Mt. Vernon has long been considered (by me at least, but I am sure other people agree) the ethnic food epicenter of Baltimore. Within three blocks there is Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Afgahni, Italian, American fusion, and a number of other different cuisines. While this may be normal for DC, it is very exciting for Baltimoreans, members of a city more known for its drug and homicide rates rather then its food.
Dukem, an Ethiopian restaurant on 1100 Maryland Ave. is an impossibly crowded place that will definitely give the other ethnic restaurants competition. Ethiopian cuisine largely consists of interesting stews served on fluffy, pancake-like bread called injera. Generally the injera acts as the plate, and also as the method by which the food is conveyed to the mouth. One picks up some injera, scoops up some tasty lentils or lamb or beef stews, and pops the entire thing in the mouth.
At Dukem, the best option is to get the vegetarian or meat combination platters which give a little taste of everything. Particularly delicious are the lamb wot and beef tibs among the meats, and the spicy split lentil and shiro among the veggies. The food is spicy, though the degree tends to depend more on chance then anything. However, it is delicious, authentic, and the Kenyan beer, Tusker, is also not to be missed.
Dukem
1100 Maryland Ave
Baltimore, MD
410-385-0318

While I was away, it seems Logan Circle became the happening place for restaurants. Or so the word on the street goes. High on the list of “must try” restaurants was Logan Tavern, with its reputation for home-style comfort foods, like fried chicken, mac ‘n’ cheese, and meatloaf. So, with high hopes for an 8 p.m. dinner on Saturday night, we made our way down to Logan Tavern, directly across from the Whole Foods on the corner of 14th & P St in Logan Circle — or, as the real estate agents like to call it, Dupont East.
Logan Tavern was packed full on Saturday night. They don’t take reservations for parties of less than 6, so upon our arrival, we spent about 45 minutes at the bar, drinking down incredibly alcoholic concoctions, like a Caipirinha that was all alcohol and almost no sugar, and a blueberry mojito, which had fresh blueberries floating it in but no blueberry taste. The restaurant is mostly booths, with a few large tables in the center.
We were seated at the front of the restaurant at a large booth. It took about 10 minutes before we were given bread and our drinks. In fact, the service throughout the evening was slow, although our waiter fully made up for it in character. The only thing our waiter had more of than tattoos were opinions, largely about the food. And, to be fair, he was right on all counts. Though we’d be recommended the “comfort foods” at Logan Tavern, we were quickly steered away. The fried chicken was, we were told, “boneless, skinless chicken breasts thrown in a deep fat fryer,” and the meatloaf was “meatloaf, like you could make at home.” Instead, he recommended we try the pork, the seafood stew, the steak, or the fish. If there’s anything we’ve learned in our year and a half of food blogging, it’s that when a waiter offers suggestions, you better listen.
We started our meal with two appetizers, Baby Back Ribs w. Honey-Hoisin Glaze and Buffalo Shrimp w. Blue Cheese Sauce . Both were fantastic. The ribs were succulent and the meat fell off the bone, as ribs should. The buffalo shrimp were large and the buffalo sauce was mixed together with cheese, creating a think sauce that was so good we got extra bread to dip in it. Through the rest of the meal was excellent, I’d say the appetizers are by far the best food in the house. Entrees all come with salad or soup, so we each had a house salad as our second course. The salad was fine but nothing spectacular and the soup didn’t sound especially interesting.
For dinner, I had the pork chop special, an incredibly thick pork chop served with garlic mashed potatoes and apple sauce. The pork chop was excellent, as was the mashed potatoes. The apple sauce was, well, apple sauce. There’s really not much you can do to apple sauce. I’d definitely recommend it. One of my dining companions had the Roasted Pork Loin in Sweet Asian Mustard on our waiter’s recommendation and said it was divine. The other had the Grilled Salmon, which she said was great, too, although by that point her Caipirinha and wine had left her a bit tipsy, so I wouldn’t trust her recommendations. We passed on dessert, although they looked incredible.
The only downside to the evening was the speed the food came out. It took a very long time between ordering and the delivery of the appetizers and an equally long time between the appetizers and the main course. Once they get those wrinkles worked out, though, I can see it being an excellent neighborhood restaurant.
Total bill for three people, including wine, two appetizers, and three mains, was about $110 before tip, not including our alcoholic concoctions before the meal.
Logan Tavern is part of another D.C. trilogy of restaurants, eatwelldc. The other two are Merkado Kitchen, directly next door, and Grillfish, at 1200 New Hampshire Avenue.
Logan Tavern
1423 P St. NW
Washington DC 20005

-AMG

Every American has said one of the following at some point:
‘In India , they must eat a lot of different veggie burgers, because, get this, they don’t eat cow!’
‘Hey, I hear the ones In Israel are Kosher’
‘Did you know they have wine at the ones in France! Wine!’
It’s important to say those lines as though this was the most outrageous thing to ever happen to food, for the different items served at McDonalds in other parts of the world is the stuff of rumor and legend
Perhaps it’s because McDonalds is such an American institution. The idea of an alternate menu is like Halloween-themed breakfast cereal. Cute, maybe even collectable, but ultimately viewed with amused condescension. Heh, those crazy French guys sure do like their wine.
Anyway, enough philosophy. Here is the definitive list of what those insanely crazy eaters in other countries would prefer with their fries:

When I dream of Brazil, which is often, I think of deep fried pastries, thick bean stew, and gorgeous dark-haired chicks in the type of clothing I’d reserve for a FUD edible body-topping test (volunteers?). So it’s unfortunate that when Churrascaria of Rockville dreams about Brazil, they think of lumps of meat heated up till they turn brown.
A large dining room, where the décor can only be described as ‘eighties yacht club’, is the scene for this culinary oddity. For a surprisingly high price, each overawed soccer family and aging tourist gets all they can eat Braziliana: A large, lackluster buffet of cold pasta salad, canned corn, and dubious shellfish, and a hot one with traditional Brazilian fare like ‘lasagna’ and ‘oily chicken’.
But that’s alright because the real point of this meal is Meat Lumps. They’re carried on long spits, three at a time or as whole steaks skewered through the middle. It floats by on barges, servers at the ready with knife and fork. Some of it is very nice. But the vast majority I found fatty, rubbery, and overcooked. A piece of wood painted red and green sits at each table. Green means bring on the roast beef, lamb kabab, and ribs, red means for the love of god, don’t.
Every once in a while, conversation stops so that the servers can sing happy birthday to a giggling Midwesterner. It’s that kind of restaurant, the kind that’s only one step away from the deadly ‘hi my name is Jen and I’ll be your server tonight’. I highly recommend it if you have an aging aunt from Minnesota. She’s sure to say things like ‘cute’ and ‘exotic’. Otherwise, I’m still at a loss to figure this place out at all.
Greenfield Churrascaria
1801 Rockville Pike
301 8813397