For our last brunch before being parents, we went to my current favorite restaurant, Gypsy Soul. I started with a bloody mary with bourbon and pork belly, and then later enjoyed one with scotch and a pickled quail egg (surprisingly delicious).
The pimento cheese was a very good starter.
My dad got the country fried steak, which I’d not had before. I think I’ll have to order it next time I go.
Chef RJ (a very gracious host), came over and talked bourbon with me. He poured me a little Belle Meade, which was excellent. Gypsy Soul uses my favorite brown sauce glasses as well, but I’d expect nothing less from such a classy establishment.
It may be a while before I get back to Gypsy Soul, but I’m excited to take the baby.
by rsiv withHB was craving some pumpkin, so we went to Panjshir for some Kadu Palow. I ordered the chopped kebab, which turned out to be frenched lamb chops on the kebab. They were very good.
by rsiv withWith the birth of my firstborn imminent, the wife and I have been busy trying to not waste a second of freedom. We enjoyed some Chasin’ Tails a while back. Crawfish, oh dang, n’awlins hot, and beignets and chicory coffee for dessert.
On Veteran’s Day, we had lunch at Bonchon. Then later I poured a dram and lit up a pipe by the fire.
Later in the week we went out with Marteen to Nam Viet for the best Vietnamese dish I’ve ever had: Bo Dun on skewer. Its beef rolled around vegetables, that you put into a rice paper wrapper and dip in a sweet honey sauce. Amazing.
My dad had a half cord delivered, but it was a little larger and greener than advertised. A log took a bad hop into my shin, but fortunately I had my Red Wings on, so I barely had a knot to ice when I got home.
Then HB and I enjoyed another brunch at Paladar. I was adventurous enough to try a pumpkin spice mojito that despite being too sweet, worked very well.
by rsiv withFirst things first, get out and vote if you haven’t already!
Next, I want to share the lunch I had earlier today. The wife and I went to Maneki Neko, and I ordered the Halloween roll. The roll was eel and tempura pumpkin, topped with black and orange roe. It was really some of the best sushi I’ve ever had. I generally stay away from sushi that has been fried in any way, but this was definitely a delicious exception. If you’re in the area, check it out before its gone.
I’ve been pretty busy, but I’ll try to catch up on the blog here before too long.
by rsiv withSaturday I pretty much watched football all day. The WVU upset of Baylor was awesome. Sunday was a beautiful day, so I went over to my dad’s place to smoke some pork.
The pulled pork came out great, and we made more of a dent in the huge jug of bbq sauce I made for OGF.
It was a very fall time. The next day, I made a pretty big lunch salad.
Then HB and I went to Caribbean Plate in Falls Church. A Salteña and some yucca fries hit the spot.
by rsiv withOn Monday, HB and I needed to go to Home Depot, so we swung by Merrifield for dinner. We saw a new place was open so we stopped by. As it turned out, it was opening night for Ted’s Bulletin. The decor appears to be sort of a hybrid between a 30-40s steakhouse, and a 50-60s diner. The menu features a who’s who of comfort food, including breakfast anytime. I had the chicken ‘n biscuits. HB had the pot pie special. Both were exceptional. I tried a bourbon, and a vodka based cocktail. Both were delicious. The wife got a malted milkshake which was as rich and decedent as one can imagine. When she’s not pregnant, shes excited to try one of the boozy milkshakes they also offer.
It was pretty cool to see that, like me, Ted’s has a West by God connection. I had trouble deciding on a entree tonight as there were so many enticing options. I can’t wait to go back and try some more.
by rsiv withOn Thursday, the wife and I went to an expectant parents class. Three hours later, I’m a confident expert.
To reward myself for learning so much so quickly, I had some Captain D’s.
Friday around noon, I drove out to Bull Run Shooting Center to get a quick round a clays in. As I found out at the dove hunt, I’m a little rusty. It was misting pretty good, so I went to chick-fil-a to wait out the weather, and enjoy my second round of fast food in as many days.
The weather passed, so I hit the course. I gradually got to where I was shooting pretty well.
Someone must be an incredible archer…
Then my fraternity brother Thom came up from Ptown. I traded him a NLDS ticket for help putting together baby stuff. That night, we went to Spacebar, and then enjoyed some Woodford and a smoke. I commandeered Thom’s tender account, and learned that tinder is fun for maybe five minutes, but then becomes monotonous. Worse still, no one wanted to tell me what they were drinking when Thom matched. Fortunately, Thom’s yacht rock mix consoled me.
The next morning, I made french toast breakfast sandwiches with a side of tots. After all was said and done, I sprinkled some nutmeg and cinnamon on top, and poured a little maple syrup on them. Delicious.
Before breakfast, Thom had already put together a rocker. Afterwards, we put the crib together. Then we headed to the Nats game. We got to the park when the gates opened at 3. I had a ribs, HB had shake shack, and Thom had the DMV.
Closer to game time, you could tell it was a sellout. I went down to give RP his ticket, and then we headed to our seats.
The atmosphere was electric. Everyone was really into the game.
So into the game that we stayed all 18 innings, until the heartbreaker. Since we arrived at 3, we’d been there 9 hours. Pretty amazing considering it was chilly, and the I-talian woman is just about as pregnant as one can be. She was a trooper. We gave RP a ride so he wouldn’t get raped mugged at gunpoint again (true story).
After getting to bed at about 1, we woke up hungry. We headed to Paladar for exceptional food, and bottomless mimosas (three varieties from which to choose). The maple pulled pork was a sweet and savory delight.
And what does one do after bottomless mimosas? Gardening with a Confederate saber.
After some light pruning, we put a pack and play together and installed a dimmer switch (dimmable LEDs are awesome). Having worked up another appetite, we headed to Anthony’s for Linner.
Again Thom, I can’t thank you enough. We got a ton accomplished, and I really appreciate it. I’ll give you a call January-ish about Caps tickets, and the high chair thats currently unassembled in my basement.
After Thom left, I figured out that I was able to stream the Superclásico live. I’m a Boca Juniors fan, but I’m never able to watch their games where I live (though it was on GOL TV, but neither I, no my parents have that channel). Being able to watch the Superclásico, and essentially in HD, was awesome. Here is a link to the site that streamed it; it looks like they show a lot of Argentine Primera División matches. It was made all the more epic due to the torrential monsoon the teams played through. A ball booted at full strength on the ground only made it about 20 yards. A slide tackler could glide for about 15 yards. The weather made for a reckless chaotic spectacle. It was a physical, hard fought game, but there were occasional graceful plays strung together despite the playing conditions. Boca went up early, but then experienced a terrible call. Gago amazingly blocked a shot on the goal line with his head and foot, but the ref called a handball, issued a red card, and penalty kick. Karma intervened, and the penalty went high, but boca had to play the rest of the game down a man. River came back to tie it up, but all in all it was a very fun match to watch.
What an amazing, productive, and action-packed weekend. Thanks again Thom!
by rsiv withOn Saturday, Marteen came over for some fancy beers. We started with some bourbon barrel aged ale from Brooklyn Brewery (a gracious gift from my sister’s boyfriend). Then we headed over to Spacebar. They had some great local Oktoberfest on tap, but the stouts were the standouts to me.
I’m not sure this is possible, but Marteen, you should post that pic you took to the comments and put my photos to shame (Marteen is literally a pro).
The grilled cheeses at Spacebar used to be too greasy for my taste (which is saying a lot, because I love greasy food), but they finally got it together. The bbq sandwich is on point. The totchos have always been delicious. “This dog’ll hunt.”
I like to think Tommy Sietsema is really going around tagging the restaurants he reviews, but I doubt it. Thanks again Marteen for generously picking up the tab. After a couple strong beers, Marteen and I thought it was a great idea to taste almost the entire Buffalo Trace Mashbill #2 line. We started at Ancient Age and worked our way up to Blanton’s. Then I threw on some hipstery tunes, and we bro’d out.
by rsiv withOn Saturday the wife and I decided to go out for a nice brunch. Our social calendar keeps us busy most weekends, and with the baby due in less than two months, we’ve been even busier than usual. We had a rare weekend off so we figured we should take advantage of it. I posted the goofy picture of me above because I get more compliments on that sweater than you could possibly imagine. The South, and ribbing pretentious Ivy Leaguers is quite popular. I must have been stopped five times while we were out. People especially love that not only did I not go to Yale, but I barely got into my in-State safety school. For brunch, we drove over to Merrifield, and went to Gypsy Soul. This was not our first time at Gypsy Soul (see the brief but succinct review of our visit for dinner HERE), but it was the first time we’d tried it for brunch. We showed up a little early, but they graciously seated us anyway, as my wife is too pregnant to stand around in the sun for too long. Chef RJ came over and chatted with us about the baby. He was a great host, and as a father of twin girls, he had some interesting antidotes, advice, and jokes. I ordered a bourbon lancer (sparkling wine, bourbon, and bitters if I recall), which was amazing. It was less acidic than a mimosa, and lighter than a bloody. If it was more common, or easily crafted, I’d say I’ve found my new brunch drink go-to. Unfortunately, the bourbon lancer at Gypsy Soul had the kind of polish that isn’t easy to replicate. The sparking wine and bourbon choices paired very well (I didn’t notice what brand either were), and the orange twist in the glass was surprisingly present on the palate. It reminds me of the Todd Thrasher cocktails I’ve had that, no matter how hard I try, I just can’t quite recreate at home. But oh well, its a good excuse to go back.
Not that I need any more excuses, the chicken skin cracklins with snake oil and roof top honey is just bananas. I saw Chef RJ’s girls enjoying a plate of them over at the bar. I was a little jealous of how well they must eat on a regular basis. As if the cracklins aren’t good enough as is, the roof top honey (from bees that live away from predators on rooftops) is delicious, and the snake oil hot sauce is so good that Chef RJ was waxing poetic about it. He’s not wrong, put all together its an undeniably delicious treat.
The chicken fried chicken livers with waffles, onions, and black pepper gravy. Insane. Chef RJ asked if I wanted an egg thrown on top, which was key. This was about the most rich, decadent, and delicious meal I’d had in a long, long time. A true standout in a field of strong competition (see my Greenbrier trip, or recent visit to the Inn at Little Washington for instance)(Also, WinnDixie, your breakfast skills have been challenged). That said, you really can’t go wrong. The wife had buttermilk blueberry flapjacks with gypsy granola and path valley maple syrup. The blueberries were as juicy as I’ve ever seen, and even though my syrup taste is fairly pedestrian (as I prefer good ‘ol Aunt Jemima or Hungry Jack), I was really digging the maple. I don’t know if this is a regular occurrence or not, but Gypsy Soul was playing some really great bluegrass. I picked out some Carolina Chocolate Drops, but I was mostly unfamiliar as there seemed to be a lot of contemporary bluegrass. I’d love to have the playlist. It really made a great brunch even better.
The portions were so generous that we had plenty leftover for breakfast on Sunday.
I enjoyed some cold brew and king of the hill, while the wife (barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen) heated up our leftovers, and fried up some bacon and eggs.
In summation, if you like southern style food done up a little fancy, and with just enough of a twist (but still true to its roots) to get you intrigued, you’ll love Gypsy Soul. I can’t wait to stop by again.
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The other day I had a very odd but enjoyable lunch. My mom mentioned some babyshower leftovers at her house, and that I should stop by if I had time. I finished up a meeting and work and headed over. As it turned out, my sister and dad were both over there too, so we had lunch together as a family. It was probably the first lunch we’d all had together for years. The food was great and the company was better.
Zeiby Baby was in town, and treated us to free (per diem) Hooters. The only thing better than Hooters wings and domestic big beers is free Hooters wings and domestic big beers. We also hit the fox since they have some new fall beers out. The bourbon barrel stout on cask is definitely worth your time.
On Thursday, my Mom’s company got a suite at the Nats. I watched the end of the first game at home, and then we headed over for the second game of the double header.
Last year I waited until everyone else ate, and didn’t get a hot dog. This time, we ordered bottomless hot dogs.
‘Merica.
Everyone had a great time. We won, and I got to catch up with a lot of folks. Can’t beat a night of baseball with family and friends.
Then this weekend, I finally got around to working on the OGF shirt for this year’s pig roast. Once HW approves it, I’ll put it up for sale.
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