Oyamel Photos

Nopalitos

Ceviche el Peto

Alondigas Enchipotladas Con Queso Doble Crema

Swiss Chard

Cayo de Hacha Con Pipian de Chile Pasilla

Viva Las Raspas

Oyamel Review

Oyamel
401 7^th Street NW

Washington, DC 20004

Corner of 7^th & D Streets

202.628.1005

www.oyamel.com

Oyamel Cocina Mexicana is a wonderful little spot in Washington DC, located near Chinatown.  The front of the restaurant is almost exclusively glass. The top and the bottom, and outline of the doorway are done in a dark, glossy black with orange accents. Through the front window can be seen purple brightly colored seating. The inside of this restaurant is so lively and eclectic, warm and inviting, and has so many things to draw ones attention.  It makes you happy just to be there. There appear to be three different sections of this restaurant in which to sit. There are two bars, one to the left and one a level down. The seating involves heavy wooden tables and chairs in alternating colors of red and orange on the first level and the second levels as well as seating involving booths, benches and chairs along the windows and along the walls. When we arrived, we were led to the right and down two stairs to the “lower” section and seated at a table next to booths outlining the windows. The atmosphere was casual and friendly, the noise level not too loud and not too low. There are ethereal butterfly sculptures hanging from the ceiling overhead. The color scheme of the restaurant involves orange and peach walls and ceilings in some places and behind the bar on the lower level a tiled wall in alternating shades of blue, while the main bar on the first level is brightly colored. Then there are some walls with murals drawn onto them, some with writing and others with masks on the wall and other artwork placed throughout.  This is a wonderful place to go for almost any reason as far as we are concerned. Take your friends there, your family members, coworkers, acquaintances, go there on a first or heck fiftieth date, go alone... just get there. Parking is what it is, this IS DC folks, you already know what I mean. Be prepared to park in a garage nearby and to pay for the privilege. No worries. Any hassle you must undergo, either traffic or parking wise is worth it. This is a restaurant that is everything another restaurant we went to wanted to be (see review for Willow here in Baltimore... ugh!). The service was very good as well. Our waitress was attentive without hovering and was very knowledgeable about the menu. Overall, we give this spot ♪♪♪ and a half note.

Ceviche el peto 

This dish consisted of Hawaiian ono (A delightful fishy fish), fresh hearts of palm, baby cucumber, passion fruit, vanilla and rose. Can you say, heaven on a plate? Hmm...hmmm..hmmmm. The vanilla, rose and passion fruit perfectly complemented the fishyness of the Ono. Jalapeño slices and oranges gave a  kick of heat and of sweet. Pumpkin seeds added earthiness. Sea salt enhanced the flavors tenfold as sea salt tends to do. I have dreamt about this dish since. I am sure Melissa will agree...Yup I agree :)

Nopalitos

This salad consisted of baby cactus with tomatoes, in a lime dressing. This dish was actually extremely tasty. Melissa and I agreed on this point. It was flavorful, refreshing and light; a very well conceptualized and executed effort. However, where the problem comes in is with the texture, you have to be ok with the texture to enjoy it, which I most definitely was NOT and Melissa was. If you have ever eaten cactus before, you already know where I am going with this. If you have ever tried okra, you do too. If you have not tried either of these things, well let's just say it is...well... how do we put this....it is... slimy!

Albondigas enchipotladas con queso doble crema

This dish consisted of meatballs in a chipotle sauce with crumbled double cream cheese and cilantro.

The dish had a smoky tomato-y flavor. Cilantro gave a slight flavor of licorice to the dish. Almost no filler was used in making the meatballs so they fell apart a bit too easily. We thought they could have used some egg or something to keep them together a little better. The chipotle gave the right amount of heat to complement the heartiness of the beef and the cheese give a slight overall richness.

Swiss chard 

This dish consisted of some cooked chard and some raw chard which gave it a multi-layered texture and nuts and raisins, which added a sweetness and savoryness. This dish was sweet, tart, savory happiness as long as you stayed on top. Unfortunately it was accompanied by an Apricot puree that had a consistency like paste at bottom. It was too thick, too gooey and too sweet.

Cayo de hacha con pipian de chile pasilla

This dish consisted of two ginormous scallops seared to perfection with a pasilla chile and pumpkin seed sauce, orange segments, pumpkin seed oil and toasted pumpkin seeds. The pumpkin seed sauce and pumpkin seed oil gave the dish a rich, smokey, charred, slightly bitter taste. The pumpkin seed sauce was more the consistency of a puree. The toasted pumpkin seeds were a fabulous touch. Can we just say that this chef seems to have perfected the art of pairing orange slices with seafood. The orange slices complemented the sweetness of the scallops and cut the spiciness of the chile. It was wonderful.

Viva las raspas

This desert consisted of a coconut vanilla bean panna-cotta made with condensed milk and lime zest, which was very tasty, but was unfortunately paired with a hibiscus-raspberry granite, aka granita. The granite/granita (flavored, shaved ice) was made with mezcal vida (which we realized a bit too late was another mexican liquor akin to tequila), and which entirely ruined the dish... or maybe it was the hibiscus flavor that did it, but either way, it was too strong and too bitter... and we would not try it again. We did suggest to our server that the granita was too strong, too bitter and perhaps needed to be toned down quite a bit...lol.. a suggestion for which she thanked us and indicated she would let the chef know. So, who knows? :)

Virtue Feed & Grain Photos

Flash Fried Calamari

Quinoa Salad

Fried Chicken & Waffles

Fish Tacos

Peanut Butter Pie

Virtue Feed & Grain Review

Virtue Feed & Grain

106 S Union Street

Alexandria VA 22314

571-970-3669

http://virtuefeedgrain.com

Virtue Feed & Grain is a lovely restaurant situated on the edge of Old Town Alexandria.  It appears that it used to be an old barn or warehouse of some sort.  The décor is rustic with lots of brick and refurbished slabs of wood.  There are lots of benches and chairs pulled up to old wooden tables.  The upstairs seating area is a bit more trendy.  There are high top tables as well as private seating areas closed off with cream colored sheer fabric.  The farm feel of the restaurant matches the farm to table cuisine.  Virtue Feed & Grain prides itself on fresh foods brought in daily and processed each morning in house.    The food can be best described as American Fusion.  The Chef maintains an American foundation but blends in Latin and Asian flavors.  The wait staff is attentive and knowledgeable about menu.  This restaurant is a wonderful spot for hanging out with friends, date night or even a business diner.   Old Town Alexandria is very trendy and often crowded on warm days and in the evenings.  Parking can be found on the street or in local parking garages.  Overall we give Virtue Feed & Grain ♪♪♪.  

Flash Fried Calamari

These scrumptious little sea morsels were perfectly seasoned and very tender.  The charred scallion romesco dipping sauce was amazing!  The sauce was a perfect balance between smoky and herby.    The addition of picked peppers to the dish added kick and character.  Our only complaint was that the chef should have made the grease hotter in the frying process.  Our calamari was very greasy. 

Quinoa Salad

This dish was the highlight of our meal.  There were so many fun and complex additions to this dish.  Rich, earthy, fresh, herby and sweet are all adjectives we used as we savored every bite.  The use of lemon was so appropriate in this dish.  The chef also managed to toss a slight anise flavor throughout the salad.  This was an extremely well executed culinary creation; it left us licking our chops and wishing for more.

Fried Chicken & Waffles

This dish was interesting.  The chef made a bold choice by using thigh meat and not chicken breast or tenders.  Seeing as how I love dark meat, I appreciated the chef for this decision.  Dark meat is so much more flavorful and moist.  The waffles were fluffy and tender and somehow tasted like sausage.  Yes that’s right, sausage.  We could not figure that part out, but they were good.  The orange yuzu puree was both sweet and savory; we only wish they had added a little more.  Yet again with this dish the chef made the tragic mistake of greasy chicken.  Will someone please increase the heat on the fryer!

Fish Tacos

So this is when everything went straight down hill…This dish was an epic fail.  We mean a fall down the steps and break both legs, both arms and your neck kind of epic fail!   Issue number one, corn tortilla are rarely a good idea.  They are an even worse idea when they are dry, unflavored, hard and brittle.  Their poor tortillas were so bad that they put two on each taco because they were falling apart.  To add insult to injury, the chef chose not to season the fish at all..none..zero..nada.  Sigh...  The sauce used on the taco was also flavorless and season less.  Oh and the fries…tasty but let’s say it all together…GREASY!  

Peanut Butter Pie

We are so grateful for restaurant redemption though desserts.  This peanut butter pie was delicious.  The rich and creamy peanut filling was dense, rich and delicious.  The chocolate cookie crust was delightful and the macadamia nut ice cream made you wiggle in your seat with delight.  I do believe these two soul sisters engaged in some dueling spoon action as we fought for the last bite.  This desert was yummy.

 

Willow Latin Cantina Photos

Queso Flameado

Tuna Tartar Taco

Crispy Cauliflower Taco

Duck Confit & Avocado Spring Rolls

Willow Latin Cantina

Willow, Latin Cantina

811 South Broadway

Fells Point, MD 21231

(443) 835-4086

www.willowbaltimore.com

Another friend and I came upon this restaurant on a trip to Fell’s point about six months ago and it looked really cute and the menu looked very good, so I told Melissa about it and we decided to try it. Unfortunately, Willow turned out to be an illustration of the veracity of the phrases, looks can be deceiving and you can’t judge a book by its cover. This “cantina” left a lot to be desired. The menu and the face of the place are the only things about it that were cute and/or good.

   

The décor included broken furniture, mismatched couches and mirrors, old shag carpets and windows with no view. It was a mishmash of items, almost as if they gave every employee a wall to decorate with stuff from home. When you walk in the front door there is a small seating area to the right. Behind this is a bar that takes up the middle of the restaurant. Behind the bar is a lounge area. The lounge area is where the three mismatched couches are situated in a three sided seating area.  These sofas sit atop a 1970’s slightly dingy shag carpet of indiscriminate color.   Behind the sofas are a mirror and TVs with different stations on and no sound emanating from them. The bottom line here is that this restaurant could use a good top to bottom cleaning and a consult with an interior decorator.

This restaurant is located right on the square in Fells Point, MD across from BOP (brick oven pizza), Pitango gelato and Adela, all restaurants we have reviewed and greatly enjoyed.  Metered street parking is the only available parking. This is not the sort of restaurant where we would take anyone… friends, family, coworkers… enemies. Neither of us can think of anyone we would chose to take here. Mostly because we won’t be going back under any circumstance ourselves. The service was one of the better things about the restaurant, I will say, the staff being friendly and the owner/head chef coming over and introducing himself and recommending dishes as well as checking on our progress periodically. The prices are fine but the food, though perhaps well conceptualized was not well executed. Overall, we give Willow ♪ and a half. The half is given only because the service was pretty good and the menu only needs slight tweaking to be better. 

 QUESO FLAMEADO

This dish was prepared tableside and served with house made tortilla chips.  It consisted of queso fresco and manchego cheese flamed with brandy and topped with chorizo, almonds and fresh cilantro. The chips were handmade with herbs and were light and crunchy if a bit greasy. The cheeses used are very mild and not very flavorful on their own causing them to pick up the flavor of the chorizo and brandy well. The almonds added a slight sweetness but would have been much better toasted. The texture of the cheese was not the best for the dish however. It did not melt smoothly and became spongy as it lost heat, but was good while it lasted. 

DUCK CONFIT AND AVOCADO SPRING ROLLS

This dish consisted of preserved duckling and fresh avocado, wrapped in rice paper and fried.  It was accompanied by a spicy pineapple mango sauce. The duck was a bit dry but had a good flavor. The spicy sauce was flavorful and complemented the duck well.

CRISPY CAULIFLOWER TACOS/TOSTADAS

You are given the choice to have this dish served as three tacos or tostados. We chose tacos. This dish consisted of breaded cauliflower topped with cheese, smoked tomato salsa, mushroom confit and shaved onion. The breading was unnecessary. Cauliflower has a very delicate flavor and there was too much salt and old bay flavoring added. These things resulted in the flavor of the cauliflower being obscured and overpowered. There was too much onion as well. The accompanying smoked tomato salsa was good. The mushroom confit added a bit of earthiness but was also a bit obscured here.

TUNA TARTAR TACO

Here too, you are given the choice to have this dish served as three tacos or tostados and we chose tacos. This dish consisted of fresh ahi tuna dressed with sesame poblano dressing. This was then topped with cheese, fresh tomato salsa, cucumber, wasabi vinaigrette and fresh avocado. The tuna tartare was flavorful, but was unfortunately cooked to mush. It was so bad it could have been spread onto a cracker like pate… ick. Anyone who has been with us a while KNOWS how much Angela likes tuna tartare… SMH. It was a sin and a shame how that poor tuna was treated. The cheese was completely unnecessary in this dish. I am not sure why it was necessary to have two different kinds of dressing here either. One or the other would have done nicely.

Sang Jun Thai Photos

Crispy Duck

Eggplant with Chicken

Duck Spring Rolls