Lunchtime Links for August 31st, 2009

• Q-tips Contest: Enter to win a weekend in NYC.
• What a Winner: Filed in the "Glad I wasn't on this date" category.
• Youth Knows No Pain: Catch B's sister's documentary on HBO tonight!
• Elvis' Banana Pudding: Courtesy of Cakespy.
• Omg.. Cake Shake: From Squareburger in Philly.

Restaurant Week Review: Zola Restaurant

We tried out Zola Restaurant on Friday night during DC Restaurant Week. I've been to Zola before but only to the bar, so I was looking forward to eating in the dining room. They offer the entire regular menu for RW, which I really liked. Sometimes you feel like you're not getting a real sense of a restaurant during RW because they offer a separate menu during that time with limited choices, so getting to choose from the entire menu was a nice plus.

The dining room was comfortably crowded, and we got a booth with high-back cushion seats which helped to mute out some of the other conversations around us. Everyone loved the butter that came with the bread, probably moreso than the bread itself, haha.

Seared Raw Tuna: avocado, mango, chilis, grilled frisee, taro strands

I got the tuna appetizer to start, seen in the photo above. Great flavors, didn't really taste much of the mango though, now that I think about it. The taro strands added a nice crunchy texture to the otherwise "soft" components.

Corn "Fed" Beef: Valentine Miller Farms beef loin and rib with corn puree, caramelized kernels and spoonbread.

For my entree I got the corn "fed" beef, medium rare. The beef was very tender, cooked a little too long to about a medium but that's ok. The spoonbread and corn kernels were really delicious- I love fresh corn in the summer!

"Pink Lemonade": strawberry mousse, lemon curd and candied lemon peel.

For dessert I got the Pink Lemonade. It was light, smooth, and true to the fruit flavors. The lemon especially was tart and the whole dessert wasn't overly sweet, in a good way.

Mud Pie: espresso-kahlua freddo, oreo brownie bourbon-pecan butterscotch.

Not a great photo, but here is T's Mud Pie, looked more like a chocolate bomb but it was tasty, with a strong espresso taste.

Overall, a great night of eats at Zola. I think we all agreed that the appetizers and desserts were their strong suits- more adventurous choices with the components, and a lot stronger flavors overall with all of our choices, compared to the entrees. It also makes sense that it's a very lounge-y type place to begin with- maybe more people order the small plates in general, so they are more stronger with those? Either way, a strong showing by Zola, showing us how good trying out a new place during Restaurant Week can be.

Zola
800 F Street NW
Washington, DC 20004
http://zoladc.com
Reservations: 202.654.0999 or through OpenTable.

Review: Honey Kix Cereal

Side Note: I heart the Horizon Jumping Cow. So cute.

• I Paid: $2.50 (2/$5.00 sale at Giant)
• Description: Kid-Tested, Mother-Approved!

I bought the Honey Kix cereal on a whim, since I have liked regular Kix cereal since I was young, and I like most honey-named cereal (Honey Bunches of Oats, Honey Nut Cheerios). I figured I couldn't really go wrong with this Honey Kix.

I'll keep this pretty short since there isn't much to say about this cereal. It tastes JUST LIKE REGULAR KIX CEREAL. The only discernable difference is the color- they look toasted, like a "caramelized Kix", if you will. If I ate this blindfolded I would think it was regular Kix cereal. Maybe this so-called Honey Kix is just the burnt rejects from the regular Kix assembly line?

Final Verdict? If you like regular Kix, you will like this, since THEY ARE THE SAME THING. If you like regular Kix and your supermarket is out/the Honey Kix is on sale, you might as well pick this up since it's basically the same.

Lunchtime Links for August 28th, 2009

• Real Housewives of Atlanta: EW website's recap of last night's episode.
• Project Runway: EW website's recap of last night's episode.
• Healthy-ish Muffins: Review of a Vitamuffin mix. Love the frozen pre-made ones, personally.
• Top Chef Vegas: Grub Street's recap of this week's episode.
• Top Chef Vegas: Recap from The Kitchn.

Lunchtime Links for August 27th, 2009

• Lunchbags etc.: The Kitchn's list of cute lunch-carriers.
• Top Chef Vegas: Recap from EW.
• Project Runway: Past design highlights.
• This is Why You're Fat: Not a new site but still funny (or gross, depending on who you are).
• Go Meat!: Passive-agressive notes never disappoint.

Lunchtime Links for August 26th, 2009

• Gossip Girl: Season 3 info.
• Entenmann's Pound Cake: 5 things to do with one.
• Coffee Cake: No, a literal cake with coffee in it. Looks so good!
• Momofuku: Info on the upcoming Momofuku Midtown location.
• Guy Fieri: Looooove Food Network Humor, haha.
• These Poor Dogs!!: Crazy Poodle "designs".

Review: Hank's Oyster Bar, Round 2

After being DENIED at Hello Cupcake, we figured we'd make the most of coming out to Dupont and go to dinner at Hank's Oyster Bar. Quite the derailment of plans, considering all I was planning on was a free cupcake, but hey, it was close and not crowded, count me in.

Grilled Baby Octopus, Sliced Baby Potatoes

We started with one of the daily small plate specials, grilled baby octopus with sliced baby potatoes. I thought the octopi were decent, charred well, had a nice chew without being like a piece of old Bubble-yum (not a fan of too-chewy octopi). The potatoes were undercooked so I didn't eat them after the first bite.

Fried Oyster Platter, Coleslaw, Fries

For my entree: A Monstrosity of fried-ness. I love oysters, but I definitely didn't think this one through well enough. Eating 2 or 3 fried oysters is one thing, but having a GIANT plate of them is another. Also, it's not like taking them home would be that great since they are fried. Tasted great, but I wouldn't get this again unless I was with 4 other people that all loved fried oysters and wanted to split this, haha. The coleslaw (which you can't even see under the oysters at the top of the photo haha), was really good, vinegar-based, not mayo-based.

Fish Tacos

T got another daily special, the fish tacos, which came in what I believe is the Wal-mart silver letter holder/organizer... why do I say this? Because I had the EXACT same one in college, haha. It was a cute presentation though, and really good for holding the tacos intact. The fish tacos came with fresh salsa, avocado, and crema.

Finished off the meal with complimentary chocolate pieces, it was overall a tasty meal that made me feel less angry about traveling to Dupont to be denied a free cupcake.