American City Diner - Chevy Chase, DC

The bf needed to get his car worked on at my friend's auto shop - DP Auto Service. While we were waiting, we checked out American City Diner for some brunch. This diner has been around since 1988. There is street parking with the closest metro stop being Friendship Heights on the red line.

It's very small on the inside but filled with things to look at.

The food is, well, diner food. There is breakfast, burgers, pizza, etc. Good 'ol American favorites.

The bf ordered the Philly Steak and Cheese (sub roll, sautéed onions, mushrooms and melted provolone cheese) for $7.95. He liked it a lot because it was very cheesy, greasy and tasted like he expected it should.

I went with the Vegetarian Omelette (Mushrooms, Onions, Tomatoes, Jack Cheese) for $9.50. Came with home fries and toast. I loved the omelette because they didn't add the ingredients to the batter, but filled it like a burrito. They did not skimp on the cheese, so it was very gooey. The home fries had bacon in it, so it was very fatty. I didn't find the home fries special, so the bf ate most of it.

Overall, we both enjoyed our meals. The service was quick and nice, and the place was packed. Prices were good since we got a lot of food. Every night at 8pm they show a classic movie on their Movie Deck that you can watch while eating dinner!

5532 Connecticut Ave NW
Washington, DC 20015
(202) 244-1949
www.americancitydiner.com

Comet Ping Pong - Chevy Chase, DC

Pizza and ping pong anyone? The bf and cousin helped me use my Living Social deal at Comet Ping Pong. Interestingly enough, I had driven by this place a bazillion times going downtown, yet it was an episode of Food Network's Diners, Drive-In's and Dives that caught my attention. There is outdoor seating and ping pong tables when the weather is nice. There is street parking around the restaurant. The closest metro station is Tenleytown-AU on the red line.

I had no idea what to expect, but the decor reminded me of an 80's tennis court (?) The splotchy concrete and iron benches didn't make the place feel welcoming even though it is a chill place. I wonder if it looks cooler at night. It gets really loud with the concrete and metal throwing off the acoustics too.

The bf thought it was awesome that Bruce Lee was on the menu. If you haven't seen the clip of "him" playing ping pong with nunchucks, it's really tight.

The main focus of the menu is brick oven pizza, which comes in one size - around 10 inches. It's a good personal size. A limited amount of starters and desserts are also offered along with a full bar.

My cousin ordered The Hottie (Jalapeno, Comet Sauce, Pepperoni, Fontina) for $11. I don't mind fattiness, but do you see the puddle of grease? It wasn't spicy as the name would suggest either, and tasted like a typical pepperoni pizza. This was the bf's preference.

The bf ordered The Smoky (Smoky Mushrooms, Smoky Mozzarella, Smoky Bacon, melted onions, garlic) for $13. He wished there was marinara sauce (like on The Hottie) and found the flavors too smoky. This was my preference.

After seeing this pizza on TV, I ordered the Yalie (Fresh Clams, garlic, melted onions, Thyme, Parmesan, Lemon) for $15. It tasted fresh and it was a very different pizza, yet I found it a bit bland for my taste. This was my cousin's favorite.

We shared a dessert of Salted Caramel & Praline and Coconut ($5 for 2 scoops). The ice cream was made of local and organic ingredients. The texture was very creamy, but they both tasted very much the same, which was like vanilla. So that was disappointing.

Check out the back room! Who doesn't love free entertainment?

I lost every game we played after lunch but it was fun, and the boys had a blast.

As my pizza comments suggested, we all preferred someone else's pizza. So 2/3 of the way through the meal, we traded clockwise. The environment and concept is very different from other brick oven places in the city, but the pizza itself didn't shine. For the portion size, I found the price to be high. As a group, we felt the ping pong was the highlight of our lunch. The demographic is inclusive of everyone because there was a kid's birthday party at the same time yuppies were grabbing some drinks at the bar.

5037 Connecticut Ave NW
Washington, DC 20008
(202) 364-0404
www.cometpingpong.com

Lia's - Chevy Chase, MD

I look forward to Bethesda and DC Restaurant Week every summer. Sure they have it in winter too, but that's just not as festive! For Bethesda Restaurant Week (7/23-8/1), I went with 2 of my girls to Lia's in Chevy Chase. This contemporary New Italian restaurant has a huge outdoor patio. There is garage parking underneath Bloomingdale's (across the street) and valet (couple bucks). The closest metro stop is Friendship Heights on the red line.

The interior is very simple, modern and clean. We sat in the back room where the walls were made of plywood, and the wall diving us from the main dining room was a stainless steel and glass wall of wine. The white linens, soft lighting and candles made it classy.

Each of us participated in their Restaurant Week deal (3-courses for $30). Usually the restaurant will make a special limited menu for the week, however Lia's was amazing! They let you choose off the entire menu minus 3 of out 4 steaks. That's like 38 options...so nice.
I'm listing the prices for the items as if they were a la carte. FYI, the soft lighting was affecting some of my shots. Sorry for some blurriness! Bah...

After enjoying some red wines at The Tasting Room, I decided to enjoy a glass during my meal. Our awesome server Adam suggested the 'Monastrell-Tempranillo, Carchelo, Jumilla, Spain 08' for $10.95. I told him I was looking for something more fruity. He said this wasn't quite fruity, but a good wine he thought I'd enjoy. It was very light, and I liked it.

My cousin ordered the 'crispy calamari with trio of sauces' for $12.95 as her appetizer. We had to guess on the sauces, and they seemed to be a marinara, lemon and avocado. The calamari was fried well but we all thought it was too salty.

My friend ordered the 'spicy calamari salad with arugula and treviso'. It usually comes as part of a 3 for $15 deal, so I'm not sure how much one was. She thought it was a bit bland and not spicy enough.

I ordered the 'fattoush salad, feta, olive, flatbread' for $7.95. It tasted like a Greek salad with spicy flat bread on the side. Sadly, the flatbread was chewy and tasted old.

My cousin ordered the 'lobster and corn risotto with roasted tomato' for $26.95. She liked it a lot and you can't tell by the picture but it was a huge portion.

My friend ordered the 'seared scallops wild mushroom-asparagus risotto' $23.95. The scallops were large and she seemed pleased.

I enjoyed my 'pan roasted duck breast potato hash, spinach, apricot gastrique' for $24.95. Our server suggested I order it medium-rare and I thought that was a good tip. Tasted a bit peppery, but very tender. The sides were flavorful and I liked the fried green onions on top.

The desserts were actually on a special Restaurant Week menu. My friend ordered the 'chocolate chip cannolis (artisan cannoli shells, ricotta-chocolate chip filling', which no one at the table was crazy about. The filling tasted like cookie dough and it wasn't very delicate.

My cousin and I each chose 3 different gelato/sorbet flavors.
Top: Chocolate, Melon, Raspberry
Bottom: EVOO, Coconut Basil, Raspberry
The melon was the best flavor because it was so bright! The next memorable one was the Coconut Basil, which had great balance. The EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) was very earthy and I kind of liked it despite it sounding odd.

Overall, I thought the food was good, but nothing spectacular. The entrees seemed better than the appetizers, and the service and ambiance was quite nice. Without the restaurant week deal, the dinner would've been much more expensive if you look at the regular prices. I'm not sure if I would pay that much on a normal day. They have a cool daily deal: 4pm-6:30pm 3-course twilight delight ($19.95) for any soup or small salad, chicken, salmon, pasta or mussels, and any dessert.

4435 Willard Avenue
Chevy Chase, MD 20815
240.223.5427
http://www.LIASrestaurant.com


Lunch: Daily: 11:30am - 4:00pm
Dinner: Nightly: 4:00pm - 10:00pm
Sunday Brunch 11:30am - 3:00pm

The Tasting Room Wine Bar- Chevy Chase, MD

I was invited to The Tasting Room's Media Launch event last week. Owned by John Kent Cooke (former Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke's son) and his winery Boxwood Winery in Middleburg, VA. The winery started in 2005 on 16 acres in VA's wine region. This is one of three wine tasting locations, which include Boxwood's three wines as well as wines from around the world.
Located in Chevy Chase, you can park in the garage underneath Bloomingdale's for an hourly fee. I didn't notice any metered parking, but I'm sure they're around. The closest metro stop is Friendship Heights on the red line.
They have a cute little outdoor area to sit and sip on some wine and nibble on some food.

This photo was provided in the media kit given to us. I used it because it looked way better than the ones I took. There were to many people to really allow you to see the entire space. As you can see, its not a huge space, but there's enough seating for hanging out. I liked the stainless steel, which makes the space more modern.

This is not the food sold at The Tasting Room. They offer cheese, charcuterie, olives, etc. For the event, it was catered by M Cafe Bar. The menu was:
-Ahi tuna tartar, hass avocado, toasted sesame seeds, meyer lemon and toasted brioche.
-Jumbo lump crab meat, english cucumbers, manila mango, in parmesan crisp roll
-Mini sliders with duck confit, mission figs, aged balsamic syrup
-Grilled Mediterranean lamb sausage with spicy black ketchup *My favorite food item

This is not your typical wine bar! It uses electronic dispensers. You put $ on a card, stick it into the slot on top (leave it in) then pick your wine and the size. Three sizes (tasting, 1/2 glass, full glass), which will display the prices when you press the button. Hold down the button for your selection and remember to place your glass under the spout before you press! Our tastings ranged between $2-4.
This was the white wine section along the wall. There are 8 white wines to choose from.

This is the red wine station. There are 16 bottles to choose from. The photo on the right was also provided in the media kit, and I'm using it because it shows how the dispensers work.

I am not knowledgeable about wine at all, so this was a very new experience for me. I didn't even know they had containers to dump your wine into if you didn't like it, haha. Listed below are the wines I tried. I've found my palate enjoys more sweet, fruity, light tasting wines.

2009 Rose (Middleburg, VA)
Cabernet Franc
Pink and dry with flecks of orange, strawberry and kiwi aromas. This local rose refreshes the palate.

2006 Brookes (Willamette Valley, Oregon) *My favorite out of the whites
Riesling
Vibrant, Broad and rich core of dried honey and candied minerality, medium-bodied, it's floral, intense, and sweet.

2008 J. Ordonzez Botani (Malaga, Spain)
Moscatel
Medium and straw-colored with flavors of spring flowers, honey, and tropical fruits. Smooth-textured and ripe.

2007 Topiary (Middleburg, VA) *My favorite out of the Boxwood wines
Cabernet Franc and Merlot
Garnet color, aromas of fruit cake, cherry stone and strawberry, round with soft tannins.

2007 Boxwood (Middleburg, VA)
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot
Deep purple color, aromas or cassis, black-berry and leather. Well structured with firm tannins.

2006 Cuvelier Los Andes (Mendoza, Argentina)
Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Syrah, Merlot
Perfumes of rose petals, spiced plum and blackberry. This palate is lush with a soft elegrance sweet tobacco and savory eathern spices.

2007 Finca Sandoval (Manchuela, Spain) *My favorite out of the reds
Syrah, Mourvedre, Bobal
It offers up a broading bouquet of under brush, mineral, spice box, blueberry and blackberry. Packed and impeccably balanced.

2008 Los Ailos (Valle de Tullem , Argentina)
Syrah, Malbec
Aromas of plum, cherry, vanilla and tobacco with a touch of spice and oak. Rich and smooth with a balanced and lingering finish.

It was a fun event, and thanks for the invite! It is a cute place to grab a quick drink. They have a DJ playing music Thurs-Sat, and switch out 1-2 bottles a week to have variety.

5330-A Western Ave
Chevy Chase, MD 20850
301-664-9494
www.thetastingroomwinebar.com


11AM-11PM Daily