28 February 2010

#90: Mandarin Express

Date Visited: 28 February 2010

Meal: Lunch

Diners: 3 - Me, Wendy, and Alicia

Experience: Today we were having our standard where-to-go-for-lunch-after-church discussion, and it occurred to me that I only had one more Chinese restaurant to visit in Leesburg, and I would have visited them all! So today we visited the final Chinese restaurant in Leesburg, which also happens to be the oldest. Mandarin Express has been in the same Plaza St. location in Leesburg since we moved here (1987). It's gone through many changes over the years, but is still going strong.

Mandarin Express offers a simple buffet for lunch, including Chicken & Broccoli, Beef & Broccoli, Pork in barbeque-style sauce, Shrimp, Chicken wings, Green Beans with Shrimp, fried Rice, Spring Rolls, Egg Drop soup, Hot & Sour soup, and assorted fruits and desserts. It was all good but not outstanding. The service was prompt and friendly enough, and the atmosphere/decor was, well, unpretentious and family/kid-friendly. No web site.

For Chinese fast food, my favorite is still Tai Pei Cafe. For Chinese sit-down, I recommend Jasmine or newly-reopened-after-the-fire China King.

Here's a summary of all the Chinese restaurants I've reviewed so far:

Asian-style restaurants that offer at least some Chinese dishes:

Location: 24-A Plaza St. NE, Leesburg VA 20176, 703-777-9898

Web site: none

Total bill: $22.50 + $5.00 tip = $27.50
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15 February 2010

#89: Subway (Potomac Station)

Date Visited: 14 February 2010

Meal: Lunch

Diners: 3 - Me, Wendy, and Andy

Experience: To review one of the key purposes of this blog, the goal here is to visit EVERY restaurant in Leesburg, including ALL locations of mundane fast-food chain operations. With that cheery introduction out of the way, I'll begin today's review...

We needed a quick lunch after church and decided to visit the second Leesburg Subway location (the other one on Catoctin Circle was reviewed on 8 November 2008). This one is located in the Marketplace at Potomac Station shopping center, along with other previously reviewed eateries: Manhattan Pizza, James Cafe, Arby's, Zpizza (now closed), and Moe's Southwest Grill.

On this visit, we just got sandwiches to go, and we all took advantage of the current "$5 foot-long" deal. I got the Sweet Onion Teriyaki, Wendy got the Italian B.M.T., and Andy got the Subway Melt. Everyone was happy with what they got - Subway is good and predictable.

Back when I did my original Subway review in 2008, I said that I tended to like Subway over Quiznos (I've already reviewed both locations). Many subs later, I've now changed my mind and I tend to choose Quiznos when I want a sub; I really have come to like their Baja Chicken sandwich.

Location: 653 Potomac Station Dr., Leesburg VA 20176, 703-737-6973

Web site: http://subway.com/

Total bill: $16.28
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11 February 2010

#88: Pho Royal

Date Visited: 11 February 2010

Meal: Dinner

Diners: 2 - Me & Wendy

Experience: Pho Royal has been open for about three months in Leesburg, but I only learned of it this week when I saw an ad for it in the Feb-Mar 2010 issue of Clipper Magazine. With all the snow and cold weather, a nice hot spicy bowl of Pho was sounding real good. Pho Royal is located in the relatively new Fort Evans Plaza II shopping center (along with CiCi's, reviewed 28 December 2008). There are two Pho Royal locations, the new one here in Leesburg, and the original one in Sterling. Pho Royal now competes with Xuan Saigon (reviewed 25 May 2008), as our second Pho restaurant in Leesburg. It's great to have these choices!

On this visit, (early Thursday afternoon, after our blizzard the day before, with mounds of snow all over the parking lot) we were surprised to find a regular stream of customers. It appears that Pho Royal has already established a loyal following at this new location. For our appetizer, we got the #A1 Cha Gio (Crispy Spring Rolls), which were indeed crispy, not greasy, and very good. For entrees, I got the #1 Pho Tai ("Pho with thinly sliced eye round steak"), which was recommended for "beginners or health conscious individuals"). Wendy got the #6 Pho Tai Nam ("Pho with thinly sliced eye round steak and flank"), which was recommended for those who want to try something new "with beef cuts that have slight fat covering that makes them tastier." Well, both were excellent, with delicious broth, and the usual accompaniments of Thai basil, bean sprouts, Jalapeno peppers, and lime. There was also an assortment of sauces at the table, including Soy, Fish, Plum, and Sriracha chili sauce (my favorite!) I spiced up mine with the Jalapenos and some Sriracha to the point of perfect heat, just short of pain. We both got the small size bowls and were left very full and satisfied. For drinks, Wendy had the #50 Tra Nong (Hot Tea), which was a mysterious passion-fruit-like variety. I had a #34 Cafe Sua Da ("Ice French Expresso with condensed milk") which was an excellent companion to my Pho.

The service was excellent; there were three different people who showed up at our table at various times to deliver the food, keep our water glasses filled, and clear away used dishes. All were very pleasant and courteous. The brightly lit yet warm atmosphere enhanced our experience significantly. There are several good reviews on Yelp that confirm our good experience. Curiously, the Pho Royal web site URL printed on the menu does not seem to be in operation yet, but I'm including it below in hopes that it will be set up soon.

Overall, our experience at Pho Royal was great, and we encourage you to visit too. At this point, I'd still give a slight edge to Xuan Saigon, as being a little more comfortable and Vietnamese home-style.

Location: 542 Fort Evans Rd. NE, Leesburg VA 20176, 703-779-1774

Web site: http://phoroyalrestaurants.com/

Total bill: $19.74 (after 15% discount coupon) + $6.00 tip = $25.74
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05 February 2010

#87: Manhattan Pizza

Date Visited: 22 January 2010

Meal: Dinner

Diners: 3 - Me, Wendy, & Andy

Experience: Leesburg's newest pizza restaurant opened up a few weeks ago, and we decided to give Manhattan Pizza a try. It's a chain restaurant, with two other locations nearby in Ashburn and South Riding. Manhattan Pizza is located in the Marketplace at Potomac Station shopping center, in the space formerly occupied by Caribou Coffee. Andy had been itching to go, since he works next door at Giant, and was eagerly watching for the grand opening. However, as Manhattan Pizza opened, the Zpizza store (reviewed here on 7 November 2008) closed. Apparently the owners of Manhattan Pizza are buying up some Zpizza locations.

We ordered a large pizza with pepperoni and bacon (our family standard), a Manhattan Supreme ("Mozzarella cheese, mushrooms, onions, sausage, pepperoni and green peppers"), and a Steak & Cheese sub ("With grilled onions, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise"). The pepperoni and bacon was pretty good, but there was a lot of grease in the bottom of the box. The Supreme was not very good, seeming to be a bit underdone, and much grease on the bottom. The sub was just OK.

There is a bit of Greek influence evident in the menu, which includes a Classic Gyro and Shish Taouk. The guy who took our order also gave us a free Baklava! The service experience was very good, with much courtesy and concern shown.

Overall, then, our experience was somewhat below average, which maybe we can chalk up to the newness of this establishment. We'll give 'em another couple of tries soon; stay tuned for an update. Curiously, the web site printed on the menu is wrong; http://manhattanpizzacompany.com does not appear to have any Manhattan Pizza content. The correct site is http://manhattanpizzeria.net (also see below).

Location: 647 Potomac Station Dr., Leesburg, VA 20176, 703-669-4020

Web site: http://manhattanpizzeria.net/

Total bill: $43.24 + $8.00 tip = $51.24
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