M.E.'s DC Restaurant Picks

As somewhat of a foodie, and definitely a lover of eating out, I'm often asked for suggestions of where to go eat in D.C. I was working on a list of restaurants for a friend today, so I thought I would share my favs with all of you:


DC Faves - unique to DC and delicious, our most frequented spots

• Two Amys (obvi) - best pizza in town (for more about pizza, check out this post here)
• Pasta Mia (cash only - I would suggest getting in line at 6PM) - like being in a neighborhood restuarant in Italy
• Cafe Oaxaca (they have at least 6 different mole sauces) 
• The Argonaut - great fish tacos and southern fare
• Bistro du Coin - lively atmosphere, good French food
• Dukem - best ethiopian
• Afghan Grille - who knew Afghan was so delicious?
• Himalayan Heritage - Indian and Nepalese, great atmosphere
• Regent Thai - love the pineapple fried rice

Solid DC area chains

• Jaleo - Spanish Tapas
• Matchbox - sliders and pizza
• Busboys and Poets - American
• Founding Farmers/Farmers & Fishers - Locally sourced American

Brunch

• Le Enfant Cafe - Love the souffle
• Open City - amazing omelets
• Cafe Saint Ex - they have cheese grits, need I say more?
• The Heights - build your own bloody mary menu

Cheap Eats

• Shake Shack - my favorite burger
• Shop House - The thai chipotle
• Ben's Chili bowl - b/c you've gotta try a a half smoke
• Astor Mediterranean - favs include the Astor burger and the chicken kebab sandwich
• Taqueria Distrito Federal - authentic Mexican tacos
• Pho Viet

For a Special Night Out

• Zaytinya - Mediterranean tapas
• Ezme - Turkish tapas
• Bistro Cacao - French bistro in an old house in capitol hill, one of the coolest and most romantic atmospheres
• Coco Sala - They have mac and cheese topped with chocolate covered bacon bits
• Vinoteca - 1/2 price Spanish wine on Sundays, with flamenco dancing and delicious food
• MienYu - very cool place I recently discovered in Georgetown, each section of the restaurant is decorated like a different country, they have a huge menu from middle eastern to asian food

Top on my list of places to try

• Rasika - supposed to be the best Indian food in the city
• Hill Country BBQ - Texans have recommended the bbq, plus they have Shiner on tap
• Granville Moore's - Belgian, tried to go a few times but the wait is always soooo long!
• Thai X-ing - This is a little restuarant in a basement of a row house where this one guy cooks for you. It is byob and the menu is set based on what is seasonal. I've never been but people RAVE about it and I've been dying to go. I think you need a reservation at week out

Did I leave anything out? What are your favorite DC restaurants?

-M.E.

M.E.'s Green Chili Chicken Enchiladas

This is a recipe I often get asked about and I recently typed it up for some friends, so I thought I'd share it online. This is definitely a favorite meal in our house, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!


Ingredients:

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 cups grated Oaxaca cheese - you can use any semi-soft Mexican cheese

1 cup sour cream (lite or fat free tastes just as good)

1 can Hatch green chili enchilada sauce-medium (you could probably use another brand, but Hatch is my fav)

1 4 ounce can of chopped green chilis - mild

1 package flour tortillas

cumin

salt

pepper

Directions:

1. Boil the chicken breasts in salty water. When chicken is cooked through, let cool and then shred with a fork or your fingers.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine shredded chicken and 1.5 cups of cheese.
3. Fold in sour cream until mixture is thick, creamy, and wet enough to stir (at least one cup sour cream, but I never measure).
4. Add a generous amount of cumin, enough to cover the top of the bowl with a dusting and change the color of the mixture from white to light tan, probably about 2 tsp.
5. Mix in can of green chilis, 1/4 of the can of enchilada sauce, salt and pepper to taste.
6. Pour some of the enchilada sauce into a shallow dish. One at a time, dip the flour tortillas in the sauce, coating both sides. shake off the excess and place the tortilla in your rectangle casserole dish. Fill tortilla with a generous amount of the chicken filling, about 3 tablespoons, and roll up the enchilada. Repeat until your baking dish is full or you run out of filling.
7. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top.
8. Bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Edges should be bubbly and cheese should be melted and turning brown.

Additional options: I usually make them rolled up enchiladas for me and Z. If you want to make them as stacked enchiladas, which is easier for a larger group, double the recipe. Instead of rolling the tortillas, place the saucy tortillas along the bottom of the baking dish - tearing a few in half to fill in the holes. Spread half of the chicken filling over the tortillas. Cover with another layer of tortillas an repeat. Place a third layer of tortilla on top, and coat with remaining sauce and cheese. You may have to cook this for a bit longer as well.

-M.E.

P.S. I've only failed to photo challenge if I quit. Although I took a little break, I am not giving up! Expect to see more photos soon.

Days 12 & 13

I love finding beauty in odd places. The canal by my office is near empty and overgrown with moss, filled in with trash and misplaced items like an old lawn chair. But on the wall this vine grows:

Up Close (day 12)

From a Distance (day13)

Day 11: Something Fun

Today was Adams Morgan Day, a fun day where they shut down the major streets in my neighborhood for a huge festival with tons of art, food vendors, jewelry, crafts, and two music stages. One of our favorite days of the year! The background photo that is my blog's template is actually from Adams Morgan Day 2009. 

Hope you all had an equally amazing Sunday.

-M.E.

A week in Photos: Days 6-10

Day 6: Childhood Memory

 Remember fudgsicles? Sooo good! They were always a special treat. I found since becoming a grown up that I still have a tendency to buy a few things at the grocery store that are considered "kid food". It just makes me feel happy to eat these things and remember the good ole days.

Day 7: Something New

New scarf from World Market, freaking love that place...

Day 8: Technology



From a show at the R&R Hotel.

Day 9: Faceless Self Portrait



Day 10: Something I Made



We spent Saturday running errands in Arlington and stopped by the only local Chili's to enjoy an nostalgic lunch. It's crazy how you step into that restaurant and feel like you've gone through a space and time portal. I literally felt like I had stepped into the Chili's on University in Fort Worth, like if I walked outside it would be Texas in 2002. Our lunch was made complete with a chance to color a pepper for the wall - this is the best I could come up with.

-M.E.

Day 5: Someone I love

Just a typical weekend afternoon with someone I love

-M.E.

Day 4: Favorite Color

Had a lovely afternoon browsing on 14th Street with Kelly. Found this lovely bunch of my favorite color:

Hope you all have had a relaxing Sunday!

-M.E.

Day 3: Clouds

It's a cloudy, slightly rainy day in DC. A perfect day for my could photo #3

-M.E.

Day 2: What I wore

Happy Weekend everyone! Hope you all have a happy Friday!

-M.E.

Day 1: Self Portrait

So its day one of the photo challenge and I'm already having fun!

Here is what I look like this morning:

And no, that isn't actually a small Indonesian girl over my shoulder, that is my IFES wall calendar. IFES, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, works to ensure free and fair democratic elections around the world. Pretty Awesome.

Can't believe it's Thursday, excited for another long weekend!

The Men on the Bus

Its a typical day of work, and I'm commuting home at rush hour. I'm getting on a mostly full circulator bus in Georgetown. As I step onto the bus, I spy a seat. A young 22-28 year old preppy man in business casual is sitting next to the window, comfortably slouching back in his seat, legs apart, earbuds in his head, and the seat next to him is open.

Now in this man's mind, he has played his cards right. He has sufficiently spread out enough on the bench that it is the last forward facing seat left. People can read his body language, they know that he is really saying "don't sit here, this is my space".

I'm not intimidated by these people. I see it all the time. Women play this game as well, putting their bags on the seat next to them. I even have my own game plan. I make eye contact with the people getting on the bus, and usually that makes them feel just weird enough to choose to keep walking past me and find a different seat.

But there comes the time in every regular bus-rider's journey when the bus begins to fill up and you realize the seat next to you is the last seat left. You must be polite and make room. Women pick up their bags and put them in their laps. People scoot over, to make sure they are not taking up too much space. I smile at the person coming toward me saying "Yes, please sit here".

So in this particular story, I go to sit beside the sprawled out young man. Only, he doesn't move one inch. I literally have to carefully slide in and hang off the edge to sit there. I don't understand it, this is just bad bus ettiquite.

And this story repeats itself over and over in varying ways. I don't understand why self-important young men seem to be the ONLY people who don't follow the rules of bus manners. Many times, it even happens the other way around. I will be the one sitting first, and some man will come sit next to me and force me to scoot to the edge of my seat because spreads out on top of me the second he sits down.

What's worse is, I know they only do this because I'm a woman. If a guy sat down next to them, they would immediately scoot over. Its like they think I don't deserve a whole seat. It drives me nuts.

So for those men out there, those ultimate offenders, I though I'd write out the unsaid rules of the bus, in case you really are just that stupid:

1) The seats in the front are for the elderly and disabled - this means you shouldn't sit here unless they are the only seats left. If you are sitting there and an elderly person gets on the bus, you should get up automatically. Don't assume because the sweet old lady isn't asking for your seat that she doesn't want to sit down.
2) Unspoken rule for pregnant women - NEVER make them stand, come on people!
3)Move to the back of the bus- when it is rush hour and you are standing on the bus, just move all the way back. Young men are notoriously bad at this as well. They stake out their ground by the back door and look all pissed off when you ask them to move.
4) If you have to talk on your cell phone, do so quietly
5) Sit on the inside seats close to the window first
6) Put your bag in your lap.
7) You only get 1 seat per person, get over it!

-M.E.

We are grown-ups?

The past week has been a whirlwind of fun and excitement. Beginning on Wednesday and lasting through Sunday, Z and I got to spend the week with a whole host of great college friends who were in town for wedding activities.

One of the things that I noticed this weekend is that sometime over the past 3 years, we have all become grown-ups. I'm not exactly sure when this transition happened, but I do vividly remember how different life was for all of us just 2 short years ago, during the first year after graduation.

No one really prepares college students for life after school. For most of us in our short lives, the first 1-2 years out of school have gone on record as the most difficult of our lives. Suddenly being dropped in the "real world" without rules, timelines, goals, and direction can feel like falling into an infinite abyss. Managing the expectations of where our teenage selves thought we would be at 22-23 and reality was extremely difficult. Navigating the very beginning of our working lives during the greatest financial crisis since the great depression felt like paddling against the current, when the best we could hope for was not to drown.

We worked jobs we didn't like. We worked at restaurants, and as administrative assistants, and as interns. We felt under-employed and under-appreciated. We missed our community and friendships as we spread out accross the country in pursuit of work. We spent countless hours on the phone, recounting the past, the good times of being in school. We were not sure if we would ever realize our dreams or find contentment in our careers.

But somewhere in the past year or so, we've found our way. We've found jobs that could turn into careers, started graduate school, gotten married, discovered community. I'm not saying things are perfect, but we are all on a path that no longer feels like a dead-end. We are hopeful again and ready to take on the future together, and that is a wonderful thing.

I'm thankful for the time I got to spend with all of you, and I have nothing but excitment for where your lives are going and for the next time we are together again.

Congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Burnett. May your lives be filled with happiness together!

-M.E.

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for:

-My spontaneous dad, who decided yesterday that he would get on a plane from TX this evening to come see Harry Potter with me and hang out for the weekend
-The generosity within my church community
-My workplace, where I feel equally appreciated and challenged to grow
-The cold-front that is moving in
-A husband that wants to help me cook
-That today I have a relaxing dinner with good friends to look forward to
-The ability to resurrect one of my FAVORITE recipes from summer camp as a girl, thanks to a former camp friend's blog
-Having one of my closest friends as one of my closest neighbors

Hope you all have a restful and fun weekends!

-M.E.

Introverts

My own introversion is something I think about quite often (as an introspective intorvert will do). In a culture that is extrovert-loving, it can be difficult to be an introvert.

Although I was never overtly told that being an introvert is negative, I have often felt that way. Our society seems to value extroverted qualities such as assertiveness, out-goingness, ability to make friends easily, networking, and loud leadership more than it values the introverted traits of thoughtfulness, insightfulness, and quiet leadership.

As I've grown up and learned to love myself I've been able to see the value of my introversion and to recognize that some of the things I love most about myself stem from this very personality trait. I get lost in comtemplation, I think before I speak, I am calm, conscientious, compassionate, and introspective. I excel at individual tasks, enjoy time alone and in small groups, and love getting lost in the worlds of books, movies and TV.  I don't have a million friends, but the friendships I have are deep and long lasting.

I recently found an amazing blog about introversion called Quiet that can be found here

On that blog I recently saw a post about Introversion in the chuch and I found it valuable and interesting and I wanted to share a quote from it here:

"Even more dangerous is the tendency of evangelical churches to unintentionally exalt extroverted qualities as the “ideals” of faithfulness. Too often “ideal” Christians are social and gregarious, with an overt passion and enthusiasm. They find it easy to share the gospel with strangers, eagerly invite people into their homes, participate in a wide variety of activities, and quickly assume leadership responsibilities. Those are wonderful qualities, and our churches suffer when we don’t have those sorts of people, but if these qualities epitomize the Christian life, many of us introverts are left feeling excluded and spiritually inadequate. Or we wear ourselves out from constantly masquerading as extroverts."
Reverend Adam McHugh, author of the book, “Introverts in the Church,” and the blog, http://www.introvertedchurch.com/

There have definitely been times when I have felt inadequate spiritually because of my personality. But it is at those times that Moses has been the greatest comfort to me - the greatest Christian example of a servant of God, a great prophet who when asked to convince Pharoah to let his people go replies, "“Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” Exodus 4:10. Moses was unsure that he could lead, but the Lord assured him that introverts are powerful with God by their side.

-M.E.

Back in Action

We're back from an amazing Canadian vacation/road trip to Quebec City and Montreal.

Both cities were beautiful and enchanting in their own ways. Quebec City is a very sleepy town filled with history. It was quaint, charming and quite relaxing. Plus we had a view of the whole city from our hotel room, can't get much better than that.

On the third day of the trip we headed over to Montreal. It is a vibrant, fun and culturally rich place which we really enjoyed exploring. Here are some of the trip highlights:

1) Shopping along cobblestone streets in buildings from the early 1800s
2) Watching soldiers march in funny hats
3) Enjoying a drink on our terrace overlooking all of Quebec City
4) Exploring the archeological ruins of old Montreal
5) Climbing to the top of Mount Royal
6) Seeing a waterfall that is taller than Niagara Falls!
7) Playing with giant chess pieces

8) Seeing an incredible cathedral all lit up!
9) Going to the beach without leaving the city
10) Learning that I LOVE ESCARGOT!
11) Enjoying some of the best french/quebecois food we've ever had
12) Seeing Cirqu Du Soleil in the famous blue and yellow tent

And much much more! More photos to come later via facebook and flickr as Zach uploads them. Glad to be back, but really enjoyed the vacation!

-M.E.

Thankful Thursday

This week has been great,  I have so much to be thankful for:

I'm thankful for

-My mom's job, which sends her to DC
-that I have time to take off to be with her
-the pool at the Washington Hilton
-a quiet week at work
-D.C. dept of public works, who kindly towed our illegally parked car to a legal spot in our neighborhood instead of to the impound lot
-that next week is vacation!!!
-friends who want to hang out with Milo while we're gone

-M.E.

Delicious

There's nothing quite as delicious as mozzerella di bufala on a pizza.

I used to think I didn't like pizza that much. That was before I moved to DC, and my idea of pizza was delivery from Papa John's or a Red Barron out of the freezer. These pizzas cannot even claim to be the same category of food as the delicious napoli pizzas I have found in D.C. and become obsessed with. And I really am obsessed, I think the pizza average in the Margolis home is at least 3 times a month.

So as I'm sitting at my desk on a rare not-so-busy Tuesday dreaming about pizza I thought I'd share some of my favorite places in the district to eat some pie.

1) 2 Amy's - All time favorite, best margarita pizze in the city; on Food & Wine's top 10 in the country
Update - The new number 2 is Mia's pizza in Bethesda. Tried it for the first time recently and man is it good!
2) Il Canale - A little known delicious pizza spot in Georgetown.
3) Red Rocks - In Columbia heights, good ingredients, consistent quality, and a great atmosphere
4) Matchbox - doesn't exactly fall into the napoli pizza realm, but their creative pizzas are most delicious

Here are some pictures from our last trip to 2 Amy's to wet your appetite:

-M.E.

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for:

-Zach's last day of work until next school year, woohooo!
-A completed, successful press conference this morning
-this bag of cheetos I'm eating
-That I finally know what pottermore is
-That my mom will be in DC next week!
-That my lovely coworker is taking me out to lunch tomorrow
-one more week until vacation

I Heart Muppets

I <3 the Muppets.

It's time to play the music, It's time to light the lights, It's time to meet the Muppets on the Muppet Show tonight

Ever since my family used to watch the Muppet Show together I was hooked. They are so cute and funny and they sing fun songs...

Because of my affinity for Muppets, it has become a Christmas tradition to watch The Muppet Christmas Carol which my family owns on both VHS and DVD. Watching that movie is one of the first things we do when we all get together for Christmas. We know all of the words to all of the songs (and most of the other words too: Light the lamp, not the rat!)

That is why I am super excited about this next Muppet movie featuring Amy Adams and Jason Segal. Call me lame but just take a moment to watch the trailer and you'll see the magical magnestism that is the Muppets:

Happy Monday

Hope you all had a relaxing and fun weekend.

Here's a few things I came accross:

But it was a really fun weekend! More pictures to come from an exciting real life choose your adventure game we played on Saturday night.

Alas, another week begins and I am glad to have much to look forward to. More to report later, but for now I've got to get going on work for the week ahead!

PotterMore?

I am not ashamed to admit that I am a huge Harry Potter fan. In fact tickets went on sale this week for the last film (opening July 15) and I'm pretty sure I'm going to go at midnight if I can get anyone to go with me.

But the big Harry Potter buzz today is that J.K Rowling has a mysterious new website that is undr construction at http://www.pottermore.com/. If you click on one of the owls, it will take you to a youtube channel which says. "The owls are gathering, find out why soon" and features a countdown for an announcement from Rowling in T-6 Days.

The twitter handle @pottermore already has 26,000 followers.

What could it be? a new book, an interactive online Harry Potter world?

All I know is that I may be waking up at 2AM next Thursday to see what this is all about. Anyone want to join me?

-M.E.

Thankful Thursday

But First, a photo that applies to yesterday's post and can speak for itself. Seen at Shake Shack:

Today I am thankful for...

-caffeine
-an understanding hubs who will take me to get a shackburger after a long day when I really don't want to cook
-great weather
-my old boss, who will be coming to speak to our interns tomorrow
-autonomy
-making new friends but keeping the old
-for two wonderful years of marriage
-for my Dad, Happy Father's Day!
-that even when I'm overworked, overstressed, and overwhelmed I still like my job (can't wait for us to hire some more people!)

Dogs and their People

Let me preface this by saying I don't have a dog.

My family has had a couple of dogs during my childhood. The first was Rags. Rags was a little dog with an unfortunate name and too much hair which covered her eyes. When we would ge her shaved in the summer I would tell my friends that we had a new dog and that Rags was just hiding. Then there was Molly, the long-haired welsh corgi who my parents never really wanted and eventually gave away.

So you can see that my dog exprience is not vast, so maybe that's why I can't seem to understand why dogs seem to be the center of people's lives lately. When out walking around in my DC neighborhood, it seems like everyone has a dog. Its like a dog parade - big dogs, small dogs, fat dogs, skinny dogs, red dogs, blue dogs.

And the amenities for these dogs are amazing, dog parks, doggy daycare, dog bakeries, dog boutique clothing and toy stores, even dog healthcare. With a whole city of young professionals focused on getting ahead, working long hours in the name of career and power, have dogs replaced children?

I know, I know, I may be upsetting some dog lovers out there. And don't I have a cat? why yes I do and he's awesome. But I'm not talking about the normal type of love for a pet.

Case and point, while biking on the Mt. Vernon trail two weeks ago, I happened upon a woman biking while pulling a trailer behind her bike. When looking inside the trailer, I expected to see a sweet baby - but what did I find instead? Two pomeranians enjoying a nice ride. This is rediculous People!

And while you are pondering this, meet Winston:

Winston is the dog that "works" at my office about once a week, and this is his blog: http://winstonchesterbryantsneadthedog.com/ 

-M.E.

Happy Mondaversary!

I hope everyone had a great weekend.

The Z & ME weekend wrapup: Our weekend included lots of good food, kayaking, building castles with new friends, and celebrating the birthdays of 2 very special friends.

Today, Z and me celebrate our 2 year anniversary! The morning began with an early morning rise to make some migas for breakfast for the hubs. Unfortunately he has a lot of work to do today so I'm not sure how much celebrating will occur, but I do have a special edition pinot noir that has been stashed away for 1 1/2 years that we may just have to open tonight.

Apparently we are no longer newlyweds...

And now an anniversary haiku:

Joyful life together

Loving, laughing, exploring

Only just begun

Thanks for an amazing 2 years Z, and to all of our friends and family who continue to give us amazing love and support.

-M.E.

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for

-air conditioning
-leftovers
-my boss
-sunglasses
-comfortable flats
-waking up without the alarm
-summertime
-having no plans tonight
-that watching a documentary is part of my job this week
-that tomorrow is Friday
-that Z only has 2 more weeks of work until summer break!
-that on Monday I will be celebrating 2 years of marriage with the hubs

What are you thankful for today? feel free to respond via comments.

-M.E.

It all starts with an idea

write (v): 1. to trace or form (characters, letters, words, etc.) on the surface of some material, as with a pen, pencil, or other instrument or means; inscribe: Write your name on the board. 2. to express or communicate in writing; give a written account of. 3. to fill in the blank spaces of (a printed form) with writing: to write a check.

I've always liked to write. Perhaps it started with my parents giving me such a long name. I recall learning how to write and spell my name in preschool. My mom tells a story where this boy in my class came home from preschool the day we were learning to write our names. This boy was named Jay, and apparently this is what he said to his mom:

Jay's Mom: What did you learn at school today?

Jay: I learned how to write my name!

Jay's Mom: How exciting!

Jay: Yes, it was easy for me because all I have to write is a "J", but how would you like to be 4 years old and be named Mary Elizabeth!

Or perhaps my writing began in 3rd grade. We were given free reign to write a Thanksiving story book. We could write about whatever we wanted, there were no limits or parameters. Most kids came up with a simple story that was turned into a 8-10 page story book. My story book was 25 pages, I couldn't help myself.

The people at Abilities Potential say it is because I have high idea productivity.

Idea productivity measures the quantity (not quality) of ideas a person has. Apparently my brain has an open faucet of ideas, constantly streaming out at a high rate. Good ideas, bad ideas, funny ideas, rediculous ideas...

The common way to test idea productivity is by showing  a person an image like this:

And asking him/her to make a list of as many things they can think of that they could make out of this shape in 30 seconds. The average person comes up with around 8-10 things. I came up with 28.

But whatever the source of my love of writing and flow of ideas I am happy to the chance to share them with you. My hope is that this blog will be interesting and amusing and offer a chance for me to let some of the many ideas floating around in my head come out to play.

-M.E.

The start of something new...

This isn't the first time I've started a blog, but it is the first time I've taken it seriously.

After getting some wisdom from this guy (who writes this) I feel like I'm finally equipped to take this on.

So Welcome everyone (or no one, we'll see how it goes) to A musing M.E. Please allow me to introduce myself:

My name is Mary Elizabeth, and yes I go by the WHOLE thing ;) This is me:

This is my husband Z:

And this is Milo!

We live happily in Washington, D.C. I work in PR, and Z works as a teacher.

Some stuff I like includes frozen yogurt, purple, eating out, movies at home, Church of the Advent, Two Amy's pizza, skiing, cities, dresses, casual Friday, Swaziland, giraffes, baked potatoes, my family, old houses, and new shoes.

what do you like?