From the monthly archives:

July 2010

Why Sweetgreen Wins the Salad War

by Jenna on July 30, 2010

Sweetgreen Chic P Salad

As most Washingtonians have noticed, salad places keep popping up all over town and they all claim to have the best ingredients, but in my opinion Sweetgreen wins the salad war hands down. I am lucky enough to live above the Sweetgreen in Logan Circle and I am a regular as I like to go and snag a salad for dinner on my way home from the gym. I think Sweetgreen really takes the cake because the ingredients are incredibly unique, always uber fresh, and they are constantly changing the menu to keep things new and exciting. Also, Sweetgreen brings in organic foods from local farms and also compliments their great salad options with the delicious Sweetflow which is their tart frozen yogurt.

I am a huge fan of the Chic P salad which consists of mesclun & baby spinach with baked falafel, chickpeas, cucumbers, roasted peppers, garlic pita chips and then topped with a lemon hummus tahini dressing. The Mediterranean flavor profile of this salad is sophisticated and scrumptious, and I really cannot get enough of that baked falafel. I have contemplated going in there and just getting the falafel on its own to put on other concoctions I make at home. It’s the perfect protein addition to any salad—especially for those vegetarians out there. Also I know many people enjoy the Guacamole Greens which is essentially a deconstructed guacamole presented in a salad format. How could that be bad? Finally, one of the best options at Sweetgreen is to wrap up your salad in a toasted wheat tortilla if you are in the mood for a little more heft, but not to worry, it’s still a great healthy option.

While I love the salad options on the menu, I am a die hard fan of my custom salad that I think is brilliantly built (I spent most of last weekend at the beach complaining that there was no Sweetgreen and telling my friends how I had created the perfect make your own salad). So here goes: romaine, red tomatoes, white beans, quinoa (great unique offering at Sweetgreen that you can’t find elsewhere), slivered almonds, goat cheese, baked falafel and balsamic vinaigrette. I honestly feel ultra proud of this creation as it takes a lot of trial and error to find the perfect mix, but I know that I have hit a home run with this one. If by some chance Sweetgreen is reading this and wants to add it to their menu, I say we call it the Eastern Shore. I dream about this salad while I am at a work, and then have my eyes on the prize the entire time I am exercising at VIDA. This is my reward after a long hard day and a great workout. And then sometimes a few hours later in the evening I pop back in for a frozen yogurt with granola, chocolate chips, and strawberries (three toppings are included).

Sweetflow Frozen Yogurt

Okay, okay… so you know I love Sweetgreen. This leads me to why the other options like Chop’t and Mixt Greens seem to fall a little short. I am often perplexed by the long lines outside of Chop’t by my office in Metro Center around lunchtime. I find that while there are a lot of choices on the menu, none of them are all that exciting. Also, the dressings are underwhelming and they often soak the salads leaving the lettuce quite soggy. I also find the entire experience to be assembly line “esque” and if I am going to wait in line for 20 minutes, I want to be wowed.

I really like Mixt Greens. I think their choices are different and I have greatly enjoyed the Madison which includes mixt greens, herb marinated grilled chicken, asparagus, roasted white-truffle potatoes, shaved parmesan, toasted pine nuts and whole grain mustard vinaigrette (which I substitute for balsamic). However, my biggest complaint about Mixt Greens is that they have picked very businessy locations that are not in places that anyone would frequent over the weekend. There is no neighborhood feel to their establishments and of course there is no frozen yogurt here or at Chop’t.

I think the most compelling difference between Sweetgreen and the others is that it was created by three local Georgetown students and is a homegrown business here in the DC area while the others are national chains. There is something special about the story and that it has roots here in Washington even as it continues to grow. So I know this is not a very scientific approach to weighing the pros and cons of the salad options in DC, but I have to say that Sweetgreen is my favorite and the winner in my book. Now I just need to figure out how to get my salad creation on the menu…

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Sweetgreen
Logan Circle- 1471 P Street NW
Georgetown- 3333 M Street NW
Capitol Hill- 221 Pennsylvania Ave. SE
Dupont- 1512 Connecticut Ave. NW
Bethesda- 3841 Bethesda Ave.
http://www.sweetgreen.com

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Mixt Greens
Dupont- 1200 19th Street NW
Metro Center- 1311 F Street NW
Farragut North- 1700 K Street NW
http://www.mixtgreens.com

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Chop’t
Chinatown- 730 7th Street NW
Metro Center- 618 12th Street NW
Dupont- 1300 Connecticut Avenue NW
19th and L- 1105 1/2 19th Street NW
Rosslyn- 1735 North Lynn Street
http://www.choptsalad.com

Ad Hoc at Home – Creamed Summer Corn

by Chad on July 29, 2010

I have to say, I can’t believe I made it this far in life without every trying creamed corn. The closest thing I have ever tasted that was close to creamed corn was my mother’s corn pudding, a huge vat of gelatinous corn deliciousness that is only served at Thanksgiving. Sorry mom, but this is much much better. Without a doubt, this is the easiest Thomas Keller recipe I have ever prepared. The better the corn, the better the dish, and for the BEST corn, head over to Norman’s Farm Market.

Most Thomas Keller recipes are bit more involved, but this recipe is super easy and the results were spectacular. I keep making a mental note, to freeze the corn I get in my weekly CSA, so I can make this dish on Thanksgiving, but I keep eating it because it is so good. This week I am determined to buy a ton of corn, freeze the kernals, and put it away for Thanksgiving, I suggest you do the same.

Recipe after the jump

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Founding Farmers Review

by Britt on July 29, 2010

I have wanted to go to Founding Farmers since it opened almost two years ago but as it always happens, other things came up. Needless to say I finally made the trek and am glad I did. For those of you who aren’t familiar, FF bills itself as a restaurant dedicated to using local and sustainable food sources. They also have a rather extensive and rather complicated cocktail menu.

As first impressions go, I really liked the décor and design of dark wood, smoked glass and great lighting pieces. In keeping with their overall philosophy, they are also LEED (gold) certified. I was a bit wary about the service after having read quite a few reviews complaining about the slow pace. After an initial lull prior to ordering, the rest of the service went off without a hitch and at the perfect pace.

I was there for dinner with my husband so we decided to share a salad and two entrées. I also meant to order the fried green tomato appetizer and totally forgot. Next time. Next time.

For the salad, we shared the small portion Late Harvest. It was delicious with spinach, blue cheese, egg, hunks of bacon and fried onions tossed in vinaigrette. I have to take a moment to talk about the bacon. This isn’t your standard crumbled bacon. Bacon lovers delight, these are actual thick chunks of chopped bacon. They made the salad. Can’t wait to have it again!

For our entrées we shared the short ribs with mashed potatoes and steamed kale. This was also very good although the actual meat portion was on the smaller side. Perhaps I’m just imagining that considering I think we would have easily put away several pounds of it given the chance! The meat was incredibly tender and the bbq sauce was sweet and smoky. The perfect combination. The mashed potatoes were decent but the kale was off the charts. I really love kale so maybe I am once again exaggerating but it was light, lemony and very fresh.

For our past dish we had the Straw and Hay. They make all of their own noodles in house and I think that was the stand out of the dish. My husband didn’t love it (he claims it never had a chance following up the short rib dish) but I thought it was really nice. Perhaps the cream sauce was just a little too heavy for me. Otherwise, the thick ribbon pasta tossed with asparagus, baby peas, mushrooms and hunks of bacon worked for me.

I did also end up ordering a cocktail from the “Recession Proof” section of the cocktail menu called the Rio 16. It was only ok. Perhaps if I would have splurged for one of the pricier options, it would have been more interesting. It was tiny and a lot like drinking limeade. As for dessert we were way too stuffed to try anything.

Overall it was a great dinner and I’m looking forward to going again. There were so many things I wanted to try on the menu I’m sure I’ll need a few more visits. In the end, our bill came to only $60.00 which is a pretty good deal these days. So if you’re looking for a nice atmosphere and a wide range of options at a decent price, head over to Founding Farmers.

Founding Farmers
1924 Pennsylvania Ave. NW,
Washington, DC 20006
www.wearefoundingfarmers.com

Vacation soup with kale and sausage

by Britt on July 27, 2010

So I’m going to Italy on Thursday (It’s ok, you can be jealous. I won’t judge you) and I had a bunch of food I needed to use up. Somehow this always seems to happen to me and I almost always have the same solution that involves making nothing but frittatas and soup for 4 days straight.

Why frittatas and soup you ask? Well, there are very few things that don’t work in these dishes. Seriously, eggs and broth are like the bricks and mortar that built this great nation of ours. Sometimes you end up with rather bizarre combinations but sometimes you get lucky. This time around I wound up with something delicious which I am now affectionately referring to as Vacation Soup. So here is the “recipe” I put together but you can pretty much cram anything into the soup pot and cross your fingers. [click to continue…]

Arlington Rooftop Bar & Grill

by Chad on July 27, 2010

After seeing this article from ArlNow, I was very excited to learn that the huge building that was built on top of Dehli Dhaba, is going to house Arlington Rooftop Bar & Grill. I was not able to find the website for the restaurant, but I did find the designers website, who has tons of great pictures of the new bar. It looks awesome and they will hopefully be open by the end of August.

Arlington’s Newest Food Cart – Solar Crepes

by Chad on July 27, 2010

A new gourmet food cart has entered Arlington, and frankly, I couldn’t be more excited. Solar Crepes is a fantastic addition to Ballston. For those of you who have not yet had an opportunity to try one of their delicious crepes (I don’t

blame you, they just opened today), Solar Crepes features local and organic produce and a seasonal menu of sweet and savory crepes. I ran into their cart this morning on my way to work and picked up a Knewtella & Raspberry Crepe. Notice– it is not Nutella, but Knewtella, because the chocolate – hazelnut spread is handmade by a local chocolatier. Decadent and delicious.

A normal person probably wouldn’t have stopped there, but I have all of you readers to think about, so I went back for lunch. The Wild-Caught Smoked Salmon with Chive Creme Fraiche and Onion Puree was the perfect savory crepe, the sweetness of the onion puree balanced the saltiness of the smoked salmon.

Did I mention they have an awesome website, an iPad for taking orders, a super friendly staff, and their team has some serious culinary chops? For their website:

Pin It

“Danna Andrews and Camille Dierksheide are honors graduates of L’Academie de Cuisine’s Professional Culinary Program, where they studied with two-star Michelin Chef Gerard Pangaud of Gerard’s Place and Chef Patrice Olivon of the White House, former Executive Chef of the French Embassy. As students at L’Academie, Danna and Camille discovered their common commitment to fine, sustainable, healthy food—eventually leading them to join forces to form Solar Crêpes.”

Solar Crepes will be open Monday-Thursday outside Ballston Metro Elevators (4245 N. Fairfax Dr. Arlington, VA) from 8:00-ish – 2:00.

Travel Tuesdays – The Napa Valley

by Chad on July 27, 2010

If you’re reading this, hopefully you are planning a trip to Napa very soon. If you’re not, after reading this post, along with our other Travel Tuesday posts on San Francisco and Sonoma, you will plan a trip soon. The team at EatMore DrinkMore would like to remind you that all of us make excellent travel companions and would be willing to accept a free trip out west, if you are interested in having an expert and excellent companionship.

Before your trip to Napa, I would suggest you watch the movie Bottle Shock — a great film that covers a bit of the history of how California became so prominent in the global wine industry. I would suggest that you NOT watch Sideways, because if you do, you will likely only drink Pinot Noir on your visit and will skip any Merlot tastings. There are too many good wines in Napa to limit yourself to only drinking Pinot Noir.

Napa is a food and wine lover’s vacation paradise. Your days are spent leisurely visiting beautiful vineyards, drinking copious amount of wine, breaking for a quick nap, and finishing your day with a long, luxurious dinner at one of the many excellent restaurants in the Napa Valley.

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Double Rainbow Parody

by Chad on July 26, 2010

For those of you that loved the double rainbow video, this will blow your mind.

Bryan Voltaggio & the Frederick Key’s

by Chad on July 26, 2010

Photo from Tasting Table

Tomorrow night is Volt Night at the Frederick Key’s game. If you have not been to a Key’s game they are a blast. Great family event, nice stadium and Bryan Voltaggio will be manning a concession stand tomorrow night. As an added bonus the first 1,000 guests will receive a Bryan Voltaggio bobblehead doll! (Note: If you have a chef bobblehead doll, you are not a food dork, you are awesome. I want one of these bobbleheads very badly. 100 high-fives to whoever sends me a bobblehead).

The menu for tomorrow night is courtesy of Tasting Table – Washington DC

“Voltaggio–who will also be honored with his own bobblehead giveaway–was inspired by his favorite summer foods. Heirloom tomato gazpacho is frozen into edible dots and served with rock shrimp ceviche ($4). Instead of bagged cheese-powder popcorn, Voltaggio will pop truffle-coated kernels ($3).

Sandwiches and burgers also get a local touch. Marvesta shrimp fill a po’boy wrap ($6), while sandwiches include pulled heritage pork ($6) and softshell crabs ($10) with fennel-cucumber slaw (click here for the recipe). Even the classics get upgraded to bacon-arugula cheeseburgers ($8) and lamb hot dogs with chow-chow ($8).

Save room for sweets ($3 each) like ice cream sandwiches, key lime pie and chocolate-covered bananas.”

Emotional Tomato

by Angela on July 26, 2010

(photo courtesy of see-ming lee at flickr)

I got a little emotional when I saw the first haul of summer heirloom tomatoes at the farmer’s market this weekend.

This time two summers ago, however, I would have walked by, completely disinterested. Why is it that so many people dislike tomatoes in a certain state? I have friends who won’t eat them cooked, but love them raw, and I know at least one person who hates tomatoes all together but subsists basically on a diet of foods dipped in ketchup.

I was always someone, on the other hand, who loved cooked tomatoes but couldn’t stand the taste or smell of a fresh one. That is, until someone coaxed me into eating heirloom tomatoes a few years back, and thus, colored me converted.

But while most lovers of raw tomatoes would balk at the idea of cooking an heirloom at its peak, my former distaste of the fresh nightshades makes me more pliant, now, in regards to cooking summer tomatoes.

Which is why I almost died when I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen. Which is why I made it mere hours after I read the recipe. Which is why I phoned everyone and told them about it. Which is why I illustrated the recipe several times for several friends across the country.

(recipe after the jump)

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