#6 - L Street Bulgogi Cart

L Street Bulgogi Cart
Intersection of 14th St. NW & L St. NW

What I Got: Spicy Chicken Teriyaki w/ Rice & Kimchi
Cost: $6.75 before tax (can't remember price after)

Well, I finally made the trip to the Bulgogi cart at the intersection of L & 14th St. The Yelpers seemed to love it, so I decided that on Monday, I'd make the trip (which wasn't short from my office). It was a brisk afternoon, and there was a long line - a good sign to me that despite the chilly-ness, it was worth the wait for people.

It was and it wasn't. The portion was HUGE. The kimchi was decent (I had only had kimchi once or twice before so I don't know what makes great kimchi) and the chicken was very spicy. However, after a little while, my stomach started to hurt a bit. Actually, a lot. It was probably a combination of the massive amount of food I ate and the spiciness. It was worth it though - the chicken was tender and really tasty. The rice was sticky and fresh (always a good sign that the food itself is fresh when the rice isn't hardened by time), and the service was great.

I'm giving it 4 stars despite how I felt after. I think that was my fault for eating literally a mountain of food and it being really spicy. I should have slowed down instead of eating it in about 20 minutes.

#5: Java Green

Java Green
1020 19th St. NW

What I Got: Spicy Noodle Soup
Cost: $8.50 before tax (can't remember price after)

I ate there on Thursday - sorry not to get this up sooner. This is how it is described on the Java Green website

ramen noodles in spicy kimchi soup with bean sprouts, scallion, mushroom, roasted seaweed

That's a pretty good description. Here's another - delicious and expensive. My soup was very good - very hot and spicy. The service there was lackluster at best; you wait in one line to order and another to pay - and the girl running the pay line was completely inadequate - taking upwards of two minutes per customer. Another employee had to come over and replace her for a while because she was so bad at just dealing with cash and credit cards.

The organic cups and plastic bags are a nice touch. The food was very good, and while the portion was a little small for the price, you know the money is going to a more sustainable cause than, say, McDonalds. So that's good.

Three stars - four for the food, minus one for the service. I've heard the service is pretty miserable from other people as well, which does not bode well for them.