Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Black Market Bistro: Apple Crisp

Josh


A quaint little restaurant in the heart of surburbia, BMB is a great spot to grab a bite after a long work day.  A great meal was followed by what I believe to be an American traditional dessert:  apple crisp. 




F.Y.I. to future consumers, be leery of the serving bowl, as it was so hot I think my future children will be born with swollen tongues!  Nevertheless, the crunchiness of the crisp, and the cool ice cream topping made for a nice palate savior after the initial scalding.  The apples themselves lacked a little kick, potentially due to the season, but the texture was strong, and it didn't taste watered down or overcooked. 




All told, the ambiance of this particular restaurant is what makes it truly worth the trip, and the menu is highlighted by food that you would want to eat.  The barbeque shrimp as well as the hanger steak are two fantastic choices, not to be missed. The dessert menu also holds some interesting possibilities that I was unable to try on this particular visit. I am hopeful to get back there in the near future.


4600 Waverly Avenue
Garrett Park, MD 20896
(301) 933-3000 

Google map & reviews (4/5)

Washingtonian (Best Restaurants 2010 #57; 2/4)

Washington Post (Critic 2/4; Readers 1.5/4)

Washington Examiner

Yelp (4.5/5) 

Black Market Bistro on Urbanspoon


Friday, November 26, 2010

Estadio: Chocolate Hazelnut Cake

Bill


Estadio's chocolate hazelnut cake is the size of a large cupcake.  It's split by a cracker-like wafer encrusted with seasalt, topped with capuccino ice cream, and drizzled with hazelnut sauce.




I would have preferred the hazelnut sauce a bit thicker.  The capuccino ice cream's flavor was decent and fairly unique.  The wafer helped the ice cream seep into the cake.  The cake itself was excellent, with a light, fluffy pastry cloud on top hiding a delightfully dense and gooey center.  This deserves our great rating.


1520 14th St., NW Washington, DC 20005
(202) 319-1404 
  
Google Map & Reviews (4/5)


Washingtonian

Yelp (3.5)
Washington Post (Critic & Readers: 2.5/4)

DC Magazine

The Hill

Examiner

Washington City Paper


Estadio on Urbanspoon


Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Recipe: Thanksgiving Fruit Salad

Bill


My dad developed this great, easy, and unique dessert. It won't take much time away from your turkey preparation or take up space in the oven.

Ingredients:
1-2 cans crushed pineapple
1-2 cans jellied whole-berry cranberry sauce
1 package of frozen cranberries (for appearance, tartness)
1 package of frozen strawberries packed in syrup (for sweetness and texture)

Directions:
Mix in a large bowl, chill and serve alone or with whipped cream.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Potbelly: Sugar Cookies

Josh


As much as I tried I was unable to pass up grabbing a sugar cookie for the road during my visit to Potbelly. An old friend of mine used to have his mom make us sugar cookies when we'd hang out at his house, and somehow, despite the fact that she always used store bought supplies, they were excellent. Her ability to maintain moisture and softness was "God given."




While these Potbelly sugar cookies lacked the warmth of fresh baked cookies, they still possessed the necessary moisture. Pre-packaged, I am not positive they are actually made by Potbelly, but I am assured they can be bought there on any given day. In addition to the sugar cookie option, they also had a few other choices that looked equally delectable. Grab one if you have a chance.


128 Boardwalk Place, Gaithersburg, MD 20878
(301) 963-4055

Google Map & Reviews

Yelp (3.5/5)

PotBelly on Urbanspoon


Monday, November 15, 2010

General Endorsement: Maryland Renaisance Festival

Josh


Realizing how incredibly juvenile my inaugural review sounds, I have vowed to up the linguistic styling of my writing in order to not offend the pastry chefs who slave over their craft in an effort to appease the subtleties of the everyman (woman's) pallate... Thus, I begin this review of one of the most cuturallly advanced, locally significant, and luxuriously elegant establishments in all of greater Maryland and District of Columbia... namely the Maryland Renaissance Festival! 




This collossus of food is to be met with only the most ambitious of intentions... Running throughout the weekends, from late August through October, there is very few delicacies from both the old world and modern faire that "shan't be found!"




If your heart is not content with the steak on a stick, cookies in a cup, meatball sandwiches, turkey legs, fried bread, chicken dippers, fried cheese, gyros, chili poppers, meat pies, corn on the cob, quesadilas, barbeque ribs, or pulled turkey sandwiches, there's always peach cobbler, belgium waffles, root beer floats, custard, and Baltimore's own snowballs, to satisfy the sweeter cravings.




In my humble opinion, it is quite possibly the most amazing array of food options found this side of a good old fashioned midwestern fair. While you should not expect a Kobe beef-esque cut of meat when you do order your steak on a stick, and or fresh fruit flown in from California sprinkled over your fried dough, the lack of extravagance is quite refreshing when you are surrounded by fans from all over dressed in their best middle aged attire.  My own visit began with a stop at one of the many steak on a stick huts along the very scenic path deep into the woods in which the Fair resides...




Driving up to the fair was actually quite amazing as all of a sudden along the side of a modest country road,  thousands of cars are parked amongst a giant open field, bordering what from a distance appeared to be just an everyday sect of trees. As you begin to follow the crowd from your parking spot, you can hear the excitement going on just past the tree line, and after you pay your very modest entry fee you are exposed to a culinary explosion of "feel good" food and entertainment that brightens even the most mundane of work days.  While the time has come and gone this year to stop by, definitely check it out next year if you can!

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Potbelly: Oreo Milkshake

Josh


Potbelly makes an assortment of milkshakes and smoothies that can be just what a sweets lover might need as a mid-day snack. Consequently, that was my focus when I stopped in at their Gaithersberg location the other day.




The Oreo shake was quite good and well made. A solid thickness quotient helped to satisfy the most important aspect of any milkshake, not to mention the solid ingredients and large availability of Oreo chunks. While simplistic in nature, the ratio of good ingredients to great taste is essential. On this given day, Potbelly was quite successful, in making a solid and well proportioned shake.  It deserves our great rating. 




128 Boardwalk Place, Gaithersburg, MD 20878
(301) 963-4055

Google Map & Reviews

Yelp (3.5/5)

PotBelly on Urbanspoon

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Againn: Sticky Toffee Pudding

Bill


Againn (pronounced "ah-gwenn") is a British pub, but with more gourmet elements and a promoted Scotch selection.  This unique concept has people talking, but probably not about its desserts.

The highlight of Againn's sticky toffee pudding is the sauce.  It has a deep toffee flavor and nice thickness.  The low-light is the dish's very small size.




The pudding itself has a nice density, and is warm, soft, and a bit gooey where it mixes with the sauce.  Unfortunately, its flavor is disappointingly flat.  The stout ice cream is unique and tastes good.  However, it should be smoother when paired with a pudding.  It also wasn't the right compliment to the toffee flavor.

This dish falls short of the frozen sticky toffee pudding you can find at Dean & Deluca.  It has some good elements, but it's still a skip.


Google map & reviews (4/5)

Washington Post (2/4)

Washington Times

Washingtonian (2.5/4)

The Hill

Yelp (3.5/5)

Againn Gastropub on Urbanspoon


Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Cuba Libre: Chocolate Torte

Bill


Cuba Libre's DC location was one of the recent openings that generated a lot of buzz.  It's a good sign when a restaurant posts a separate dessert menu online, and Cuba Libre's chocolate torte more than delivered on that promise.




The torte has a fabulous interplay of texture and flavor.  It combines a thin soufflé crust, softer inner soufflé, gooey dulce de leche, and a thick chocolate sauce.  Each of these elements is of the highest quality and could stand on its own.  This dessert is a masterpiece of both design and execution.  Count the chocolate torte among our favorites and give it our divine rating.

The pairing of the torte with blueberry compote is odd, but one can ignore it, so it doesn't detract from the dish.  Also note that this is not a traditional soufflé.  The chef intentionally allows the soufflé to sink.  

I'll warn you that not all of Cuba Libre's offerings are up to the torte's standard.  Check out Two DC's review of the restaurant as a whole.  I agree with their "Second Thoughts From B," except I would rate at least the small plates higher than Cheesecake Factory's non5essert offerings.  Check back here for a review of the rum cake.

801 9th St NW Washington, DC 20001
(202) 408-1600

Google Map

Washington Post (Editors' Pick; Readers 1.5/4)

Washingtonian

Washington Life 

Wonkette

Yelp (3/5)

Cuba Libre on Urbanspoon