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[mattohonbung]

mama chang

🇨🇳 chinese (hunan, sichuan, hubei)

📍 fairfax city, virginia

📅 July 2023; dinner-ish. 2nd time

🙂 overall: i'm so impressed with the variety of unique dishes on this restaurant's menu; I'm always gonna get a diff experience each time. generally tho, they deliver on mala but not so much on hot-spiciness, and i feel like their appetisers / small plates are less impressive than their larger meals. I wanna try everything on the menu before going back to the dishes that I liked.

more food pix + detailed review under the cut!

🍲 yangzhou meatball stew - ok so we were expecting a bowl of Stew with Multiple Meatballs, and out comes 2 huge meatballs and like no stew. what? it didn't have much going on in the taste department either. bok choy was also just steamed so not anything exciting there either.

this would've been vastly improved with better seasoning of the ground meat, or at least more SAUCE. I won't be getting it again

🍜 suanla rice noodle - neither the noodles nor the bok(?) choy were overcooked. the broth was fine but I wouldn't say it was particularly tasty; we added the soup from the beef stone pot to get more flavor into it lol

this was boring; I wouldn't get it again

🍗 ganghood fried chicken - each piece was crispy and the batter was tasty (good amount of salt) and thin. a standard, enjoyable eat! however the pieces of pepper in the dish just weren't spicy. that's ok tho

I'd order it again. but they also have other kinds of fried chicken dishes that also look interesting, so I'd try those first

🍲 hot + numbing beef stone pot - man this portion was fuckin GENEROUS it was honest 2 god bottomless. the beef and noodles never ended o my god. the beef pieces were large and tender and took to the flavor of the soup nicely, and the noodles were so slippery lol. I to my surprise, I found this stew to be NUMBING AF (we had to take breaks to eat this) but not that spicy? the sensation was so weird. like it made my mouth feel cold and the spiciness kinda disappeared.

it feels like tasting multiple circles of hell in 1 dish. I'd get it again

🍆🧄 eggplant w/ spicy garlic sauce - the biggest mystery of this meal was how the eggplant stayed hot FOR SO LONG. each piece had a wonderful texture- firm but gave way to the teeth; the flesh wasn't mushy and absorbed the sauce nicely. man that sauce was spicy lol it hurt and I kept coming back for more

perfection I'll be ordering this again

🦀🐖🥟 crab + pork soup dumplings - standard! skin was thin enough, and the soup tasted nice and complex. I thought the the meat inside was pretty plain; it tasted more of pork than crab.

I wouldn't mind getting it again, but only after I try every other dish that they have. they have TONS

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💲 price: I think the final amount was like $35/person? this place is the 1st floor of an office building and is decorated very nicely so I expected that. as a party of 5, we left VERY FULL, and our only leftovers was the soup of the hot + numbing beef stone pot and the mala eased up on us the next day lol

🗒️ other notes: none of these dishes come with rice; you have to request it (I don't think it costed anything tho). we also asked for their chili oil and it was fragrant but wasn't that spicy. oh well lmao

also we had this meal at a strange time (4pm) and the restaurant was like a little over half-full?? folks know what's up lol

[mattohonbung]

himalayan wild yak

🇳🇵 nepali

📍 brambleton town center, ashburn, virginia

📅 dinner; July 2023. 1st time

😋 overall: the centering of yak on their menu makes this nepali restaurant stand out. they don't fuck around with their spice combos!!! everything we tried had complex, interesting flavors that made me want to keep eating (except for the desserts, which were mid). I'd come back to try literally everything else on their menu

more food pix + detailed review under the cut!

🍹 mango lassi - tasted slightly more yogurt-y than mango-y, but a strong-enough mango flavor that I didn't complain upon 1st sip. I wouldn't mind getting it again

🍸 cocktail that I forgot the name of - they didn't put much alcohol in this but I forgive them because this was a delicious drink. i'd get it again!

🍹 zero-proof cocktail that had citrus in it - in love with this flavor combo. this was tangier than it was sweet in a way that made every sip interesting. i'd definitely get it again!

🥩 grilled yak (medium rare) - what a delicious cross-section. I can tell that yak is a tough meat, but the sous vide worked to make it tender. they seasoned this meat simply but effectively; it was a tasty bite. just 1 bite. lol between 5 ppl this appetiser portion was gone way too quickly!!

I would get the entree portion next time lmao

🥟 steamed buffalo momo - honestly I don't remember much about this dish but both the momo and the accompanying sauce were delicious. I don't remember the buffalo having a distinct taste tho 🤔 I was kinda afraid that the buffalo would be tough but then again it's steamed meat.

I'd get it again! I love dumplings lol I wanna try their veg ones next

🍛 spicy pork curry - man we fucked around and found out. this dish (labeled VERY SPICY tbf) HURT to eat a few bites in 🥵🥵🥵 I forgot the texture of the pork but I know it wasn't dry. I kept going back to the sauce even though it was spicy as hell (I felt like a masochist)

I wouldn't get this again cos i couldn't take the heat 😭 like you know when a dish is so spicy that you have trouble focusing on the actual flavors? and then the spiciness lingers in your mouth for a LONG TIME even when you eat other dishes? 😭😭😭

🐐🍚 [in the 1st photo] bone-in goat biryani - they are LYING when they say that it's for 2 because it easily fed our table of 5!!!!! they brought out a whole pot and mixed it right in front of us!!! i looooved the bits of burnt rice. the goat wasn't tough, the spice level was bearable (compared to the pork curry at least lmao), and the spices themselves were wonderfully warming in my mouth. we had like 1.5 portions of this as leftovers

I want this again but also I don't because I wanna try everything else on the menu and my stomach real estate is scarce 😔 what a dilemma

🧄🫓 [in the 1st photo] garlic naan - I'm conflicted whether or not i'd consider this dish as having a reasonable portion cos the slices were a good size but each piece was pretty thin. I definitely wanted more after my piece was gone 😆 the garlic was fragrant but I feel like they could've been heavier with it (but also i'm the type who puts 4x the recommended amount of garlic in recipes).

i'm a sucker for garlic naan. I'd get it again!

🍡 gulab jamun - lots of gulab jamun end up being a chore to eat because they're so soaked with their sugar syrup that they're overwhelmingly sweet. that wasn't the case with this dish tho (maybe that was also accomplished by using honey rather than sugar). as for the yogurt- I feel like it didn't add much to the dish other than being a light element to counteract the heaviness of gulab jamun.

I wouldn't get this again tho like it's not that interesting

🍮 kheer - this is prob the most fragrant rice pudding i've ever had. it's kinda lacking in the taste department tho 😔 slightly sour, in a good way, but not much else going on. it was refreshing to eat after the spicy entrees

I wouldn't get it again. this dessert also wasn't that interesting

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💲 price: we were definitely very full! I was surprised by how affordable the food was- each entree was less than $20 and each dessert was $4-5. considering that it's is like 1 of the only restaurants in the DMV that spotlights yak, they offered it at a much cheaper price point than I expected.

🗒️ other notes: this restaurant is COLD AF 🥶 also their space is so huge; I appreciated that they spread out their tables. land is cheap out there in ashburn I guess

[mattohonbung]

karé bar

🇯🇵 japanese + 🇰🇷 korean

📍 chantilly, virginia

📅 lunch; July 2023. 1st time

😐 overall: food was aight; portions were honest. I guess I'm not that excited about this place's offerings to want to return

more food pix + detailed review under the cut!

🦑 ika geso (deep-fried, lightly-battered squid) - the batter had no taste to it whatsoever; it desperately needed salt. you couldn't eat this without the condiments on the side (curry powder, kewpie mayo, wasabi salt(?)). anyway the squid was squishier and an interesting texture- I guess i'm used to the bounciness of calamari?

wouldn't order this again. at least it tasted light.

🍜🐖 curry udon with tonkatsu (pork cutlet) - tonkatsu was fried well, crispy batter and the meat wasn't too dry. didn't taste oily either (I appreciated that they put it on a metal rack)! the shredded cabbage + miso dressing tasted sour... i didn't think it complemented the tonkatsu very well. the udon noodles were nice and springy but the curry wasn't thick enough to stay on the noodles. AND FOR THE NAMESAKE... I expect curry to be full-bodied, for the spices to linger on my tongue- but all I tasted in this one was pepper and then the flavor dissipated almost instantly.

wouldn't get the curry again. I'd get the tonkatsu in another dish tho!

🦪🍚 fried oyster donburi - it was a mistake for them to put an omelet blanket over the whole dish cos the fried oysters underneath were soggy :( that texture made the experience eating them so much worse cos not only were they soggy, but also the heat brought out the unpleasant brine-y flavor that gets muted when oysters are served on the rocks. yuck. PLUS they were served with mushy, overcooked rice. anyway the omelet was a nice flavor

if they keep plating the fried elements of their donburi wrong, I won't be getting them again.

🥔 I don't like potato salad so I have no comments on it, but the pickled veggies were nice and tangy to contrast the hot dishes

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💲 price - forgot the overall price but both entrees were under $20. ordering the ika geso put the final bill over $20/person. we were pretty full; no leftovers.

🗒️ other notes - it's a bright and cheerily-decorated place, with lots of modern wood accents. I heard about this place from a friend, who gave it a rave review, so I guess that's why I feel a little more let-down. maybe I should stop trying to get myself to like japanese curry 🤔 every time I order it i'm disappointed. lol I think it's inferior compared to indian and thai curries

[mattohonbung]

kulan cafe

🇸🇴 somali

📍 skyline aka build america plaza in bailey's crossroads, falls church, virginia

📅 dinner; July 2023. 1st time

😋 overall: I literally have no metric for somali food but since it's the only one of its kind in the area, I hope it sticks around. I love getting surprise sides, and they know how to season their damn meat!!!! I'd come back in a heartbeat.

more food pix + detailed review under the cut!

🍵 not pictured is the tea we ordered, 1 cup each. it came out PIPING HOT so we had to wait a bit, but it was so wonderfully spiced (cardamom?). sweet too, but a little too sweet that it got a little cloying once it cooled down. at room temp, all the spices made it taste a little medicinal; reminded me of a natural cough syrup or something. I'd order it again but drink it while it's still hot.

🍚🐔 rice w/ chicken suqar - this was my fav dish! the chicken was soooo tender and well-spiced (not much else you can say about it when you can't identify spices that well lmfao all I know is that i loved every bite). the rice took up half the plate and then some! I loved that it came with raisins; it reminds me of afghan pulao.

I would SO get this again!!!!!!

🥗 didn't take a separate photo of the salad that came with this dish but it was pretty good. I liked taking bites of it in between these heavier meat dishes. the vinaigrette helped lift it! I'd get it again.

it reminds me of the side of salad that kabob places usually include. I wonder if salads are a western influence and what kinds of vegetables are native to Somalia.

🫓🐑 sabaya w/ lamb - it's always a gamble getting lamb or goat from restaurants but I'm so glad I did cos this lamb wasn't dry whatsoever and I loooved the spice rub on it. there were some chewy parts that I had to spit out but it was prob tendon so that's to be expected.

also I was drooling the moment I saw them bring out this plate cos the flatbread looked sooo flaky BUT it ended up being chewy and dry af 😔 it was difficult to pull apart 😢😢😢 I'm genuinely so sad about this cos it prevented this whole meal from being a solid 10

I wouldn't get a dish with sabaya again. I'd have a dish with lamb again tho! maybe I'll try their pasta next time.

🥘 unknown side that has potatoes, peas, and ??? - lol right after the cashier/server brought out the sabaya w/ lamb, he was like "I'm not done!!!" and brought out THIS DISH. and then he was like "NOW the dish is complete." thank god he did cos that sabaya needed moisture... badly

didn't even know that the dish even had sides so i'm not sure how to get it again... but I definitely want it again. I love tasting a delicious spice combination for the first time 🥰

they brought this out a little late into the meal but they also gave us a bowl of their house-made hot sauce, which was made of jalapenos. it wasn't that spicy (tbf the server told us that as he put it down) but its freshness helped lift some items.

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💲 price - $17-$20 for each plate, which I think is fair given the generous portion sizes. definitely stuffed 2 people, with some food left over (mostly carbs haha)

🗒️ other notes - it didn't taste salty or anything while I was eating but once I got home, i was SO THIRSTY i downed half my water bottle like a whale. 🐋

anyway the cashier/server was really friendly to us. after he asked us to rate the food, he made a point to tell us that everyone cooking this food is family and actually from somalia, not like "other restaurants" (who most likely have latino people working in the back).

this plaza feels like the ethiopian version of eden center. hoping i'm not cursing the place as I write this but I wonder when fairfax county will start drooling over the land as ripe for redevelopment and ethiopians will have to organise for anti-gentrification like viet folks are rn (if you're reading this, follow viet place collective)

[mattohonbung]

sisters thai

🇹🇭 thai

📍 a little north of old town alexandria, virginia

📅 lunch; July 2023. 1st time (eating in-person at this location).

😋 overall: this restaurant chain never fails to surprise me. this was a delicious lunch and I'd def come again.

food pix + detailed review under the cut!

🥟 crispy wontons - can anyone tell me why the portion of ground chicken in the wonton was the size of a QUARTER 😐 bffr!!!! couldn't even taste enough of it to have an opinion on it. at least the wonton was crispy as advertised lol i kinda wished it was a little spiced or something cos each piece is literally 80% wonton wrapper.

NAWT getting this again lmaoooo i only got it because the lunch special came with an appetiser. def should've gotten the crispy spring rolls

🥘🐖 ka prow w/ pork - now THIS was 80% meat!!!! each piece of pork was sooo tender and the bell peppers were cooked just right- still had a slight bite to them. I forgot to specify my preferred spice level so I was expecting a super mild dish, but the kick that i got with every piece of jalapeño was PERFECT. honestly I think this move was really smart of the kitchen: those with low spice tolerance can easily avoid the peppers, and those who can take the heat can happily eat them. and the SAUCE.... peppery, umami (not like Salty idk it's hard for me to explain how they're different. idk. trust me), complex, only the slightest hint of sweetness

I would absolutely get this again!

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💲 price - lunch special was $16 i believe? not bad but def pricier than the lunch specials at other thai restaurants. but also it's old town alexandria lol

🗒️ other notes - ok so. given their decor, location, and amount of times their desserts have disappointed me at magnolia vienna, I was expecting a totally mid, mild, too-sweet lunch with skimpy meat portions- everything that many other thai restaurants do to their food when they're in whiter, higher-income areas. I'm genuinely surprised at how good my lunch was. the sisters group is obviously effectively chasing that bag but I'm so relieved to know that they aren't compromising the quality of their savory dishes. that being said... I wonder if their desserts at the alexandria location are better

their cocktails were looking sexy as hell but I reminded myself that it was only 1pm and I had work to do afterwards. maybe next time I eat here, I'll come with someone, and then we'll ogle over the menu together and order 1 each and I'll feel less bad about the fact that they're charging dc cocktail prices ($16-18).

also the style of their menu as a newspaper is cute but they gave me a copy with grease and food stains on it :^/

[mattohonbung]

pio pio

🇵🇪 peruvian

📍 great falls, virginia

📅 dinner; July 2023. 1st time.

😐 overall: "when they say Best Ceviche in the DMV" THEY'RE NOT LYIN!!!! but umm the entrees were underwhelming. I'd give this place another try and order other dishes... but only for a special occasion. 😬

more food pix + detailed review under the cut!

🍸 caipirinha - cachaça (sugarcane liquor) + muddled limes + sugar. brazil's national drink and pio pio's cocktail of the day for Wednesday! it was $7 instead of the usual $10 so I said why the hell not. the lime was strong and it pretty much tasted like sweet lemonade, which is dangerous 🤪

but turns out that they didn't fully dissolve the sugar; my last sips of the drink were full of undissolved sugar crystals ☹️ if I were to get this again, I'll def stir it.

🍸 chicha cooler - pisco + bacardi + malibu + chicha morada (peruvian purple corn drink), maracuya (passion fruit), pineapple juice. delicious. pretty sweet tho. the diced apple pieces on top were a nice touch and got a little boozy at the end of the drink :3c

this was my dining companion's drink but hell yea I'd order this again

🐟 ceviche clasico - nicely presented, and tasted as good as it looks! I havent had a plain fish ceviche in a while haha it kinda felt like eating sashimi. 🍣 every bite of fish (for $4 we upgraded from tilapia to mahi mahi) was sooo tender... virtually no connective tissue!!! I loved the contrasting textures of it combined with the soft sweet potato, starchy corn kernels, and cancha (toasted corn kernels). Best Ceviche in the DMV fr!!!

I'd get this again but simply close my eyes at the price tag 😌 that upgrade was totally worth it tho

seco de carne - this was a super hearty stew. this dish prob would've hit different in the winter haha we did NOT expect it to come with this much beans. for some reason I didn't particularly enjoy the taste of the stew itself 😕 it was almost... plain? idk. it said it was stewed with beer

this was my dining companion's dish but I wouldn't personally get it again. he prob wouldn't either cos he ate nothing after this dish and got food poisoning the next morning. he's kinda convinced it did him in.

🍝🥩 tallarin saltado w/ tenderloin steak - decided to switch it up from the lomo saltado that I was craving! the steak pieces were very tender and the onions were cooked just enough to still have a slight crunch. I enjoyed how big the onion slices were. the linguine tho... I understand the marinade was just soy sauce + vinegar + "some spices" but where were those spices tho???? it got boring to eat 🥲 flavor wasnt complex at all. I had hoped they maybe had a dry spice rub on the steak but I think they were also soy-marinated. overall everything was kinda flat. I'm a little disappointed ngl

I wouldn't get this again, but I'll try the separate elements in other dishes. if I get tallarin, I'll try it with pesto sauce! if I crave lomo saltado, I'll just get that!

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💲 price - $115 for 2 people = $77.50/person 🥲 yeah .

🗒️ other notes - maybe they can command these prices cos they're in great falls. legit drove past mansions to get here

[mattohonbung]

who seek

🍨 dessert cafe (korean)

📍 chantilly, virginia

📅 mid-afternoon; July 2023. 2nd time.

🙂 overall: their bingsoo is good, I wouldn't get their ades. the place seems kinda sanitised in a boring way now. I would still return, but always with friends (to help me finish the bingsoo lol)

food pix + detailed review under the cut!

🍹 not pictured is their peach-ade which i didnt take a pic of cos it literally looked like sprite in a cup 😐 the artificial peach flavor was barely there (is it cos i chose "less sweet - 1 syrup"?). I also chose "no ice" but you def need to drink it cold. lesson learned.

would NOT get it again even if you get it on their Tuesday $2-off Ades discount man I paid $3.50 for some sprite with peach syrup... could you believe they normally charge $5.50 for that?? bffr

🍨 black sesame bingsoo - it sure does look like they dumped black pepper on your meal 😭 anyway I love black sesame so I don't have many complaints! i guess they could've made it less sweet but like its a dessert so I'm not pressed about it lol. but I know the snow was made of cow milk cos I got so gassy afterwards 🫥

I'd get this again but only if i pop a lactaid. NON-DAIRY OPTION WHEN??

🍨 green tea red bean bingsoo - green tea flavor was weak af. the green tea mochi was cut too big. this did feel slightly less sweet than the black sesame one but I got tired of the flavor more quickly.

I wouldn't get this again :^/ I'd prob avoid all their green tea items. no bitter notes at all to counteract the sweetness smh

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💲 price - $11-12/bingsoo. i feel like this is slightly more expensive than other places, considering that all the possible additions would have racked up the price

🗒️ overall notes - kinda wondered if their honey toast is any good, but their options looked so uninspired 😅 nothing else on their menu looks worth getting here

also they got rid of the 'hidden room' part of their store and just opened it up ☹ L for them, it takes away from how cool their store seemed. I think they could benefit from some board games or something. they just had boring books (including encyclopedias for some inexplicable reason)

[mattohonbung]

loving hut

🌿🇻🇳 vegan / vegetarian (vietnamese)

📍 falls church, virginia

📅 dinner; July 2023. 2nd time.

🙂 overall: if you ignore the cult broadcast playing on the TV their food kinda slaps. it is pretty sweet tho.

food pic + detailed review under the cut!

🌿🐟🍲 hải sản kho tộ (vegtan seafood claypot) - the texture of this vegan seafood goes CRAZYYYY and the seaweed on the edge... they went off! the sauce is def sweeter than I'd like tho.

I'd get this again but I have GOT to stop assuming that "claypot" means that the rice comes in the pot!!!!! the Vietnamese indeed did not say "cơm tay cầm" 😔 the rice came on the side.

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💲 price - $13. reasonable I guess? idk I was full

🗒️ other notes - my friend got the phở gà chay (vegan 'chicken' phở) and that broth was also hella sweet. either they love their msg or they're adding sugar to everything for the palates of the white vegans who eat here

I wish viet vegans here had more options than a restaurant chain run by a cult!!!! thanh vân im coming back 2 u

[mattohonbung]

hong kong palace

🇨🇳 chinese (sichuan) lol deceptive name. why did they do that 😭 is it not a branding nightmare

📍 seven corners - falls church, virginia

📅 dinner; July 2023. 1st time

🙂 overall - tasty but on the salty side, and nothing was That spicy (even tho I saw a lot of red chillies so wats going on). the 3 of us ordered 3 meat dishes + 1 veggie dish and were satisfied but not absolutely stuffed. I would return but order diff dishes

more food pix + detailed review under the cut!

🫖 hot tea - hot brown water. no aroma, and no teabag inside. they must've served us their 4th brew smh

🍚 all of us got a bowl of rice along with these entrees:

🐄🍜 beef chow fun - classically oily and a crowd-pleaser. noodles were wonderfully chewy, like they got a bite to them (makes me feel like other restaurants kinda overcook them to the point where they're a lot softer. I def prefer chewy noodles)! beef was tender but I would've liked to see more pieces. i like seeing more spring onions and felt like those were lacking too. the portion overall feels like less than what other restaurants give.

i KNOWW this is a Cantonese dish but my companions were craving it. they consider it a good litmus test of a Chinese restaurant lol (whatever they say, they were getting hangry so I let them order it)

🟩🫘 stir-fried green beans - also a classic. the chef who made this knows what they're doing cos these beans were wonderfully blistered but weren't too soft. i could taste the wok hei. I was expecting it to be spicier but it wasn't tho

pretty good tho I'd order again

🐖🥘 twice-cooked pork w/ fresh garlic leaves - i need to remember that "twice-cooked pork" seems to mean pork belly. wasn't expecting that 😅 at least the MANY pieces were thinly cut. I also wanted more garlic leaves but thats ok. it had lots of other veggies! also this dish was giving exxon valdez.

the taste of the pork was kinda weird to me. I didn't like it that much ☹ would not order again.

🐑🥘 cumin lamb - sooo soft! kinda wish the cumin was stronger (but its my fav spice so I like it real heavy). this dish also had a lot of veggies, which was very welcome!

maybe I'll try the beef version next time?

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💲 price - ~$72 ($24/p) before tip. we took home maybe 2/3 of 1 dish, but I feel like if we didn't order 1 of these dishes we wouldn't be satisfied.

🗒️ other notes - restaurant is smaller than I expected :0 they were bustling with both in-person diners and takeout. glad to see they're doing well.

I've heard so many good things about this restaurant but now I feel like the recs might've come from folks whose spice tolerance is not that high cos I'm a spice fiend and was kinda let down. this def isn't the best sichuan in the area (small things here + there disappointed me) but maybe it's been here for a while 🤷 7 corners is inconvenient for me so idk if I'd go out of my way to eat here, esp cos other sichuan options exist that might go harder on the spice... but this was only my 1st time! I'll come back sometime to try other dishes!

[mattohonbung]

my name is Anh and my eyes are always bigger than my stomach. I needed a place to dump all my reviews of the food I’ve eaten other than a dinky spreadsheet cell! hopefully I can keep this blog up haha.

food from countries around the equator are my favorite. I like my food spicy, as long as the heat level adds to the flavor. I judge american, american fusion, and western european food harsher than I do with other food cos that’s praxis or wateva. that being said i do like to give places a 2nd chance (unless ofc i didn’t like more than half of what i ate)

if someone stumbles on this- feel free to send me recs! 😗