Ice Ice Baby

I'm not from the east coast. I'm just a good ol' midwesterner who knows and loves her ice cream Yet, when I moved out to DC I kept hearing about this mythical thing known as "water ice" from all of my friends from New Jersey and Philadelphia. I found the term to be a bit repetitively redundant considering water that is frozen is ice, but then again what do I know.

Well, last week a Rita's Water Ice opened just a few blocks away from me on H Street, meaning that I could no longer deny the existence of this supposedly amazing dessert. So on Monday night, after we hit 100 degrees in the District, I decided to take a little walk down the street to reward myself for surviving the heat (and give myself a reason to continue to deal with it).

Rita's first location opened in 1984 in Philadelphia, and has been expanding ever since. This small Italian ice concept has won the hearts (and taste buds) of people across the country. And, as of last night I am a convert as well. At Rita's they not only serve the Italian ice in the traditional way, they also serve it sandwiched between vanilla custard or blended with the custard. Holy gelati is that stuff good! The staff at the Rita's on H Street were friendly and helpful. I couldn't make up my mind about what to get, so the man behind the counter allowed me to try about half the flavors they had. I also was sad that they no longer had the famous "Alex's lemonade," so they gave me a coupon to come back and try it for free!

I walked away with Island Infusion (it had hints of mango, pineapple and peaches) and vanilla custard and the person I was with had the black cherry with custard. We both agreed that it incredibly refreshing while still being light on the stomach. When I threw out my regular sized cup I felt like I had just had the perfect sized summer treat.

Country Club Living

The Washingtonian recently published its annual "Best-Of" issue. There were the usual 'bests' including cupcakes, golf courses and the best tailor. As I'm sure you can expect, I was most interested in the best places to eat. So, when skimming the magazine's pages for potential double-date locales, I took the advice of the Washingtonian readers and made a reservation for 4 at H Street Country Club.

Before the doors of H Street Country Club first opened in 2009, there was no where to play mini-golf inside the district. If you wanted to enjoy some friendly competition - and maybe some flirting - while lining up the perfect putt, you would have to get in a car, drive somewhere and probably play behind whiny kids. Luckily, that is no longer the case. At this country club you can rest assured that everyone is 21 or over, that the food will be more sophisticated than french fries and the drinks will include some adult beverages - sounds like the makings of a perfect date to me.

The creative mind behind the Mexican-influenced food is Chef Ann Cashion, a James Beard Award winner. Her fresh and authentic cuisine is executed by Pablo Cardoso. Between the four of us, we were able to sample a number of the dishes off the menu and more than a couple of the specialty drinks. (Full disclosure: we had a LivingSocial deal that helped pay for all the food that we ordered). We started with the calamari, which was battered and fried to perfection. I am not one for spicy foods, but it was a nice change of pace to have hints of chiles coming through to give the flavors a bit more depth.

The two boys at the table chose to order the lamb enchiladas for their main course, and I think both of them were about ready to leave their significant other's cooking behind for the juicy and tender meat. My good friend chose to try to Steak Tampiqueno, which was outstanding. The skirt steak was marinated with lime juice and served with all the proper 'upscale' fixings - including guacamole and rajas. Following dinner, my boyfriend commented that "the first surprise [of the evening] was that there was Mexican food on the menu in the first place. The second surprise was that it was good quality Mexican food." Yes, some of the main dishes on the menu can be a bit pricey, but they do offer happy hour specials every night weeknight and on Tuesday nights they offer $1 tacos. Not too shabby...

But what sets H Street Country Club apart (read: what makes it such an amazing place to take a date) is its Washington-inspired, indoor 9-hole mini golf course. The sites, people and jokes of the beltway are all at your feet. I honestly don't think I know a single person who doesn't enjoy a good game of mini-golf (especially if they can have drinks served to them on the course). It's a great way to hang out with a date without feeling the pressure to keep a conversation going for a full evening, but it's also a great activity to spice up an evening with your significant other or friends. A quick word to the wise - the later it gets the more crowded the course gets. I would recommend putting your name in at the "caddy shack" when you arrive and head downstairs to play some skeeball while you wait. For some, my boyfriend included, that is the most exciting thing the Country Club has to offer. They even have skeeball leagues throughout the year.

Oh - one more tip: don't forget your camera. You will want to capture the (inevitably) hilarious evening in photos so you can show your friends what a great time you had. And, lest we forget, golf is the path to enlightenment.

image: culturemob.com

Living Dangerously

Restaurants keep popping up on H Street like tulips in the spring time. I feel like every time I turn around, there is a new place to try in the Atlas District. Believe me, I'm not complaining. Now that it is nicer out I can easily walk there, get something to eat and walk back without feeling too guilty.

The first time I heard about Dangerously Delicious Pies I was watching Best Thing I Ever Ate on the Food Network when Duff Goldman (of Ace of Cakes fame) was talking about his favorite guilty pleasure - the Baltimore Bomb. It has a sweet vanilla custard and is filled with Berger Cookies, a local Baltimore speciality. Not long after seeing that episode I found out that Dangerously Delicious was opening a location in DC, not far from my apartment. Mind you, this was back in the winter, so it has been quite some time since the original opening date. After an "elaborate maze of red tape" (courtesy of the DC government) this pie mecca is finally open for business.

Chef Rodney came up with the idea for the original Dangerously Delicious Pies 10 years ago when he realized that rock and roll wasn't going to pay the bills forever. But he realized that "pies could pay for rock and roll." The small storefront certainly is rocking. You walk in and just know that you have arrived someplace unlike any other. The temptingly luscious smells of pies and quiche waft out of the oven - bringing a sharp contrast to the many pie-and-crossbones designs that grace the interior decorations.

The shop serves sweet and savory pies which cater to all dietary needs, including vegetarians and vegans. When I was in there, I was told that there isn't a set schedule quite yet but what they make will be decided based on what the customers enjoy. If you have trouble deciding what to order the helpful staff will be more than happy to assist you. The morning that I was there they absolutely pointed me in the right direction. I walked out of there with a slice of spinach and goat cheese quiche and an oversized sliver of the Baltimore bomb.

My roommate and I thought that both kinds of pie were winners. The quiche was fluffy and seasoned to perfection, allowing the flavor of creamy goat cheese to come through. The Baltimore bomb precisely what its name suggests, d'bomb. The woman working at the shop told us that slices of it fly off the shelves almost as soon as it comes out of the oven. The crust was buttery and flakey and combined with the vanilla custard and cookies it was absolute dynamite.

Pie here isn't cheap. Slices range from $6 to $8 and whole pies can set you back almost $30, which can quickly leave a hole in your wallet. Yet, I think that you could go with a friend for lunch and order 3 slices and leave full. This isn't an everyday treat, but it is a place that deserves recognition and your patronage.

image: pul.se

A Tree Grows on H Street

Recently, a group my friends decided to spend an evening in the Atlas District, the up-and-coming neighborhood on H Street, NE. We opted to begin with dinner at the newly-opened Liberty Tree and then walking a few blocks for some Dangerously Delicious pie.

Liberty Tree was hard to spot among the construction that has overtaken H St. The only way to know that we were at the restaurant was the neon "Open" sign perched in the window. When we walked in, I was surprised at how small and intimate the space is. We were led to the only open space, a cozy table in the front of the restaurant, where the late afternoon sun was streaming in.

Immediately, I was drawn to the well-edited wine and beer list. Nothing was over $10 a glass or $30 a bottle, which I personally found very reasonable. All four of us were hungry, so we perused the small plates and appetizers and were intrigued by the potato fritters. I was not expecting to enjoy these little bites of perfection as much as I did. We ordered the potato fritters - basically mashed potatoes with bacon that were covered in panko crumbs and then fried - along with some drinks. Yummm. If you go to Liberty Tree, you must try them.

For main dishes, seafood dominated the menu. I chose to have a pizza called the Cape Cod Casino. Generally I never would have ordered a pizza concocted with clams, garlic, bacon and spinach... but it was very good. Am I daydreaming about eating it again? No. But, it was very fresh and creative. And I think Liberty Tree deserves points for that.

My dining companions ordered the lobster roll, knife and fork meatball grinder and the clams. No one was blown away by their meals, but there also weren't any major complaints... expect for our those concerning our waiter, who wouldn't stop hovering. I left that evening feeling as if Liberty Tree needs a bit more time to get into the swing of things, but that it does have the potential to turn into a solid neighborhood hangout.

Note: Dangerously Delicious was closed due to some DC red tape that they were still working out with the city. They should be opening on April 2nd barring any unforeseen circumstances.

images: tastingtable.com