B Side
Charcuterie boards are all the rage, but all too often, the preserved meat being proffered is not aged at the restaurant. That is to say, you could go to the grocery store and likely have the same thing at home. B Side is a most happy exception, returned just in time for the height of the craze. Chef and butcher Nathan Anda creates all the meaty morsels on the menu, from salumi served with hot mustard and garlic toast to the 32-ounce bone-in rib-eye. 8298 Glass Alley, Fairfax
Mark’s Duck House
Peking duck. Cheung fun. Egg custard tarts. This Cantonese stalwart has it all, served at peak deliciousness. Getting any of it to go just isn’t the same as ordering it from a cart pushed past your table—thank goodness owner John Jiang has seen fit to bring back not only dining-room service, but also the tableside service that distinguishes Mark’s from many of its peers. Yes, the skin on the duck is as crispy as ever, and after a long break, it may taste even better. 6184-A Arlington Blvd., Falls Church
Sfoglina
Chef-restaurateur Fabio Trabocchi closed the NoVA location of his pasta palace in November 2020, realizing it wouldn’t have enough business to sustain it through the winter. It returned in April with a whole new menu. One thing that remained from before: the mozzarella bar, with its cheesy specialties plus all the fixings. It’s not a bad way to start a meal that includes a family-style tasting of three noodle dishes to share. 1100 Wilson Blvd., Arlington
Thompson Italian
Having just opened in the summer of 2019, this eatery owned by Katherine and Gabe Thompson was open as a takeout spot longer than it operated as a sit-down restaurant. Here’s hoping people will be dining in for years to come on the seasonally inspired dishes like local-strawberry-and-stracciatella salad with homemade seed brittle, or potato gnocchi with morel mushrooms in white wine and Parmesan. 124 N. Washington St., Falls Church
Yunnan by Potomac Noodle House
Managing partner Shao Bruce took the opportunity to slow down during the pandemic era and do major renovations. As of press time, NoVA’s sole Yunnan-style Chinese restaurant was still in its soft reopening period, with only patio dining on sunny days. When the remade dining room reopens, noodle nuts can look forward to dining on mixian (rice noodles) in many forms in a chic new space with a remodeled kitchen. 814 N. Fairfax St., Alexandria
This story originally ran in our August issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to our monthly magazine.