From: tale@ten.uu.net (David C Lawrence)
Subject: Re: Restaurants in Reston, Va
Organization: UUNET Technologies, Inc.
Date: Fri, 16 Oct 1992 23:17:18 GMT

I have some belated additiontal comments and general secondings on
restaurants in the Reston/Herndon area.

A little background helps.  I'm not originally from around here; I
just moved here in early March after living in upstate NY (near
Albany) for over five years.  Some of my comments are going to relate
to that; hopefully some of you will be able to relate to it.

I find that the northern VA area has an awful lot of mediocre
restaurants but few really good ones.  It does have a lot more ethnic
variety than other regions, but still few really good examples of each.
For the most part, you really pay for the good restaurants ---
disproportionately so compared to other locales.  (Some of this is
latent system shock of me comparing higher cost of living down here.)

PIZZERIA UNO'S was one of my favourite restaurants for the past
several years.  Something seems missing down here, both at the Union
Station one and at the Reston Town Center one.  I think it is just a
slightly different staff attitude coupled with it just not being the
same since I'm not there with all my old dining companions.  The food
quality seems comparable to Albany's Uno's but as a whole my dining
experiences there are just not what they used to be.  My own
recommendation is for the chicken fajita or veggie solo pizza; ask for
sour cream and grated cheddar for the chicken fajita pizza for an
added treat.  It is also the opinion of several Uno's afficianado's I
know that if chosing between two solos of the same type or one large,
go for the solos.  They just come out better.

I am a major fan of buffalo wings and real wings are a bit difficult
to get down here.  A lot of places advertise that they have them but
really don't.  (What is it with all the blandness is supposedly spicy
foods around here?)  One place I do like the wings, even though
they're really not quite buffalo wings either, is CLYDE'S in town
center.  The waiters tend to be a bit bummed when I inform them that
"Yes, that _is_ all I will be having for supper."  I'm probably the
cheapest dinner tab they ever see.  At least I tip well for it.
Clyde's is a bit of a yuppy establishment with all sorts of preppy
things modelled about, but my understanding is that the Reston Town
Center one is less uptight about its clientele than the Tyson's Corner
one, perhaps because of how much business they get from general Town
Center pedestrians.

Both of the above town center restaurants get sizable waiting lists
on evenings, especially around the end of the week.  No reservations.

FRITZBEE'S has good chicken fingers and really good desserts.  I know
there are a couple around the area; Reston's is crammed back in some
woods, not visible from the road.  I forget the name of the road they
are on but it is one or two south of South Lake on the east side of
Reston Pkwy.  The staff at the Reston one has been pretty fun the few
times I've gone there; this isn't true of the one in Annandale.

If you like cow, I understand that the OUTBACK STEAKHOUSE on Elden St
in Herndon is quite good.  I can only speak of what I've heard of it,
and that includes that it is also quite popular but I think they
accept reservations.

I personally was not impressed by the ICE HOUSE CAFE, further down on
Elden St, but that sort of place always has been lost on me.  My meal
was good but definitely overpriced.  The seating was cramped for our
party of four but it seemed like it might be nice as an quiet,
intimate place for two.

Finally, there is a chili place which comes highly recommended by a
friend here who loves chili.  HARD TIMES is also on Elden St (sort of)
but I can't give you any better indication of where it is other than
"on the east side of a shopping plaza which is across from the Cycle
Sport motorcycle shop and a Kinney's shoe store.  Oh there is a
Subway's in there too, but no supermarket and ..."

David