To be among the lunch-breakers who routinely line up outside downtown DC’s Greek Deli in the hope of grabbing a cup of avgolemono soup is to experience a moment straight out of Seinfeld’s “Soup Nazi” episode. Owner Kosta Fostieris moves things along quickly—the soup has quite a following—but unlike the episode’s title character, he’s an affable fellow. So what makes the egg-and-lemon soup so good? We set up our cameras in his kitchen to find out.
The guys behind the boisterously Greek restaurant Cava in Rockville are on a roll. Not only do they have a second location on Capitol Hill, but they’ve also started a line of packaged dips and spreads sold at 14 area Whole Foods, Roots Market in Olney and Clarksville, and Snider’s Super Foods in Silver Spring. The smooth hummus and bright tzatziki are easy to like, but the standout is the “crazy” feta dip, a popular mezze at the restaurant. It brims with green olive oil and gets its name from a surprise ingredient—jalapeños.
Windy City Red Hots goes to the source for its dogs and fixings. Photograph by Chris Leaman.
One of the last places you’d expect to find authentic Chicago-style hot dogs is the parking lot of an Ashburn nursery.
But that’s where Chicago native Angel Miranda has set up shop, dispensing his hometown’s street foods from a white truck emblazoned with the words windy city red hots. Besides hot dogs, which he tops with sport peppers, tomatoes, an iridescent green relish, celery salt, and other condiments, Miranda sells Polish sausages, Italian beef sandwiches with a chunky giardiniera, and pizza puffs. All ingredients are flown in from Chicago, which means the meat comes from Vienna Beef and the buns are studded with poppy seeds.
Miranda, who moved to Northern Virginia in 1998, says the idea was born of homesickness. Might another exiled Chicagoan pay the truck a visit? We wouldn’t bet against it. The dogs are as close as you can get to the real thing without hopping a plane.
Did garden-club members Laura Barlow, Lucy Garrett, Jennifer Lee-Thorp, Ellen Spencer, and Rilla Crane pick bottled or brewed? Photograph by Matthew Worden
For some, nothing quenches a summer thirst like a glass of cold iced tea sipped under the shade of a wide-brimmed hat. So we asked five past presidents of the Great Falls Garden Club to taste-test iced teas.
With so many tea options—black, white, green, sweetened, unsweetened—we kept it simple, sampling traditional black, unsweetened teas. We settled on nine—three bottled, six brewed—and conducted the blind test in a Great Falls garden abloom with purple foxgloves, maroon clematis vines, and antique white roses.
The favorite? Trader Joe’s Kettle Brewed Unsweetened Black Tea, which the ladies were surprised to learn was bottled. A gallon jug costs $3.99, leaving money to spare for teacakes.
Except for the Trader Joe’s entry, fresh-brewed teas pleased the most palates. Coming in a close second was BigelowConstant Comment (about $3.49 for a box of 20 bags at supermarkets): “It has a wonderful nose,” said Rilla Crane, swirling and smelling the “orangey” brew. In third place was Tazo Awake black tea ($4.95 for 24 bags at Starbucks). “This has a deep, rich color and is a bit stronger,” said Jennifer Lee-Thorp.
In fourth was Luzianne, which the tasters liked for its light flavor and lack of an aftertaste. A 24-count box, specially blended for iced tea, is sold in supermarkets for about $2.99.
Also tested were Tejava, Honest Tea Just Black Tea, Stash English Breakfast Black Tea, and Ineeka Himalayan Black Intensity. The biggest loser? Lipton Cold Brew, which one lady said was so bland that it didn’t taste like tea at all.
Summer isn’t summer in Maryland without steamed crabs. Here are three of the best crab decks within an hour’s drive.
The motto “where the watermen gather” at Jimmy Cantler’s Riverside Inn (458 Forest Beach Rd., Annapolis; 410-757-1311; cantlers.com) is no joke. Yachtsmen and crabbers alike partake of the free dockage along Mill Creek. Kids love scrambling below deck to check out the crab tanks.
In the trendy neighborhood of Canton, Bo Brooks Restaurant (2780 Lighthouse Pt.; 410-558-0202; bobrooks.com) serves crabs with a twist: Old Bay is swapped out for a house-made rub. On weekdays, happy-hour diners score half-price appetizers such as crab guacamole.
Fisherman’s Crab Deck (3032 Tenth Narrows Way, Grasonville; 410-827-6666; fishermansinn.com) is the Disneyland of crab decks. This busy spot on Kent Island is known for its fun tiki bar, bustling marina, and killer sunset views on the Chesapeake Bay.
Cafe du Parc's mussels are sweet and delicate. Photograph by Scott Suchman.
Best classic rendition: Eating a pot of mussels and perfect fries at an umbrella-topped patio table at Café du Parc is the closest thing to being in Paris. It’s such a charming experience that it’s easy to lose sight of how sweet and delicate the plump, white-wine-steamed mussels are.
Best happy-hour deal: It wasn’t just the dead-on recreation of a weathered tavern that made Granville Moore’s an insta-hit; it was the rope-grown Prince Edward Island mussels. We like them steamed with white wine and herbs or perked up with a few dollops of basil-walnut-arugula pesto or a hearty handful of crumbled bacon, blue cheese, and spinach. Dip a side of hand-cut, sea-salt-topped fries into any of six house-made dips, including a horseradish cream sauce and a Dijon mayo. On Mondays from 5 to 7, the mussels are a steal at $10.
The patties at Ray’s Hell-Burger are a hefty ten ounces, and the toppings are delicious. Photograph of burger by Scott Suchman.
Eight Great Burgers
Best classic cheeseburger: The only fussy thing about the cheddar burger at Westend Bistrois the $16 price (without fries!). Otherwise, it’s a delicious workaday sandwich—chef Eric Ripert was inspired by the Big Mac—with shredded lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mustard, and pickles in perfect proportion.
Best gourmet burgers: Frank Ruta’s truffle cheeseburger on a freshly baked bun with house-made mayo is one of the biggest draws at Palena Cafe and the area’s best luxe take on fast food. It hasn’t been nudged off that throne, but the truffled patty melt at Inox, slathered with Comte and Cantal cheeses, rises to burger royalty, too.
Most creative burgers: The trimmings from the high-quality meats at Ray’s the Steaks are put to good use at sister spot Ray’s Hell-Burger. With its array of cheeses and toppings, you can go as crazy (foie gras, bordelaise sauce) or stay as tame (cheddar, tomato) as you want and usually end up with something delicious. After lots of experimenting, our favorite is an au poivre patty with blue cheese, grilled onions, and sherry-sautéed mushrooms.
Best turkey burger: Turkey burgers tend to be dry, but the avocado-topped free-range version grilled up at Good Stuff Eateryis full of juicy savor. The secret? A dollop of mango chutney in the patty.
Gone are the robust bureaus for the Los Angeles Times, Newhouse News, and other once-healthy news organizations. Digital media bureaus now are taking their places with as many reporters and plenty of swagger.
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Though Ann Limpert graduated from Connecticut College with a degree in art history and creative writing, she spent most of her time in New England debating the merits of warm, buttery lobster rolls vs. cold, mayo-y ones. She spent two years covering the internet for Entertainment Weekly magazine (highlights include interviewing the Beastie Boys and dancing to "Livin' la Vida Loca" with Penn Jillette), then left to hone her kitchen skills at the Institute of Culinary Education. She has worked as a cook at several New York restaurants, researched and edited cookbooks, and now writes about food and restaurants for the Washingtonian.
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Kate Nerenberg
Kate Nerenberg started as an editorial intern at The Washingtonian in January 2008 and became an assistant editor in September 2008. A native of West Hartford, Connecticut, she spent the first half of her writing life as a sports reporter, and was the editor of the athletics section for the newspaper and student-run magazine while at Middlebury College. A joint Spanish and Art History major, Kate graduated in 2005 and took off on a year-long journey around the world. After tasting everything from fried crickets to lavish Turkish breakfasts, she realized she wanted to devote herself to writing about food, a lifelong passion. She lives with three roommates just east of Logan Circle in a house that's often filled with the smell of sauteed garlic, warm banana bread, or fried bacon and eggs.
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Rina Rapuano
Rina Rapuano's English degree from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond put her on the path to becoming a managing editor of a weekly business magazine; a freelance copy editor; and assistant managing news editor—and later the lifestyles editor—at a weekly paper in Maryland. But she realized her true calling when her descriptions of meals to friends and colleagues always seemed to end with the same statement: “You're making me hungry.” Frankly, it was making Rina hungry, too. She chucked her day job in 2006 to become a full-time freelance writer focusing mainly on food, and now works as assistant food and wine editor at The Washingtonian.
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