As you know, I’m on a mission to showcase Colombian flavors not only through my own recipes, but also by highlighting restaurants! For each visit, I will discuss the following categories when describing my experience: Ambience, Colombian Connection, Favorite Dish, and Tips.
We enjoyed an amazing outdoor brunch at Blend 111 and look forward to coming back!
Ambience: Blend 111 is located in Vienna, Virginia near Mclean. The indoor part of the restaurant is well designed and gives off a high-end luxury feel. However, since we went during COVID, we opted for the outdoor seating. The tables on their outdoor patio were spaced more than 6ft apart and we felt very safe. Although the patio area is all concrete, Blend 111 did an amazing job at transforming the space into a much cozier feel. Each table has its own heater, there were plenty of plants, and the tables were both stylish and comfortable.
Colombian Connection: The Executive Chef is Chef Andrés Julian Zuluaga. His half Colombian and half Puerto Rican heritage is infused throughout the menu.
Favorite Dish: Everything we had was delicious, but there were 2 items that really stood out for me. First, the cocktail with guava, mint, aguardiente was so refreshing, it’s my favorite aguardiente drink to date! The second feature, was the side salad that came with the cachapa…JUST WOW. It looks like a humble spring mix salad, but it’s the most beautiful, flavorful, and freshest salad I have ever had. I would go back just for this salad. It’s light, tangy, and topped with semi-sweet uchuvas.
Tips:
- Be sure to make reservations and arrive on time.
- Check the hours ahead of time, sometimes they close mid-day to prep the kitchen from brunch to dinner service.
- The sink/dryer in the bathroom is high tech. Check it out!
- There is a free parking garage right below Blend 111
