Adventure Nine: Thoughts on Food blogging

My agenda for this blog is to bring you guys a new place to try out each week, however sometimes doing so can be very hard. I've lived in this area for a long while, it starts to get difficult to find new and interesting restaurants hiding in the back alleys of the place you've lived since birth. Even as such I still try to find new places to write about. Of course I could write about some chain restaurant or something along those lines, but I feel that the only reason I would have to write about something that everybody has already been to a million times is if I find something chaotically interesting and or awesome about the whole deal. Nobody wants to hear about that hamburger they ate at Wendy's; however I'm sure that there is somebody got a hamburger made for them by a one armed midget who ended up throwing 6 patties of beef on it(true story). However finding unique restaurants is getting increasingly difficult as more and more things become franchised. There is something to be said about being able to get that one dish you like in Tyson's Corner Virginia, all the way out in New Haven Connecticut . But in the end, doesn't the fact that each town has its own unique cuisine help give character to that area? I could go on and on about the bitchin' barbeque chicken pizza rolls from Radford, or the Lasagna from Marie's in Sarasota Florida that really ties me to these places. The food is something that you can remember just as much as you would the times that you do other things there, sometimes more. Searching out these little glimmers of culinary character can be quite difficult, because it requires a sense of adventure, an open mind, and a little prayer to make sure that you don't order the beef with broccoli, only to find some sort of meat, and some sort of mystery vegetable with a scent too terrible to behold. But regardless I press on, and next week I will bring something a lot more solid than one armed midgets, pizza rolls, and mystery Chinese food.

Adventure Eight: The Counter...of doom

This week I went to a burger joint nestled in the heart of Reston town center. I am referring of course to the one restaurant in that area whose sole occupation is to provide ornate and over the top burgers: The Counter. My initial thoughts upon approaching the crowded little restaurant were a tad skeptical, the place was really small, and it was really crowded. My initial distaste was further fueled when I saw the price of the burgers, when everything was said and done I believe I spent $20 on a burger and milk shake, which is a tad obscene. However for the burger enthusiast I will say that this is a place that definitely needs to be on your list. There is a large selection of options for you to create your own ½ lb, 2/3lb and 1lb burger. Ever had a chicken burger with goat cheese and guacamole on it? Me neither, I wouldn't want one but there may be someone who does! They give you a piece of paper, not unlike a sushi bar, and you pick a meat, dressings, cheese, vegetables, and secondary meats(such as bacon). This way ensures that your order really is never messed up, which Is fairly important when you have such complex burgers. One thing that I thought was interesting was that they had the option to put your burger in a bowl and apparently mash it up or something, like some sort of burger salad. I did not have the guts to try this one. The counter also offers a verity of both alcoholic and non alcoholic milk shakes. Which is helpful to those who want to spend just as much on their drink as they spend on their burgers.

The atmosphere gives me the sense that they may have wanted it to be a sports centric restaurant, but it ended up being full of families with the occasional group of twenty somethings. It was loud, rowdy, and the waitresses seemed to be overwhelmed and under appreciated. There was also no coffee in sight, which was to be expected. If you are skimming this post all you need to know is The Counter, burger place, expensive, good, crowded.

Scores:
food: 3.7ish/5
service: 3/5
coffee: N/A
Cost: Expensive

Image: Don't worry guys, that is just the largest burger I've ever had the displeasure of receiving from Wendy's, not actually from The Counter

Map Time!

Adventure Seven: The Soundry

Live from The Soundry! Its this guy! Talking to you about this place that he is in. This week I took a journey(literally last minute) to a small coffee shop/independent artist/musician artsy fartsy hipster spot. As I speak there is a group of artists past the hallways behind me, are each working on tediously on their own individual pieces. While a guitarist in a different set of rooms is set up with a tape recorder and a six string trying to figure out where he wants to be in his song. All the while the shop keep passes a coffee cup with a sleeve that says “F*ck the Machine” to one of my companions. The Soundry was a unique experience to me, walking in I instantly felt comfortable. The 12pm crowd was light but instantly friendly to my party as we entered. After a quick self guided tour through the facilities I made my way back to the front to get a cup of their coffee. $1.25 got me a 16oz cup with as much cream and coffee as id like until I left, which is very good considering that the coffee is nearly as good as The Amphora. The Soundry also offers a slew of specialized coffees, Mochas, french press, etc. I however did not get a chance to try them; I figure if their standard coffee is good then their special coffee cant be far off from its basis. The Soundry is also open real late(its 1am and i'm sitting at a table writing up this article), so its a perfect spot for the late night crowd to show up, grab endless coffee, and relax with a bunch of hipster artists for several hours. The only thing it really lacks is any sort of snack food floating around. I feel like this place could take a healthy dose of things such as pizza bagels, hot pockets, and taquitos to serve for their crowd. All and all The Soundry is a great place to get in touch with your artistic side in good company with a great batch of endless coffee flowing forth from a pot in the corner.

Scores:
food: N/A
service: 5/5(nice guys)
coffee: 4/5(pretty good all around!)
Cost: Inexpensive to free

(hipsters shown in photo not included)

Map

Adventure Six: King of China

This week I am choosing to grace you all with the knowledge that is China King! As you no doubt may have realized, I have somewhat of a taste for Asian cuisine. However I find it very difficult to locate a good Chinese food restaurant that does not cost you a large chunk of your savings during any given outing. Enter China King, a small restaurant in the midst of a shopping complex with the bustle of a grocery store. Upon entering the first thing you notice is a line of people waiting by the counter, and a small Buddha statue with the sign taped under it “Rub my tummy 3 times for good luck”, and you damn well better rub it.
China King's setup is very simple, you walk in, you stand in line, order your food, and take a number. It may seem very lazy on their part, and of course it certainly doesn't help that they don't deliver at all; however there is no denying the results. For the low low price of $5.95(plus tax) I regularly get a gigantic take-out sized box of Mongolian beef with onions and rice. Don't mistake though, as with Ba Le, just because its cheap does not mean its not good as hell. They boast a large menu, which is filled with the delicious unhealthy meals that satisfy the soul on any day. In all honesty it could be a dirty old man smoking a cigarette making this food and I would still eat it. Alas, it is instead a friendly staff that never messes up your orders, remembers what you regularly order, and sometimes gives you a free fortune cookie. This can easily be a substitute for your bi-weekly Chipotle, or to satisfy your hunger when its not prime time for Ba Le. So here are the damn scores/Map.


Scores:
food: 5/5
service: 3/5(they remember your orders)
coffee: Not here.
Cost: Inexpensive, feed your family for 15$ yay!

GO HERE FOR CHINA KING

Adventure Five: The Amphora

Last week I visited an all night diner that has been in the heart of Vienna since before I can even remember. I am referring of course, to The Amphora. They specialize in cakes, sandwiches, and breakfast; and they serve all of these 24 hours a day. Now mind you, this is not exactly the most inexpensive restaurant for the 1am crowd, but honestly, where the hell else can you get a good chocolate mousse cake, a side of bacon, and a delicious cup of coffee. Now I will not go forth and boldly claim that I have ended my quest for the best cup of coffee ever, however within a 3 mile radius of my home I believe I have found one of the best I can get within 15 minutes notice of any time of the day. First and foremost its a smooth coffee, this is perhaps my favorite quality of the coffee, it has a little bit of a nutty taste to it which compliments any sort of cake you happen to be eating at the time. The amphora boasts a large menu ranging from a verity of grilled cheese sandwiches to complex pastas to hamburgers and salads. The staff, with the exception of the manager, is also very nice and capable. They also all wear suits and bow ties which can at times remind me of the stereotypical waiters of legend. They tend to go out of their way to be as helpful and friendly as possible. For instance the last time I went we had a large party of about eight people, so the waiter took the liberty of placing a large pot of coffee amongst us and came back dropping off creamer every so often. All of this being said, expect to pay a bit more for your meal than some other places, but it has been worth it pretty much every time, just pass on the fries, they aren't that great.


Scores:
food: 4/5
service: 5/5(Mythical Waiters)
coffee: 4/5
cost: Expensive, around $16 per person

The Map

Adventure Four, Don Pablo's: It's Morphin time!

Each day is a different adventure; I tend to find myself adventuring more often than your average person.

This weekend my party of adventurers were motivated to go to take an arduous trek out to the sterling Don Pablo's. Now you may be thinking: “why would you take a decently long journey to go to a chain restaurant?” There is one reason and one reason alone: we heard rumors that the first Red Power Ranger, Austin St. John, was employed as a waiter at this establishment. Were the rumors true? Could we in fact meet the esteemed defender of justice in a chain family restaurant? With the childhood dream of being served tacos by the protagonist of a classic television show we set off.

One brave member of our party stepped forward to speak with the hostess. She was apparently a new employee and took the words “hey does the red ranger work here?” to mean “table for 4”. After a brief and awkward conversation with the hostess, we learned that the Red Ranger was not actually employed at Don Pablo's. This was incredibly disappointing, but that was why they were called rumors. However we were very hungry, and we were willing to eat just about anywhere at that point in time.

We were quite wary of our waiter when he first seated us, because he seemed a little bit slow. Even though he kept this sort of tone in his speech throughout the entirety of the experience, he quickly proved to me that you can't judge based on outwards appearance. Not only did he make fantastic recommendations, being that we should all get this appetizer sampler. He also gave us twice as much of everything for free. On top of that he made sure that the best part of the whole thing, being the bad assed chips, were kept coming, I tip my metaphorical hat to him for that.

No coffee in sight

Its morphin time!

Scores:
food: 3/5
service: 5/5(varies based on employee)
coffee: 0/5
cost: average

Adventure Three, Sweet Water, Bitter Coffee

Each day is a different adventure; I tend to find myself adventuring more often than your average person.

So this week I went to a little place called Sweet Water Tavern, it was interesting to say the least. Upon entering, me and my group of adventurers were quickly scuttled to a remote table in some far away corner. Well away from service land, but not quite in the same realm as the orks and trolls. Needless to say throughout the entirety of the situation we were barley serviced. At one point I was thinking about throwing my unused spoon at our depressing waitress in an attempt to procure another flagon of their rancid self-brewed beer. That seemed to be Sweet Water Tavern's claim to fame, I would believe it on the grounds that I saw plenty of people walking out with 2 liter jugs of if, but I got the sampler and could not find one that I actually enjoyed.
I also happened to order some a hamburger for $13.99, I found it lacking in the field of duty and subsequently wished to execute it on the spot. After stabbing it through the bun several times I turned my attention on a golden ball of light, yes there was one fantastic aspect of this restaurant: the rolls they had were delicious and free. Almost like little buttery balls of delight and awesome, kind of like a jet fighters or punching. My party of three managed to cleave through about five baskets by the end of the meal. Then came the end of the meal, they had several desert options, however I elected to not choose from any of the overpriced options. Instead I turned my attention to a part of the thesis of this blog: the coffee. I ordered a cup, it was presented rather nicely with a little cup of cream on the side. However it was too bitter and not very tasty. I drank it anyway. Remember if you want sub-par overpriced food, nasty beer, and just o.k coffee, go to Sweet Water Tavern. But hey those rolls are delicious!


Scores:
food: 2/5
service: 2/5(i'll take my chances with the orks thank you)
coffee: 2/5
cost: expensive