DC's Southeast Waterfront ALL-PURPOSE has perfect pizza(6/24/21)

 It had been over a year since we had a ball at All-Purpose with Chef Mike Friedman making pizza at a private party. We returned last week to dine and the pizza was indeed perfection. We ate tons of different items and loved everything. Starting with the Devil's Margarita made from tequila, citrus, agave and red wine with a mean kick onto the If You Like Pina Coladas, which is coconut rum, hard soda and pineapple rum. Great ideas and lots of fun.  Early Mountain  Rose is a great Merlot blend rose from Virginia that is always a winning winery for me and then came Gulfi Nero d'Avela 2018 as one must have a hearty red with the pizzas.

We started with crispy fried calamari, Eggplant Parm "Jersey Style", Hummus, Garlick Knobs and Arancini....beware these carbs are filling.

Then we each got our own pizza which was the perfect size, with a slice or two leftover for the next day. our servers Chrissy & Ashley were always there and seemed to know our needs before we even asked.

Casanova is a parmesan fonduta pizza with marinated artichokes, garlicky spread, Calabrian chiles and lemon which I LOVED. The Childish Bambino is for the meat lover with smoked bacon, sausage and pepperoni!! Sedgewick has whipped ricotta, taleggio, parmesan, truffle honey and chives and is as rich as pizza can get. Margherita & Buona were other options I did not taste.

We could not even fathom dessert, and rolled home after a wonderful night out with friends.

--

DC's Zaytina still has zing after all these years(6/17/21)

 We headed downtown for dinner for the first time in a very long time and chose Zaytina so Samuel could have a wide vegetarian variety. It was a great choice and we all had a superb meal and a great time. The places looks as fresh as ever all white and clean and  our server Chou did a superb job as well handling the 5 of us with major needs!

Za'atar Margaritas had a yummy za'atar foam on top and were slightly spicy and made with Milagro Tequila. Our two wines were excellent starting with a 2017 Domaine Mercouri (where we visited in Ilia, western Greece just 2 years ago) Foloi blending Roditi with Viognier. our red was a 2017 Manousakis Alxeandra's Nostros from Crete blending 40% each Syrah & Grenache and 20% Mourvedre.
We decided to share a bunch of starters while Sam had his Smoked Beet Salad with Feta, Pomegranate, Greens and Clementine(which we ordered as well). We added on the dips with yummy puffy pita:Hitipi or roasted red pepper dip; Hummus which was okay and the yummy Labneh-yogurt with za'atar. Crispy Brussels Sprouts or Afelia were yummy with  coriander seed, barberries and garlic yogurt. The Octopus Santorini was a bit chewy in places, but still crispy and tasty with onion, capers and a yellow split pea puree (fotos on FB).

Sam had a Halloumi Pida or flatbread which we also shared that had both halloumi & mozzarella cheese.

Our mains were superb with Cauliflower Tiganites having tahini, preserved lemon, pine nuts, capers and golden spice vinegar. The Zaytina Fries come with a roasted garlic yogurt dip and mushroom salt. The hit here is of course the Kebab Platter with skewers of chicken lamp, kofte and adana(also lamb with harissa and tomato); all were divine.

There was room for dessert and we split four: The Greek Mini Olive Oil Cake was nice, the cheeses were okay, but a bit the same and as expected quite salty(Ladotyri-sheep, Roussas Feta and a 3rd sheep)

The Molten Chocolate Cake was nice but had the weirdest tasting Mastic Ice Cream with it--definitely an acquired taste.

The winner seemed to be the Cheese Cake which is not at all like cheesecake, but a cheesy cakey pudding of sorts and quite tasty.

Nice to return there after some decade and a half for sure! Also thanks to Jonathan the sommelier for his info on Greek wines and a pamphlet with maps and wines!!

Back at Bistro Aracosia in Palisades, DC is always a pleasure(6-13-21)

Last night we headed back to one of our favorite neighborhood spots with a dear friend we had not seen since 2019! She is a cookbook writer and absolutely loves Afghan food. As we expected, everything was delicious and a super hit, even the handsome server Kyle and the entire team who were kind, helpful and yes, masked.

Our wine was a yummy 2017 Rhone Crozes-Hermitages Syrah from David Reynaud and worked well with the mild spices in the dishes, but also with those yummy 4 spiced up dipping sauces that come with the superb Afghan bread. SABZI Turnovers were crisp and flaky with a yummy spinach and greens filling and a tasty avocado chutney for dipping. Will loved his Aushak which are Leek & Scallion Dumplings that have lentil qorma & minced beef on top with a garlic yogurt/dried mint dip.

The meat was superb from the Chicken Sabzi--really a stew of chicken, spinach & greens and lightly drizzled with garlic yogurt and cilantro. Will decided to brave the sumac(he has had allergic reactions in the past) and try the Beef Tenderloin & Chicken grilled in spices and served with Palou, Chalou & Kachaloo(sounds like a comedy team) which are rice and taro sides!! My Lamb Tenderloin was beyond excellent cooked perfectly to medium rare with basmati rice & carrots & raisins and baadenjaan(eggplant with spices). I was in heaven, but we left enough for a taste of baklava before heading home very happy. We just love Aracosia(also locations now in McLean & Springfield, VA.)