Obscurity/Location/Curb Appeal: Matt
To find a place like Las Americas, you really have to be trying hard to uncover every restaurant in every hidden corner of Falls Church. Fortunately, that’s exactly what “Thurber Party of 4” is doing. We found Las Americas on a driving tour of Rt. 50 that eventually led us to anintersection at Graham Road. We could easily focus our entire blog on this one intersection as it is home to about a hundred different restaurants, each with varying degrees of sketchiness and randomness.
Las Americas is tucked in a corner between a bustling supermercado, a large gas station and several other ethnic restaurants. It pretty much cannot be seen from the highway that passes along side of it. Even from right outside of its front door, Las Americas is very unadorned and unassuming. Simply a modest green awning, a bit of neon, and windows with the blinds pulled shut. You might not think it was open if that neon didn’t tell you otherwise. And you might not even think it was a restaurant if it didn’t specifically say so on the awning. Take a few steps inside, though, and your whole world changes.
Rating: 1.5 Thurbs
Food/Beverage: Anne Womack (Guest of Honor)
Seeing as how this was my third "Mexican" meal in three days, I felt as though I had a unique perspective coming into the evening. That theme of "unique" proved to carry through the entire experience. First came the chips and salsa. The chips were very similar to the kind that come in a little-league ball park order of nachos. You know the chip...yellow corn, various shapes, a bit stale. These fine delicacies coupled with the half tomato paste/half imitation chipotle salsa (complete with chopped up onions sprinkled on top) provided for a wonderful beginning to our dining experience.
As for beverages, there were some "mixed drink" options, as well as domestic and imported beers. However, there were no Margaritas to speak of, and the beer prices were a bit steep. (And let's be honest, we may or may not have been a bit worried that the bartender might spike our drinks in order to ease our entrance onto the karaoke stage--see "ambiance.”) So, we settled for water and soft drinks.
When our food arrived it seem seemed presentable. Brian's "combinacion" platter, with chicken AND steak, came with rice and a half-carved avocado. Both pieces of meat seemed edible and, as far as we know, Brian is still healthy this morning after eating them. Matt ordered the "ensalada de verduras." Along with various "verduras" this salad came with an interesting selection of cheese that slightly resembled tofu on top. Matt might have had the worst luck of all of us with his meal were it not for his "papusa" side item. With a Mexican/Salvadoran drink of cinnamon and milk to wash it down, Matt's meal turned out to be "una mezcla perfecta!" Tommy ordered the nachos, which may have been the safety-order of the evening. They looked good and seemed to get good reviews from Tommy. Finally, I had the "burrito del pollo." This chicken burrito came full of grilled chicken and rice that could have been confused with fried rice. It lacked the normal brown color of Mexican rice but was enjoyable nonetheless. The burrito was both tasty and filling. Though this is not the cuisine I would choose on my Mexican/Salvadoran food quest, it wasn't bad at all.
Rating: 2 Thurbs
Service/Cost: Brian
In the interest of honesty, I began the evening prepared to evaluate the cost and service of a different Falls Church Hispanic eatery called Taco Laredo. But, due to it closing at 8pm and a late start by the Thurber boys and guest, we instead traveled to Las Americas…un gran sorpresa!!!
Las Americas’ all-female wait staff was prompt in greeting our party and was dressed inidentical rose-colored button up shirts complete with nametags. I found this to be a bit more professional than other establishments we’d visited (cough…Brinkley’s…cough!). Our waitress felt compelled to seat our party of four at the table nearest the evening’s entertainment, the karaoke machine and its blaring loud speakers.
The head seat of our table was occupied by the mini TV displaying the lyrics to numerous Latin American hits that, surprisingly enough, everyone in Las Americas knew by heart (minus our table). Drink and entrée orders were taken quickly and correctly with several drink refills throughout the night. However, Anne’s glass was refilled with water while still containing remnants of Diet Coke. ¡Qué lástima!
The cost of our fare hovered near the prices of most other Hispanic establishments. Our dishes ranged from 8 to 12 dollars and, for the money, taste and portion size were admirable. ¡Qué ganga! The staff was appreciative of our visit and the karaoke DJ made Tommy promise to return in exactly two weeks. Seriously.
Rating: 4 Thurbs
Ambiance/Entertainment: Tommy
After a long day of work, the last thing you want to see when you go out to a restaurant is a dropped-panel ceiling and more fluorescent lighting. But in case you just can’t get enough of both of these things, Las Americas (Spanish for “The Americas”) is just the place for you. The standard-issue office lighting, however, is spruced up significantly by the placement of sheets of translucent plastic with pictures of clouds on them. If you didn’t know any better, you might think you were outside and the weather was “cloudy, with a chance of radioactive-white lighting.”
The ambience of The Americas, however, was far more than just the walls and ceiling. All of us commented on the fact that this restaurant was about 10 times as loud as any other restaurant we’ve visited, although there were still only 2 other people in the restaurant with us. This feat was achieved through the national instrument of South America - the karaoke machine. With the “echo” level cranked to 11, the two ladies on the “entertainment wait staff” belted out hit after Spanish hit, urging…or, rather, forcing us to join in on the party. Matt and Brian took the first slot, belting out Hotel California and bringing the rest of the staff to their feet (although I didn’t check, they may have been standing before that point). Brian searched through the “library” of songs offered on the karaoke machine. This handwritten list from the DJ featured all genres of music, including an extensive list from “The Beathes[sic]” with hits like “Lucy in the Sun,” “Across the with diamon,” “Here days nigest,” and “Hard Man.” After a few more hits de espanol, Brian and Anne sang a duet of Billy Joel’s classic, “The Longest Time,” with Anne bringing in the DJ for support and an extra boost of energy that carried them through the song.
The two other guests in the restaurant with us appeared to be regulars on The Americas’ karaoke circuit, with one crooning like a young Spanish Sinatra while the other drank Corona and yelled “Pero!” or “Perro!” at least 5 or 6 times during each song. My high school and college Spanish fails me quite often these days, but I am fairly sure that means either “But!” or “Dog!” Neither of these translations makes too much sense in context, but that doesn’t mean that it was any less entertaining. From the almost-bar to the karaoke smorgasbord to the blatant disregard for the Virginia smoking ban, Las Americas is the real deal.
Rating: 4 Thurbs
Las Americas
Overall Rating: 2.875 Thurbs
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