BarTaco

I love tacos! My favorite restaurant we went to on our last vacation to Charleston, was Taco Boy. I also love the idea of small plates so you can try a variety of things in one sitting without gorging yourself. Taco Boy serves their tacos by the piece in that "small plate" idea for that very reason. So when we saw this new restaurant going in at Reston Town Center called BarTaco, we discovered they had a similar concept on their menu and we knew we had to check it out.

BarTaco's opening couldn't have come at a better time. We opted out of a vacation this in an effort to save some money so we did a "stay-cation" instead. Having dinner at BarTaco during this stay-cation, was like a little piece of the beach here at home.

Even though we came for the tacos, we couldn't pass up the fresh-made guacamole to start the meal! It was creamy and spicy with a touch of lime. Instead of being served with traditional tortilla chips, they were large round fried tortillas that you could break off into any shape or size you wanted. A nice little different twist.

Our first line up of tacos went like this: duck, duck...goose! Haha, just kidding! At least about the goose part. Actually we both did get duck tacos, then I also got a curry shrimp and Superking got a pork belly. The duck was super tender and juicy and topped with fresh onions and cilantro. I think this one was my favorite. The curry shrimp had tomatoes and cilantro with a light curry sauce full of Indian spices. And the pork belly was topped with pickled red onions and cilantro.

For round two, we had sesame ribeye, portobello mushroom, and curry chicken. The ribeye taco had a sweet and zesty Asian flair. The portobello was light and earthy with a bit of queso fresco. And the curry chicken was similar to the shrimp and delicious! Every single taco was a bite of happiness!

And you can't have great tacos without amazing churros!! They were hot and crispy and smothered in cinnamon and sugar and served with a semi-sweet chocolate. The perfect ending for a vacation meal!

Oyamel

"Every year, millions of monarch butterflies leave their homes in the US and Canada and migrate south to spend their winter in the mountains of Michoacán. The butterflies seek refuge in the oyamel tree, considered a sacred fir native to central Mexico. The forest appears to be draped in gold thanks to the thousands of butterflies covering the trees. Adding to the otherworldly quality of the place is the “shhhhhh” sound from the butterflies flapping their wings to stay warm. The locals welcome back the returning butterflies, which, because they appear about the time of Day of the Dead, they believe bear the spirits of their departed."

butterflies...

This is how Jose Andres named this Mexican tapas-style restaurant, Oyamel, located in the Penn Quarter area of DC.  When you step inside you are surrounded by colorful Mexican art, a canopy of bright yellow and orange flowers, and large butterfly mobiles.   For a second you might imagine yourself sitting under one of those oyamel trees listening to the fluttering of butterfly wings. But then you remember you're hungry and need some tacos! The food is awesome and I love the tapas style because you get to experience so many more things from the menu AND its fun to share too! Here's what we tasted...

yummy chips and fresh salsa with a bottle of fancy sparkling water

Coctel de camaron y jaiba...shrimp and crab ceviche with tomato sauce, avocado, red onions, and tortilla chips. A little spicy kick and a nice crunch from the chips accompanied by the creamy avocado. Divine!

Lengua guisada...braised beef tongue tacos topped with radishes and a pasilla chile sauce with tomatoes, onion, and garlic. The beef tongue was so tender it literally melted in our mouths.

Nopal asado con salsa molcajete...grilled fresh cactus paddles topped with salsa molcajete which is made with tomatoes, tomatillos, green onions, cilantro, and green chiles. It had a very "green" almost grassy flavor that mixed well with the salsa.  The only drawback to this dish is the juice from the cactus leaves can make it a little slimy. After eating about half of it, the sliminess started to turn off this texture eater. But I'm glad I tried it because it was different and it did taste good!

Quesadilla de chicharrones...a quesadilla filled with fried pork belly (straight from the Shenandoah Valley no less!) served with chihuahua cheese and a sauce made from five chiles. Delish!

Chapulines Tacos...anyone have a guess as to what chapulines are??  Grasshoppers!! Yes we ate grasshopper tacos! And they were actually very good! Apparently it is a legendary Oaxacan specialty. Our waiter told us they don't always have this on the regular menu but they will serve it for those customers who know about them to ask for them.  He also said the South American customers order them like crazy!

When we first asked about them, we asked for him to bring us each one taco. He looks at us, a little unsure, and says, "are you sure you don't want me to bring just one for you to try?" Superking and I looked at each other and thought, dude, you don't know these white folks very well, we've eaten testicles.  So we tell him, "bring us each one, lets do this!" He smiles and says, "I like your spirit!" 

can you see the whole grasshopper body trying to escape the taco?

The grasshoppers themselves are naturally very salty and they are marinated in lime juice and tequila, served in some kind of spicy chile sauce with shallots and a layer of creamy guacamole.  There are whole grasshoppers and pieces of grasshoppers...there is no question what you're eating when you see them.  Yes, there was a slight crunchiness but overall they were very tasty.  A very cool food adventure!

cool candle sculpture made of candle wax

The highlight of the meal though, came at the end...churros de San Angel con chocolate caliente...O.M.G. These were a-MA-zing!!  Whats not to like about fried pastry, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, thats served hot and covered in cinnamon and sugar?!?!?  Then to top it all off its served with a dish of hot melted chocolate...it was thick but frothy like a hot milkshake, if thats even possible.  And then you get to dip the churros in the chocolate....absolute heaven. 

best thing ever

I could just drink that right now...

Rosa Mexicano: National Harbor

Rosa Mexicano is an upscale modern Mexican restaurant located at the National Harbor outside of DC.  The decor inside includes blue tile fountains, majestic flags, and Dia de los Muertos masks.  One wall was entirely windows looking out onto the harbor itself.  As we ate our dinner we watched the sun set over the water.

Our meal began with freshly made guacamole made tableside. A simple recipe of tomato, onion, jalepeno, and cilantro served with a cute little straw basket of mini corn tortillas, crunchy tortilla chips, and 2 kinds of thin salsas in varying degrees of heat to your liking. So fresh and chunky.  Perfect mixture of heat and avocado with the veggies and the warmth of the tortillas and the crunch of the chips.

Fresh guac and chips

My entree was a butterflied snapper served whole (minus the head) and pan sauteed, served with a chile garlic sauce and a tomatillo cilantro sauce, as well as habanero marinated red onions and a slice avocado. The fish was perfectly cooked, still with the bones mind you, which probably added some flavor.  The cilantro sauce bright green and fresh and the chile sauce with just a bit of a bite.

Edgar ordered a couple appetizers for his meal.  One being Berkshire Pork Belly Tacos.  These mini corn tortilla tacos were topped with tomato and cilantro.  Berkshire pork is about as good as it gets and pork belly is sweet and fatty, so full of savory flavor.

The other appetizer being duck tortilla pie.  Layers of roasted pulled duck (nice and smokey) and mini corn tortillas topped with yellow pepper habanero cream sauce (nice and spicy).

Now you might be asking how does pork belly and duck fit into the diet of someone who's all pesca-vegetarian and organic and whatnot.  Well, sometimes, you see things on a menu that you can't get just anywhere and you know they're going to be tasty and you think, "I've gotta try those cuz who knows when I'll get the chance to again?"  So that's how it fits.

Ok.  Ahem...Moving on...

Along with our entrees we were served a bowl of rice and a bowl of refried black beans with Chihuahua cheese.  We also had a lovely little pitcher of a raspberry sangria with diced apples.

For dessert (by this time we were so stuffed but we couldn't pass it up) we had churros which are basically elongated donuts...crispy on the outside, soft and doughy on the inside, smothered with cinnamon and sugar and served with 3 sauces, a raspberry puree, a creamy caramel, and a spicy Mexican chocolate.

                                              Oh,  so heavenly!!!  To the moon and back!

 

I'd definitely give Rosa Mexicano a 5 star (or 5 Yumma) rating!  Can't wait to go back and try more stuff on their menu!