sweetfreak

Has anyone had the miniburgers at Matchbox lately? Isn't Graig gone? I was thinking of bringing some friends tonite, but want to make sure the food is still good.

I have the same question as you, Al Dente. I have no idea where to dine. Don't want a ridiculously overpriced, overhyped New Year's. I looked on Opentable, but nothing was thrilling me...

For the past five years, we have had three Thanksgivings in one day, my family lives in VA, husband's parents are divorced and both live in MD. So, this year, I have decided to host a Thanksgiving brunch for my family, husband's mom, brother and brother's girlfriend. Am making brunch-y foods and have my menu planned. Mr. Sweetfreak then decided it would be "fun" to fry a turkey and has since filled our back porch with a turkey fryer, gallons of oil, funnels, injectors, gloves, fire extinguishers, etc. If the house does not go up into flames, we will be dining on french toast complemented by fried turkey. Then it will be off to stepmother-in-law's for dinner for 30 (I told you there is A LOT of family). That is when I sit in the basement with the men and drink beer and watch football. Much more fun than gossiping with the ladies upstairs.

So, is anyone going tonite?

Went to Rice for the first time on Friday night. Loved the atmosphere: exposed brick walls, well-spaced tables, cozy and dimly lit. They do have several menus including a "healthy green" menu and a "green tea" menu where everything has green tea in it. Prices were very reasonable. I had the shrimp cakes off the green tea menu as an appetizer ($6). Followed by stir-fried chicken with fried lemongrass as an entree ($10-12-ish). One of my dining companions ordered "green tea pad thai" and the noodles were green. Had never seen that before. All of the entrees came with a different variety of sticky rice. Mine was dark in color and had black sesame seeds. Rice seems to be doing very well. All of the tables were full throughout our meal. I would certainly return.

I did it! (And yes, I did beat Oprah!). It was a crazy 1st marathon experience what with the heat, the intense sun, and people dropping like flies everywhere. At Mile 11, I took off my dri-fit t-shirt and threw it in a trash can on the Mall because I was so hot. I re-pinned my number onto my sports bra. I ran in about 4:07, though, a time I am quite proud of. As for the post-race meal, for some reason, I just wanted Houston's. I needed a lot of food, and I needed it NOW! So, we ordered spinach dip, Biltmore chicken sandwiches and fries AND a brownie sundae for dessert. Oh, and about 8 refills of water.

So I am running in the Marine Corps Marathon this Sunday...my first! Am very excited and know that after four hours of running, I am going to need some good grub after the race. Where can I go for a great post-race meal? DC would be preferable. Also, it probably won't be until about 3pm assuming I am going to go home to shower, etc. Nothing fancy, please. Casual is better.

I had been wondering the same thing myself recently. By petit fours, are you referring to the little frosted cakes? Someone told me that Sutton Place Gourmet carries them but I have yet to investigate.

My husband got a giant turkey sandwich from Jettie's on Sunday. I couldn't tell you what was in it because he didn't share. But he did moan and groan a couple of times about the fresh turkey slices.

Take it Away in Charlottesville has great sandwiches! The dressing they put on the sandwiches is awesome. Also great in C-Ville are the sandwiches at Bel Air Market (in the gas station). But I digress. In DC, I also like the Sophia Loren at Peacock Cafe. Crusty baguette, red pepper pesto, smoked turkey and warm brie. Mmmmm

I went to Cafe Bonaparte for the first time on Sunday for spur-of-the-moment brunch. I would definitely recommend it. When we got there at 2:30 pm, it was packed, but the place is small. We sat at the bar and ordered. The focus here is on crepes, both savory and sweet. It was difficult to decide, but I went with the Monaco, which was turkey and swiss. There were actually 2 large crepes in this order, plus a small salad on the side. I was hoping to try a sweet crepe, but was so full, that I couldn't do it. Will definitely return and it is on Wisconsin Ave. in Georgetown, so a good option for brunch. They have a website www.cafebonaparte.com.

That's funny!

Chef Geoff's is really bad. I have only been to the New Mexico location, and I always want to like it because the patio is nice. But the food sucks. Really sucks. I have tried entrees, sandwiches and the stone pies...all suck. I just don't understand how across the board, the food can taste so bad.

My friend has this attachment and it drives me nuts. She likes their vegetarian options. When I can't talk her out of going there, I usually get a burger which has to be sent back to the kitchen for being overcooked. I should just order something else, but I'm stubborn. The burgers there are really bad! Don't recommend them. I tend to stick to apps like spinach dip and chicken quesadillas. Penne with chicken is good but don't plan on kissing anyone after eating.

Mine is Cafe Deluxe in DC. When I graduated from college, my girlfriends and I rented a house right down the street, so we started going all the time...at least once a week. Then when I was in grad school, I worked there as a waitress for a summer while I took summer school classes. My only waitressing job and I loved it. Now, I don't go as often, but my girlfriends and I still call it "our place".

Hmmm, I have to say the suppli were pretty spot-on Saturday night. Even better than the first time I had them. They were crispy on the outside and meltingly smooth on the inside. Delish. I am constantly amazed at how light the pizza is. Even at Pizzeria Paradiso, I could never eat an entire pizza, but at 2 Amy's, I can make a pretty significant dent. I always ask for mine sliced too, Jenny. And my crust on Sat. stayed so crisp. You could definitely pick up the slices without any flopping.

I just did a search on 2 Amy's and could not find a thread devoted to this restaurant, so I felt compelled to start one. I really, really like this place. Especially now that they have added seating in the bar area and on the patio out back. Dined there on Saturday night with my husband. We shared the Suppli al Telefono (sp? don't speak Italian) to start. These are the fried risotto balls stuffed with cheese. Yum is all I have to say. We devoured these. For pizza, I ordered a special. It had local tomatoes (yellow and red), pancetta, chanterelles, grana and parsley. I had to chuckle because on the menu, it said "pancetta (bacon)" perhaps in reference to last week's Food section of the Post. This was delicious. The pancetta was incredibly salty, though (and I am a salt fiend). But what a combination of flavors! We shared the cannoli for dessert and this was the only weak point of the meal. The shells were great, but the filling was way too dense for my taste...almost like paste and not a whole lot of flavor. What do others think of this spot? Likes? Dislikes? I have yet to have a bad meal here, so I am curious.

So, I experimented with my grilled cheese and it turned out pretty darned good. Here is what I used: slices of fig and pine nut bread from our local Marvelous Market thin smear of fig spread on both slices of bread thinly sliced green apple and Cabot white cheddar. Grilled it all up in the George Foreman Grill. It was tasty!

Entree prices around $20. Apps. under $10. We ate outside on the patio. The patio is quite lovely, but the only drawback is that it overlooks Rockville Pike. Still it is set back enough that the Pike is not overly bothersome. The actual restaurant looks like somebody's house. Really cozy. Even the restrooms make you feel like you are in someone's home. Very cozy and cute inside.

So, I had a very good experience at Addie's last weekend. My first time, we were a group of five, and all enjoyed their food. The bread basket was interesting, I particularly enjoyed an olive bread. So much that I ate three pieces. As an entree, I had the roast chicken with a marscapone-herb orzo. The chicken was moist and flavorful and the orzo was a delicious companion. Nothing fancy here, just solid cooking. The dessert may have been the best I have had in a while (and I typically do order dessert). I can't tell you what it was called on the menu because I didn't order it, but I would describe it as a mix between a molten chocolate cake and a blondie. It was sweet, cruncy, nutty, warm, with toffee. So good. All-in-all, Addie's was a pleasant surprise and I would happily return.

I have been trying to follow this thread, so I apologize if this has already been covered: What type of cheese (and other accoutrements) would you pair with a hearty walnut raisin bread? Need ideas...

I was at Cactus Cantina on Friday night, Bobby Van's on Saturday, and Addie's in Rockville last night. Random mix, I know, various invitations. Am mustering up the energy to post about Bobby Van's...the steaks were a nightmare. Also, why is there no love for Addie's? I went for the first time last night and really enjoyed it...will post on that later too.

I liked the Matchbox meat. Sounds like the miniburgers suffered in Graig's absence because my recent experience was great...they have never toasted the brioche buns when I have ordered Edited to ask this question: What makes Matchbox pizzas a little spicy? Is it the sauce or the meat?

I ate at Matchbox on Saturday night for the second time and really enjoyed it. No wait for four of us at 8 pm. We started with 6 miniburgers and a fried mozzarella appetizer. The miniburgers were just as good as the first time. Quite pink in the middle and the accompanying onion strings are addictive. The fried mozzarella was surprisingly good. A very large wedge of fresh mozzarella atop a slice of grilled bread surrounded by their zesty tomato sauce. It was so good! At this point, I was getting full, but had allowed my husband to choose our pizza. He chose the "meat" pizza which came with pepperoni, sausage, and bacon. The crust was very thin and crisp, yet flavorful at the same time. The pizza had quite a kick to it. Not sure if it was the sauce or the meats. Could barely eat 2 pieces because there was so much food. I like this place and will continue to recommend it.

I had dinner at Zola on Saturday night. It was my third time there, and while I completely agree with and understand all of the service complaints, I really like this place. I was sorry to read Monica's experience of being rushed because we experienced a very leisurely dinner. We did sit down to eat at 9 pm, so I don't know if that was a factor. Anyway, I love their cheese fondue appetizer with smoked sausage and bread. It is a fun way to start the meal. And while the lobster roll is a fairly small portion, I find it to be significantly better than the lobster roll at Kinkeads and the fries that come with it are SO good. And it is $17. The reason why I can't hate on the service is because they seem to mean well. It would be another thing if they were snooty or indifferent. That said, on my three visits there, they have never really gotten it together service-wise.