- I'm Kimberly Kong, and I'm your DC host
for "5 Buck Lunch".
I spent the last 14 years eating my way through The Capital
and documenting it all on my food blog, Nomtastic Foods.
Let me take you to the best spots in the capital for
cheap eats that are five bucks or less.
What is up, you guys?
We're back at the district for another episode of
"5 Buck Lunch."
This time we're on H Street Corridor.
I know vegan cuisine is probably not a go-to
for most of you, but this restaurant has some
of the best fries you'll ever taste.
It seems like Asian fusion restaurants like to top their
fries with bulgogi or other popular proteins, but this DC
place tops it with kimchi and makes it the star of the show.
And the best part is it's only $5.
So let's go.
I hope you guys are as stoked as I am, because were about
to see some serious food porn here at Pow Pow.
Pow Pow has everything from massive egg roles,
the size of your arm, to colorful bowls and salads
that will leave you completely and utterly satisfied.
And if you're broke, like me, your gonna want to check them
out, because everything Pow Pow has is affordable.
So let's go inside.
Are you a vegan?
- Yeah, actually I'm vegan,
I've been vegan for about six years now.
- I'm not, actually. Even though I'm not, I still really love
eating the food here and they used to have meat,
then they went all plant-based and
I honestly barely noticed the difference.
- Personally I am not a vegan, I like my meats and all that.
But then here we got introduced to
fried mozzarella balls and that, like, chicken tenders,
but it's all vegan and plant-based.
It's really hard to tell actually that it's not real chicken.
They also do great kimchi fries.
- What did you order?
- This is the Purity Bowl, and the Kimchi Brussel Sprouts.
- Wow! What's the stupidest question you've ever got
about being vegan?
- People asking if figs are vegan,
because they're like pollinated by wasps.
- I've never even though of that before.
Whether you're vegan or not,
dishes, like the Natalie Porkman and the Woo Banger are hits.
There's something for everyone, so let's see what we can get.
- Hey, welcome to Pow Pow.
- Hi, I was actually wondering if you could tell me
a little bit about Pow Pow.
- Sure! We are 100% plant-based menu. We make all of our
proteins here in-house.
We do Asian bowls, mixtures of giant egg roles,
big piles of fries are kind of like out claim of fame.
- So how often do you guys experiment with new dishes?
- Every day! We get bored very, very quick here.
So we have a specials menu here
that we're constantly rotating out items.
Things that we're toying with and seeing if it works there,
then it goes here on the main menu.
- So I have $5 in my pocket right know.
- OK.
- What should I get?
- I would get the Trolley Fries,
which are a big giant pile of fries, and they come with
kimchi on top, Korean ketchup, togarashi mayo, vegan cheese
that we make here in-house, and topped with nori.
- That's sounds amazing, let's go with that.
- OK, sounds good.
- It'll be just a minute. Thanks so much!
Guys, this is straight fire,
like Charizard-level fire right here.
We got some kimchi up here, chopped scallions,
nori, which is seaweed, by the way.
We got cheddar cashews, spicy ketchup, togarashi mayo
and skin-on french fries.
It smells like a symphony of deliciousness.
Your would link the flavors would be overpowering, but
they work so well together.
So you can actually add a protein onto this
for an extra charge.
They have all different types of meats here,
they're made from seitan.
But honestly, the chicken's amazing; the pork is amazing.
It's pretty much because Chef Margaux,
is basically the Dumbledore of vegan cuisine.
Who knew kimchi and fries could work so well together?
They're pretty much besties.
So, you guys need to get down here, stat, and smash these
because food is happiness, and we at Thrillist want you to
be happy, and I want happiness for myself.
So get out of here because I need to crush these right now.
I only have five bucks, but if you have $9 and you want to
indulge, definitely make sure to get their Natalie Porkman.
Just look at how gorgeous this bowl is.
Sweet and sour pork -- OK seitan -- but is tastes really good.
And we have some shredded carrots, peppers, pineapples,
and all that good stuff.
So get down here, stat.
OK see ya.
All right, y'all, that's a wrap.
Lets us know what your thought of Pow Pow
by leaving us a comment below and make sure
to subscribe, follow, like, and share.
And check out the previous episode on Ethyl's,
located on the Upper East Side.