well this recipe, and even Jen had her reservations as I was making it for dinner the other night.  It primarily consists of onions, beets, brown rice and beans.  So how does that really stand up to being a burger substitute?

Pretty well, actually.  Jen really took a liking to these with every bite she had.  The beans provide a good amount of protein, and well, let’s not talk about carb counts here.  We also subbed the bread out for a large leaf of boston lettuce as a wrap, which helped provide an added crisp texture to the veggie burger.  The real key to making these, though, is a cast-iron skillet.  If you haven’t gotten one yet, I can’t reiterate how you should go buy one. Now.  Put the baby down and go by a Lodge cast iron skillet.  They are ubercheap, and come in handy more than you’d think.  The burgers get a nice bit of crust to them when being seared on one of these, and the creaminess of brie on top of these burgers make it a favorite on Jen’s list of foods that I make for her.

One other note-  the beets give these things a deep red color…very reminiscent of some very bloody meat.  It might turn off some of the more hardcore vegans, but trust me when I say there is not an ounce of meat in this.

So here we go:

Best-Ever Beet and Bean Burgers (recipe from the Kitchn)

Inspired by the veggie burgers at Northstar Cafe in Columbus, Ohio
makes about 6 burgers

• 1/2 cup brown rice
• 1 onion, diced small
• 3 large red beets (about 1 pound), diced small
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tablespoons cider vinegar
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• juice from 1/2 lemon
• 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons parsley, minced
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme
• 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• salt and pepper
• slices of brie
• 1 medium sized head of boston lettuce

Directions:

1. Bring four cups of water to a boil. Add a handful of salt and the rice, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook the rice until it’s a little beyond al dente. You want it a little over-cooked, but still firm. This should take about 35-40 minutes. Drain the rice and set it aside.
2. Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the onions are translucent and softened. Stir in the beets. Cover the pot and cook until the beets are completely tender, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook until it is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Deglaze the pan using the cider vinegar.
3. Empty the black beans into a large bowl and use a fork to mash them up a bit. Add the cooked rice, the beet and onion mixture, the lemon juice, the olive oil, and all the spices. Stir to combine and then taste for seasonings. Add salt and pepper to taste. Once it tastes the way you like it, add the flour and stir until you see no more dry flour.
4. Heat a cast-iron skillet over the highest heat. Add a few tablespoons of olive oil – the oil should completely coat the bottom of the pan. When you see the oil shimmer and it flows easily, the pan is ready.
5. Using your hands, scoop up about a cup of the burger mixture and shape it into a patty between your palms. Your hands will get very, very beeted.  Set it in the pan, where it should begin to sizzle immediately. (If it doesn’t sizzle, wait a minute or two before cooking the rest of the burgers.) Shape and add as many more patties as will fit in your pan. Once all the patties are in the pan, reduce the heat to medium-high.
6. Cook the patties for 2 minutes, then flip them to the other side. You should see a nice crust on the cooked side. If they break apart a little when you flipped them, just reshape them with the spatula – they’ll hold together once the second side is cooked. Add enough brie to cover the burger if your a vegetarian, go naked with the burger if you’re a vegan. Cook the second side for another 2 minutes.
7. Serve the veggie burgers on a lettuce leaf, and serve as a wrap!
8. Cooked burgers should be eaten that same day. You can also save leftover mix in the fridge for up to a week and cook just one or two burgers as you want them.

It took me a good while to prepare the burgers, but if you’re a vegetarian or vegan, they’re without a single doubt in my mind, worth it.  The taste is fantastic, and the burgers are filling, even to a carnivorous bike riding raptor such as myself.  Do it…and don’t skip out on the brie.  Luckily, we had a small wheel of brie on hand:

Enjoy!