¡Creepy crawlers!

I thought I was courageous when I braved lunch lakeside at Honduras's Lago de Yojoa, a beautiful body of water where the fresh catch is said to be seasoned by heavy metals. (I was not brave enough for the pescado entero, however, so the fish you see below, beside the fried plantains, was picked clean by my driver and lunch companion.)

The real fearless eater? My buddy Nicole Firment, who crunched on some cucarachas (grasshoppers, actually) in Mexico in December. Photo (above) and video (below) by Julia Oliver.



Looking for bugs closer to home? I remember that La Laiterie, in Providence's Wayland Square, used to serve up some insects every Halloween.

For still creative but not creepy-crawly fare, I recommend the "lamb slider trio" ($18), with curry and coconut organic lamb, lime yogurt crème and rosemary and Parmesan fries, paired with any dessert, at Co Co. Sala (929 F St. NW) in DC's Chinatown, and the Cascade Cafe (6th/Constitution NW) in the National Gallery of Art (10 percent discount for federal employees, free view of the cascade waterfall for all comers). Avoid maoz (1817 M Street NW), in Dupont, where the grammatical errors in the mission statement hint at the carelessness in the food preparation. Amsterdam Falafelshop (2425 18th Street NW), in Adams Morgan, and even the Old City Cafe (1773 Columbia Rd. NW) and Shawarma King (1654 Columbia Rd. NW), are better options.

Ice fishing for pickled herring

"You don't think there are guys in Nepal who are, like, 'What should I do? Should I carry packs of heavy shit for Westerners to the top of the base camp of Everest? Or should I stay down here in Kathmandu and chant all day and check out chicks and pretend to be holy?' Why is everything cooler when it happens in a foreign country?" - Tao Of Steve

I've realized lately how vulnerable I am to this commonplace traveler's affliction. Particularly when it comes to food. When I was traveling in Southern France and Spain last May, I started wolfing down baguettes filled with  jamón ibérico as if the ingredients were not available at any decent market in DC.

Even less exotic travel can bring on a case of cooler-abroad-itis. I spent New Year's in northern Minnesota, and I would not say an unflattering word about the pickled herring my hosts generously dished out upon my arrival, let alone critique the delightful "stoup" ("soup" + "stew") of patiently simmered pheasant shotgunned by our host the previous fall; the tall stacks of Swedish pancakes at the Maplelag cross country skiing resort; or the "Lowden Zpecial" pizza at Zorbaz in downtown Detroit Lakes, slathered in peanut butter and crowned with pepperoni, jalapeños and cheese. ("Often Imitated, Never Duplicated.") Still, was Maplelag's creamy beef Strogonoff as heavenly as I remember it, or might I have been just a bit hungry from skiing the Sukkerbusk trail? Was the salsa at Juano's, in downtown Fargo, as sublime as it seemed at the time, or was I just overjoyed that the temperature was above freezing when we landed? Were the Knights of Columbus's French toast and breakfast sausages truly a religious experience, or was I just won over by the $3.50 price tag? (For the record, I stand by my awe over the deployment of cabbage in the minestrone at Capisce in Zephyr Cove, Nevada, a casual Italian joint I visited recently near Lake Tahoe that is run by a former Orioles prospect.)

This exercise in reconsideration has me second-guessing my excitement about a variety of recent out-of-town dining, in Boston and Austin (no relation). Specifically, my deep regret over every meal I've had at Baja Fresh in Dupont made me irrationally exuberant about a quick stop at the Anna's Taqueria in Coolidge Corner last October. Meanwhile, DC's underachieving Chinatown made me highly vulnerable to the charming waitress, brightly painted walls and bountiful amuse-bouche at Color, a Korean restaurant in Allston.

Similarly, I might have graded Austin on a curve (though I'm not the only one to be won over by its food scene). The chicken-fried sirloin, topped by creamy gravy, and fried okra at Threadgill's tasted a little less chewy and greasy thanks to the Sunday gospel brunch musical accompaniment and all the quirky memorabilia rescued from the historic Armadillo World Headquarters concert venue that once stood next door in the South Congress neighborhood. The migas and chorizo at Annies Cafe & Bar was a welcome break from an eggs Benedict brunch, but I'll admit I was predisposed to compliment the carne guisada at Guero's Taco Bar after a Texan friend, Grace, promised me that in Austin, "There are TONS of Mexican restaurants. In general they should all be like a 1000x better than anything on the east coast." The Peached Tortilla food truck serves its tacos with crunchy catfish (in a creamy, jalapeño slaw with bacon braised mustard greens) and vietnamese braised pork belly (pickled daikon and carrot salad, Sriracha mayo and cilantro) that puts to shame the local equivalent. But the best sidewalk bratwurst does not hold a candle to any decent choripán in the Southern Cone.

The lesson of all this rambling reconsideration? To show more love for local grub. Like the Heidenberger at the Mad Hatter (1321 Connecticut Ave. NW); the views of Woodley Park from the second floor window seats at Ipoh (2625 Connecticut Ave. NW); the small plates at Zaytinya (701 9th St. NW), good enough to ignore the tragic diversion of extra virgin olive oil into tall vases, and the Jamón Ibérico at Zatinya's sister restaurant, Jaleo (480 7th Street NW), cured ham from acorn-fed, black-footed, Spanish Ibérico pig; the patio at Hank's Oyster Bar (1624 Q St. NW), though I sat indoors on my only visit and somehow was hoodwinked into paying $23 for a lobster roll, more than even the Red Hook Lobster Pound gets away with charging; pretty much anything with raw fish at Raku (1900 Q St. NW); the entire menu at Indique (3518 Connecticut Ave. NW) and Sorriso (3512 Connecticut Ave. NW), which are good enough to convince me to move to Cleveland Park; brunch at Napoleon Bistro (1847 Columbia Rd. NW); dinner at Meskerem (2434 18th St. NW); and even though I was deprived of a partner for the whole fried fish at Bangkok 54 (2919 Columbia pike, Arlington, Va.), I can't hold that against the chef, who eased my pain with some crispy catfish curry and spicy roasted duck.

Caliente, not picante?

No disrespect to the mega restaurant Lauriol Plaza (1835 18th Street NW), where the chefs manage not only to feed hundreds of people nightly, on three floors and a packed patio, but also to come up with appealing specials, like the hulking leg of lamb I ordered last night. But seriously, doesn't it seem upside down to serve the homemade salsa hot in temperature and mild in spiciness, and not the other way around?

Red faced, not from the marinara

As if my unsophisticated palate, low food budget and amateur cooking skills did not make me insecure enough about publishing Pipón, I heard a great Marketplace segment the other day about the "food paparazzi" and the restaurateurs who, er, do not exactly love them. (Apparently, we food bloggers are famous for publishing photos that are "under-exposed, or taken mid-meal, bite marks and all" and for critiquing food "without really knowing what they're talking about.") And yet, here I go again, with a few Darts & Laurels (h/t to CJR) for some Washington restaurants.


Laurels

The toppings at The Pita Pit (616 23rd St. NW), in Foggy Bottom, including feta, avocado and tzatziki sauce.
Pretty much everything at the Thornton River Grille, in Sperryville, Va., in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, just off the Shenandoah National Park's Skyline Drive, one of the best thought-I'd-come-to-a-greasy-spoon surprises I've ever encountered, where the eggs benedict is served on a homemade baguette, the vegetable omelet special (there it is above) involves, count 'em, five eggs and all dishes get a pick-me-up of fresh fruit and the option of a few drops of the local pepper sauce, Chileman's.
The name (I didn't actually try the food, since the beer alone is bankrupting) of The Star and The Shamrock (1341 H St. NE), an Irish-Jewish pub.
The sauteed beef and onions at El Rincon Espanol (1826 Columbia Rd. NW) in Adams Snorgan (any chance that will catch on?), so tender you (almost, sometimes, when the door is mercifully closed) forget about the booming nightclub upstairs.




The "Sloppiest Joe" ($13) at Ted's Bulletin (505 8th St. SE) (see it above), part of the cloying home-style trend but way more exciting than an overpriced grilled cheese, so much so that it makes up for the poor service at this new restaurant and its odd decision to write "Breakfast Anytime" in large letters on the menu, followed by a small print advisory, "coming soon, we'll keep you posted." On the other hand, the $3 homemade strawberry pop tarts (see one below) are already on offer, as are a great $4 side of blue cheese Brussels sprouts (see one above) and TVs playing classics such as The Wizard of Oz and Breakfast at Tiffany's.
Finally, Laurels for the sliders at Bar Dupont (1500 New Hampshire Av. NW); the Five Guys at Nationals Park, where they do inflate the price a bit but still honor their all toppings free pledge (including the grilled onions, grilled mushrooms and jalapeno peppers); and the $12 "Tacos de Borrego" (slow roasted lamb with garlic and Oaxacan peppers) at Casa Oaxaca (2106 18th St. NW) in Adams Snorgan, where the menu inspires so much confidence, in its refreshingly small size and multicolored mole offerings, that I might actually one day, given enough mezcal, try the "Cazuela de Chapulines," the Oaxacan cheese fondu and grasshoppers appetizer.





Darts

The burgers (see one above) at Nellie's (900 U St. NW) are no joke, with free caramelized onions and only a $1 charge for blue cheese. Still, given the $10 price tag, you'd think they could afford to serve their mimosas in something other than a plastic cup.
The large chili con carne ($5.40) at Ben's Chili Bowl (1213 U St. NW) is good, no doubt, but it does not quite live up to the hype, or the description "large" for that matter. (Why does criticizing Ben's feel like blaspheme and a culinary conventional wisdom echo chamber at the same time?)

Dupont's edible esoterica

I'm proud to say ("proud" might be overstating it) that I've now lunched at Dupont Circle's two worst-kept secrets: The Well Dressed Burrito (1220 19th St. NW) and the Brookings Institution cafeteria (1775 Massachusetts Ave. NW). Both are vaguely hidden, a la the nightclubs featured in Swingers. The Well Dressed Burrito serves up its large, marinated beef burritos ($6.50), using actual pulled meat instead of cheap ground beef, in an alleyway; the Brookings Institution cafeteria is, you guessed it, inside the Brookings Institution.


Neither, however, is truly obscure. The Brookings lunch experience, for example, has been deconstructed on Yelp, where one reviewer judged its food to be "just like its politics," that is, "middle of the road." As for The Well Dressed Burrito, here's a Pipón tip: the staff must be used to regulars since they neglected to remind me that the burrito "platter" is just $1 extra and includes homemade enchilada sauce, beans, Southwestern rice and some greens; when I visited, I was so busy dissuading my friend Lauren Miller from ordering a salad that I missed the listing on the menu.

If you want to eat somewhere truly "off the beaten path," try my sister-in-law Marni's garden-level apartment, where I tried the turkey meatballs and Israeli couscous and roasted broccoli the other day.

Burrito photography by Lauren Miller.

Don't Panic

Chipotle may just be the most lovable of big, corporate restaurant chains. First, there's its above-average burritos and salsas, including roasted chili-corn. Then there's the super interactive Web site. Next comes its unexpectedly substantial attempts at sustainability, including buying meat from farms that favor "old-fashioned animal husbandry" over mega-industrial efficiency. That means, for example, that Chipotle's pork comes from pasture-raised, antibiotics-free pigs fattened up on purely vegetarian feed. In fact, Chipotle even helps promote Food Inc., a disturbing documentary about U.S. agribusinesses that does not exactly leave you with a big appetite. My new favorite Chipotle quirk: the sign on its closed Chinatown shop reads, "Don't Panic. We are closed for remodel construction. Order will restored to the universe in a few weeks." Apparently, "Don't Panic" (all caps but without an exclamation point) is a corporate slogan. During a big snow storm, one Chipotle shop that locked up early put up a "Don't Panic" banner that urged disappointed customers to "wander around the block or just loiter here on the sidewalk."

Hot List

Ages ago, I edited the august Mamaroneck High School Globe. Our best-read feature: a monthly "Hot List," known for its witty rankings and category titles. For this post on a few D.C. eateries I've visited lately, I'll borrow my favorite "Hot List" titles, coined, if memory serves, by my friend Marianne Fichtel.

De La Soul: Montmartre, a classy French joint in Eastern Market (327 7th St. SE). It's not cheap; my brunch panini (above), with prosciutto, spinach, bell peppers, roasted tomatoes, mozzarella and pesto set me back $12. But it has a great patio, and it's just half a block from all the handicrafts.
Fillet of Sole: El Paraiso, Salvadoran pupusería south of U St. (1916 14th St. NW). I've visited twice, and I still have not had time to even read the entire menu. Recommendation: the half-priced appetizers in the late afternoon, including pupusas revueltas con queso and yuca con chicharron curtido.
Seoul, that place in Korea: Spice Express Indian Bistro (1020 19th St. NW), south of Dupont. A decent, quick and cheap option (two curries with basmati rice cost $7) if you want a break from burritos. If you don't, try The Well Dressed Burrito in a nearby alleyway. I haven't stopped by yet, but everyone seems to love its menu, or at least saying its name.

De La Soul: Penang, Malaysian eats (1837 M St. NW). I don't normally hype chain restaurants, but this one just opened and it's in Harvard Square as well, so it got me nostalgic. The decor is frigidly modern, but the complimentary soup at lunch today more than compensated. Lunch entrees include a choice of appetizer, including Penang satay.
Fillet of Sole: Saki (2477 18th St. NW)/Kababji Grill (1351 Connecticut Ave. NW). Both mediocre, but together, I suppose, worthy of a "filet of sole" ranking. Sushi is half-priced in early evening, but not memorable. Kababji is a bit expensive, but I'm told it's a hip global chain, so I suppose, as a foreign affairs student, I should just say I dig it.
Seoul, that place in Korea: La Frontera Cantina (1633 17th St. NW), Dupont East. I gave a second chance to this pretty unremarkable, somewhat overpriced, heavy-on-the-melted-gloppy-cheese Mexican restaurant. There will not be a third.

Pickled tacos

I've had a hard time locating empanada shells around D.C., striking out at both at the Whole Foods on P Street and the Giant by the Columbia Heights Metro stop. (Truthfully, I couldn't even find an employee who had heard of an empanada at either market.) Hunting down fresh tortillas, on the other hand, is a good deal easier. Today, for my black bean tacos, I bought a stack of white corn tortillas from Delicias Market (3702 14th St. NW, by Spring Rd.), where I also picked up some fabulously pickled vegetables ($3.99 for a tall jar), including chopped cabbage, onions, carrots and jalapeño bottled in Virginia. I sauteed onions, cooked up yellow rice and frozen peas, sprinkled on top a bit of cilantro and added fresh salsa (including diced cucumber) from Giant and a bit of Sriracha hot chili sauce.

Overstuffed pita

I have no "food finds" to report. Saying I'd "discovered" restaurants in the few times I've left the library over the last few months would be tantamount to recommending the Washington Monument as an off-the-beaten path tourist destination. But at least I've managed to begin to sample this city's restaurant scene, and so I've got a few capsule reviews to offer.

• The Amsterdam Falafelshop, in Adams Morgan (2425 18th Street NW), is often crowded and essentially only serves falafel in pita and Dutch-style fries. Yet its menu is delightfully diverse, refreshingly inexpensive and definitely worth the wait. That's thanks to the 21 sauces and toppings at the condiment bar, where customers construct their sandwiches Middle Eastern style. Pipón Tip: The homemade, made-to-order falafel balls are delicious, but they take up a lot of real estate in the pita, so you have to be strategic in assembling toppings and avoid feeling pressured to rush by the crush of customers cheek by jowl on line.
• Speaking of Middle Eastern eats, I finally stopped by Skewers, next to Bua, a Thai restaurant on P Street, between 16th and 17th, after passing it 1,000 times on my way to and from classes. I was happy to find pleasant balcony seating and to see foole, a traditional Egyptian dish made of slow cooked fava beans, on the menu. The baba gannouj and hummus spreads were tasty, and they are offered as sides to accompany the "light combination" platters, such as the lamb kufta kabob I ordered. Pipón Tip: Be aware that I'm pretty sure the owners are Bangladeshi, not Middle Eastern, and the menu weirdly includes South Asian preparations that don't quite match the theme.
• The Polo India Club, at 1736 Connecticut Avenue NW in Dupont, is mostly useful for its location, on a downtown stretch by plenty of bars for after-dinner merrymaking. My began bharta (eggplant roasted in a tandoor with onion and herbs) was the least flavorful Indian food I've encountered.
  
• On the other hand, there is plenty of flavor in many of the dozens of small plates at Mezè, a well-known Turkish tapas joint at 2437 18th St NW in Adams Morgan. Pipón Tip: Try the döner kebab and chicken livers.
• Also try Taqueria Distrito Federal, a little-known Mexican restaurant in Columbia Heights/Petworth, at 3463 14th St. NW. There's patio seating, a choice of meats that includes carne asada, chorizo and barbacoa chivo (goat), and a great selection of Jarritos soda. Mexico City is known to Mexicans as the "Distrito Federal," but in D.C., this restaurant's name takes on a double meaning. Clever, authentic (pozole is served on weekends) and delicious.
• Final recommendation: Zorba's Cafe, at 1612 20th St. NW, a casual (read: cafeteria style, grab your tray from the kitchen) but inexpensive, centrally located, tasty Greek joint with a great patio and a traditional, but extensive menu.

Tiny hot dog buns

I have had neither the time nor disposable income to explore the D.C. restaurant scene, not even the Latin restaurants that line 14th Street by my apartment. (A few exceptions: I've grown to accept Baja Fresh as a serviceable substitute for Chipotle; I was unmoved by La Frontera Cantina, a small Mexican restaurant with pleasant outdoor seating and homemade tortilla chips on 17th Street, by Dupont Circle; I was pleased to find the biodegradable entrees and packaging at Sweet Green, on Connecticut, only slightly overpriced, the mix-your-own greens salad selling for $6; and I enjoyed the curry peanut sauce at Bua, a Thai restaurant on P Street, between 16th and 17th.)

Lately, however, I have managed some good eating, mostly thanks to visits from my wife and in-laws. Outings included a scallops feast during a Bethesda Restaurant Week trip to Grapeseed; an Ethiopian lunch on U Street, around 10th; and a banquet at Founding Fathers, on Pennsylvania Avenue by the IMF, where we ordered, as appetizers, the cornmeal battered fried green tomatoes with herb goat cheese and homemade "green goddess dressing," the homemade potato and cheddar cheese crisps with onion dip and a pimento spread, and the grilled oysters with homemade BBQ sauce (afterward, I meekly attempted to conquer the "Farmhouse Mixed Grill," made up of pork ribs, "Barackwurst" sausage and fried chicken, served alongside watermelon and coleslaw).


All delicious, but I was ready for some home, vegetarian cooking. So the next day, we stopped by Whole Foods and then Keryn whipped up a refreshing salad, with fresh mozzarella, local heirloom tomatoes and arugula.


She also boiled up some, er, I think it's called "Casarecce" (a pasta shaped like "tiny hot dog buns"), with a medley of sauteed mushrooms and Parmesan.

Latin food, now on the East Side

Providence has a surprisingly vibrant food scene given its size, but when it comes to good Latin American food, you generally have to go to the Latino neighborhoods on the West Side. (In addition to the street food, I recommend Chilangos, on Manton Avenue, and El Rancho Grande, on Plainfield Street.) Options closer to downtown, such as the wonderfully named but otherwise awful Tortilla Flats, on Hope Street, and the criminally overpriced (steak fajitas sell for $15) and bizarrely located (on Atwells Avenue in Federal Hill, Providence's Little Italy) Don José Tequilas are best avoided. (Taqueria Pacifica, having graduated from the roving Taco Truk to a permanent location on Empire Street, inside the AS220 cafe, has a small, but high quality menu that is best suited for lunch.)

So you can imagine how excited I was to read the other day that Twist, on Angell Street in Wayland Square, had hired a new chef, a Californian named Jeff Sesar, who was introducing a "Taco Tuesdays" menu.

The taco menu is impressively creative, particularly for the price, $4 per taco (or margarita, or bucket of mini Caronas). Options include spicy ground beef or chorizo sausage; orange chipotle pulled pork; beer battered fish; grilled carne asada; coconut seared tuna; and buttered lobster.

Sides include salsa verde, pico de gallo, roasted tomato salsa, guacamole, Spanish rice and black beans and corn. Tacos come topped with chopped cabbage and queso fresco.

To be honest, they were not the best tacos I'd ever tasted. The salsa is not freshly made. The tortillas, made of flour, also don't appear to be baked on site. The tuna was a bit dry, the chips a bit bland.

But you couldn't beat the price. Or the cheesy but endearing decorations. The margaritas were delicious. Our waitress was enthusiastic, and the chef, a New Jersey native, even stopped by our table to chew the fat about his peregrinations and culinary influences. So for bringing decent tacos to the East Side (and to make use of the pile of $4 coupons we were gifted last night), I congratulate Twist and offer it my biggest compliment: See you next Tuesday.