Por San Antón, Echa Cueros el Lechón

Wepa!  I was really excited when the Jayhawk first told me that Giovanna Huyke* (the Julia Child of Puerto Rico) was coming to DC to take over the kitchen at Mio.  Reading Tom Sietsema's latest review of the restaurant (which is truly one our favorite spots in town -- I mean, really, the pig alone is reason enough to go and like it there) made me giggle and just about shed a tear of joy.  Welcome to Guasington, Giovanna! And congratulations to you and to Mio for the great review.  Looks like 2012 will be a good (and yummy) year, indeed.

(*Site en español.)

Wee for Me!!!

Santa brought me a Wii for Christmas!  I see some bowling matches in my near future.  Hopefully I won't fling the controller into the TV screen.  That's the Jayhawk's biggest fear.  Who, PS and BTW, must have been very good this year because Santa brought him a Galaxy Tab.  He just about cried when he unwrapped the box.  And his face light up once he powered the thing up and started playing with it.  I have to admit that I'm a tad jealous.  But, that's okay because the Three Kings are set to pay us a visit in a couple of weeks (with Bosox Siobhan and BKDM in tow!).  I can get my own Tab then.  Oh, the joys of being a Rican and celebrating 2 gift-giving holidays...I'm thankful for that.

And I'm thankful for being able to share our Christmas Eve dinner with Shatterproof.  It was a good time.  Beef stroganoff (with bacon), green beans (with bacon), corn with poblano peppers (with bacon), and biscuits (not with bacon but yes with lots of butter).  Yum!  And then there was the 18-pack of Bud Heavies, the bottle of wine, and the coquito (Liz Taylor's recipe, of course).  Can't have a proper Christmas without the booze.  Or without watching "A Christmas Story," which we did and almost watched twice.  But drunky sleep beckoned.  Shatterproof left around 2:30AM and took a jug of coquito for his sister-in-law's family dinner tonight (them peoples are gonna have the sobriety knocked out of them real good).  I finally made it to bed around 3AM; exhausted, but again, thankful.  And thankful that it's still just Sunday and tomorrow I get the day off.  Score for being a Gub'ment worker!

¡Feliz Navidad, mis bonitos!

And I'll Form the Head!

Ooph...Sorry for the extended Thanksgiving hiatus, mis bonitos.  The tryptophan from the Rican-spiced turkey had me in a mind/body coma.  Well...I say it was the turkey, but it was really the turkey and the ham and the arroz con gandules and the pasteles de pollo and the cheesecake.  And the beers.  The many, many beers.  Mi cielo, so many beers over the course of the long weekend!  Overall, it was great time with the Rican familia and the urban familia.  Especially hanging out in the 'hood with my cousin who flew in for the holiday.  I'm not sure that my vital organs (mainly my liver) agree with me on that, but they would agree that this news is awesome!  Learning of the possibility of a Voltron movie made me giggle and jump up and down with pure glee.  Eeee!

That's My Sandwich!

Boo Hiss!  My parents didn't make it out of Rico last night.  Well, they made it 30 minutes out when their pilot decided to turn back to the island because the plane cabin smelled like burning rubber.  Luckily nothing wrong was found, but mom/dad weren't able to find another flight to the Mainland.  So they're staying in PR.  And eating my loaded sammie!  Japi Zanguiving, papá!

(Caveat: My sisters are gonna send us new sammies in dry ice in the mail.  It's a Thanksgiving miracle!)

Pretty Pictures Version 11.23.11

We'll be eating good in the vecindario tomorrow and rollin' back to our 'hood with bellies very full, mis bonitos!  But not to worry.  We'll make sure not to go swimming until at all.  Maybe someone should tell the boys in today's Pretty Pictures not to jump into the pool immediately after gorging either.  The pictures might not be so pretty if they did.  Frànçois & The Atlas Mountains with "Piscine."

The Ricans Are Coming! The Ricans Are Coming!

The Jayhawk and I are getting ready to gobble gobble on some turkey and fixin's tomorrow at my cousin's house in the No Va with my parents!  I know that I saved up some space in my belly already today by eating a light lunch and dinner.  Gotta make room for the pasteles, alcapurrias, beans and rice, and many desserts.  And our sandwiches from Las Cumbres that my sisters bought for us this morning.  Nothing says Rican lovin' quite like pounds of roast pork, ham, salami, mortadella, and cheese on a freshly-baked hoagie roll.  By the time we get them tomorrow all of those juices and flavors will have melded together and seeped into the bread...Oh!  I'm going into artery-hardening, heart attack shock just thinking about it!  Too awesome for words.

Last Night the Sandwich Saved My Life

Literally. 

The Jayhawk and I tried to make it to District Commons last night, but the bar was 10 people deep, so we ended up at Kinkead's instead.  Good God I'd forgotten how white and boring that place is!  Luckily KK was behind the bar to make our experience bearable.  The half-priced oysters also helped.  As did the cod fritters (a little soggy, but yummy), the smoked chicken quesadilla (very nice; the fire-roasted tomatoes and slight kick to them were delicious), the queso dip (um, yeah, the mini ramekin of melted cheese that aspires to be as good as Chinmey Fall Cat's Ro*tel® queso was disappointing).  We had to leave, though, once the "fabulus" theater gays and their fruit fly arrived.  Their banality was vexing me.  So, we marched our way up 21st Street and landed at James Hoban's.  Good times were had once Mikey joined us.  And then, of course, we ended up at the Polly's (yes...Desperado's) to see Amber and keep mistreating our livers. 

That's where my memory ends.  This morning (an hour ago, really) I pieced together the vague bits of info from the night after being at Polly's.  We may have gone to Dynasty and had a beer at Joe's insistence (gotta be neighborly, you know).  And may have rolled up into Judy but quickly exited.  And definitely went to Fast Gourmet because the half eaten Milanesas in the fridge tell me that we did.  I'm not sure if we watched old videos of Iris Chacón on the YouTube or not.  But I do feel like there might have been some dancing in the living room.  Either way, thank you, mi querida Milanesa!  You really did save our lives.

I Never Had To Choose a Subject -- My Subject Rather Chose Me*

That's kind of how last night with Nykelpiga and Shatterproof went.  Bartender Jack wasn't able to see my cute new outfit because Black Jack was closed for a private party during happy ho' time.  So, we aborted that plan and went to trusty, homey Bar Pilar, instead.  And we were all so happy that we did.  We sidled right up to the bar and got wonderful service from cutie pie (and additional bartender boyfriend crush for the three of us) David.  And between the beers, the food (the rosemary potatoes were too rosemary-y, but the fried chicken was perfectly seasoned and so juicy, the mussels were delicious [although I wish we'd had more bread to sop up the sauce], the Brussels sprouts were great [while mini, they covered in bacon, and you can never go wrong with bacon], and the salmon with smoked trout roe was very yummy [since they topped a fried egg sunny side up, of course]), and ogling at the bartender, what was supposed to be 1 happy hour turned into 5 and ended with my slightly wobbly march up the hill to get home.  Oops.  It was great times, though, and need to be repeated more often.  Including running into the husband of the girl who lived below me while I was studying the law so I can get his/their info.  10 years and 3 kids later together!!  I couldn't believe it.  Congrats to them!

And tonight?  The Jayhawk and I are off to District Commons to see our friend and (yet another) bartender crush, Kevin S.  We've never been.  You'll receive a full report from me, mis bonitos, tomorrow (or Sunday depending on how tonight goes and how I feel tomorrow).

(*Quote by Ernest Hemingway.)

A Votar, A Votar, A Votar, O Si

Sorry for not writing these past few days, mis bonitos.  The Jayhawk and I were actually quite busy socializing (read, "getting our drink on") over the weekend.  And when we weren't out and about, the Jayhawk caught up on his zzz's while I was occupied nursing my hangover and cursing the past night's transgressions.  Which, over the course of the weekend, involved happy ho' at Gordon Biersch (good), BBQ and beers at Hill Country (disappointing, although the mix of drunk frat boys and jock lesbians on Friday night was interesting and entertaining) after a movie at E Street ("The Skin I Live In;" not the best Almodóvar film, but good once it finally got to the back story; I suggest just waiting until it comes out on video/streaming; I'll always say that Pedro should stick to females as his principal characters because his male-centered movies just aren't as good; there's a reason "A Bad Education" was named that way), espresso vodka shots and live girl dreamcore at Deperado's (pleasantly surprising), treats at Hank's Oyster Bar (I will never get enough of the BBQ oysters, and the arugula salad with duck prosciutto, pears, and radishes was amazing), and a Super Grilled Cheese sandwich at Stoney's (delicious). 

But the reason for the entry is to mention that it's time to vote, again.  Not only are the election polls open in MD and the VA today, but voting is also still open for the 2011 Hosteleriasalamanca.es Awards.*  And our dear friend, Héctor Carabias (that's him in the photo), is nominated this year for Service Industry Professional of the Year!  You know I've said it before, but I have to repeat that Héctor's food is truly the best I've ever eaten.  I've had great meals in my life, but Héctor's cooking made me cry it was so good.*  So, go cast your vote on the Facebook (you gotta "Like/Me Gusta" the page to vote)* for him.  I'll keep my fingers crossed for a win.

Update: There's still time to vote for Hector.  And you can now vote without needing a Facebook account!  Just go here*, click on Hector's photo, and type in your e-mail addy.  You'll get a message asking you to click on a link to confirm your vote.  And, presto!  Another vote for my friend!  Who, BTW, is offering his yearly limited-time tasting menu celebrating all things mushroom.*  Gawd...the Jayhawk and I need to go back to Salamanca in such a bad way.

(*Sites en español.)

Sal de Ahí, Chivit(o) Chivit(o)...

Happy National Sandwich Day, mis bonitos!  I tried to get me one of the delicious and decadent-sounding chivitos at the Mojo Truck today for lunch, but by the time I got to 12th & G, the other downtown DC lunchtime vultures (yes, I include myself) had already torn through and bought everything the Mojo boys had to offer.  Blasted!

Ain't no thing, though.  I've always got my trusted Fast Gourmet to satisfy my chivito cravings.  I'll grab one on my way home.  Or maybe I should get the Milanesa?  It being National Sandwich Day and all, I should get the sandwich that makes me the happiest to celebrate properly, right?  So, I'll get the Milanesa.  Yes.  No.  The regular Chivito.  Yes.  No.  Oh, who am I kidding?  I'm gonna get both.  A comer bueno esta noche se ha dicho!*

(*Translation:  Gonna eat good tonight!)

Update:  Scroll down to see a pic of the deliciousness I had for dinner last night.  Oh, man, I wish I'd bought two chivitos to have one for dinner this ayem.

You Cold Compress Me

It looks like Halloween Weekend caught up with me, mis bonitos.  I've been fighting a head cold since Sunday evening. 

I kind of felt less-than-100% that afternoon, but I couldn't let a few sniffles keep me from getting my food and drink on at Lincoln for brunch.  Which was good, but I think it had more to do with the company and endless punch bowls of mimosas and pointsettias than the food.  The food was fine.  I got the mac 'n cheese, which was nice and creamy and smoky, and it was a blessing that it came with green beans and not fava beans because me no likey favas, and the crisp green beans in the melty smooth mac were a good contrast.  I just wish the portion was a tad bigger.  Which was the general sense I got from the rest of the crew's food.  Everything was tasty but just not enough ("seasonal small plates -- an overdone and not-well-done concept in this town, IMHO -- aside).

Another sense I got?  The staff were really nice and attentive, but the manager was bit too casual in her attempt to seem attentive.  It's great that she came to the table and shot the shizz with us for a bit, but dropping the F-bomb in rapid succession when talking about her faulous gays and what all the boys at our table could do with the open mouth and big nose on the DJ left us all a bit "the fuh...?!."  We got over it once the DJ finally started playing some more upbeat and less sleepy Muzak™ dub beats, though.  And after we'd had more bottomless drinks.  I'd go back for them.  At the bar.  Without the colorful commentary.  Unless it's coming from me or the Jayhawk.  Overall rating: 2 besos.

Now back to my DVR'd Top Model so I can catch up before tonight's new episode.  I miss you already, Bianca-not-Beyonce.

Update:  I'd go back to Lincoln for some peanut butter lovin'.  Maybe I can get the Jayhawk to take me there for my fast-approaching birthday dinner.  He likes peanut butter even more than I do...

Not (Completely) Lost on Me

So, EUM at Lost Society was pretty good last night.  The food was decent (better than okay but not wow).  BR and I shared the roasted bone marrow with parsley/red onion salad and roasted beets, the pork belly over collard greens, and the root beer braised short ribs.  Shatterproof got the tomato soup with grilled cheese. 

The marrow was the star of the night.  The combo of the hot melty marrow over very nice and light water bread slices with the fresh parsley/onions and roasted beets sprinkled with sea salt was awesome!  And the marrow was easy to scoop out of the bones!  I hate when the bones are so thin/awkward that trying to scoop the marrow out is a chore.  That’s one reason I didn’t care for the marrow at CommonWealth.  Whoever’s choosing the bones at Lost Society is getting it right.  

The short ribs came in a slightly distant second.  Very tender and rich and sweet.  But if the menu says they come with turnip puree, add some turnip puree to the dish.  The tablespoon of puree that made it on the plate was basically only to hold the short ribs in place. The pork belly was very disappointing to me as a Rican and lover of pig.  Yeah, it was fatty and rich and roasty.  But it was also kind of dry and definitely over-seared and too crunchy on the meaty side.  The greens were good, though.  They had a nice bite/slight crunch to them and were just vinegary/bacony enough.  Quite good.  Shaterproof’s soup was like tomato-flavored buttercream.  It was yummy, don’t get me wrong, but it was definitely a bit much.

With all this said, my feeling was that the place was definitely a bar that serves food.  Which is fine, I guess.  The bar on the first level is huge and smack in the middle of the room with tables and booths around it.  Not that much floor space to move around.  And loud as all get-out.  The upper level is huge!  There may have been tables up there for dining, but I wouldn’t know because all I saw was the expanse of open floor and the 2 gargantuan bars.  Or maybe there were 3 bars?  I don’t know.  All that open space overwhelmed me. 

Anywho, I'm not pressed to run back, but I'll definitely go back to check out other menu items.  Rating:  2 besos (out of 4).

Je Suis Cansei

De ser awake. Where did we go? Oh, yeah. Ulah + Garden District + Polly's + Eatonville. Which I have thoughts on, but those are left for later. Para tomorrow, mis bonitos. That's what holidaze are for.

A Comer, A Comer, A Comer, O Si

Where to, who can know? What is known is that it has to be nice and greazzy because this little Rican may have gone out last night sans dinner with a boy from Dallas (Shatterproof), a Frenchuvian (Migs), a kid from NY (Billy), a Jayhawk, the Claire Bear, and a girl from either Spain or Cuba or wherever her abuela told her she was from. Good times.

La Semana in News #18

I don't think this recipe is in the Betty Crocker cookbook.

Credit woes for credit unions.

KC area breaks 2,000,000.

All those people will need to be fed. Sloppy Joe's are a good way to do that.

The jury let Anibal go?! On all counts?!

Today in 1873.

Where are Ricans gonna find boxes to use as their luggage now?

Selena to the rescue (as in Lopez and stray Rican dogs).

And the Pot Melted, Indeed

Thursday night was Dine Out for Life. The Jayhawk, me, Rita Jean, Candy & DJ Skittles, Dags, and Robert kept it real yummy by going to The Melting Pot, which I hadn't been to in like 12 years. We had a blast, and were obviously the loudest table. But you know who had more fun than us? Dick Gephardt! He was at the table behind ours with his family. And was TANKED. And all drunky fighty with his daughter, Krissy, about being able to drive home. It was awesome to watch. It’s just like Us Weekly says: They really are “Just Like Us.” Ha!

Eye See, You See...

Picture it: 1420 Clifton St., NW. 6:30ayem. Woke up just fine to turn off the alarm. Ten minutes turned into fifty when the Jayhawk nudged me. And then the mad dash starts. Pick outfit (cute yet sensible for the big chill outside), iron, shower, listen to report on the radio about the Sri Lankan cricketers getting shot in Pakistan, shave, brush teeth, confirm weather report, get dressed, do hair, stuff bag, what the hellz is this about Obama speaking differently to blacks v. whites (?!...effin' Politico), throw on scarf/coat/bag over my shoulder, where's my Metrocard (?), grab keys, turn on iPod, adios sleeping Jamie, out the door, avoid getting hit by traffic while walking on the street to the bus stop because the sidewalk's iced over, get on the bus, really wanting a bowl of Cream of Wheat. All in less than an hour. It's happened twice in just as many days. I really need an alarm clock that will keep trying to wake me without annoying the Jayhawk. Maybe one with disturbing googly eyes that keep staring at me impatiently will work. If only he were for sale...

I Got Soul

The 2009 Jayhawk Bday/Mango-Jayhawk Anniversary Weekend was awesome. Part of it was due to the amazing opening-night showing of the play we saw on Friday night at the Rosslyn Spectrum: Synetic Theater's Dante's Divine Comedy. If you've never seen a Synetic show, you need to see this one. The physical and emotional energy levels were insane. Not to mention the cracked-out (in a good way) costumes and the biting political/religious statements. Talk about soul. I'll definitely go see it, again, if anyone's down.

The other part of our good weekend was due to the dinner we had on Saturday night at Art and Soul at The Liaison Capitol Hill. And here are my 2 cents of the experience:

Appetizers:
Virginia ham-wrapped shrimp on top of creamy grits and sprinkled with chow chow (to die for; the chow-chow was awesome, and the grits were perfect).
Spice-rubbed ahi tuna (very nice spicy kick that hits you in the back of the throat) on top of fried green tomatoes (a little too tart, but good) and sour pickle relish (yummy).

Second:
Two types of hoe cakes -
One with cured salmon, caviar, crème fraiche, dill, and caper berries (like Southern bagels and lox – my favorite of the two we had; pass on the caper berries if you don’t like that flavor).
The other with fried oysters, chow chow remoulade, and julienned romaine lettuce (I know the lettuce was there to lighten the dish, but it reminded me too much of a side salad smothered in bad ranch dressing at TGIFridays to care for it -- Sorry, Guy Fieri; you cant make me eat there even with your endorsement of their new Ultimate Recipe Showdown menu).

Entrees:
Medium-rare duck breast (it was so good and fresh; the steak of the water fowl) with duck sausage (which is supposed to be on the mushier side and not have that crisp outer bite of a chicken or pork sausage, so don’t be scared by the consistency because it was good), candied cabbage (amazingly savory and sweet and tart all at once), and goat cheese almond puree (nice and mellow; definite almond flavor).
Bourbon braised beef “short” rib (there was nothing short about it; the bone was the length of my forearm and slid right off the meat; the meat was so tender it disintegrated on the Jayhawk’s fork and melted in my mouth; amazing).

Side:
Macaroni casserole (which was baked mac & cheese that was maybe a bit heavy on the butter for me but really good and creamy and melty).

Dessert:
Homemade butterscotch banana pudding with 'nilla wafers (OMG! Set up in a tall flute kind of like a trifle, the wafers had soaked up all the banana and butterscotch and bourbon goodness; delicious).

And all that (including the Jayhawk’s drink and my 2 beers) was less than $130 pre-tip. We got the hoe cakes comped because the executive chef and the Jayahwk are friends, but it’s still a deal for everything we had even if we didn’t get anything gratis.

As for the actual space, it’s set up really oddly. The whole place is semi-compartmentalized into 3 dining areas, the bar, and then the lounge that actually bleeds into the hotel lobby, all separated by “walls” (either painted glass doors or metal curtains but not actual walls). Bad people flow, too, because you enter into the first main dining area and basically smack up against one of the tables, and the host stand is up against the wall to your left in the bar area with no real place to stand to the side. Then there are all the automatic doors lining the front that actually open if you bump up against them but that have tables right up against them, too. They should have turned all those doors into windows and made the only entrance through the hotel lobby, I think. The décor was nice but maybe a bit dark. We sat at a booth that I thought was cozy but that the Jayhawk thought had too harsh lighting that was hurting his eyes. And the male manager working that night needs a bit of an attitude adjustment; there are nicer ways of backing up your bartender and “correcting” a customer claiming that his Makers Mark on the rocks wasn’t Makers Mark (which it was not; even I could tell, and I’m not the brown likker expert).

All of the flaws are minor, though. It’s a new restaurant, and everyone’s still figuring out their roles and their flow. But the food and the overall experience more than make up for anything negative anyone can say. Mango say: Definitely go.

All Hail!

Sister Disco! Winner of the 2nd Annual 1429 Super Bowl Chili Cook-Off! It was splendid times, indeed. Good friends, good food, good beers, and, actually, a good football game (although the same really can't be said for the commercials; maybe PETA should have been allowed to air their commercial, after all; "Debbie Does Salad," indeed). I have definitely got to amp up my game for next year's challenge. Maybe I can make a chili using the log o' meat that these KC boys created? It's a heart attack wrapped in bacon, but that's the kind me likey.

¡Japi Bandera Day!

It's Rican Flag Day today! And I feel like I need to wave some sort of flag to help my stomach and liver rest. Never surrender; just need a little breather. I've had enough roast pork and rice and gandules and beans and pasteles and cake and beer and rum to last me a lifetime (or until next year). And I'm here for another 5 Christmastime days. Ooph. Yum!