Tom Sietsema Awards Two Stars to Olney's GrillMarX

Despite its "goofy name" and location in an Olney shopping center whose "facade evokes a suburban sports bar," Washington Post critic Tom Sietsema appreciates the dining options at GrillMarX Steakhouse & Raw Bar and subsequently awards it two stars. Clam chowder, roast chicken and a rib-eye marinated in Kona coffee all get raves and Sietsema gives the kitchen credit for attention to detail with house-made sauces and hand-cut fries.

But while the critic points out how attractive all of the servers are here, he's less enamored of their conversational skills. Echoing his comments in many an online chat, Sietsema writes "there ought to be a rule cautioning waiters (everywhere) from answering customer requests with 'No problem' and asking diners if they're 'finished working' on their food. No request should be a problem, ever. And as far as I'm concerned, animals might 'work' on their food, but people don't."

The restaurant seems to fill a void in suburban Maryland, Sietsema says, later adding that he wouldn't mind if it expanded a little closer to Washington. [WaPo]

The Washingtonian's Todd Kliman adds Pearl Dive Oyster Palace to the list of places where he's eating now. He writes that this is the "most fun" of all the Jeff and Barbara Black restaurants and notes that " among the benefits of a mini-empire is the ability to leverage high-volume purchasing into cut-rate deals. Don't miss the marvelous twist on mariscos, a seafood-laden salsa with fresh-fried chips." [Washingtonian]

The Washington Post's Becky Krystal checks out the offerings at Arlington food truck Seoul Food DC. Although the tortillas don't exactly last a trip back to her office, the fillings still get the seal of approval from Krystal and her officemates, including the kimchi quesadilla and the grilled pineapple bulgogi burrito. [WaPo]

THE BLOGS: DMV Dining writes that a meal at Persimmon "did not disappoint;" Borderstan has a bone to pick with you if you've never been to Pizza No. 17; Girl Meets Food writers debate which dish exactly is a "slice of heaven" at BlackFinn; Prince of Petworth's food truck reviewer declares that Takorean's food would be worth eating a full 4.5 seconds after falling on the ground.

GrillMarX [Photo: Facebook]