Week 13 - Argentina/Ceviche

Located along Fenton Street in Silver Spring , Ceviche is a cool Latin restaurant that features a menu of South American dishes. I’m going to just pick Argentina for this entry. I had an Argentine steak, so I’m calling this one Argentina…

And so we had a dinner out with our eldest daughter at Ceviche. Cool Cuban Mojitos started the meal. Next was a ceviche sampler featuring four different types. One was Edcuadoran, another Peruvian. The other two didn’t have a nationality, but they were all delicious morsels of marinated fish and shrimp.

Here’s a wikipedia entry for ceviche: Ceviche is a form of citrus-marinated seafoood appetizer, popular in mainly Latin American countries like Peru, Panama, Ecuador, Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, and Chile. Both finfish and shellfish are used; finfish is typically raw while shellfish is typically cooked.

As a ceviche novice, I didn’t know what to expect. But it was delicious and tangy. Fresh fish or shrimp or calamari marinated in citrus, and then mixed with other fresh ingredients such as tomatoes, onions, peppers, or cilantro. Yum.

For my entrée I had the Churrasco con Chimichurri steak, the name coming from the Argentine Chimichurri sauce that topped the cut of meat. (It was very good, but slightly over cooked – I’ve decided if you want pink steak, just order it rare, not medium rare.) The steak was complimented by golden potatoes and salad.

Ceviche is the first restaurant review I’ve done during dinner. The evening atmosphere and mojitos added just the right elements to make the meal seem more authentic than during the lunch hour.

Week12 - Peru/Granja de Oro

Well it’s getting a little harder to keep up with weekly reviews – time passes!! Week 11 is Peru and Granja de Oro, a non descript Peruvian rotisserie chicken restaurant in Adams Morgan. The restaurant is a casual, fast food type restaurant that caters to the many recent immigrants in Adams Morgan.

I ordered the ¼ chicken with yucca and house salad. The dish is served with little containers of green and white sauce – spicy sauces to add heat to the chicken. The chicken was a breast on the bone with a unique, smoky or grilled flavor - their own unique cooking method. And the spicy sauces add just enough heat to make the meal. I actually picked up the chicken to gnaw some of the skin I couldn’t get off with my knife and fork – next time I’ll get the ½ chicken size. The yucca was fried and tasted close to french fries, and the house salad was a nice cool contrast to the chicken.

I was reminded of the chicken at Nando’s Peri Peri from week 9. Both are flavorful and spicy versions of the same chicken cuts. And maybe this one of those bigger picture observations. People in Peru, or Mozambique, or Adams Morgan enjoy a very similar dish that they call their own. Maybe we're all not so different after all..

Anyway, Granja is the type of restaurant that I want to continue to sample; a restaurant that serves the native populations in DC with food from back home. So I enjoyed the meal, but I need to order some more sides to experience more flavors they offer. I should have gotten a soup or the plantains. Next time…

Week 11 - Korea/Yellow Korean cart

Bulgogi and kimchi from a street corner cart in DC. It’s about time DC can offer more than hot dogs and half smokes for sale on the street. I found a Korean Bulgogi cart on Yelp, a website devoted to reader reviews of restaurants and other services. Located near The Post at 14th and L Street, the small yellow cart is run by a Korean mother and son team, and I was hoping I had found one of those little culinary gems that are so rare. And from the reviews on Yelp, I was sure I had.

Bulgogi is Korean barbecue, marinated sirloin strips grilled over an open fire. The Korean cart also offers spicy or mild chicken cooked in the same way. I tried the mild beef and the spicy chicken served over rice with kimchi on the side. Wow, the kimchi was spicy. I like the spicy food, but man, I couldn’t even eat the kimchi. Hot hot hot. The mild beef was good, and the spicy chicken was just right. But not great. I was expecting something more from all the positive chatter on Yelp. I guess I like a little more sweetness in my Asian foods – I love the Kung Pao chicken you get at hole in wall type “fast food” Chinese restaurants. But to be fair, from a cart on the street the food was good. Big portions and tasty, but I probably wouldn’t try it again.