Fallfood2016

presents

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Eden Center’s Best Bánh Mi Page S-7

A Farmers Market Family

The Millers are familiar to F.C. Farmers Market goers, selling pies, cookies, eggs and more here nearly every Saturday for the last seven years. Page S-5

Mid-Autumn Mooncakes At the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival, or Tet Trung Thu, the most popular food is a small curd-filled pastry known as a mooncake. Page S-6

• Recipes from F.C. Chefs • Falls Church Food News • Taste of F.C. and more...

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PAGE S-2 | SEPTEMBER 17, 2016

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

Fall Festival & Taste of Falls Church Vendor Lineup 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117

Recylcing Temalle LTD Kensington & Falls Church Arts Citizens Against Gun Violence Olive Wood Crafts Stix & Stones Ann Baier & Donna Peterson Pottery Royal Heritage Rare Bird Coffee Roasters The Local Market Beadazzled Paper Freckles Tiger Soap Providence Players of Fairfax Blue Star Mothers Advantage Trainers Family Medicine in Falls Church Falls Church

118 119 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135

Education Foundation Friends of the Falls Church Homeless Shelter Falun Dafa Falls Church Chamber of Commerce Paint Me! Paint Me! Lucid Arts Vacant Baha’is of Falls Church Falls Church DAR For Children’s Sake of Virginia Eco Honey Bees Bibi Salon and Spa Present Scents Dancing Mind Eclections ATCS/CH2M Hill Joint Venture - VDOT Village Preservation and Improvement Society Virginia Energy Sense

136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150

Jovian Pantry MeiMei Fine Teas Falls Church City Democratic Committee League of Women Voters F.C. Robotics Team Citizens for a Better City (CBC) BeadEye Jewelry Growing Smiles of Northern Virginia Stitch in Time Quilting Chelsea Market Designs Falls Church American Association of University Women My Thrive Pilates Family and Sports Chiropractic Origami Owl Nova Premier Dental

151 152 153 154 155 156

Congressional Schools of Virginia Vacant Bulls Eye She Peppers Green Bands Reinvented Elegance

Food Vendors R1 Taco Bamba R2 Nando’s Peri Peri R3 Sfizi Cafe R5 Clare & Don’s &

Lazy Sundae R6 Sweet Rice R7 Famous Dave’s R8 Cafe Kindred R9 Flippin’ Pizza R10 Argia’s R11 Trio Grill R12 Mad Fox Brewery R13 Hot & Juicy R14 Zinga

Sponsor Booths S1 Burke & Herbert Bank S2 Kitchen Saver S3 ChasenBoscolo S4 HomeFix S5 Families for the F.C. Way S6 Nu Look Home Design S7 Falls Church News-Press S8 Bath Fitter S9 Re/Max West Broad S10 Renewal by Anderson S11 Lincoln at Tinner Hill S12 Jumping Joeys

In Front of Community Center Falls Church Volunteer Fire Department Falls Church Police Department Falls Church Sherrif’s Office GMHS Athletic Boosters Association

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

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SEPTEMBER 17, 2016 | PAGE S-3

PAGE S-4 | SEPTEMBER 17 – 23, 2015

Presented by Lincoln at Tinner Hill

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MENU SELECTIONS Famous Dave's

Plaka Grill

• Brisket or Pork Sliders = 1 ticket • Wilbur Beans = 1 ticket • Creamy Coleslaw = 1 ticket

• Slow-Cooked Pulled Lamb Sliders = 1 ticket • Spanakopites = 1 ticket • Baklava = 1 ticket

Flippin Pizza

Sfizi Café

• Slice of Pizza (Cheese or Pepperoni) = 1 ticket

Hot N' Juicy Crawfish Argia’s

• Gnocchi con Vodka (prosciutto, lemon zest, rosé sauce, peas & basil) = 1 ticket • Bombolini with Nutella Chocolate Ganache = 1 ticket

Café Kindred

• Mushroom & Scallion Vol au Vent = 1 ticket • Brussels Sprouts w/Bacon & Parmesan Crisp = 1 ticket • Grilled Cheese w/ Peppers & Gazpacho = 1 ticket • Blueberry Cheesecake Mousse = 1 ticket

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

• Crawfish Po'Boy = 2 tickets • Fried Pork Skins = 1 ticket • Andouille Sausage = 1 ticket • Fried Brownies = 1 ticket

Sweet Rice Thai Restaurant

Mad Fox Brewing Company • Rare Tuna Taco = 1 ticket • Crispy Pork Belly Mac & Cheese = 1 ticket • House-Made Root Beer = 1 ticket

Nando's Peri-Peri

• Involtini di Melanzane = 1 ticket • Mini Panini w/Sausage & Peppers = 1 ticket • Cavatelli Bolognese = 1 ticket • Mini Cannoli = 1 ticket • Spring Roll = 1 ticket • Pad Thai Tofu = 2 tickets • Drunken Noodle Chicken = 2 tickets • Panang Chicken= 2 tickets • Mango Sticky Rice = 2 tickets

Trio Grill

• Smoked Beef Short Rib Crostini = 1 ticket

Zinga! Frozen Yogurt

• Grilled Chicken Wings w/Coleslaw = 1 ticket

• Frozen Yogurt = 1 ticket

Clare and Don’s Beach Shack • Orange Crushes = 1 ticket • Homemade Ice Cream = 1 ticket

A beverage station with soda and water is located by the ticket booth; cash only, please.

The City of Falls Church is committed to the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act. To request a reasonable accommodation for any type of disability, call 703-248-5027 (TTY 711). For more information call 703-248-5178.

MON-FRI 7.99 Lunch Special “Best Lunch Value In Town” AMERICAN COMFORT FOOD: LUNCH SPECIALS Available Monday - Friday 11 AM. til 2 PM

Choose One Entrée and One Side • Choose One Entrée and Two Sides $8.99 Choose Three Sides (no entrée) • Choose Four Sides (no entrée) $8.99

LUNCH SPECIAL ENTRÉES Meatloaf & Gravy • Chicken and Dumplings Fried Chicken Breast with Southern Gravy • Southern Fried Pork Chop Thick Pan Pizza with One Topping • Baked Spaghetti Caserole

OUR DELECTABLE HOMEMADE SIDES

703-534-4200

6641 Arlington Boulevard, Falls Church VA 22042

www.FDBEATERY.com

Mashed Potatos and Gravy • Dixie Mac and Cheese Southern Collard Greens • Pickled Red Onion & Beets Fried Okra • Butter Sautéed Mushrooms Secret Recipe Slaw • Green Bean Casserole Fresh Pico De Gallo • Spanish Rice Butter Beans with Bacon • Creamy Cucumber and Dill Salad Sorry no substitutions or recipe changes,only items listed here are available for our lunch special menu pricing.

Regular menu items are available at regular pricing.

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

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SEPTEMBER 17, 2016 | PAGE S-5

The Millers Travel from Afar for F.C. Farmers Market

by Patricia Leslie

Falls Church News-Press

Regulars at the Falls Church Farmers Market at 300 Park Avenue know where to find Valentine’s Country Bakery and Meats every Saturday: Near center stage where its “grass fed, free range, no antibiotics, no growth hormones, no steroids, all natural” meats are sold in nicely-wrapped, heavy pieces of plastic with professional labels affixed.

Valentine’s sells all kinds of quiches, pies, pastries, cookies, breads and real butter, too.

And eggs of many colors – brown, white, blue, green – all from free-range chickens who get to eat pastry leftovers from time-to-time and are happy chickens which produce happy eggs.

Donovan Miller, the son of the husband and wife team who started Valentine’s in 1995, the year before Donovan was born, runs the Saturday show in Falls Church with his sister, Veronica, while their father tends the Farmers market in Reston. (“Sometimes we switch it up,” Donovan said.)

To a city girl, Donovan gave a quick lesson in chickens and eggs but he didn’t say which came first: “Different breeds of chickens lay different colors of eggs,” he explained patiently.

“The Leghorn chicken lays white eggs, the Rhode Island Red lays brown, and the Ameraucana, green.”

(What about those blue eggs?

Where do they come from? Are they from blue birds?)

The Millers recycle egg cartons, too. Bring them on!

Every week they go to five area farmers markets and have been

coming to Falls Church six or seven years. They have the packing and loading assembly pretty well down to a science.

The night before market days, the Millers go to bed almost with the chickens, around 8 or 9 p.m.

They get up around 3 a.m. to load the vans (takes about an hour per van) and get ready for the 90-minute trip to Falls Church so they can arrive on time for the market opening at 8.

From their home between Orange and Madison, Virginia, which is below Culpeper, Donovan and Veronica’s mother, Darletta Miller, talked on the phone about the business.

She met Valentine Miller (yes, the source of the business name) at a nursing home in Virginia where she had gone to volunteer to cook for a year, and her future husband was in nurses’ training.

Before that, Darletta managed a bakery in Maryland, and Valentine Miller helped his father on the family farm.

The couple began their business with just baked goods and decided later to add meat.

“It was a big step since we didn’t know how it would go, and it really increased the work,” she said. The Millers have decreased their pastry output to keep up with the meat business.

The business “has grown a lot,” she said.

Darletta Miller has been baking for years and still loves it.

Donovan and Veronica help their mother bake while their dad takes care of the animals and visits the slaughter house where the animals are butchered and packaged (everything has to be inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture).

The Millers sell beef, pork, lamb, veal and chicken, but

VERONICA MILLER OF VALENTINE’S Country Bakery and Meats helps a customer at the Falls Church Farmers Market, where Valentine’s have been selling their goods for close to seven years.

(Photo: Patricia Leslie/News-Press)

Donovan’s favorite is not listed on the slick brochure which touts their products.

His favorite is rabbit, an unorthodox choice.

“Well, it’s lean and has a lot of protein. It’s kinda like chicken, but it’s got its own taste and texture,” he drawled. “It’s one of the leanest meats out there.”

The Millers raise their own animals on 500 to 600 acres and have a bevy of animals. “I couldn’t tell you how many animals we have,” Darletta said.

When the market closes at noon, and it’s time to go home, it take the Millers about half the

time to pack up since they sell about all of what they’ve brought and have few, if any, leftovers which they mostly give to family and friends.

Do the Millers “crash” after Farmers market day?

Darletta Miller laughed. “Yes, we crash! On Saturday [after the family gets home from the markets] we go in the living room and put our feet up, and we party.

We have a real good time,” she said. “It’s family time and time to relax.”

Sunday mornings finds the family at the Gospel Light Mennonite Church, and the remainder of the

day is devoted to rest and relaxation.

“We’re busy all week and have to keep up,” she said. “There are always things to do on the farm.”

On Labor Day Mrs. Miller was cleaning house.

“My customers tell me I can never quit baking because they love what I make. It’s rewarding to go to the markets and see the people enjoy what we make.”

The chickens do, too.

“Sometimes, the chickens get a little of [the leftovers]. They love baked goods but they don’t get them very often.” Sigh. None of us do!

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

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CHA KIM PHUNG BAKERY owner Vinh Tran and Phong Ly prepare mooncakes in the kitchen of Tran’s bakery. (Photo: Drew Costley/News-Press)

Mooncakes Fly Off Shelves Ahead Of Mid-Autumn Moon Festival

by Drew Costley

Falls Church News-Press

Falls Church’s Eden Center is gearing up for the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival, Tet Trung Thu, with a celebration set for this Saturday at the shopping center. While the holiday is technically held today (the 15th day of the eighth month in the Han

calander), several bakeries and delis in the shopping center have been preparing for more than a month now, taking and fulfilling orders for mooncakes, the traditional small pastries eaten during the festival.

Mooncakes, a Chinese bakery product, are sold seasonally by nearly all of the Eden Center shops that carry them. They are

PHONG LY IMPRINTS a mooncake in the kitchen of Cha Kim Phung bakery. He has been making moon cakes for over 25 years. (Photo: Drew Costley/News-Press)

considered an indispensable delicacy by those who recognize the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival.

“The Moon Festival is a traditional celebration for the harvest moon,” said Vinh Tran, the owner of Eden Center’s Cha Kim Phung Bakery. “And every year, when the Autumn moon comes, the people celebrate by eating a lot of mooncake and they pray to the gods every year. That’s our tradition and celebration.”

In order to relate it to those who are unfamiliar with the celebration in the U.S., Claire Nguyen, who works at Song Long Deli in the Eden Center, said that it’s “basically like Thanksgiving in America.” She said that people give mooncakes as gifts throughout the year and bring them over to houses they are invited to during the celebration.

“I would buy a few boxes to give my close family and friends,” Nguyen said. “I don’t necessarily have to go to their house. Maybe they have some guests. It just depends on each family. These days people aren’t that traditional, but they still do carry the simple ways of gifting [mooncakes].”

“This is a tradition is from a long, long time ago. Back in the old time,” Tran said. “The mooncake is eaten every time they harvest, during the harvest moon. They harvest the crops and they celebrate by eating mooncake. And it’s been happening from then until now.”

Typically, mooncakes are round, slightly less than four inches

in diameter and between one and one and a half inches thick. The cakes are filled with one of several different ingredients, like sweet bean, lotus seed, jujube or five kernel paste, and the crust can have a chewy, flaky or tender texture.

The process for preparing the ingredients for mooncakes and making the mooncakes themselves can take several hours or days. “Making mooncakes is a very long process with a lot of very difficult techniques,” Tran said. In their finished form, mooncakes are usually cut into small wedges and accompanied by tea.

Once the mooncake is assembled, usually into a dough ball with filling for its center, the mooncake is pressed into its circle shape and imprinted with different Chinese characters. Traditionally, the mooncakes have imprints of the Chinese characters for “harmony” or “longevity,” and some have additional decorations like imprints of the moon, flowers, vines or a rabbit.

But because of globalization the designs on the imprint of mooncakes have become diversified.

Although almost all of the shops in the Eden Center order theirs from outside distributors, Tran and his team at Cha Kim Phung create mooncakes in house.

Because of that, they are able to offer potential customers over 30 different variations of the pastry and make them to order.

They have been making their own mooncakes for over 20 years.

SEPTEMBER 17, 2016 | PAGE S-6 “We do very special orders and we make the mooncake from scratch, we grind the ingredients to make the paste and we mold the cakes,” Tran said. “Everything we do here is very, very good and we can compete with some other mooncake distributors nationwide. The thing is, the people love our cake because we make them fresh and the ingredients are fresh as well.”

Customers can choose from the different varieties that Cha Kim Phung has using an order form that is at the front of the store.

Tran said that they sell thousands of cakes every year during the month leading up to the MidAutumn Moon Festival.

That volume keeps his kitchen staff busy – he said they make up to 600 or 700 mooncakes each day around this time of year. In order to keep track of which filling is in each mooncake, Cha Kim Phung stamps a number on each mooncake with a purplish red ink.

Nguyen said that Song Deli carries over 15 different flavors of mooncake and get theirs from an outside distributor. She said that they also sell thousands of mooncakes around this time of year.

“There’s bean, there’s durian, there’s mixed,” she said. “There’s a lot of different flavorings. We offer a large variety here.” This past Monday, only a few days away from the festival, there were just a few boxes, each of which contains four mooncakes, left in the shop.

VINH TRAN HOLDS a box of four mooncakes. Tran’s bakery makes its mooncakes in house. (Photo: Drew Costley/News-Press)

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

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SEPTEMBER 17 , 2016 | PAGE S-7

Where to Find Eden Center’s Best Bánh Mi

by Jody Fellows

Falls Church News-Press

Eden Center, the 200,000 square-foot strip mall near Seven Corners, is a hustling, bustling mecca filled with food, shopping and all sorts of treasures. And while it’s actually within City limits, chances are it places a distant third when it comes to visits from City residents when compared to the farther out Mosaic District and Tysons. But while the Vietnamese shopping center may not be able to compete when it comes to name recognition, it runs circles around the other two on the tasty, little sandwich front.

Yes, I’m talking about bánh mi.

The Little City’s Eden Center is home to more bánh mi per square foot than just about anywhere else on the east coast.

There are eight shops in Eden Center that serve bánh mi, the simple-yet-flavor-packed sandwiches born of French colonialism in Indochina. Technically, bánh mi refers to just the bread, a special baguette resembling a mini loaf of French bread with a flaky, crusty outside and softer, pillowy inside, but now the term is most commonly used for the Vietnamese sandwich as a whole.

The types of bánh mi vary but most include some kind of meat, pickled daikon and carrots, cilantro, cucumber, hot peppers, a swipe of pate, butter and/or mayonnaise. The dặc biệt, or special combination, is a standard on

every menu and made up of some mix of Vietnamese cold cuts like ham, headcheese (just about all the parts of a pig’s head: ears, tendons, skins, etc.) and pate.

Don’t be put off by the sound of headcheese – it’s delicious. For the less adventurous, the xiu mai (Vietnamese meatballs) and xa xiu (barbecue pork) are two perfect starter sandwiches also found just about everywhere. And while most bánh mi include some type of pork, it can also be made with beef, fish, tofu, chicken and more.

With all the options at Eden Center, only two of the mall’s shops bake their own baguettes.

Bánh Mi So 1 and Cha Kim Phung Bakery both make bánh mi in-house with So 1 also supplying baguettes to other Eden stores like Phu Quy Deli Delight and Phuoc Loc Deli. The rest of the delis and bakeries rely on daily delivery from outside suppliers.

In an effort to discover all the bánh mi Eden Center has to offer, I visited each of the center’s sandwich shops – multiple times – over the past month. During my run, I consumed copious amounts of headcheese, enough pate for at least 10 fancy dinner parties and surpassed way more than my daily recommended intake of carbs. (Forutnately, bánh mi is easy on the wallet with sandwiches ranging from $3-4 and most shops have deals if you buy five or more)

THE SPECIAL COMBINATION, or dặc biệt, at Huong Binh Bakery. (Photo: Jody Fellows) After my Eden Center tour, here are my favorite spots to chow down on bánh mi:

HUONG BINH BAKERY & DELI

6781 Wilson Boulevard Huong Binh Bakery is unique in that it offers three types of bread for its bánh mi. With the choice of “roll,” “baguette” and “traditional,” I tried each and

found the traditional to be the top pick and the most “bánh milike” of the three. Huong Binh makes one of Eden Center’s better combination bánh mis, or dặc biệt, filled with Vietnamese ham and headcheese and generously slathered with pate and housemade mayo. I wasn’t a big fan of the bánh mi ga with shredded chicken but did enjoy the grilled pork or bánh mi nem nướng.

Though everything was fresh and crisp, they tend to overstuff the bread with garnishes here so be prepared to do a little topping maintenance before chowing down. (Of note, rather than long slices of cucumber, they use chips here which do stay in the sandwich better). As a bonus, each bánh mi comes with a small pepper wrapped along inside. I made the mistake of taking a bite of one before eating. Don’t do what I did.

NHU LAN

6763 Wilson Boulevard #14 (inside Eden Mall)

NHU LAN’S BANH MI XIU MAI filled with Vietnamese meatballs and “secret butter” is one of the best sandwiches in Falls Church’s Eden Center. (Photo: Jody Fellows)

Hidden inside the Eden Mall, Nhu Lan is, hands down, my favorite of all Eden’s bánh mi shops. I love it so much, I have trouble anointing one of its sandwiches as my favorite. The bánh mi xiu mai, with its housemade pork meatballs hit with a hint of sweetness and dressed up with sprigs of cilantro, daikon, carrots and jalapeno, is outstanding,

Continued on Page S-8

OUTSIDE OF EDEN They’re not in Eden Center but these three banh mi spots also call Falls Church home plus each bake their baguettes in-house daily.

BA LE BAKERY

2822 Graham Road The late night strip mall hangout on Graham Road is open 24 hours and can satisfy a bánh mi fix at any hour of the day.

BANH MI DC SANDWICH

3101 Graham Road

With 23 types of sandwiches and the best baguettes around, DC Sandwich is at the top of the bánh mi rankings.

LEE’S SANDWICHES

3037 Annandale Road

The newest entry into Falls Church bánh mi, the self-procalimed “word’s largest bánh mi chain” opened in May and is also open round the clock.

–J.F.

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PAGE S-8 | SEPTEMBER 17, 2016

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

The Best Bánh Mi in Falls Church’s Eden Center Continued from Page S-7

as is the bánh mi nem filled with chunks of salty, pickled pork. The dark horse, however, is #5, the bánh mi bi with finely shredded strands of pork skin and meat.

All of the sandwiches come with a healthy dose of what Nhu Lan calls its “secret butter,” a delicious housemade mayonnaise mixture cut with butter that soaks into the baguette and will leave you licking your fingers after the sandwich is gone.

SONG LONG DELI

6769 Wilson Boulevard

Song Long is one of only two spots at the mall where you can actually sit down and eat bánh mi inside. Routinely busy around lunch and dinner times as crowds seek out its popular sandwiches and bubble teas, I found the best time to stop in is around 2 or 3 p.m. when the store is nearly empty. In addition to the rare instance of seating, Song Long is also the only place in Eden Center with bánh mì bò nướng xã, or lemongrass beef bánh mi.

THE LEMONGRASS BEEF BÁNH MI and some bubble tea from Song Long Deli (left) and the #1 combo known as dặc biệt from Phu Quy Deli Delight. (P�����: J��� F������) Packed into a roll brushed with melted butter along with pickled daikon, carrots, cilantro and hot peppers, the beef brings flavor not found in most other bánh mi and its my top pick from the menu here. I also really enjoyed the bánh mi heo nuong with grilled pork and, for the meatfree crowd, there’s the bánh mi chay with tofu skins.

saturday

PHU QUY DELI DELIGHT

6799 Wilson Boulevard

While most bánh mi tend to be modestly meat-filled, I found Phu Quy’s portions a bit more generous.

Another contender for best dặc biệt in Eden Center, the #1 combination was my favorite with tasty cold cuts paired with a good amount of pate and butter. The baguettes are sup-

sept. 24

Hoppy Oktoberfest Enjoy a selection of the region’s top IPA and Oktoberfest beers as we turn our Market Square into a Biergarten featuring live music and grilled fare!

Get tickets at madfoxbrewing.com/falls-church-events MAD FOX BREWING CO. 444 W. BROAD STREET FALLS CHURCH, VA 22046

(703) - 942 - 6840 madfoxbrewing.com @madfoxbrewing

plied daily from Bánh Mi So 1 next door, so while the bread is always fresh, there is a chance they might run out (on one evening visit, I was informed they had exhausted their bread supply for the day). Also, with both indoor and outdoor seating, Phy Quy has the most seating of any of the bánh mi shops, though tables tend to fill up quickly, especially on weekends.

Other Eden Center bánh mi sandwich shops include Bánh Mi So 1, Cha Kim Phung Bakery, Phu Hung and Saigon Bakery & Deli.

TO NOTE: Banh Ta, one of my favorite Eden Center spots for bánh mi, is currently undergoing renovations with plans to reopen as Little Viet Garden this October or November.

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

Mike’s Deli Relocating to Former Long John Silver’s Space The sandwich and ice cream shop Mike’s Deli at Lazy Sundae has signed a lease to relocate to the former Long John Silver’s space on Route 7, owners David and Rebecca Tax confirmed to the NewsPress Monday.

The Falls Church eatery, named “best sandwich” spot by News-Press readers for a fifth consecutive year last month, is currently in operation next to 7-Eleven at 112 N. West St. in the City but that building, as well as the surrounding area, is slated for redevelopment as part of the 4.3-acre “Mason Row” mixed-use project approved by the F.C. City Council earlier this year.

The deli’s future location at 7049 Leesburg Pike, owned by Beyer Automotive Group, was home to Long John Silver’s for over 30 years until the fast food seafood restaurant shuttered in April of last year.

Mike’s Deli’s Rebecca Tax, who also owns Clare & Don’s Beach Shack along with her brother, David, told the NewsPress there isn’t a time frame yet for reloca-

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SEPTEMBER 17, 2016 | PAGE S-9

tion but she imagines it will be before next summer.

Mike’s Deli at Lazy Sundae 112 North West Street | Falls Church mikesdeliatlazysundae.com.com

Rare Bird Coffee Looks to Open by End of Month Rare Bird Coffee Roasters is hoping to open by the end of the month on West Broad Street, manager Lara Berenji told the News-Press this week. The specialty roastery is moving its operation from Washington, D.C. to the Little City in the former space of Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt.

The new shop will offer brewed coffee, an espresso bar, fresh-roasted coffee beans, Teaism teas and baked goods from Village Sweet Bakery, Natalia’s Elegant Creations and pie by-the-slice from Acme Pie Co. In addition to coffee and treats, the coffee shop will host artist show openings, with the first show, “Rare Birds On the Line”

by Melanie Gritzka del Villar, set for early October. Rare Bird Coffee Roasters will also have a booth at the Taste of Falls

RARE BIRD HOPES to open by the end of September. (P����: C������� R��� B���/F�������)

Locker Room Sports Bar Debuts New Game Room

New additions include new pool tables, and league regulation dart boards along with 18 beer taps and 22 HD televisions. A new Bloody Mary bar is now available on Sundays.

The game room grand opening kicks off at 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 24, and will feature live entertainment and a DJ with proceeds benefitting both the Alzheimer’s Foundation and women’s breast cancer research.

The Locker Room Sports Bar & Grill has added a new addition to its space and will be hosting a grand opening of its new game room at the end of the month.

The Locker Room Sports Bar & Grill 502 West Broad Street | Falls Church thelockerroomsportsbarandgrill.com – Jody Fellows

Church at the Fall Festival this Saturday.

Rare Bird Coffee Roasters 230 West Broad Street | Falls Church rarebirdcoffee.com

HAVE A TASTE FOR A NEW DOCTOR?

Follow Us Online Visit my booth at the Fall Festival.

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PAGE S-10 | SEPTEMBER 17, 2016

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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

Judges Talk Taste of F.C. Prep, Favorites & More

This year’s Taste of Falls Church judges talked to the News-Press about their favorite foods, memorable meals and how they’re preparing for Saturday’s big event

Nader Baroukh, Former City of Falls Church Mayor 1. How will you prepare for the Taste of Falls Church?

No preparation really. Just showing up with a healthy appetite! I hope to bring some friends along to help.

2. What’s your favorite restaurant that has opened in Falls Church in the past five years?

I think I’ll punt on that one and say I like them all.

3. What’s the most unusual food you’ve eaten recently and how was it?

It’s not so unusual, but I love sushi.

4. What is your favorite ingredient?

Chocolate makes everything better.

5. What was your least favorite food when you were a child?

Vegetables. Anything green.

6. How do you prefer your eggs cooked?

Scrambled.

7. What is the best entertainment you’ve experienced while dining (live music, theater, conversation, television, etc.)?

With or without dining, Bruce Springsteen live in concert.

8. If you had to prepare one dish for a cooking contest, what would you choose?

I have not worked on my cooking in the past year and it has gotten worse.

9. If you could have one dish prepared by one person, what and who would it be?

Beef Bourguignon by Julia Child. My wife’s empty promises that she will make this dish for me continue.

Chris Capannola, Head Coach of the George Mason High School Boys Basketball Team

Lori Lafave, Member of the Falls Church Recreation & Parks Advisory Board

1. How will you prepare for the Taste of Falls Church?

I’ll prepare by not eating breakfast.

1. How will you prepare for the Taste of Falls Church?

I will starve myself, so I’m prepared to eat.

2. What’s your favorite restaurant that has opened in Falls Church in the past five years?

My favorite is Trio. Although it’s not in Falls Church City, it’s close and it’s fantastic.

2. What’s your favorite restaurant that has opened in Falls Church in the past five years?

Sfizi.

3. What’s the most unusual food you’ve eaten recently and how was it?

I had Vietnamese food for the first time. It was outstanding.

4. What is your favorite ingredient?

Garlic.

5. What was your least favorite food when you were a child?

My father used to make tripe. It was awful.

6. How do you prefer your eggs cooked?

Fried or scrambled.

7. What is the best entertainment you’ve experienced while dining (live music, theater, conversation, television, etc.)?

Good conversation is always the best dinner entertainment.

8. If you had to prepare one dish for a cooking contest, what would you choose?

My wife’s chicken cutlets.

9. If you could have one dish prepared by one person, what and who would it be?

Sauce, cooked by my mother. The best I’ve ever had.

10. Who is your favorite celebrity chef or cook?

Ming Tsai.

10. Who is your favorite celebrity chef or cook?

Mario Batali.

11. What’s the healthiest and unhealthiest thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

Unhealthy – ice cream. Healthy – I think I had some vegetables the other day.

11. What’s the healthiest and unhealthiest thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

I make my own vegetable smoothies every morning, very healthy. Had chicken wings last weekend.

12. What is the most memorable thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

A smoked steak that my friends made.

12. What is the most memorable thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

Oysters at a restaurant in National Harbor.

3. What’s the most unusual food you’ve eaten recently and how was it?

It is a regional dish in Upstate New York called Michigans. It was fantastic.

4. What is your favorite ingredient?

Olive oil.

5. What was your least favorite food when you were a child?

Oh, liver!

6. How do you prefer your eggs cooked?

Poached.

7. What is the best entertainment you’ve experienced while dining (live music, theater, conversation, television, etc.)?

During extended family meals, my kids usually put on a show and there is always music and dancing.

8. If you had to prepare one dish for a cooking contest, what would you choose?

Homemade macaroni and cheese.

9. If you could have one dish prepared by one person, what and who would it be?

Grandma Blanche’s beef and sliders.

10. Who is your favorite celebrity chef or cook?

Rachel Ray. 11. What’s the healthiest and unhealthiest thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

The healthiest things I’ve eaten in the past month is like a salad, a good salad. And the unhealthiest I’ve eaten is ice cream.

12. What is the most memorable thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

At the beach we caught blue crabs off the pier and then steamed them. So it was an aweseome, fresh Chesapeake blue crab dinner.

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

FO O D &D I NI NG

SEPTEMBER 17, 2016 | PAGE S-11

Nikki Graves Henderson, Director of History Projects for The Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation

Patty Cigna, Buyer’s Agent at Rock Star Realty

Caitlin Acosta, Assistant at Rock Star Realty

1. How will you prepare for the Taste of Falls Church?

I’ll fast all week and Iʼll walk to errands in town. On Saturday, Iʼll ride my bike to preview of the new National African American Museum in D.C., swim back to Falls Church, then take a short nap before the eating begins!

1. How will you prepare for the Taste of Falls Church?

I will be doing jumping jacks and lunges in preparation to eat a lot.

1. How will you prepare for the Taste of Falls Church?

I’m going to be fasting the night before in preparation for eating a lot of food at the Taste of Falls Church.

2. What’s your favorite restaurant that has opened in Falls Church in the past five years?

I really like Cafe Kindred.

2. What’s your favorite restaurant that has opened in Falls Church in the past five years?

I’m going to have to say Mad Fox.

3. What’s the most unusual food you’ve eaten recently and how was it?

Nothing new.

3. What’s the most unusual food you’ve eaten recently and how was it?

The strangest thing that I’ve had recently was oysters, which were introduced to me by Tori [McKinney] in New Orleans. They were delicious. I now order them everytime I see them on the menu.

3. What’s the most unusual food you’ve eaten recently and how was it?

I had a sushi burrito from Rolls By U in Clarendon. It was pretty good. It was kind of hard to eat.

4. What is your favorite ingredient?

Butter, butter and...did I mention butter?

4. What is your favorite ingredient?

Cilantro.

5. What was your least favorite food when you were a child?

Liver.

5. What was your least favorite food when you were a child?

Asparagus. And it’s still asparagus. I had a bad encouter with it. Ever since then I’ve been scarred.

2. What’s your favorite restaurant that has opened in Falls Church in the past five years?

Uhh, did I mention I once fasted for 21 days under the direction of Dick Gregoryʼs nutritionist?

6. How do you prefer your eggs cooked?

Scrambled with onions, green peppers and cheese.

7. What is the best entertainment you’ve experienced while dining (live music, theater, conversation, television, etc.)?

Breakfast while camping and watching the sunrise over the Chesapeake Bay or dining while moon watching over the Atlantic Ocean on a cruise ship’s private deck.

8. If you had to prepare one dish for a cooking contest, what would you choose?

Iʼm famous for my cheese grits, shrimp and grits, fish and grits, chicken and grits and steak and grits.

9. If you could have one dish prepared by one person, what and who would it be?

My mother’s turkey and dressing.

10. Who is your favorite celebrity chef or cook?

None.

11. What’s the healthiest and unhealthiest thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

Healthiest: vine-ripened fruit. Unhealthiest: sʼmores made in our firepit. We experimented with different gourmet chocolates.

12. What is the most memorable thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

My hometown Detroit classics: corned beef sandwich and White Castle cheeseburgers.

6. How do you prefer your eggs cooked?

I only eat them scrambled. I won’t eat them any other way.

7. What is the best entertainment you’ve experienced while dining (live music, theater, conversation, television, etc.)?

I’ve been to a drag brunch in D.C. It’s the one at a French bistro and they even had a peacock costume at one point.

8. If you had to prepare one dish for a cooking contest, what would you choose?

I would do pudding shots.

9. If you could have one dish prepared by one person, what and who would it be?

BBQ brisket by Bobby Flay.

10. Who is your favorite celebrity chef or cook?

Bobby Flay.

4. What is your favorite ingredient?

Goat cheese is basically the nectar of the gods, so I’m going to go with that.

5. What was your least favorite food when you were a child?

Eggplant.

6. How do you prefer your eggs cooked?

I like mine fried, over hard. Very very hard.

7. What is the best entertainment you’ve experienced while dining (live music, theater, conversation, television, etc.)?

I’ve been to a drag brunch before. That was pretty entertaining.

8. If you had to prepare one dish for a cooking contest, what would you choose?

I do like to cook sometimes and my favorite dish to make is maque choux. It’s a traditional dish from Louisiana. It’s a cajun dish that’s inspired by Native Americans, too.

9. If you could have one dish prepared by one person, what and who would it be?

I’m going to say lasagna, cooked by mom, Jody Acosta.

10. Who is your favorite celebrity chef or cook?

Emeril Lagasse.

11. What’s the healthiest and unhealthiest thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

The healthiest things I’ve had is a kale salad. The unhealthiest is two huge scoops of ice cream, chocolate and vanilla.

11. What’s the healthiest and unhealthiest thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

The most unhealthy things I’ve eaten is [corndogs]. I recently had three corndogs in one day. I went to the boardwalk and you can’t find corndogs just anywhere, so I was taking advantage of it while it was there. And the healthiest thing is probably anything but corndogs.

12. What is the most memorable thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

The Shipyard Beer that’s only available once during the year. It’s pumpkin beer. I got it from Whole Foods.

12. What is the most memorable thing you’ve eaten in the past month?

I had a BBQ pork banh mi from Ba Le today and it was delicious. I had it with extra sriracha.

FO O D &D I NI NG

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

Cooking at Home Like the Pros

SEPTEMBER 17, 2016 | PAGE S-12

Chefs from three of Falls Church’s most popular restaurants share their recipes, giving News-Press readers the chance to cook like the pros in their very own kitchen.

Taco Bamba Chef Victor Albisu’s Taco Bamba Taco Taco Bamba, 2190 Pimmit Dr. • 703-639-050 • tacobambarestaraunt.com

Ingredients: • 1 pound of skirt steak • 1/2 pound of Mexican chorizo • 3 diced avocados • 2 chopped grilled jalapenos • 1 diced burned red onion • 1 bunch chopped cilantro

Directions: 1. Bring red wine vinegar, sugar and salt to a boil. Marinate the julienned red onions in vinegar mixture and allow the onions to pickle, about 30 mins 2. Heat a grill or cast iron pan to medium high heat. Before dicing the ingredients for the guacamole place the avocado, onion, jalapenos and lime on the grill and allow them to char. Once the vegetables are charred remove them from the grill,

• Juice of 1 grilled Lime • 4 Tblsp ground cotija cheese • 4 Tblsp store bought chicharones or pork rinds • 1 julienned red onion • 1/2 cup red wine vinegar • 1/4 cup sugar

dice and mix with cilantro and season with salt and pepper. Mash with a spoon until it is to your desired consistency.

3. Season the skirt steak with salt and pepper and place on the same grill along with the chorizo. Once the steak has cooked to your desired temperature remove and allow it to rest, about two minutes. Once the chorizo has cooked through remove and slice into 1/4 inch rounds.

Chef Albisu’s Taco Bamba Taco leads off the restaurant’s Tacos Nuestros menu and is one of the reasons the eatery is nationally ranked. (Photo: Jody Fellows)

4. Warm the corn tortillas on the grill or cast iron pan, spoon the guacamole on to the tortilla, Slice the skirt steak

The Happy Tart Chef Emma Cech’s Parisian Macarons The Happy Tart, 410 S. Maple Dr. #110 • 571-395-8280 • happytartbakery.com

Ingredients: • 7 oz. egg whites (approximately the whites from seven eggs)

Cafe Kindred Chef Jen Demetrio’s Roast Beef Sandwich with Over Easy Egg Cafe Kindred, 450 N. Washington St. • 571-327-2215 • cafekindred.com

• 6 oz. sugar • 8 oz. almond flour • 8 oz. confectioners sugar

Directions: 1. Whip egg whites with the whisk attachment of a stand mixer until the meringue hold peaks.

2. Slowly add sugar 1 tblspn at a time until all the sugar has been incorporated, and the meringue is glossy.

3. Combine almond flour and confectioners sugar and whisk together. If the sugar is lumpy, pass it through a sieve.

4. Using a rubber spatula, fold almond flour mix into meringue. Continue folding until the batter flows back to form a flat surface when the spatula is pulled through it. Another test is to allow batter to fall from the spatula onto the surface of the batter. It should form a ribbon that disappears in 2-3 minutes. You want to have enough body in the batter to hold its shape when piped, but not so much that the macaron will be puffy.

5. If you want to add food color, add the color drop by drop until you achieve the desired shade.

6. Place batter into a piping bag with a round tip that is 5/8 inch in diameter.

7. Place parchment paper on a cookie sheet.

8. Pipe circles that are 1/8 inch tall and 1.5 inch wide. The macarons should be 1 inch apart.

9. Repeat until all batter is used.

10. Place cookie sheets on counter until macarons are dry and leathery on top. The time for this to occur will depend on the weather – longer with high humidity, shorter on dryer days – however, it will take at least an hour or two.

11. Preheat oven to 250F. 12. Place Macarons in oven for 10-15 minutes.

Macarons are done when the tops are dry and hard.

and layer it over the guacamole, add the chorizo, cotija, chicharones, and pickled red onions.

Chef Cech’s Parisian Macrons can be purchased in store with fancy packaging, or made at home following her recipe. (Courtesy Photo)

13. Remove cookie sheets from oven and allow to cool.

14. Peel Macarons from parchment and fill.

Macaron Filling: 1. Jam: Pair up macarons and fill one side with a teaspoon of jam. This can be done carefully with a teaspoon or with a piping bag. Place the lid on the macaron and you are ready to enjoy!

2. Ganache: Make chocolate ganache by heating 6 oz. of heavy cream or coconut milk in a sauce pan until almost boiling. Pour over 6 oz. of chopped high quality chocolate. Whisk until a smooth glossy consistency. Spread out on a parchment lined cookie sheet and place on the counter to cool. When the ganache can hold its shape, but has not solidified you want to pipe a teaspoon into the center of your paired macarons. Place the lid on top of the macaron, pushing gently to spread the ganache filling.

Ingredients: • 9 oz. beef, roasted rare • 4 slices rustic ciabatta loaf, • 2 Ea plum tomatoes, sliced cut into 1 inch thick pieces 1/4 inch thick • 4 Ea garlic cloves • 1 cup baby spinach • 1/4 cup mayonnaise • 2 Ea eggs • 2 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, • Salt & pepper to taste sliced thin Directions: 1. First to make the garlic mayo: a. Roast garlic cloves with olive oil, salt, and pepper, in a 375°F oven until golden brown. b. Mix with mayo when cooled and set aside.

2. On a flat top grill, toast both sides of all bread slices.

3. Grill tomato slices on the grill for 30 seconds on each side.

4. On a separate oven-safe pan, set up your roast beef into two sections.

5. Top beef with grilled tomatoes, then divide cheddar among the two beef set-ups. Place in a 350°F oven until the cheese melts.

6. Spread garlic mayo onto the slices of bread.

7. Carefully slide the beef, tomatoes, and melted cheese onto the bread prepared with mayo, then add spinach.

8. In a saucepan, fry 2 eggs until over easy; season with salt and pepper.

9. Slide eggs onto spinach, then top with bread.

10. Cut in half right before eating and enjoy!

Chef Demetrio’s roast beef sandwich with over easy egg is on Cafe Kindred’s lunch menu. (Photo: Drew Costley)