I have been itching to go to New Heights now for months.  In the whispers of foodie land I heard great things about Logan Cox, the chef and the creativity he has brought.  And I wanted to go before everyone realizes he is a genius and you have to make reservations a month in advance.  Can I just say with strong affirmation: now is that time.

I went during Restaurant Week- of all weeks to try out a new fabled legend, Restaurant Week is not it.  Still it was the only interesting place on the list with a reservation.  But man, if ever did a restaurant pull off Restaurant Week while still keeping it high end and creative, New Heights did.

New Heights is in an akward area of Woodley Park, but thankfully they have valet parking.  Downstairs is a small, but glamorous gin bar.  While everyone is touting dark woods and prohibition era cocktails, this bar keeps it really prohibition style with a huge gin list and house made tonics.  No nonsense just good gin.  It is glamorous in that it doesn’t try to hard, but feels particularly delightful to sit at.  It isn’t Gibson or Zaytinya glamorous, it is glamorous for people who don’t need other people to make them perfectly happy.  I particularly recommend the Krahn.

Then you go upstairs to a cozy, warm dining room.  The owner Kavita, is particularly friendly and you can tell she puts a lot of care into the oversight of her restaurant.  The server chilled our wine while we sipped various gins, and the bread basket with warm, moist cornbread gave promise to the rest of our meal.

The appetizer of chicken liver pate was smooth on perfectly crisp toast and eaten with the pickled vegetables had a really nice balance.  The artic char entree was creamy in texture on the tongue; however, the skin was crisp and had just the right amount of salt to balance out the sunchoke puree and broccoli rabe.  However, the real winner was the roasted pork loin that was cooked perfectly with perfect texture- a little crisp on the outside but juicy and incredibly tender on the inside- the smoked apple butter served with it made the bites a refined, homey taste that you could have eaten four plates of, paired with brussel sprouts and buckwheat polenta the dish had a great winter warmness to it.

Desserts were a nice finish to the very composed meal.  Ginger creme brulee had a wonderful taste of real, fresh ginger not something you get in many “ginger” dishes.  The toasted almond biscotti served with it was some of the best biscotti I have had.  I would love that recipe (hmm, this might have a follow up post).  The sugar and masala doughnuts were light cake doughnuts with good spice, but the chocolate dulce de leche sauce served over them was incredibly decadent, and you will want to finish any part not swabbed by your doughnut with a spoon.

The service was professional, not fussy, not too absent, he hit that fine line where he read you just right.  Wine glasses looking a little low, filled, but not after every sip.  Recommendations given when asked and very thoughtful to personal likes.  Courses explained as they arrived, and yet it was never intrusive.

And this was only Restaurant Week… I look forward to seeing what this place can do every other night of the week.  Next time I am bringing my gin loving girls with me.

Last night I met up with a few girlfriends at Overwood.  The space is tucked away on North Lee Street, in a little brick building full of shops with La Bergerie right next door.  The inside is warm and casual, with an open kitchen in the back, just the right place for a cold winter night.  There is a nice small bar space with TVs showing news and sports.  We had a nice booth in the back of the restaurant near the wood grill.

We happened to be there on half price bottle of wine night, and considering how reasonable their bottles of wine are anyway, this was a particularly good deal.  As a note they have very nice wine list, with a lot of affordable, but good bottles.   We had two bottles of Tepana, Tempranillo for $26.  It was a nice red that was mildly fruity with a nice balance, which is good for us ladies as we can have some very different taste in wine.

We were waiting for our last friend stuck in traffic and our server was really fantastic about letting us take our time and wait for her to arrive while enjoying our wine, but checking in to make sure we didn’t need something.  Then when our friend arrived she was wonderful about letting us take our time to catch up.  The service really was wonderful, the server read us so well, she anticipated our needs and had perfect timing.

All of us on best New Year Resolution behavior ordered salads, although the Blackened Mahi Mahi on grits, and steak going by to other tables smelled amazingly good.  I really like places that offer interesting dinner salads, as sometimes for whatever reason a big dinner salad is really needed.  And I really liked that they understood that a salad isn’t just iceberg or romaine with tomatoes, red onion and a couple cucumber slices.  Rachel had a nice looking ceaser salad with wood grilled salmon, I had the arugula salad with chicken instead of duck (I know it can be rather lean and it looked beautiful, but doctors recommendations are to eat more fish and white meat so I am trying.).  The salad was really lovely with spicy arugula lightly tossed with vinagrette with oranges, hearts of palm and a few fried onions.  the chicken was sliced thinner than normal grilled chicken in a salad which made it easier to eat.  Next time will get it with duck.

We all split a brownie sundae to give us time to finish our second bottle of wine, and to splurge a little.  Sometimes after all the fancy desserts you just need something simple.  I have to comment that many places have one or two desserts on their list that are tempting, but the whole list at Overwood looked quite good: Godiva chocolate bread pudding, key lime pie, the Elvis, Sweet potato cheesecake… it all looked great.

Between the reasonable prices ($84 for three huge salads and two bottles of wine), the wonderful service, and the very good food (and very good smells eminating from all directions) we will be back, and I think I might have to take Hubby for a date here.  It is a perfect low key, but nice spot which tends to be my favorite.

So if you haven’t been, GO!  It is really a great place that I wish I had discovered long before I did.  And if you are abiding by your New Years Resolutions too, they have a lot of healthy options other than salad to help you stay on track even when eating out.

So I have to be bathing suit ready by the last weekend in January- ugg.  But now and then even on the best of diets you must splurge.  I crave pizza, a lot, and lately American Flatbread has been there to coddle my obsession.  They strive to be local, organic and sustainable, which I really honestly think equates to better pizza mainly because the ingredients are superior to so many other places.  And they are community friendly, here they are at a soaked Clarendon Day.

I have had their Virginia Country Ham with Apples and Cheddar and their Revolution Flatbread with additions and variations.  I love their tangy red sauce, it has the distinct taste of real tomatoes without being too thick nor to thin.  They have a terrific spice blend on the cheese, and just the right amount of cheese (although anyone who is a NY pizza fan will find it lacking).  I think their pepperoni is really fantastic.  It is savory and spicy and just tastes fresh to me.  Now the crust isn’t as thin as you would suspect a place called American Flatbreads to be, but I would argue that it doesn’t matter because it is excellent.  It has nice crunch while still being soft and balanced in terms of testure and flavor.  I think there is nice salt to the dough without being salty.  It has a wonderful texture of real bread- homemade bread- bread made with care.  They have a wood fired earthen oven lovingly built by staff and volunteers that just puts out lovely lovely bread.

I also like that their pies are cut in small squares which makes it easier to share and easier to portion.

It is in the Zoso building off Fillmore Street in Clarendon and boasts very helpful staff and free parking.  The interior is a little stark, but it is a pizza place.  They have happy hour with $3 draft and $5 house wine.  They also have a personal pizza at the bar (why isn’t this restaurant wide?).  They have a TV at the bar often showing sports and games to keep you or your little ones occupied.

Note: They also have an Ashburn location for those of you who live way the heck out there.

There are a couple caveats: The wine list, especially wines by the glass need some work.  They need purse hooks badly.  And the diet soda tastes, well, very diet.  But these are minor details I am sure they will address in time.

So this report has been a long time in the making…

Melbourne

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Where to stay: The Park Hyatt.

As you might know from previous posts or just happen to realize for me to rave about a hotel it must be pretty nice.  Well the Park Hyatt Melbourne rates up there in terms of even the hotels I like.  I don’t need a huge superior room, what I need is a clean, comfortable, quiet room with a nice view, a great bathroom and nice amenities.

We went to Australia in May, which is their fall, but it meant off season rates in Melbourne and Sydney, not a ton of tourists and nice crisp, but warm weather.  We got a great deal at the Park Hyatt at less than $200 a night.

For that we got a really nice comfortable king size bed, valet attendants that helped us figure out how to work our GPS system, a hotel that was a close walk to most of the attractions in Melbourne, a huge bathroom with a shower that had a tv and speakers, a electric tea kettle with good tea and nice toiletries that I actually used.

Also the breakfast served here was wonderful. There was a really nice a la carte menu, but we normally went for the buffet with a huge selection of fruits, breads, cereals, juices, cheeses, charcuterie and hot items including the traditional English breakfast of course.  We normally had long days of walking or exploring ahead of us so a nice big breakfast really hit the spot.

What to do:  The very top of your to do list should be the Queen Victoria Market.  This is a huge market.  They have some little restaurants, fish market, meat market, a deli section with stalls selling breads, meats, cheeses, olives, dried goods, eggs, honey, teas and everything else you could imagine.  Then outside they have fresh produce.  They have a lot of produce that is hard to find here like Nooshi a fruit that is like a small juicy apple and very fresh ripe Passionfruit.  Also outside are bins of flour and other grains and people selling wines and other homemade goods.  Then in back of that is a huge flea market.  My favorites were a cracked black pepper meat pie sold at a deli in the bottom left section.  The crust was flaky, it was piping hot and fresh and the fresh cracked black pepper made it the best meat pie of the trip.  Hubby and I also picked up some kangaroo salami, cheese, bread and fruits to take with us on our adventure out to the country that afternoon.

If you are adventurous- and you should be this is Australia for God’s sake- I highly suggest renting a car and driving down to Philips Island.  Now I went mainly for my obsession with non-flying birds of the black and white variety, which you can see nightly.  We got the “Ultimate Penguin Experience” which was really great.  You were taken to a separate area for viewing and walked down the beach to a small break in the dunes where we sat for probably about an hour and fifteen minutes watching with night vision googles little penguins teetering all around you within feet.  Then you hike back along the road spotting little Philips Island Penguins running and nesting all about you.  We were unfortunate and fortunate enough to be able to touch a penguin that was rescued by our ranger when we saw him injured and floundering on the beach in front of us.  I am sure they took good care of him.

Also on Philips Island is a koala sanctuary where you can view koalas a couple feet away doing there thing aka sleeping or eating, I think that’s all they do honestly.  They are cute as can be!  Also if you are lucky like us you will also see some wandering wallabies throughout the park grazing on grasses.

Philips Island also has an area called the nobbies that has beautiful rock outcropping.  Sometimes they have seals, but we didn’t see any on our visit (apparently they sometimes have Great Whites too).  And a working farm.  What we enjoyed most was the beautiful scenery and quiet beaches.

For eclectic shopping and some really good casual restaurants check out Brunswick Street.  This was my favorite area in all Melbourne.  The cute store signs and shop fronts give way to cute fashions, home goods, amazing coffee and tea shops.

Where to eat:

Now we didn’t do a lot of fancy eating in Melbourne, there are so many great casual restaurants to check out and the market was just so tasty, but we had a really great dinner at Movida- Bar de Tapas.  The atmosphere is laid back with nice low lighting.  The croquettes were just like what you get in Madrid.  We also sampled the San Jacobo de Cordonice a quail stuffed with cheese and ham, Pimientio de Piquuillo hickory smoked peppers with potato and salt cod and some other small plates while Hubby had a Bees Knees Beer and I drank some good Australian wine.

While exploring Brunswick we check out the Real Greek Souvlaki Bar where we had huge gyros and lamb platters filled with juicy and flavorful lamb, ripe tomatoes and tasty pita.  Hubby laughed at the size of my gyro, it was a food as big as your head moment.

We also stopped on our way back from Philips Island at a co-op fish and chippery.  I think getting some fresh fish and chips and a meat pie is kind of one of those quid essential things to do, just make sure you have lots of napkins.

In  Sum: Melbourne we love you to death and really we do want more time with you.  You are a dirty mistress to our love of Barcelona and Melbourne, and while we might not be able to work you into our regular rotation, you will be on our mind.  So keep stylin.

Hubby and I have some really dear friends who treated us to dinner at Trummer’s on Main a few weeks ago.  I was excited to go as it was just recently in the Washington Post’s Fall Dining Guide and I had heard good things.  Walking in to the bar area downstairs I was blown away by how different it looks.  So modern, but warm and inviting.

The onyx bar makes you want to stay at the bar all night.  It is lit from underneath so the lighter onyx glows and gives the room a warm and really pleasant feeling.  I might be back as Adam the line cook has assured me the burgers are worth the trip.  One thing that really impressed me was when we ordered glasses of wine at the bar we were offered small tastes to make sure we liked the wine before given a full pour.  I often like to try new things, so it is nice to be able to taste before you commit.

Our friends arrived and we had our cocktails before heading upstairs to dinner.  We got to look at the beautiful wine cellar and private rooms downstairs before heading up, and let’s just say when I make partner this is where I will be taking our friends as a return trip to celebrate.  (Note to Trummer’s on Main, this might be a while so keep up the good work.)  The cellar is enclosed in glass and hosts an impressive selection of domestic and foreign wines including some local Virginia wines from Barboursville, Kluge and Pearamund.

We headed upstairs to the beautiful open dining room.  Now this room still resembles the former space, with it’s huge open windows and lofty ceiling, but it has been upgraded.  Out the back there is a lovely lit area which is slightly reminiscent of dining at 2941 with such nice outdoor views, but on a smaller scale.  The bamboo fans keep it casual, but really classy.

We started out with a Cakebread Chardonnay and some very good bread, warm and crusty, but tender.  I started with the Vanilla Belly.  A vanilla pork brisket with rhubarb, spinach and grenadine.  This was luscious, but not overwhelmingly rich, the rhubarb really balanced the vanilla.  I also stole a taste of the oxtail ravioli, which was really rich, but the pasta was really well made and the meat was tender as can be.  Based on the multiple entrees I got to sample the best thing to order is fish, although everyone’s entrees tasted good my favorite was my Cobia really tasted wonderful.

But dessert really stole the show.  I ordered the sweet potato, which was sweet potato ice cream over a gingerbread poundcake, maple and fluff, which really tasted like fall to me and was really comforting.  But the concord grape stole the show. The soft cake with the tangy grape sorbet and cognac cream was so refreshing I was a little jealous I didn’t order it myself.

Overall it was a great meal in a beautiful setting and I can’t wait until I can go back.  It truly is worth the drive for the city and if you are looking for a romantic special occasion dinner this place is a wower.  And now I have to try to get back out for the burger.  I was told it is special, they better be right.

So have I told you how much I absolutely love the fact that my in laws live in Charlottesville?  And they have totally embraced my passion for wonderful food and wine.  Really readers, in so many ways, I am a spoiled woman.

On a past fall weekend to my delight the Hubby and I ventured down for a fun packed weekend in Charlottesville.  Saturday started with a trip to Bread Works Bakery and Deli where we picked up some tasty sandwiches on really good bread and some excellent molasses cookies (previously endorsed by hungry Bachelorettes after a good amount of wine). I highly recommend both the veggie and chicken salad sandwich.

We then ventured across the street to Mona Lisa Pasta to pick up some cheese and crackers, it is so nice in the back refrigerated section they have small pieces of cheese that are just the right size to pack for a day trip to the wineries and really nice gourmet crackers.  Now be forewarned the pizza here smells really good and is pretty darn tempting.  And to make it even worse they have a variety of homemade pastas that are fresh.  You can get their pasta in many different cuts and flavors so they really have a nice selection.  I picked up some garlic rosemary angel hair for dinner in the coming nights.

We then went out to Carter Mountain Orchard to pick apples.  With all the fall festivities this place was packed.  There were wagon rides, live music, crafts and so on.  We picked up some great apple cake doughnuts, apples and cider.

As the place was a little packed for their fall festival and we had other fruits to sample we moved on to Barboursville Vineyards who by chance were having their twice annual bottle tastings, which allows you to have tastings of different vintages of many of their best wines and their normal tastings, plus tours and special tastings of Octagon. Before tasting the wines we ate our sandwiches and cookies and people watched as urbanites, families and couples enjoyed the day. My favorites of the wines offered for tasting were Octagon 1999, 2004 and 2005, Cabernet Franc from 2001, Barbera Reserve 2006 which had hints of honey with a good balance of tannins, and the Rose 2007 which really surprised me.  I normally don’t care for many of the sweeter varieties of wine, but this Rose had great flavor and balance. There was so much wine to sample that if you tasted everything you would have drank a whole bottle of wine, and believe me did the cheese and crackers we picked up earlier hit the spot. They had shady trees at the bottom of the hill that were a perfect place to relax and listen to the live music.  The sheer amount of wine offered at this event and discounts on rare vintages made it a really great destination for a wine lover.

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After drinking our fill and purchasing a few bottles of Octagon 2005 and 2006 we took a stroll up to the Barbour Manor designed by Thomas Jefferson himself. It was fun to watch the kids and dogs play in the grass as people picnicked and enjoyed what was an absolutely beautiful day in Jefferson’s eden.

That night we had a great dinner at Zocalo.  Located right downtown on the mall Zocalo has Latin American inspired food.  I appreciated the balance on their menu between meat, fish, chicken and vegetarian entrees.  There was something for everyone and all our entrees were satisfying.  I had Grouper with a pea risotto that was homey, but fresh at the same time.  There was a nice acidic balances to the fish, which a nice fresh pea flavor in the risotto.  Hubby had a really tasty strip steak with chipotle demi-glace that I stole multiple bites of.

And to bring this long night to a close we stopped by Splendora’s for gelato.  This time of year I really crave pumpkin flavored anything and especially pumpkin gelato.  I had a small half maple half pumpkin that I really enjoyed.  They feature seasonal flavors along with your old standbys in a cozy, but fun atmosphere.  They also have espresso and cappuccino for those who prefer to have a toasty refreshment. It was a wonderful day to check out all the fall flavored goodness in the area and enjoy some down time with family.

Right now is the time of year where people inevitably attend fall festivities or host their own parties celebrating the reaping of the harvest.

I once again missed what may be the best celebration of Fall, culture and community support: The Pleasant Valley Harvest Sale in Garrett County, Maryland.  An auction is held in a beautiful little Amish community each Fall to support the school in their district the Swan Meadow Elementary School.  The auction has gargantuan mushrooms and produce, breads and baked goods and other auction items, the big ticket item being the Black Forest Cake.

During the sale you can wander over to the counter to buy homemade caramels, no bake cookies, fresh yeast glazed doughnuts and coffee and cider to satiate you during the sale.  Also for sale is a collection of recipes from the community made into a cookbook.  This cookbook is a big deal, as it normally has the heavy hitting favorites from each family.

But I will make up for it by attending what MSN rates as one of the top Fall Festivals: The Autumn Glory festival.  Also located in Garrett County, Maryland (an area that happens to be where I am from).  This festival begins this week and events continue until Sunday.  A sampling of the events:

Fireman’s Parade- Thursday night a parade of mostly fire trucks and engines, with the occasional truck of football players and cheerleaders rolls down Second Street and up Route 219 to the firehouse.

Oktoberfest- Thursday night after the Fireman’s parade at the fire hall an Oktoberfest dinner complete with Polca music, dancing and lots of beer takes place, an event that is mainly attended by locals, but any person who attends will be feeling the love.

Grand Feature Parade- Saturday is the main parade a video of a past parade I found on YouTube! (Not the most professional screening, but you get the picture)

Also during this weekend there is an Amish breakfast at the Pleasant Valley Community Center, a 5k run/walk, craft shows, antique shows, classic car shows, the Maryland State Fiddle and Banjo contest, The Liars Festival, No-hands ice cream eating contest at Lakeside Creamery and so much more!  You can see a few of my photos here, I will post more after next weekend.

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And while I have family that lives in the area, we tend to overload our capacity so we normally rent a house from Railey Mountain Vacations, who right now has a buy two get a third night for free special (very handy since Monday is Columbus Day).

Now if you are lucky enough to be invited to a Fall celebration, or just need a taste of Germany,  look no further than Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe in Arlington, Virginia (Their site seems to be temporarily down).  A big box of soft pretzels, a Black Forest Cake or wursts would get you an invite back to any party.

No invites?  Well check out the Washingtonian’s list of Oktoberfests. You could also join Rustico on October 10 from noon to six for Oktoberfest where they will have nearly 25 different beers on tap, with live musicand dishes prepared by Rustico, Buzz The Evening Star Cafe, Vermilion, Tallula, EatBar, Columbia Firehouse & Star Catering.Admission is free and tickets will be sold for beer, food, activities and a mighty raffle featuring a beautiful 1997 Harley Davidson Softail – along with three other fantastic prizes. The proceeds from this year’s raffle will be given to DC Central Kitchen to help combat hunger and create opportunity right here in our own backyard.  If this doesn’t get you there,

then this might:

Although please note- kids are absolutely welcome. In fact, there will be many activities just for the kids throughout the day – including a moon bounce, face painting, pumpkin tossing and more.  So choose your reason to go.

Or hop on over to Heidelberg for a delicious grilled wurst prepared on their outside grill.  They have brautwurst, knauckwurst, weisswurst and others for you to try before ordering.  If you need some carb loading before all those tasty German brews order the ultimate combo which comes with a soft pretzel, warm German potato salad, drink and apple strudel.

You can also get your Fall on at Buzz Bakery in Alexandria, VA.  They are selling  Steamed Cider and Pumpkin Lattes. The cider is local and they use a homemade spiced pumpkin puree for the pumpkin goodies. Tempting me most has to be the Candy Apple Martini, made with housemade caramel sauce, apple schnapps and Stoli. They are also stocking seasonal beers, including Dogfish Head Punkin’ and Epheremere.

Order a batch of cupcakes, including out classic Guinness Cupcake, the Caramel Apple Cupcake and the Pumpkin Cupcake with Candied Pepitas and you will surely be a hit.

Fall is glorious, isn’t it?

So I know that I just posted my Phoenix Report and I should save this a bit really, but I just can’t do that.  I need to share.  Plus I am sure I will go somewhere else soon.  So Peeps here it is:

Philly is a really nice weekend getaway.  There is enough to do besides the Independence googly-gook that you leave with plans for next time, but you aren’t like pining to stay like at the beach where really can’t you have just a few more days?  I like that in a weekend vacation, finality with a reason to come back.

Where to stay:  Right now you can score pretty good deal at even the nicest hotels in Philly.  Splurge on the Ritz, which is centrally located centrally and has all the normal luxuries of the Ritz.  Another perk is that their restaurant 10Arts is run by a very capable Top Chef contender.

Friday we went up early so I could have a special birthday lunch date at Morimoto with my Hubby who had been gone for my birthday.  I love the ambiance of Morimoto, the wood walls with uber modern white furniture and the not overbearing neon lighting was cool- not cold and very crisp.  Like a better designed version of the downtown location of Cafe Asia.  But can I comment that the chairs while modern were really comfortable, which I really was happy about.

I really loved the basic omakase ($40) menu. All the fish was very fresh, the opening Toro Tartare with with Caviar, Tempura, Scallions, Ponzu and Fresh Wasabi, and finished with a Japanese fruit was a highlight. It was crispy and salty, but also refreshing and smooth and fatty.  We then had an assortment of sushi with toro, red snapper and others that were all perfectly fresh, they had a wonderful texture and taste in the mouth, never being fishy. We also had a whitefish caparcio with microgreens, with a very tasty vinaigrette with hot oil, we had black cod with miso served with a mustard sauce and pickled peppers that was cooked perfectly, the textural difference between the crispy crust on the cod, the flaky inside and the very smooth pickled peppers created a nice taste. Everything had very good balanced flavors and we were happy with each course. We ended with a chocolate cake with blueberry sauce that was very good. It was just enough food for lunch without being heavy. I wish I lived nearby so I could eat here more often all of the lunch specials coming out looked great.

That night we had a family dinner with the in laws and family in the area at Distrito.  This place was so much fun. I want to go back and eat in the bug. I was worried when I booked it that it would be a little too eccentric for everyone, but it is done in a tasteful over the top way (take the tour on the website- it’s pretty awesome).  A way that doesn’t make you uncomfortable, but makes you laugh at the whimsicality of it.  Personally, I loved the eccentric decorating.

The drinks were good, I was impressed with the Tequila selection. I had a grapefruit soda with tequila mixture.  They served the soda separately so you could make it your own preferred strength.

We ordered way too much food, they say to order 3-4 dishes per person, but at 2-3 each we were stuffed. I had the short rib flatbread which was very good, the meat was tender and savory and melded well with the BBQ sauce, the carnitas tacos were one of the best dishes of the evening, the pork was so tender and flavorful, they had bits that were a little bit more well done and crunchy mixed in for a great ratio of pork texture. The Amarillo (rabbit mole) was excellent, as well, the rabbit was tender and very flavorful it wasn’t overwhelmed by the sauce a rich almost creamy mole which wasn’t spicy, but very homey and comforting,  served on rice in a small hot pot. The whole dish came together really well. The duck fundido was another big hit, spicy and cheesy with tender as can be duck it would be the perfect after bar food. We wrapped the goey, deliciousness in fresh tortillas and it was heaven.  The guacamole was also good, the salsa was decent- very fresh red tomatoes just rather normal. I also had a bit of the tres leches cake which was quite good, much like a very small Smith Island cake. This was one of my favorite meals. I also had some of the salads which were a big portion, but a tad bit bitter (which may have been the cilantro which I don’t really care for).  Especially coming from an area with poor choices for Mexican this was a favorite.  It is so good with all the other choices in Philadelphia I still will be going back.

On our first full day in Philly we checked out the foodie mecca that is the Reading Terminal Market.  Located in what used to be the Reading Railroad Terminal (Yes, Monopoly is based on Philadelphia) this market has fresh produce that is just amazing, fish and meats, cheese and other dairy, Amish baked goods, other pastries, candy, pretzels and lots of food stalls.   The best day to go is Saturday when the market is in full swing.  Sundays the Amish vendors won’t be there.  It could take days and days to eat through all the goodness held within, but I think that a fresh doughnut from the Amish stand in the center of the market is a must eat.  So is a roast pork sandwich at DiNic’s, in my opinion this puts a cheesesteak to shame (although I recommend eating it right then and there as it can get quite soupy if it sits).  Also while here it is essential to get a good soft pretzel.  Although we passed vendors selling boxes of fresh pretzels on the streets the ones at Miller’s in the market where nice and warm with a good bread, salt, butter ratio.  There were also some very tempting sticky buns.  I would have liked to go back on Sunday before we left to get some things to take home, but we had a full agenda.

After exploring the market and taking in a lot of calories we decided to burn some off by walking  down to the Constitution Center, which is a fun interactive museum in the heart of Constitution madness.  We then walked along Arch Street, which has some neat shops and takes you by Benjamin Franklin’s gravesite.  We ran into the First Lady and Obama girls on our walk which caused quite a scene,  but luckily it meant that the Franklin Fountain was without a line.

Another calorie splurger the Franklin Fountain is a really fun stop.  I got the ladies choice which is a float of raspberry soda with peach ice cream. It was fruity refreshing, but still nice and creamy. The ambiance is the main draw though.  Men in daper fountain boy clothing with handlebar mustaches prepare your concoction on the marble in big glass cups, and that is a big temptation.

Then we walked around a bit more and just enjoyed the sites.

We ended up at Fork for the FIL’s big 6-0 birthday dinner. Our meal there was excellent.  We started with a Soellner, Wogerain, Grüner Veltliner, 2007, Austria that was lovely after a hot day, it was crisp and fruity, but not too oaky or sweet and paired very well with my food. Followed by a choice of multigrain, french or other bread, I had the french which had a great taste to it, crusty on the outside, tender within. They had a nice cow butter which was soft and had good flavor.

For dinner I started with the baby lettuce salad with croquette and balsamic. It was very fresh, nicely dressed and the croquette was was warm and crisp on the outside while almost, but not quite gooey on the inside. Hubby had the fish provencale soup with crouton and that was very good, it had a lovely fish broth thickened with cream that was very light I really enjoyed the couple bites I got. For entree I had the citrus cured salmon that was then seared on carmelized shallots, potatoes and a lovely spinach sauce. The citrus with the shallots and spinach sauce balanced very nicely. The fish was cooked with a nice sear and had great flavor. It was seasoned just right. The potatoes were a nice bit size, but in a rustic style that blended nicely with the bold flavor of the fish. Hubby had a duck dish that was very good as well. The duck itself was incredibly juicy, again not overcooked at all, a perfect medium rare. We split the chevre cheesecake with oatmeal crisp and champagne pear. The pear was a bit hard to cut you had to use both fork and spoon but was very juicy and had a nice texture, almost like a plum in texture. The chevre cheesecake was rich and tangy and the crisp was sweet and crunchy so the flavors and the textures were nicely varied. All in all another nice meal.

The next day we visited the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Textiles Museum. The art deco building that the textiles museum is in is beautiful, and the exhibitions were a girls dream with one room of fashions from the 1800s to 1930s the next vivid modern household objects.  What I really enjoyed was the interior of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.  They have transplanted whole rooms that show vivid architecture from many countries and cultures.  The Japanese temple and tea house are stunning, while the Moorish and Arabian rooms showcase the amazing attention to detail those cultures places in each piece of design.  A walk down to the beautiful river would have been nicer without the humidity, but it offers a beautiful view of what has become a really great river.

We then headed back to the city making one last stop at Pat’s King of Steaks for a cheesesteak.  I had a “Wit Provolone, mushroom and pepper steak” which was a little too drippy for me.  Next time I think I will stick with the basics.  And the steak really doesn’t have a ton of flavor so I can see why the saltyness of the whiz is needed.  I will admit fries with cheezwhiz was the favorite of mine for the stop.  But I will have to try again- they can’t be a legend for nothing.

A friend of mine and his super sweet girlfriend live on Capitol Hill and agreed to a dinner with us, so we decided to go somewhere on the Hill.  Then another of our favorite couples decided to join.  I don’t think they realize how super convenient it is to go from Arlington to Capitol Hill, but it really isn’t too bad.  Just hop over the TR bridge and head down Independence Avenue. (Don’t tell them I said it is convenient- I love my Arlington eats)

I just couldn’t decide where to eat- I love Matchbox- really I am a bit addicted.  I have never been to Belga, but the menu just wasn’t calling to me like our other choice:    Cava a Greek tapas restaurant that I heard a lot of good things about.  Even though a member of our party gets good Greek food all the time we were won over by the amount of outdoor seating and it being the shortest wait for an outdoor table and his very polite acquiessence to all of us who don’t get his Mother’s home cooking.

We got our buzzer and went to Matchbox for a drink- a good thing to know is that Cava’s buzzer works there.  I got a ginger cocktail that was pretty sweet, but gingery in a lovely way.  I have been on an amazing ginger kick lately, and I have a sweet tooth so it really hit the spot for me.

Our buzzer went off and we headed for a lovely outdoor table at Cava, right here in front of the open space (they also have a nice patio upstairs).

We started with bottles of Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc, as white non-chardonnay was requested.  A very nice white with strong fruit, but a very smooth finish and not to sweet or crisp, but not too oaky or buttery like a chardonnay.

Out came pita which was good, but nowhere near Zaytinya, Lebanese Taverna or Me Janna pita. I really like my pita like a good french baguette a little crisp on the outside but soft and tender within. The pita came with a spicy red pepper tapenade, olive oil and olives, which was refilled gratis upon request, a nice touch.

We then had the tough decision about ordering. Going to a new tapas place it is always difficult to judge the amount of food to order, so we thought about two dishes per person, with a couple of us extra hungry people ordering four, or three. Our waiter very nicely told us when to stop. I appreciate the honesty and the advice turned out to be right on.

The list of things I sampled:

Calamari- the sauce was unexpectedly spicy in a very good way, the squid was not over battered, but had a nice coating, I really enjoyed this version. Not amazingly different in any way, but very good, and a crowd pleaser after a drink or two.

Hummus- good, not as good as Lebanese Taverna Market or Tarbouch (they have very creamy hummus with a good tang that not a lot of other hummus can top for me), but this one came close.

Sauteed Squash- good flavor, but a tad bit undercooked for me, I like mine a bit more cooked, especially with larger squash as the skin is a bit firmer.

Sparraggia- we had two orders of this and it was great. I loved the lemon with the feta with perfectly grilled asparagus, not to crisp, but held it’s shape and flavor. Really a nice choice for a veggie- if you wanted something a bit healthier than we were going for without the feta it would be a great healthy veggie side.

Lollipop Filet- this was excellent, the filet was cooked about medium, but not on the hard medium side, the shrimp had great flavor not over or undercooked, it had a ncie mix of tomato and feta.

Pork Souvlaki- nice grilled pork, still tender, but the grill flavor was really nice.

Filet Souvlaki- also very good, simple grilled steak that tasted very nice, still very tender.

Opa Opa shrimp- I don’t think we actually ordered this, if we did we couldn’t remember but the server insisted it was ours so we ate it and it was good. I was happy with so much shrimp that it all was cooked well and seasoned nicely.

Grilled Scallops- These were a highlight, nicely cooked with a good balance of acid.

Last but not least comes the short ribs, which are a high end version of chili cheese fries for me. Braised short rib with cinnamon and burgundy, fries, feta all piled up. This was the perfect- I have had a cocktail and a good bit of wine- last dish for me.

The boys ended with Ouzo which us ladies declined, probably best.

All in all it was a nice evening, we will definitely go back as we were happy with the food, the service and the ambiance.  Cava is date night dark inside, very moody, which I like.  I think it gives it good character.

A good bit of dishes had feta, but that could have been our ordering, and we could have requested without but it was very nice feta, not dry at all and very tangy and flavorful, it also had a nice creamy texture, but wasn’t melted on the hot dishes, a characteristic I really liked about it as I don’t normally care for really melted cheese.

The biggest perk is the large amount of outdoor seating, which is a big bonus in the DC area.  The outside seating is really nice here. You aren’t too close to the road, you aren’t cramped, but there is good people watching, it is just right.

They were also very accomodating for our group of six.  And I would say this restaurant is a really good choice for a group as the tapa portions are generous, which allows you to share and still get enough food, while the prices aren’t too expensive so you aren’t feeling gouged by the check.

There are beautiful photo galleries of their food here, which allowed me not to be the geek that takes pictures of her food all night.  And the food really looks similar when ordered, no bait and switch.  So thanks Cava for a really nice night out.

A short Note:  I will have to attach my albums slowly as I haven’t found a great upload yet and the NextGen is slow on my computer, but I will try to do it eventually so you can have the pictures I say I will post.  And if anyone knows of a better gallery tool, by all means let me know!  I did it here they are!

[View with PicLens]

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So I could have posted my Phoenix report this winter when you were dying to get somewhere warm, but then the prices were outrageous.  Right now you can get a pretty good deal for a Phoenix vacation in January at some of the nicest resorts and you can put in that vacation leave form way too far in advance for anyone to say no.

For people who know me really well, I am very particular about nice hotels.  If I am paying a premium to stay somewhere I have a high level of expectation.  There have been many a Leading Hotel of the World that I will not be returning to.  In particular I am very sensitive to noise.  Poor Hubby will attest that I am not an easy sleeper with a lot of noise, and me not sleeping means I am quite grumpy.

Hubby scored major bonus points in Phoenix though as he picked a hotel that is now one of my all time favorites.  Hubby and I stayed at the Royal Palm.  I really love the Royal Palm for many reasons including the following:

• Great Spa (see it’s own post the Alvadora Spa) which is even open late
• Large guest rooms at even the basic level
• The hotel restaurant T. Cooks is really good (the mediteranean breakfast burrito and their roast chicken are really good)
• They have a beautiful heated pool
• Large very nicely appointed bathrooms with tubs
• Wonderful level of personal service
• Many small private areas for relaxing or having private dinners
• Beautiful gardens, terraces and water features
• You can use the sauna and steam room for free

Here are some pictures for just a small taste of the resort.

Hubby and I enjoyed quite a number of great activities while in Phoenix- we hiked Camelback Mountain (link has wonderful pictures, maps and guides), we visited Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin West which was really neat and had some really beautiful details and art, we visited the Desert Botanical Garden which was hosting a Chihuly exhibit that you can see in the gallery below and we also went to see Frank Lloyd Wright designed hotel the Biltmore, and of course we spent time napping by the pool, swimming and enjoying the spa at the Royal Palms.

Hubby and I also enjoyed some great meals, besides T. Cooks, we also loved Matt’s Big Breakfast- the waffles were amazing made with sweet cream they were soft and full of flavor also the ham they use is freshly baked off the bone ham not those gross cubes of ham you normally see and they have wonderful hashbrowns that are crispy and flavorful.

Los Dos Molinos a reccomendation from the brother filled our craving for excellent green and red chille sauce.  It was hot and it was satisfying.  The margaritas were good, the chimichangas great and the owner was talking to us and was as nice as could be.  This isn’t an upscale fancy smancy place, but it was one our favorites.  They have multiple locations we went to the central location which was a bit like an open bar in a good way.

I also have to admit that we enjoyed a couple Blue Corn Burritos in the airport on the way home Sunday afternoon, they are much better than anything you get here, even in the airport (sad but true).

While for us Phoenix isn’t really a weekend getaway, it is an extended weekend getaway.  I even kind of liked going to the cheesy downtown area and wandering.  It is a little dissapointing that so many of the art galleries have closed in this economy, but it was still a great weekend with a lot of outdoor activities, culture and adventure to soak up.  My last tip is make sure you rent a car as everything is really spread out and you wouldn’t enjoy the area near as much if you were limited to cabs.