Manassas: T.G.I. Friday's

Tonight was my mother-in-law's viewing. It was a rough few hours, and after it was over (at 8 p.m.), my husband and I just wanted to find dinner at a place that would be quick and near our hotel. No one ever came out to seat us at first place we went to, so we headed to the T.G.I. Friday's across the street.

We started with the spicy beef queso:

 (It came with chips.)

We also got pot stickers, because we're wild and crazy that way.

My husband got the Chicken Piccata Pasta, but I went for the Cajun Shrimp & Chicken Pasta, which was essentially a spicy version of chicken alfredo with shrimp and Cajun-y seasoning. (Not too bad, though!)

My husband got the peanut butter pie for dessert:

I got the vanilla bean cheesecake:

Manassas: City Grille

Yes, my husband and I have gone to City Grille before.

The hotel we happen to be staying at is near a hotel we had stayed at two visits ago, which meant we were familiar with the selection of restaurants near this particular I-66 interchange. And since my parents were in town for my mother-in-law's funeral, staying at a different hotel a mile away, we picked them up for lunch and headed back to City Grille; they have a fairly good selection and were close by, two factors that were, at least for today, important.

I had Oscar's Special, which included one chicken fajita, one crunchy beef taco, and one cheese enchilada, and served with rice.

And then there was cheesecake, and happiness ensued.

Manassas: City Square Cafe

We headed back to the airport this afternoon to catch a flight home to Utah, where we'd stay for a couple days before coming back to northern Virginia for my mother-in-law's funeral. After going to Mass, my husband and I found the nearby City Square Cafe for lunch before hitting the road.

While my husband had the French toast, I went for the fish and chips.

Manassas: Tandoori Village

My husband and I checked ourselves into a hotel this evening, since space at my mother-in-law's house is tight. Our hotel was next door to Tandoori Village, which was so close we could have walked, but we were wary of our GPS, which had led us a bit astray when we had been trying to find the hotel. The restaurant was really excellent.

We started with Murgh Pakora (spiced chicken, deep fried):

Then we progressed to Keema Samosa 

(ground goat cooked with Punjabi spices mixed with green onion, dhania - fresh cilantro - and a mixture of garam masla, wrapped in light pastry and deep fried):

I loves me some spicy food, so I ordered some very spicy Gosht Pasanda (sliced lamb pieces marinated in a blend of light spices, yogurt, and lemon juice, added to bhuna masala, a curry); it was wonderful, but next time I'd order it a lot less spicy, and this coming from someone who has a high tolerance of spiciness:

My main course also came with a side of basmati rice:

Manassas: Denny's

Once again, my mother-in-law is undergoing rather severe medical issues and has been admitted to the hospital, so my husband and I are back on the east coast to help care for her. Because of the differing nature of our jobs (my husband works in the corporate world, and I'm a teacher), he was able to catch an earlier plane than I, arriving in the late afternoon, while I, once again, arrived after midnight because of a morning class I had to teach. (The flip side to this is that my husband didn't even have time to pack, so I caught a flight later in the day after packing for both of us. My packing fu grows stronger: Two people's clothes for an indeterminate amount of time in one carry-on bag.)

There's no real good side to any of this, including the very late-night dinner we had, since my husband hadn't had a chance to eat. At 1 a.m., our options were limited; fortunately, down the road from the hospital in which my mother-in-law had been admitted is a Denny's. I learned they have both an iPhone app and an Android app that promotes contests, their menu, restaurant locations, etc.

Having eaten on the plane, I wasn't especially hungry, but I ordered the chicken deluxe salad:

Gainesville: Eggspectations

After nearly two weeks of driving back and forth between two different hospitals and being really worried about my mother-in-law, my husband and I were had to head home to get back to our jobs. (Fortunately, my husband's aunt flew in from California to help care for his mother.) We weren't able to see my mother-in-law, who was still in the hospital before heading to the airport, but we did need lunch before catching our flights. We decided to go to Eggspectation.

We started out with pub fried pickle chips, which came with a side of ranch dipping sauce.

My husband got the Construction Pancake ("a layered high rise of pancakes, sausage, bacon, and grilled potatoes"), but I got the Bagel Lox, which included a plain toasted bagel, smoked salmon, cream cheese, onion, and lemon wedges. (I declined the olives and capers.)

 Pub Friend Pickle Chips

Manassas: Siam Classic

I love Asian food - Indian, Thai, and Japanese, especially. The minimal use of dairy is one reason, since it's something I have to be careful with, but I also love the spices and flavors. After a few days' worth of heavy food, on our way back to our hotel, my husband and I stopped by Siam Classic, a Thai restaurant. (The pictures are dark, for which I apologize, but the lighting was set to low in the restaurant, and using a flash didn't help.)

We started with the chicken satay.

Then we moved on to stuffed chicken wings (large chicken wings turned inside out and stuffed with ground pork, crabmeat, egg and shiitake mushrooms).

I had the panang curry with duck.

(Panang curry is one of my favorites, and I'd never had it served with duck before.)

Haymarket: Lion & Bull (Revisted)

After another day of visiting my mother-in-law in the hospital, my husband and I wanted some comfort food; since we'd had to stop by her house after visiting her in the hospital, we headed back to the Lion & Bull for some pub fare.

We started off with nachos.

I had the Pollo Michaelangelo: chicken stuffed with mushroom, shrimp, and feta over linguine with a cream and sherry sauce. Not too shabby!

Manassas: Bob Evans

My mother-in-law had a medical procedure scheduled for this afternoon, which meant that we had to eat before we picked her up to take her to the hospital. Our hotel was close to a Bob Evans, which we thought would be quick, so we stopped there. I got the spinach, bacon, and and tomato biscuit bowl.

Centerville: Food Corner Kabob House

We decided to go for a little bit of a drive for dinner tonight (not too far, though), and wound up at Food Corner Kabob House. It was absolutely fantastic - then again, I love Middle Eastern food.

Unfortunately, some of the things I ordered don't appear on their website, although of course they were listed on the menu. The first thing we had was a pastry dough filled with leeks, potatoes, and scallions, and served with homemade yogurt sauce, which tasted like it had dill in it. Really good stuff.

My entree was a lamb dish, sauteed with onions and (I think) peppers. The lamb was seasoned really well and included lamb on the bone and lamb kabob.

And it came with really excellent Afghan bread.

My husband ordered the boneless chicken kabob and the baklava, which I would have taken pictures of, but he growled when I tried to come between him and his food.

Haymarket: Lion & Bull

We felt like we've been eating some really heavy (although) good food lately, so for lunch today we went to a pub, the Lion & Bull, which, again, was close to my mother-in-law's place.

My husband got the steak salad, but I went with the Cobb salad, with grilled chicken and avocado.

Manassas: City Grille

A girl needs to eat lunch - or at least I do; our lunch this afternoon was convenient because our hotel was surrounded by several options, so we stopped off at City Grille on our way to my mother-in-law's house.

My husband went for their breakfast buffet, but I started with the French Onion soup:

I didn't manage to eat the entire bacon cheddar cheeseburger, but I tried!

Haymarket: Asian Garden

My husband and I are currently visiting my mother-in-law, who quite suddenly was struck with some medical issues. Because of a related sensitivity to smells, we're eating out- which is impossible to do in the long-term, simply because it's not something most of us can afford - but we simply don't go out for meals much while we're at home in Utah, so it's nice to try some of the local restaurants.

Tonight we tried the Asian Garden restaurant, which was quite good, and had a variety of Asian food (Japanese, Chinese, and Thai).

We started with honey spare ribs:

Then we tried the pan-friend meat dumplings:

I had some rolls (the Volcano roll, the Fancy roll, the Tokyo roll, and the Crazy Couple roll):

My husband had the General Tso's chicken:

And we shared some cheesecake for dessert: