Washington National Cathedral

With the weather still warm, we decided to visit the Washington National Cathedral in D.C..  It was also a great excuse for me to take the camera out for more practice!

This past Sunday was also the first day it re-opened after the damage from the earthquake that caused several large points of the cathedral to fall.

I couldn't get enough of all the pretty colors!!  So pretty!!!

 

The Bishop's Garden was full of herbs and edible fruits! yeee!  George said we could always come here instead of Trader Joes...tsk tsk =D

and pretty little pink baby blossom blooms!

Weeping crap apple fruit

mmm...these roses smelled amazing..

An asian wedding outside the cathedral =)

The view from the 7th floor of the cathedral.  Can you spot the Washington Monument?

 The fallen pieces of the cathedral from the earthquake =/

Off to Linner!!

@ the Louisiana Kitchen (Bethesda, MD)

Overall this place wasn't bad--the fried oysters and beignets were the best!

 Deeeeelicious!  Cornmeal crusted oysters dipped in garlic aioli!  These suckers were so crispy and juicy!

Yummy shrimp Gumbo!

I love crawfish etouffee!

H-E-A-V-E-N

crispy on the outside, soft and airy on the inside, sitting on a giant mound of confection sugar and strawberries

 All gone!

 Calas--Fried rice ball dusted with cinnamon sugar = Not good.  It was too dry and heavy.  It also had a really strong egg aftertaste and smell.

 Pretty sights and yummy food makes for a great weekend!
P.S. If you have any photography pointers, please share =D  I love learning!

Banh Xeo

 Banh Xeo

One of my favorite things to make at home--Vietnamese savory crepes made with rice flour, tumeric for the yellow color, and green onions.  For a rich and crispy batter, I use coconut milk and beer!  The beer flavor is deliciously intoxicating when the crepe is cooking!  Growing up I loved my mama's banh xeo so I'm especially proud to make it like hers!

Filling for my crepes--pork, shrimp, thinly sliced onions, and bean sprouts.

Or if you're George, alll shrimpppp

My crepe filled with pork and shrimp =D

China Bistro (Rockville, MD)

http://www.yelp.com/biz/china-bistro-rockville

George and I were looking for good dumplings and since we were in the asian area of town, this place came up on Yelp.  Known for their juicy dumplings, this place is a small joint with very rude servers that barely speaks English--a sign of authentic food to come!  It's so good that we've already been back twice!!! 

Dumplings are made to order and takes about 30 minutes and can be fried or steamed.  And that lychee boba drink was delish too!

Though they look big, the dough is light and the inside is filled with such sweet juices that upon biting into it, my dumpling squirted onto my face and glasses, across my arm and stained the chair next to me.  It was intense, burning in your mouth, crispy, juicy--all the things a girl could ask for in a dumpling.  I was dunking these shrimp and chives babies in spicy, vinegar, soy sauce and was on my way to slurping, sipping, happy goodness.

Sauce of choice: soy sauce, vinegar, and a butt load of chilli oil

Brrr...my toes...

Bipolar weather is here!  One day it's 70 degrees and I'm sweating from wearing too many layers and the next it's 32 degrees AND snowing!!!!  I completely lost it and squealed my giant head off when the first baby flakes came and I couldn't resist running around trying to lick it! =D

little specks of baby snowwwww!!! eek!

Saigon Cafe in Falls Church, VA

The best thing to do to keep warm is to EAT!

  Finally!!! After 4 months, I finally got some banh beo chen in my belly!

There's no place like Westminster, CA's Ngu Binh but this place did a pretty good job!  Instead of the pork rinds, they topped it off with fried bits of pork lard!!!! =D

Spicy Bun Bo Hue makes me warm and fuzzy inside

AYCE Buffet at Korshi in Centreville, VA (apparently another Korean nook in VA)

After watching Puss in Boots (funny movie!), we decided to try out this AYCE buffet that we've heard so many great things about.  Word to the wise, not a good idea to try and maximize stomach eating capacity by going to a buffet at 9 p.m...Usually our strategy is to go early and sit for 4 hours.  Clearly, we did not plan this out.  

Pretty impressed with all the different yummy rolls they had. 

 Not sure why I wanted to try some of their salads...Waste of stomach space... =/

We were hungry little monsters

One of the best part, grabbing your own Kalbi, pork belly, brisket, meats/seafood for the waiters to grill it for you table side.  Beef quality's not as good though.

Noodle Bar!  Shrimp Tempura Udon

The desserts were standard bleh buffet desserts.

But the mango pudding was yum 

I've been meeting a lot of great D.C attorneys through the Asian Pacific American Bar Association (APABA-DC).  We decided to do a Sunday brunch at Oyamel Cocina Mexicana in D.C.  This place is overpriced than what I'm used to for mexican food but they had interesting dishes and it's always fun to try new places with new foodies!

This is one happy Guac Guy!

  

Guacamole made right before your eyes, with green tomatillo, serrano chile, crumbled queso fresco cheese and a basket of fresh tortilla chips--for $13 dollassss.  We got the extra spicy guac to be on the wild side.

I had to get the dish with chicharrones!

Quesadilla de chicharrones: Pasture raised Shenandoah Valley pork belly fried until crisp and served in a house made tortilla with chihuahua cheese and a sauce of five chiles

Annette and I also had the wineberry lemonade and passionfruit-orange-guava juice.  Yum!

Left: Cebolla en escabeche--Yucatan-style pit barbecued pork with pickled red onion and Mexican sour orange.  Right: Taco de Birria estilio Guadalajara--Guadalajara style goat, veal and lamb (wow!) taco in a cascabel, ancho and guajillo chile sauce with onions and cilantro. 

They did have many interesting taco varieties which I liked!

 Carne machaca con huevos revueltos: Scrambled eggs served on a tortilla with dried shredded beef, potatoes, poblano chile, tomato and a smoky sauce of chile pasilla de Oaxac

Huachinango a la Veracruzana: Seared red snapper Veracruz-style, with tomatoes, onions, jalapeno chiles, olives and capers

Pescado Mexicano: Seared fish with salsa Mexicana and a tangy cilantro pesto.  The horror--this dingy thing for $3.50 split 4 ways...

Churros de San Angel con chocolate caliente: churros dipped in sugar and cinnamon, served with a side of hot chocolate!  This was amazeeeing!  We ordered two of these babies and everyone was too full so I had to take one for the team and eat most of it.

One of my most favorite thing to do on pay day is to take the boyfriend (aka glutton #2) out to try a new restaurant and spoil ourselves with food.  Cafe Asia is in our neighborhood so we gave it a shot.  It's got a yuppy, trendier vibe and they do fusion asian food where pad thai meets spicy ramen.  The fusion entrees were mediocre but the fruity drinks, little plates and sashimi were yummy!

This is what George looks like to me without my glasses and after 1 drink...hahaha

The Lycheetini was delicious!

Braised then grilled Pork Belly...I wanted 3 more of these and a tub of rice to sob up the sauce.  Such tender, sweet, soy, crispy grilled fat goodness!!!

Miso Sea Bass--buttery, lemony, miso-ey, yummyy

I was really surprised how fresh the sashimi was!

George's mediocre order of the night: Chicken and beef satay with spicy fried rice and spicy relish.  It wasn't bad...but it wasn't good either.  The beef was too dry and the satay sauce was too chunky.

Sweet Shrimp and for some reason, my favorite--the very simple tuna roll.  I really like the taste of seaweed, rice, and a bit of tuna.

******
As fall merges into winter, I'm angry that I have to store away my beloved flip flops...The idea of changing your ENTIRE wardrobe and swapping your shorts and tank tops for heavy wool coats and boots is still new to me.

I stubbornly attempted to brave the cold in my favorite pair of Reefs today but my little toes cursed me and they felt like they were going to fall off!

So, as all sunny and warm things come to an end, as the days get darker and colder (aahhh!  I'm both deathly scared and excited!), I look forward to all things snow! winter coats, warm toe socks, hot cocoa, s'mores by the fireplace, and my favorite part of all, the winter holidays!

 

Cheers to November everyone!  Stay warm and don't forget to FALL BACK this Sunday!