Crawfish in DC

Hot n Juicy
2651 Connecticut Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20008
http://www.hotnjuicycrawfish.com/

Mild Louisiana Flavor Crawfish

When one thinks of crawfish they probably think about New Orleans and not Washington, D.C.  Others might immediately think of crawfish's infamous nicknames: "mud bugs."  Just to set the record straight, crawfish can be had in our very own District of Columbia and I am referring to the crustaceans and not the other various types "mud bugs" that can be found in the city.  One doesn't have to travel all the way to the Big Easy to find crawfish, but just how good could crawfish in DC really be?


I have never been to Louisiana so I am definitely not the creole expert but I have been able to sample crawfish from many places over the years.

Oysters

The crawfish here were in fact hot and juicy, but it may have been too much of a good thing.  We ordered 2 pounds of crawfish - one pound was mild Louisiana flavor and the other pound was medium hot n juicy flavor. 

Large Crawfish with Monster Claws

2 pound orders come with corn and potatoes.  The corn was soggy from being cooked with the crawfish.  The potatoes were boiled redskin potatoes.  The crawfish tails were so juicy that the meat was downright mushy.  I believe this might be from overcooking the crawfish.  I really didn't care for the hot and juicy flavor.  The garlic flavor was way too overpowering. 

Cajun Fries

The best part of the meal were the cajun fries because they were nice a thick, just like I like em.  I found it really strange that the waitress warned us that the cajun fries were spicy.  You do need to be careful about heat levels for the crawfish themselves.  The medium heat was spicy.  I've heard from others that anything beyond medium is going to be practically unbearable unless you really like spicy food.  The fries weren't too spicy, what were spicy were the actual crawfish.  The oysters were blah.  They weren't the most flavorful oysters that I've ever eaten and we didn't get sick so they were just ok.  The prices were just slightly more than what you'd pay for the crawfish in Eden Center (I'm not sure of any other restaurant that also serves seasoned crawfish).

Dumb Waiter

The restaurant can accomodate a lot of people and they offer free refills on soda and they have a nice bottles beer selection.  The wait staff are attentive to refilling the drinks because they know that all the cajun spice can make the plastic soda cups go empty very fast.  The kitchen is located in the basement so they use a dumb waiter to bring food upstairs into the dining area.  That's pretty ingenious if you ask me.


The Verdict?  Save the drive into the District of Columbia and stop by Eden Center in Falls Church (just be careful in the parking lot).  The crawfish in Eden might not be as big as Hot and Juicy, but they are tastier and ever so slightly cheaper.

Breakfast Sandwiches at Panera Bread

Panera Bread
5857 Leesburg Pike # D
Falls Church, VA 22041-2324
www.panerabread.com

Exterior of Panera Bread in Falls Church

Occasionally if the morning traffic was a little lighter than usual I would stop in at Panera Bread for breakfast.  I have always enjoyed the Jalapeno and Cheddar Bagel Breakfast Sandwich.  The slight spiciness of the bagel along with the perfect saltiness from the ham and the real egg all bonded together with the melted cheddar cheese made it the perfect way to start off your day.  I had been hearing the tantalizing radio commercials the Steak and Egg sandwich and assumed that it would be as good as the Jalapeno and Cheddar Bagel Breakfast Sandwich. 

Steak and Egg Breakfast Sandwich

Unfortunately it was terrible.  The meat was chopped up into small pathetic tiny gray pieces that had no flavoring at all.  I really don't know how they can get away with calling the meat "steak."  A little seasoning would have been a step in the right direction, but the meat itself was just bad.  The white Vermont cheddar had a weird consistency to it.  The white cheddar was nothing like the yellow cheddar on the Jalapeno and Cheddar Bagel Breakfast Sandwich.  Oh yeah, on one such visit I wanted to get some coffee to go along with my samwitch.  I was dismayed and astonished to learn that they somehow didn't have any more lids for the to go coffee cups.  A cup of steaming hot coffee without a lid is risky business.  I couldn't believe that they had such poor inventory management that they could run out of lids.  I emailed Panera to complain about the situation and they were nice enough to offer me some coupons for my inconvenience.  It was a nice gesture, but they never should have run out of lids in the first place.  The last time that I went they had the lids back in stock.

The Verdict?  Stay away from the Steak and Egg Sandwich but please do try the Jalapeno and Cheddar Bagel Breakfast Sandwich.

China Star - Authentic Chinese Szechuan Cuisine

China Star
9600 Main St # G
Fairfax, VA 22031-3798
www.chinastarfood.com

Exterior of Restaurant

China Star is one of my favorite chinese restaurants.  This is not just any chinese restaurant though.  It is Szechuan style, meaning it's spicy!  If you like heat this is the place to go!  They serve up authentic chinese dishes, but also have the typical americanized dishes like "Happy Family" or fried rice.

Mapo Tofu

We usually get mapo tofu and scallion fried fish.  The mapo tofu is wonderful and just out of this world!  It is a tofu based dish with a fiery sauce with bits of ground pork.  You can see the chili oil glistening on the top.  Sometimes the mapo tofu may seem a little salty but it pairs perfectly with the white rice.  Although uncomfirmed, I'm also positive that the tofu is homemade.  The tofu has such a soft and silky texture that I've yet to find in a regular asian market.  I once tried the mapo tofu at Hong Kong Palace in Falls Church because it is also supposed to be a Szechuan style restaurant but it really had nothing at all on China Star.  We've also tried several other items on the menu including the sparerib with tofu and seaweed soup, crabmeat with asparagus chowder, and lamb in sizzling pot.  They were ok but not our favorites.

Scallion Fried Fish

We first discovered the scallion fried fish by asking the waiter for a recommended fish dish.  The fish is battered and deep fried and is garnished with chili peppers, cilantro, watercress.  I think there is tumeric in the batter to give it that slightly yellow color.  The fish is a little spicy with a nice crust.   We tried to emulate this dish using a catfish that we caught at Burke Lake.  The dish was pretty close, but I think we should leave it to the pros.

The verdict?  Definitely, definitely, definitely if you're in Fairfax come try China Star!  Heck, even if you're not in Fairfax drive over here to eat.  You won't be disappointed!

A Word From David and Anita

To all of our loyal readers please accept our apologies for not updating the site in a timely manner.  Rest assured that we have definitely been eating over the past several months and we have certainly been collecting images and reviews that we plan on posting to the site.

As a way of saying thank you and as a little holiday present we will be updating the site at least 1 time a week through the end of the year.  Remember you can always eat with us, every bite of the way!

Season Eatings,
David and Anita