Pizzeria Orso

C – Tucked into the Pearson Square complex, behind Elevation Burger and the construction that will be a part of the Falls Church City Center, is a relatively new pizza joint that’s worth a visit. Pizzeria Orso serves authentic Neapolitan pizza as well as a collection of other entrees including small plates and pastas.

I’ve been there twice in the past few weeks and I have to say, while the weather is nice, the outdoor dining experience is not to be missed. There’s a little construction noise in the background, but it’s nice that there’s an option for getting a bit of fresh air while you dine, and the patio is big and comfortable.

The wait staff is pleasant, friendly and attentive. The food is pretty darn good. It’s very much a family place, so if you’re looking for a quiet romantic meal, this isn’t for you. Pizzeria Orso just received a “Best of Falls Church – 2014” award from the Falls Church News Press and Yelp reviews are favorable. Overall, I’d recommend it.

Pizzeria Orso
400 South Maple Avenue
Falls Church City, VA 22046
*closed on Mondays

Top 5 DC restaurants worth your lunch hour

K- C and I are both traveling this week but we didn’t want to leave you “post-less.” So here is a quick list of restaurants that are worth leaving your office for and spending around an hour for lunch, especially since many of these places offer the same type of menu for dinner as lunch but at a more affordable price. Some of these places we’ve reviewed on the blog and others I’ve been to and are on the list to be revisited and reviewed.

1. Mari Vanna, 1141 Connecticut Ave NW –

Grandma’s house?

A great place to get a taste of Russia and looks like it could be your grandma’s living room. You could have a nice bowl of Borsch, a vegetable ragout and Kiev cake. Who knows, you might see Alex Ovechkin at the next table! To check out our review click “here.”

2. Estadio, 1520 14th St NW

It’s been awhile since we’ve been to Estadio but we continue to hear great things about it. There have also been a few celebrity sitings.  It’s a wonderful place to escape to for the best sauteed kale I’ve ever eaten, a deliciously warm soup and heavenly calamari. Our review: here.

3. Brasserie Beck, 1101 K St NW

My mouth just starts watering when I think of the mussels at this delightful restaurant. They do have other items for lunch such as steak and frites if you aren’t into mussels but I find it very difficult to try something else. Our review here.

4. Rasika West End,  1190 New Hampshire Ave

We’ve not reviewed Rasika West End yet, but I’ve been a couple of times. The first time the service was very slow but it seems to be picking up a bit. I brought a friend with me who has recently begun a foray into Indian food. She loved it! The restaurant itself has a very nice, modern interior and the food – I usually have palak paneer – is good.

5. Fiola, 601 Pennsylvania Ave

Fiola is a bit on the expensive side however it was ranked #4 in Washingtonian’s 100 Very Best Restaurants 2013 and Bon Appetit named it one of America’s “Best New Restaurants” in 2012. The food and service is fantastic. It’s one of the few places I will go to for Italian food.

Quick trip – NYC

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K- This past weekend I went to NYC. The Big Apple is an easy trip from DC. There are various ways you can get there but the two most popular are train or bus. I’ve taken a bus to NYC for a day trip. There are many buses you can take with various price points such as Bolt, DC2NY, MegaBus, and Vamoose. It’s okay, for me it’s a lot of time on the road for a quick trip to the city, but I’ll do it. My preferred method of transportation is the Acela – specifically the “Quiet Car.”  I love the “Quiet Car” because it’s just that – quiet. No one talking on their cell phone, chatting loudly, and no kids running up and down the aisle and screaming. It’s a nice few hours where you can nap, read, listen to music with headphones, surf the ‘net on WiFi, etc.

The Acela stops at Penn Station – which was a few blocks walk to The Carlton Autograph – where I was staying at. I prefer walking to taking a cab for many reasons, one being that with traffic in NYC, sometimes it’s quicker just to walk.

While in New York I walked in Central Park, which is amazingly clean and green. Visited the Guggenheim and the MoMa. I have to say I was very disappointed in the collection that was being shown at the Guggenheim. The collection was a bit too “avant garde” for my taste – kind of like a big red “o” painted on a white canvas kind of art. Just not my thing. However the MoMa was fantastic. I loved looking at the Picassos, Rousseaus, Klees, Miro,  and Monets among the other artists that were represented there. Also walked around Chelsea, Greenwich Village and SoHo.

Went to a couple of great restaurants. Lupa, which is an Italian restaurant that serves very simple, delicious, food. I had some pea agnolotti that couldn’t have tasted any fresher and the Fried Lupa Baccala that although it was fried – I am so not a fried-food person but thought I would try it – it wasn’t oily in the least and very good. For dessert I had the Lupa tartuffo, that was a chocolate deliciousness. I also tried the Apician Spiced Dates & Mascarpone with my glass of red wine and that too was delightful.

The other restaurant Cuba was of course, Cuban. Instead of an entree, dinner consisted of a bunch of appetizers. The Empanadas Habeneras with spinach and manchego, Calamares Tamarindo, and Ceviche Mixto were wonderful – I wish I would have ordered more of them rather than the Camarones al Ajillo and Croquetas de Jamon Serrano – that I don’t recall seeing any jamon in. The shrimp and croquetas were not very impressive and I wouldn’t have missed them. In addition, the mojitos were great, not too sweet and just the right amount of everything. They also had a couple of musicians playing guitars, which added to the cozy atmosphere.  Both places are tight on the real estate especially on the weekends, where you definitely need to reserve a table as soon as possible. But, they are well worth it.

Heading back to Penn Station to return to DC, I had to stop at my favorite bagel place “Murray’s” to grab a bagel for the trip. Can’t wait to go back!

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Graffiato – non molto

Visible kitchen on second floor

K – Well, what to say about Graffiato? According to his website,  in June 2011, Chef Mike Isabella opened Graffiato, an Italian-inspired restaurant in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, DC.

We sat on the second story, which looked much more comfortable space-wise than downstairs.  It had an interesting decor of open kitchen with cleavers hanging above. Service was pretty good. The music played was quite interesting, I’d say it was 80’s rock/metal.

I loved the ginger beer, it was very refreshing on a hot day. Other high points were the charred asparagus with black butter, hazelnut and candied lemon, broccolini with red peppers, walnuts and feta and the agnolotti with potato, castelrosso and cured egg. However, I wasn’t too sure about the foam that was atop of the agnolotti (it’s like ravioli). The pasta had a nice creamy taste and texture. And the broccolini was good if you made sure you ate the feta with it otherwise it was a bit blah. A not so high point – the potato gnocchi with pork neck, whipped ricotta, and fried rosemary. I’m not sure what the deal was, but C mentioned that the rosemary made the gnocchi taste Christmas tree-like and it did! Without the rosemary the gnocchi tasted a bit better but overall it just wasn’t something I’d re-order. Big disappointment was the pizza. We shared the “Popeye’s” pizza that had spinach, bacon, tomato, mozzarella, and mushrooms. Although it sounded like it would be delicious it was beyond bland. If there was any tomato sauce, I didn’t taste it. I didn’t even taste the spinach, mozzarella or mushrooms! I did enjoy the pizza crust which was nice and authentic but that’s about it.  In general the experience was a bit of a disappointment – I would say it was more of a “frownie face” and not very inspiring.  I went away full but not satisfied.

C – I had high hopes for this place, based on the atmosphere. The music worked for the 80s rocker chick (not so) trapped inside me. I loved the decor even though the setup got a bit cramped as the evening went on. The location was perfect as we were headed to FilmFest DC directly across the street at Regal Cinemas/Verizon Center. And that’s about all the positive I can muster. The food was not great. It wasn’t awful. Just wasn’t great. The foam on the pasta K mentioned? Couldn’t get over it. Did they not fully rinse the dish? Probably not the case — I’m sure it’s some sort of culinary creativity I’m not familiar with — but this is what I thought with every bite. All two of them. I heart gnocchi, but Graffiato’s didn’t work for me. The pizza was sad and bland. Side note: two days later I had a to-die-for margherita pizza at Ulah Bistro. Really, really excellent and worth the extra distance to U Street. Overall, Graffiato works in a pinch for basic fuel if you’re in the Gallery Place area but if you’re looking for a foodie experience, keep walking.

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Graffiato
707 6th St NW
http://www.graffiatodc.com