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Very few visitors know of Wheaton, much less make it out to this D.C. suburb in Montgomery County, but it's easy to reach on the Metro Red Line (north of Silver Spring), and has D.C.'s best ethnic dining scene period amidst what is probably the most diverse neighborhood for 100 miles in any direction. The Washington City Paper's 2009 critics' choice for best Thai in the whole metro area went to both Nava and Ruan. And it has the legendary Peruvian pollo a la brasa joint: El Pollo Rico.

[edit] Get in

Coming out of the Wheaton Metro station on the Red Line, admire that escalator—it's the longest in the Western Hemisphere, taking over four minutes to ascend!

The main streets running through the downtown are Georgia Ave, Veirs Mill Rd, and University Blvd—the area where they converge (and the disorganized strip malls just east before the Metro stop) is the center of commercial activity, and is cram packed with great cheap restaurants.

[edit] Get around

[edit][add listing] See

• Brookside Gardens, 1800 Glen Allan Ave, ☎ +1 301 962-1448, [1]. Sunrise-sunset daily; conservatories and visitor center to 5PM. Beautiful and expansive botanical gardens improbably located in Wheaton. Anyone will love the butterfly pavilion in the summer months—otherwise just take the opportunity for a romantic stroll. Gardens: free.  edit

[edit][add listing] Do

[edit][add listing] Buy

[edit][add listing] Eat

• El Pollo Rico, 2517 University Blvd, ☎ +1 301 942-4419, [2]. 10:30AM-10PM daily. Universally acclaimed in local, national, and international food circles is Wheaton's El Pollo Rico, serving unbeatable pollo a la brasa—Peruvian chicken roasted over smoky wood charcoals to just the perfect point at which a slight crisp falls upon the skin, over succulent, moist white and dark meat, and the spice fiesta of salt 'n pepper, huacatay, aji, cumin, achiote, garlic, and lemon magically penetrates the meat straight into the bone. EPR for a long time ran out of a can't-see-your-hand smoky little take-out only shack, but that burned down, and it's now in a cheery little eatery with tables for the few who aren't taking the bird home to the family. Lines are long, but move fast. Placing your order is simple: yell whole, half, or quarter, and then enjoy the sound of the lady's meat cleaver hitting the counter through the meat. Chicken: $5.30-14.20.  edit
• Full Key Restaurant, 2227 University Blvd, ☎ +1 301-8388. 11AM-2AM daily. So this is where the Chinese fled to from the now Disneyfied Chinatown downtown! It's a very unassuming dive, consistently serving up some of the best Hong Kong-style fast food in the D.C. area, though some find the service less than attentive. Cheap eats into the wee hours of the night—wonderful noodle soups, soup dumplings, congee, and a few barbecued meats. $5-18.  edit
• Irene's Pupusería III, 11300 Georgia Ave, ☎ +1 301 933-2118. Su-Th 11AM-midnight, F-Sa 11AM-2AM. Irene is building a pupusería empire, and any of the four locations are good bets for excellent pupusas. But number three outshines the other hole-in-the-walls in terms of ambiance by a wide margin—it's a nice place to take the family for a meal, with walls of big comfy diner-style booths. This restaurant is the local hub for the Honduran community, so there are a bunch of dishes on the menu, like the baliada's (a sort of Honduran burrito) that you won't find at the other Salvadoran restaurants. Beyond the great pupusas and baliadas, the terribly unhealthy fried plantains with creme are incredible, as are the atoles, a creamy hot chocolate-style dessert drink (non alcoholic, and without chocolate) made from corn meal with all the spices you'd expect of a pumpkin pie. $4-20.  edit
• Moby Dick, 11220 Triangle Ln, ☎ +1 301 949-3910. M-Th 11:30AM-9:30PM, F-Sa 11:30AM-10PM. Odd name for a Korean-run Japanese place. Korean-run Japanese restaurants are usually a lesson in cross-cultural misunderstanding, but this is an exception, run by an eminently competent and seasoned preparer of Japanese cuisine. Three reasons to come: great tempura, good sushi, and impressively low prices. $7-15.  edit
• Nava Thai, 11301 Fern St, ☎ +1 240 430-0495, [3]. Su-Th 11:30AM-10PM, F-Sa 11:30AM-10:30PM. Mark that address because this one's hidden more or less in the back room of an Asian supermarket. The food is incredible, with a menu full of items Thai food lovers of the Western variety will not recognize. Dishes range from those ablaze with chilis, garlic, and curries, to those with a more subtle cilantro or perhaps pig's blood. The sweet and sour squid is famous, but if you want to play it safer, the husband and wife team here are experts with the noodle dishes, and you'd have trouble finding a better pad thai anywhere, except Ruan, of course. $6-20.  edit
• Paul Kee Restaurant, 11305 Georgia Ave, ☎ +1 301 933-6886. Su-Th 11AM-1AM, F-Sa 11AM-2AM. Delicious, authentic Cantonese food served to a mostly Cantonese clientele. The service and ambiance are also authentically Cantonese, which is a bad thing, but they are also hallmarks of a place that serves great food at low prices. The roast and crispy meat dishes tend to be especially good bets. $5-25.  edit
• Ruan Thai, 11407 Amherst Ave, ☎ +1 301 942-0075. M-Sa 11:30AM-10PM, Su 4PM-10PM. Trying to decide whether to eat at Nava or Ruan is best decided by a coin flip—they are both fantastic, small, and as authentic as they come. Aside from walking distance, Ruan is a little divier and marginally less expensive, which is either a plus or minus depending on your outlook. It also serves an incredible smoked eggplant salad, a fiery crispy whole red snapper, and killer larb. $6-18.  edit
• Sergio's Place, 11324 Fern St, ☎ +1 301 962-7066, [4]. 7AM-whenever the Salvadoreños have their final beer at night, daily. The pupusas here are magnificent, with perhaps the best Salvadoran style tortillas you'll find outside of the motherland. And they come in an unusual range of stuffings like chicken, carrots, crab meat, jalapeños, etc.—you can even get one made with a rice tortilla! Otherwise, there are a number of Salvadoran soups, Guatemalan dishes, and great Cuban sandwiches to keep the adventurous palate engaged. Live (and very loud) entertainment F-Su nights. $5-15.  edit

[edit][add listing] Drink

[edit][add listing] Sleep

Wheaton does not have any nice hotels to stay in. If you are looking for a place nearby for your visit, Silver Spring is just south on Georgia Ave and the Metro Red Line, and has plenty of nice hotels.

[edit] Contact

[edit] Get out

• If you have a car, a trip east along University Blvd, a.k.a. the International Corridor is a fun way to discover restaurants sporting cuisines from throughout Africa, Latin America, and Asia.

This is a usable article. It has information for getting in as well as some complete entries for restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please plunge forward and help it grow!