Co Co Sala- Penn Quarter, DC

Last week was me and the bf's 5 year anniversary, so we decided to use the LivingSocial deal I bought a few months ago for Co Co Sala. It's located in Penn Quarter with metered street parking, hourly garages and metro access. The closest metro stop is Metro Center, which connects the red, orange, and blue lines.

There are some tables outside for eating during warmer weather.

The 1st thing I would say about the interior is that it's DARK in there. My camera was on an indoor setting, otherwise you wouldn't be able to see anything.
The 1st room we were in (left) was so cold because of a vent, so we asked to move. It seemed to be a hassle to move us (not sure why, it wasn't that crowded), but eventually we were moved into another room which looked like it seated 3+ person parties (right). The original room we were in was very cramped as it mostly sat tables of 2. We were literally a foot away from the next table.

This was the room we ended up staying in, and there was so much more room and light. The decor is really beautiful and modern. It looks like a lounge/club. The picture on the left is of the bar, and the picture on the right is of the kitchen.
As I was walking to the bathroom, I saw there's another room behind where we were sitting that seemed to have even larger tables for bigger groups.

After finally getting our menus (they forgot for a while), I decided I needed a drink. Our server said this was their most popular drink, 'Cocojito- chocolate vodka, lime, mint, dark chocolate shavings' for $13. It tasted like a regular mojito, with a slight hint of chocolate.

This is a tapas-style restaurant, so the portions are very small. For dinner we ordered 2 types of mac & cheese. 'Bacon Mac & Cheese- Orechiette, four cheeses, crispy bacon' for $7 (left). The strip on top is chocolate covered bacon. 'Shrimp Mac & Cheese- mini penne, jack & cheddar, garlic shrimp, jalapenos' for $7 (right). They were both amazing and so flavorful! I enjoyed both but preferred the shrimp one, and the bf preferred the bacon one.

The bf wanted to try the 'Tandoori Chicken Slider- cardamom carrots & greens' for $7 (left). I thought it was really good and flavorful as well. We also ordered the 'Italian Cheese Course- parmigiano reggiano three ways, fig & pesto toast' for $10 (right). This included a foam with a cheese crisp, chunks of cheese, and slices of cheese on top of the fig & pesto toast. I ate all of the foam because the bf thought it tasted like foie gras. The combination of cheese, fig and pesto was really delicious.

The main attraction at Co Co Sala are its chocolate desserts. We decided to go with the 'Xocolatyl- Aztec expirence' for $22. This is a three course tasting with an amuse bouche, main dessert and petit fours. The amuse was 'churros, cinnamon cream, dulce de leche dip' (top). The churros were really nice and warm and the cinnamon gave the cream a nice surprising flavor.
Then the main desert came out with 4 different items 'hot chocolate soufflé with fiery chocolate center, espresso gelato, chipotle truffle, kahlua soother'. The kahlua soother and chipotle truffle were interesting(bottom) because the chiptole gave the chocolate a hot sensation, and the kahlua cooling.

Next was the 'espresso gelato and chocolate soufflé with fiery chocolate center'. Gelato is always so good and smooth in texture. The chocolate souffle was really interesting as they used jalepenos to make it spicy.
The petit fours was a 'chocolate infused horchata and mexican wedding cookie'. The horchata was a rice drink with sesame in it. The mexican wedding cookie was almond flavored, which was delicious.

Us on the metro on our way to dinner. Why does he always make faces in pics?

Overall I had an ok time at dinner. This is definitely a place for those that like chocolate, enjoy trying new flavor combinations, tasting a lot of different dishes and hanging out with friends. I enjoy places like this, where as my bf would be happy with traditional American food in large portions. The entrees were very flavorful, and the desserts were light and not too rich. The service however was a little "all over the place." I was expecting better after reading all of the great reviews. You should also be prepared to pay a lot of $$ if you're hungry.

929 F Street NW
(between N 9th St & N 10th St)
Washington, DC 20004
(202) 347-4265
Website

Mon-Wed. 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Thu. 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 a.m.
Fri. 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 a.m.
Sat. 5:00 p.m. - 3:00 a.m.
Sun. 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

La Tasca- Rockville, MD

Hi everyone, another Iphone post! For my bf's birthday he wanted to try Paella since he's seen and heard so much about it on the Travel Channel and Food Network. We decided to go to La Tasca in Rockville to try it out because of their paella and sangria selections.  

It is located in Rockville Town Square underneath the public library and across from Five Guys. There is free garage parking and random street parking. However it can be limited, so there are some parking lots near the movie theater that cost $1 to park in. The closest metro stop would be Rockville on the Red Line.

Sorry I don't have a pic of the outside! I think we were running late and trying to make our reservation. The story of my life, haha.

The interior features Spanish decor from the chandeliers, wooden beams, iron rails, and hand-painted tiles. There are a good number of tables in this restaurant as well as seating outdoors.

I've been to this restaurant before and was in love with their sangria menu. They offer 11 different types of sangria by either the glass ($6-7.50) or pitcher ($22-28). We ordered 4 different glasses throughout our meal to taste different ones.

Cadillac White Sangria- This top-shelf sangria has the same character as our “Blanca” but is made with premium Sangre De Toro white wine ($7.50). This was a bit strong, but the bf liked it.

Cava Sangria- The clear staff favorite: a bubbly sangria made with sparkling wine,
triple sec, and brandy -- blended with grape juice and blueberries ($6). This was my favorite! It's very fruity and sweet.

Agua de Sevilla- Another sparkling wine sangria, this concoction is unique
because it is prepared with pineapple juice and whipped cream ($6). This was a bit strange, but better once you mix in the whipped cream.

Sangria Blanca- A refreshing blend of peaches, white wine, triple sec, brandy and
cinnamon sticks ($6). The peaches were really strong, but also good.

We placed our Paella order 1st, since it takes around 35 minutes to make. We then decided to order some tapas. We ordered the 'Empanadas de Carne- beef empanadas' for $6. They are really good and flavorful. The pair came with a spicy mayo-type sauce.

We also ordered the 'Croquetas de Pollo- A classic Spanish dish of pureed chicken and potatoes, lightly battered and then deep fried' for $6.50. It's such a tapas staple that I like ordering it when I'm eating Spanish food. It was delicious and came with a more mild-green mayo-type sauce.

Oddly we received bread and olive oil after all of our tapas because we noticed other tables had bread, but we did not. They gave it to us when we asked, but of course it was 2 minutes before our paella arrived.

We decided to try the 'Paella Valenciana- The traditional Valencian paella with grilled chicken and mixed seafood' for $38. It had squid, mussels, chicken and vegetables in the rice. It was tasty, however we were so full we took most of it home. It does have a very "seafoody" taste, which I love, but the bf wasn't too keen on it. We'll probably try the 'Paella de Carne- A meat paella of chicken and Spanish sausage' next time. It's a huge portion that is made to be shared between 2-3 people.

I thought our meal was good, but nothing special.  We ordered very popular tapas, so they turned out well. I have eaten there before and ordered some tapas that weren't as good. Sorry I forgot which ones! The paella was huge, so it was nice to have food for the next day. It does reheat well in the microwave too, haha.
Our server was nice. I'm not sure why we didn't get bread, but I guess that's ok since we were already full.
The outdoor seating looked nice and the sangria selections are awesome. Tapas in general are expensive. You pay between $6-12 and they're small plates. It can add up especially with the drinks. They do have a large variety of meats, seafood and vegetable options.
They offer a live band on Saturday nights from 10pm-12am, so it's a nice place to come with friends to try lots of different dishes and drink.

141 Gibbs Street #305
Rockville, MD 20850
(301) 279-7011
Website

Brunch: Saturday & Sunday: 10:00am - 3:00pm
Lunch: Monday - Friday: 11:00am - 5:00pm
Dinner: Monday - Friday: 5:00pm - 12:00am, Saturday: 3:00pm - 12:00am, Sunday: 3:00pm - 10:00pm

Guardado's - Bethesda, MD

For my birthday, the bf surprised me and took me to this cute tapas restaurant in Bethesda. The closest metro stop would be Bethesda on the Red Line. It's located across from a metered parking garage, but there is also metered street parking available.
It is a place you could miss if you were driving too fast because the sign is a bit small, and there isn't anything very distinct about the outside. So remember it is next to Hard Times Cafe.

On the front window were some deals they have throughout the week.

Here is my birthday self.

This is the front of the restaurant. It is a pretty small place, but very cozy. It also has the nice romantic-dim lighting, which kills my photos, haha. I did like the Christmas lights around the room. However since the place is small, you can definitely hear the next tables conversations very clearly.

Guardado's gives bread while you wait for your order. It was good and warm with a nice crust on the outside.

I love good olive oil to dip bread in, and this olive oil was yummy and light.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with 'Tapas', they are basically small/appetizer sized dishes that you share with the rest of the table. Typically a table will order a bunch of different ones for everyone to taste and enjoy. This type of meal originated from Spain and can be compared to the Chinese dim sum.

We ordered the 'Croquetas Españolas- Béchamel Fritters with Chicken and Serrano Ham' for $5.95. I've had this before at other tapas places and I love it. It's a recommended dish as well as a traditional one. It tastes like well seasoned chicken stock with the consistency of mashed potatoes, then fried.

We ordered the 'Calamares Fritos- Deep Fried Calamari in Our Guardado’s Special Recipe Tomato Alioli' for $7.25. Tasty, not frozen squid with a nice crispy outside. I would've prefer ed a bit more seasoning but it was good dipped into the sauce, which was similar to tarter sauce.

We then got the 'Quesos Españoles- Cabrales, Manchego, Idiazabal, Murcia And Toasted Bread' for $7.25. This was a cold tapas with 4 different types of cheeses on toasted bread. 2 of them were strong tasting and 2 of them were more mild. I personally love strong/stinky cheeses.

Our last order was the 'Tortilla con Chorizo- Spanish Omelet with Caramelized Onions, Spanish Sausage and Sautéed Mushrooms' for $6.95. This was really good however I was getting really full from the plates before and all the bread. This is more of a dense omelet rather than a light-fluffy one.

As we were about to leave, the restaurant surprised me with a birthday flan and song. It was completely unexpected and very touching. The flan was AMAZING. It was much richer than others I've had in the past. Much more custard flavor and consistancy than just tasting caramel syrup. I loved it.

Very cute, simple place with a great staff. Really friendly, helpful and warm. It's always a pleasure to go to a place where you feel like they appreciate your business and try to make you feel welcomed.
The menu does serve other items than just tapas, including another traditional Spanish dish called 'Paella' which is Saffron rice and seafood mixed together in a huge pot and shared at the table.
The prices range from $2.00-37.95, so it can be an affordable dinner. I would recommend this place for couples wanting a cute, but not stuffy night out, and to groups of friends who want to order a ton of food and converse over wine.

4918 Del Ray Avenue
Bethesda, MD 20814
301-986-4920

Monday: closed
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday: 11:30am to 10:00pm
Friday and Saturday: 11:30am to 11:00pm
Sunday: 5:00pm to 9:00pm

Website