Where to eat/shop in VA/DC/MD

One of the best places to find international food in the DC area is a section of town known as "Adams Morgan." It is in the NW area, 18th Street, about 3 blocks north of the Dupont Circle Metro station.  There is just about any kind of restaurant there that you can imagine - please try it.

Georgetown shopping area remains my favorite for ambiance.  Of course there areseveral large malls in the Washington area - Tysons Corner, White Flint, etc., but I would suggest Georgetown.  Crystal City has an underground shopping area at the Metro station that is fun.  It really depends on what you are looking for.  But you MUST go to Adams Morgan.

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Message for rlong

In article , you write:
> hi there,
>
> I just moved here (Fairfax, VA) from Pittsburgh, PA and am looking
> for good places to shop.  I am particularly interested in Oriental,
> Italian, Greek stores with good prices.  And good deli's, produce palkces,
> pretty much any recomendations you might have for me, since I am starting
> from ground 0 here.  Any advice you have for me is very appreciated.
>
> I am also interetsed in good places to eat in the area.  Everything from
> cheap good food to nicer places.  I like almost any kind of food,
> especially Mexican, Japanese, Chinese, Italian, Greek... you name it.
>
> Would prefer if you sent me e-mail since I can't get to the bboard too
> easily (I will post a summary).
>
> Thanks,
> Bert

The only place I've shopped in Fairfax County that doesn't induce price shock is Shoppers' Food Warehouse, the supermarket chain. I'm particularly fond of the one on Centreville Road just south of the toll road (although that's a long haul from Fairfax).

My observation since moving to Fairfax County from Seattle nearly a year ago is that it is pretty much shopping hell when it comes to prices. I really don't know my way around Oriental markets, but there are a bunch of them along US 50 east of Fairfax, including a whole shopping center just east of Seven Corners on the north side of 50 in which nearly all the signs are in Vietnamese.

There are lots of little Oriental and various ethnic shops in Arlington, located within a few blocks of the Wilson Blvd corridor. Another store you might check out, especially for produce, is Magruder's. The closest one to me is on the main drag of Vienna, but I believe there's also one on the east side of Fairfax.

There are farmer's markets in Reston and Herndon, and some produce stands in season along route 7 between Vienna and Dranesville.

The predominant ethnic cuisines in my part of Fairfax County seem to be Greek, Italian run by Greeks, Chinese, Peruvian, and Salvadoran. Mexican restaurants are few, far between, and disappointing. The only one I go to with any regularity, the Tortilla Factory in Herndon, is owned and operated by gringos. 3 Amigos in Fairfax is OK but a little too Texan for my taste, as are the Rio Grande Cafes. Stay far, far away from Anita's.

Worth mentioning in this department is Burrito Brothers on M Street in Georgetown, from which I recently bought a full dinner's worth of burrito on the way to a nightclub after skipping lunch.

Salvadoran is a lot like Mexican, but I haven't had much of it. There's a good Salvadoran/Mexican place on Route 7 in northwest Falls Church next to the Ranch House restaurant; don't eat at the Ranch House, but try to get to the Salvadoran place before it changes hands again. (It's sort of an adobe-looking thing, well-lit and conspicuous by its newness). pruvian tends to be marinated, charbroiled meat, stews, and rice. There's a place called Pollo Inka in Herndon which is beginning to fill the hole in my stomach left by the chicken teriyaki I ate so often in Seattle.

I have not yet found an Italian restaurant which I can recommend enthusiastically. I sometimes go to Milans Garden in Herndon, which is at least run by people who are not obviously Greek. With six or seven Italian-run-by-Greeks restaurants in Herndon, I still find that the best pizza is at Domino's, unless you're in southeast Fairfax, in which case the Armand's on the west edge of Alexandria may be within reasonable driving distance. If you have the choice, take it from one who spent his college years eating Chicago pizza; shun Uno's in favor of Armand's.

Many weekends I have survived on the kung pao chicken from China King, with two locations in Herndon. These are not the same people as the China King on King Street in Alexandria, which is ridiculously overpriced. This is the closest thing to a cheap dinner in Fairfax County ($3.75 + tax).

I haven't tried it yet, but there is a Japanese restaurant called Edoya on Elden Street in Herndon that I've heard good things about.

If you're a night owl like me, let me save you some hunting. The only all-night restaurants in Fairfax County are the two Denny's located within about a mile of one another along 50/29 north of Fairfax, the 29 Tastee Diner (which serves what I can scarcely call food) just across the intersection from the more western Denny's, and a place called Toddle House in Annandale. Stick to Denny's.

Oh, yeah, Mario's Pizza on Wilson in west Arlington is open all night too. Best 3 AM pizza around.

I have yet to find a really enjoyable breakfast place within driving distance of town, but if you wake early on weekends and are a breakfast connoisseur, you might want to drive down I-95 to Fredericksburg and eat at Aunt Sarah's Pancake House. There are several of these in the I-95 corridor, and the ones I've been to are delightful. Even better than Kings (which is where I eat breakfast when I'm in Pittsburgh).

Let's see. Popeye's fried chicken. Tom Sarris' Orleans House in Arlington, Arlington's #3 tourist attraction next to Iwo Jima and the cemetery, especially if you're a beef eater. Also for beef eaters, Johnson's Charcoal Beef House in Leesburg.

Cappuccino and muffins at Nordstrom's; I prefer the atmosphere of the Pentagon City location to Tysons Corner. For the fullness of the real-people espresso experience, minimally adulterated by yuppification, the Caffe Northwest cart near the fountain at Reston Town Center, where I work part-time some evenings and weekends. (Tell them I sent you.)

The Zebra Room, north of the cathedral on Wisconsin Ave. Nothing outstanding, just a fun place to hang out and play "Spot the Episcopalian".

Hard Times Cafe. Good chili, if you're in the mood for it. Chili dogs. Chili burgers. Cincinnati five-way. Tofu chili. In Herndon, Alexandria, and near the Clarendon Metro in Arlington.

Also near the Clarendon Metro is a small carry-out/sit-down location of Red, Hot & Blue, Lee Atwater's legacy to mankind. I think the BBQ is good but not outstanding, but the main location in downtown Arlington is always mobbed, so you might want to try it here.

Good casual places to drink are also in short supply. I recommend the Brickskeller, in the embassy district of DC, where my little brother orders "Iron City in a steel can". Hard Times isn't a bad place to drink, and if you don't mind loud and really obnoxious music, try Roratonga Rodeo in Arlington.

All in all, though, I'd rather be back in Seattle.

============================================================ Message for rlong

Dear Roberta,

    Altho I don't live in the DC area, I have spent considerable time
in the area on busines and vacations.  If you like something unique, by all means goto The Silver Diner on the Rockville Pike in Maryland. It's at the junction of Montrose and The Pike.

    Goto Mr. Smith's on "M" Street in DC and also in Vienna.

Howie Sternlieb

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Message for rlong

Fairfax unfortunately doesn't have a lot.  In your area, I like D.C. ethnic restaurants a lot.  Get off at the Dupont Circle stop on the Metro and walk around, lots of african and west indian places.  good grocery stores.  You can also go to D.C.'s chinatown.

I was in MacLean, Va.  Is that near fairfax?  anyway, park your car at a Metro stop and ride in to town!

Baltimore is smaller, but has some nice places (though touristy) around the harbor. jon

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Message for rlong

Shopping is not my thing.  For eating, go to the library and scan the past 12 months of Washingtonian magazine.  Two or three times each year they have issues that include articles highlighting the 100 best, 100 best cheap eats, and in general 499 best restaurants in the greater DC metro area.  Your other reasonably comprehensive and reliable source is the Zagat restaurant guide for this area.  Happy eating.     Peter

     You might want to try the Trellis in Williamsburg, VA.  It is
semi-fancy (at least a sports coat) and semi-expensive (It cost my wife and I around $100 for dinner with a good bottle of wine).  The food is modern american (e.g. S.W. influence, not heavily sauced, lots of creative ingredients and combinations).

If you're willing to tolerate crowds and decor that is usually less than pristine, the best deal in a general supermarket in washington is Magruders. They have quite good meat and produce, and their prices are generally much better than Giant and Safeway, the two main behemoths in washington. You can find one on Maple Avenue in Vienna, which is right up the way.

If you want some restaurant recommendations, reply to this message and I'll send some by.

Ron

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