Vapianos

i love how all of my dinners with buddies seem to have this SATC theme to it. four girls, talking life, love and all the above while hitting up various locations throughout OUR city. i mean, it's a little different but no biggie.

BOOF buddies eh, kh (not me), cc and I are always trying to find a time for all of us to get together. needless to say, it is ALWAYS super hard/rarely ever happens. however, we all found a day and an evening to grab dinner and so we initially had planned to go to matchbox (yummm) but it was packed (per usual), so we opted for vapianos in china town.

i have only been to the vapianos in dupont before and I really do love it, but I definitely felt it was kind of "been there, done that". however, i really enjoyed the china town location. I also switched it up and ordered a pizza (we actually all did) instead of pasta, so that was also a welcome change.

unlike its dupont counter part, the chinatown location is much more open but it does lack the nice outdoor seating that the dupont location boasts. however, i always feel like the dupont location is very dark, and although it is a nice chill vibe, I did enjoy the nice natural lighting that was present throughout the whole restaurant. i also found that it was easier to find a table at the chinatown location, which might just be in large part due to it not being as busy. there are TONS of restaurants in chinatown (as there are in dupont), but everything is in much a more confined space in chinatown. also, a major plus about vapianos is their happy hour.

for those who have never been to vapianos, i really wish more restaurants worked like this. upon entering the restaurant, you are given a "card" in which you then essentially "swipe" when you order your meal. you also can do the same thing for drinks and desserts, and when you leave, you give them a card and all of your purchases appear on your bill. it takes away the mess of splitting the check various ways and adding tip etc. furthermore, when you order, you choose what type of pasta you would like with whichever "topping" but there are also "design your own" options. they make everything right in front of you, so you know that exactly what you want is going into your meal. pizza takes a little bit longer (clearly) but they are all baked in a brick oven so it is GOOD pizza.

eh, cc and I all ordered the Verdure which is topped with Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Roasted Vegetables and Mushrooms. it was very tasty and definitely hit the spot. nothing too spectacular or to call home about but it was a well done pizza with good flavors. as a pizza EXPERT, i clearly judge by the crust and the crust is tasty and airy enough but not too hard and tough. well done vapianos.

kh decided to be the renegade and she ordered the Rucola which was topped with Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Arugula and Parmesan. she enjoyed it and mentioned that it was well prepared and had good flavors.

all in all, i really enjoy vapianos and i think i have been converted to the chinatown location. the happy hour is also really really good with $4.00 house red wine, house white wine, peroni draught and pilsner draught. you really can't be that.

Grade: B

Good for buddies who are looking to catch up over an inexpensive meal or a first date. Things to do: Catch a movie at the theater, catch a concert at Verizon Center, catch a play at Woolly Mammoth theater, check out the latest exhibit at the National Portrait Museum...get the picture? So many things to do. Also, for dessert (in Chinatown), check out Tangy Sweet or Coco Sala. In Dupont- Kramerbooks.