Pascual

The Culinary Theme: Pascual chefs Matt Conroy and Isabel Coss, who hails from Mexico City, seek to showcase the diversity of Mexican cuisines and flavors. You can expect dishes from Oaxaca, Mexico City, and other localities across Mexico.

The Food and Drinks: The kitchen at Pasqual revolves around their wood-fired grill, and an element of every dish on the menu at least touched or rested above the wood grill, giving a smoky note to every item. Kick off your meal with an order of the guacamole, which comes a trio of salsas on the side, pickled veggies and crispy, freshly fried tostadas. Next, dive into garbanzos served on a bed of a vegetarian green chorizo flan and adorned with peppery santa hoja, a Mexican herb. The parsnip tamal comes drenched in a gorgeous blanco mole, a nutty mole hailing from Oaxaca, and is traditionally served to brides at their weddings because of its creamy white color. The fideos is one of the best dishes on the menu, with heaps of smoky mushrooms, huitlacoche, and black garlic. The earthy flavors and chewy texture of the dish are extraordinary. For dessert, try the buñuelo, a fun and surprisingly light dessert that comes fresh from the fryer with two sauces for dipping, one chocolate and one dulce de leche. Their cocktail menu features several mezcal concoctions; go with the Pascual Oaxacan Old Fashioned if you want to stick with the smokey theme, and those abstaining will love the non-alcoholic margarita.

The Vibe: The staff are warm and friendly, the dining room is small and cozy, and the restaurant is low with a shared love of exquisite food and carefully crafted beverages.

El Presidente

The Culinary Theme: The food at Stephen Starr’s newest DC venture, El Presidente, emphasizes dishes from Mexico City, and the massive menu has something for everyone.

The Food & Drinks: First, you need to order nachos. Smothered in melted cheese, beans, tart pickled onions, and a simple tomato salsa, these nachos are the perfect sharing dish to start your meal. Then – go crazy and order as many items as you want! Grilled Mexican street corn with chipotle mayo is sweet and rich and spicy all at once. Black bean enchiladas are cheesy and bold, and build-your-own mushroom tacos come with hunks of meaty portabellas, chewy charro beans, guacamole, and grilled shishito peppers. The drinks menu is equally extensive and tempting: there is a sweet frozen pineapple margarita, beer cocktails, and an impressive list of mezcals and tequilas.

The Vibe: The ornate and whimsical dining room of El President, located by Union Market, is just one of the many draws to this Mexican restaurant.

Amparo Fondita

The Culinary Theme: Amparo Fondita focuses on contemporary dishes from different states around Mexico. The restaurant seeks to honor Mexico’s culinary heritage and diversity through seasonal, heirloom ingredients. The result? Unique, super tasty dishes.

The Food & Drinks: Amparo’s several menu sections offer choices of botanos (which are small bites), tacos, entrees, side dishes, and desserts. Our advice: choose something from every section! From the botanos, order the quesadilla which is oozing with melted cheese and huitlacoche, featuring a heady truffle taste. From the taco section, the Swiss chard and potato option with its nutty pumpkin seed crema is meaty and filling. Main dishes skew to the traditional with choices such as various iterations of chili relleno. The fried plantains are sweet and glistening with butter and are served with a fiery salsa Negra as a side. Margaritas are a must and finish your meal with a sweet slice of tres leches cake, topped with bright crescents of mandarin oranges and bright pink raspberries.

The Vibe: Located in Dupont Circle, the restaurant has a warm and inviting ambiance with low lighting and booths that invite sharing and talking. Perfect for a group of friends who want to luxuriate over dishes and indulge in a bevy of beverages.

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The Dining Traveler team was thrilled to be able to attend the announcement of the 2024 Restaurant and Chef Awards nominees. This year, the event took place in Washington, D.C., at the famed Waldorf Astoria Washington, DC. The announcement of nominees, which was highlighted by enthusiastic screams and claps, concluded with words from the D.C. Deputy Mayor, Nina Albert, who reminded the group of chefs, PR staff, and other culinary and hospitality stakeholders that in 2023, Washington D.C. had the most restaurant openings of any other city in the United States, with 42 openings for every 100,000 residents – quite the accomplishment! However, one of the things that made me beam with pride was the three Puerto Rican finalists: chefs Carlos Portela of Orujo and Gabriel Hernandez of Verde Mesa for the chef’s awards and documentary filmmaker Rafael Ruiz for the media awards.

Whether running a restaurant or creating compelling video content, these three Boricuas have a unique take on Puerto Rican gastronomy. Puerto Rico continues to gain more visibility in the culinary world, and rightfully so. With its diverse food culture, these artists are the perfect ambassadors.

Meet the Meet the 2024 James Beard Awards Puerto Rican Finalists:

Chef Carlos Portela

I first learned of Carlos Portela when I was producing The Dining Traveler Guide to Puerto Rico. He had just started his atelier in Caguas in 2015. Since then, he’s brought a unique take on Puerto Rican food to the island with a creative tasting menu from his restaurant in San Juan. A classically trained chef and sommelier, he describes his cooking style as avant-garde, merging his haute cuisine techniques with local boricua ingredients like yuca, sweet peppers, and locally caught ahi tuna. The Orujo dining experience takes you on a delicious multi-course journey in his cozy restaurant as Chef Portela personally pours you a glass of Rioja that he personally selected with a braised short topping a deconstructed alcapurria.

Orujo Taller, 906 Ave Juan Ponce de León, San Juan, Website

Rafael Ruiz

If you’re looking to learn about Puerto Rican food and listen to the voices of some of the most prominent chefs in Puerto Rico, subscribe to Rafael Ruiz’s La Mafia YouTube Channel. His channel is a master class of Puerto Rican food culture and a platform for boricuas to tell their stories about the island’s gastronomy. Ten years ago, he started writing about restaurants in Puerto Rico on his blog, La Mafia, with a focus on independently-owned restaurants, and it evolved into a beautiful video series focusing on establishments like Orujo, El Burén de Lula, and El Rancho de Apa. Ruiz is a second-time James Beard Media Awards finalist, with his El Burén de Lula episode nabbing a nomination in 2020.

Chef Gabriel Hernandez Febo

I still vividly remember dining at Verde Mesa, a restaurant in Old San Juan, back in 2019. Thoughts of the perfectly grilled octopus that my then toddler devoured and the tembleque (coconut custard) delicately covered in tiny fushia and orange edible flower petals come to mind. At Verde Mesa, Chef Gabriel Hernandez Febo creates edible art with his delicately plated dishes without losing that sazón boricua, like a scallop tartare atop a guava gazpacho. The restaurant, tucked away in Calle Tetuan in Old San Juan, takes you back in time with rustic furniture and vintage plates, where Chef Hernandez Febo serves his farm-to-table fare.

Verde Mesa, 107 Calle Tetuan Esq, C. San José, San Juan, Website

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Rangoon: Burmese Garlic Noodles

Located in Chelsea, Rangoon has a comfortable, inviting interior and sensational menu full of classic Burmese dishes, including crispy squash tempura, served alongside a garlicky tamarind sauce, and Burmese egg curry, where boiled eggs come swimming in a chunky tomato sauce. The real highlight on the menu, however, is the garlic noodles, called kyarsen si chet in Burmese. Made with light and fresh thin rice noodles, the dish is bursting with the flavor of garlic in every strand. Shards of stir-fried cabbage, a handful of chopped green onions, and a sprinkling of fried shallots bring color and texture to the dish, serving as just the right contrast to the silky noodles. Garlic lovers, this dish is calling your name.

Le Bernardin: French Truffle Pasta

The truffle pasta at Eric Ripert’s French Le Bernardin is nothing short of extraordinary. The house-made tagliatelle is infused with Perigord black truffle, cooked to perfection, and then swirled in the most sinfully creamy black truffle butter sauce. The noodles will literally melt in your mouth. Savor every single bite.

Soda Club: Italian Bucatini

Soda Club offers up a host of delicious pasta (insider tip: you can sample all of them if you do their six-course pasta tasting, which is $75 AND includes a bottle of wine!), but the most comforting of them all is their bucatini. The hollow noodles are smothered in a bold arrabbiata sauce and then topped with crispy breadcrumbs and shards of vegan parmesan cheese. It’s a classic comfort dish that never gets old.

Hao Noodle: Chinese Dan Dan Noodles

The sunlit, plant-filled dining room at Hao Noodle is the perfect spot for enjoying a bowl of dan dan noodles. The thin noodles are tossed in a gorgeous, heady sauce comprised of peanuts, sesame, chili oil, and scallions. Each bite is full of the nutty flavor of peanut and sesame, the spicy warmth of chili oil, and the chewy goodness of the noodles.

Suram: Japanese Impossible Tan Tan Ramen

There is nothing not to love about ramen, and the impossible ramen at Suram is particularly divine. The chewy, springy ramen noodles are soaked in a smooth miso broth and crowned with spicy impossible meat, meaty mushrooms, and crunchy bamboo shoots and scallions. It is so warm and flavorful that you will keep eating well beyond being full!

The post Spotlight on five New York noodle dishes from around the globe appeared first on The Dining Traveler.

The Vibe

The warm and inviting dining room at Mita includes an elegant modern bar, spacious dining area, and open kitchen. The rustic earth tones, array of green plants, and floor-to-ceiling windows add to the ambiance and create a rustic but elegant scene for your dining experience.

The Food at Mita

Now, let’s get to the most important part: the food! Mita’s innovative 14-course menu, divided into four “acts,” opens with a fun surprise: sweet and savory tamarind and mango candies wrapped in edible paper. Chewy and crispy, the treat kicks off the meal in the most delightful fashion. From there, the meal only gets dreamier. The endless, enticing parade of dishes includes a Venezuelan beverage called papelón, made with a non-alcoholic rum and served with a piece of sugarcane. The bread course includes a variety of mini arepas, some made with potato, others with yucca, and others with plantains, and a trio of dips including a sinfully creamy avocado dip; and a soup course that features a fluffy arracacha soup, made with the starchy, slightly sweet Andean root vegetable, and drizzled with a woodsy mushroom dashi. The dish is brimming with gentle earth tones and just the right balance of sweet and savory.

Other highlights include a savory watermelon dish with fermented carrots; an open-faced tortilla topped with a heady concoction of squash, kale, piquant green mole, and meaty huitlacoche; a delightful asado negro made with mushrooms, served on a bed of creamy corn and adorned with crispy onions. The textures and colors play a vibrant role in each dish, and the Latin American flavors, ranging from cilantro to sweet plantains to coconut, are ever-present and dynamic.

The dessert courses are as sublime as the savory courses. The winner is the one called Salar Uyuni, which is designed to resemble the famous Bolivian salt flats. It features a yuca cake crowned with a crunchy white tuile.

The Drinks

Mita’s wine list features off-the-beaten-path natural and sustainable wines, and the full bar offers any cocktail your heart desires. Try one of Lou Bernard’s famed Singhani cocktails, formerly of Casa Kantuta.

The Verdict

Mita is an epic, unique dining experience. Make your reservation now.

The post First Look at Mita, Washington, D.C.’s First Plant-Based Latin American Restaurant appeared first on The Dining Traveler.

Italian – Grazie Mille

Trendy and chic, Grazie Mille, located behind its sister venue, Grazie Nonna, is already a hit amongst locals. Low lighting, invigorating tunes, and an opulent décor create a fun and energetic vibe at this bar/restaurant. For a dreamy vegetarian dish to pair with one of their sensational drinks, try the stracciatella. Served with sweet, garlicky roasted tomatoes and a hunk of chewy bread, the creamy cheese is sinfully good. As noted, drinks are great; I recommend the Vatican, a bright, boozy martini, as well as a glass of their rose Lambrusco. Gather with friends at the bar or in their cozy circular booths over drinks, drinks and snacks, or a full-on dinner – just be sure to get the stracciatella!

Mexican – Amparo Fondita

This long-awaited Mexican spot is officially open in Dupont Circle, and reservations are already getting booked up. Come to Amparo Fondita for the herbed guacamole and margaritas, and stay for the decadent corn quesadillas stuffed with cheese and huitlacoche, the potato and chard tacos, and the chile relleno, doused in a spicy tomato infused salsa frontera. For dessert, don’t skip the luscious, coffee-flavored flan.

African – Almeda

Located in the same spot as former hotspots Himitsu, Pom-Pom, and Little Vietnam, Almeda serves up a small but delightful menu with a memorable vegetarian jollof rice risotto, which is warm and creamy, topped with crunchy peanuts for texture and pickled plantains for a tart note.

Vietnamese – Muoi Tieu

Formerly a food truck, Muoi Tieu moved into their Takoma Park brick and mortar in late 2023 and just recently opened their doors to the public in January 2024. Muoi Tieu is another new restaurant offering vegetarian dishes packed with flavor. The menu is mini but with several tempting vegetarian items, including crispy, savory spring rolls filled with shiitake mushrooms, crispy cabbage, lettuce, slivered carrots, sweet jicama, and fresh herbs. From there, try the steamed rice cakes topped with tofu, a turmeric-infused vegan crepe filled with mushrooms, or the vegan pho.

Spanish – Casa Teresa

Feast on all the veggie tapas at Casa Teresa, which range from garlicky Catalan tomato bread, grilled veggies served with a nutty Romanesco sauce, piquillo peppers, crispy and addictive patatas fritas, roasted eggplant drizzled in a sherry dressing. Pair your dishes with a sherry or vermouth from the extensive list or a bottle of Spanish wine.

D.C. Restaurants with Vegetarian Dishes: Practical Tips

Maybe you’re already a vegetarian, or perhaps you want to eat more vegetarian dishes while dining out. Here are some tips: For a seamless vegetarian dining experience, start by identifying vegetarian options on the menu, often marked or in a separate section. If you need help, ask the staff about ingredients and see if they can make any substitutions. Happy veggie eating!

The post New D.C. Restaurants with Vegetarian Dishes That Will Make You Keep Your Resolutions appeared first on The Dining Traveler.

Where to Stay

The Crawford Hotel: We were madly in love with our hotel, located in lower downtown Denver. The lobby is designed like a train station terminal, but a super fancy one. The “terminal” includes an ice cream shop, a bar, shops, and a coffee shop. Guests at the hotel get a coupon book which includes free coffee, beer, and ice cream at the shops in the lobby, as well as discounts at local bars and restaurants. Sound amazing? It gets even better! The rooms are gorgeous, with a high ceiling and pristine glass-enclosed showers, and guests can reserve a complimentary tesla, complete with a driver, to visit local spots. The location and amenities served as the perfect backdrop for our weekend in Denver.

Where to Eat and Drink

Cholon: Dynamite South Asian fare is featured at this chic downtown venue. Don’t miss the scallion pancakes, the crystal dumplings, or the fried rice. The three of us ordered a handful of appetizers and entrees to share and it was the best way to sample a bunch of items. Be sure to compliment your meal with a cocktail!

Kachina Cantina: As you can probably tell, Denver offers a variety of cuisines. This Mexican spot is cute and charming, with a colorful décor and wall murals. The restaurant serves brunch, lunch, and dinner; we went for Sunday brunch and had a fantastic meal. There are many delicious options, from chilaquiles to cauliflower tacos to warm vegetarian pozole. A mimosa is definitely a good idea, or a bloody mary if you prefer!

The Bindery: Located in the trendy Lohi neighborhood of Denver, The Bindery serves up fresh Italian fare like burrata including seasonal vegetables, beet ravioli, oysters, and risotto. The restaurant is contemporary and sleek, and it provides a gorgeous spot for a luxurious meal.

Lady Jane: For bold, bright, delicious cocktails in a stylish bar, visit Lady Jane. It’s a great place for drinks with friends, with the added bonus of plenty of eye candy for people watching!

Pigtrain Coffee Co.: Hot coffee and breakfast pastries are available all day at this coffee shop in the lobby of the Crawford hotel.

The Terminal Bar: The Crawford Hotel’s bar serves up 20 local craft beers, and features plenty of seating where you can sip your beer while watching the bustling activity of the hotel. I highly recommend the tater tots or pretzel bites as a bar snack to accompany your beer!

What to Do

Visit the 16th Street Mall: Don’t panic, this is no ordinary mall. Denver’s 16th Street Mall is a mile-long promenade with shops, cafes, and restaurants. Free shuttles go up and down the promenade, but we preferred to just stroll along so that we could peruse the shops and stop for coffee.

Visit the Denver Milk Market: Located on the Milk Block, where the original Windsor Dairy Farm of Colorado was once situated, the Denver Milk Market is a super fun food hall with a cocktail bar, a pizzeria, an ice cream vendor, and more. This was one of our favorite spots to visit in Denver, it’s definitely an iconic local venue.

Visit the Union Station Farmer’s Market: Filled with vendors selling freshly squeezed juices, croissants, live music, and artisanal goods, this is a lovely local market to visit. We had a great morning appreciating the goods of the different stalls, stuffing our faces, and absorbing the scene.

Weekend in Denver: The Verdict

Rocky Mountain National Park is an epic, iconic place to visit in Colorado but don’t pass up the opportunity to have a whirlwind weekend in Denver where there is food and drinks galore.

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21. Blue Rock Restaurant’s Maitake Mushrooms

The Blue Rock, located in Rappahannock County, Virginia, has a cozy restaurant that hosts stunning views of the blue ridge mountains. The restaurant features a nightly tasting menu that changes based on the seasons and availability of local ingredients. This recent dish featured by Chef Bin Lu is simple but divine, quite frankly, simply divide. Local maitake mushrooms are cooked to a gorgeous crisp and then doused in a buttery and garlicky mushroom sauce, for a mushroom on mushroom flavor profile, making for an epic vegetarian entrée that definitely qualifies as one of the best vegetarian dishes of the year.

20. Oyster Oyster’s Corn Soup

As noted in my best summer dishes piece, this is no ordinary corn soup. The sweetest of baby corn, combined with filet beans and potato, come swimming in a gorgeous chilled peanut broth. It’s cool, it’s refreshing, and it’s brimming with seasonality. The dish was so memorable I had to include it again as one of the best vegetarian dishes of the year. Hopefully the team Oyster Oyster will feature this dish again this coming summer.

19. Dodah’s Kitchen’s Seafood Mac n Cheese

This mac n cheese may be vegan, but with the silky smooth cheesy sauce and the distinct seafood flavor, you would never know that this classic Southern dish at Dodah’s Kitchen isn’t made with cheese or fish. The noodles are springy, the sauce is thick and velvety, and the dish is complete with flecks of seaweed and lots of paprika and garlic. This is comfort food at its best!

18. Maxwell Park’s Shishito Peppers

A little sweet, a little smoky is the way I like to describe shishito peppers. At Maxwell, which has a new Japanese-themed menu devised by Chef Masako Morishita, the shishito peppers come roasted with garlic and soaked in a soy sauce saturated butter, making them extra flavorful. Enjoy it with one of the venue’s fantastic wines!

17. La Casita Pupusaria’s Loroco Pupusa

Pupusas are one of those Latin American dishes that I never get sick of. We are very lucky in the D.C. area because we have a significant Salvadorean population, many of whom have opened restaurants and pupuserias to give all of us the opportunity to indulge in this favorite Salvadorian snack. Made with cornmeal that is stuffed with cheese and then griddled to perfection, pupusas are the ultimate in satisfaction. The ones at La Casita are particularly tasty; I am a fan of the loroco where the filling includes bits of the Salvadoran herb blended with loads of melted cheese. The herb has an earthy and floral flavor, the perfect accent to the mild cheese. Served with homemade slaw and a spicy tomato sauce, the pupusas at La Casita will cure any hangover, satisfy any craving, and can be eaten at any time of day. La Casita has a handful of locations around the DMV; see their website to find the one closest to you.

16. Daru’s Black Daal with Burrata

Italy meets India in this luxurious dish, available at D.C.’s newest Indian restaurant, Daru. The dish features a dollop of burrata, which is a sphere of mozzarella cheese with a decadent stracciatella center, that comes swimming in a pool of buttery and smoky lentils. Decadence marrying extravagance is the only way to describe the dish!

15. Cane’s Doubles

Cane serves up all kinds of delicious dishes from Trinidad and Tobago, including the classic Trinidadian street food, Doubles. Made with round crispy fried bread topped with chickpeas simmered with curry powder, garlic, cumin, and turmeric and a sweet and sour tamarind chutney this dish is aromatic and offers an exciting rollercoaster of flavor and texture for your taste buds.

14. Mansa Kunda’s Peanut Butter Chu

Chu is a traditional Gambian dish that is essentially a stew, comforting, and chock full of veggies. The peanut butter chu at Mansa Kunda, a West African restaurant in Takoma Park, is especially tasty with the addition of peanut butter, which gives the dish an element of creaminess and nuttiness. I love it spooned over fluffy white rice.

13. Tequila and Mezcal’s Ttayluda

Featured in an article I wrote about Mexican food this summer, this is a dish I come back for time and time again. Tlayudas, for those who may not be familiar with the dish, is a classic Oaxacan dish, made with a crispy toasted tortilla that is smothered with creamy mashed refried beans, lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, queso fresco, and any additional toppings you may choose. Served everywhere from food carts to high-end dining venues, tlayudas are a quintessential Oaxacan dish, and for good reason. Tlayudas are uber satisfying with just the right amount of crunchy, a hint of smoke from the beans, freshness from the vegetables, and creaminess from the cheese. At Tequila & Mezcal, you can have yours with meaty portobello mushrooms and corn, making the dish even heartier and more delicious.

12. L’Ardente Arancini

I feel like Italian arancini are the perfect food. Crunchy on the outside, gooey on the inside, oozing with the creaminess of mozzarella and the fragrance of saffron, it’s hard to imagine anything better. At L’Ardente the arancini arrive freshly fried and delightfully warm, ideal for sharing but also available to feast on alone.

11. PLNT Burger’s Save the Bay

Captured in my best new summer dishes piece, this new veggie burger from PLNT Burger really is one of the best vegetarian dishes of the year. Made with a vegan fish burger, the sandwich is crunchy, meaty, and features a distinctive seafood flavor profile. The dish consists of a Good Catch Food’s crispy fish-free filet served on a butter-toasted potato bun with house-made tartar sauce, pickles, and shredded lettuce. It is a satisfying, crispy delight. Be sure to get some onion bloomies or tarragon dusted fries on the side, and a cool strawberry milkshake to wash it all down!

10. Lupo Pizzeria’s Margherita Pizza

Lupo Pizzeria’s pizza is the epitome of simplicity at its best. Cooked off in a wood-fired oven, the dough is soft but crispy burnt in just the right spots, with loads of stretchy mozzarella, fresh tomato sauce, and whole basil leaves. Pair it with a cold Peroni and you may be having the best vegetarian meal of the year.

9. Cielo Rojo’s Vegan Torta

It’s hard to find a veggie torta that isn’t just a non-vegetarian torta, minus the meat. But at Cielo Rojo, the kitchen serves a vegetarian torta with house-made chorizo comprised of mushrooms and tofu, that is layered with smoky refried black beans, avocado, tart, and spicy pickled jalapenos, and rich cashew cream served on a soft, crusty pambazo roll. It is the heartiest and most filling of tortas.

8. Thip Khao’s Kao Soi

There are so many dishes at Thip Khao that I love, but the Kai Soi is a reigning champion on the dynamic menu. Khao Soi is a northern Laos noodle soup, where chewy house-made noodles in a savory broth infused with a fermented tomato bean paste. With mushrooms, puffed rice, tofu, and greens for texture and cilantro and fried garlic for even more flavor, this dish is life-giving.

7. Bantam King’s Veggie Tantanmen

We have come a long way in the world of vegetarian ramen. Haikan’s is creamy and silky with the infusion of miso, Ren’s is savory and salty with a kombu broth, and Toki Underground’s comes with fried enoki mushrooms and hunks of crispy tofu. But only Bantam King serves a version where Impossible meat and tempeh are included to provide the meaty texture and flavor of non-vegetarian ramen bowls. The dish is spicy and heady and ripe with the flavor of chilis, sesame, and soy. You will devour it as soon as it appears in front of you!

6. Blue Duck Tavern’s Omelet

Most people who love Blue Duck Tavern agree that brunch is really the best meal the venue offers. From decadent pancakes and French toast to pastry baskets and avocado toast, it’s hard to choose just one item. For me, it’s the omelet that is the standout breakfast dish. It may be simple, but the quality of ingredients makes it an unbeatable dish. Farm fresh eggs are cooked perfectly and stuffed with fresh spinach, loads of melted cheddar cheese, and meaty local mushrooms. It feels just right for a Sunday morning. Enjoy it with a butter biscuit and a sorbet mimosa and do save room for one of Colleen Murphy’s dynamite desserts!

5. Anju’s Yache Wang Mandu

There is almost nothing I love as much as I adore these dumplings at Anju. They are extra large and stuffed with seasoned Impossible meat and come sprinkled with a chili crunch, adorned with spring onion shavings, and in a puddle of glassy dumpling sauce. They are so dense and substantial and savory, exploding with the taste of ginger, garlic, chilies, and soy sauce, you will have to close your eyes to get the full umami flavor. The key to your success is to eat one order at the restaurant and take one order to go so when you wake up in the morning and long for another dumpling, you will have them in the fridge! That is actually how delicious they are.

4. Modena’s Roasted Honeynut Squash and Goat Cheese Ravioli

Helmed by local favorite John Melfi, the Modena kitchen is known for churning out dreamy seasonal hits that are visually as memorable as they are to devour. My current favorite is a winter ravioli that has a tang from goat cheese, a hint of sweetness from local honeynut squash, crunchiness from pumpkin seeds, and woodiness from sage.

3. Centrolina’s Pappardelle with Wood-Fired Mushrooms

This dish may sound simple, but when you take your first bite you will know that these gorgeous noodles were made with love. The noodles have the perfect chew and are accented by the smoky meatiness of locally foraged mushrooms, the richness of butter, and the earthiness of herbs like rosemary. Although all of Chef Amy Brandwein’s vegetarian dishes could qualify as the best vegetarian dishes of the year this is one that I find myself craving most often and coming back for again and again!

2. Rasika West End’s Sweet Potato Peanut Curry

There is nothing at either Rasika location that isn’t delicious so I often have a hard time choosing my favorite item. This year however it will have to be the nutty, rich, heady, sweet potato peanut curry at Rasika West End that is so silky yet dense and hearty that I can’t help but be obsessed with it. Mop it up with the restaurant’s truffle naan for the ultimate feast.

1. Makan’s Curry Mee

This was hands down my favorite dish of the year. Chef James Wozniuk’s Malaysian noodle soup at Makan is warm and aromatic and everything we need in our lives. The rich coconut milk-infused broth is brimming with the fragrant flavors of lemongrass, ginger, garlic, and turmeric. A combination of egg and glass noodles come alive in the broth, along with hearty mustard greens and hunks of tofu that have soaked up all the flavors of the soup. A dollop of sambal tumis, a puree of chilis, adds even more heat and earthiness. This is the dish that will get you through winter, and anything else life throws your way!

The post D.C.’s 21 Best Vegetarian Dishes of 2021 appeared first on The Dining Traveler.

For those who love Indian food and are living in or visiting our nation’s capital, we have good news: there are a plethora of excellent Indian restaurants in Washington, DC. So many in fact that we at the Dining Traveler decided to come up with an Indian restaurant dining guide to aid you in finding the best Indian restaurant for any occasion.

Best Indian Restaurants in Washington, DC for a Special Occasion

Rasika and Rasika West End

Rasika and Rasika West End are two of the most famous fine-dining Indian restaurants not just in D.C. but in the country. They are the quintessential venues for the special occasions section of our Indian restaurant dining guide. Both locations are visually stunning with gorgeous, ornate décor and the uisine is just dynamite. From the incomparable palak chaat, made with crispy fried spinach and homemade chutneys, to the heady truffle naan to the decadent chocolate samosas, there is nothing quite like a meal at either Rasika or Rasika West End. Come hungry, and leave more satiated than you have ever been in your life!

Want to Experiment with Making Indian Food at Home? Here are Some Tools:

Rania

Rania offers a truly opulent and extravagant opportunity for dining in DC. Hand-carved walls, a golden lighting scheme, a massive marble bar and lovely peacock blue bar stools come together to provide an undeniably stunning space. The food is as memorable; the restaurant serves a four-course meal for dinner, with options for each course. The choices include a spicy laccha aloo chaat where a crispy potato fritter is served in a puddle of creamy, tangy yogurt and various chutneys, chana masala panisse, where savory, fragrant cubes of fried chickpea flour are elegantly adorned with cilantro and drizzled with cilantro chutney, house-made paneer served on a bed of beans, as well as pomegranate raita and garlic naan. For dessert, the chocolate tart served alongside a scoop of chai masala ice cream is a sweet-spicy-bitter delight.

Bombay Club

I don’t know if it’s the live piano music, the curated artwork in the dining room that includes a stunning piece depicting an impressionist version of the traditional Indian Kathak dance, or the irresistible cuisine that makes dining at Bombay Club so glamorous, but there is truly no better place for a romantic dinner for two. Indian food is naturally designed for sharing, adding to the romantic dining experience. Be sure to get the daal makhani, which is cooked for sixteen hours to allow for the flavors to develop completely, and the bright, nutty lemon and cashew rice. And no special occasion is complete without dessert, so order the mango cheesecake. It’s just what your dreamy date night calls for!

Karma Modern Indian

Located downtown, Karma offers an elegant, beautifully decorated venue for fine dining with floor-to-ceiling windows, a chic dining room, and decadent Indian fare. Choose from four, six or nine course tasting menus which include highlights like the coconut tiki, where patties usually made from potatoes are made with coconut and topped with avocado for a south Indian twist, or the guava samosa, where the traditional pea and potato appetizer is transformed into a tropical dessert. Their cocktails are also excellent; try the salt and pepper gimlet or the old-fashioned, which is made with house-made jaggery syrup for an Indian twist. On the DC Michelin Guide, this spot is among the most highly recommended Indian restaurants in Washington, DC.

Best Indian Restaurants for a Great Vibe

Pappe

There is so much to love at Pappe: the lime soda, the thails which come full of small bowls of different curries, and the wide variety of vegetarian fare. We are currently obsessed with their mushroom biryani, a dish featuring three different kinds of mushrooms baked with rice that is infused with saffron and black truffle. Topped with pine nuts, this is a dish you won’t be able to stop eating. The fun décor, cozy booths, and family-style cuisine make Pappe a great spot for dining with friends.

Daru

Daru has been one of the trendiest Indian restaurants in Washington, DC since it opened. In addition to the setting, complete with globe lighting fixtures and exposed brick, the cuisine is modern and innovative. For something unique, try the daal makhani with arrives with a sphere of rich burrata cheese in the middle or the squash bhartha, a spice-infused mashed butternut squash dish. Drinks are equally as fun; we love the chai-tini, made with rum and masala chai.

Karizma

Recently, Karma Modern Indian split to become two restaurants. One side is Karma, a fine dining venue offering a tasting menu, and the other is Karizma, which features a more casual a la carte menu. The best dish on the small plates to share section of the menu is the nirvana, a crispy noodle salad with edamame, mango, radishes, greens and 33 other ingredients! It’s got a great crunch and loads of flavor. For the larger plates, we recommend the paneer pasada, a stuffed paneer dish served in a gorgeous saffron sauce, as well as the earthy lahsooni palak, a garlicky spinach concoction. For breads, the goat cheese and herb naan is so buttery, fragrant, and delicious you may need two orders!

Best Indian Restaurants for an Indian Street Food Experience

Bindaas

Located in Foggy Bottom, Bindaas has an energetic, modern vibe with an awesome street snack menu that is great for ordering in abundance. Highlights include the masala popcorn, the golgappas, crunchy hollow crackers stuffed with yogurt and chutney, and the uttapam, or rice pancakes, regularly eaten in the southern Indian states. The uttapam at Bindaas is perfection – light, fluffy, and slightly crispy around the edges. The tomato and green onion one is our personal favorite!

Bombay Street Food

Since opening in 2019 in Columbia Heights, Bombay Street Food has expanded quickly, becoming a neighborhood favorite in Columbia Heights, Adams Morgan, Capitol Hill, and U Street. Quick, casual, spicy, and reasonably priced are all hallmarks of this Indian food venue, and we immensely enjoy the variety of street food dishes offered, which include samosas, kati rolls, and chaat.

Best Indian Restaurants for a Casual Meal with Friends

Masala Art

This Tenleytown spot offers a warm, comfortable spot to eat classic North Indian fare. Dishes like aloo, which is the Indian word for potato, cooked with curry leaves; kofta, Indian dumplings served in a creamy gravy; and baigan bhartha, a roasted eggplant mashed with spices, are typical Indian dishes that are brimming with the flavors of traditional Indian spices like peppery cardamom, woody cinnamon, and sweet cloves.

Tamashaa

Tamashaa is a fun place in Columbia Heights that offers cocktails and unique Indian dishes to be enjoyed amongst friends. Choose from creative dishes like crispy fried lotus root in a hoisin sauce, drawing upon the popular Indo-Chinese culinary culture in India, amul cheese naan which uses a traditional cheese found only in India, truffle malai broccoli which is a creamy, heady baked broccoli and cheese sauce dish, a gorgeous vegetable laden biryani, and paneer that comes swimming in a sinfully rich saffron sauce. Self-defined as a resto bar, Tamashaa offers a variety of cocktails that are infused with classic Indian flavors, such as a chaat margarita and a kaffir lime gimlet.

Café of India

The venue is simple, but the food stands out because many of the dishes taste like home-cooked Indian fare. Comfort dishes like the tadka dal, made with yellow lentils cooked slowly with turmeric, ginger, garlic, and mustard seeds, are the winners on their menu. Cafe of India also has a creamy mango ice cream that is not to be missed!

Best Indian Restaurants for Fast Casual Indian Food

Rasa

This quickly expanding fast-casual concept features bowls inspired by the flavors and ingredients found in Indian food. There is a rice bowl with eggplant and chickpeas drenched in tamarind ginger chutney, a noodle bowl with green beans and mango chutney, and a bowl with greens, squash, and cumin infused yogurt. You can also choose the make-your-own-bowl option. Rasa, which means flavor in Hindi, has locations in Navy Yard and Mount Vernon Triangle in DC, Fairfax and Arlington in VA, and Rockville, MD.

Spice 6

Spice 6 is a fast-casual venue with locations in Chinatown and Hyattsville, MD. At Spice 6, you can choose a vehicle for your dish, which includes rice, naan, or salad, and then a protein and a curry. One of the most popular combinations is aromatic basmati rice with spinach curry. The curry contains aromatics like ginger, garlic, and spices like cumin and garam masala. The dish is super creamy and will coat every grain of rice. It’s especially tasty with tofu as protein and a healthy drizzle of sweet tamarind chutney. Have a mango lassi on the side, it’s a mango yogurt drink that Indians love!

I hope you enjoyed our Washington, DC, Indian food guide. Let us know which ones are your favorite!

The post Ultimate Indian Restaurant in Washington, DC Guide appeared first on The Dining Traveler.

PLNT Burger’s Save the Bay Fillet

Dare I say it, but Spike Mendelsohn’s PLNT burger has debuted its best veggie burger yet which definitely qualifies as one of this summer’s best vegetarian dishes. The Save the Bay burger is a vegan fish burger that is crunchy, meaty, and features a distinctive seafood flavor profile. Made with Good Catch Food’s crispy fish-free filet, the burger comes on a butter-toasted potato bun with house-made tartar sauce, pickles, and shredded lettuce. It is a satisfying, crispy dream. Be sure to get some onion bloomies or tarragon dusted fries on the side, and a cool strawberry milkshake to wash it all down!

Oyster Oyster’s Corn Soup

This is no ordinary corn soup. The sweetest of baby corn, combined with filet beans and potato, come swimming in a gorgeous chilled peanut broth. It’s cool, it’s refreshing, and it’s brimming with the sweetness of summer. Everything at Oyster Oyster is a dream, whether you are vegetarian or not! It’s definitely one of my favorite vegetarian restaurants in DC. Swing by for a meal that is designed around the season’s best ingredients.

Makan’s Pineapple Curry

Nothing says summer like pineapple, and one of D.C.’s best Malaysian restaurants, Makan, is serving up a savory vegetarian dish where this tropical fruit is the star. You may imagine this dish to be super sweet but in fact, with the addition of warm spices like cloves and cinnamon, and aromatics like ginger and garlic, the dish is heady and savory. Crunchy shallots provide a great texture in contrast to the soft chunks of pineapple, and white rice is served on the side as an accompaniment. Enjoy it with one of Makan’s summery cocktails!

Centrolina’s Ravioli

It is no secret that I love everything Amy Brandwein makes, but her summer dishes are truly my favorite. Her corn and ricotta ravioli, adorned with chanterelle mushrooms and soaked in heady truffle butter, is what heaven tastes like. Centrolina’s menu is full of vegetarian summer dishes, featuring heirloom tomatoes, figs, basil, and other seasonal ingredients.

Karma Modern Indian’s Pesto Paneer

Karma has not one, not two but three paneer dishes on the menu. All three are vegetarian; one is with paneer and saffron, another is with heirloom tomatoes, and the third is with a bold, bright emerald green pesto. I personally love them all but the one with the pesto I order every time. Chewy chunks of paneer come in a doused in the basil pesto, and served in a puddle of sweet and spicy dipping sauce. It’s perfect for sharing, or you can have it all to yourself!

Colada Shop’s Corn Empanada

Sweet and savory at the same time, Colada Shop’s seasonal empanada is a summer corn empanada. This vegetarian dish will keep you happy all summer. Crunchy on the outside and soft on the outside, these empanadas are seriously addictive! Have one with one (or more!) of Colada Shop’s famous pina coladas. Try one at any of Colada Shop’s spots around D.C., Maryland, or Virginia.

The post Vegetarian Dishes You Need to Try This Summer in DC appeared first on The Dining Traveler.

The Vibe

From the moment you enter Imperfecto you will be taken aback by how modern, sleek and upscale this dining venue is. From the all-white marble bar to the shiny floors to the uber-modern light fixtures, this venue is a place to see and be seen. This D.C. restaurant is quite the addition to D.C.’s fine dining scene.

The Food

Of course, this is the most important part of any review. The cuisine. The food at this D.C. restaurant is mediterranean, but with influences from Chef’s native Venezuela. The dishes are as perfect as the setting; full of color and flavor and art. Our meal opened with a stunning plate of burrata, surrounded by dollops of tomato hummus, kumquat syrup, mint pesto, dehydrated grapefruit and crunchy sourdough croutons. The burrata itself was creamy and luscious, and the sauces added sweetness, freshness, and tartness to the dish. From there, I moved on to the crispy cauliflower, which crowned a bed of earthy lentils enrobed in a warm tomato sauce. For my entrée I indulged in the ricotta and harissa ravioli, which came swimming in an almond milk sauces and adorned with sunny egg yolk shavings. The ravioli were oh-so-delicate and basically melted in your mouth. I only wish there were more of them!

The Sweets

Chef Enrique Limardo loves to play with texture, demonstrated most notably in the ricotta crème brulee which is served as a crunchy disc rather than in its more traditional creamy form. The éclair is even more delicious, drenched in a sweet sauce tableside and filled with a decadent mocha filling.

The Drinks

For beverages, I first elected to sample the pampolona, a refreshing mezcal and tequila concoction made with cherry syrup and passion fruit puree. I also tried the coast to coast with gin, grappa, basil syrup and lemon, which was equally as refreshing. Those looking for something strong should get the Double O Seven, a martini which comes with gorgeous, briny Greek olives.

Conclusion

Your wallet will take a hit, but Imperfecto offers a D.C. restaurant fine dining experience not to be missed!

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