Thank goodness it’s spring. That was one long winter.  I don’t know about you, but by mid March I was very much over the cold dreary days that seem to linger around the mid-Atlantic at the end of winter.  The anticipation of spring in Washington DC is such a tease.

But we made it! It’s June 2021, we’ve gotten through the throngs of COVID, America is opening up, it’s beautiful outside, and there is plenty of food and new restaurants to try once again! Hoorah!

Here’s a little recap and summary of my food adventure and travels since my last post from the 2020 holidays.

January and February

January and February in the District were all about about seizing the moment when things were still open. This meant taking advantage of the limited daylight and any ounce of warmth you could soak up from an outside patio heater.  It all seems so distant now but in January 2021 it was peak COVID numbers in the U.S. and a lot of restaurants in DC were shutdown all winter.   Looking back at it all now it seems like it was strange memory.  Like did all that really happen over the last year?

Luckily I discovered a cool little wine bar called St Vincent Wine Bar that stayed open all winter.  It’s located in the bustling Park View area of DC, which is now the so-called hipster area on Georgia Ave. 

If you ever check it out I definitely recommend trying their charcuterie board. It’s one of the better assortments I’ve tried with plenty of bonus bites! 🙂  St. Vincent’s is a cool spot but can get a little DC stuffy at times, so just be forewarned.  And by DC stuffy I mean you’re very likely to overhear political debates and policy discussions – gag! -more wine pls!

 

Arlington comes through with Middle Eastern food 

I also discovered THE BEST KABOBS in the DC area that I’ve tried to date. Ok I know that is a bold statement. But I make bold statements 😀 Trust me, these were the Best. 

Arlington Kabobs – yes,  the place in the Courthouse neighborhood of Arlington, Virginia.  This place is no hype and nothing fancy.  Just a storefront shop serving the working class people of Arlington. I  went in late one weeknight after craving a good Afghan meal and to my surprise it was bustingling with Cops, Afghan families, tweeners, Mom’s finishing up shopping, construction workers, and businessmen alike – really all walks of life.   This is my kind of place.   Not only is it a great vibe, but the food was top notch.   It’s an Afghan family who runs it and they know what they are doing.  I’m always amazed at how big the Afghan and Persian community is in DC.

March: West VirginiA

In March, I was getting a little restless from being cooped up in my house in DC and decided to head out to West Virginia for a little getaway weekend of hiking and fishing. I  stayed in a sleepy little town called Beverly (population 702) which is smack dab in the middle of West Virginia.  Beverly is exactly the kind of town that gives West Virginia the name “WILD AND WONDERFUL”. 

I stayed in a really cool old historic house that was converted to an AirBNB.  The house was built by a one of West Virginia’s most famous architects, Lemuel Chenoweth, in the mid 1800s. He also built most of the bridges in the surrounding area.  The house and town also has some very cool civil war history with the charm to go along.  This was a great stay and a place that literally brought you back in time.

This wasn’t really a food trip, per se, just a great way to get out of town at the tail end of winter and  discover West Virginia.  It also was an opportunity to explore areas to hike and fish in the future.  And look at areas for a opening up a potential future AirBNB.

Unfortunately the trout didn’t like my lures too much this trip compared with the powerbait the locals  were using.  Meaning I didn’t have much luck with the trout fishing.   I was hoping to catch and grill some fresh trout but oh well, next time!  I did, however, come prepared with plenty of beers to pass the time along the river and thoroughly enjoyed the relaxing getaway weekend.  

Mountains or beach? Always a toughie for me.

April: French Cooking and Bday at Rumi’s

April was a whirlwind of a month.  A lot of stuff happened.  Some of which stopped me in my tracks and made me reset my priorities and what is important to me in living a meaningful life. I  know, probably too deep for a food blog but sometimes things happen and you have to take a step back to realize that we only have a limited time on earth so it’s really important to make the most of it and do things that you love!  April really made me put things in perspective and appreciate all the blessings I have in life.

Anyways… we’ll stick to the food!  April started out with a virtual French cooking class.  I was asked to help out by my mom for her group zoom cooking class with some of her old friends.  I didn’t know it, but I got pulled in to be the Sous Chef for the day.  I actually really love French cooking and French cuisine, so I was down to learn and help out.  It started off a bit hectic because we hadn’t prepped any of the food, but by the end of the 3 hours we were fine dining and garnishing our plates to look like a Sunday Paris brunch.

The dishes we cooked were Orange Zest Buttercream Crepes for the starter and a Mediterranean style Salmon and Potatoes for the main.  We also made some aperol spritzers which were really good and easy to make: just Aperol, prosecco, and club soda! I must say the meal came out perfect, especially the crepes. The crepes were definitely the best part and we wolfed them down like they were crackers.

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Birthday

Sticking with the Middle Eastern food theme from the last couple months for my Birthday dinner I tried out Rumi’s Kitchen in DC.  Rumi’s is one of the more popular Persian restaurants in the DC area and it gets a lot of rave reviews from my Persian friends.  I had been wanting to try it for years so my birthday this year seemed like a good occasion.

In April I decided to stop eating meat for a bit and went mostly plant based, with a bit of seafood – mainly for health reasons to see how I’d feel.  Unfortunately some of the better dishes at Rumi’s were meat centric (like the lamb and kabobs).  We ended getting a bunch of starters with different yogurt dips, hummus, Dolmeh (grape leaves), and fried eggplant (Kashk Badenjoon).  

Since I wasn’t eating meat, I ordered the Chilean Sea Bass for my entree and it was pretty good.  But it  also didn’t really feel like I was eating true Persian cuisine since seafood isn’t really standard “Persian” fare.    The fish itself was very tasty but could of used just a little bit more grill time to be cooked to perfection.

Overall, I wasn’t really blown away with the food at Rumi’s. The apps were alright and I’d say it was a 6/10 for food. My friend had the lamb shank kabobs and I tried a small bite and they were pretty good.  Again, good but not amazing.  I’m not sure if it was the distinct smokey seasoning they used that I didn’t love, but it wasn’t as mouth watering as I was hoping for.  I know a lot of local Persian’s say it’s the best Persian restaurant in the DC area but I think there are better places in the DMV.  I guess I just had really high expectations.  I think my favorite part of the meal was the saffron and fava & dill basmati rice.  It was perfectly cooked and had a good combo of spices and authentic flavor.

I made up for this meal the next night with a family birthday dinner that was a combination of Thai Takeout and a bunch of random side dishes like chicken salad, shrimp salad, and coleslaw.  Yes, it was a very odd collection of food but it was also delicious.   We got Thai from a place called Carlson’s Donuts & Thai Kitchen in Annapolis, Md.   And yes they are a donut shop AND Thai restaurant.    Gotta love America and the hustle of small businesses.  It’s probably the best Thai food in Annapolis. Their Donuts are also bomba!

Arizona

I ended the month of April with a brief trip out to Arizona to visit my brother. I hadn’t been out to Arizona in over 4 years and so it was a long overdue trip.  It was more of a chance to travel after getting the COVID vaccine and to relax and see family for weekend.  It was also the first time I’d been in a plane since the end of 2019 when I moved back to DC.  So even though I’ve done a couple of trips to NC, WV, and Ocean City, this was one felt like the first time really travelling again.

Sedona

We stayed in a fabulous AirBNB in Scottsdale right in the heart of Old Town Scottsdale.  We also ended up going to up to Sedona one day and did a couple hikes. Sedona is only about 2 hours from Scottsdale and about 1.5 hours from Flagstaff.  If you ever get a chance to go to Sedona I highly recommend doing some hikes.  I’d recommend  Cathedral Rock, Boynton Canyon, Devils Bridge, and Fay Canyon. 

We ended up squeezing in two hikes during our quick day trip, We did one in the morning (Cathedral Rock) and one in the afternoon  (Fay Canyon) after nice little midday cool down and lunch break in town.  Sedona is definitely a place you could stay for a long weekend but would also be a just as good for a day trip if you’re in the Scottsdale or Flagstaff area.

Bonus DC Restaurant Recommendation – Khao Trip!

Now that DC is starting to open back up again I’ve been starting to venture out more and try some new restaurants.  My list keeps growing with so many great places to try.   One of the things I was really looking forward to with moving back to DC was being able to try so many awesome restaurants.  I would have to say DC is one of the best cities when it come to restaurant options and different cuisines.  DC maybe isn’t known for a the best or even specific cuisine , but you can find virtually any kind of restaurant you want and they are all high quality.

Khao Trip 

Khai Trip had been on my list for a long time and I ended up going on Cinco De Mayo this year because all of the Mexican restaurants were all packed.  Khao Trip is a Laotian restaurant in the Columbia Heights area up 14th street, right near all the Latino shops and restaurants before you get to Taqueria Habenero and Chicatana

Laotian food is very similar to Thai and Cambodian food but has a little more of a chinese style with the hot pot rice and banana leaf dishes.  I was literally blown away with how good the food was.  We ended up sharing sharing a massaman curry dish. veggies, and mushroom hot pot style dish. This place is certainly a must try in DC!

Well, that’s it for now – until next time… bon appetite and Keep It Sambal!