Ms. Social Secretary | My reviews for Food, Drinks, and Nightlife in Washington D.C

Langston Bar & Grill

Langston Bar & Grill is a very cool little two-story soul food place located near the H street corridor. … [more]

Ben’s Next Door

Ben's Next Door is a swanky looking bar and restaurant next door to the historic Ben's Chili Bowl on… [more]

The Sweet Lobby

The Sweet Lobby is a new cute little bakery on Barracks Row in Capitol Hill and features macarons, cupcakes,… [more]

Grapeseed American Bistro

While clicking through my Livingsocial vouchers the other day I noticed that I had a voucher that was… [more]

Langston Bar & Grill

Published October 18, 2011

Langston Bar & Grill is a very cool little two-story soul food place located near the H street corridor. The first floor has a small bar, jukebox, and a flat screen television. The second floor seats about 30 people and has exposed brick and flat screen televisions around.

We sat at the bar downstairs and it was a really nice laid back vibe for a Saturday afternoon. There were about 5 people at the bar playing music at the jukebox and just having a great time. The bartender was extremely friendly and helpful.

I decided on the fried tilapia with macaroni and cheese and collard greens. They were out of collard greens so they substituted the greens with string beans.

Fried Tilapia; String Beans; Baked Macaroni & Cheese

I thought the fish was fried and seasoned well. I was not a fan of the string beans and the macaroni and cheese. The string beans were slightly burnt and very salty. The macaroni and cheese had an odd taste like it had been warmed over.

My friend had the Salmon Cakes and Grits.

Salmon Cakes & Grits

My friend is a huge fan of this restaurant and even he had to admit that something was off this day. His grits tasted like they were old and kind of heated over and served. So did the Salmon Cakes.

Langston Bar & Grill earned a place on my H street bar crawl with really good drinks and friendly bartenders. I have heard good things about the jerk wings but not sure if I would return for dinner.

Langston Bar & Grill

1831 Benning Rd NE
(between N 18th St & N 19th St)
(202) 397-3637

Posted in Bar, H Street Corridor | Leave a comment

Ben’s Next Door

Published August 23, 2011

Ben’s Next Door is a swanky looking bar and restaurant next door to the historic Ben’s Chili Bowl on U Street. It has become a popular place to go to on U Street for cocktails and traditional Ben’s Chili Bowl food. I have been for happy hour a few times but decided to try out the popular brunch.

The thing about Ben’s Next Door is that it is always packed! And this Saturday was no exception. In all fairness I will say that this was the 100th anniversary weekend of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity and Ben’s Next Door had apparently become the go to place of the weekend. We were able to score two seats at the bar.

Ben’s Next Door has some great brunch options on the menu. There were classic brunch dishes like southern shrimp and grits and Belgian waffles. If your a big Ben’s Chili Bowl fan you may want to try out the Ben’s omelet — an omelet with Ben’s original half-smoke sausage, chili and cheese. I got the Salmon Cakes and it was served with scrambled eggs; cheese grits; and a tomato-onion sauce.

Fresh Salmon Cakes - scrambled eggs; cheese grits; and tomato-sauce-onion sauce

I thought my Salmon Cakes were pretty good but I didn’t understand the tomato-onion sauce. There was a huge chunk of tomato and a tad bit of sauce. My friend got the chicken and waffles and he loved it! We also did the bottomless mimosa’s which at $15 I thought was on the tad expensive side considering the other bottomless options on U street. Also my bottomless became more like 2 mimosa’s since it took forever for the bartender to refill. I will give credit to management as the manager seemed to notice and came over to check on us and refilled my glass.

Overall I would say the food is pretty good and they have a great happy hour. But I am making an appeal to Ben’s Next Door. Please get more staff!!

1211 U St NW
(between N 12th St & N 13th St)
(202) 667-8880
www.bensnextdoor.com

Posted in Brunch, U Street Corridor | Leave a comment

The Sweet Lobby

Published August 19, 2011

The Sweet Lobby is a new cute little bakery on Barracks Row in Capitol Hill and features macarons, cupcakes, madeleines, as well as European-style hot chocolate and loose leaf tea.

The Sweet Lobby

When you enter the shop you are greeted by an amazing display of cupcakes.

Cupcake Display

The Sweet Lobby showcases about 20 different flavors on a daily basis. The flavors range from the normal carrot cake and red velvet to gourmet flavors like smores and chocolate hazelnut.

Cupcakes

I picked up the ones above for my book club meeting and they were a hit. My favorite is the Toffee!

What sets Sweet Lobby apart from all the other cupcake joints in town is the macarons. They are amazing!! On my first visit The Sweet Lobby gave away complimentary Lemon Verbana Macaron’s to all the customers and I fell in love. Perfect chewiness to the cookie and the filling was very creamy. So of course I ordered a few other flavors to go.

Macarons

I now have a hard time being in the Eastern Market area without stopping by for a macaron. They are $1.65 a piece so a bit pricey but they are larger than average and worth it.

404 8th St SE
(between S D St & S E St)
(202) 544-2404
www.thesweetlobby.com/

Posted in Capitol Hill Southeast, Cupcakes | Leave a comment

Grapeseed American Bistro

Published August 11, 2011

While clicking through my Livingsocial vouchers the other day I noticed that I had a voucher that was soon expiring. I had purchased a voucher for Grapeseed American Bistro because it is on the Washingtonian’s 100 Best Restaurants list but since I am rarely in Bethesda I had forgotten all about it. I took my voucher and grabbed one of my favorite dinner companions and headed to Grapeseed.

We walked in promptly at our reservation time of 7:45 and was told that since they were busy it would be a 20 minute wait. We sat at the bar and fortunately it was more like a 10 minute wait. We were seated in a private booth for two in front of a glass cellar room. It seated about 10 people and looked like a really nice private dinner option for a group. The bread was fine and it was served with a olive oil and garlic combination. I noticed some tables also got a tomato looking dip but we did not. Every dish had a wine pairing option and you could order a half or full glass.

I ordered the Pan Seared Scallops for my entree.

Pan Seared Scallops; mashed potatoes and asparagus

Not only was the presentation lovely but my dish was quite good! The lobster béchamel sauce was excellent and so was my wine pairing.

Chardonnay

My friend had the Fried Chicken with Pork Fried Rice.

Fried Chicken with Pork Fried Rice

He loved the spicy sauce that came with his as well. He thought the rice was a little different since the pork in the dish had more of a soft pulled pork consistancy rather than the roasted crisp pork that is usually in pork fried rice. The fried chicken was paired with a Rosé.

Rosé

And of course we ordered dessert.

Brownie with Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

The brownie was warm and soft and served with mint chocolate chip ice cream which is my favorite. I’m not a fan of port wines so I didn’t go with the wine pairing for this one.

Overall we enjoyed our meal but it’s probably not a place I would go out of my way to visit. It’s great if your in the area for a casual meal and you want something a little more special.

4865 Cordell Ave
Ste C
Bethesda, MD 20814

(301) 986-9592
www.grapeseedbistro.com

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment