Today I discovered a new restaurant

Today was a relatively relaxing morning. I slept in, did some light yoga, ate breakfast and got ready for my day. As I was preparing my lunch and dinner for work I looked in the fridge and didn’t find anything easy and quick for a meal. I proceeded to make two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, one for lunch and one for dinner. I didn’t think too much of this as I have needed to do this before although I am not a fan of eating the same meal twice in one day.

Before I continue, it should be said that I don’t personally know anyone who loves food more than myself or who can eat as much as me, except for maybe my good mission friend Aaron Daybell. That being said, I jumped in my car to get to the Metro station for work. I arrived much sooner than intended and sat in my car for a few minutes and thought to myself, “Gosh, I’m hungry!” This is a common phrase said by me to myself, husband or others around me. (People have thought I have a tapeworm but then laughed because, could you imagine if I had a tapeworm?! You wouldn’t be able to feed me fast enough if that were true!) As I sat there thinking this, munching on pistachios (my new favorite snack) I decided I would leave the Vienna Metro station now to get to L’Enfant Metro station a few minutes before work to buy some lunch. The L’Enfant Metro station has a food court upstairs with restaurants including Moe’s, Five Guys and the new restaurant I discovered.

When I arrived at L’Enfant Station I went up the escalators into the food court and walked around. I passed the Moe’s (I’d eaten there last night) and was about to go to the Five Guys (I can’t resist their burgers!) but thought better of it deciding what I really wanted was something light, like a salad. That’s when I saw Roti Mediterranean Grill. At first I thought it was a Chipotle Mexican Grill (which is one of my all time favorite places to eat) due to its similar appearance and menu break down. They even used the same font! There was no line at this counter which also made me wonder if I should eat here or move along. As I stood transfixed to the spot, reading the menu and thinking about all these things, I remembered hearing that Chipotle wasn’t the only one of its kind and their creator was making other food ventures.  With this and the restaurants’ similarities in mind I decided, “I love Chipotle, I bet this place is good too.”

I went to the counter and the set up was so Chipotle-esk. I said I wanted a salad. They asked what meat I wanted. I looked up and there were about 6 different meat options. Not knowing which one to choose I decided on the roasted vegetable medley (fine choice for others wondering the same as me). Next came dressing, another 5 choices. I just looked confused and the guy said, “Vegetarian salad, huh? How about the cucumber dill dressing?” “Sounds great!” Next, toppings. I topped my salad with hummus, tomato salad, feta cheese, red cabbage slaw and couscous. All of this came with a warm pita bread. I paid and was off.

This photo is curtesy of roti.com. This is almost exactly what my vegetable salad looked like.

When I arrived at work my co-worker commented that she had wanted to try Roti as well but never had yet. After eating a few bites I said defiantly, “Go! Try it! It’s very good!” This salad was delicious!

I was quite pleased with my decision to try a new place and get a healthier option. They also have sandwiches and rice plates. After eating my amazing Mediterranean salad, I looked up online to see if Roti and Chipotle really were cousins. A direct quote from businessinsider.com about the new restaurant states:

The force behind Roti, an upscale fast casual concept that launched in 2007, is Mats Lederhausen. He's a former McDonald's exec and former chairman of Chipotle Mexican Grill. He helped grow the burrito chain from 2003 to 2006 in the run-up to its big IPO. (Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/roti-mediterranean-grill-2012-10#ixzz2byZPpVHL)

So you learn two things with this quote. One, Chipotle was a healthier creation from the people at McDonalds! And two, Roti and Chipotle were created by the same minds.

 

See the similarities?

From Roti’s web site (http://roti.com/), it looks like the chain is only in the Chicago, New York and Washington DC areas. But have no fear! Like all other good food chains, they don’t stay in one place for too long. I predict Roti will expand quickly. In the mean time, I intend to go back and try other something else and next time, bring friends.