Lamb Soup

After writing a recent article about the wonderful Sichuan food at Asian Origin in Tysons, we decided to return and try their sushi menu, which is only available Tuesdays through Saturdays. We dined on a variety of fresh Sushi and Sashimi as well as Miso Soup, and Seaweed Salad. The sushi is all very fresh and skillfully prepared; the eel was a favorite of my dining partner. The Seaweed Salad is a little spicy, which is nice. The homemade tofu in the Miso Soup is made from soy, unlike the black bean tofu used in a Ma Po Tofu at Asian Origin.

Chef Liu even invited us to come back the next evening to sample the test run of a Lamb Soup recipe from the town in Sichuan Province he grew up in. The soup is made with lamb bones and fish stock, and includes lamb slices, radishes, and cabbage. It is traditional to dip the lamb slices in crushed red pepper. This is Fall/Winter comfort food at it’s best. The Lamb soup will soon be added to the restaurant’s menu. I even shared shots of extremely strong rice wine with Chef Liu near the end of our meal.

We always end meals at this restaurant with an order of Sesame Balls, which are filled with black sesame seeds and black beans.

-JAY

Update: The lamb soup has not joined the official menu.

We recently tried the newly created Picanha Burger from Fogo De Chao‘s bar menu, and enjoyed it. It is flavorful, has a nice texture, and comes with a brioche bun with smoked provolone, bibb lettuce, tomato, onion and chimichurri aioli; served with crispy polenta fries. We also tried two new seasonal (Fall) menu items, the Roasted Butternut Squash and Cranberry Salad, and Butternut Squash Soup, both of which were flavorful and well-executed additions.

We heard that there is a new Bone-in Cowboy Ribeye (aged 21 days) available through the end of the year, but the Tysons location did not have it available. It’s possible the DC (Pennsylvania Avenue) location (which we previously wrote about) carries it.

Above are some image highlights from our recent dinner.

Notes: Valet parking is $5 at the Tysons location. The Tysons’ location is the newer of the two DC area locations.

-JAY

Chef Liu Chaosheng‘s Asian Origin opened this wonderful Sichuan and sushi restaurant in the spring. This highly skilled chef/restaurateur also owns Hong Kong Palace in Falls Church; Uncle Liu’s Hot Pot in Merrifield; China Jade in Rockville; and Cafe Hong Kong Bistro in Germantown. We recently attended a media tasting at this establishment.

Award Winning Dumpling Maker, Jixin Lv.

I am thrilled that like other Chef Liu restaurants, this establishment makes everything from scratch, including the tofu. More restaurants need to do this; we are happy when we find places like Asian Origin and another newcomer, Sugar Factory, where restaurateurs understand that pre-made ingredients cost more and do not lead to the kind of deliciousness you can find in freshly made (and from scratch) dishes. You can really tell the difference from scratch cooking makes in Asian Origin’s dishes; we’ve been back twice since the media tasting. Plus, Chef Liu imports many ingredients from China (like the wooden ear mushrooms), to add even more authenticity to his made from scratch dishes.

So. let’s talk about Asian Origin’s (house-made) tofu. It is delicate and wonderful, but I could immediately tell it was different than the (also delicious) Ma Po Tofu we’ve eaten at his other restaurants. It turns out that Asian Origin is the only Chef Liu restaurant using black beans instead of soy beans. The dish is great either way, but it was nice to try the back bean version, which is a modern take on tofu that you sometimes find in China nowadays.

Besides the Chinese menu, this restaurant also has a sushi menu. We’ve only tried one sushi item here (a roll, which was good), so I’ll need to go back to to the seaweed salad, miso soup, and more sushi.

I’m not a writer who typically ends articles with “you need to try this place,” but you do, and now, especially if you are a spicy food lover. Sichuan cuisine includes a remarkable floral note in it’s spicy dishes that we (here at DCFüd) just love.

-JAY

Editor’s Note: Sushi menu is served Tuesdays through Saturdays.

Tacos seem to be all the rage these days. Not that they haven’t always been loved, but they seem to get more and more popular. Recently opened in my neighborhood (Arlington’s Columbia Pike) is the brick-and-mortar version of a beloved Mexican food truck, Tortas y Tacos La Chiquita. Don’t be fooled by the name–this place serves more than tortas and tacos.

I had never been to the food truck, but was thrilled to try their new home. It’s small, but it’s brightly colored and plays upbeat music. Staff is friendly and helpful.

Over two visits, I tried the asada huarache, carnitas quesadilla, and a variety of tacos: pollo, al pastor, asada, and pescado. Everything was excellent. Huaraches are like a bigger version of a sope. Fried masa topped with beans, cheese, cactus, and meat; you really cannot go wrong. If you’ve never had cactus, I recommend trying it hear. Nicely seared, it’s like eating a pepper. If I hadn’t been told it was cactus, I wouldn’t have known. The quesadillas are huge, and are filled with tomato and guacamole, along with cheese and meat. The street tacos are traditional: two tortillas, meat, cucumber, lime, radish. The standard red and green sauces are offered; I opted for the spicier red version. La Chiquita does not skimp on the fillings, so prepare to leave full. As for the meat fillings, my favorites, across all preparations, are the asada and al pastor. Both are crisp and flavorful. However, if chicken is your thing, this is probably the best chicken taco I’ve had, as the chicken is well-seasoned, but not dry. Pozole is offered on weekends. In addition to Jarritos bottled sodas, other drinks include tamarindo, horchata, and limonada.

There are many places for Mexican cuisine, especially tacos, not only in Arlington, but in the D.C. area, and many are quite good. But you’d be doing yourself a favor to swing by this small restaurant on Columbia Pike and enjoy a meal.

-LEM