The quaint city has become a go-to spot for foodies across the region. From modern American favorites to Vietnamese finds, these five City of Falls Church eateries from our 2024 Best Restaurants list will not disappoint.
By Alice Levitt, Olga Boikess, Dawn Klavon, and Alyssa Langer
Ellie Bird (No. 4)
Falls Church | Modern American | $$$
It’s not easy to define the cuisine here. What is easy to agree on? It’s consistently surprising and innovative.
Take the chicken and broccoli, for example. This familiar Chinese takeout concept is elevated thanks to tender Amish chicken with glasslike skin, a rich black garlic sauce, crispy Carolina gold rice, and charred broccolini.
Even desserts, like yuzu posset — a refreshing, sweet-yet-tart, velvety pudding — are a reminder of how masterfully this team, headed by Carey and Yuan Tang, incorporates Asian ingredients into familiar Western dishes.
Amid a fun, casual atmosphere that features bird-themed decorative touches, high-caliber service is comparable to a more formal establishment thanks to a friendly staff mindful of the details.
A seasonal, ever-evolving menu lures diners back to try new dishes. No need to define the cuisine when it’s always memorable.
Eat This:
Vietnamese French onion soup, chicken and broccoli, yuzu posset
NUE: Elegantly Vietnamese (No. 8)
Falls Church | Modern Vietnamese | $$$
Grill-blackened Vietnamese sausage and a mound of garlicky rice are bathed in gravy. There’s nothing bland about this thickened jus — at first bite, the whole dish sings with the anise and clove of pho.
Welcome to NUE, where some of the world’s best dishes, whether it’s al dente pappardelle, or Hawaiian loco moco, are somehow improved with a fresh edge of Viet flavors.
Impressionistic flora dominates the main dining room, making the interior as exciting as what arrives from the kitchen. Brunch dishes are every bit as pleasing as the ambitious dinners.
At this year-old stunner, named for the French word meaning “naked,” dishes are stripped to their ideals, then reconceived even more scrumptious than before.
Familiarity with Vietnamese food isn’t a prerequisite, but a meal here quickly proves why it’s one of the planet’s great cuisines.
Eat This:
Vegetarian cha gio, bo kho pappardelle, Viet loco moco
Rice Paper
Falls Church | Vietnamese | $$
Familiar menu choices like pho are well-made at this Eden Center hub, but it would be a waste of a visit not to delve into its roster of less common specialties.
A flavorful hot pot brimming with chicken, seafood, rice, and vegetables exudes goodness. Leafy herbal greenery accompanies the crepe-like bánh xèo. It’s a hands-on dish that offers a rainbow of flavors and textures as one custom-crafts savory bites. Grilled fish with dill, a North Vietnamese specialty, evokes delicious memories of Hanoi. A cabbage salad loaded with shredded chicken (and its innards) is both satisfying and refreshing, as is a banana blossom salad with duck gizzards.
Shrimp wrapped in tofu skins along with shredded pork skin that punctuates a salad is another winner. Indeed, one could throw a dart at the menu; everything, from the familiar to the hard-to-find, is worth a taste.
Eat This:
Gỏi gà, bánh xèo, chả cá thì là
Thompson Italian
Alexandria & Falls Church | Italian | $$$
What swam in the ocean hours ago is now memorialized in a sea of garlic. Onyx-colored tendrils of linguine twist and curl around scallops that taste of a briny sweetness that tells you one thing: Thompson Italian is a restaurant more obsessed with fresh, seasonal ingredients than it is with the dogma of classic cuisine.
Leave it to chef-owners Gabe and Katherine Thompson to upgrade tried-and-true recipes with Virginia’s bounty. The fritto misto centers around meltingly tooth-friendly calamari but also zucchini and chunky peppadew peppers. The coating is tempura-light with nary a hint of grease.
Seasonality extends to desserts, where coconut tapioca pudding is bathed in blueberries or tiramisu is flavored not with coffee, but with bright, bursting berries. With every bite, the Thompsons pay tribute to tradition, but best it with their of-the-moment flavors.
Eat This:
Fritto misto, squid ink linguine, berry tiramisu
Trio Grill
Falls Church | Modern American | $$$
“Upscale casual” may be an overused term in the dining world that often doesn’t ring true, but it’s the quintessential description of this modern neighborhood grill, where you can show up in jeans but still have a first-rate meal.
Housemade gnocchi are the way to start — the lighter-than-air dumplings are seared and served atop an herbaceous pesto and red pepper butter. Crabcakes are a winner, too; stuffed with plenty of lump crabmeat and minimal filler, they arrive crispy and caramelized. For omnivores, the braised short rib is tender as can be, falling apart and soaking in a rich red wine jus.
Presentation is sophisticated, though not overly showy, and service is accommodating and polite. No matter the occasion, attire, or company, this upscale casual spot is worth a visit.
Eat This:
Housemade gnocchi, crabcakes, red wine–braised short rib
Feature image of Ellie Bird by Michael Butcher
This story originally ran in our November issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine.
