The Houndstooth Gourmet

Currently residing in the old Bohio’s space is Hank’s Oyster Bar. This is Chef and owner Jamie Leed’s second location for her very popular Dupont Circle restaurant. I couldn’t be happier that she chose to cross the river and come to Alexandria. I hope this continues the fantastic food trend in Old Town with more talented chefs choosing to join the ranks of Cathal Armstrong and Morou.

Hank’s space is is long with clean lines and gentle yellow tones. There is a seating area in front, followed by the kitchen/prep area which leads to another dining area in back. They don’t take reservations but we were able to be seated immediately at 6:45 on a Friday night. Another hour later and the place was packed.

Nightly specials are listed on a large chalkboard. There were several types of oysters, fish and the “meat and two” of the day. The meat and two on Friday was a flat iron steak with a chimichuri sauce. Frank ordered this with Old Bay fries and roasted cauliflower. I chose the lobster bisque and the sablefish.

First, our water glasses were filled quickly without the old “sparkling, still or tap?” chestnut. If I want bottled water, I’ll ask for it. Meanwhile please assume that plain old tap water will quench my thirst. Next came a bread basket with a small ramekin of butter. Soft butter, another thing I truly appreciate. Our bread stayed on the table throughout our  meal, which was lovely since I used the bread to mop up the lobster bisque. Ah, the bisque was a big thumbs up for me. The lobster stock was made hearty with a smokey tomato base. It was thick, pleasing and held at least one large claw full of lobster meat.

On to our mains, Frank’s flat iron steak was cooked perfectly to medium rare as ordered. The steak was tender and beefy (I know that sounds funny, but some cuts have very little flavor). The chimichuri sauce was verdant and punched up nicely with lemon. Old Bay fries were a bit on the thin side and some suffered from languishing in the heat a bit too long. Thin fries have to be made a la minute and served immediately. If cut a bit thicker ,the fries would be just fine. Roasted cauliflower was cooked perfectly and seasoned with curry, which complimented the nutty flavor that cauliflower acquires when roasted.

My sabefish was a large fillet with a soy balsamic glaze. It was served over lightly dressed watercress and which sat on a drizzled balsamic reduction. The sablefish was moist and velvety with a mild fish flavor. Overall, a great dish but I would suggest adding a side or two if no appetizer is ordered. At $19, it doesn’t hurt too much to add a bit more and round out the meal. And you might as well go for it, because Hank’s does not do dessert. “Desserts in a glass” are offered if you want an after dinner drink, however. Not that you’ll leave without your sweet tooth sated. Hank’s treats diners with large chunks of bitter-sweet chocolate after your dinner or with a cup of cappuccino. There’s always a fried snickers bar down King St. at Eamonn’s.

Service was pleasant and timely. I’m looking forward to returning because that lobster roll is calling my name. Welcome to the neighborhood, Hank’s. I hope you stay a good long while.

OLD TOWN ALEXANDRIA
1026 King St, Alexandria, VA 22314
T 703.739.HANK (4265) - F 703.739.7788 OLDTOWN@HANKSRESTAURANTS.COM
GET DIRECTIONS - MAP IT

OPEN
Lunch Tuesday-Friday 11:30 AM - 2:30 PM
Dinner Tuesday-Friday 5:30 PM - 10:00 PM
Saturday, open all day for a la carte brunch starting at
12 Noon and dinner until 11:00pm
Sunday, open all day for a la carte starting at
12 Noon and dinner until 9:00 pm

Tags: seafood, Alexandria, Virginia, Restaurants by Ramona
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Yay! It’s finally here- The Washington Post’s 2007 Dining Guide. We’ve got 4 four- star restaurants this year and a special congratulations to Restaurant Eve for their extra 1/2 star to put them at the top for The Tasting Room at Restaurant Eve. Check out the ”A Four-Star Tasting” video on dining in Eve’s Tasting room.

Don’t miss Tom Sietsema’s special chat  regarding the 2007 dining guide on Monday October 15 at noon ET.

Tags: Washington Post, Restaurants, Uncategorized by Ramona
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Hi, I’m Ramona and I’m a herbaholic. And a spiceaholic. Yes gentle readers, in my cupboards and drawers (and even in my freezer) is an enormous collection of dried herbs and spices and I can’t stop. With each new cuisine I endeavor to cook and with every visit to a store, I seem to add another bottle, tin or bag of olfactory pleasing herbs and spices. While I’m at it, I’ll also admit that I’m not all that dedicated to replacing them when I should. I usually wait until my red pepper flakes are looking brown, or my thyme is past it’s time to act.

This soup is made with chicken stock but could easily become a vegetarian dish by substituting vegetable stock. If you happen to be fortunate enough to have a Parmesan rind around, feel free to throw it in as the soup cooks.

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups chicken stock or broth

2 cups water

1 t. dried basil

1 t. dried oregano

1/2 t. dried thyme

2 t. dried onion flakes

1/2 t. dried shallots (optional)

1/8 t. dried red pepper flakes

2 cups cannelloni beans, drained

3/4 cup elbow macaroni (or other small pasta such as ditalini)

1 cup frozen chopped spinach

1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan or pecorino cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

To saucepan, add chicken stock and water. Increase heat to medium and add pasta, herbs, beans and spinach. Bring to a low boil and skim any “scum” off the top (some herbs will come out with it, but that’s OK). Lower to simmer and cover. Cook soup with pasta for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cheese and combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with freshly grated cheese on the side.

*Weekend Herb Blogging is a weekly event for bloggers all over the world to submit their recipies and pictures featuring herbs. Join Kalyn at Kalyn’s Kitchen for the doubly delicious 2 year anniversary celebration of this event!

Tags: soup, Recipe, pasta by Ramona
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I’m very excited to tell you that I am a guest author on Jason Storch’s site D.C. Foodies. Jason’s site gives restaurant reviews and information on food related events in the D. C. area. Guest authors will add even more value to the site by expanding coverage on the region’s food scene with more reviews, updates on what’s happening, farmers markets and area producers, and recipes that reflect the season. You can look for my recipies and posts there each Tuesday. For this recipe, go to dcfoodies.com.

Tags: DC Foodies entry, soup, Recipe by Ramona
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Art on the Avenue in Del Ray yesterday was another rousing success. There was a seemingly endless array of crafts, activities, musical performers and foods. Among my favorites was the “Make Your Own Scarecrow” yard for the kids. Families brought old clothes to stuff and the festival supplied the hay and a bit of the “know how”. You could even have your scarecrow hangout with other scarecrows while you enjoyed the festival.

Can you imagine the conversations on the hay bails?

“Eh, um…I see a hundred Totos out there, but where’s Dorothy?”

“Ugh, so much food but I’m stuffed already!”

“I hear they’re taking a lot of straw polls these days. I might apply for that gig after Halloween”

“Hey, kid….what are ya doin’ with that magnifying glass?”

“I can’t believe he put his old University of Maryland sweatshirt on me!”

I kid, I kid.

Well the food was great too. It could have been called Taste of Del Ray because since I was there 2 years ago, it seemed as though now most food vendors were based on Mt. Vernon Ave and the immediate area. There was Del Merei Grille, Bombay Curry Company,  Regent Thai Cuisine, Evening Star Cafe and Buzz Cafe ( those gorgeous cupcakes heading this post). In addition I noticed Rockland’s and Bubba’s BBQ.

BBQ sliders were the “it” item. I sampled the slider from Del Merei Grille. At $2, I enjoyed this little dittie quite a bit. Good pork, good sauce and a nice topping of coleslaw on a fresh bun. Going head to head with  Del Merei’s sliders were Rockland’s sliders. I’ve been to both places in the past, but had not tried que from Del Merei before (I just have to interject here out of a complete inability to restrain myself and apply journalistic focus, that Del Merei’s frickles are the first thing that comes to mind when I think of Del Merei because they are Yum-Omg I’m not going to say yummo).

The next item on my must-eat list was a samosa from Bombay Curry Company. At $1 I sincerely love this restaurant. These are delicious and hot with a bit of oil on the outside to caress the fingers (in a leave a nice lip gloss sheen on your lips way-a good thing, yes!) and came with a spicy sauce that I can’t really explain. It had some heat and looked like a yogurt sauce yet I couldn’t discern exactly what I was tasting. It was delicious with the potato delight.

More observations: Bubba’s BBQ had a good looking bbq sandwich platter with beans for $5. The Evening Star/Buzz tent offered everything from squash soup to tempting cupcakes. Children had more balloons than they could ever want and the same goes for dogs with biscuits and water. This town not only tolerates dogs, but they embrace and look after them. It’s a harmonious feeling.

Food. $10

Number of times we were asked what kind of dog Tucker is. 12

A great “Main Street  America” festival 5 miles outside of Washington D. C. Priceless.

Tags: festival, Alexandria, Virginia, Restaurants by Ramona
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