home plate ■ by David Hagedorn R ORDE E S THE
now
Picnic in the Park In October, the outdoor Water Park in National Landing debuted with nine restaurant kiosks, a fullservice sit-down restaurant, a live performance stage, landscaped greenspaces, multiple seating areas and water features spread over 1.6 acres. I canvassed the kiosks, which represent local, minority and women-owned businesses, and found five dishes that light my fire.
Funnel cake sundae at Dolci Gelati
Owner Ahmad Ashkar isn’t looking to reinvent the wheel with his value-priced falafel bowl, and he doesn’t need to. The combination of fluffy, fried chickpea balls, tabouli, red cabbage, pickled vegetables, cucumber-tomato salad and crispy pita chips hits the spot. Ashkar, by the way, is also founder and CEO of the Hult Prize Foundation, which awards $1 million annually to a team of young people to fund a social entrepreneurship project. ($6)
Bo-khirria banh mi at PhoWheels
This marks the first brickand-mortar location for the food truck business Huy Nguyen started in 2012 and sold to current owner Tuan Vo in 2017. (The two are partners at Water Park.) Don’t miss their clever mash-up of a banh mi, birria taco and bo kho (Vietnamese beef stew). Crusty French bread is stuffed with five-hour braised beef shank, red onions, gooey mozzarella cheese, cucumbers, pickled daikon radish, pickled carrots and cilantro, and served with a side of “bo ko” broth for dipping. A spectacular mess! ($17.98)
124 January/February 2024 ■ ArlingtonMagazine.com
SARAH GERRITY (PAULIE CICERO); SCOTT SUCHMAN (FALAFEL, FUNNEL CAKE); HYPEFOODIES (BAHN MI)
Gianluigi Dellaccio, the pastry chef owner of this DMV chainlet, got so many requests for funnel cakes at his National Zoo stall that he finally devised a recipe for one after 15 tries. His light, airy and delightfully crispy confections are dressed with a scoop of gelato (your choice), whipped cream and chocolate sauce. ($12)
Falafel bowl at Falafel Inc
