Eat Great Cheap 2016For many, Honey Pig is synonymous with Annandale’s Korean barbecue scene, thanks to the popularity of the seven-year-old Annandale original, which still serves 24-hour crowds eager for their fill of grilled meats and cold beer. The family-owned operation has since expanded to six locations, from Maryland to Taiwan, all outfitted with low ceilings and corrugated-metal walls. But back to the original: Why brave hourlong waits on busy nights? Because the place is pure, hedonistic fun in a way most restaurants aren’t, and you won’t leave hungry or bored. Order a chilled bottle of soju and fried mandu dumplings while you wait for heaps of spicy pork belly and beef ribs to cook on the hubcap-like table grills. Service is swift, but you can carry on the party at Honey Pig Izakaya, the karaoke bar down the road.
Cuisine: Korean
Where you can get it: 7220 Columbia Pike, Annandale, 703-256-5229; 13848-B Braddock Rd., Centreville, 703-830-5959; 19743 N. Frederick Rd., Germantown, 301-972-2436
Also good: Kimchee pancake; bulgogi beef; squid and pork in spicy sauce; buckwheat noodles in cold beef broth.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
