Sibarita's Restaurant - Bolivian food in Arlington, VA

2716 Washington Blvd
Arlington, VA 22201
(703) 276-1050

We are very fortunate to live in Northern Virginia, where there is such a rich variety of wonderful restaurants that offer a sampling of ethnic flavors without the hassle of getting on a plane.  Sibarita's is one of those restaurants that reminds us how lucky we are!

We probably would never have tried Sibarita's if it wasn't for a Groupon. We are happy we did!

Sibarita's is a small unassuming standalone one-story house with a small outdoor patio for warm-weather dining.  It definitely fits into the category of "ethnic dives" with its shabby furniture, cultural decorations and unique menu offerings.

The most fitting description of the food is "Bolivian comfort food" because of its prevalent featuring of grilled meats, fried eggs, rice, large (and we mean LARGE) french fried potatoes and giant (and we mean GIANT) corn kernels.

When you first walk in, you may feel somewhat claustrophobic in the small bar area with a low wood bench covered with animal skins (where people like to pose for photographs).  We were greeted by a cheerful host dressed in simple drab a la Che, who led us upstairs to the cozy dining room with orange walls and vent pipes along the ceiling. The TV screen beamed a football game, but was largely ignored by the full room of diners enjoying their large samplings of beef.

The main draw for Sibarita's clientele is undobtedly meat, meat and more meat!  Looking around at what others were eating, we quickly concluded that if you have friends who love meat as much as you do, your best bet is to get together a group of 4 and come here for the "Pique Macho para 4."  This carnivore's delight is brought out as a heaping plate of grilled meat (looked like flank steak) and chorizo with huge french fries, some fried eggs sunny side up, tomatoes, onions and jalapenos.  You can get one ample portion for yourself for $14.95, or an ampler portion for 4 for $39, which is a great deal.  The other popular options for groups of 4+ seemed to be the Parrillada Familiar ($54), which is grilled beef, chicken and chorizo, also with rice and large french fries.  Anyway you cut it, this is a meat lover's paradise, or rather a meat-and-potato lover's paradise.

We did not take that route, as there we were only two of us and besides, we are not big beef or chorizo eaters.  Instead, we began our meal with an appetizer with the unusual name "K'Ally" Con Pan.  This consists of two large pieces of grilled bread, chimichurri sauce, garlic and olive oil, a tomato and cheese salad and giant corn kernels, which are prevalent on the menu.  One word - bland, but nonetheless it was interesting to try!

As our entrees, we chose the Silpancho and Pollo Saltado.  The Silpancho, very popular here, was a sight to behold.  For one thing, the portion is large enough that it could be shared by two people.  It can best be described as a "sheet of grilled beef" topped with a couple eggs sunny-side-up.  The beef blankets over a bed of rice and several huge french fries, which are present in most other menu selections.  The Silpancho was accompanied by a side plate of Salsa Cruda, which is the Bolivian Pico de Gallo. The Pollo Saltado consisted of small pieces of grilled chicken with onions and jalapeno slices with a side of rice The flavors of both dishes can best described with the same word as the appetizer - bland. Fearing this, we asked for the Pollo Saltado to be prepared "extra spicy," which they did, and only because of this request was it less bland than it would have been otherwise. But again, was fun to try.

If you are not the carnivorous type, you will find two wonderful things about Sibarita's:  One is its wonderfully cheerful and attentive staff.  They are friendly, highly accommodating, are very familiar with the food and most importantly, they look like they really enjoy the interaction with the diners and the food they serve.  Second, and this is really THE BEST THING ABOUT SIBARITA'S - THE LLAJUA (a.k.a. Llajwa) PREPARED PERSONALLY BY BRENDA.  Llajua is a Bolivian salsa (yes, we learned a new word!). It is absolutely, positively, mouthwateringly delicious!

Would we return to Sibarita's? Honestly....probably not, but not because they are not wonderful.  It is just not for us.  Would we recommend that you go?  Yes!!! Go at least once! Don't return, if you don't like it, but do go to check it out!!!  Go either for the large helpings of meat, or for Brenda's llajua, or just to see what Bolivian comfort food is all about.  We are sure you will walk away satisfied.

 Cozy dining room with TV screens

Bottomless peanuts

 

 K'Ally Con Pan appetizer $6.75

Brenda's fantastic llajua (Bolivian salsa)

 

Silpancho beef dish $11.99

 Pollo Saltado chicken dish (prepared extra spicy upon request) $10.95

La Caraqueña, Falls Church, VA

300 W. Broad Street,  

Falls Church, VA 22046 

(703) 533-0076 

What an unexpected lovely surprise at this tiny restaurant adjacent to a Falls Church motel.  La Caraqueña, which means “a woman from Caracas” in Spanish, has about 10 tables inside (when the patio is closed due to cold weather).  Reservations are definitely recommended because the wait on a Saturday night, at least when we were there, was almost out the door.  The waitress explained to us that ever since this restaurant was featured on the Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives program on the Food Channel back in November, they have been trying to keep up with the surge in clientele. 

When we entered the restaurant, we were greeted by the very cheerful chef himself, who is also the owner, and was, at least at the moment, the host.  We were a few minutes early, so we had to wait until our table freed up, which happened right on time for our reservation.  From the moment we walked in, we felt welcomed the entire evening.   The atmosphere was jovial - every table was filled with diners of all ages, some of whom clearly were regulars, since they knew the chef by name and he came out to chat with some of them.  The lively, non-intrusive Latin music was interrupted once and a “happy birthday” broke out as the staff walked over singing with a candle in cake to one of the larger parties.  Everyone applauded as the birthday person and a friend jumped up and danced for about a minute.   This was really an animated, warm, family-like, cozy ambiance. 

Service was not only very friendly and attentive, but also efficient.  Three waitresses and a bus boy hustled to make sure everyone was well-taken care of.  Our waitress knew all the items on the menu and cheerfully made recommendations based on our questions. The menu is a combination of Bolivian, Venezuelan and Chilean dishes, most of which were unfamiliar to us, so we were grateful for her help.  The menu itself seemed rather limited in choices, but a note on the menu said that this is not a fast food place and patience will be required as each dish is made to order.  Although the wait for the food was hardly noticeable, it was clear that each dish was thought-out and prepared with individualized attention.  We were disappointed when we learned that they ran out of the only appetizer we wanted – the Empanadas Saltenas.  Apparently, this is their most popular appetizer and they still had not been able to plan out their dishes since the Food Channel episode premiered, skyrocketing their customer level. We hope to return and try this appetizer in the future.

The Sopa di Mani, a peanut-beef-rice soup, was a puree of its listed ingredients, with no one component dominating the others, making it a wonderful warm blend on a cold December evening.  The ham and cheese arepa (an arepa, we were told, is a typical Venezuelan sandwich) served inside fried corn bread, was also delicious.  But the Pabellon Completo con Baranda, the restaurant’s special, was absolutely amazing (see photo).  Pulled beef in a superbly flavorful sauce served in a bowl-like plate with rice, black beans, fried plantains, a fried sunny-side up egg, with shaved white cheese and avocados.  The fresh homemade jalapeno salsa that was served separately made this meal perfection.

This was a great restaurant that we highly recommend.  It has been there for 3 years, replacing the Rose Restaurant, which served Iranian cuisine, and was also very good.  Despite its location adjacent to a motel, this “dive” is a neighborhood gem.  Hope the success doesn’t go to its head and the delightful spirit and flavors of La Caraquena continue to thrive.