Girl Meets Food

English pub meets West Elm.  CommonWealth is my kind of place—clean, rustic, welcoming and romantic.  Having had many meals here, I think CommonWealth is a classy addition to Columbia Heights.  Portions are satisfying—unless you’re a three-hundred-pound trucker, the food is consistently fresh and beautifully presented, and the staff is at the top of their game.

Start with a rocket salad.  Very simple with lemonette, sliced radishes and shaved sheep’s cheese.  Savory, bitter, tart, and a healthy start to your meal.

Boyfriend extraordinaire, Ken Noli, thought the grass-fed beef burger was exceptional.

Taste it and you will immediately know the difference between cows raised on a natural diet and those fed grains and hormones.  The taste is clean, natural and tender.  The way beef is supposed to taste.

I loved the steamed mussels.  An appetizer that will surely wake up your taste buds with an array of flavors—sweet, tender mussels, with dry-cured sausage, a kick of vermouth, sprinkled with smooth squash. continue reading… »

Deep-fried Twinkies. Deep-fried Snickers. Deep-fried Mars bars. Deep-fried Oreos. The list goes on.  Since the 1990′s, the deep-fried junk food craze has taken the world by storm.

Initially meant as a joke, deep-fried Mars bars. originated in Scotland around 1995. Since then, the trend has caught on especially at American state fairs.  This summer I had the good fortune of finding deep-fried Oreos along the boardwalk in Old Orchard Beach, Maine.

The girl at the counter took out a container filled with refrigerated, battered Oreos, stuck a toothpick in each and dropped them in the deep fryer.

After a few minutes, she scooped them out, drowned them in powdered sugar, and put it in a red-checkered paper tray for me, the kind crinkle-cut fries come in. How fun!

You may wonder how they took something this unhealthy and made it even worse. Boredom and hunger, I say.

But wait until you taste it.

At high temperatures, it’s like the crispy Oreo cookie releases its molecular bonds and turns into a warm, rich chocolate cake, with its white center turning into an ultra-sweet, whipped cream-like consistency. All surrounded by a fluffy cake-like batter. Topped with powdered sugar. continue reading… »

Photo: Bryan Applegate

I fondly remember summer days as a child, hearing a familiar cheery jingle, then immediately bolting down the street after an awaiting ice cream truck.

Today, I’m running down Pennsylvania Avenue in too-high heels, out of breath and flagging down a bubble-gum pink van that holds my heart’s delights.

The last segment in my three-part series, but certainly not the least, covers the newest sensation to hit D.C.’s food truck scene, Curbside Cupcakes.

Sweet! They have flavors like vanilla, chocolate, mocha and peanut butter cup.  I chose mocha and red velvet, for the southern belle-Communist in me.

Photo: Bryan Applegate

The mocha came on a moist yellow cake with a heavy, sugary frosting that almost stuck to the roof of my mouth.  My blood-sugar levels quickly spiked.  I loved the little chocolate-covered coffee bean on top.

The red velvet came on a fluffy red cake with a light cream cheese frosting and chocolate shavings.  Petite and pretty, like Scarlett O’Hara on a sugar high.

For $3, Curbside Cupcakes offers cupcakes that are smaller and less expertly-decorated than their competitors.  The advantage, however, is that they come to you.  Look for them in your government-heavy, otherwise-barren neighborhood today!  Follow Curbside Cupcakes on Twitter.