Best of NoVA 2018
Cuisine
Craving a specific kind of cuisine? From Modern American to Italian, here are your fellow Northern Virginians’ favorites.
Modern American
Tuscarora Mill
What was once a 19th– and 20th-century grain mill is now a Leesburg favorite—and a 2017 50 Best Restaurants winner—serving brunch, lunch, dinner, dessert and alcoholic beverages. It’s easy to see why locals look so fondly upon the restaurant, nicknamed “Tuskies,” as Dining Editor Stefanie Gans praises how a server returned to her table one evening simply to add garnish to her dish. –RK // 203 Harrison St. SE, Leesburg; tuskies.com
Italian
Ciao Osteria
Chef Antonino knows how to cook up the classics here. This is the fourth consecutive year that the Centreville spot makes our Best of NoVA list, guests praising the 2017 50 Best Restaurants winner’s from-scratch, wood-fired pizzas and Sicilian meals. –RK // 14115 St. Germain Drive, Centreville; ciao-osteria.com
Indian
Bollywood Bistro
This fine dining restaurant and caterer opened its first shop in Fairfax in 2009, and five years later opened a second location in Great Falls. Their list of “Curtain Raiser” appetizers stars seafood, veggie dishes and soups and bisques, while entrees lean more toward chicken and lamb. Larger fish and vegetarian dishes are also on the menu however, which also offers guests a choice of different naan breads and desserts. –RK // 3955 Chain Bridge Road, Fairfax and 9853 Georgetown Pike, Great Falls; bollywoodbistro.com
Chinese
Peking Gourmet Inn
On our own list of the Best Asian Restaurants in Northern Virginia, this past Best of NoVA winner is known for its duck, which is cooked then sliced tableside into three separate plates of meat and skin. Photos of celebrities who have visited the family-owned restaurant line the walls. –RK // 6029 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church; pekinggourmet.com
Ethiopian
Hawwi Ethiopian restaurant
Hanen Salim began learning how to cook from her mother at only 12 years old. Her food, served on top of injera, a spongy, porous flatbread, has been well-received not only in the United States, but in Ethopia and Germany as well. The restaurant, which she runs with her husband Befekadu Mosa, has had a similar effect on Northern Virginians. –RK // 1125 Queen St., Alexandria; hawirestaurant.com
Vegetarian-friendly
Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant
This vegetarian restaurant has an eco-friendly focus, its name referring to the fact that a sunflower gets its strength from the sun and only takes the nutrients it needs to survive. Through its Japanese-, Chinese- and Continental-style offerings, Sunflower aims to help people realize that vegetarianism is not only good for both you and the environment, but can also be quite flavorful. –RK // 2531 Chain Bridge Road, Vienna and 6304 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church; crystalsunflower.com
Gluten-free restaurant
Burtons Grill & Bar
With an entirely separate menu for gluten-sensitive folks listing off appetizers, soups, salads, sandwiches and entrees—not to mention options for paleo (no sugar, dairy or gluten) or vegetarian people—it’s no surprise that this chain restaurant and its scratch kitchen is an area favorite. –RK // 21434 Epicerie Plaza, Sterling and 6452-A Old Beulah St., Alexandria; burtonsgrill.com