ScotteeM

La Caraquena is closed on Tuesdays!!!!! And, yes, it is at 300 W. Broad St. in Falls Church.

It just dawned on me that La Caraquena is CLOSED on TUESDAYS! So whoever steps up to organize should know this.

I might be able to attend, but I'm not able to volunteer to organize. Sorry!

On the strength of this thread and the review in the May Washingtonian, Bill and I had lunch here today. First, a confession: I've never had a saltena or an arepa before today. There were a couple of other folks in the restaurant, but after tasting the food I couldn't figure out where the heck everyone was! Why wasn't this place packed? The saltena was warm and delicious, with spicing leaning more toward complexity than heat. It reminded me of one of my favorite childhood comfort foods: chicken pot pie. It didn't seem that large, but it was satisfying. Bill had a diputado--thinly sliced steak with fried onions, tomatoes lettuce and a fried egg on a soft kaiser roll. I got a little taste and it was delicious and, again, comforting. His sandwich came with fries that were crisp on the outside and creamy inside--I really liked them. I had a fried arepa filled with avocado/mayonnaise-dressed chicken salad. As cleveland park said, if one ordered this and a plain arepa, there would be enough filling for two sandwiches. It was filling and delicious, but wasn't heavy. I loved every bite! The prices are extremely reasonable. I would love to see a $20 Tuesday event here, although the place seems so small that we'd probably take over the whole restaurant. I can't wait to go back and try some more of their food, like the soups!

My husband and I went for one last dinner on Saturday night. Service was really good, and considering that there were 4 waiters doing everything for a nearly full house, that was remarkable. By everything I mean host stand, bar (which was empty), pouring wine and water, taking orders, delivering food and clearing tables. I guess they're down to a bare-bones staff. We were happy to be greeted by a friendly face in Freddy, whom we had known when he was a waiter at Maestro. I might have thought we were getting special treatment because of that, but all the other tables seemed to have good service, too. We had the 9-course tasting menu. It was good, and the wine pairings were mainly spot-on. But unlike previous visits, there were no Wows among the food. The amuse of salmon tartare was fresh and tasty, but would have benefitted from a few grains of fleur de sel. The lobster purse was delicious, and everything focused the palate on the sweet lobster meat. The eggshell of lobster flan, white corn ragu and scallop brandade was very tasty, but the scallops didn't have much scallop flavor. Everything was good, but nothing stood out as a life-changing experience. The tab came to $535 for food and wine, before tax (10%) and tip (20%), so it was an extremely expensive evening of good, even great, but not over the moon, food.

I just found 2 fraudulent charges on my checking account statement, made to my check card, to the tune of almost $400--a meal at a restaurant and a grocery order at a supermarket. That means the card was presented. I was not within 300 miles of the location of these charges, and my card was in my possession at the time. I frequently use my check card to pay for lunches out--usually small charges. I haven't dined at any of the restaurants mentioned in the articles, but it looks like I may have been a victim of the same thing. Don is right--the restaurants in the article aren't at fault, and I'm sure that they all take reasonable precautions to prevent this from happening. And it doesn't seem to be limited to those specific restaurants.

We finally went to Sea Pearl this morning for Sunday brunch, and I'm sorry it took us so long to get around to it! The space is quite large, and I think it is beautiful. My only objection is that all of the surfaces are hard, so if the place were full to capacity, it could be quite noisy. It wasn't full this morning, but there were a few family groups there when we arrived at about 11:00. More groups came in while we were there, and I would say they were decently busy in the dining room. The tables are spaced well apart, and the banquettes and chairs are comfortable. Secure-looking "booster seats" seem custom-made for the chairs, offering the small-fry diners a safe way to sit up at the table. Actually, for such a sleek, modern-looking space, it seems very family friendly. The tots' beverages were served in colorful plastic cups with lids and straws. I started with the Ocean Bisque, a seafood and tomato broth full of pieces of fish and shellfish, nicely seasoned with thyme, and topped with a squiggle of creme fraiche and chopped chives. The bread basket, containing pieces of onion focaccia, kept my husband busy and satisfied. My entree was the fritatta with asparagus, Maytag blue cheese, and applewood smoked bacon. It was rich and delicious. The bacon was in sizable cubes, which I thought were more satisfying that little bits. The asparagus was quite thick, and I might have preferred thinner stalks, but they were nicely cooked, neither too crisp nor too limp. I loved it, and ended up bringing half of it home for tomorrow's breakfast. My husband ordered the fish and chips, and found it very enjoyable. The fish was perfectly cooked, with a crisp coating that held together and was not at all greasy. The fries were cut small and fried crisp and not oily. The small side of pureed peas had a minty zing, and were a nice nod to "mushy peas", although I have no idea how authentic they were. Service was efficient and friendly without being overbearing. I can't wait to go back for lunch, and maybe try their burger!

I second H-Mart/Super H and Grand Mart. Great Wall is decent, too, but not quite as prolific on the non-Chinese produce.

You pretty much have to get there at 11:30 to avoid some of the crowd, as far as I can tell. And, indeed, it is the very best deal for lunch! Also, Val is great behind the bar. I haven't had his cocktails, but his service is over-the-top great!

In my dreams, Fabio returns to the Ritz Carlton in Tysons, reopens Maestro, and picks up where he left off, as if he never left!

Tonight at Springfield WF, $10.99/set.

Seriously? Wow!

When in doubt, Throw it out!

When I was a kid (late 50's, early 60's) we would have tongue for dinner with enough frequency for me to remember it. I don't know if it was beef or veal, and I remember it was "boiled," but don't know any more than that. I think my maternal grandmother (of Irish and Scottish immigrant descent) was the one who prepared it, or taught my mom to. Last week when I was visiting Mom (now in her 80s, with terminal cancer), she was reminiscing about the dish, and how much she loved that, as well as smoked tongue. So I ordered a veal tongue from my Amish farmer and I'm going to try to make it for Mom. It looks like I should braise or simmer it slowly for a couple of hours, but with what seasonings? Any help at all would be appreciated. I want to keep it simple, and it sounds like I'll have to puree the end product for her, but what the heck--I can try.

How noisy is the new RTS? I ask because, as much as I loved the food and the service, the last time I dined there the noise level was so high that I couldn't hear anything my server said to me, and she could barely hear me. Because of my hearing impairment, this made for an extremely difficult dining experience, and I haven't been back. If the new place is less noisy, I would love to try it.

Shaggy, my experience with Bull Run was similar. I thought the farmers were wonderful people, but I wasn't as happy with the produce, and the pickup was extremely inconvenient for me. I do miss the fall offering of hogs and steers, though--especially the hogs.My experience with Potomac Vegetable Farms was much more favorable last year, leading me to decide to renew my subscription with them today. Today is the renewal day for last year's subscribers, and new customers will be able to sign up on 2/15.

What a great question! I'd love to know the answer to this as well!

Nicholas Stefanelli has been running the kitchen at Mio since Stefano Fugiero left in August/September, and he is doing a tremendous job, as anyone perusing his resume would expect. Pastry chef Tom Wellings turns out some of my all-time favorite desserts. Click here to read my notes from the End of Summer Feast in September, and then make a reservation and go!

Anybody know this farm? Their CSA subscription signup starts today, but I can't find any info on their website about share size, delivery schedule, or pick up locations. I'd love to know more about them! www.gracelandmidland.com

Yesterday was Day 12 of my gluten elimination diet, and I was starting to understand what my doctor meant when she warned me that it can "affect the nerves." I was feeling more than a little bit irritable (think scratch someone's eyes out)! Fifteen minutes after opening for lunch service, the bar at Restaurant Eve was nearly full. I scored a seat at the bar and all of my stress melted away! Lobster bisque was an amazing soup du jour. It was rich and satisfying with small chunks of lobster meat. I didn't even miss the bread I couldn't eat (I didn't call ahead for gluten-free bread, because I wasn't certain I'd get there). I stared a little too enviously at my neighbors' Dragon Creek (?) oyster po' boy sandwiches--beautifully fried oysters on a lovely potato roll. I must have been drooling, too, because the patron closest to me put her arm protectively around her plate. I wasn't jealous for long, though, because my salad du jour arrived promptly and proceeded to knock my socks off! Medium-rare roasted lamb loin, chilled and sliced thin, atop Davon Crest salad greens and canellini beans with chippoline onions, a magnificent vinagrette, and a little dab of Pommery mustard. Wow!!!! Once again, as I always do when I have the Lickety Split Lunch, I felt like I was getting away with something nefarious. Lobster bisque and roast lamb loin salad for $13.50!!!! No wonder people are starting to be willing to wait for a seat when the bar is full! Of course, if you weren't there promptly yesterday, you missed the bisque. The "second seating" patrons were offered a butternut squash veloute when the bisque ran out--still unquestionably a stellar soup. And now I'm on Day 13, but feeling much better! [edited to change "crab meat" to "lobster meat"]

Chef RJ, thanks for sharing. This is indeed depressing! I agree that those of us who are somewhat secure (though my husband and I will likely have to postpone our retirement due to the current state of our retirement savings) need to do what we can to support the industry.

Here's Frank Bruni's interview with Fabio this afternoon.

We loved the nose to tail dinner a few months ago, and we've had several regular dinners that we enjoyed very much. I think I've posted about most of them on the regular Mio thread.

This is one dinner I really wish I could attend, but I can't. But People, don't miss this one! wwmeade and I really loved their last event, and I know this one will be memorable, too.

Usually WWMeade and I stay in for NYE and enjoy tapas and bubbly, on the early side (we're old). But today we got an offer from Dino that we couldn't refuse. So I made a reservation for 6:15 (as I said, we're old) and I'm looking forward to it! They preserved some of the summer tomatoes and are featuring them in a panna cotta starter and a pasta course. Other offerings on the menu are extremely tempting. Here's the link to the menu. So what is everyone else doing?