Top Three of the Best DC Restaurants

Brimming with international flavors thanks to its ethnically diverse population, the capital city of the United States has been offering food lovers an exceptional selection of gastronomical delights for years. Among the many well-known dining establishments in the area, The Inn at Little Washington, Founding Farmers, and L'Auberge Chez Francois, stand out among the rest.

The Inn at Little Washington boasts a reputation for giving its customers not only an unforgettable traveling experience with its quality accommodation, but also a taste of the heavens with its delectable selection of cuisines. Culinary master Patrick O'Connell serves The Inn's diners only the best in Classical French Cuisine, and guests can indulge their taste buds in a wondrously fantastical romantic setting designed for the stars. Diners of this restaurant can choose from a myriad of dining choices which include dishes such as the Chilled Maine Lobster served with Winter Vegetables and Clementine Sorbet, as well as the Curry Dusted Veal Sweetbreads laced with Homemade Apple Sauce, and served with Virginia Country Ham and Pappardelle Pasta.

Much different from The Inn, the Founding Farmers serves its customers only the best in wholesome All-American cuisine. True to its name, the restaurant pays tribute to the hard work of American farming families, from which it receives its supply of only the freshest and highest quality ingredients. Coupled with the talents and skills of its kitchen staff and a comfortable and friendly environment, it is little wonder that this establishment is one of Washington's favorites. Food lovers can indulge in a myriad of dishes such as those from their Signature line-up, which includes the Yankee Pot Roast and Skirt Steak and Enchilada, among others.

Since its opening in the mid fifties, the family owned L'Auberge Chez Francois has long captured the hearts of the locals of DC with not only its delicious French delights, but also with their warm and hospitable service. Its head chef, Jacques Haeringer continues the tradition his father began by serving only the best in French cuisine, such as the Pinot Noir Braised Ribs and Vegetable Puree, and the Matelote of Salmon served with an exquisite White Lobster Sauce. For an exceptional lunch dining experience, diners can treat their taste buds with the fresh filet of Norwegian salmon served with mushrooms, béarnaise sauce and vegetables, as well as the grilled lamb chops garnished with herbs de Provence, tarragon sauce and vegetable medley.

Best Restaurants in San Francisco

The home of the Golden Gate has long been a favorite destination for foodies, local and international alike. With an ethnically diverse community ranging from Europeans and Asians, it is no wonder that San Francisco offers its citizens a huge array of culinary delights to indulge in. Here is a quick look at three of the city's best restaurants.

One of the best and well-known restaurants in the city is the Roam Artisan Burgers. Located at Union Street, this establishment stands by its motto, "made fresh with mindful ingredients", by offering its customers only the best choices for burgers, sodas, shakes and sides. For foodies who are well aware of green practices and sustainable actions, eating at Roam Artisan Burgers allows you to not only enjoy great food, but also to enjoy nutritious and healthy food in an eco-friendly setting. One of the ways the restaurant performs such practices is by using free-range turkey, 100 percent grass-fed beef, all-natural bison and making a wholesome organic veggie burger for vegetarians.

If burgers, sodas and shakes are not really your choice of palate, then foodies can try dining at the famous and widely-acclaimed Lers Ros Thai. Among the establishments many rave reviews, one in particular describes the restaurant as serving "Thai food that makes a statement." Located at Larkin Street, this Thai restaurant serves its customers not only authentic Thai food, but also some exotic dishes for diners with a more adventurous tongue. You can choose to indulge in exotic dishes such as the Pad Ped Alligator, which is alligator stir-fried with in-House-made chili paste. Other highly recommended dishes by Lers Ros include fried tofu, fried quail, green curry, beef salad, duck larb, and not forgetting the house special frog.

If an All-American cuisine and a South-East Asian gastronomical fare do not really satisfy your appetite, then perhaps Zuni Café can do the trick for you. Located at Market Street between Franklin and Gough, this dining establishment has been one of the best in the city since its opening by Billy West in 1979. Like Roam Artisan Burgers, Zuni practices sustainability in its operations by using all-natural ingredients bred in an environmentally-friendly way. If you would like to see a sample of their mouth-watering menus, a browse through their websites will let you see the restaurant's lunch, brunch, afternoon, dinner, dessert and oyster and shellfish menus. Among the choices available for lunch include wild arugula salad, laced with pomegranate seeds, walnuts, mint and sheep's milk ricotta, whereas for dinner, you can enjoy, among many others, the Liberty duck breast served with pesto and marinated beets.

Kickass Cupcakes Review

Today I'm reviewing Kickass Cupcakes, a dessert themed cupcake food truck that delivers scrumptiousness on wheels.

Their main store is in Davis Square, but I prefer to buy my food from moving objects, so I stuck with the truck.

I visited the food truck admits a batch of freezing, nearly-snow-rain in March. You know, just another day in Boston. The cold was quite traumatic since I had just returned from a trip to Florida the day before.

I decided nothing would cure my sorrow like a tasty treat from a truck, which pulls up Wednesdays beside the Christian Science Center near where I work, as well as other locations in the Boston Back Bay area.

You'll find nothing boring or ordinary about these bakery sweets. Kickass Cupcakes has some unique flavors and variety such as:

Mochiatto: Chocolate cupcake with caramel center and mocha frosting

Mojito: Rum cupcake with lime frosting and mint

Peanut Butter Cupcake: Peanut butter cupcake with chocolate chips and chocolate ganache and roasted peanuts

Red Velvet: Cocoa cupcake with cream cheese frosting

You'll find vegan cupcakes, gluten free cupcakes, and even cupcakes for furry companions, so Fido doesn't feel left out. They even have deep fried cupcakes for the brave souls among us.

Tasting the Red Velvet

I decided to go with the Red Velvet cupcake. I rushed the precious desert up to my office, determined to enjoy it in peace and comfort.

The cupcakes are somewhat petite, a great snack size, although a bit steep at $3 for such a small helping. Perhaps the price is fair for these all-natural delicacies, although I'd feel worlds better if they were just a bit cheaper.

I found the cake itself to be good, a bit dry though. Despite the less than amazing cake, the frosting pulled through, and then some.

I'm not much of a frosting gal. In fact, I'll often wipe it off birthday cakes, finding it sickeningly sweet. But the cream cheese frosting on the red velvet cupcake was superb. Immediately I was drooling for more - thankfully they offer $1 frosting shots, to keep the party going.

Bak Kut Teh

Bak kut the is a Chinese soup that is popular in Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Riau- an Indonesian island. The one intriguing factor that makes people stay at Klang is this dish. The food lovers scrutinize each and every ingredient of this dish especially the herbal taste in the soup.

Bak kut the is a soup based dish comprising of different cut pork meats that are simmered in a broth of spices and herbs. In addition some ingredients like offal, varieties of mushrooms, choysum and fried tofu can be added. There are some Chinese herbs that are added to the dish to give it more flavors. There is a fragrant soup that is prepared with medicinal herbs and makes this dish worth eating. It is usually served with steamed rice and escorted by a cup of Chinese tea.

The origin of the dish has a historical background. During 19th century, Chinese who started to live in Malaysia managed to follow the recipes of their ancestors with some additional ingredients and thus set up their life approach. Bak Kut Teh becomes the signature dish of Chinese in these regions. Mostly Chinese in the Southeast Asia employed as labors and a healthy breakfast t is generally demanded because of the hard working nature of the job. That's how the dish was conceived. The exceptional taste as well as the medicinal herbs made it very popular. The recipe was passed to afterward generation and they further add in the taste, that is how it is appreciated by Malaysians as well as by the Singaporeans.

Most of the people are not familiar with the fact that there are two versions of Bak Kut Teh. One version if from Klang and the second one is from KL. The former one is served with thick soup while KL is light in taste. This dish is eaten in breakfast usually and is one of the traditional dishes served in Malaysia. Chinese donut is also served with this dish as a side dish. The taste of this dish is very unique like a combination of tea leaves and flavored soya sauce. Mostly you experience a sweet and sourly taste. The rich aroma and delicious serving makes it worth eating. You can have it either with rice or only with soup.

The best places from where it is selling in its best way are in the local streets. People also prefer it because of its healthy contents; the Chinese medicinal herbs are liked by most of the diet conscious persons as they have valuable health benefits. While visiting Malaysia, you should make it a point to taste Bak Kut Teh. 

Singapore Noodle Salad

Singapore's cuisine is influenced by Chinese, Indian, Indonesian, Malay, and western cuisines. There are also traces of Middle Eastern and Thai recipes in there. The cuisine of Singapore is probably most similar to Malaysian food because the two countries have deep historic ties. A lot of dishes are shared between the two nations, although preparation methods differ a bit.

Singapore is quite a small country and the population is large, which means that most food and produce is imported since there is not much space for farmland or agriculture. There are however a few farmers who produce poultry, fish, fruit and leafy vegetables. The country is well connected with sea transport and air routes so importing many kinds of food is not a problem.

One of the most famous Singaporean recipes has to be Singapore noodles and if you fancy making a salad instead of a hot dish, the following recipe is traditionally Singaporean and really flavorful. The various vegetables add color and flavor and the sesame seeds, garlic, chili sauce, chives, sherry and more add plenty of flavor. You can serve this in small portions as an appetizer or larger ones as a side dish to go with a marinated steak recipe or something similar.

Before you baulk at the lengthy ingredients list, rest assured that this is a fantastic tasting and impressive recipe and it is well worth making. Use spaghetti-style Chinese noodles for this dish.

What you will need:

• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1 head broccoli, in 1 inch florets
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 lb dried noodles
• 2 teaspoons white sugar
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 lb asparagus, in diagonal 1 inch pieces
• 1 tablespoon dry sherry
• 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
• 1/4 cup minced scallions
• 1 red bell pepper, in thin slices
• 2 tablespoons minced chives
• 1 cup bean sprouts
• 2 tablespoons finely minced ginger
• 1 minced clove garlic
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 cup thinly sliced shiitake or button mushrooms
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Chinese chili sauce

How to make it:

Toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet until they are golden brown and fragrant; this will take about a minute. Cook the noodles in boiling salted water for a few minutes until they are tender. Separate them with a fork and drain them. Toss them with the vegetable oil.

Boil the broccoli for a few minutes until it is al dente, and then chill it in a bowl of ice water until cold. Drain it. Cook the asparagus in boiling water for a minute or two, then chill it in the ice water and drain it.

Bring the stock to a boil over a medium high heat, then take it off the heat and stir in the vinegar, sesame oil, peanut butter, soy sauce, sugar, sherry, garlic, toasted sesame seeds, scallions, ginger and chili sauce. Toss the noodles with the vegetables. Add the dressing and toss well. Chill for half an hour. Sprinkle the chives on top and serve. 

Malva Pudding

Almost every restaurant in Cape Town has Malva Pudding on its dessert menu. It is one of those ubiquitous dishes that one has to side-step diplomatically, as a tour manager organising menus for a week of dinners for clients on walking holidays. If you're not careful you could end up with a gastronomic tour of Cape Town's Malva Puddings! That's not to say that it is not a good dessert choice. It is rich, delicious and indulgent and has to be tasted at least once on a gourmet tour of Cape Town. Along with many other traditional South African dishes it gives a nod to the Netherlands for its origins. Essentially a rather homely baked cakey pudding, its restaurant version soaks itself in a rich, creamy sauce to take on a mantle of decadence, while elegant versions serve themselves up with a few poached apricots alongside too.

No-one seems to know where the name Malva pudding came from - suggestions range from a traditional accompaniment of Malvasia wine, a heavy dessert wine, to a woman named Malva creating it back in the mists of time.

I tried out my sister-in-law's recipe to make a dessert to follow our Sunday lunch of roast chicken and roast potatoes. Hers is a home version rather than restaurant one and gives details for the cake without drenching it in the creamy sauce. It produces a comforting cross-between steamed pudding and cake, with a tantalising hint of the apricot jam that flavours it and a pleasing, almost caramelly overtone. It is served warm with custard and cream alongside. Leaving out the stage of drenching it with the sauce makes it a lot less rich and calorific, but does mean that you can eat a lot more of it!

Malva Pudding Recipe

Serves 6-8

1 heaped tablespoon butter

3 heaped tablespoons apricot jam

1 egg

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

½ cup sugar

½ cup milk

Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the beaten egg and jam and beat together. Add the dry ingredients and milk alternately and stir into the mixture. Pour the batter into a greased round dish approx 21cm / 8 inches. Cover either with a lid or tinfoil and bake at 180C / 375F for 30 minutes until the top is browned and a skewer comes out clean. Serve warm with custard and cream.

If you would like to try the rich and more traditional version of Malva Pudding, and I think it should be done once in a while, here is a recipe for the sauce to drench it in as soon as it leaves the oven.

Sauce

1 cup cream

4oz / 100g butter

½ cup sugar

60 ml hot water

Warm together the ingredients until the butter has melted and the sugar dissolved and pour over the pudding as it comes out of the oven. You can prick holes in the top to help the sauce soak in.

With the sauce incorporated into the Malva Pudding you hardly need anything else to accompany it, the cream being already inside! Just for appearances' sake though you might like to serve it with a conservative dollop of vanilla ice cream, or a few poached apricots and a drizzle of cream. The other compromise is to reserve some of the sauce to serve alongside the pudding rather than letting the whole amount soak in. 

Traditional South African Recipe - Potjiekos

Each country has its own traditional recipes, and more than likely the ingredients are pertinent to the food available in that particular country. The fresh ingredients would probably be the fruit or vegetables grown in that country and are easily available through the seasons of the year. This South African recipe, 'Potjiekos', that uses all of the local ingredients to South Africa, is traditionally an outdoor meal, often prepared in a heavy cast iron pot over a fire. The name 'potjiekos' means 'potjie' which is pot and 'kos' means food. Food in a pot. The end result is similar to the more commonly known beef or lamb stew. But it seems that the flavour is enhanced because of the pot. Somehow it seems to keep all of the flavours and is quite different to the conventional way of preparing a stew.

The pot is made from cast iron and is very heavy. It's belly pot design seems to prevent the moisture from boiling out. It has a swing handle that drops down at the side of the pot and is design to take the heat of the open fire with it simmering away for two or three hours. The belly pot often has three cast iron legs where one can simply stand the pot over the fire, or you may hang the pot over the fire by the handle. Either way you have to use an oven glove or tea towel to lift the handle or the lid as they both become exceptionally hot. The Potjie' has to be stirred, preferable with a wooden spoon every so often to prevent the mixture from burning at the bottom. This should be done with a wooden spoon so as not to break up the dumplings.

The recipe calls for beef or lamb, onions, carrots, some peas,which is optional,seasoning, and dumplings, made from a regular dumpling recipe of flour and suet. The onions and meat are fried until brown. Finally add the rest of the ingredients listed in the recipe, add enough water to just cover the meat and vegetables and simmer for a couple of hours.