I sometimes go to a restaurant just because I have never been there and want to see what it is like. I especially like it when it is a one-of-a-kind, hole-in-the-wall place that is unique to an area (or only has a few locations) Restaurants like these give an area a real local flavor and make it unique. Face it, there are a lot of places with an Austin Grill and a Baja Fresh, you can go to one of them anywhere and get exactly the same food served exactly the same way.
Sometimes I will see a place and decide to go there, or hear about it and search it out, but other times I will just wander around until I see something that strikes my fancy. I head about Delicas Carryout and sought it out. Several of my co-workers decided to go along, but one got accidentaly left behind. We called him up to tell him where to go but I couldn't remember the name of the place. Then, I didn't know what street it was on. The instructions to him ended up being "Walk North on Wisconsin Ave, we'll call you when we get there with more detailed directions"
When I go on one of these adventures, it is helpful to have the proper set of expectations. Generally, the restaurants I go to are pretty quick and fairly cheap so 5 star food isn't really an option, but, it is great to try different food and go different places, not be stuck in the rut of the same 5 restuarants (It's Wednesday, that means Chipotle).
Downtown Bethesda, MD is the perfect place to have these expeditions, generally, the Woodmont Triangle area is better then Bethesda Row since Bethesda Row has more chains and pricier places. (Silver Spring is pretty good too).
If you have a restaurant that fits this description, post a comment about it.
I like the new mexican/salvadoran place on St. Elmo, La Plaza. It's got great pupusas and yuca frita - a real hidden gem, maybe just cause it's fairly new.
ReplyDeleteThe Burger Joint is really delicious and fresh! If you head over there on a weekend, you easily avoid the weekday lunch hour craziness.
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