Author Archives: Evan

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Mailbag: Birthday Indian Dinner Edition!

Evan February 7, 2013

I’m looking for a nice-ish Indian restaurant for my birthday dinner with my parents this Friday.  Where would you recommend?

Oh man, I wish you hadn’t said THIS Friday, because all I want to do is send you to Rasika (or the sister restaurant Rasika West End) where you’ll spend slightly more money but have one of the best meals in Washington, DC. Unfortunately, reservations for a Friday night are hard to get a month in advance, let alone a couple of days, so you’re going to have to go elsewhere.

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The Morning Roundup

The Morning Roundup 2/5/2013

Evan February 5, 2013

Hello world! Only one deal for you this morning, but if you work near Farragut Square you should be pretty happy.

Must-Buy: Today’s Groupon for either $6 for a meal for one or $12 for a meal for two at Naan & Beyond is the perfect lunch deal: a good amount of food at a real cheap price.  For $6 a person, you get a naan sandwich of your choice, masala chips, and a mango lassi to wash it down.  If you work anywhere within walking distance of Naan & Beyond, there’s no reason not to buy this.

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The Morning Roundup

The Morning Roundup 01/29/2013

Evan January 29, 2013

Good morning! Some good restaurants on our radar today; unfortunately, the deals themselves aren’t always quite so hot. Here’s what we got today.

Must-Buy: Groupon continues its run of 2012’s best deals with today’s offer of $20 for $40 of food at Lebanese Taverna, and once again we’ll declare you should absolutely take advantage. This place serves up some delicious Lebanese food, and $40 is enough to cover two entrees.  The only downside? The deal only applies to the Bethesda location, meaning a bit longer trip up the Red Line than if you could visit their Woodley Park spot. 

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The Morning Roundup

The Morning Roundup 1/24/2013

Evan January 24, 2013

Hello! Apparently, today is “Repeats from 2012” day on the dealz sites (with the exception of Scoutmob), so we’ll follow along and give the exact same advice we did in 2012. The good thing is, our advice is to get these deals ASAP!

Must Buy: A lot of the time you’ll see deals that exclude Happy Hours. Today’s Google Offer goes the other way. $12 for $24 to Cafe Citron (1343 Connecticut Ave., NW) only valid during happy hour. Now this is likely the only time I would go to Cafe Citron (the prices are pretty high), so this is a killer deal.

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The Morning Roundup

The Morning Roundup 01/17/2013

Evan January 17, 2013

One deal for you this morning, and it’s aimed at a pretty specific group of people, which means for only the second time ever we’re breaking out the rare Must Buy/Fifty-Fifty Combo rating.  Here you go.

Must Buy/Fifty-Fifty: Are you a vegan? Do you frequently dine with a vegan? Are you trying to impress a vegan?  Then you’ll absolutely want to drive up to Soul Vegetarian Restaurant near Howard University and take advantage of today’s Scoutmob for $5 off food or smoothies. Everyone else?

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Bargain Bites

Tortilla Cafe

Evan January 16, 2013

If I were to make a list of the places I’ve eaten at most in DC, Tortilla Cafe would easily be in the top three. The Mexican-Salvadoran restaurant, located in Capitol Hill just across from Eastern Market, may have the most reasonable menu in the District. With nothing above $9, most things below $7, and pretty much everything good to eat, Tortilla Cafe should be in everyone’s regular rotation.

Let’s start with breakfast. A stack of pancakes and egg? Only $4.25, and perfectly tasty, if nothing spectacular.

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The Morning Roundup

The Morning Roundup 01/15/13

Evan January 15, 2013

Good morning! Only one deal for you today, and oy do I have mixed feelings about it.

 

Fifty-Fifty: Oh man. Based on the recent reviews of Nage in Dupont Circle, today’s Livingsocial deal would be an easy, no-brainer, absolute must-buy if I was rating it on the food alone.  The problem here? $20 for $40 just isn’t going to cut it for dinner for two, unless you’re willing to narrow your choices to only the least expensive entrees and forgo the delicious-looking appetizers and desserts.  Definitely pick this up if you’re looking for a $20 discount on a delicious dinner in Dupont, but if you need your deals to cover the whole price, this is unfortunately one to skip.

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The Morning Roundup

The Morning Roundup 01/11/13

Evan January 11, 2013

Friday! We made it! And there are a lot of deals out there. Here we go:

Must-Buy: Even though it’s out in Falls Church, today’s Google Offer for three courses at 2941 for only $50 is fantastic.  For an upscale, occasion restaurant like this that’s turning out some delicious food, you’re not going to do much better.  Pick this up immediately, and start planning a special night out.

Fifty-Fifty: I’m not particularly thrilled about an offer for Cafe Luna in Dupont, but the value of LivingSocial’s deal of $42 for a three course meal for 2 plus a glass of wine each is too high for me to make it an avoid. 

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The Cook's Books

The Cook’s Books: Clementina Russo, Open Door Dining

Evan January 9, 2013

Today’s The Cook’s Books is brought to you by Clementina Russo, the woman behind the always delicious Open Door Dining. Go here and sign up to receive invitations to her Friday night dinners: trust me, you won’t regret it. 

My favorite cookbook is Italian Regional Cooking by Ada Boni. It is the best, most comprehensive and authentic Italian regional cooking book ever printed, and it is out of print. You can find copies on Amazon; if anyone is actually really interested in the diversity of Italian food, then this is the source to tap.

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The Morning Roundup

The Morning Roundup: 01/08/13

Evan January 8, 2013

It’s good to be back! Here’s what we’ve got today.

Fifty-Fifty: Scoutmob’s $25 for $50 worth of Cuban food at Cubano’s is a pretty good deal.  The restaurant gets solid reviews from Yelpers and the Washington Post, and that $50 will cover dinner for two, although you’ll likely have to spend out of pocket to get drinks as well.  The downside? It’s up in Silver Spring, which isn’t the most appealing destination for most DC residents.  At only a 6 minute walk from the metro, though, this is still a viable option.  

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