Tyler Cowen's Ethnic Dining Guide

Rose Restaurant, 126 W. Maple Avenue, Vienna, VA, 703-255-9696 or 703-255-2557 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [Washingtonian | Falls-Church News Press | Chowhound]

Yes this is from the folks who brought you the old Café Rose, in Falls Church. The new incarnation is brighter, quicker, and has a broader menu. The eggplant appetizer is first-rate, the yogurt dipping sauce for the bread excellent. The two stews are both good, the best kabob is the lamb, one of the best kabobs around right now, very juicy. Very low prices, in terms of value-added this is a real winner. The velvet paintings on the wall only add to the atmosphere.

Yas Bakery, and Gourmet Groceries, 131 A West Maple Avenue, Vienna, VA, 703-242-2800 or 703-242-4050, across from Magruder’s, not easily visible from the street. (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [insider pages]

I don’t usually cover ethnic groceries, but they bake their own bread and it is #1 in the whole area. First you grab a number, then you wait, sometimes up to fifteen minutes if there is a crowd. It comes out fresh, piping hot, absolutely delicious. Worth a visit, and yes you will come back. It doubles as northern Virginia’s best grocery.

Sam's Restaurant and Cafe, 765 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD, 301-424-1600 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [WaPo | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]

Stews, kabobs, lamb shank, special rice dishes. Sounds pretty good, I have yet to go, one reader claims they make the best gelato in the DC area.

Kabob Bazaar, web site, 3133 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA, 703-522-8999, just across from Clarendon Metro (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [City Paper | openlist | Yelp]

The best ground beef kabob around, period.

The daily stews are great, too. Doesn’t look like much, but this place is excellent. Addictive. And don’t be afraid to get the ground beef kabob, which in most other places is just boring. Here it could be the best dish. With the barberry rice, if they have it that day, they usually do on Thursdays or Fridays.

Paradise Restaurant, 7141 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, MD, 301-907-7500 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [zabihah | Washingtonian | City Paper | openlist | Yelp]

NOW CLOSED

Mirage Kabob and Sweets Cafe, 5916 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA, 703-845-1600 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [zabihah | Falls Church News-Press | Washingtonian | City Paper | openlist]

In the former home of Samadi Sweets, they have kept the savory desserts. I like this place, it is mostly kabobs but one stew or koresh each day. Good zereshk polo, when they have it.

Duke Kabab, 6301 Little River Turnpike, Suite 140, Alexandria, VA, 703-256-0009, across from the street from the Alexandria Tower Records. (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [zabihah | City Paper | openlist | Yelp]

Above average kebabs. More truly ethnic than Moby Dick, and a more Persian atmosphere.

Caravan Grill, 1825 18th Street NW, Washington, DC, between S and T Streets NW, 202-518-0444 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [zabihah | WaPo | City Paper | food-plan | Don Rockwell | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]

Currently the best place for Persian stews, not as plentiful in this area as they used to be. And stews are the yummiest and most original part of Persian food. Good buffet, too. Highly recommended. Fesenjan is a true sensual delight, also, chicken doused in pomegranate and walnut sauce, one of the great Persian dishes.

Rose Restaurant, formerly Café Rose, 300 W. Broad St., Falls Church, 532-1700, not far from Rt. 29.

Attached to a motel, and very much a mom and pop. They're cooking just for you, and will even give you advice about how to eat it. Very good and a classic Virginia experience. Get the Gourmet Sabzi [Ghorma Sabzi, properly], and ask for the specials. Recommended, and they also are open at funny times when no one else is, other than the Koreans that is.

This place is now gone, due to eminent domain. I will keep up the review as a form of protest.

Update March 4, 2007: Open again in Vienna, VA, on Rt.123, it is excellent, both the kabobs and the stews, definitely recommended. Review here.

Amoo's House of Kabob, 6271-A Old Dominion Drive, near Kirby, McLean, VA, 703-242-1709 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [Yelp]

The menu is very limited, only kabobs, the key is to get the Zereshk Polo, the barberry rice. Ideally with the tandoori chicken. Excellent atmosphere, reasonable prices, the real thing all the way. It is not yummier than Shamshiry, but is a viable alternative, and is arguably more authentic.

Bread & Kabob, web site, 3407 Payne Street, Falls Church, VA, 703-845-2900, Bailey's Crossroad, next to Jerusalem Restaurant, north side of Rt. 7, east of Peking Gourmet Inn, usually open. Also a branch in Vienna: 126 W. Maple Avenue, Vienna, VA, 703-255-9696 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [zabihah | Falls Church News-Press | City Paper | food-plan | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]

My favorite here is the Dizi. Dizi is "traditional Iranian lamb stew with beans, chick-peas, onion, potato, tomato, garlic, dried lime, rolled oat and spices cooked overnight and served in the same pot." One of those meals where the consumer contributes to the production process, using what appear to be instruments of dental torture. The kabobs, while good, do not stand up to the competition elsewhere.

Open Friday and Saturday nights until 5:00 a.m.; they also serve Kalle-Pacheh and Haleem at those times.

Moby Dick House of Kabob, web site, 6854 Old Dominion Drive, McLean, VA, 703-448-8448 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [zabihah | Washingtonian | WaPo | City Paper | food-plan | Don Rockwell | openlist | Yelp | Gayot]

Multiple locations in DC, MD, and VA, including

• Georgetown (1070 31st Street NW, Washington, DC, Wisconsin Ave. south of M, 202-333-4400)
  
• Bethesda (7027 Wisconsin Avenue, Chevy Chase, MD, 301-654-1838)
  
• Fairfax (12154 Fairfax Towne Center, Fairfax, VA, the mall with Tower Records and the UA theatre, 703-352-6226)

Good kebabs, tasty food, and the best ethnic place in McLean. But simply not the best kabobs place, the meat here somehow has just a bit less taste. The bottom line is they manage to make it in McLean, ultimately not a good sign. Still, going here is better than eating American-style fast food.

Shamshiry, web site, 8607 Westwood Center Drive, Vienna, VA, 703-448-8883. Off of Route 7, near the Dulles access road. Not visible from any road. Turn left at the right place, and head towards the back. Near Oriental Regency, down a bit from United Airlines. (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [zabihah | Washingtonian | City Paper | food-plan | openlist | Citysearch | Gayot]

An excellent Persian place. Kabobs only, which I usually find dry and unexciting, but this place is a winner. Best rice in the area, very fragrant. The Barberry Rice and Cherry Rice, with chicken or beef respectively, are highly worthwhile. The Barberry Rice is wonderfully tangy and sour and the berries are luscious. What kind of rice you order is the real decision here, not what kind of meat. Ask for the beef medium rare, or even rare, if you order meat. The salmon is my favorite, with Zereshk Polo, make sure you rub Maast Moosir (a kind of thick yogurt sauce) into the whole thing, liberally. Excellent people-watching also, if you are interested in the Persian upper-middle class.