Comments on: We Love Drinks: Commissary

By: reuben

reuben — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:23:44 +0000

Yes, things change-but as a middle aged black Washingtonian, the cocktail of radical age and race change is enough to keep my therapist working for a long time..

By: Tiffany Bridge

Tiffany Bridge — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:36:28 +0000

I suspect that the reason the middle ground never seems to exist is that the chains are able to bid higher for space, which pushes up rents until the local businesses (who don’t have other locations that can make the money until the new location is profitable) can’t afford to move in. That’s just my uneducated guess, though.

By: Don

Don — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:12:20 +0000

Wayan, Tom and I once had a discussion over drinks about styles of gentrification and our general consensus could be boiled down to “14th Street Yay, 7th Street, BOO!”

You wouldn’t recognize either of these stretches of road from a decade ago, but the evolution of the 14th street region around Studio theater is nothing like the changes on 7th. Certainly there’s a lot of people who like the way the region around Chinatown has changed, otherwise it wouldn’t continue to be successful.

I’m troubled, though, by the fact that places like Clydes, Fuddruckers, Gordon Biersch, Potbelly, etc seem to have -completely- displaced the independent eateries. A happy middle ground would be awesome, but it never seems to exist. There’s some critical mass of chain restaurant that – once it gets there – somehow pushes out everything else.

So if my choices are only those two extremes I’ll take the urban hipster label (as laughable as it is to anyone who knows me) since I can find chain stores anywhere. I’d rather have it all, though. How do we manage it?

By: Jenn Larsen

Jenn Larsen — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 15:10:35 +0000

People live in cities for many different reasons. Certainly, convenience is a big factor. But atmosphere is also high on the list for many.

So, Hipster vs Yuppie? Not necessarily. I think it’s more complex than that. Why would it be “posing” to accept the fact that not everything is clean and safe, that life can’t always be easy?

And, do these labels really matter anymore? Isn’t everyone a hybrid in these days of egocasting anyway?

These are all really interesting comments and I hope to revisit the issues that are coming out in a larger article soon. I’ll have to mull it over.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 13:55:44 +0000

I always question urbanites who embrace “grit” and decry gentrification. Why? I for one am an urbanite simply because life is easier living close to work and having stores, restaurants, and attractions at my doorstep. I like clean restaurants and safe neighborhoods. Call me a yuppie if you will. I can occupy myself and live a full life without having to pose as an urban hipster.

By: Jenn Larsen

Jenn Larsen — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 16:12:21 +0000

Thanks for the comment, Mike. All I meant is that Commissary is aspiring to the same type of concept as Busboys – a bar/coffeehouse/restaurant hybrid. That’s it – I’m not drawing any further comparison between the two. Perhaps I should write about Busboys in the future, as it also brings up some interesting points on development, gentrification, et al.

However, as to the service at Commissary for food, I’ve had one nicely served brunch there and one appallingly served lunch. So 50/50 on food service.

And yes, you can beat the prices. Go to the dive at the corner of P & 14th for breakfast. ;)

By: Mike W

Mike W — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:40:31 +0000

While I agree that this EatWellDC location has had continual identity confusion, I find the comparison to Busboys way off. My office is only one block from Busboys and I frequent it often for business lunches and happy hours. There’s plenty of suits and stilettos hanging out there and lately I’ve seen quite a few baby strollers. Plus with Andy Shallal opening his third location, the whole concept feels less unique now that it is a local chain.

I tried Commissary for brunch and they had attentive service without making us feel rushed. We took as long as we wanted and enjoyed our meal. And you can’t beat the prices! For me, the great value is what makes this a great neighborhood hangout.

Perhaps the owners could take a look at the layout so all the legions of laptop users don’t feel like they’re on a stage.

By: Tiffany Bridge

Tiffany Bridge — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:29:28 +0000

I haven’t been there, but just from their website, which seems to include lots of stock photography of adorable flag-waving children but no photos of the actual restaurant, I must say I am immediately suspicious of any company that refers to their dining establishment as a “concept.”

That said, they’ll also serve breakfast until 5PM, so… I’ll probably go at least once anyway. Giving me breakfast food whenever I want is pretty much the way straight to my heart (Just ask Tom!).

By: RyanA

RyanA — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 16:56:05 +0000

I think your friend hit it on the nose, though I tend to describe the EatWell branches as a step up from Bennigan’s. They’re (successfully) designed to meet the suburban/exurban ideal of casual dining. They seem to lack any emotion or passion whatsoever, and replace it with demographically targeted, corporate taste.

And of course in DC where everyone is from somewhere else, the bland middle ground can be extremely successful.