Jaleo

www.jaleo.com

So I have decided to expand my blog to include restaurant reviews. I love to eat way more than I like to cook so I think it is a fitting addition.

Tony and I went to Jaleo in Bethesda the other night for dinner. We enjoy this Spanish-style tapas restaurant and have eaten here on a number of occasions. However, this time we went as “mystery shoppers.” Tony signed us up with this company that compensates you for going to certain restaurants. All you have to do is go to a pre-selected restaurant on a designated date and fill out a rather comprehensive report online about your experience. It’s great! So we took advantage of our ($70!) credit and had an excellent meal.

We splurged and ordered a pitcher of white sangria. We usually just get the traditional red sangria which is amazing, so I was a bit hesitant to veer from the norm. However after hearing the bartender's description and watching him make it for someone else I was sold. They make it with sparkling white wine, brandy, vodka, vanilla liquor, LOTS of strawberries and fresh mint. It was delicious.

We then ordered the following array of tapas:

• Tomato bread with Manchego cheese
• Seared Tuna with sesame seeds and raisin sauce
• Monk fish with eggplant puree
• Brussels sprouts with dried fruit and pancetta
• Sirloin steak (I don't eat red meat so I don't recall the specifics!)
  

The tomato bread with Manchego is a MUST. We always get it. I really enjoyed the tuna- perfectly pink in the middle. I like monk fish, but neither of us were excited about the eggplant puree- it overpowered the fish in my opinion. We’ve been on a Brussels sprout kick for some time so we had to try the dish. The dried fruit added a nice sweet contrast to the sprouts. I assume the pancetta added an additional layer of saltiness, but since I don't dig pig I worked around it! Tony devoured the steak- however there was a mix up in the kitchen so he was salivating when it finally arrived. He was ultimately rewarded for his patience though as the waiter took the steak off our bill which left room in our budget for dessert! (not that any so-called budget would stop us otherwise)…. We enjoyed a mini chocolate molten cake with walnut sauce and a scope of vanilla bean ice cream. The cake was excellent in its own right- but the walnut sauce added a wonderful nutty layer to the chocolate flavors. Mmmm… I can still taste it!