Category Archives: The Daily Feed

Downtown, Essential DC, Food and Drink, The Daily Feed, The Hill, WTF?!
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Sound Off: Best food INSIDE Union Station

Photo courtesy of
‘it’s full. yet it’s empty.’
courtesy of ‘staceyviera’

I have mixed feelings about Union Station. It’s gorgeous,  yet it’s grubby. It’s full of good stores, yet it has nothing really that interesting.  It’s got good hustle and bustle, yet I hate the lost souls. Seriously, it’s love/hate. I love it but I really hate it. But mostly I think about Union Station and how much space is wasted with bad food. I recently had a discussion on Twitter with my tweeple (I’m getting addicted. We knew this would happen, didn’t we?) about Union Station and the lack of decent food inside.

We settled on Corner Bakery actually being the best option. And that’s fine, I like Corner Bakery (not as much as I love Potbellys!) but isn’t it sad that our epicenter of transportation doesn’t have good uniquely-DC food inside? There’s a decent Gyro to be had downstairs, and I don’t hate Cafe Renee, but ya’ll, it’s basically a food-void, in my opinion. This is distressing to me. So I ask you… Am I missing something? Is there a hidden gem in there that I just don’t know about? Or is Union Station just the way I see it – a black hole of mediocrity?

The Daily Feed
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Cheap Jeeps


Jeep Liberty redux by michael.banovsky

With the American car industry making a kerplunk sound in the toilet, there are some deals to be found if you’re in the market for a new car.  CNN is reporting that Pohanka Chrysler-Dodge in Leesburg is selling their new vehicles for as much as 40% off the sticker price and they may be marked down even further.  With Chrysler’s recent filing for bankruptcy, dealers have until June 9tch to sell off their new car inventory.  Dealer owner Ray O’Bryhim says, “As we get closer to June 9, we’re going to have to do what we have to do to move these cars.”

So if you’re looking to buy a 68 R Code Mustang, now may be the time to buy.  Hurry now while supplies last!

History, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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The 300 club

 Photo courtesy of
‘Nationals Home Opener’
courtesy of ‘cruffo’

Tonight could be historic at Nats Park. Giants’ pitcher Randy Johnson is going for win number 300. While 24 other pitchers have broken this milestone, it is conjectured that due to changing “strategy” (ie, not using ‘roids anymore) Johnson could be the last to do so. To post a win, Johnson needs pitch at least five innings, leave the game with the Giants in the lead, and then see that lead maintained by his relief. It’s a large number of variables, but Randy Johnson is obviously a quality pitcher.  I bet he can overcome them. If you’re planning on seeing a game this summer, you should definitely go tonight.

Continue reading →

Downtown, Entertainment, The Daily Feed
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Live on the Woodrow Wilson Plaza

Photo courtesy of
‘Woodrow Wilson Plaza’
courtesy of ‘mastermaq’

The Wilson Plaza, located at 13th and PA NW, now has its own twitter page to keep you updated on lunchtime concerts.  Unfortunately, you’ve already missed Chaka Khan who performed today, but with a concert everyday, there will be plenty more to catch over the summer.  For anyone who works downtown, it’s a welcome change to the typical lunch.

Entertainment, Essential DC, Fun & Games, Life in the Capital, Night Life, The Daily Feed
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Boozy Bus = No.

Photo courtesy of
‘Hell yes. Hell yes.’
courtesy of ‘normalityrelief’

In college, I lived at this fancy apartment complex that ran a shuttle to campus during the day, and then on Thurs-Sat they also a ran night shuttle to the main bar drag on campus. We dubbed it the drunk bus. It was brilliant, and some residents even made a song on GarageBand about the bus. It was well loved.

So when I read this Examiner article about the boozy bus, a shuttle direct from the hill to Gin & Tonic, free for anyone with an intern badge, I had instant flashbacks of my drunk bus years. They were good years, but seriously? You guys? The hill? IS NOT COLLEGE, despite what you may think. (And apparently what Gin & Tonic tells you.) Continue reading →

The Daily Feed, WMATA
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Metro Opening Early on Saturday for Race for the Cure 5K

Photo courtesy of
‘Walk Start’
courtesy of ‘ManWomanGradyBaby’

Just a heads up from Metro that the system will open two hours early at 5 AM on Saturday to accommodate the Race for the Cure.  There are estimates of 50,000 people participating in this 20th anniversary event, so make sure you leave plenty of time to get there.  Also, Metro reminds us that there will be track work on the Red and Orange lines, so add in twenty to thirty minutes of travel time to get to the race.  And of course, we can expect many road closures in the area, so don’t even think about driving.

If you want to raise money for a great cause, there is still time to register— and you can even Sleep In for the Cure and avoid Metro altogether!  I’ll be running the 5K Saturday– see you there!

Food and Drink, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Bet you won’t want to miss this

Photo courtesy of
‘IMG_6330’ courtesy of ‘muztiko’

For those of us craving some Vegas madness, a definite “don’t miss” is Casino Night this Thursday, June 4th, 6PM to 12AM at Teatro Goldoni. Proceeds from this gambling themed party will benefit local DC non-profit Pediatric AIDS/HIV Care (PAHC).
Check it out:

$20 gets you in the door with free cocktails until 8pm and free hors d’oeuvres all night.

An additional $20 (optional) gets you unlimited chips for blackjack, craps, roulette and Wheel of Fortune (sorry, no Pat Sajack).

If you’re a true gambler, $200 gets you into the Texas Hold’em Tournament (20 limit).

Players with the most chips at the end of the night receive prizes.

Can’t wait until Thursday to take a gamble? Check out the event’s promotional website, Beat The Odds; buy your tickets or make a donation at Groundspring’s website.

The Daily Feed
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Park For Free

Shenandoah N.P. by numbphoto

You have to agree that as much as we love DC, it’s always nice to get out of the city.  Luckily for us there are a lot of national parks in the area that make for great road trip destinations with family and friends (or by yourself if you’re the loner type).  I know one of my favorites to visit in the fall will always be Shenandoah National Park, that is when it’s not swarming with people.

But what about those pesky park entrance fees?  Well, the National Park Service is waiving them for certain parks for three weekends this summer, so dust off those hiking boots, load up your car full of beer and weenies, and get your nature on! Continue reading →

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Simple as Banana Cream Pie. Or French Bread.


French bread or banana cream pie?
Originally uploaded by carlweaver

The local Safeway near my house (yes, the same one with the occasional rotten produce) is screwing with me, setting up logical impossibilities that make my brain hurt. Banana cream pie is French bread. Is this store run by idiots or freaks? Come on, folks. It’s labeling, not rocket science. I know today is hump day and all, but go get a free coffee, buck up and let’s fix some stuff this afternoon.

The Daily Feed
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Solar Car in Town

Photo courtesy of
‘Solar Car Project 3’
courtesy of ‘Fan of FOTC’

You might’ve seen a weird UFO-lookin’ car rolling down Mass Ave tonight if you were out and about, that’s the X1, a solar car. We’re not sure quite why they’re in town, but hey, if it’s gone all the way up to the Arctic and back, that’s pretty awesome. Marcelo de Luz, the driver, was after the world record for a solar car, and got it in California. He’s on the way back from the trip now.

Business and Money, The Daily Feed
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The Bag Tax is Coming

Photo courtesy of
‘Shopping Bag Ban’
courtesy of ‘Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com’

The DC City Council voted, unanimously, to place a 5¢ per bag tax for any plastic or paper bags used in stores in the District of Columbia. The tax is designed to promote the use of reusable bags which create less landfill waste. However, just consider: If you average 3 bags a trip to the store, and two trips to the store a week, that’s 30¢ per week; you’ll pay off three new bags by March next year.

What you have to do, though is remember them all the time, which I’ve not been as successful at doing as I’d like to report.

Food and Drink, Night Life, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Best Bets During Kid’s Restaurant Week

Photo courtesy of
‘Look what’s for dinner!’
courtesy of ‘jessicafm’

I got slightly snarky a while back about the upcoming Kid’s Restaurant Week (June 13-21) but promised in my last post about it that I’d offer up my personal picks for the event, even if I plan to stay far, far away. So here’s keeping good to my promise. Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Nats Fire Pitching Coach St. Claire

Photo courtesy of
‘DSC_01500001’
courtesy of ‘cruffo’

The Nationals fired pitching coach Randy St. Claire today, replacing him with Steve McCatty, a AAA pitching coach from my very own Syracuse Chiefs. According to the Nationals Journal, while St. Claire was clearly not thrilled, he seemed unphased: “That’s life. I’ve been in this game for 31 years. I’ve been fired before.” The decision comes as little surprise, considering the team’s current ERA – 5.69 – the worst in the MLB. The Nats also ranked worst as of May in pitching rank when it came to walks, wild pitches, triples allowed and total bases. St. Claire had been with the Nats for 7 years.

The Daily Feed
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Cheh Proposes Protection for Homeless Under Bias Crime Law

Photo courtesy of
‘1/100 Strangers Project – Steve’
courtesy of ‘Kasia Swierczek’

City Council member Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) introduced a bill today that would include the homeless in DC’s hate crimes law.  As broad as DC’s bias crimes law is, I’m actually surprised the homeless aren’t already protected by it. Since the strongest reason for hate crimes laws is to deter crimes that particularly terrify an entire class of people in the community, it seems like a no-brainer to add protection for a group of people who already have an uneasy relationship with the police and other members of the community, and who frequently are homeless because of issues that would also prevent them from reliably reporting a crime or identifying an assailant.

The Daily Feed
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My Alert DC: Crime on Your Phone

Photo courtesy of
‘(Old) Blackberry’
courtesy of ‘rwkvisual’

Late last night, when walking home with friends, I learned about a technology that is either really useful or too much information: My Alert DC. Apparently you can get text message updates from the DC Metropolitan Police alerting you to emergencies and crimes in the neighborhood of your choice. When a crime occurs, for example, you get a text which reads like a police blotter, essentially, alerting you to the nature of the crime, the profile of the perpetrator and of the victim. My friend noted that he gets 2-3 every day, and since he had received none yesterday, something was “due to happen,” statistically. And indeed, not ten minutes after we got to our respective homes, he forwarded me a message. 

Besides crime alerts, which are useful pretty much only when something is on-going and otherwise serve to make you more anxious than normal, you can get severe weather warnings, government closings, Amber Alerts and school closings. All of this is tailored to what you want and your chosen neighborhood or school area. I signed up out of sheer blogger-ly nosiness and curiosity, but I’m curious as to what others think.

Sports Fix, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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ESPN Could Live Without Nationals

Photo courtesy of
‘jumping in vain’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

Gene Wojchiechowski of ESPN thinks we could all do without the Nats, putting them atop the list of 50 Things We Can Do Without in Sports. Now, the Nationals are bad, and I’ll admit that they’re on their way to eclipsing the 1962 Mets for the worst single season record of all time, but really? We have a beautiful stadium here now, and we’re supposed to ditch the team? For what?

Well, that got me thinking:

  • Give it to D.C. United. Seriously. Best Soccer park in the US, hands down, and United will probably make the playoffs this season, and have a decent shot to win it all.
  • World’s Best Outdoor Concert Venue. It seats more than Nissan, and it’s on the Metro. Need I say more? Strip out some of the upper deck seats and make a cool lawn-type seating area…
  • Bring back the pillories. C’mon, tell me you wouldn’t pay admission to throw rotten produce at Hariette Walters?

What do you think we should do?

Life in the Capital, The Daily Feed
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Ban on Hand-Held Cell Phone Use by Drivers, Fail!

DC Cop on Cell Phone

Picture is a bit fuzz and of poor quality, but I caught a DC cop driving through Georgetown, while chatting away on his cell phone sans hands-free device.

Now while I’ll admit to being occasionally guilty of talking on my cell while driving, shouldn’t our cops be exemplars of the code of law?  Granted they’re only human, but come on!  The least they can obey common laws while on duty, in uniform and driving a police car!

In DC, I’ve seen specific police traps that target motorists on cell phones.  In fact, there’s often one not far from where this picture was taken. Surely, this cop has never been a part of those traps or ticketed anyone for cellphone violation that he himself is guilt of.  I mean that would just reek of hypocrisy.

A question that occurs to me is: Could another DC Cop ticket this guy for the violation?  Of course that would be a blatant violation of the Brotherhood of the Cop, but feasibly is that possible? Can an on duty officer receive a ticket?

The Daily Feed
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Rita’s Water Ices, Happiness to Open on H

Photo courtesy of
‘Rita’s Tangerine Ice’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

I’m salivating already. This past weekend I had my first taste of Rita’s Water Ice. Come to find out, Rita’s will be opening a new location… less than a block from my house. Cha-ching! Unfortunately we still have 2 months to wait, the grand opening of the H Street NE Rita’s, which will take up the old Kwame Brown headquarters on the north side of H, isn’t until August 1. But I have a feeling that it will be just in the nick of time with heatpocolypse coming on. 

Also in the works is a 6th and H Chinatown Location. But if you need Rita’s, like, right now, try one of the following: Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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The Inside of a Metro Fail


Fail Rail
Originally uploaded by brhefele

Thanks much to Unsuck DC Metro for posting the tale of yesterday’s broken train which screwed up rush hour, forcing single-tracking between Rosslyn and Foggy Bottom. If you’ve ever been on a stuck train, you’ll recognize the brusque behavior of the train operators, as well as the radio conversation with Central. If you want the official version of what happened to go along with the on-train story, The Post has Metro’s explanation.