How can it have been a month since my last post?Well, it has been a busy time,with budget season and the new Congress and stimulus package excitement making my day job crazy, and tons of freelance work with super-tight deadlines taking up my free (?!) hours during the evening and weekends,when I cook it has primarily been just to get everyone fed. However, I want to share a food experience I had on a recent jaunt to Washington DC.

Learning about the new Congress is part of my day job, so when I had to attend a 1-day workshop in DC, I decided to drive up the night before and stay with Katie and Gavin in the big city (well, kind of, they live in Arlington) Since I hate driving at night I left in time to get to their place by evening and hung out with Gavin until Katie got off from work at 7 PM. I know you won't believe this but after lamenting how I hate taking down Christmas decorations, I ended up taking down Katie's Christmas tree and packing up her holiday things (it had to be done, and I guess she inherited the I-hate-taking-down-Christmas-stuff-gene from me), while Gavin introduced me to his latest collection of YouTube favorites.

When Katie returned, she was so excited,saying she was taking me somewhere special for dinner we drove to an unassuming little strip mall to the Peking Gourmet Inn in Falls Church. I had heard about this restaurant from my husband who had gone with Katie on his big weekend going to the Redskins game (one of the few games they won this season!), so I was prepared that when we drove up, it had a unassuming facade in a little strip mall. Once we stepped inside I was pleasantly surprised, the restaurant was cozy without being cramped, and I was greeted with the restaurants"wall of fame" sporting pictures of all the politicos and celebrities that have come there to eat (this restaurant was apparently President George 41's favorite).

We settled into a booth and were greeted by Mr.Wong, a friendly and experienced server. we looked at the menu trying to pick from the dishes.Peking duck, the restaurants specialty,was a no-brainer since we all love that, and you cannot go to a Chinese restaurant without eggrolls. Katie is not as fond of spicy dishes and Gavin and I both like spicy so we tried to find a mix of foods that we could enjoy. We finally settled on Sweet and Sour Chicken (Katie's choice) and Szechwan Beef Proper (Gavin's choice).

While going to a new restaurant to eat is a fun experience, going to a meal with Katie and Gavin is an experience in and of itself . They pick at and insult each other, all in fun, of course and they are just so funny together- they have such a great relationship and it is so much fun to be with them. Mr Wong brought our eggrolls first and they were delicious, crisp on he outside with tender,well seasoned insides that were not laden with grease as can often happen when cooking eggrolls. You can see that Gavin gave these the thumbs-up! Frankly, I could have eaten more but I didn't want to fill up with all the food we had ordered.

Next, a small table was set up beside us, signaling the coming of the Peking duck. This was dramatically presented and artfully carved right at the table. Our server was more than pleased to pose with the deliciously crisp and fragrant duck before carving, and he ensured each serving had a mix of crisp skin succulent white and dark meat. As he carved he carefully removed any excess fat so that our Mandarin pancakes were full of the flavors that make Peking duck so delightful. It was so delicious, a special treat since I hadn't had Peking duck in a really long time. The duck was such a star , that the other dishes paled in comparison. The sweet and sour chicken was just okay and the Szechwan beef proper was not what I expected (sweet-hot) and was more like beef candy, however it was really pretty. As you can see,though, Gavin gave the whole dinner a thumbs-up!

I know you won't believe that after all this food we actually were interested in dessert, but Katie really thought the toffee bananas sounded great and we decided we could share. Gavin wanted to try the coconut ice cream so we took the plunge, but our server informed us that the bananas were too soft for toffee bananas but we could have toffee apples instead. We were in for another tableside show with our dessert as well. The server dipped the apple chunks that had been coated in batter and fried into a bowl of toffee sauce and then dropped them one by one in a bowl of ice water so that the morsels developed a crunchy exterior- it was great, like a Chinese version of apple pie - we ate every bite. We had a taste of Gavin's coconut ice cream which was awesome and we agreed that next time we would have the toffee apples and ice cream together.

We left the restaurant stuffed, with our take-home boxes in hand. The experience was really fun, but next time I would increase the eggrolls and have just the Peking duck with perhaps a veggie dish on the side, because the duck was clearly the star of the meal. I know our picture won't end upon the wall of fame, but the Peking Gourmet Inn still treated us like we were celebrities!

About 15 years ago, when I started working at Jefferson Lab, I had a colleague who made me feel a bit inferior. He was a man, I was a woman (a serious minority at a nuclear physics lab), he had a Ph.D. in physics, I had a B.S degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, he had been at the lab for years and I was a new temp employee... you get the picture. This sounds like it could be the makings of a real disaster, but in fact, it was a relationship that benefitted us both. He decided to move out and up working at a bigger national lab... and me? I was introduced to sushi. You see, when our professional relationship was a bit tense we went out to lunch to have a talk, and he picked a nearby sushi bar. Though I had never had sushi (I know I lived a protected life), there was no way that I was going to be intimidated, and so, I ate my first sushi roll. It was the beginning of a love affair (with sushi, not the co-worker!)

Sushi is something that is best made by a master, someone who appreciates the need for super-fresh ingredients, and how to combine elements that result in the full experience, something that is pleasing to the eye and the palate. While I am not cosmopolitan, I have eaten sushi several places since that first experience, and my favorite is Soya, right here in Newport News. First of all, Soya has a family-type atmosphere, and they remember what you like, and who you are. In all fairness, I would consider my family regulars since both my daughter Bridget and I are sushi fiends, and sushi is always our idea of a great lunch, but it is so nice to go somewhere and be greeted by people who really appreciate your business. (When my daughter goes in to order takeout, they ask- "Lunch with Mommy or daddy?")

But I don't care how nice you are,it is the food and service that counts when you are spending money for food from a restaurant, and Soya has that down pat. Though they have a very complete menu, we almost always order from the sushi a la cart menu. While we each have our favorites (Husband- Hurricane, Me- Seattle roll, Bridget- Anything without eel, Molly-Phoenix),we have started to try some of the new special rolls that Soya. Our new favorite is their '08 Special, topped with spicy scallop flakes- it is a great combination of savory and spicy.

Soya has locations in Newport News and Hampton, and even in Virginia Beach. I have been to both the Hamptonand Newport News locations and have never failed to be impressed. As a fairly skilled cook, when I go out for a meal, I like it to be something that I couldn't make at home, and sushi certainly fills that bill. If you are not into sushi, Soya also offers hibachi and other Japanese favorites. But if you are in the Tidewater Virginia area, go to Soya, and you too will become part of their extended family!