My kind of Halloween treat

I’m. so. making. this.

Have you been to Horace and Dickies?

Frank has sang its praises. Now, the TV show “Man vs. Food” and, by extension, our friends at Capital Spice Blog are talking about it.

Now, it’s my turn. I’ve never been to Horace and Dickies, at H and 12th NE, admittedly because I’m a little intimidated. I love the H street corridor bars and restaurants (Argonaut is my all-time favorite bar in DC), but I have a tendency to get a little too comfortable in the area and forget that I am still somewhere that requires alertness. Beyond the typical safety concerns, I haven’t known quite what to expect. But I think I’m excited enough to get over my fear of the unknown now.

Horace and Dickies serves lightly breaded fish and not too many other things (click here to view a photo of the menu), but I’m ready to give it a shot.

Have you ever tried Horace and Dickies? Any feedback or suggestions?

The Sushi Birds Leave the Nest

Needless to say following the sushi class we were anxious to cut our teeth at making our own. Katie and I were feeling empowered by the relative success we enjoyed in class. We were both impressed with ourselves; it didn’t seem as difficult as we thought it would be and in my opinion we were at the top of the class. Armed with our new knowledge and inflated senses of ourselves, we set out to put our lesson into practice, unsupervised.

Our instructor sang the praises of H Mart as a reliable, affordable outlet for sushi fish and supplies. We ventured out, expecting not to fly too close to the sun on our first try, meaning no raw fish. Still, we stashed a cooler with ice in the car just in case we picked up a product that we wanted to keep cold on the drive back to Katie’s. Read more »

Can we cook a whole fish?

Despite the fact that I don’t like things with bones (thanks for sharing that with everyone, Frank), I manned up over the weekend so we could attempt to cook a whole fish. And I’m happy to say it wasn’t half bad.

We decided this first effort should be undertaken with rockfish–or striped bass, as it’s called outside the Mid-Atlantic area–because it’s one of Frank’s favorites. And who doesn’t like a local specialty? Read more »

Italian Foodventures in Chicago

I’ve long criticized the fact that it’s hard to find good Italian food in Washington, D.C. and northern Virginia. The best I’ve found–excluding the Italian sub scene, which is for another post–is at La Piazza, next to the Braddock Road metro stop in Alexandria, and Alberto’s on Barracks Row.

Because the Italian food in D.C. is famously below par, I sought out Italian food on my business trip to Chicago last weekend. I ate three different Italian restaurants and wanted to share some brief thoughts about those restaurants here.

On Thursday night, I had dinner at Vivere, one of the three “Italian Village Restaurants” that boasts the largest wine selection in the entire city. I started with a small Caesar salad and my entree was the oh-so-delicious Linguini con Gamberi e Pomodori Secchi, which featured linguine, sauteed shrimp, toasted garlic, extra virgin olive oil, chili flakes, and Sicilian sun-dried tomatoes. In our group of 8, three people ordered this and if you could taste it, you would understand why. Read more »

Leftover Monday: Cod with Lemon Butter Sauce

Just like last week, I was confronted with some highly perishable leftover fish. Knowing that he seldom leads me wrong, I turned to Alton Brown. Read more »

Favazza’s Inspired Sunday Dinner

Venture into an American city that is new to you and you will more than likely encounter ethnic neighborhoods with distinctive cultures all their own. As new waves of immigrant groups replace the ones that come before, the neighborhoods develop a whole new character, and the food takes on a whole new flavor.

“The Hill” in St. Louis, MO bucks the trend. Since the days Italian immigrants first settled in St. Louis, The Hill has been the center of the community. To this day, there are many restaurants, delis, churches, and businesses that speak with a distinct Italian accent.
Katie’s family is a part of this proud tradition. Favazza’s restaurant has been a Hill mainstay for more than 30 years, and it continues to serve some of the best Italian-American dishes in town. Katie is justifiably proud of this history, and she’ll readily admit to missing it when she’s in Washington.

In that spirit, tonight’s Foodventure is a tribute to Favazza’s on the Hill. Meat-free Lent calls for a fish dish, and Katie instantly suggested sole piccata, sauted sole or other firm, white, fish topped with a lemon butter sauce. I am familiar with chicken and veal piccata, but this technique with fish was new to me. Read more »

Foodventure Fail: Shrimp Fried Rice and Veggie Egg Rolls

Knowing I had some odds and ends at my house that didn’t amount to much in and of themselves, I stopped at Trader Joe’s last night to pick up some things to supplement what was already in my pantry and fridge. I had big plans for a fun meal that would make for a great post, but I was too hungry to engage in a big project, so I went with Plan B. I picked up frozen shrimp fried rice and vegetarian egg rolls, in part because I was craving Chinese takeout but didn’t want to pay for it and in part because I wanted immediate gratification. In the end, I was less than satisfied.

The egg rolls were supposed to cook for 20-25 minutes in a 375 degree oven and be turned once after about 10 minutes. I put them in a lightly oiled pan, as instructed, but when I went to turn them, they were stuck in a bad way and fell apart. When the entire cooking time was up, they were not crisp and the insides that ended up on the pan were burned in such a way that made the pan almost impossible to clean.

The shrimp fried rice wasn’t terrible, but it took much longer to cook through than the bag said it would. After heating a little butter in a pan and getting the pan very hot, the food should only have taken about 2-3 minutes to cook, but after 3 minutes, the shrimp were still frozen solid. Plus, I’m not sure why this didn’t occur to me before I bought it, but the idea of frozen egg pieces did not sit well with me and I never got past that. I was too filled with anxiety wondering if the shrimp were really cooked enough and praying that I didn’t bite into a semi-frozen piece of egg to enjoy what was otherwise an ok meal.

What’s worse though is that because this was all so unsatisfying, I’m still craving Chinese.

Yes, I’m embarrassed to admit all of this, but I promised Frank a post about my Tuesday dinner. It was an official Foodventure Fail. But hey, for those of you who don’t like pretentious food blogs, know that I’m big enough to admit that I’m not above a fast, frozen option, particularly on a weeknight.

If you have a better suggestion for a cheap, takeout alternative–or weeknight meal in general that doesn’t disappoint–please pass it along in the comments section.

Chesapeake Cioppino

There’s something you need to know about Frank: He loves bacon. A lot.
So when it crossed my mind to give up meat for Lent this year, I didn’t mention anything to him right away. He suggested–rather unexpectedly–that we attempt this sacrifice together. For the first Sunday Supper documented on this blog (and knowing that there’s 6-10 inches of snow expected overnight), Frank and I decided on cioppino. With friends like these, who needs meat?
Like many a prior, undocumented Foodventure, this one begins at the Fish Market.

Read more »