#117: Eggspectation

Date Visited: 28 August 2011

Meal: Lunch

Diners: 3 - Me, Wendy, & Andy

Experience: The Village at Leesburg currently hosts ten restaurants: Flame Kabob, Faang Thai, Noodles & Company, Travinia Italian Kitchen, Wegmans (yeah, it's technically a restaurant), King Pinz (yes, they have a restaurant too), Finnegan’s (just opened), Pinkberry (opening soon), Firebirds Wood Fired Grill (opening soon), and the subject of this review, Eggspectation!

Eggspectation is a franchise operation with U.S. locations in Ellicot City (MD), Silver Spring (MD), Chantilly (VA), Gainesville (VA), and now, Leesburg! They also have 11 restaurants in Canada and 3 in India - interesting! Eggspectation’s niche is indicated by their name - they specialize in lots of unique egg dishes.

We started out with an appetizer of Deviled Eggs (with sugar-cured bacon & candied pecans). The savory bacon and sweetness of the pecans formed a good combination, not overpowering. I ordered the Southwestern Benedict, which is one of their many varieties of eggs benedict. It featured two poached eggs with hollandaise sauce, plus some Tex-Mex additions such as a little jalapeño, and served in a half tortilla shell. Wendy got the EggFrittata (“Three egg frittata with tomatoes, bacon, and cheddar cheese, grilled potatoes and chef’s fruit garnish”); her comment: “Very cheesy!” Andy ordered The Sugar Shack (“2 scrambled eggs, two crêpes bretonnes, ham and baked beans. Served with grilled potatoes.”) and a Vanilla Yogurt (served in a fancy glass with warm honey). He liked the crepes.

Eggspectation is fun and kinda quirky because of all the egg puns and creative dishes. It is a bit on the expensive side in my opinion. Still, it’s worth a visit if just for the experience.

Location: 1609 Village Market, Leesburg, VA, 20175, 703-777-4127

Web site: http://eggspectations.com/

Total bill: $59.90 + $12.00 tip = $71.90

#116: Los Tios Grill

Date Visited: 21 August 2011

Meal: Lunch

Diners: 2 - Me & Wendy

Experience: We attended a friend’s birthday party a couple weeks ago and were impressed by the quality of the catered food (fajitas & such). When we asked where it came from, the answer was “Los Tios”, to which we replied, “Los Tios?” It turns out that Los Tios Grill is the new establishment that moved into the location formerly occupied by Nido Ristorante Italiano (reviewed in May 2010, just before they closed) in Leesburg’s Market Station.

Los Tios Grill specializes in fresh Tex-Mex and Salvadorean food. We visited late on a Sunday afternoon after the lunch rush. We were immediately seated and treated to their delicious homemade salsa (and chips, of course!)

Wendy had the Cheese enchilada & chicken enchilada combo, which came with chili con queso and more chips - yum! Her main comment: “Lots of chicken!”

I had the Beef fajitas. Almost every restaurant that serves fajitas does it by bringing a sizzling iron skillet to the table. At Los Tios Grill, I have never seen such mega-steaming - it was a cloud of steam at the table! Their tortillas are a bit larger than usual, which I really appreciated. The meat was perfectly seasoned, and came with a very hot habanero sauce on the side. Excellent.

All out food was very fresh, hot, and delicious. The staff was very attentive and courteous throughout the meal. Our server (Carlos) came back to explain some menu recommendations in detail, especially the Salvadorean dishes (which we’ll have to try next time). The excellent service also featured the table being wiped off after clearing the plates - a nice touch.

Their website is printed on the receipt, but doesn’t appear to be quite set up yet. There is apparently another location in Alexandria that does have a functioning website (with the same menu).

Location: 201-A Harrison St. SE, Leesburg, VA, 20175

Website: http://lostiosgrilllsb.vpweb.com/

Total bill: $42.04 + $10.00 tip = $52.04