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 Photo by Shariff elSheikh/Local Kicks Morou is back! He's left Old Town and is now ensconsced in Crystal City with Kora. Here a trip down memory lane with a picture of a Local Kicks-sponsored dinner benefitting the Alexandria Seaport Foundation at his Old Town digs, Farrah Olivia
KOI is coming. The restaurant, whose other outposts are in New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Bangkok bumps up DC’s profile as the hot city to be in. Raspberry mojitos, sake cosmos and sushi, it’s already a celeb magnet. With Buddha Bar slated to open soon…we’ll be Hollywood East.
 Photo by Flickr/travfotos
KOI is coming, with its raspberry mojitos, sake cosmos and sushi, itâs already a celeb magnet. Robert Wiedmaier’s BRABO is opening an outdoor patio in the pretty courtyard of his popular Old Town restaurant. Should be fun for Sunday brunch with the build-your-own Bloody Mary bar to go along with their signature Belgian waffles.
Do New Yorkers know porkers?
We’ll find out when Hill Country, NY’s highly acclaimed BBQ joint, gives the competition a “cue” throwdown next year from their new location on 7th Street.
Founder and CEO, Mark Glosserman, a Bethesda native is excited to return to the area where his family still lives. Think Texas-style barbeque smoked low and slow over Texas post oak. Note to Texas State Society…they’ll show Texas college football on large screens and kick it with an ongoing roster of Austin-style roots music with country, rock and blues bands.
Love Greek food? Crazy for seafood? Kellari Seafood Taverna, another NY export will be taking over the old Jimmy’s on K Street. They’re known as one of the top Greek restaurants in NYC.
Local Chef Ryan Morgan has left Art and Soul. Will someone please tell me where this ultra-talented chef is?
Former Iron Chef, Mourou Ouattara, will be in his new Crystal City digs, Restaurant Kora, later this month. He’ll be cooking, con amore, with an Italian menu. I’ll keep you posted when I catch up with him next week before the soft opening.
Getting too hot and steamy for you to cook out?
Let Chef Michael Soper handle it. Union Street Public House hosts a Great Grill Out on July 30th. Roasted corn and summer veggies, steak, quail, lobster tails, wild halibut, scallops and in-house baked bread straight from the grill plus wine and beer pairings. Dessert is grilled pound cake with whipped cream and berries. Yum! All for $49 tax and tip included.
 Photo by John Arundel/Local Kicks
Union Street Public House is hosting a Great Grill Out on July 30, with roasted corn and summer veggies, steak, quail, lobster tails, wild halibut, scallops and in-house baked bread straight from the grill plus wine and beer pairings. Bookbinder’s short-lived restaurant in Old Town is toast. Burnt toast. That’s what no advertising can do. Only a few locals even knew they were there. Columbia Firehouse will be the latest occupant in the S. Saint Asaph Street location. The walnut paneled upstairs will be an elegant chophouse-style menu, downstairs an American brasserie. Look for their opening next week.
Dishing it up with [email protected].
 Jose Andres - Garden Café Espana at National Gallery of Art Ah, the pleasures of Spain in the summer. The art, the beauty, the splendor. The Prado, the Alhambra, the Guggenheim in Bilbao, shopping, touring, lunch with a pitcher of sangria lingered over with friends and family. How we wish we could be there! How we wish the economy hadn’t tanked and we could renew our acquaintance with Picasso, Dali, Miro, El Greco and Luis Melendez. Who you ask? None other than the great 18th-century Spanish still-life master whose works are currently featured in a comprehensive special exhibit, “Luis Melendez: Master of the Spanish Still Life” at the National Gallery of Art’s east wing.
All these iconic Spanish artists and more can be viewed this summer in the Gallery at yet another show in the Gallery’s west wing, “The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain.” Spectacular armor from the Spanish Crown, on loan from The Royal Armory in Madrid, accompanies portraits of Spain’s greatest rulers sporting the same armor. The pantheon of artists represented in this exhibition, include: Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony van Dyck, Diego Velazquez and Alonso Sanchez Coello.
But I wanted particularly to delve into Melendez’s rich oils, a paean to the foods of Spain, that were commissioned by Emperor Charles V to represent the terroir, the seasons and the four elements of Earth, Wind, Fire and Air. These food “portraits,” with their luscious figs evocative of fecundity, and plump grapes conjuring Spain’s great wines, triumph summer’s harvest, and beckon the viewer to sample its culinary bounty.
Continue reading DINING – Garden Café Espana at National Gallery of Art
By Jordan Wright
 Photo by Jordan Wright Toss out the notion of a sticky, sweet drink mixer for pina coladas or the other kind that comes in a can and is used as a cooking ingredient for Thai curries.
This new product, in plain, unsweetened and vanilla flavors made by So Delicious, is used straight from the carton on your morning cereal or drunk by the glass and is found in the refrigerated section beside the soymilk.
About coconut, the carton explains, “It is a rich source of medium chain fatty acids (MCGAs) which are recognized as “good fat”, and it is naturally cholesterol-free.” That should be good news for cardiologists and their ice cream-deprived patients.
In our house, kid-tested and highly approved, coconut milk has replaced the soy, almond, oat, rice or hemp milks previously consumed. We especially love the vanilla flavored, but the unsweetened version is better for savory cooking or baking. Not inconsequentially it is vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO and organic. Smoothies using the vanilla flavored coconut milk are divine with this brand new product.
So Delicious is an Oregon company that had previously produced only soy-based products. Their wonderful Soy Delicious ice creams like Green Tea and Awesome Chocolate are family favorites.
But in April of this year they rolled out their new line of coconut-based products called “Purely Decadent Made with Coconut Milk.” There are nine different flavors, sweetened with agave syrup.
Think ice cream without the milk…really rich and creamy, with a smooth mouth feel. Continue reading Coconut Milk of a Very Different Kind
 Photo by Jordan Wright/Local Kicks
Heath Hall and Brett Thompson of Del Ray's Pork Barrel BBQ.
By Jordan Wright
A super-secret reality show scheduled for a major network’s fall line-up has approached Del Ray’s Pork Barrel BBQ in Alexandria.
Partners Heath Hall and Brett Thompson, currently waiting for the ink to dry on their contract, swore me to secrecy…at least for the time being. The show, featuring five multi-millionaire venture capitalists looking for investment opportunities will showcase these and other entrepreneurs and fly them out to the West Coast next month for the filming.
Longtime friends from Kansas City, smack dab in America’s Heartland, they were hired by former Missouri Sen. Jim Talent and assigned to tackle the tough issues…banking, child welfare and the national budget. Dry stuff indeed, but they were well acquainted with the give and take, the tit for tat that goes on in each session. They had done their homework and knew the drill, and they were in it for the long haul.
One evening, after too many cold pizzas and as the Senate Appropriations Committee was debating the budget into the wee hours, the boys had the inkling of an idea.
They missed home and talk of “pork barrel” spending was snapping their synapses into fond memories of cookouts with family and friends. They began reminiscing about pork shoulder and beef brisket smoked for hours over oak and hickory wood, Kansas City style, with a tomato base and a rich, smoky barbeque sauce, the meat seasoned with secret recipe rubs to seal in the fat and bring out the intensity and cold beers to wash it all down. Continue reading Del Ray’s Pork Barrel BBQ Boys Headed for Hollywood
Sara Mosqueda-Fernandez
June 2010
 Kids learn a love of cooking and food at Destination DC's Restaurant Week for Kids - photo courtesy of Destination DC This week DC plays host to Kids Restaurant Week, where young and budding foodies will have a chance to kick off the start of their summer with special kid-friendly menus from various restaurants.
Destination DC has brought back this week for children (ages 11 and younger) to encourage healthy eating initiatives and family bonds with the aid of some of Washington’s most prized restaurants. The restaurants have kept parents in mind by offering special fixed-price adult menus, too.
 Fun and food for DC Metro Area families - photo courtesy of Destination DC Elliott Ferguson, president and CEO of Destination DC, said that this week is meant as a “fun and meaningful way for parents to introduce their kids to new foods and dining experiences while enjoying a delicious meal themselves.”
Besides trying to turn tiny tykes into petit gourmands with palate-pleasing kid menus, some area restaurants feature unique family-friendly experiences. Taberna del Alabardero offers children a tour of the kitchen and a picture with Executive Chef Javier Romero. Some restaurants are taking the experiences to the kids by going “back to school”. Chefs will visit third-grade classrooms, offering cooking presentations and tastings through a partnership with DC public schools.
“It’s a different way to introduce families to our establishment,” said Nicole Restivo, spokesperson at Taberna del Albardero. “We want to show that we’re not just fine dining, we’re open to families and kids as well.”
Other participating restaurants include Acadiana, Art and Soul, Beacon Bar & Grill, Belga Café, Bistro 525, BlackSalt, Café Dupont, Clyde’s of Gallery Place, Fourth Estate at the National Press Club, Georgia Brown’s, Jaleo, Juniper, Kellari Taverna, Kemble Park Tavern, La Tasca, M Street bar & Grill, Mie N Yu, Oyamel, Palette, Ping Pong Dim Sum, Rosa Mexicano, and Zola. Special kids menus are available for lunch and early dinner, 5-6:30 PM.
For more information on Kids Restaurant Week, please visit www.restaurantweekforkids.org.
By Jordan Wright
June 16, 2009
 Robert Kenner, director of FOOD, INC., a Magnolia Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Magnolia Pictures. In a conversation with Executive Director Robert Kenner the week before the June 19th Washington, DC release of his new film, “Food, Inc.”, I had a chance to follow up on a review I wrote about the documentary earlier this month. This searing expose of the food industry that plays out like an eco-thriller is going to have a big impact on the industry and he told me he was very encouraged by the response so far. The film profiles agri-business villains, who currently hold the world hostage with their domination of our planet’s food supply, facing off against the small American farmer practicing sustainable farming methods. The good news Kenner wants you to know is that you, the consumer, can write a happier ending to this real-life tragedy with your daily food choices.
Jordan Wright – Food, Inc. is as powerful a documentary as any ever produced. How do you hope it will be received?
Robert Kenner – I hope this makes people start to think about where there food comes from. And it wasn’t just the food that I found to be important in the making of this film I discovered all the information that’s being denied to us. I was just shocked at the power of these mega-corporations. Our food has been fundamentally transformed in the last fifty years, without us seeing it. It’s become a totally different food than we’ve ever eaten before.
Wright – An Inconvenient Truth has done more to shine a spotlight on the dangers of global warming than any scientific treatise, government agency or print article. Given its worldwide success, do you envision Food, Inc. will have the same far-reaching impact on policy-makers and the general public in reigning in world domination of the agri-business conglomerates?
Kenner – Agri-business spends a fortune, billions of dollars, and people are not aware of the consequences of this system. We are spending less of our money on our food than any time in history. However, this inexpensive food is coming to us at a very high cost in the long run. It’s time to think about what those costs really are. The system that we have now is not a sustainable system and cannot continue its dependence on polluting the earth.
Continue reading Interview with Robert Kenner – Director “Food, Inc”
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