10 Places to Eat That You Should Know About

By Nancy Lewis
Thursday, April 26, 2007

O f the hundreds of places to eat in Prince George's County, these are some of my favorites. This list is not encyclopedic. There are no rankings. These are just 10 places -- some are single restaurants and others are locations offering lots of choices-- that you should know about if you live here.

Jerry's Seafood

Jerry's is back. And moving on.

There was a time when Jerry's was just about the only restaurant with a reputation that extended outside the county. The restaurant dates its formal beginnings to 1983, although Jerry Gainey had been selling crab on this corner in Seabrook for several years before he took over what had been the neighborhood pub. It quickly became everyone's favorite place for crabs in Prince George's, despite the long lines that form every time the restaurant opens its doors.

Jerry sold the place in 2003 to a nephew and a longtime employee, and on subsequent visits I thought the quality of the famous "crab bomb" -- 10 ounces of jumbo lump crab meat barely held together with mayonnaise and Old Bay seasoning -- had slipped. But on my last visit, the bomb was once again about as close to perfection as crab meat can get. The cream of crab soup -- with its own nice bite of Old Bay -- and the milder crab bisque were equally good. The simple side dishes, including a great baked potato, creamy coleslaw and a crisp green salad, were just about the best they could be.

The crowning glory was what could only be described as a massive slice of homemade coconut cake, and an only slightly smaller slice of red velvet cake. They were delicious.

Now, the news: Jerry's is moving to a new location, 10,000 square feet in the Vista Gardens Marketplace at Route 450 and Martin Luther King Highway in Lanham. There will be three dining rooms and a carryout section. The move is scheduled for next month.

Jerry's Seafood, 9364 Lanham-Severn Rd., Seabrook, 301-577-0333, http://www.jerrysseafood.com.

Grace's

Grace Tang made her name in Bowie with Grace's Fortune, the most stylish Chinese restaurant in the county. She enhanced that status with the opening late last year of Grace's, an opulent Pan-Asian restaurant, also in the Vista Gardens Marketplace.

Divided into four separate spaces, Grace's emphasizes Japanese cuisine. The largest space is devoted to hibachi grills, but there are also a large sushi bar, a tented dining room and a posh lounge with the most unobtrusive huge flat-screen televisions I have seen. The interior is filled with antiques and sumptuous fabrics.

It has already become a gathering place in a fast-developing area of the county.

Grace's, 10531 Martin Luther King Jr. Hwy., Ste. 300 (at Vista Gardens Marketplace), Bowie, 301-809-2988, http://www.gracesgroup.com.

Red Sky Steak & Fish House

No, this restaurant isn't in the same league as the big national steakhouse chains, but the Buddy's Crab House folks (who used to operate a crab and rib place in this same shopping center) are trying to fill the void with Red Sky, a sibling to the successful Yellowfin in Annapolis and Big Fish Grille in Crofton.

Red Sky splashes a sailing theme all around the restaurant. There's a large lounge in front and a more elegant dining room in the rear. Red sails are everywhere. The enterprise is most successful in its lounge offerings, making for a grand spot for friends to gather after work and fans to watch big games (there are a dozen flat-screens in the lounge area).

The steaks, certified Angus beef, don't have the rich, nutty, beefy flavor you'll find at the big-name places. Best to stick with the sailing theme and the seafood.

14707 Baltimore Ave., Laurel, 301-604-2144, http://www.redskylaurel.com.

Route 1, between Sellman Road and Garrett Avenue, Beltsville

Three charming Asian restaurants inhabit this corner of the county. First there is Pho Vn One Restaurant (11000 Baltimore Ave. [Route 1], Suite 105, 301-931-3302), a labor of love by six siblings of the 12-child Phan family. This tidy restaurant, just across from the Beltsville Costco, serves mostly pho, that most traditional of Vietnamese dishes (it's a breakfast dish in the family's native land). A bowl of steaming broth, served with your choice of meats, is less than $7 and filling enough to satisfy late into the night.

A couple of blocks north is the Korean noodle house Myung Dong (11114-B Baltimore Ave. [Route 1], at Powder Mill Road, 301-595-4173). Though other Korean favorites are on the menu, the noodle dishes are the stars here, specifically the chicken noodle soup known as Myung Dong kal guk su. In summer, Myung Dong offers popular chilled noodle dishes.

Farther north still, Gah-Rham (5027 Garrett Ave., 301-595-4122), just off Route 1, is a study in pine with a steakhouse style inside. There is a buffet lunch that draws regulars from government agencies near and far, and the regular menu features all of the Korean classics, with a healthy dose of Japanese sushi, sashimi and cooked items.

Downtown College Park

Many of the offerings near the University of Maryland campus are chain restaurants, but there are exceptions. The Campus Village Shoppes, a small strip mall adjacent to the College Park fire station and just behind the Town Hall liquor store, houses a range of ethnic eateries that include Pakistani/Indian, Tex-Mex, Japanese and Caribbean.

Food Factory II (8145-G Baltimore Ave., 301-345-8888) is a plain space with a few hand-woven rugs on the walls, but it attracts a loyal crowd for its halal charcoal-roasted kebabs. The meats, already threaded on what look like swords rather than the more common small skewers, fill refrigerated cases at the entry. There is no real service -- simply order at the counter and wait for them to call your name. Opt for the bread instead of rice; you can watch as the dough is shaped over a large pillow and then slapped inside the charcoal oven. It's slightly charred and wonderfully chewy when it emerges about 20 minutes later.

A few doors down, the Jerk Pit (8145-C Baltimore Ave., 301-982-5375) serves up a selection of foods -- from red snapper to chicken wings -- all marinated in its jerk sauce and barbecued to order. This is not a place for the dainty. It's a good thing the food is finger-licking good.

Franklin's Restaurant

This microbrewery and restaurant in downtown Hyattsville has a whimsical streak rooted in its origins as a toy salesman's dream. Mike Franklin turned an old hardware store into a toy/general store, selling the kind of five-and-dime favorites baby boomers grew up with, and added a striking restaurant and brewery next door, all on faith that Hyattsville would someday be revitalized. The renaissance is still in the offing, but Franklin's is going strong nonetheless.

The menu in the downstairs restaurant includes pizzas but concentrates on home cooking -- pulled pork sandwiches, cottage pie, chili, mussels roasted in olive oil and kosher salt, meatloaf and burgers. The upstairs is a bona fide bar, with beers brewed on site. Don't leave either without a stop at the general store.

5123 Baltimore Ave., Hyattsville, 301-927-2740.

Boulevard at the Cap Centre

Chains predominate here, the county's largest shopping center. Stonefish Grill (880 Capital Centre Blvd., Largo, 301-333-1600, http://www.stonefishgrill.net) is the most upscale and largest restaurant in the center, with a menu that emphasizes fish and serves up everything in huge portions.

The homegrown Carolina Kitchen (800-C Shoppers Way, Largo, 301-350-2929, http://www.thecarolinakitchen.com) is long on enthusiasm and hospitality, but the soul food tends to be greasy and sometimes overcooked.

The star here is Gladys Knight and Ron Winans' Chicken and Waffles (860-E Shoppers Way, Largo, 301-808-6402, http://www.gladysandron.com) where even midday Saturday, the wait could be 30 minutes, and twice that at other times. The fried green tomatoes are pleasantly sour, and the accompanying remoulade provides a nice bit of heat. The waffles are better than your mother made, and the fried chicken, though deep-fried rather than cooked in a cast-iron skillet, is tender and moist, with a crisp but not bready crust. Save room for dessert: Even in the dead of winter, the peach cobbler is worth the calories.

2200 to 2400 blocks of University Boulevard East

The original Ledo Restaurant (2420 University Blvd. East, Adelphi, 301-422-8122, http://www.ledorestaurant.com) is an old-style, red-sauce Italian place with the famous rectangular ("We don't cut corners") pizza. The pizza is better than most of the pasta dishes, and the restaurant itself is a trip back to the simpler life of the 1950s.

Irene's Pupusa (2218 University Blvd. E., Hyattsville, 301-431-1550) has a roadhouse atmosphere and great-tasting pupusas -- pork, cheese or a combination. Order them by the bagful.

Little Mexico

Although their addresses are in separate jurisdictions, these three restaurants, all within a mile or so of each other, offer authentic Mexican food: La Sireneta Restaurant (4911 Edmonston Rd., Hyattsville, 301-864-0188), El Tapatio Restaurant (4309 Kenilworth Ave., Bladensburg, 301-403-8882) and Taqueria Tres Reyes (5403 Kenilworth Ave., Riverdale, 301-779-6060). Once you've eaten real tacos (perhaps with goat meat) or tried the chile rellenos, you'll be back.

Rip's Country Inn

This is more than a restaurant, it's a complex, including a well-stocked wine and liquor store and a motel. But the restaurant, modeled after a horse barn with lots of tack around to lend atmosphere, is still a favorite on heavily traveled Route 301. The simpler dishes, such as crab cakes and meatloaf, are often the best. But the homemade pies alone are worth a stop.

3809 North Crain Hwy. (Route 301), Bowie, 301-805-5901, http://www.ripscountryinn.com.

If you have a favorite restaurant that you think deserves attention, please contact Nancy Lewis atlewisn@washpost.com.