FOOD: The Gift That Comes Closest to the Heart

By JIMMY SCARANO
Falls Church Times Staff

If you’re scurrying around town looking for last minute gifts, I feel your pain.  The pressure to find the right present has been weighing me down since Thanksgiving.  But there is hope.

When my back is against the wall I always turn to food, and Christmas shopping is no exception.  A food gift is personal, memorable, and a conversation-starter.  I’ve spent the last week compiling a list of 10 places in the City limits to get a great gift for the food lovers on your list. Here are my picks of the litter, in no particular order.

1. Anything from the Farmers Market (300 Park Avenue, 703-248-5001): Winter at the Farmers Market may sound a little lame, but the sting of no summer produce is lessened by the vast array of artisan products and homey treats.  You could go the traditional route and pick up a few jars of jam, apple butter, or some gourmet coffee, all of which can be had at several vendors.  But I’m more intrigued by the less typical foods.  On my last visit I enjoyed the lip-smacking pickles at Oh! Pickles, a new vendor offering a variety of New Jersey-imported cukes (and even pickled tomatoes).  There are pickle freaks out there, and if you’ve got one in your family a mix-up of horseradish, red hot, and bread and butter pickles would make a great funky gift.  Just remember that Saturday is the last chance to get anything at the Farmers Market before Christmas.



2. Fancy stuff from Red White & Bleu (127 South Washington Street, 703- 533-9463): The obvious choices at this gourmet shop are the carefully selected wines and beers, sourced locally and from around the world.  My interest, as always, is the food.  Chief among the great finds here are the locally made sausages and other charcuterie from Jamie Stachowski.  Pick up a few links of smoky kielbasa or linguica, throw in a chunk or two of any of the innumerable high-end cheeses that catch your fancy, and hide it all in the back of the fridge.  There’s no rule that a gift has to be under the tree.  If you can’t wrap your head around the idea of a refrigerator present, check out the chocolates, olive oils, and other gourmet goodies.



3. Asian Pantry Gift Basket from Cho Saigon Supermarket in Eden Center (6795 Wilson Boulevard, 703-533-0863‎): If there is anyone on your list even remotely interested in Asian cooking, this well-stocked market is a gold mine.  Don’t be put off by the shelves of pickled shrimp, canned vegetarian mock abalone, and mysterious gray jars.  There are plenty of preservative-free, high quality brands of fish sauce, soy sauce, and other pantry staples in the Asian kitchen.   You could buy a wok or bamboo steamer from the cookware section of the store and fill it with a few choice condiments for a unique and memorable gift.  Personally, I’d spring for Golden Boy fish sauce, Kadoya sesame oil, Kimlan soy sauce, and any chili-garlic sauce with a pronounceable ingredient list.



4. Cooking gadgets from Brown’s Hardware (100 West Broad Street, 703-532-1168‎): Ok, so there’s nothing edible at Brown’s, but the City’s oldest business has got a surprisingly good selection of practical kitchen equipment.  Box graters, tongs, rolling pins, colanders, and a host of other basic tools are available and fairly priced.  Simple though they may be, these are the types of gifts that are pushed to the side at first but slowly become favorites over the years because they are just so darn useful.



5. Customized Spice Basket from Penzeys Spices (513 West Broad Street, 703-534-7770): Spices and herbs are the perfect holiday gift—they’re affordable, they have a long shelf life, and, best of all, they are great for any level of cook.  Penzeys has everything you could ever want and then some.  Got a friend crazy for Mexican cooking?  Load up on annatto seeds, cumin, adobo seasoning, Mexican oregano, and a couple of packets of guajillo and ancho chilies and they’ll flip out.  Know somebody who likes to bake?  The varieties of cocoa powder, cinnamon, and other pastry pantry staples are unmatched by any other retailer in the region.



6. Healthy Stuff at Kennedy’s Natural Foods (1051 West Broad Street, 703-533-8484): The deli at Kennedy’s is the real draw, but on a recent visit I was surprised at the selection of health foods lining the shelves.  All-natural snacks and candies make great stocking stuffers for the organic eater.  More substantial gifts could be a mammoth jar of organic honey, a few gluten-free cake mixes, or any number of dried goods.  And if you aren’t sure what to get, enlist the help of the absurdly nice owner, Kasha Neam.  Anything with her seal of approval is bound to be good, and good for you.



7. Middle Eastern Bazaar at Lebanese Butcher (113 East Annandale Road, 703-533-2903): Even though this small grocer is about the size of a walk-in closet, the selection is still outstanding.  A lot of the offerings don’t exactly scream Christmas gift (canned fava beans anyone?), but be patient and you’ll find some killer foodie gifts.  Dried figs, apricots, and nuts are safe bets for stocking stuffers, but far more interesting is a bottle of pomegranate, date, or grape molasses.  Or, better yet, a container of Saudi Arabian black seed honey, a robust but delicious sweetener perfect with tea.



8. Exotic Foodstuffs at Indian Spices (1067- B West Broad Street, 703-532-1777): I profiled this hidden-away ethnic grocer a few months back, and after a return trip this week I’m even more smitten than before.  With all the foreign-looking products it’s a huge asset to the shopper to have an owner as friendly, knowledgeable and honest as Danthuri Shilaja.  Strange as it may sound, I’d love to wake up to a giant bag of super-fragrant Tilda basmati rice sitting under the tree.  Or a can of India’s renowned Alphonso mangoes. Or a spread of whole cloves, cardamom pods, and cinnamon sticks.  Or, well, just about anything from this charmingly cramped store.



9. Sweet Treats at Natalia’s Elegant Creations (230 West Broad Street, 703-241-8040): Be careful when you walk into this quaint European-themed café—the display case is so tempting that you may end up toting 40 bucks’ worth of pastries on your way out.  That wouldn’t be such a horrible thing, though.  The sweets here taste like actual confections made from real butter and sugar.  Pretty-as-a-picture cakes aren’t too conducive to gift-giving, but there are plenty of cookies, bars, barks, and other little indulgences worth seeking out.  The mini gingerbread cookies taste like Christmas morning.



10. Gift Certificates at Your Favorite Area Restaurants: If you’re really pressed for a present, don’t forget that many places in the City — even small family owned spots — offer gift certificates.  I can’t tell you how awesome it is to get the bill for a gut-busting meal and not have to reach for your wallet. There are far too many places to list here, but if I were on the receiving end I wouldn’t mind a handsome sum of money good for a meal at Huong Viet (6785 Wilson Boulevard, 703- 538-7110) in the Eden Center.

Well, that’s the list.  Happy Holidays!