Diverse Dining: Don't Settle for Food Court Bland

A WEARY-LOOKING FAMILY—mother, two children and an aunt—sit in the Tysons Corner Center food court, surrounded by shopping bags. In front of them: Five Guys burgers and fries.

"Totally did not want to eat here, but it's time for lunch and I didn't have any other choice," says mom Carol Couter; her sister nods in agreement. Welcome to shopping season.

The scenario is familiar: after hours lugging bags, wrangling kids or helping your friend finally decide whether to get the red or the green skirt for her sister, you just want food, doesn't matter where or how.

So we rounded up a list of food court munchies that are a little better than the average fare. (This list doesn't include kiosk food — too many to list, anyway — and ignores real restaurants that happen to be attached to malls. With those, you have to pay, like, real money.)

At Tysons Corner, standouts in the main food court include Desert Moon's Southwestern fare (including low-carb and low-fat selections). But the newly opened Cakelove outpost on the first floor might just beat all other comers.

Ballston Common's food court offers a little out of the ordinary with Fabian's, which serves Mexican and South American foos. Order plantains ($1.50), lomo saltado (Peruvian steak, $7.95), or yuca fries ($3).

The Fashion Centre at Pentagon City's got a few notable selections, like Sala Thai Cafe, an outpost of the popular local chain. It's cash only, which is a drag, but with bubble tea for $3 and a sticky-rice-and-mango dessert for $4.50, it's hard to go wrong.

Over in Maryland, the Mall at Prince George's will hook you up at Cameron's Seafood Express, where huge crab cakes are the norm. And if you find yourself at White Flint Mall, consider the oddly named J. Chow's Chicken-Ribs-Salads, where pretty much everything has chicken in it, except the extensive dessert menu.

Last, for the urbanites, Union Station's food court is pleasantly international, with Greek at Acropolis, Indian at Aditi, Italian at three places (Pasta T' Go-Go, Vittorio's and Vaccaro's) and more. If only the place wasn't so overrun with tourists.

Wherever you choose to spend your dining dollars this season, remember to keep expectations reasonable. Some food court food holds its own with sit-down fare, but most falls into the category of "functional." If it tastes good, that's a bonus!

Back at Tysons food court, Chilan Tranluu says she just dropped her daughters off at a movie and was planning to eat at pan-Asian Taka Grille, which is "good. Well ...," She pauses a second. "Good for [this] place."

Written by Express contributor Rachel Kaufman
Photo by Kristoffer Tripplaar for Express