Two Route 1 corridor restaurants landed on the Washington Post‘s recent list of the top five “cheap eats” in Maryland’s suburbs.

Chez Dior, a Senegalese restaurant in Hyattsville, and Northwest Chinese Food in College Park both were ranked highly by roving food editor Tim Carman.

Both were praised for offering something authentic and tasty that’s otherwise rare among the local restaurant scene.

“To a newcomer, the food here can be simultaneously foreign and familiar, a mix of grill smoke and funky West African flavors — sour and fermented, sweet and hot,” Carman notes of Chez Dior.

“Her dishes, heavy on noodles, are a frontal assault of garlic, chili oil and aged Shaanxi vinegar, a smoky and inky liquid made from sorghum, barley and peas,” he writes of Northwest Chinese owner Hua Wang. “You’ll be wiping your hands and your nose when dining here.”

Carman previously reviewed both restaurants favorably for the Post.

Northwest Chinese also made the Post’s lists of favorite cheap eats of 2016, favorite cheap Chinese restaurants, 10 best cheap eats in D.C. (twice), and favorite dishes of 2016. That’s not to mention making the Washingtonian‘s 2016 “Cheap Eats” list, its lists of 10 great inexpensive dishes, best cheap Chinese restaurants, best places to order carryout, and best Metro-accessible cheap restaurants.

It was also a runner-up for “Best Restaurant” in the 2017 Hyattsville Wire’s Best of Route 1 reader’s poll.

Chez Dior also previously made the Post’s favorite cheap eats of 2015, memorable dishes of 2015, best cheap eats in D.C. and most essential restaurant dishes of 2017. It also gained notice from the Washington City Paper for a unique dish for children.

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