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Dear Mr. President

So far, so good on your dining-out choices. Here are ten other places you should try.

By Todd Kliman    Published Wednesday, July 01, 2009

The President enjoys tucking into a good restaurant meal—from fine dining to pizza. Photograph by Rick Bowmer/AP.

Volt has quickly established itself as one of Maryland’s best restaurants, and this salad of organic beets shows off its artistry. Photograph by Scott Suchman.

Komi. The most personal, the most soulful, the most distinctive restaurant in DC. Can you set aside your BlackBerry for three hours? Dinner is a lingering affair. From the mezzethakia, which starts a meal and takes at least an hour, to the communal-style final course, where you’ll be tearing the crisped meat off a baby goat or baby pig, the cares of Washington will seem a million miles away. 

Palena. Frank Ruta might be the most technically proficient local chef who’s in his kitchen every day. His soups and pastas are very good, and his charcuterie will open your eyes to the small miracle of cured meats. As great as Ruta’s brand of French-Italian cuisine can be, maybe the greatest thing about it is that you come out of the place talking not about the chef but about how good simple cooking can be. 

Vidalia. You’ve professed your love for Southern cooking, and this subterranean roost does soulful refinement as well as anyone in the country. Start with a perfect mint julep, load up on the cornbread in the stellar breadbasket, and then settle back and enjoy the imaginative preparations of country staples such as shrimp and grits and crabcakes. If you don’t have room for the killer lemon chess pie, ask for a doggy bag. 

Four Sisters. This is one of the oldest Vietnamese restaurants around, newly relocated to the Merrifield section of Falls Church. I don’t think there’s an area restaurant that’s more beautiful, more delicious, or more inexpensive. An order of the marvelous shrimp toast, the juicy lacquered quail with blood-orange segments, the mushroom-filled rice crepes, and a Vietnamese coffee—and all that carping by the Republicans will be like water under the bridge.

Good kebabs are plentiful in Virginia, but the skewered meats at Ravi Kabob House are without peer. Photograph by Matthew Worden.

Ravi Kabob House and Ravi Kabob II and III. Here’s the other reason to head into Virginia: It’s got the area’s best and most varied ethnic eating. The kebabs—marinated 18 hours and tended with great devotion over a charcoal flame—are superlative: as juicy and tender as any grilled slab at a big-ticket steakhouse. Go for lunch, and take Joe with you. But beware: If the right-wingers could light into you for chowing on a gourmet burger at Ray’s, just think what they’ll do to you for eating at a Pakistani restaurant.

Pete’s New Haven Style Apizza. Everyone knows you like pizza, and I know your favorite spot in Chicago is a thin-crust place. I think you’ll fall hard for Pete’s, which is serving the area’s best pizza. Big, crispy thin-crust pies with a balance of sauce, cheese, and topping. Take the girls and get the Sorbillo’s Original (a glorious turnover) and the clam pie, which is better than the one at Manhattan’s legendary Lombardi’s. 

Comments

You should give Viet Bistro (Vietnamese restaurant) in Falls Church a try. Their food is authentic, but West-friendly. Price is "dirt-cheap", and service is like superb. My wife and I have been a regular there for the last two years, and they surprise us everytime.

Posted by: Tom, Nov 28, 2010 08:56:59 AM

I am always shocked by Washingtonian’s die hard affinity for Ravi Kabob. Are their Kabob’s good? Yes. But, there are several restaurants with equal if not better options. Kabob Bazar, Kabob Palace and Shamshirry to name a few- which really means that no Ravi is not "with out peer." For starters this article’s take on Kabob is nothing more than a sweeping generalization! Ravi’s chicken kabob is good. However, if you really crave lamb chop- head over to Kabob Palace. Kabob Palace is far more adept at preparing lamb than Ravi. Also, if it is good kubideh you seek, go to Shamshirry or the Moby Dick in Georgetown (note that this is the only decent Moby Dick in the area). In other words, Washingtonian could stand to be a little more nuanced in its appraisal of local kabob. Ravi kabob is "with peer" in the area. And to say otherwise is to openly admit that you don’t know the first thing about central and south asian cuisine.

Posted by: KM, Apr 29, 2010 02:20:58 PM

I was really surprised to find the Han Gang listed in the Post’s recent dining guide. I’m new to the area and have often heard that Korean food in Annandale is great. I’m Korean and when my mother and family came to visit from Atlanta, we headed to Annadale looking for a Korean restaurant and stumbled upon Han Gang. Although we had a nice dinner, it’s hardly a place we’d make the 30 minute drive again to reach. The decor is a tasteful modern version of the typical Korean restaurant with grills on the tables. The service and amount of "ban chan" (the side dishes) were good. In my opinion, Korean restaurants are never known for service, it’s the quality of the food that people come for. At Han Gang, it seems the place as been created for the eye and service (dare I say: "Americanized"), but not the best Korean you could find. At least I hope not... there are other Korean restaurants I’m going to be trying in the coming months!

Posted by: Wandering Jude, Oct 23, 2009 01:35:37 PM

Actually I heard han gang wasn’t that good and it was too expensive for the entrees. If your looking for awesome Korean BBQ, drive a little more south to Centreville, VA to Soo Won Galbi. It by far the best Galbi (Beef Short ribs) and Bulgogi (which I heard from is one of the president’s favorite Korean BBQ entree). They have dirt cheap lunch specials for only $5.99 and its Good, Authentic, Korean Food w/ at least 6 different side dishes. NOW that’s a Steal! Soo Won Galbi is the place I go to when I crave Korean. Choi Kyung-Ju *famous Korean golf player recommends the Ju Mul Luk (Heard he went there for two whole weeks during his 2008 tour). MUST CHECK OUT! They also have a Monthly Sale Entrees for those who want GOOD QUALITY KOREAN FOOD but just wanting to pay a little less. ^^

Posted by: Lee, Oct 20, 2009 12:51:00 AM

I red some article on washington post magazine annual dining guide about new korean restaurant in annandale name in han gang.
is that really good as Tom(washington post food critic) praise? I want you to have some kind of investigation for that. It might be fun to read some article about the restaurant with different point of view or different food critic.
Thank you.

Posted by: Kim, Oct 17, 2009 06:35:06 PM

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