For foodies in the Fairfax area, March turns into a time for celebration. Fairfax and Vienna will each hold restaurant weeks in the first half of the month, providing diners with opportunities to try out some of the area’s best restaurants for special rates.
Vienna’s event will run from March 3 to 12, and Fairfax’s restaurant week will run from March 6 to 12.
In Vienna, lunch and brunch are offered for $25. Three-course dinner menus will cost $35 to $55. In addition to the prix fixe meals, some local establishments will offer à la cart items for a discounted rate.
In Fairfax, dinners will cost $40, lunch and brunch will cost $20. Some restaurants will offer two-for-$10 deals on specialty items.
Each jurisdiction offers a wide range of options from classy dinners that will impress, to quick and tasty lunches, to fun nights out.
To start your search, here are just a few of the restaurants running can’t-miss deals.
Vienna Restaurant Week
The Japanese restaurant Akai Tori Ramen & Yakitori is still new on the scene. It opened its doors in late January. The restaurant will offer a $25, three-course lunch special featuring pork, chicken, or shrimp katsu as an entrée and mitarashi dango (skewered rice dumplings covered in a sweet soy sauce glaze) as one of the dessert options.
On an outing with friends, try the fun, laid-back Caboose Tavern. It’s more than just beer. In addition to an assortment of brews, Caboose Tavern offers locally sourced, Appalachian-inspired dishes. The $40 dinner special includes a choice between two salads, seared scallops or rabbit pot pie for an entrée, and pound cake or a brownie for dessert.
For an upscale, adventurous dinner, look to Blend 111. This modern Latin restaurant was named No. 3 in Northern Virginia Magazine’s Best Restaurants list for its intriguing dishes and farm-to-table ingredients. The restaurant will serve a $55 set menu of tequeños (Venezulean cheese sticks), farm chicken with scallion potatoes and scallion salad, and a chocolate-almond dessert called marquesa.
Fairfax City Restaurant Week
For a casual bite, head to El Pollo Rico. This unassuming spot serves mouth-watering Peruvian chicken along with simple, tasty sides like fried plantains. The lunch special will provide a whole chicken, two sides, six sauces, and two sodas — enough to feed at least two people — for $25.
To be entertained while you dine, try Earp’s Ordinary. Earp’s Ordinary is an energetic spot with live music and special events nearly every night of the week. Rather than a fixed menu, its Restaurant Week special allows visitors to choose an appetizer, entrée, and dessert from the full menu for $40.
For a date night, Draper’s Steak & Seafood provides high-end American fare and an intimate atmosphere. Guests can choose from filet mignon, salmon, or a grilled half-chicken as the entrée, to be accompanied by either a salad or caprese as an appetizer and chocolate torte or cheesecake for dessert.
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