For: meaty snacks
2761 Washington Blvd, Arlington; 703-778-9951; eat-bar.com.
EatBar moved from homey plates of chicken and waffles to high-end snacking, with peanuts finding an unusual friend in red quinoa, pickled corn kernels and bone marrow that, when scooped into the salad, turns the ancient grain medley into something both rich and snappy.
Green beans take on potato chips’ addictiveness once fried and slipped into a bright-tasting green onion dip, plumped up with Dijon mustard and a white soy sauce, the latter is Chef Nate Waugaman’s only detour into Asian supplements.
Three-dollar bacon-studded caramel popcorn balls satisfy the ever gnawing salty-sweet fix, but the enormity of the cluster makes for awkward, PG-13, wide-mouthed eating.
For more than tapas-style dining, Waugaman also cooks at Tallula, housed just a hallway away. There, he’s returning the menu to a neighborhood spot, dropping entree prices by a Lincoln for more affordable (somewhere chefs can afford to eat, says Waugaman) week night meals.
(September 2012)
