Where to Call and Carry - Loudoun County

Market Salamander is certainly Loudoun County's most high-profile carryout. It's part of Sheila Johnson's growing empire in the county and has become the place to go for special tailgate goodies for the horsy set -- and a great stop for barbecued pork. There are chairs and tables on the small patio and helpful chefs behind the cases of glorious-looking food. You can complete your meal with a bottle from the select wine list and even pick up some special Tupelo honey. The quality of ingredients is uniformly high, but there have been some disappointments along the way. The gorgeous crab cakes ($12 for a two-inch cake) were made of jumbo lump crab -- and seemingly most of the crab's shell. A slice of sweet potato pie was cloyingly sweet. Sauteed spinach with apples and raisins was slimy when reheated. But an apple tart was perfect, the barbecue is always a winner, a melange of mashed rutabaga and parsnips was light and luscious, and an apple creme brulee tart was as tasty as it was beautiful. 200 W. Washington St., Middleburg, 540-687- 8 011 , http://www.market-salamander.com/ .

The Mighty Midget Kitchen is undoubtedly Leesburg's smallest and best-known carryout. Its lofty beginning as an airplane fuselage limits its size: There's barely room for the cook and kitchen equipment. The slabs of ribs, a weekend-only favorite, are stored in plastic ice chests before being cooked in the faux locomotive smoker. The pulled pork sandwich is the main attraction, but there are also great hamburgers, cheeseburgers, sausages and hot dogs (one with barbecue topping). 202 Harrison St. SE, Leesburg, 703-777-6406, http://www.mightymidgetkitchen.com/ .

Osman Soysalan was educated in finance and accounting, but cooking is his passion. He worked in a Turkish bakery for seven years, but his pastry making is mostly self-taught, and it's summa cum laude . Soysalan opened European Gourmet Bakery in September 2003 in Leesburg, not far from the outlet mall. The bakery has a small selection of European specialty items, a wide selection of sandwiches, a Mediterranean salad bar and grilled Mediterranean foods such as kebabs and chicken as dinnertime specials. Everything is made from scratch daily. The pastries -- from the napoleons to the croissants to the cupcakes to the eclairs and especially the Bavarian mousse cakes -- are the best reasons to seek out Soysalan's storefront. I chose his wife's favorite, the chocolate hazelnut mousse cake. "It's the one she always asks me to bring home when we are having company," Soysalan said. The layers were moist and rich; the mousse filling was light and delicious. It was a delight. Shenandoah Square Shopping Center, 956 Edwards Ferry Rd. NE, Leesburg, 703-737-3855.

Mark Galletta, his wife and his parents all work in the Italian specialty shop that opened a year ago on Loudoun Street in Leesburg. Galletta's offers sandwiches and salads for the luncheon crowd, cheeses, meats and roasted vegetables to take home, and the crown jewels -- fresh pastas and sauces made on-site daily. Tiny cheese raviolini are the perfect addition to hot chicken broth for a quick soup. Larger ravioli or any of the flat noodles are great with the homemade meat, marinara and pesto sauces. There are also prepared foods such as lasagna and eggplant parmigiano. 211 Loudoun St. SE, Leesburg, 703-737-3700, http://www.gallettas.com/ .

Wings, a takeout just off Route 7 in Sterling, offers a great version of the snack food that Buffalo's Anchor Bar made famous. Opened nearly three years ago by Ghanaian native Kwasi Koranteng, it attracted the attention of Redskins greats Art Monk, Darrell Green and Charles Mann, who consider Koranteng's wings the best around. There are also burgers and sandwiches on the menu, as well as chicken fingers, which I prefer. The wings and chicken fingers are marinated before being cooked to order. There is a choice of sauces; the suicide version most closely mimics the Buffalo original. 46839 Maple Leaf Pl. (off Augusta Drive ), Sterling, 703-433-0730, http://www.wingsrestaurant.net/ .

The austere decor of Sterling's Darya Kabob gives little indication of its culinary charms. But the packed tables, filled mostly with men speaking Farsi, is a good indication that this is no ordinary kabob place. Although many Mediterranean and Middle Eastern countries have versions of grilled meat cooked on skewers, this Iranian version is one of the best. The chunks of marinated chicken breast meat are cut to look like flowers; the slices of beef tenderloin known as chenjeh were buttery soft and rich with flavor. The salad shirazi -- a combination of diced cucumbers, tomatoes, onion, parsley and lemon sauce -- and the must-o-khiar (cucumbers in yogurt) served as side dishes are the perfect complement. The pita bread, baked in a clay oven, was chewy, slightly charred and a great foundation for the juicy meats. 21800 Town c enter Plaza, Sterling, 703-404-4443.