Category Archives: The Features

These are our features. They come back either weekly, bi-weekly or monthly.

Food and Drink, The Features, We Love Food
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First Look: Kushi Izakaya & Sushi

KushiExteriorPhoto1

There’s something wrong with me (maybe). I can’t get enough sushi! I just crave it – spicy tuna, firecracker, flying fish roe, fatty tuna, I WANT IT ALL. So when I was invited to check out the new Japanese gastropub in Mount Vernon Square, I jumped at the chance.

Sleek, modern and minimalist, the best Kushi experience you can have is at one of their three (!) bars – the sake bar, the sushi bar or what I call the grill bar – what is technically supposed to be called the robata counter. I sat at the robata counter – the bar surrounding Kushi’s kitchen. There is literally no back kitchen at Kushi, everything is prepared out front under the watchful eye of diners. With charcoal and wood burning grills, a sous-vide machine and a few tiny stoves, eating at Kushi is cooking theater. Chefs slice, dice, grill, plate and prep right in front of you. It gives the diner a perfect vantage point for the evening, and also keeps you craving more. Continue reading →

Featured Photo
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Featured Photo


Pizza Bagel by Chris DiGiamo

Ah, times sure have changed haven’t they?  This photo immediately reminded me of a modern day Normal Rockwell painting.  Rockwell often based his historic paintings on photographs, manipulating the scene with his brush however he saw fit.  So I wonder, how would he have treated this subject?  Surely the boy’s checkered shirt and overalls would stay, but how about the ugly American cars in the background?  I’m guessing those would be replaced by classic buggies or removed altogether.  The three dollar yuppie juice would likely have its place taken by an old fashioned bottle of Coca-Cola or perhaps a cherry-topped chocolate malt.  And the vegan pizza bagel?  Well I don’t think vegans existed back in Rockwell’s day, so instead I’d guess the boy’s face would shine with grease from a delicious burger.  Alas, for better or for worse, America as we once knew it is long gone.

Food and Drink, The DC 100, The Features
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DC Omnivore 100: #23, Foie Gras

Photo courtesy of
‘Seared duck foie gras’
courtesy of ‘yosoynuts’

It’s time for another item on the DC Omnivore 100 list of the top one hundred foods every good omnivore should try at least once in their lives.

Since the launch of this feature back in 2008, there have been a few items on the list that we knew could be controversial – horse, for example, is one of the more obvious ones (and I plan to write about it soon). Foie gras is another, falling in and out of favor depending on whether taste trumps compassion. Some seasons it seems like every restaurant in the city is serving it, others not so much. What’s the deal?

Foie gras is the liver of a duck or goose that has been fattened, either force-fed through a traditional French method known as “gavage” or naturally overfed in say, the American method known as “double bacon cheeseburger with fries.” Kidding. It’s an ancient practice going back to the Egyptians and is protected under French law as part of their cultural heritage. The U.S. is actually the something like the fourth-largest producer of foie gras in the world. Basically the fattening process is exploiting a physiological capacity of migratory birds to store large amounts of food in their expansive throats, to sustain them over long journeys. The birds are fed larger and larger amounts of food until their livers are roughly ten times their ordinary size. With gavage, in the last phase they are force-fed through a pneumatic pump.

Grossed out yet? Morally appalled? If you are, you should read about abattoirs and where burgers come from as well. Personally, I’m with Bourdain. There are humane ways for us to get our guilty pleasures.

The reason so many people are willing to overlook the process is the result, one of the most luxuriant tastes on earth. Continue reading →

Special Events, The Features
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WeLoveDC Presents: Let Teddy Win @ Nationals Park

This guy cannot, does not or will not win. Nevertheless, he’s the DC mascot that we most want to see succeed. And just like his indisputably big head, our desire to see him win won’t ever deflate. Let’s cheer him on at WeLoveDC’s second event of the year, WeLoveDC SPORTS: Let Teddy Win @ Nationals Park. This could finally be his big night.

On Wednesday, April 21, just two weeks after opening day, the Nats are playing the Rockies at 7:05 p.m. We’re teaming up with the Nats and the founder of LetTeddyWin.com to go behind the scenes of the stadium and to root for DC’s least-successful mascot.

We’ve got group tickets by the scoreboard bar in section 237, strategically located to have lots of opportunities for socializing — in the seats, at the bar or overlooking the game at the Miller Lite Beer Pen. (Seats in this section are covered in case of inclement weather, but you can still see the scoreboard.)

Let Teddy Win! Get your tickets now! There are a limited number, and they will sell out in advance.

As you would expect, this event is about more than just a baseball game. Meet up with us as early as 5:30 p.m. to tour the stadium and prepare for Teddy’s race. Click through to read more about what we have in store for you:

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Weekend Flashback
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Weekend Flashback: 3/19 – 3/21/10

Photo courtesy of
‘Rock Creek Park Cyclist’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

Hard to believe only six weeks ago we were buried under a ton of the white stuff… These past several days have atoned for it, that’s for sure. What a great way to kick off the official arrival of spring!

If you’re looking for some distractions from all the hoopla on the Hill today, we’ve got you covered. Check out some snapshots from the weekend, just after the jump.

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News, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Nats Demote Storen, Strasburg to AA Harrisburg

Photo courtesy of
‘take me out to the ballgame…’
courtesy of ‘staceyviera’

The Nationals today sent prospects Drew Storen and Stephen Strasburg to the minor leagues, and to the camp of AA Harrisburg. This is actually a huge relief for Nationals fans everywhere, because it means that despite their strong Spring, they’re going to give these guys some time in the minors before bringing them up to the Show.

Thank God.

My biggest fear was that these guys would do so well in the major league camp that they’d have no choice but to bring them up from Viera to Washington for Opening Day and that would have been a huge mistake. Instead the Nats are going to give them a few months of confidence-building starts in AA Harrisburg and AAA Syracuse to build their pitching acumen and get used to the concept of professional baseball.

Look for them both to join the Nationals after the All Star Break, when they’ve decimated everyone they’ve faced in AA and AAA.

The Features
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2010 National Cherry Blossom Festival: Coming to a Plate Near You

Photo courtesy of
‘Cherry Tree Blossoms & Jefferson Memorial’
courtesy of ‘cliff1066â�¢’

With tomorrow being the first day of Spring, that can only mean one thing in DC.  The National Cherry Blossom Festival is just around the corner.  This year it’s going to be running from March 27th-April 11th, and there’s plenty of stuff to do, and even better, plenty of stuff to eat!  Tons of area restaurants are getting festive and offering cherry blossom-themed dishes, drinks, and desserts, so I have taken the liberty of narrowing down this list  to a few places I would recommend just for you, and in particular places with featured drinks and desserts.  I totally have a sweet tooth, so about half of this list is dessert, but I just couldn’t help myself! Continue reading →

Adventures, History, Tourism
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Tourism: The Old Stone House

Photo courtesy of
‘Old Stone House NHS’
courtesy of ‘Ken Lund’

Nestled in along M Street, in the heart of Georgetown, you’ll stumble upon The Old Stone House, one of the oldest homes remaining in Washington, DC. Built in 1765, the house is maintained and operated by the National Park Service, and is part of the National Park System’s Rock Creek Park unit. Since it’s original construction, the house has traded hands many times and has been used as a shop for hats, tailors, locksmiths, clockmakers, house roofing remodeled by Bell Roofing Company, house painting, and even a used car dealership. Fortunately, the house was purchased by the Federal Government in 1953 for $90,000. At today’s market prices, the house and its garden are thought to be worth close to $6-7 million.

Constructed from local quarry stones and ballast stones from the English sailing vessels that journeyed up the Potomac, the house is a prime example of a typical 18th century dwelling that would have been inhabited by common Americans. Tours and lectures offered by Colonial period-dressed park rangers, highlight the lives of these early Americans and DCers. Continue reading →

Entertainment, Music, Night Life, The Features, We Love Music
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We Love Music: GroundScore

groundscore

All GroundScore wants is to have a good time and watch you dance. And no – that isn’t creepy. It’s freakin’ awesome.

This trio of DC metro-area jammers debuted their first full-length record late last year and is now determined to bring that “feel good” feeling back into people’s lives one east coast town at a time. They’re a group of self-proclaimed reggae rocking, blues driven, jamming machines who rehearse with the recording tape running at all times. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, People, The Features, We Love Drinks
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We Love Drinks: The St. Regis Bar

Photo courtesy of
‘Adour 11’
courtesy of ‘maxedaperture’

Of all the venerable hotel bars that this city offers, the one that never really spoke to me was the St. Regis Library Lounge. With an air that screamed lobbyist power broker, it just never provided the quirky elegance that I find essential in a grand old hotel. That changed for me this past autumn when I popped in for a look before the most scrumptious Thanksgiving meal ever (if you have a serious special occasion coming up, go to Adour, it’s incredible). I knew the hotel had been renovated but I assumed it would be more of the same. Wrong.

The Bar at the St. Regis (its official name) is soothingly decorated now in shades of violet and grey, adding Art Deco touches like crazy 1960’s biomorphic light fixtures to a 40-seat room dominated by an intensely elaborate Italianate ceiling. Lacquered, metallic, mirrored surfaces abound. It’s simply gorgeous, but not overwhelming. You can easily tuck into a soft corner and broker your deal or impress your date. As for the drinks, they’ve undergone a change too. Sure, there’s the high-end madness one might expect (Remy Martin’s Black Pearl Magnum, anyone? $1,926 – the year the hotel opened – for a two ounce pour out of the only bottle in DC…).

But you can also have a little luxury for less, and enjoy some wacky molecular mixology too! Continue reading →

We Love Weekends
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We Love Weekends, March 20-21

Photo courtesy of
‘Your Move’
courtesy of ‘e.phelps’

Tiff: This weekend marks the first one in months where I will NOT be househunting! We’ve just gone under contract on a gorgeous house in Brookland (which means we’ll be the Brookland Bridges), so I will spend a chunk of my Sunday in my future neighborhood, not only for the home inspection but also to scope out 12th St. NE, the commercial heart of Brookland. Later that day, my dance studio is having their grand re-opening in a new, bigger space, so I’ll be checking out dance performances and demonstrations with them.

Rachel: This weekend is the celebration of my life (aka my birthday). My mom’s coming into town so I’m taking her on a whirlwind tour of all things awesome in DC. Friday kicks it off with lunch at Madhatter followed by dinner and a movie in Chinatown (dinner location suggestions are encouraged!). Saturday will be spent shopping in Georgetown, grabbing lunch at Martin’s Tavern, and grabbing a few cocktails at The Gibson before heading to Atomic Billiards for a rousing night of debauchery and dart throwing. Then, we’ll wrap up this celebration of life with my REAL birthday on Sunday by brunching at Chef Geoff’s and paroozing the National Mall in true tourist fashion.   Continue reading →

The District, The Features, The Mall, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Josef Albers

Josef Albers, “Homage to the Square: Glow,” (1966). From the Hirshhorn’s collection.

“We must teach each other… education is not first giving answers but giving questions.”  – Josef Albers

Abstract art is void of narrative.  The composition often speaks only through the viewers mind.  A type of understanding through speculation, providing the sort of simple canvas that the imagination needs in order to thrive.

Josef Albers (1888-1976) was a master of the subjective canvas, an explorer of color and an ambassador for the abstract form.

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Essential DC, Interviews, Life in the Capital, People, The Features
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She Loves DC: Meredith Peruzzi

Photo courtesy of
‘Gallaudet Chapel Hall’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

Reader Meredith Peruzzi, a lifelong area resident and a current Gallaudet student, approached We Love DC eager to share her perspective on the city. Here she explains why she loves DC…

I always thought that people who weren’t native to a place didn’t really identify with it – that if you asked somebody where they were from, they’d name their hometown.  I grew up in the DC area, so whenever someone asked where I was from, I’d always say “here” – this has always been my home, and I can’t consider myself “from” anywhere else.  I’m a Washingtonian because I’ve always been one.

So I assumed that DC was “my city” and that people who moved here didn’t necessarily feel that they were Washingtonians.  Until I started reading We Love DC, and realized that even transplants love this town and feel a connection to it.  People who like to move from city to city may not identify with DC, but anyone who makes their home here is a Washingtonian.

So DC is my city, but it’s also your city, our city, and everyone’s city.  Tourists flock to DC every spring and summer because they want to see where their tax dollars are going, where their senators and representatives live, and all the famous monuments and buildings that grace their money and their history books.  Across the nation, civic pride is personal – the Statue of Liberty belongs to New Yorkers, and the Golden Gate Bridge belongs to San Franciscans.  But the Washington Monument and the White House belong to all Americans, and I love that they come to experience DC because America means something to them.  It’s not so much “welcome to my home” as it is “welcome home.” Continue reading →

Talkin' Transit
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Talkin’ Transit: Snow Blower Edition

Photo courtesy of
‘South Smithsonian Escalators’
courtesy of ‘william couch’

It’s going to be in the sixties and sunny for the next few days, and memories of record snowfall and Metro closures are quickly fading. But I want to take you back a month, to twenty-inch snowfalls and closed federal offices. Every time that we’ve had a massive snowfall in the area over the last 22 years that I’ve been here, someone suggests that Metro should buy equipment to deal with big snow falls. And every time the idea gets shot down with an argument about how we can’t afford to be prepared for once every seven years/decade/lifetime storms.

With each mounting inch of snow, and each dollar that it costs to dig out, I began to doubt that, and I decided to see how much it costs to buy equipment that might help Metro fight the snow. I contacted the friendly folks at the Chicago Transit Authority and asked them about their equipment and what they do to handle the snow.

Metro closes all above ground stations when snow reaches between six and eight inches. They do this to protect the undercarriage of the trains and for fear that trains won’t be able to get power from the electrified third rail. In contrast, CTA has no such predetermined parameters and try and maintain normal service until it is unsafe to do so.
Continue reading →

News, The Features
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Major Fire at 19th & Sunderland in Dupont

fire in dupont photo credit Angelica Bailey
Photo by Angelica Bailey, special to We Love DC

The office building above the Levante’s restaurant on 19th Street near Dupont Circle is currently in the midst of a serious fire. It started shortly after the lunch hour today, and is currently being fought by a number of DC’s Bravest. Engine 4 (Hornet’s Nest) Ladder 9 and Ladder 14, and an EMS and Fire command units and several ambulances. They’re moving trucks onto New Hampshire Avenue, as well, to fight the fire from all sides. According to EMS scanner reports, the fires are in the ductwork now, probably starting from Levante’s kitchen. They’re venting the roof with an axe and a chain saw right now.

Updates as they come.

And, to add insult to injury, those cars stuck at meters on 19th and elsewhere, trapped by the fire trucks, are all being ticketed. Way to go, DC DPW. (apologies to DDOT who I initially and incorrectly identified as issuing tickets.)

Video and more pictures below the cut

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The Features, We Love Drinks, We Love Food, We Love Music
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St. Patrick’s Day: What’s the craic?

Irish banneSign of the times at Bottom Line by Corinne Whiting

St. Patrick’s Day seems to fall at a good time of year—just after we’ve groggily “sprung forward” and just as we’ve been teased out of our winter hermit holes by the sweet promise of spring. Winter vacation seems a lifetime ago; Memorial Day beach treks couldn’t feel farther out of reach. Truth be told, we’re ready for some good craic.

This holiday always seems an ideal time to check in with Irish mates I haven’t properly caught up with since my last trip to Éire. I write friends based in happenin’ Dublin and off “busy” getting sunburned in fabulous places around the globe to wish them a happy Paddy’s Day. (Note: if you accidentally let slip “St. Patty’s Day,” prepare to be scolded for incorrectly feminizing the legendary saint!) This year I surveyed my friends’ March 17 plans, knowing that the night before would be the big night out thanks to a national holiday on St. Patrick’s Day. Over there March 17 seems a day, at least for my friends, to take it easy—catching up over pints and coffees, cycling into the country and, most importantly, avoiding the chaos of city centre. The downtown Dublin parade, it seems, can be saved for the kids and tourists.

So what then does March 17 (unfortunately not a holiday here) mean for Washingtonians? Perhaps the Obamas will dye the White House fountain green again (touch wood). And while the holiday will no doubt give venues an excuse to charge covers to droves of bar goers on a random Wednesday night, it will also give bar goers an excuse to spend a Wednesday night clinking glasses of green beer, downing Irish car bombs and flaunting real or feigned ancestry (“Kiss Me, I’m Irish” buttons, anyone?). It’s also a day when cultural traditions get a wee bit muddled here in the “melting pot” of America—Scottish and English customs become Irish; anything Celtic goes….

Continue reading →

Mythbusting DC, The Features
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DC Mythbusting: The 2010 Census (Or, How You Are Worth $4,656)

Photo courtesy of
‘274/365 Filling out the census’
courtesy of ‘eiratansey’

I love busting myths about the city in this feature, but myths about owning vs. renting, the international nature of DC’s residents, and how no one is from DC would be impossible to bust without cold hard data.  And where do we get that data? The Census!  And now is an exciting time– Census forms should be arriving this week, and now you get to do your civic duty and fill out your form.

There are a lot of myths about the Census– who should fill it out, what the information can be used for, etc– and this is the first time that many of us are the heads of households filling out these forms.  Lucky for us, we’ve got Maurice Henderson, the director of DC Counts, to help us bust this week’s Census-related myths.  Check out what Maurice had to say about three big myths Census myths.

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Featured Photo
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Featured Photo

Photo courtesy of
‘The Lockhouse at Lock #10’
courtesy of ‘andertho’

If you didn’t read the title of this picture, you might not have noticed the lock house at first. It doesn’t catch your eye, hiding in the trees. A different take on the phrase “cannot see the forest for the trees.” The lock house stands at lock #10 on the C&O canal.

Andertho went for this old look processing and hit the spot. It looks old, spooky, and a little haunted. I like the look, and it makes me want to head out and explore the locks and trail on the C&O, again. Maybe once it’s dry.

News, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Ovi Gets Two Game Suspension

Photo courtesy of
‘Check’
courtesy of ‘brianmka’

As I feared, Alex Ovechkin picked up a two game suspension for his (perfectly acceptable) hit on Brian Campbell. The Caps GM George McPhee said this afternoon: “We have no problem with the way Alex tried to finish his check. Unfortunately, an injury resulted. We are disappointed with the suspension but do not want to comment further.” While we wish Brian Campbell a speedy recovery, this should not have resulted in a suspension. You want a hit that should’ve been a suspension? Check out Cooke vs Savard. Hell, that didn’t even draw a penalty!

Ovi will forfeit $232,000 or so in salary, or approximately an Aston Martin DB9. Hell, any time that the head of NBC Hockey, a noted lover of Sidney Crosby, stands up for you against the call, that’s a sign that the refs made a bad call.

We Love Food
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We Love Food: The Most Delicious Day of My Life


Pupusa at El Charrito
Yummy photos courtesy of Dan at Kitchen Geeking

Delicious is a word I use often. And by often, I mean constantly. I love the word delicious almost as much as I love the food that makes me say it. Everything about delicious is a win-win. Therefore, be it resolved, that Saturday March 6th was SO FULL OF WIN. If you don’t know just how delicious the ethnic food of DC and NoVa can be, you are missing out in the worst kinda’ way.

My Saturday started by meeting up with good friend, fantastic amateur chef and ultra foodie and blogger Dan Tompkins. We started throwing out types of cuisines, regions of the world that were a “must hit” for the day and names of hole-in-the-wall places that were favorites of mine. Just listing out the countries we could potentially consume in the hours to come lead to a very enamored and elated couple of hungry, hungry guys.

“Let’s start at the taqueria on Washington, then we have to grab some of my favorite falafel at Astor, hopefully they have koshari too…then we definitely need chickpeas from Ravi Kabob. I think a visit to Present for Vietnamese is also very much called for and it’s totally on our way out to Great Wall, the giant Asian grocery store.”

If our initial list of food stops had actually been the limits of this day, it still would’ve ranked up there with some of the most delicious days of my life. But thankfully Dan and I don’t let silly things like goals keep our food egos in check. We go all out when we get together and this day was like none other that had come before it. This, my fellow DC friends, was the most delicious day of my life. Our bellies happily danced to the tune of food induced merriment brought on by the entire world’s best dishes meeting their demise in our mouths over the course of 9 hours. Mexican, Egyptian, Bolivian, Lebanese, Pakistani, Peruvian, Afghan, American and more!

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