While I've Been: Facci Ristorante Surprised Us With Even-Better Pizza And Even-More Pasta

Pizza and pasta at Facci

While I've been out, Facci Ristorante turned itself into an even-better restaurant -- and surprised us into making it one of our go-to dinners.

The Italian restaurant on Johns Hopkins Road has been a popular spot since it opened more than five years ago, but it never welcomed or excited us as much as we expected -- especially since it is one of our closest options.

While I've been slow with the blogging, we have eaten a few times at Facci, and we loved all the dishes.  First, we remembered that wood-fired pizza is so much better right out of the oven.  We've done take-out a few times.  It's good, but Facci's pizza is crunchy magic when it skips right from the fire to your plate.

The wood-fired oven

All of these gourmet pizzas depend on the skill of the specific person who throws your pie.  As I have written about other places, quality can vary.  But Facci's quality has run recentlyfrom really good to absolutely perfect.  They do a pistachio pizza with sliced red onions that came out slightly charred and perfectly topped.  The crust was still hot and crisp that I was pleased when Lil' Chow declined a slice.

This is part of my "While I've Been Out" series to restart the blog.  Late last year, the blog got some serious competition.  I'm still working out how to keep writing while I'm doing so many other new things as well.  Tomorrow, my suggestion for a great local adventure for exercise and delicious food.  (Plus puppies!!!)

Lil's Chow never declines noodles.  So he has been pleased by our second discovery:  That Facci now makes many more pastas in-house.  I assume Facci expanded the pasta-making when they opened a second location in Turf Valley in Ellicott City.  Instead of two or three options, there is an entire menu section -- from simple fettuccine through gnocchi and stuffed ravioli.

Spaghetti with all-the-parmesan-he-can-get

Your first try should be the sacchetti cheese pears.  These are small pockets of pasta filled with pears and gorgonzola cheese.  There's technique in the pasta-making.  There's 're in balancing fruit with blue cheese.  The pasta was sweet, salty and perfectly toothsome.  It makes me confident to explore other parts of the restaurant because I can tell that they're paying attention to the details.

I'd recommend an exploration even if you're one of the people who hasn't visited in a while.  Facci had rough service in the early years.  I remember being turned away so brusquely that we didn't return for a long time.  But the Facci folks were really great on both visit.  On one visit, our waiter worked with the bartender to find a wine that fit exactly what Mrs. HowChow wanted.  On both visits, folks have catered to Lil' Chow with multiple cheese gratings -- each Parmesan shower making him happier to suck up his spaghetti.

Facci has changed impressively over the years.  They expanded onto a patio.  They added a special bar with artisan meats and cheeses.  I'm not at a happy hour stage of my life, but I recommend it for anything from fancy dates to casual happy hours, from 5 pm toddler dinner to late-night drinks.

The second Facci is in the Turf Valley shopping center.  The original is on Johns Hopkins Road in a shopping center full of food, including Kloby's Smokehouse for barbecue, La Palapa Too for Mexican, and Tandoor Grill for Indian.  In the blog's main political statement, I need to emphasize that they aren't in Laurel.  The post office thinks they're in Laurel, but the center sits west of Rte 29 just south of Columbia.  As I've written, I love Laurel.  This just isn't Laurel.  This is Tribeco.

New Sauces At Kloby's Smokehouse: A Traffic Light Of Flavors Run From Sweet To Spicy

Three new sauces at Kloby's

You should drive to Kloby's Smokehouse for a traffic light of new flavors.

The barbecue restaurant on Johns Hopkins Road has always sold about eight sauces -- from a vinegar based "Carolina" to a sweet-hot "Honey Hab."  But they just added a new trio of sauces that match nicely with the three colors of a traffic light:

• Green: Smoked jalapeño and peach
• Yellow: Smoked poblano and serrano
• Red: Sweet blueberry BBQ sauce.

They're three great new options that run sweet to spicy.  The blueberry is really sweet, although still enough savory to be a barbecue sauce and not a jam.  The jalapeño peach comes in the middle with a spicy flavor, but a strong smokey fruitiness that balanced beautifully.  The poblano-serrano is for real heat-seekers, starting spicy like the jalepeno but then get even-hotter with a bright spicy finish.

These are all delicious   The two spicy sauces are done right.  They're spice as flavor, mixed nicely with fruitiness and smoke.  I tasted all three with an order of the basic wings, and they each added character and zest.

I have to say that my lunch reminded me how much I enjoy Kloby's plain wings.  The wings are meaty and large compared to most restaurants, and, all on their own, they have a deep smoke flavor and the perfect crispy skin.  For a while, I have been ordering "Dirty & Old" wings -- dusted with Old Bay and fried a second time.  But I will probably come back to the originals with a couple of sauces.  The jalapeño-peach would probably be my choice if I had to eat all five wings with one sauce, but I had way more fun dipping from sauce to sauce to sauce.

If you go to Kloby's, check out my prior posts -- especially the ideas of the jarbecue and "flight" of bread puddings.  Kloby's does an array of craft beer and bourbons, and it's a terrific casual place where they're making an effort to make special food.

Takeout Jarbecue -- Do It Yourself Goodness

"Takeout" jarbecue

This is a crisis HowChow style: You want a jarbecue, but you need to pick up the kid so you can't take time to eat in at Kloby's Smokehouse.

The "jarbecue" -- as we have already covered -- is a Kloby's creation where they layer pulled pork, coleslaw and baked beans in a Mason jar.  Great flavors.  Great fun.

The crisis was faced by the '34 Act Gourmet, who didn't want to take out a jarbecue because he figured it would be just a mess into a styrofoam clamshell by the time that he got his terrible toddler home from daycare and under control.

So he went DIY jarbacue.  He ordered the two-meat platter with all pulled pork.  He got the coleslaw and the beans as sides.  He layered them up at home.  The verdict:  Success.  The hot stayed hot.  The cold stayed cold.  Until, that is, he filled his own mason jar and then enjoyed a little Kloby's inspiration at home.

Great Food For The Super Bowl: Let's Start With Housemade Potato Chips at Kloby's Smokehouse

Housemade potato chips at Kloby's

We're celebrating the Super Bowl by eliminating healthy food this week at HowChow.  It's all fun through Sunday.  We can be nutritious for the rest of the year.

Let's start with a snack:  My find during the Denver game were the housemade potato chips at Kloby's Smokehouse on Johns Hopkins Road.  They're on the appetizer list.  You get a bowl of potatoes -- sliced on a mandoline (or by a savant), fried to a crisp, and ready for the spice mixes that they'll bring along.  One was Old Bay.  One was the dry rub that Kloby's puts on pork.

The chips are an excellent snack and a fine starter before ribs, wings, pulled pork, jarbecue, or any of Kloby's meat dinners.  With walls of televisions and great smoked meats, Kloby's will be a fun place to watch the game.  You can also take out meals or meats by the pound.  Just order early because I assume they'll be busy.

For the rest of the week, I'll share Super Bowl suggestions and ask for your own.  So start to think about how you can mix televisions and great food.

Kloby's is just off Rte 29 on Johns Hopkins Road.  This is the area where HowChow defies the postal service and that HowChow has declared to be Tribeco.

Sambar, Idli, And Deep-Fried, Old Bay Wings -- Comfort Food Just Like Grandma Used To Make

Sometimes, you just need to trust your instincts.

I drove all the way to Rte 40 in a cold-induced fog last night in search of dinner.  I had food in the house, but I'd been trapped inside for two days -- one without phone, Internet or television.  (A Verizon tech apparently unplugged us yesterday because he or she found us plugged into the wrong port in the company's hub.  Thanks Verizon!)

But somewhere around St. Johns Road, I decided that I couldn't face eating alone in a bright restaurant.

That's how I ended up at a cafe table outside Kloby's Smokehouse's takeout counter.  Warm night.  Weird fog.  And a weird pairing of food that just felt right: lentil soup with rice dumplings and chicken wings.

That's health food on Johns Hopkins Road: Sambar and idli from Tandoor Grill and "dirty and old" wings from Kloby's.  A slightly spicy soup.  Some mild steamed rice dumplings.  The crunchy chicken wings.  At the time, I passed on the chili naan as too much for my stomach, but now I wonder if that heat would have killed off my viruses.

Progressive Dinners -- Guacamole To WIngs To Nutella Pizza, And That's Just The Beginning

Nutella pizza for dessert

Last week, I pushed the idea of shopping centers so chuck full of food that you could eat course-by-course at different restaurants.

I only thought of three locations, but folks filled the comments with other places -- like the inspired walk from soup at Bangkok Delight to meatballs at Tino's to dumplings at Jesse Wong's Asean Bistro and then to dessert at Cafe de Paris.

Chips at La Palapa

But I have only eaten at one.

Friday night, a group of us took out a neighbor moving to Bethesda.  I can't claim it was a meal with a theme -- chips and guacamole at La Palapa Too, wings, jarbecue, and more at Kloby's and then nutella pizza at the bar at Facci.

The exclamation point was the chili naan.  One of us ordered an "extra hot" version of the spicy bread as takeout.  We carried it into Kloby's and split it up.  Somehow half the bread ended up in one person's mouth -- folded four times to get extra hot pepper in a single mouthful.

Pain.

The best way to cool off those hot Indian dishes:  white Russians.  That's a lesson from HowChow.

I actually love the other recommendations about progressive dinners.  The Rumor Mill-Pure Wine-Bean Hollow trio sounds terrific.  And I need to try that "best daifuku mochi at La Boulangerie."

Facci Is Installing An Ocean-Front Patio At Their Restaurant, And By "Ocean-Front," I Mean . . .

Cool round of couches at Facci

Facci is installing an ocean-front lounge on the side of their restaurant.

And by ocean-front, I mean a lounge looking out over the ramp from Rte 29 to Johns Hopkins Road.

The permanent roof went up over the Facci patio in the last few days.  We looked around the corner to find a really cool slate patio with a U-shaped arrangement of outdoor couches.  They circle what looks like a fire pit.  It's really cool, especially if you close your eyes and imagine that the sound of that Honda Odyssey rushing down Johns Hopkins Road is actually the sound of surf.

Look, it's a car through those twisty shrubs

You know I'm a fan.  It's the natural progression of my beloved parking lot cafe and Wordbones' hilarious idea that we find the best dinners you can eat while overlooking a stormwater management pond.  My current thought:  The new Mango Grove overlooks a beautiful pond, but you can sit outside.

Hey, we need to enjoy the spaces that we have.  If we're eating the suburbs, I will be a fan of beautiful little places even if they overlook commuters.

The Early Bird Gets The Smoked Pig At Kloby's

Chef Kloby pulls pig for the sliders

The early birds got the smoked pig at Kloby's Smokehouse.  I came back from the library just after 5 pm, and they had just started carving.  For $2 each you got slider rolls that the chef filled with meat that he pulled off the whole smoked pig they did as part of their fourth anniversary celebration.

They'd been cooking for 10 hours, and the pork was delicious.  Moist and flavorful, a perfect match to Kloby's Carolina sauce, which I went back to reload midway through my three sliders.  I got pieces of loin, shoulder, and belly with increasing amounts of fat to them.  It was a Goldilocks night where that middle cut was just right for me.

Great fun.  A delicious DuClaw's HellRazer IPA and some fun talking to the Baltimore Beer Guy, his family and other friends.  By the time that I was leaving around 6:30, the pig looked pretty-much picked, but Kloby's has so much other great food that the dining rooms were full and people were waiting in the entry.

Sausage Sandwich At Facci

Sausage sandwich from Faci

Just in time for spring, you need an excuse to get yourself a seat on the patio at Facci Ristorante.

My newest find is the sausage sandwich.   Crumbled sausage in a tangy sauce.  Nice roll that soaks a bit of the sauce, but holds it own.  House-made potato chips.  Delicious, basic ingredients make a kitchen stand out even when it is just dishing up a sandwich.

What else do you need for lunch?  Bring a friend and split the sandwich and a salad.  Mrs. HowChow likes the one with raspberry dressing.

Facci is on Johns Hopkins Road just west of Rte 29.  It's a shopping center with Kloby's, Tandoor Grill and other restaurants.  The post office says that is Laurel, but it isn't.  I have had a political position against the description.  Now I want to push Steve's brilliant suggestion:  Tribeco.  It's a triangle below Columbia.

Smoked Corned Beef At Kloby's Smokehouse

Smoked corned beef at Kloby's

Seasonal treat -- smoked corned beef at Kloby's Smokehouse on Johns Hopkins Road.

Some friends went to Kloby's last night to watch some basketball.  We snacked on the St. Patrick's Day special -- smoked corned beef.  They buy the pink beef, then smoke it in the "pit" with their wings, brisket, etc.

That's fun.  It's lean and thick-sliced.  Some pieces are salty, but they have a great smoked flavor and an outer crust that shows that you're eating something made special.

They only have the corned beef through Sunday.  I'd actually recommend just ordering the beef and sides.  We had one sandwich, but the roll doesn't add much.  Order a half pound or a pound of beef.  Get some cabbage or some fries.  Snack on slices as you watch the NCAA tournament -- and maybe try some of the beers, including the nitrogen-infused specials that they're serving up.

Kloby's is on Johns Hopkins Road just west of Rte 29.  It's a shopping center with Facci, Tandoor Grill and other restaurants.  The post office says that's Laurel, but it isn't.  I have had a political position against the description.  Now I want to push Steve's brilliant suggestion:  Tribeco.  It's a triangle below Columbia.

Tandoor Grill Brings A Different Indian -- And Offers Up The Chili Naan If You Dare

Vegetable vindaloo and the chili naan

There are few more troublesome dishes than half-hearted Indian food.  It's a cuisine of spices, and a chef worried whether you will like hot-pepper spiciness can deaden a meal by cutting back on all flavor across the board.

Tandoor Grill delivers the flavor.  In fact, it delivers a different flavor than the spices of other Indian restaurants around.  With that, it creates a nice lunch and takeout option on Johns Hopkins Road just west of Rte 29.  It also creates a bit of a holy grail for people who crave heat, although we'll pursue that later.

Tandoor Grill replaced a sandwich joint aimed at the Applied Physics Lab crowd, and they have maintained the casual seating area, a sandwich menu, and an array of coffee drinks.  But I have only eaten the Indian food (and the garam masala chicken wings).  The short menu runs through a bunch of kebabs and other meats cooked in the tandoor oven through two dozen curries, both meat and veg.

Mrs. HowChow and I split on the curries.  I think they're delicious -- often ordering a mixed vegetable dish like vegetable saag or vegetable vindaloo to keep my takeout on the healthy side of a splurge.  Mrs. HowChow just prefers House of India or Royal Taj.  She enjoyed the chicken korma and chicken tikka but she just prefers H of I.

I think it's a question of familiarity.  H of I is a comfort food, and, after a busy day, it's just what the doctor ordered.  But a billion people cook Indian or Pakistani food every night.  I think Tandoor Grill's curries just have their own flavors.  They're certainly full-flavored.  A dish like vegetables saag comes with tender vegetables in a spinach sauced spiced beautifully.  Not hot pepper spice.  It's that mix of spices that fill your mouth and make Indian food stand out.  Like Bon Fresco, this is counter service that has the appetite to serve restaurant food.  And I'm not alone.  My friend Josh pretty much waxes poetic about Tandoor Grill.

Chili naan

Why do I love Tandoor?  a) Because the couple who run it are about the nicest people you will find. After three times there they knew me and started throwing in extra sides etc.  b) The samosas are awesome. they pull off a light feeling to deep fat fried dumplings which is incredibly tough to do. 

c) They offer an array of Indian dishes that are simply hard to come by.  I worked near Heritage India in DC, and we would frequent the buffet where there was always a seperate line made up of Indian people dining on some sort of "off menu" filled with Indian street food.  Tandoor has those dishes.  d) To further the Heritage comparison, quite simply Tandoor's food is better. 

Finally e) Chili Naan.  As a lover of spicy food, this is simply my "are-you-a-man-or-a-mouse" spicy food. There are pretend spicy foods, real spicy foods, and spicy foods that drives sweat from a lover of habanero peppers like myself.   Chilli naan is the rare restaurant made spicy food where they have not dialed down the spice for Anglo pallets.

Ah, yes.  The chili naan.  It's a $4 extra on the Tandoor Grill menu.  A naan literally baked with dozens of hot peppers in the bread.  Josh says he has felt the spice the next day.  I ate my chili naan with the spicy vegetables vindaloo.  I drank water, and I pulled a yogurt from the fridge to cool down my mouth.  But I thought it was a complete success.  Spicy and exciting with enough bread to give it heft and a crunchy bite.  It's a dish, not a gag, and it's certainly something new to me.

If you go to Tandoor Grill, check out the weekend specials.  I haven't had them there, but I love gol gappe -- semolina puffs that you crack and stuff with chick peas, potatoes and a minty, sour sauce.

Tandoor Grill 
7500 Montpelier Road 
Laurel, MD 20723 
301-362-4222 

Near: Tandoor Grill is in the shopping center with Kloby's Smokehouse, La Palapa Too, Facci and a bunch of other restaurants. It is on Johns Hopkins Road just west of Rte 29. The post office calls that area Laurel. In the only political statement on the HowChow blog, we keep pointing out that's not Laurel.

Link: Kloby's Smokehouse In The WPost

The WPost wrote a short review of Kloby's Smokehouse this week with compliments on the pulled pork, the smoked turkey and the baby back ribs.

Rina Rapuano makes some detailed points in a talented way.  She notes that takeout fries went soggy immediately and that Kloby's designed its current mac and cheese with kids in mind.  But she highlights the food that she enjoyed and got a bunch of information in a short piece.

That's a skill that I certainly appreciate -- even though it means Rapuano doesn't cover recent innovations at Kloby's -- "jarbecue" and the flight of bread pudding!

Thanks to Dave for the email with the link.

Bread Pudding Flight At Kloby's

The local tasting scene has expanded with the off-menu offer of a "flight" of bread puddings at Kloby's Smokehouse on Johns Hopkins Road.

In the style of flights of bourbon or beer, the barbecue restaurant offers four tiny glasses, each with its own bread pudding.  The menu has several flavors, plus several specials each day.  We had chocolate-covered banana, cookie dough, Butterfinger, and raisin.  The raisin came with a bourbon sauce.

That's what Mrs. HowChow is talking about.

She will take bread puddings over cake every day, and she picked chocolate-covered banana as her favorite.  They're all different, which made for a fun dessert splitting them.  The bourbon sauce really tasted like liquor.  As far as we can tell, they're microwaved in the glasses, which probably disqualifies them from Top Chef Just Desserts.  But it's cool to see a casual place try something different.

"Jarbecue" At Kloby's: Surprisingly Delicious

Jarbecue at Kloby's: Pork, cole slaw and beans

For the record, I opposed ordering the "jarbecue," which made it ironic that the late crew found me digging pork from the mason jar when they arrived.

A group of friends grabbed drinks Friday night at Kloby's Smokehouse, and we augmented a little beer and bourbon with a little barbecue.  Kloby's wings are my absolute favorite.  I got two orders -- including my regular "dirty and old" -- and guys were dropping bare bones on the bar in seconds.

But the hungry among us went back to the menu.

As part of a larger menu expansion (more salads!), Kloby's added the "jarbecue."  That's a mason jar layered with pulled pork, cole slaw, and beans.  You eat with a fork like the ultimate "no carbs" version of a barbecue sandwich.

The '34 Act Gourmet actually ordered the "jarbecue" over my objection.  I had a taste for the blog, and I kept going back for more.  Kloby's pork is meaty and smoked, and the mixture gives contrast, not muddling, with slightly-sweet beans and crisp cole slaw.  Bread has always been a weak link, which is why I usually pass barbecue sandwich for ribs or wings.  (I advocate Kloby's bulk pork as takeout and tarting it up with your own toasted buns and homemade oven fries.)

I recommend the "jarbecue" with a flight of beers.  For $10, you get four five-ounce pours, and Kloby's has a fun, rotating list of craft beers heavy on flavor.  The bartender did a great job picking four based on my comments about hoppy beers, Guinness and a thirst for variety.  I already drunk most of the flight when the mason jar arrived, so you might want to get a head start as well.

Pizza With Clams, And It's Not A Joke; Facci Ristorante Has Created Something Special

The weird part about Facci Ristorante is that I didn't go to a restaurant that I really enjoyed for the better part of a year.

Facci opened in early 2010 on Johns Hopkins Road, and the crowds immediately packed the place for casual Italian and wood-fired pizza that stood a notch above most places around.  It became so crowded -- and the hostesses were trained to be so uninviting -- that we stopped even thinking about the place.

They won us back this year with expansion.  More seating, longer menu.  We tried carry out from the dedicated entrance.  We walked in a few nights.  If anything, the food has gotten even better, and we love a place where you're guaranteed a special night.

Imagine a pizza with clams on top.  Littlenecks in their shells.  Honestly, it sounded like a gimmick, but it tasted superb.  Sweet shrimp and parsley, then a few dozen clams.  I pulled those off by hand, and they were plump and salty even though the fire had cooked them through.

Pistachio Pizza At Facci Ristorante

Facci on Johns Hopkins Road has expanded the menu along with the space inside, and it just gets better.

The new find:  pistachio pizza.  That's Facci regular pie topped with great ricotta cheese and the flavors of the charred crust, paper-thin red onion, pistachios and rosemary.  It's unique, and it's delicious -- even after it's driven home.

As takeout, the pizza and an arugula salad made a great dinner.  They'll just be better when we can eat at the restaurant next time, ready to try risotto and the pastas that we hadn't seen on the menu before.  For some reason, Mrs. HowChow got in a pattern of house-made ravioli with pesto, so she hadn't looked for new items when she went with friends.

Has anyone tried the other new pizzas?  There is one listed with clams and other seafood?  And another topped with fries?  Really, fries?

Garam Masala Wings At Tandoor Grill

The folks at Tandoor Grill have converted a sandwich shop into a nice Indian restaurant / takeout, but they have kept much of old menu -- with some spiced up improvements.

The shop on Johns Hopkins Road near Rte 29 sells coffee, salads and sandwiches -- presumably to the APL crowd at lunch -- but it has pushed its own fusion taste into the chicken wings.

Garam masala chicken wings come six or eight to an order.  They're meaty with a mild spice and a real flavor of lemon.  Last Friday was "Girls Night Out" around here, so I ended up a friend's house where three of watched their kids and held a "Boys Wing Contest."

The Tandoor Grill wings held their own with my local favorite Kloby's Smokehouse.  They're equally delicious and interesting with the Indian spices standing up to Kloby's smoke and sauces.  It's definitely worth a head-to-head if you're buying some wings to take back to the office or home.  I suggest "gram masala" versus "dirty and old."  You'll have to have Kloby's explain that to you.

The Indian food at Tandoor Grill has actually been quite good.  I need to go again to get myself an inspired post.

Tandoor Grill

7500 Montpelier Road

Laurel, MD 20723

301-362-4222

Near: Tandoor Grill is in the shopping center with Kloby's Smokehouse, La Palapa Too, Facci and a bunch of other restaurants.  It is on Johns Hopkins Road just west of Rte 29.  The post office calls that area Laurel.  In the only political statement on the HowChow blog, we keep pointing out that's not Laurel.

Link: Kloby's In The Sun's Table Talk

Kloby's Smokehouse and its expansion got written up by Richard Gorelick in the Sun's Table Talk column.  For a second, I thought Gorelick had actually beaten me to see the new space in my own local, but the column doesn't have any physical descriptions of the space.

Link: Kloby's New Bar On Baltimore Beer Guy

For more about the new bar at Kloby's Smokehouse, check out the Baltimore Beer Guy.  He wrote about the 20 taps that Kloby's added with a link to Kloby's on-line beer list and talk about a Guinness ice cream float.

Check out the main BBG site for other news about a July 10 "Pints and Pancakes" at T-Bonz Grille and a July 21 Belgian festival at Frisco Tap House.

Kloby's Smokehouse In (Sort-Of) Laurel 2011

Kloby's Smokehouse started as a replacement, and it is steadily transforming into a special place for beer and barbecue.

Kloby's opened about two years ago on the site of a shuttered BBQ joint on Johns Hopkins Road just off Rte 29. It started as takeout, and even the early days came with delicious pork and chicken sandwiches.

But the smoke has spread.  First, Kloby's added a seating area and a bar.  Then, they upgraded to a craft beer program with unique items on tap.  Now, it is expanding to add an ice cream parlor, a bar and a space for live music.

Kloby's stands out because of the smoke.  I have eaten much of the menu by now, and every plate comes with the flavor of the wood fire that they run every day in a hulking smoker in the kitchen.  That starts with strong BBQ staples like pulled pork and chicken sandwiches, then runs to some really unique smoked chicken wings.  Those come in a dozen varieties, but I have to recommend the "dirty" wings that are smoked and then quickly fried.