returning to ROBERTO's in Vienna, VA is always impressive Italian (11-4-26)

 Last week our friend Stephie invited us to dine with her at Roberto's as she lives so close but had never gone. We had not been in some time and were thrilled to return to the best Italian food in the area!

We arrived and in seconds had a glass of prosecco and the fabulous breadbasket with tasty focaccia, the super peppery breadsticks I can't resist and the amazing to-die-for cheese rolls! I was upset that they had run out of La Manina white blend from Mainor, but Nancy had us try a Stellato Vermentino 2022 from Sardegna that was super and refreshing.

Stephie started with Fior di Zucchini those wonderful now in season zucchini blossoms which were stuffed with ricotta, lemon, zucchini pesto and mint and then deep fried!

Will & I split an order of the luscious Agnolotti di Anatra, beautifully cooked ravioli with braised duck, poppini mushrooms and a duck jus. We, alas, cannot resist pasta when we come here!

Stephie and I felt the autumn chill in the air and went for the Arrosto di Cervo a perfectly cooked just past rare Cervena venison with celery root puree, potato tort with friend cauliflower and a rich red wine sauce. Will opted for the opulent Involtini di Vitello Siciliana, a rolled cutlet stuffed with parsley, pecorino cheese, garlic and bread crumbs with an eggplant caponata and fried cauliflower as well. We both had a super glass of Amarone Tenuta del Sarto which is poured from a fabulous double magnum bottle!

Alas, we had so much of the fab bread, I could not face dessert, but a glass of limoncello sent us merrily on our way with plans to return in April as soon as we return from our winter overseas!

NYC's INDIENNE insanely innovative Indian food & elegance to match (10-24-26)

 Last weekend in New York City, Samuel and I tried a new place in an odd location on West 38th Street almost at the Hudson River (literally over the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel where they are building the new Port Authority Bus Terminal!). The neighborhood seems secluded, but on arrival we were ushered upstairs in a beautiful residential building to find several cozy, quiet and very spacious rooms. One room had an open kitchen, ours had floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Hudson with a very nice sunset when the curtains were opened! It was chic, elegant, classy and calm all at once. Our large table was quite far from the others, and each room had no more than 5 tables; even the bathroom was classy.

Crisp linens that were ironed when placed on the tables, fine delicate crystal and jazzy music with a soft vibe made this an ideal dining setting in my mind without even tasting a bite.

Cocktails looked fun and Angelina the sommelier explained that they were not all sweet, I loved my Tomatillo of tequila, modern lime and strawberry dubbed a soy margarita but this was spicier and served with a spoon laying on  a giant ice cube in the middle filled with a spicy green tomato chutney gel, meant to be tasted with the drink. It was fun and yummy. Sam loved his Lychee of vodka. shocho and elderflower dubbed sweet & sour. After that he enjoyed the Rupee Indian-style beer form Maine while I went on to adore the paired wines ($125 for the regular pairing). The menus are simple with the vegetarian or vegan tasting @$175 and the non-veggie @$195. This is really amazing for NYC considering the more than a dozen courses, elaborate presentation of the dishes, setting, excellent service and more that really implied this was a Michelin-star destination (they opened in May and this year's NYC ratings will be announced soon, so we are praying!).

The first course was a set of three amuses(all the fotos are on FB):

CHICKPEA-DHOKLA puree, mint, mustard seed with white chocolate, cocoa butter and tamarind chutney

OYSTER -PANI PURI with green mango, cucumber in a pine tree shell with lemon foam 

(vegetarian menu was Passionfruit instead of oyster with buckwheat & green apple)

AVOCADO - BHEL with Black Rice, Tamarind, onion, black pepper which I affectionately called Guacamole on a Black pepper cracker, but loved and it looked more like a giant Oreo cookie!

These three were just a small taste of the amazing flavors that were to come and the chef here was not afraid to use spice but never to the point of obliterating the taste of the main ingredients; the oyster with green mango being a perfect example.

YOGURT-CHAAT with sweet potato and raspberry sounds sweet, but was not with masala dust, tuile of dried and compressed strawberry and a raspberry/rhubarb broth! This came with my first wine a 2022 Panoramico white blend of Viura and Grenache from Rioja Alta. 

The next wine was a Velenciso 2023 Viura with a hint of Grenache that was oak aged from Rioja Alta as well and the wine cut the richness of the

EGG -CURRY a brilliant dish with Masala Babka, Cultured Butter and Caviar on the side
(the veg version was Butternut -Sambar with medu vada, coconut & podi).

We both adored the richness of the dish and its flavor which seemed to belong more to a soft poached egg dish from France with an asparagus & pea confit mousse topped with crispy potato and garlic.

LOBSTER - GHEE ROAST was no less exciting and whole tail came with swaths of sunchoke(white), yellow pepper and young garlic & pea(green) purees for dipping. A mineral intense Domaine Bretaudeau Muscadet 2023 "Gabbro" from the Loire was an ideal pairing.

MOREL-YAKHMI with green pea, white asparagus, truffle and white parmesan cream was the veggie course that Sam was raving over!

LAMB-SHAMMI was a rib, pickled jicama, sheermal all served on a large plate with each of the five parts sitting by its own. The rib was a BBQ style(with pomegranate spice) and there was also a saffron cracker. Sparse on the plate, but yummy in the tummy. Zahel 2010 Rothburger "Ein Kleines Fass" was a nice minerally red but a tad to chilly for my taste.

The veggie course was CELERIAC-SHAMMI wit endive, jicama, crispy onion, and tamarind chutney.

CHICKEN-MAKHANI was a large slice of breast in sauce with pepper & fenugreek with a side portions of Black Dairy Dal & Garlic Naan. The 5-star dal was superb and more like a stew than just lentils with a rich sauce perfect for the naan!

PANEER-PAVE was the veggie course with makhani, young courgette and the same sides of dal and naan.

Closerie du Pelan 2008 (the vintage is way gone now!) had a taste of the clay soil with a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot & Cabernet Franc that Angelina brought out as a special treat knowing that we reside in Bordeaux part-time! It was great and so amazing with that dal and naan to boot!

This was the end of the savory courses, but the evening was young (we sat down at 545pm, and it was still only 830pm!) and multiple desserts were on the way. 

KHUBANI KA MEETHA with stone fruit, figs and almond was first with a sweetened apricot, fig leaf oil, poached peach, apricot sorbet, fig caramel and almond tuile. This was meant as a plate cleanser, but for me it was an amuse for the desserts to follow and a great little bite of flavors and fun.

Angelina arrived with two dessert wines, and I chose Carcavelos 1991 Quinta dos Pesos from Cascais in Portugal. 

I have to mention that all evening each dish was served by the large team with such flair and finesse and we never felt rushed and loved the way in which each table was treated with such care.

Kaju-Katli for me was cashew nougat and milk ice cream with edible silver on the nougat, but Sam got Coconut-Ghewar which was payasam, saffron & pistachio topped with meringue and gold leaf! (I have chickpea and semifreddo in my notes, can that be right?)

The treats arrived with four listed as Blackberry (pate a fruit)

Besan Barfi (opera cake)

Mishti Doi (yogurt)

Filter Coffee(bonbon)

but then the chef came out with a surprise extra treat of Masala Chai which were small squares of light feathery chai cake that reminded me of cotton candy.

There was no more room as we left to walk back to the hotel after this f4-hour extravaganza of Indian delights. Indienne is really a taste of India with flair, finesse and class that I would not hesitate to return to again and again!

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DC's ELMINA elevates African cuisine on a journey to Ghana (10-15-2026)

 As fans of Top Chef we were so thrilled when Chef Eric Adjepong opened Elmina last year in DC, and sadly it took us way too long to get there. Last Thursday we joined friends at the unassuming restaurant on 14th St, NW only to enter into a magnificent space with three levels from the entry level with bar and open kitchen to the quieter upper levels which have a cozier and quieter feel as well as private spaces and more bars! It's quite an operation and the night we were there it was quite busy but never felt crowded or noisy. The decor should win a prize as well and all the seating options are very comfortable, too!

The menu has a tasting option or a la carte and as our friends were not feeling too hungry, we went for a la carte. The choices were many, but our super server Nyambura was very helpful in suggestions.  Some of us had cocktails, but the hit was the white wine,  a South African blend from Kumusha "Flame Lilly" Slanghoek in the Western Cape of 62% Rousanne/30% Chenin Blanc/5% Semillon, 3% Colombard that was creamy and tasty and went so well with the spice in the various dishes. Before the wine arrived 4 glasses of Prosecco arrived to celebrate Will's birthday (when we arrived, they asked if it was a special occasion and he said his birthday had just passed--well, a week before!). It was a nice gesture and then we settled in to order. Before we knew it Chef Eric came up from the kitchen to chat and it was as if we had known him for ages. He is a real host and gentleman and said he would return later to chat some more!

We started with Smashed Avocado with serrano and herbs and fried plantain chips to scoop it all up. This was guac on crack and we loved it all as I always make mine so spicy. A second "dip" was Zaalouk made from roasted eggplant, coriander oil, roasted vine tomatoes, crumbled goat cheese and crisp red onion with a yummy spiced buttered flatbread on the side to scoop it all up. We tore at the tasty pita-like bread and loved the flavors. Prawn Chichinga, a Ghanian street food, was strongly suggested by Nyambura and she was spot on with these large, skewered prawns with a spicy peanut sauce, chermoula and a small side bowl of caramelized onions. These were good enough to suck on the heads for sure!

Akara is described as a black-eye pea fritter with pulled suya short rib and while this resembles a slider, that's as far as it goes as the fried bread fritter that makes up the "sandwich" is more akin to fried corn bread made from black-eyed peas! We loved it. Warning, this starter is a single slider, so cannot be shared by more than two folks! (You may not even want to share!). Kelewele had been written up in numerous reviews and was a spicy, fried sweet plantain that gave new meaning to the often-unappreciated plantain. The spices in all the dishes are strong, and unique, but never overpowering.

We ordered a bottle of the Sutherland Pinot Noir from the Elgin Valley of Western Cape, South Africa (I figured African wines made sense!) which it turns out is bottled by the famous Thelema winery in Stellenbosch where we had visited and recently also bought wine from here in the US! It was a nice fruity, but more than medium bodied wine to stand up to the spices.

We chose one main to split as we were all filling up and also wanted to try dessert. The Crab Fried Rice is made with Benin Seed miso, scrambled egg, ginger scallion oil and dehydrated scallop, but at $50 I was wondering about the price. It was delicious full of crab, but still a tad high to justify the price. FYI the tasting menu is $145 and consists of 4 courses; Thurs-Sun there is an 11-course option for $285! We shall return to try these for sure!

Dessert here is a treat and Will's Malva Pudding Cake with sweet, pickled apricot and vanilla gelato came with a candle. We have loved Malva Pudding cake when in South Africa, but this preparation was indeed a novel treat. The Bofrot is really a small donut with nutmeg Chantilly, sticky toffee sauce, Heath bar crunch and Milo gelato and all which reminded me of a malted milk ball treat. There were so many things in this tasty dessert, I just wanted more of the yummy donuts to scoop up all the sauces!

Chef Eric did return and sat down for a while to chat, and we just could not stop oohing about how yummy everything was. There are pics of us all on FB as well!

Elmina is not to be eliminated from your DC dining list ever!!

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Padaek is almost perfect -Arlington Asian & awesome (10-12-26)

We have dined at Chef Seng Luangrath's now very famous Laotian dining spots in the DC area and last year did take-out from the smaller Padeak location in Arlington, but this time we headed to the larger and a tad classier restaurant in Arlington Ridge which is a very nice spot with a great menu and our server Joy was MORE than a joy to be around. She helped us choose dishes and when I asked to taste one of the wines, she brought two wines to try and then poured a glass and said, "oh I'll just leave the rest of the bottle for you!" That made me very happy. The wine was a dry Villa Wolf Riesling!

Will & Michael loved the BeerLao from Laos and the dishes really do reflect the varied cuisines of SE Asia. I had not had a really good Burmese Tea Leaf Salad since we visited there almost a decade ago. The tea leaves were fermented and while vegetarian it had that funky fish sauce flavor as well as the garlic and crunch from nuts! YUM! The other starters we shared were also novel and excellent. Guay Chai are Chive Cakes which came with pickled cucumbers and a great dipping sauce. The Nam Khao Todd, suggested by Joy, was a treat and quite a large portion with lettuce leaves to fill with the fried coconut rice salad, peanuts, herbs and fermented pork sausage(also a  tofu version) all garnished with dried chili!

We chose three mains to share, and they were quite varied and all superb:

Piing Gau Khao Laam is a beautifully grilled whole poussin chicken marinated with lemongrass & turmeric with grilled coconut sticky rice in a ginger sauce. The meat was moist and tasty and for this dish the spice was way down. Crab Noodles declaim "Stir fried longevity yellow noodles" (will I live longer?), with crab, garlic butter, Chinese celery and shiitake mushroom., while the Nam Tok Ribs were crispy pork ribs with dry rub seasonings, a tamarind fish sauce, toasted rice powder, mint, cilantro, Vietnamese coriander and sticky rice, which was all nice, but lots of greens that did not get eaten.

I was full, but the others chose two desserts: Mango Sticky Rice and a Semolina Cake which looked great with Burmese roasted banana cake, brown sugar ghee, sesame seeds (which i can't eat) and coconut cream.

What a treat!!

DC's KARIZMA is crazy-good Indian! (10-8-26)

 We visited KARIZMA for the first time earlier this summer and loved it, so we returned as a family for Will's birthday dinner the other day and it was even better!

We loved the Stadt Krems Gruner Veltliner this summer so ordered another bottle or two while Sam enjoyed a Gaffel Koslch German beer or two. There was a cute HAPPY BIRTHDAY sign on the table as well for fun.

We had to order the Quinoa Tikki starter made with potato, quinoa, ginger and a white pea mash that once again we all loved. Spinach & Paneer Croquettes was a main, but we had it as a starter and they were yummy all bathed in a rich mace-scented tomato sauce. Since it was a main, a bowl of the superb rice came with it to mop up the sauce! Our third starter was the Chicken Jodhpur Skewers which were three juicy skewers with thighs cooked perfectly in a malt vinegar sauce.

I was not a fan of the too thin garlic na'an last time, but Sam loves it and this time it came out perfectly cooked, a tad thicker and puffy and not dry! The Tandoori roti was also delicious and oh so buttery! They were ideal with our main sauces!

Dal Makhani was a huge lentil platter (and again each main comes with that yummy rice) with Fenugreek which Sam loved. Will had the Lamb Gushtaba or a trio of huge lamb meatballs in a spicy gravy, again great for the rice or breads! My Lobster Masala was a revelation, loaded with chunks of lobster with Beetroot Poriyal, Bell peppers & Fenugreek in a sauce that was superbly spicy but not overpowering the delicious lobster meat. The presentation (all photos on FB), with a shell laid on top was gorgeous.

We shared the Palak paneer with burnt garlic as this is one of the best Palak Paneer's around indeed.

Will ordered Coconut Payasam for his dessert and a bowl of refreshing Cardamom Ice Cream also arrived for the birthday boy!

We love this place and the service from Shivani and the entire team is really fab! We must go back next door for the enticing tasting menu the next time at KARMA which is only separated by the very nice bathrooms!

Cookfellas Wine Bar & Eatery--the last supper in UK was one of the best! (9-7-26)

 We visited Cookfellas in Guisborough once before and I didn't do a wrote-up on this blog which I must now apologize (apologise) for. We returned for our last night in the UK with our dear friends Sue & Steve and we all agreed the place is fabulous. Fran was our server and was a gem, she is also the daughter of the owner, Wayne Leonard. If you take a look at the Facebook posting, you will see the photos of the menu pages describing the reason for the vast international menu selections ranging from Asia to Europe to America, as Mr. Leonard spent many years travelling around the world learning about food, cuisine and cultures. This sounds like a guy I would LOVE to meet.

Guisborough is a small village of under 8000 people and is most unassuming, but we stay in the Guisborough Hall country manor nearby now whenever we visit North Yorkshire, so it's a 5-minute drive from the hotel! That said, the town has very few dining options and this place is a star in the entire region indeed. 

There is a small pub in the front with the charming restaurant in the back and while I am not sure how old the building itself is, there is indeed an old-world charm about it a the five of us sat in the rear facing the open kitchen and constantly raving to all the staff therein how fabulous the food was.

Sam had his requisite Old Mout Cider; this time Berries & Cherries flavor (flavour), while I ordered a bottle of Le Jardin Chardonnay. The wine list here is not large, but it is varied and offers something for everyone. Our Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Emotive 2024 red was a great one which was medium bodied and went with everything from fish to beef.

A yummy rich starter was the Pulled Ham &Manchego Croquetas made with pulled ham hock, Manchego cheese, bechamel and were deep fried with a sticky chilli jam to dip in that was divine. It's quite filling and we were glad to move on to mains after sharing these while (whilst) Sam enjoyed and HRPA or hummus, red pepper, avocado mix with rocket (arugula), tahini mayo and added grilled halloumi all in a giant fresh focaccia bread.

I think Will hit the top of the jackpot with the Mejillas de Credo Estofado or slow cooked pig cheek with sherry, almonds, ham stock, whole grained mustard, cream and parsley served with mashed potatoes, green beans and toasted almonds. Just the sound of the dish evokes raves, but it was simply superb. Pork Bimbimpap moved us from Spain to Korea just across the table with grilled pork belly in a spicy red pepper sauce, jasmine rice, "numal" fried vegetables (spinach, beansprouts, carrots & mushrooms) all topped with a fried egg. Sam chose

The Shroomie Burger on a whim, even though he is not a mushroom fan, and ended up adoring it. The burger is a veggie one with crispy Cajun (so we crossed the Atlantic to Louisiana as we moved back across the table) fried oyster mushrooms, pulled BBQ king oyster mushrooms, pickled red onion and fennel on a Brioche bun with Cajun majo, baby spinach served with slaw and skin-on fries (not chips!). Flame grilled Scottish (back to the UK) Salmon Filet came with plum tomatoes, flat cap mushroom, slaw and fries. My Vietnamese (back to Asia) Crispy Beef and Noodle Salad compromised a huge bowl of crispy fried picanha beef rump with rice noodles, bean sprouts, pickled carrots, radish, mange tout (pea pods), spring onion, courgette (zucchini), Thai basil and crispy noodles topped with Vietnamese dressing that was so large our friends took home 1/3 of it. Crispy beef is an acquired taste as it tends to chewy, but the whole dish together was delightful and fun, and every bite had different ingredients!

Dessert here is not to be missed, and more raves came for the Bread & Butter Pudding with Irish Cream Liqueur, White Chocolate, dark chocolate curd and a jug (small) of warm creme Anglaise. The local word for this is Fandabby Dozy!! Look it up!

Looking for cheese (and I always am) is not an issue here as the team has procured some unique ones from the UK and some from Europe as well. I always keep local and chose the Isle of Mull Farmhouse Cheddar from Friesian cows owned by the Reade family (read the long cheese descriptions on the FB foto as well), a delicious Rollright soft rind washed cow from Kingston Dairy in Gloucestershire as well as the more local Shepherd's Purse Harrogate Blue. These come with chutney, celery, biscuits, and apple.

A glass of Bulas LBV port was a nice accompaniment and again as all the wines here, very reasonably priced.

Thanks to Fran and the entire team and we hope to see you next August when we return to the area!

Stockton-on-Tees VADAH is impressive Indian (9-6-26)

 When we visit the UK we always like to have Indian food as it is really great and the only place it is better is India! Up North here they tend to lessen the spice, but last night we did convince the staff to add some extra kick to our main courses.

Vardah is a cute little spot on the river here with comfy booths and banquettes, although the chairs could use some reupholstering as they have very little cushions left in the seat after years of use. We were here years ago and loved it then, but the chairs were way more comfortable. The staff were attentive and helpful and while Will had a vodka and I tonic, Sam had a Kopparburg Mixed Berry cider and I started the white wine we perused the menu at length, which was indeed VERY lengthy.

We noticed the large tree trunk with cherry blossoms hovering over the entire entryway and thought immediately that these guys used the same decorator or supplier as the Ivy Asia in Leeds from several nights prior!

Our wine was listed as Domaine St. Felix Sauvignon Blanc/Vermentino blend, but I noticed at the end of the meal, the label read Les terraces d'Arches Blanc 2025 made from Sauvignon Blanc and Grenache, which was bright and crisp and worked great with the spices anyway.

The Popadoms (spelled that way in the UK) came with several sauces, two of which were a tad too sweet, a raw onion chutney and a sweet and sour chilli sauce. Sam liked his Coconut Dumplings which were potato coated and we adored the crispy Onion Bhaji. we also liked the "King Prawn on Puree of Ginger, Garlic, Green chillies, tomatoes and tamarind sauce" which came looking more like Prawn Enchiladas and all three starters had the same swaths of sauces made with some spices, but not super spicy. (fotos on FB)

The spices picked up for our mains although Sam said his Daal was quite mild and his Garlic Fried Rice as well. There was very nicely spiced Garlic, Cheese, Chilli Naan that was steaming hot and the server brought an odd bowl to the table then poured liquid nitrogen or such on top, so we were enveloped in a cloud of fog! It was dramatic, yet funny as well. Will and I were so full from all the starters that we shared one main of Vadam Morosan listed as one of the chef's specialties. The sauce was hot garlic and minced meat which was fabulous and it was filled with huge chunks of lamb and chicken, alas the breast was a tad too dry and even the fabulous sauce could not redeem it. Bhindi Bhaji is a super okra curry dish we had recently on the ship and always crave, so we had that as a side, and it was superb indeed and a Rice pilau was simple yet great for sopping up all the sauces. we could not even fathom dessert but enjoyed the fresh orange slices brough to the table before we headed back to our hotel.