Jaleo - restaurant review

B and I finally got a night out!  My in-laws drove the seven hours from upstate New York to babysit one weekend so that B and I could go on a date.  Now it hasn't been that long since our last date, about 6 weeks, but before that I couldn't even tell you.  It was our anniversary weekend and we wanted to go somewhere we haven't been before.  The goal was Jaleo in Chinatown.  But since we wanted to make it an evening and go to a movie as well, we went to Jaleo in Crystal City which we've heard is on par with the Chinatown location.

Upon arriving at a somewhat early time (6:15 reservation), we were seated in a window dressing seat promptly.  Extremely courteous waiters came and explained how the menu worked and the specials which were tempting, but we decided to stick to the regular menu instead.  We ordered a full carafe of the Cava sangria and easily drank the whole thing.  I don't know where they got strawberries in February that could taste so juicy and sweet.  Delicious!


The food.  I ordered a dish of roasted red peppers, eggplant and onion.  This was my splurge tapas meant for myself only since B won't go near an eggplant, and I was unfortunately underwhelmed.  It was fine, but not what I was hoping for as the eggplant just seemed to take up space on the plate.  I wouldn't order it again.  The gazpacho, on the other hand, made my night.  I was giddy at the thought of eating it (my favorite soup) and thrilled with the presentation and taste.  The tortilla without mushrooms was fantastic, as was the grilled asparagus with romesco sauce and calamari.  The cod on salsa verde was forgettable, but the chicken with a pesto sauce was unbelievable.  I need to learn how to make chicken like that.

We unfortunately were unable to get dessert as we had to rush off to make our movie, but I'll make sure that we get it next time.  Because there will be a next time for us at Jaleo.


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