Lunch at Surfside Plus Tips for the Billy Goat Trail

We rolled into Surfside hungry, dirty, and tired.  Marcus and I had just completed the Billy Goat trail, a 4 mile hike near Great Falls.   Surfside, a restaurant Washingtonian named one of DC's 100 best, was exactly what we needed at the time: casual, cheap, and borderline healthy (as in, not fried). 

I had the Cabo San Lucas tacos (grilled steak, poblano peppers, red onions, cilantro, and lime sour cream); the steak and poblanos came bursting with grilled flavor, and were hearty and filling.  Equally delicious were Marcus' Cuba tacos--pork carnitas on warm corn tortillas with pineapple jalapeno salsa, lime sour cream, and cilantro.  The sweet pineapple mixed with the spicy pork should be recorded as a great flavor combination, right next to chocolate and peanut butter.

Taco dishes at Surfside come with a big side of rice and beans, which do more to fill your stomach than dazzle your taste-buds, and I could live without the house-made chips (too heavy).  It doesn't matter, the tacos are the main attraction here.  If you are craving tacos in a full service joint (they serve beer), I highly recommend Surfside in Glover Park. I'm definitely going back.

And now a word about what made us so hungry.  Right before we hit up Surfside, we hiked the A Section of the Billy Goat Trail. I am not a big hiker, but recently I've been forcing myself to get outside, enjoy the fall, and burn off some blogoriffic calories without spending every day at the gym.  Here are a few photos and tips from our hike...

1.  Wear appropriate shoes and bring water.  Before you get to the trail head, you have to walk a while on the towpath.  It's a lovely walk, especially when the weather is cool.  Make sure to bring water and wear hiking shoes with a strong rubber bottom, if you have them.  Hiking shoes will help you as you walk along the rocks, but they are not absolutely necessary.  Sneakers will do. 

 

2.  Pretend you are a rock climber.  There is one part on the trail where you scramble up rocks and you can pretend you are a rock climber.  On belay!

3.  Stop along the way to take photos.  I have no idea what these plants are called; they were stunning.  They made me think of the line "amber waves of grain."

 

4.  Bring candies!  Marcus had these in his pack and I ate a few when I was feeling hypoglycemic.

If you haven't hiked the Billy Goat trail, you should try it before the weather gets too cold.