I went with my parents and grandmother this past Sunday evening to dinner at Al-Tiramisu, which has been at 2014 P St, NW for a little over nine years, and gets consistently good reviews. I

One of my co-workers turned 40 (the horror!) the other day, so today we all took her to City Lights of China for lunch. My feelings about this place have gone up and down over and over for years, and I have to say that today’s experience fit that pattern.
We came in and were seated at a large table at the back, the hostess was very attentive and made sure everyone was comfortable and situated, and happily accommodated our slightly-larger-than-reservation party. Lovely.
Server Number 1 came almost immediately and asked if we wanted tea, which of course we did. Out came two pots of pale, aromatic, smooth Jasmine tea at just the right temperature.
Server Number 2, who had brought the tea, asked if we were ready to order. We were and did. The food came out soon thereafter (carried by Servers 3, 4, and 1), but two of our party had to wait an extra few minutes after the rest got their meals. One of my pet peeves.
I had the Szechwan Beef. The beef was tender and nicely cooked, but the sauce was a tad too sweet, and though marked as “very spicy” on the menu, it was not. Tasty, but nothing special.
The Birthday Girl and The Vegetarian ordered MaPo Tofu, which I always avoid ordering because it’s one of my favorite dishes and so often not good. The sauce was again a bit sweet, and while much spicier than my beef it still did not merit the “very spicy” label. The tofu was also mushy. Oh well.
Another of our number got the Kung-Pao Chicken, which would have been the prize winner of the meal but for a pair of glass shards found within. The hostess was duly distressed by this, and happily replaced the dish (and did not charge for it either). The chicken was tasty, not very spicy but with enough hot peppers around to make it as hot as you might like it, and not greasy or sloppy.
The final dish at our table was sweet and sour chicken. More on the sweet than sour side, and of a color far too reminiscent of traffic cones, this was a yummy plate of near-total inauthenticity (maraschino cherries and all), greasy and sweet. Not High Cuisine, but utterly what its owner wanted when she ordered it.
Our check came immediately when requested, accompanied by lovely fresh oranges and fortune cookies full of nonsensical semi-complimentary bits of advice. Mine was “You have a keen sense of humor and love a good time,” which is true enough.
All in all, it was a tasty lunch, but bits were disappointing enough that I’d just as soon go somewhere less fancy, with lower expectations. I also have no idea why we had so many different servers…it could have gotten confusing had we been less distracted with our own birthday-ish activities.
City Lights of China | http://www.citylightsofchina.com/

As astute readers of our sister site DCSOB know, some of us Smorgasblog writers are on a continual search for the best BBQ in the greater D.C. metropolitan area. Combine that with a lack of BBQ during my last several months outside of the area, and you have the combination for a road trip to Waldorf, MD to finally try the legendary Lefty’s Barbecue. So, last Sunday morning, rj3, zaf, and I all piled into the car to fight the Sunday church traffic rush to rural MD.
Lefty’s is in the heart of a strip mall, about a mile away from a Wal-mart, Sam’s Club, and every other suburban chain store imaginable. The decor is rather unimaginative — benches and chairs straight out of the mid-90s. But we weren’t there for the atmosphere. We were there for the barbecue.
Being from the south, the first test of authenticity for any barbecue restaurant is their Sweet Iced Tea. Sweet Tea is a purely southern phenomenon and if a BBQ joint can’t properly do their iced tea, there is no hope for the actual BBQ. Other than the fact that they offer no free refills on the sweet tea, the tea passed the test, and we waited for the main meal.
RJ3 ordered the North Carolina Pork sandwhich, sliced pork w/ vinegar based sauce. ZAF had the rib platter, and I had the regular sliced pork sandwhich. For sides, we tried the corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, corn fritters, and collard greens.

You’re in true barbecue country when Sundays are “bring in your church bulletin for a discount” days.

Both pork dishes were good, although I’m used to chopped rather than sliced pork. The sandwiches were so full that hand-eating was abandoned for a knife and fork. The ribs were the highlight of the meat course — tender meat, incredibly smoky and flavorful, which fell off the bone. ZAF lost several ribs from her meal to RJ3 and me. When you go to Lefty’s, get the ribs.
The crowning culinary achievement may have been the sides. The mashed potatoes were fluffy, buttery, and everything wonderful a potato can be. The collard greens had just the right mix of green and brown sugar; they were so tasty that I finally convinced my northern companions that properly done collard greens really are the nectar of the gods. And the corn fritters, deep fried corn-and-dough mixtures, we so tasty that zaf kept stealing them off of RJ3s plate.
The consensus is that out of all the BBQ places our crack team has tried, including Rocklands; Old Glory; Dixie Bones; Urban BBQ; Red, Hot, and Blue; and Johnny’s, Lefty’s Barbecue holds the current title of best BBQ in the metro D.C. area. At least, that is, until the next trip.
Lefty’s Barbecue | http://www.leftysbarbecue.com/ | 2064 Crain Highway, Waldorf, MD 20601 |