Trout potato adobo, carnitas, grilled lamb. Each $3.50
Tacos Cala, San Francisco CA
I just love the tacos at Cala. They’re always so tasty and such great quality. Of these three, I especially liked the trout and potato adobo. It was a nice change from your typical taco fillings. I also love the salsas that they have. I could eat these all day!
Pureed celery root, shaved celery, celery powder. Tasting menu $95
Volt, Frederick MD
Celery three ways – what?! Very creative. Maybe I’m just not a celery person, but I didn’t care much for the puree. Also, so much celery kinda overwhelmed me after a while. I also wasn’t a big fan of the lamb. It was kinda squishy(?) and difficult to cut through. I would say that it was tender, but it wasn’t that – it had an odd texture that didn’t appeal to me.
Bacon, chive oil, oyster crackers. Cup $5
Red’s Table, Reston VA
This chowder was great! I loved its thick texture and smoky flavor. I also liked the homemade (?) crackers instead of the typical oyster crackers in a bag.
Rich and creamy chicken soup, pork chashu, duck chashu, menma, kale, burdock, katsuobushi sauce. Double chashu $18
Mensho Tokyo, San Francisco CA
Overall, I thought this place was overrated – especially for the price! I will admit that this tori paitan broth was delicious. I loved how rich and fatty it was, but I’m sure it’s not for everyone. I thought that the topping were mediocre though. Both the chasu pork and duck were bland and boring, and the other toppings were kept to a minimum. You think they’ve give you a bit more for almost 20 bucks for this slightly small bowl. Meh, wouldn’t go back.
Braised tofu with minced pork, hot pepper sauce, scallions. $6.95
China King Restaurant, Herndon VA
This looks messy and gross, but it tasted great. I appreciated that they kept the pork at a sizable mince (it felt more hearty). This dish could have used a bit more heat, but the flavors were solid.
Eggs over medium, wheat toast. $4.95
Dutch Eating Place, Philadelphia PA
I’m still surprised (and alarmed) when I travel to a place that doesn’t ban the use of styrofoam. It’s such a horrible thing!
Anyway, back to the food. I didn’t like this very much, and not because of the styrofoam! The scrapple had an odd texture. Maybe this is how it’s supposed to taste and feel, but the other times I’ve had scrapple were at nice restaurants so maybe they had performed some culinary magic to deceive me into liking it. I love offal and such so I thought that this would be great – not the case. The toast was also lame and barely even toasted. The eggs just looked sad.
Tuna, ogo seaweed, onion, cashew nuts, sushi rice. $11.50
Bonito Poke Truck, San Francisco CA
This was pretty tasty. It sure was small, but I did love the flavors. I just felt sad when I ate the whole thing and was still hungry after spending 12 bucks.
$1.10
Beiler’s Bakery, Philadelphia PA
My donut kinda got smushed in the bag, but oh well, it still tasted great! I just loved their light and fluffy dough. I will say that prices have gone up 15 cents since that last time I was here, lol! Darn inflation! 🙂
Sticky rice, mozzarella, bechamel, marinara. $6
Cherry Blossom Pub, Washington DC
These were good (and different). I liked the sticky rice variation to keep in line with the Super Mario theme on our side of the bar. This had great flavor though. The service was nice enough, but the crowds were just too loud and crazy to really enjoy anything.
Vittle Monster 