The Sunday art crawl at the Reston Town Center left us famished, so we headed to the newest Founding Farmers Reston Station for something familiar. It’s hard to entice me to venture outside of the District for eats—with the exception of wineries, but the Reston Station location had everything that I desire in a dining experience. If you’re acquainted with the brand, then you know that the menu offers something for everyone: from the carnivore to the vegetarian and everything in between.
The new location did not disappoint. Upon entering the restaurant, the airy space is peppered with several dining motifs stemming from President Thomas Jefferson—our founding father of cuisine. It may take you a while to spot his influences, but the commissioned artworks are a love letter to his legacy. I was specifically drawn to mixed media portrait of a young woman whose image looked familiar, but her name escaped me. After a little digging, I discovered it was Sally Hemings, Jefferson’s enslaved lover who bore six of his children. Quite the scandal of their time, I respect the creative decision, to tell the truth of our country’s painful past while paying homage to a woman who is often whispered about in history books.
After taking our second art walk through the restaurant, we were shepherded to a spacious booth near the bar. I was in awe of the mixologist’s cocktail slay and couldn’t wait to order a drink. All of the spirits are sourced locally from their D.C. distillery and I wanted to try something from their Founding Farmers Spirit Project. I craved a mid-day refresher and my awesome server recommended the Whitestar—a smooth gin, lime and cucumber concoction with a hint of mint topped off with egg white foam. My dainty cocktail glass fit my ladylike persona and I was suddenly cool as a cucumber!
Cocktail tastings continued throughout the afternoon with Instagram worthy citrus themed drinks in rum and vodka. With so many appetizers to choose, we split our selection into savory and sweet options to please everyone’s palette. We ordered the Ahi tuna bites, garlic black pepper wings, blue cheese bacon dates, and the cauliflower hummus with ciabatta and crudité to balance out our gluttonous ways. Out of everything, the tuna bites were my favorite with its sweet finish of white chocolate that was refreshingly unexpected.
As the dinner hour approached, we opted to eat family style to savor our smorgasbord of options. I couldn’t help but try their highly recommended spicy fried chicken & glazed donut, which is their own twist on the popular chicken and waffles combo. Paired with gooey mac and cheese and green beans, the secret sauce made it a star in my book to balance out the spice. The mid-Atlantic scallops over the parmesan risotto were light and cooked to perfection. The cauliflower steak in the tomato cider glaze gave us veggies plenty and lest we not forget the pasta—the large shrimp tossed in pesto over fettuccini was a green monster of freshness that rounded out lovely Sunday dinner.
With little room left, we all agreed we weren’t leaving without dessert. The half a dozen donuts and deconstructed banana split were an artful masterpiece that topped off our Sunday art crawl theme.
With full bellies and happy smiles, Founding Farmers Reston Station is a great new addition to the developing area. Only steps from the Wiehele-Reston East station on the silver line, their First Bake grab and go menu is available for a tasty commute and free parking is validated up to three hours. What a great win for food and art!
Address: 1904 Reston Metro Plaza Reston, VA 20190
Phone: 703-988-7333
Hours of Operation
BREAKFAST
Monday – Friday | 7am – 11am
LUNCH & DINNER
Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday: 11am – 10pm
Thursday: 11am – 11pm
Friday: 11am – 12am
Saturday: 2pm – 12am
Sunday: 2pm – 10pm
FARMERS MARKET BUFFET BRUNCH
Saturday, Sunday & holiday Mondays | 9am – 2pm
DESSERT
Available for lunch & dinner
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Shamyra Edmonds is a world citizen and food connoisseur who studied hospitality management at the Les Roches School of International Hotel Management, in Switzerland. She can be found teaching or taking cooking classes, organizing fantastic food and wine experiences or eating chocolate croissants. Check out her personal food blog: www.passport2cuisine.com and follow her on Instagram: @passport2cuisine
