Dish of the Week
Moules frites from Granville Moore’s
Mussels have popping up all over town in the past year, from Brasserie Beck to Marvin. But one of the big stories is the mussels at Granville Moore’s on H Street. So much so that Chef Teddy Folkman got challenged to a smackdown with Bobby Flay on Tuesday at the Argonaut.

Everyone had been speculating that the event that was originally announced, a taping for a show called America Eats, was merely a setup, and they were right. So Chef Teddy must have had some idea what was happening, and served up bleu cheese and bacon mussels and frites with an off-menu yellow tomato and truffle mayonnaise. Meanwhile, Flay countered with mussels in coconut milk, green chilies and butter, and (surprise surprise) poblano mayo for his frites.

Now if the judging had been up to me, Chef Teddy would have won hands down, because, seriously, bacon and cheese. Droool… Not to mention, after watching numerous Smackdown with Bobby Flay episodes, the hometown hero almost always wins so that everyone can feel proud and get the warm fuzzies.

For more accounts of Tuesday night, you can check out the post on Mrs. DC Foodies’ Amalah, as well as info from Endless Simmer and Frozen Tropics.

Photo by Eric Denman

Small Bites
Double your pleasure
The second location of Sushi Ko has finally opened in Chevy Chase. Sushi Ko is the oldest sushi restaurant in D.C.; it opened in 1976. Be sure to visit in the early weeks to experience sushi chef Koji Terano’s excellent omakase.

Julia’s Empanadas has opened another location in Columbia Heights, at 14th Street & Park Road NW, next door to Pollo Campero. It’ll make for a nice convenient post-drinking snack after going to the Red Derby.

Tap Project
Through this Saturday, a number of local restaurants will be participating in the Tap Project. The project promotes the accessibility of clean tap water and raises money to help UNICEF provide clean drinking water to those who need it. The project gives diners the opportunity to donate $1 or more when drinking tap water at participating restaurants.