Ray's the Steaks Arlington

Mmmm beeef. For anyone that can appreciate a good cut of beef, this is the place for you. The steaks were absolutely incredible - tender, fresh, cooked perfectly, and seasoned well (without taking away from the meat). Most steakhouses are stuffy and classic - they try hard to preserve that image of elegance, but Ray's is about serving up a good cut of meat, none of that fluff. There's a lot of chatter and the atmosphere is extremely casual - you're in for a nonconventional dining experience. Besides the beef, the sides of mashed potatoes and spinach are fantastic. Seriously creamed spinach? I swear to you, it's to-die-for. And if you end up taking some meat home, they will throw the sides in your container for free! Dinner is about $40, which really isn't bad for steak. I'd do it in a heart beat, but this time around, I didn't have to ;)

4.5/5
No website

Pukk NYC

FABULOUS! Absolutely incredible! This tiny restaurant on 1st between 4th and 5th serves delicious vegetarian thai cuisine for almost nothing. If I could eat the green delight everyday for the rest of my life, I would be happy. Whoever thought boy choy, chinese broccoli and napa could be so unforgettable? It was amazing. I also tried the stuffed tofu, thai pancake, and glass noodle soup. Who can say no when appetizers and soups are just $3-$4? Screw the sangria and wine, eat up! The sauce for the thai pancake captivates that thai flavor that everyone craves - the basil, coconut, lemongrass -mmmmm. For our other entrees, we shared pineapple red curry and massaman curry, both with duck, and both delicious. I'm not one to stick to restaurants because I enjoy sampling too much, but this restaurant will seriously be on my request list for a long time.

4.75/5
http://www.pukknyc.com/

Zaytinya DC

I am so happy to say that Zaytinya did not disappoint! So many expectations and no, everything was not spectacular, but overall it was a delicious meal. I particularly enjoyed the seasonal mushrooms, imam bayildi, the spice rubbed sirloin of beef, and tagine. Not so impressive was the calmari and mahanek. With my limited middle eastern/mediterranean cuisine experience, I believe Zaytinya tries to improve the traditional dishes by incorporating extra ingredients and flavors, which I really appreciated. Also, I expected this meal to make a nice dent in my wallet, but surprisingly, it was not bad at all. For stimulated taste buds and a gratified stomach, $30 is a bargain. I can't wait until I have another group of friends that I can bring to Zaytinya.

4/5
http://www.zaytinya.com/

Rustico Alexandria

Mmmm tasty and wide beer selection. Their pizza is unique and has a lot going for it, only downside - it's definitely got that oil that you despise sitting on top. The ragout was fabulous. Pricey, but definitely different and in a good way.

3.5/5
http://www.rusticorestaurant.com/

Dos Caminos NYC

Since I am sooo backed-up, I'm going to make this short and sweet.

Good food, good flavors - lots of sweet, spicy, and tangy going on, definitely spiced up Tex-Mex. Worth the price? No, not really. I am impressed however that one of the Top Chef contestants this season is the executive chef at Dos Caminos. Sangria was real tasty - it was like punch.

3/5
http://www.brguestrestaurants.com/restaurants/dos_caminos_third_avenue/index.php

Alero U DC

Walking down U Street, and not knowing where we wanted to go for dinner, my friend and I settled on Alero. She thought Mexican/Latin sounded good. The atmosphere of the restaurant was a nice mix of trendy and laid back. We surveyed the drinks first and were impressed with the sangria options. We both ordered a glass of rose sangria, sadly, they were out so I got the red and she got the white. They were both good. The menu had your standard fajitas, burritos, and enchiladas, but it also featured a couple interesting options like duck and crab. I ordered the enchilada con mole poblado and my friend ordered the tacos de cochinita pibil, my original choice. My entree was great. The mole was gooood and I've tried quite a bit of mole. It was a nice balance between sweet and tangy. I loved it. My friend's tacos were tasty, the acidity of the dish definitely made it more memorable. It was a simple meal, but a pleasant surprise and probably one of the better, more interesting, Tex-Mex places I've been to in the district.

3.5/5
http://www.alerorestaurant.com/main.html

Indique DC

So many expectations! My friends and I did a thorough search of DC restaurants until deciding to go to Indique. Indique had been recommended by an Indian acquaintance that also shares a love for food. I always have high expectations when eating out, but this time, my expectations were even higher. Sadly, they were not met. All of the food was good, but none of it great. We ordered the Mussels a la Indique as our starter. Tasty, not fantastic. For my entree, I had the Chicken Chettinad. Surprisingly spicy and very presentable, but jaw-dropping? No. My friends had the Baingan Bhartha, Alu Chole, and Chicken Appam. Everything had great flavor and we all ate too much, but there was nothing that was incredibly delicious. Three of the four of us said we had had better Indian before. I give credit to Indique though, because for once, their entrees were not the same ol' Tikka Masala, Saag, Korma, and Kadai that you can find anywhere. There was a lot more variety at Indique and at times, we felt the flavor mimicked Thai with its sweetness. It was different, which I love. There's no question that I would go back to Indique, but I was hoping for so much more!

3.5/5
http://www.indique.com/Indiquemainpage.html