Bangkok Golden – Falls Church, VA

What's NEXT: Tucked away a strip mall is one of Falls Church’s biggest hole-in-a-walls: Bangkok Golden. This place is notorious for their lunch buffet which goes for $10-$12. Dirt Cheap! On the weekends, it opens at noon and every time I’ve been there, there have always been people waiting outside the door. There are a decent number of tables where you won’t have to wait. However, it does get packed very quickly.

The buffet selection is really what separates this place apart from other Thai/Laos restaurants. They offer rice, tom yum soup w/ mushrooms, spring rolls, a spicy papaya salad, mixed salad, drunken noodles, pad thai, lemongrass beef, mango chicken, steamed fish with lemongrass/chili paste and various dessert options. You can try a little bit of everything which is great. Exactly what I want when I visit a Thai/Laos restaurant.

Service is great and this place knows what they’re good at: Delivering authentic Thai/Laos dishes at a very affordable price. I can’t wait to go back!

5/5 Stars

Large plates of Food from Buffet

Drunken Noodes, Pad Thai, Stir Fried Chicken, and Chicken Wings

Spicy Papaya Salad and Appetizers

China Garden – Arlington, VA

What's NEXT: The number of quality Dim Sum options in the DMW is scarce. If happen to love out by Silver Spring, check out Oriental East. If you’re like me people who are closer to Northern Virginia and DC, check out China Garden. It’s your best option. Located in an office building in Rosslyn, China Garden has been a favorite among locals for years. 

On the weekends, the doors open at 11:30am and expect to get there before they open if you want to avoid waiting. They don’t take reservations and there’s always people waiting outside prior to opening. Thinking about getting there at 12:30pm and walking in without a wait? Forget about it.

China Garden has the regular fare of dim sum favorites including shu mai, shrimp balls, turnip, tripe, congee, vegetables, sesame balls etc. It’s a little expensive if you ask me ~$3.50 per dish on average, but it’s reasonable given DC prices and competition in the area.

The place is clean and service is decent for a Chinese restaurant. Expect it to be hectic if you come during Dim Sum since it’s usually a packed house.

All in all, this place will definitely satisfy your dim sum craving. Your wallet may be a little lighter than usual, but it’s worth it.

FYI - They validate your parking (free) in the parking garage!

3/5

Store Front

Dim Sum Favorites

Broccoli Vegetable Dish

Daikaya – Washington, DC

What's NEXT: When in need for a solid bowl of ramen, look no further than Daikaya. 

Located in the Gallery Place-Chinatown neighborhood, Daikaya was built from the ground up, literally. The old building was completely knocked down in 2012 and took a year to build. The shop opened its doors on Valentine’s Day earlier this year. It brings a modern decor with wood tables, providing customers an authentic ramen shop type feel.

Daikaya is a no-nonsense ramen shop where seating is limited and service is relatively quick. Customers are usually in and out in 30 minutes. I usually opt for the Shio or Mugi-Miso Ramen. Both have very clean flavors and bring out the tremendously rich broth. Since this is a Japanese based ramen shop, they also offer a Shoyu (soy sauce) ramen which I've found to be way too salty. There’s also a vegetarian option as well.

Typical with ramen shops, there’s an add-on for everything: nitamago (soft-boiled egg), chashu (roasted pork), butabara kakuni (roasted pork belly), bamboo, extra noodles etc.  At the end of it, you could easily be spending $20 for a bowl of ramen. I usually just stick with the addition of the chashu which I found to be very flavorful. This keeps my bowl of ramen budget friendly at around $15.

All in all, this is a great place to go if you’re craving ramen or prior to an event at the Verizon Center.

FYI - They also have a Japanese Izakaya upstairs which is relatively new. I definitely need to check that out as well!

4/5 Stars

Mugi-Miso Ramen with Pork Belly

Ramen Menu

Store Front

Il Mee Korean BBQ Buffet - Annandale, VA

What’s NEXT: The Korean BBQ Buffet at Il Mee is definitely one not to miss if you’re a carnivore like me. During normal lunch and dinner hours, they offer a wide variety of hot food, sushi, and Korean food options.

DISCLAIMER: When I come here though, I’m talking about their late night 10pm-2am $12 AYCE Korean BBQ. You get all you can eat cuts of beef bugolgi, pork belly, spicy chicken and side dishes you want. They also have all the fixings such as spicy bean paste, garlic, jalapenos, lettuce, rice etc. They provide a grill for your table and you cook everything yourself. I usually add the spicy bean paste to everything to give it a little more flavor. 

If you’re more into the sides and tofu soups, I wouldn't recommend coming here. However, if you’re just really hungry and need a decent AYCE place without a long wait, definitely give Il Mee a try!

You can’t beat AYCE Korean BBQ for $12 after 10pm!

3/5 Stars

Lots of Meat Everywhere

Banchan

Sushi Yoshi – Vienna, VA

What’s NEXT: If there’s one place to get sashimi in Northern Virginia, it’s Sushi Yoshi in Vienna. This place has been a regular establishment for Japanese locals to enjoy the best chirashi deal in town and other japanese favorites.

It’s so good that I usually drive out once a month to satisfy my chirashi fix. The Chirashi Deluxe Lunch Special ($14) comes with tuna, salmon, whitefish, squid, picked radishes and more! The complex combination of flavors from the raw/cooked fish and radishes really make this dish absolutely perfect.

Every time I've been here at least half of the tables in the restaurant are ordering the special. It's no secret. Each chirashi special comes with miso soup, salad and a hefty amount of rice.

Service is great here and I would highly recommend making reservations if you’re bringing a large party. The entire restaurant serves less than 30 people. If you’re planning to go last minute like me, I would advise getting there when they open at 11:30am. I'm usually accommodated through bar seating which gives me a front row seat at the sushi chefs prepare the chirashi.

This place is truly something special and I hope every sushi/sashimi aficionado makes it here at least once.

5/5 Stars

Chirashi Deluxe Lunch Special

Kogiya - Annandale, VA

What's NEXT: Kogiya is the new kid on the block when it comes to Korean BBQ. While it’s only been open for a few months, it’s already making waves with the food community. 

Located in Annandale, VA (Korean Capital of VA), most people come here for the Grand Opening Special A for $18.99: All you can eat beef brisket, pork belly (regular, miso, spicy), and spicy chicken. The all you can eat option comes with those meats, unlimited banchan (about 10 varieties), steamed egg and tofu soup.

What separates Kogiya from a competitor such as Honey Pig is the atmosphere. We sat here for 2 hours and not once did we feel rushed by the servers. They bring out meat tray after meat tray once you’ve finished each one. In addition, since eating is more spread out, there was much better ventilation so all of your clothes didn’t smell like you’ve been eating Korean BBQ all day.

Service was great. The quality of the food was excellent given the price.

If you’re not into the buffet thing, they do offer food ala carte too. However, it’s probably more expensive in the end.

Overall, get the $18.99 Grand Opening Special A and you won’t be disappointed!

5/5 Stars

Banchan

Pork Belly

Spicy Chicken

#PhillyEdition Spice 28 - Philadelphia, PA

What's NEXT: While Philadelphia is known for the cheesesteak, many people don't know that Szechuan cuisine is taking over this city by storm. With the addition of Spice 28 into the restaurant scene, restauranteurs are experience asian cuisine is a much different form: the use of Szechuan peppercorns.

I've been to Spice 28 a few times now and I'm always happy with the quality of the dishes. Since I enjoy eating food on the spicier side (aka sweating), we decided to order the chicken in hot chili oil, cucumbers in spicy sauce, green beans with black bean curd, spicy beef in dry pot, mango chicken, and sautéed spinach with garlic. Out of these dishes, my favorites were the chicken in hot chili oil appetizer and the spicy beef in dry pot. Both were extremely spicy and had a great texture as well. Since I enjoy eating Szechuan cuisine, I was sweating in no time. All of the dishes were well executed and I would definitely go back.

If you're not into Szechuan Cuisine (Spicy Food), they also offer a Asian Fusion menu as well with thai dishes etc.

Dishes were very fairly priced. Appetizers were $3-8, entrees were $10-15. The service was very smooth as well. I made a reservation for a group of 5 and we were seated immediately.

Also, if you check in on Yelp, they also offer 10% off you bill.


Stars: 4/4 Stars

Chicken in Hot Chili Oil

Cucumbers in Spicy Sauce

Green Beans in Black Bean Curd

Spicy Beef in Dry Pot

Mango Chicken

Sautéed Spinach with Garlic

Chasin Tails - Arlington, VA

What's NEXT: Located a few minutes from East Falls Church Metro, Chasin Tails is the new kid on the block when it comes to Louisiana style Crayfish. Opened in 2012, the restaurant focuses on Louisiana staples such as crayfish boils, gumbo, jambalaya, mac n' cheese and fried catfish.

For 3, we ordered 2 lbs of crayfish and 1 lb of shrimp. Each can get their own spice level (mild, medium, hot, or N' awlins hot) and flavor (original Cajun, lemon-pepper, garlic butter or shebang aka everything). We opted for the medium spiciness and shebang flavored crayfish and shrimp. If you're every been to Hot N' Juicy Crawfish before, it's a little bit less spicy. Overall, the crayfish were big and absolutely delicious. I would highly recommend them.

For appetizers, I would also recommend the fried green tomatoes which were great. Next time I'll need to try the Fred Gator Tails which I've heard are also amazing.

They have plenty of happy hour specials and weekday specials for dinner. Check out their latest menu here.

When it comes down to it, this place offers amazing food, a unique experience, and awesome service. Writing this review makes me want to go back for dinner tonight.

5/5 Stars

Crawfish Boil

Bar Area

Fried Gator Tails

Toki Underground - Washington, DC

What's NEXT: Toki Underground has gained claim to fame in DC with their famous ramen noodles. Located in the H Street Corridor, Toki serves up, in my opinion, the best ramen in the DC area. Better than Daikaya (Chinatown) , Ren’s Ramen (Rockville, MD), and Sakuramen (Adam’s Morgan).

I usually opt for the Tapei Curry Chicken Ramen or the Toki Classic. Both broths are rich in flavor and extremely tasty. I would recommend getting the Chashu Pork Cheek addon and the Extra Nitamago (Soft egg) as well.

For appetizers, we enjoyed the Taiwanese Style Cold Tofu which came with bonito flakes, scallions and a sweet hoisin based sauce.

The food is always executed flawlessly and consistent.

Tips:
- This place is only at 5pm daily and closed on Sun. Since it only seats 30 people and does not take reservations, I would recommend getting there right before the doors open. We went on a rainy day last week and there were still 8 people in front of us when the doors opened.
- Get the Taiwan beer! You can’t find this in many plays so I usually get it with my bowl of Ramen
- Sample the other H street restaurants if you get caught with a 2 hour wait! There are so many including H&Pizza and Horace and Dickies.

5/5 Stars

Taiwanese Style Cold Tofu

Taiwan Chicken Curry Ramen

Toki Classic

Far East Taco Grille (Food Truck) - Washington, DC

What's NEXT: Far East Taco Grille is now one of my favorite food trucks in DC!

You can choose 1 taco for $3 or 3 for $8. I really enjoyed the pork, steak and chicken tacos. You can choose toppings like kimchee lime slaw, spicy corn, grilled veggies and a bunch of different sweet and spicy sauces. Also, they serve the tacos using corn or flour tortillas. I enjoyed all 3 of my tacos combinations!

I have 2 pet peeves when it comes to tacos:
1. The tacos must not break when eating! I hate when this happens because it's such a mess and usually it means they've used poor tortillas.

2. Needs to have fresh flavors and decent portions! It's absolutely crucial for any successful taco to have great flavors and portions. If your taco lacks flavor, it will be dull. If it's miniature and for $8, it's an obvious waste of money.

Now, I know that it can be difficult to have decent portions of meat without the taco breaking but that's why not everyone's making tacos. It's not the easiest thing in the world!

Now, Far East Taco Grill delivers and offers fantastic tacos for the lunch crowd. The service is friendly too! Next time the truck is around, looks like I'll be making my way here for lunch!

Words of wisdom:
1. Get here early as lines start to form around 11:30am
2. Tacos are made to order, so you can be in line for a while. Again, look back at #1.
3. They are absolutely worth the wait!

5/5 Stars

Menu

3 Delicious Tacos

Lighthouse Tofu (Annandale, VA)

What's NEXT: If you like Korean style soft tofu soups (soondubu), Lighthouse Tofu is truly a great Korean food spot in Annandale, VA. 

What makes Lighthouse so great is their speedy service, great food, side dishes, and prices!
When you get there, complimentary side dishes, water and tea are brought to your table. They have a simple menu which lets you choose what type of soup you want and how spicy. On the backside of the menu, you can order noodles, rice, and BBQ items such as kalbi or bugolgi.

The food comes out piping hot on the traditional Korean bowl and is provided with raw eggs to crack into your soup. I think this is a very small, but nice touch that this restaurant has. They give you rice and more side dishes which are unlimited.

Prices for the soups during dinner are all around $10. VERY GREAT PRICES considering what you are getting.

I almost always leave this place satisfied and full. There's nothing better than enjoying a hot tofu soup on a cold night in December.

5/5 Stars

Korean Side Dishes

Seafood Pancake

Korean Style Tofu Soup

Hot Spot - Fairfax, VA

What's NEXT: Since the last time I visited Hot Spot, I've noticed a few positives changes to the restaurant which have made me bring my review to 5 stars.

The Changes are:
- Vegetable Platter to Start the Meal: Rather than picking both your starches and vegetables from the beginning, they provide you with a "variety platter". This accomplishes 2 things: Less wait time for food prep and allows people to try vegetables they've never had before. I believe they had most of the typical vegetables including enoki and shitaki mushrooms. This change benefits both the customers and the restaurant.

- Extra Spicy Broth: This was something that I thought was a major letdown when I first came. A number of my friends including me prefer a super spicy (mala) experience. There's just something about the szechuan peppercorns that can't be forgotten in a spicy broth. Having said that, they added it to the menu and it was actually quite satisfying. I'm extremely happy with this change.

- More Order Sheets: Since you order on a piece of paper listing what you want, it was challenging to continuously flag down the wait staff if you wanted another order form. This time, I was given 3 sheets when I initially sat down which allowed me to place a 2nd round of food once my 1st one game. During my last visit, we had 3 rounds of food and waited around 25 min each time.  This change makes it very easy for everyone and allows the turn of tables quicker.

Now I know a lot of people have complained by the slow service and long wait time. When my friend and I came on Friday night, the wait for 2 people at a table was an hour. The place was completely packed by 7pm. In addition, with limited staff, I bet people's drinks and food were refilled at a snail's pace. 

HOWEVER, I do have a secret to share. If you sit at the bar, you'll get the BEST SERVICE EVER. 

We sat at the end of the bar and there were so many benefits. Quick and easy drink orders, refills and it was very easy to catch one of the staff since they would walk right past us to-and-from the kitchen. Everything was great and I couldn't be happier with the service.

All in all, one of my new favorite restaurants in the DMV and I'm happy they opened up right before winter!

5/5 Stars

Meat and Seafood

Ready to Eat

Mala Tang - Arlington, VA

What's NEXT: Mala Tang is a decent place if you're looking to have a big group style dinner for hot pot. It's a great experience as each person gets their individual "hot pot" and you just order meats and veggies yourself. You get a large amount of food and you'll find yourself usually satisfied by the end. The restaurant has nice decor and pretty clean for traditional hot pot. 

However, the only thing that has prevented me from coming back is the price. Hot pot is supposed to be inexpensive and this place is way above what anyone should be paying for hot pot. 

Don't get me wrong, the food was good, but it shouldn't cost you more than $30 per person before tip. The ingredients themselves don't cost a lot of money at all. It's just veggies and basic meats. If it was more around $15-$20 per person, I think they would get more business. 

I will say that I enjoyed their appetizers, atmosphere and food a lot. But I won't be coming back because of the price. If you're looking for a better hot pot experience, try Hot Spot in Farifax, VA

3/5 Stars

Individual Hot Pot

Appetizers

Spicy Cold Noodles

Storefront

China Boy - Washington, DC

What's NEXT: China Boy is a hole in the wall. Literally.

It's a small shop located in Chinatown with only 2 tables, enough for make 6 people so carryout is preferred. 

The menu is also limited to maybe 10 items, but they have very good rice noodles here. It's also really cheap ($8) given that their portions are generous.I really liked both the chicken and beef chow fen here, but it was a bit greasy.

If I'm really hungry and looking to grab a quick meal in Chinatown, this is a decent option. Funny but there really aren't that many great Chinese places in Chinatown anymore.

Also, keep in mind that they're only open for Lunch and it's Cash Only too!

4/5 Stars

Beef Chow Fun

Storefront

Rice Crepes

Pho 75 - Arlington, VA

What's NEXT: This place serves up some solid Pho. The broth is rich and I understand why this place has received all the hype. It's a no thrill or frills Pho experience.

However, I know that it's called "Pho 75", but they literally don't serve any food items except Pho. No spring or summer rolls, no vermicelli bowls. This is tough if you go with a large group like we did who all did not want to get a bowl of Pho in this 90 degree heat.

If you're craving pho, it's a great deal since you can get a large for under $10. And it comes with all of the fixings (bean sprouts, mints etc).

It's a short 5 min walk from the metro but I've heard parking can be a nightmare. It's in the same parking lot as Rays Hell Burger which always brings in a lot of people.

4/5 Stars

Great large bowl of Pho

Storefront