Category Archives: The Features

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

Five Favorites, The Features
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Five Favorites: Bike Routes

Photo courtesy of
‘Rounding the point’
courtesy of ‘randomduck’

Welcome to another edition of Five Favorites.  This week we’ll be checking out bike routes in the District.  Whether you’re a recreational weekend biker, a bike commuter, or a hard-core triathlete, DC’s bike routes have something to offer you.  Here are our picks for the top five bike routes in the city (including a map so you can check these out for yourself):

Number 5: Hains Point.  Hains Point in Southwest isn’t the most scenic bike route in the city, but it is nicely separated from traffic and offers some great straightaways to work up speed.  For that reason, it’s a favorite of serious competitive cyclists and triathletes in the city.  On weekday evenings and weekends, you’ll find cyclists doing ten or even twenty 5-mile loops.  The views of the Potomac River and the Washington Monument get old after the first couple laps, but you won’t find wide lanes with limited car access like these anywhere else.  If you’re looking to get in a flat but fast bike workout, Hains Point is for you.  Route stats: three or five mile loop, paved, plenty of room for passing, and limited car access.

Continue reading →

Interviews, The Features
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He Loves DC: John Snedden of Rocklands Barbeque and Grilling Company

JohnSneddenPhoto

For 18 years Rocklands Barbeque and Grilling Company has been cooking for the DC area, whipping up some of the finest in the area with its wood-only barbeque. Since crafting his own sauce in 1978 after being dissatisfied with store-bought sauces Owner John Snedden’s been taking on the beltway’s tastebuds one wood-smoked protein at a time. Rocklands has even developed its own line of sauces including the popular Original Barbeque Sauce, to the award-winning Global Warming, Tamarind Chipotle Hot Sauce and the recently developed Barbeque Citrus Sauce.

In addition to its own line of sauces, every one of the four locations features a ‘Wall of Fire,’ boasting more than 100 hot sauces sourced from all around the world for customers to sample and even purchase. Customers who bring a bottle of hot sauce Rocklands Barbeque and Grilling Company doesn’t sell will get a free sandwich. It’s just that kind of place. So what does John Snedden think about the area? Where’s the best BBQ other than his own joint? Where does he go on his days off? Read on to find out.

Katie: How long have you lived in the DC area?
John: I moved to Washington in the Spring of ’84.

What is the best thing about DC, in your opinion?
My family and I love living in DC. For an urban area, DC has so much green space and character. We often forget we live in the city. It is also exciting to be in the hub of the federal government. There is so much power and influence in this city. It is palpable and exciting. Continue reading →

Interviews, The Features
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She Loves DC: Becky Lee

WalkThisWay_BeckysFund_ByNakevaCorothers-8705 Courtesy of Walk This Way

I met Becky Lee, local advocate for Domestic Violence and Founder of Becky’s Fund, at her awareness and fundraiser fashion show, Walk this Way, last month. Becky has clearly made an impact on this town and earned some clout: her fashion models were the Redskins AND the DC United.

But fashion and fame aside, Becky fights hard against a serious and sobering problem: Domestic Violence. Find out why Becky advocates from DC, be reminded of the signs and symptoms of DV, and hear about some of the resources available here in town.

Cathy: Why did you pick DC as home base to fight your cause?

Becky: During law school I had several internships in DC, including a position with the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. I loved the combination of my interests in law and policy, as well as being able to make a positive impact on the lives of people in the community. After receiving my law degree from the University of Pittsburgh, I decided to return to DC and took a position with the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF), and then an attorney position with the Battered Women’s Justice Project. I learned a tremendous amount from these experiences, and through interacting with the victims of domestic violence in particular, I was inspired to create and found my own domestic violence organization in 2006.

After coming in third on the CBS reality show “Survivor: Cook Islands,” I used some of the prize money to start Becky’s Fund in 2006. I knew DC was the perfect place to start my organization and fight for this cause after being down here for a few years and experiencing the positive energy of this city. I also had maintained several strong relationships with the groups I had worked with over the years and felt confident that I would have the support needed to start this organization on my own. Continue reading →

Crime & Punishment, The District, The Features, WTF?!
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Learning About St. Elizabeth’s Hospital

Photo courtesy of


‘St Elisabeth’s Hospital – Autopsy is also a spectator sport’
courtesy of ‘spiggycat’

While poking around through the We Love DC Flickr pool this morning, I ran across spiggycat’s set of photos from a recent tour of St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Anacostia. Since that was the second time in the space of a week someone mentioned touring St. Elizabeth’s, and since I know pretty much nothing about it, AND since my day job is into its 2nd straight day of technical issues that are preventing me from accomplishing anything, it seemed like a good time for self-education-by-Google.

St. Elizabeth’s was founded in 1855 as the Government Hospital for the Insane, headed by Dorthea Dix, and intended to care for patients from the Army, Navy, and District of Columbia. But the Civil War soldiers in treatment there didn’t like telling people they were in a hospital for the insane, so they referred to it by the old colonial name of the land the hospital sat on, St. Elizabeth’s. It wasn’t until 1916 that Congress got with the program and renamed the hospital officially.

Continue reading →
The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Disco Pigs

Madeleine Carr and Rex Daugherty in Solas Nua's "Disco Pigs." Photo credit: Dan Brick

Madeleine Carr and Rex Daugherty in Solas Nua's "Disco Pigs." Photo credit: Dan Brick

The joy of being so entwined you can finish each other’s thoughts… the pain when those thoughts become dissonant.

For one hour in a small black box theater, Madeleine Carr and Rex Daugherty command your attention with these extreme emotions, in Solas Nua‘s production of “Disco Pigs.” It’s rare that I cry at the theater – having a drama background sadly numbs your reactions sometimes – but this was such a visceral experience I found myself deeply moved. Or perhaps it hit me on a profoundly personal level. Whatever the case, I urge you to spend the hour with them.

Enda Walsh’s play is densely verbal and the Irish accents are thick. This means for the first five minutes or so your brain is processing fast and wild, just like the characters. Pig and Runt are born at the same time at the same hospital and connected by the strong bond of outcasts. They celebrate their seventeenth birthday by terrorizing Cork (which they call “Pork,” snorting and eating like little pigs), their parents, pub denizens and disco dancers – until slowly they become terrorized themselves, by new emotions and challenges to their bond. Continue reading →

Essential DC, Featured Photo, Life in the Capital, The District
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Feature Photo


I’d Very Much Enjoy a Cup of Tea by M.V. Jantzen

It was difficult to decide which photo to write about this week, but in the end I decided to go with one that captures an amazing event that is still fresh in my mind, the DC Tweed Ride.  I don’t think anyone expected DC’s first tweed ride to be such a phenomenal success, yielding hundreds of dandy bicyclists in every imaginable form of old timey garb.  On a perfect sunny day in DC, in a small alley at 8th & H street NE, I was transported to a time when people actually knew how to dress well and behave in a courteous manner.  In fact people were even smoking tobacco in their pipes, not the usual pipe-smoking material DC is known for!  As I rode through the city alongside the last group of cyclists, everyone was full of cheer and good spirit, smiling from ear to ear.

While there were many great tweed ride photos in our pool and elsewhere on Flickr, M.V. Jantzen’s photo really caught my eye.  I love the angle from which this shot was taken, the sophisticated and content look beaming from his subject, and the great use of fill flash to balance the exposure of the dark foreground with the bright background.

I say, old chap, is it possible to do another tweed ride again sometime soon?

The Features, The Great Outdoors
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Fall in DC: Foliage Proves It’s More Than An Urban Legend

use

I’m more productive on the weekends than I should be. My weekly personal promise of “taking the weekend to be lazy and sleep in past my alarm” never happens. This is a direct cause of the DC fall — or lack thereof.

Fall in DC is a myth. An urban legend. One that this once Chicago-resident finds hard to believe exists. Why, you might ask? Because it’s not cold yet. And when I say cold, I mean it hasn’t reached below 40 more than a handful of times yet this season — maybe even less than that handful. But DC does have one thing that Chicago fall doesn’t — fantastic fall foliage that lasts longer than a few days — proving that fall in DC is, in fact, a reality.

This stuff is gorgeous and covers the entire palate of possible colors. Some trees are still green and continue to maintain their springtime youthfulness. But it’s the mature yet stoic beauty of the leaf that appears to be on fire who strikes my fancy. Just one dying leaf has the ability to shout, “Look at me! Look at me!” We’ve got Mother Nature to thank for this one. Well — her and the DC National Park Trail Service. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, The DC 100
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DC Omni 100: #32 Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl

Photo courtesy of
‘Chowder in sourdough bread bowls from Boudin’
courtesy of ‘TheGirlsNY’

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

As I’m a Northeasterner, when I hear “clam chowder” my mind immediately goes to the creamy, rich, hearty goodness that is New England Clam Chowder. This is the typical winter fare that keeps us Yankees warm on the ski slopes and sledding down snowy banks for hours and hours.  The chowder sticks to your ribs, keeps your core warm and makes you smile on -15 degree (including wind chill) days.

I’m also from Manhattan, so I’m well aware of New England Clam Chowder’s alterego, the red Manhattan Clam Chowder. As a kid, I was not a fan of this soup. It was the imposter of clam chowder. Definitely not the real deal. “Ewww…who eats red clam chowder?!!” However, as an adult, my palette has shifted and I really like the acidity and sharpness of this tomato-based version. And now that I don’t have the metabolism of a hypeactive 8 year old, it’s also a more health conscious choice.  For those DC-VA-MD folk, Manhattan Clam Chowder is farely similar to Maryland Clam Chowder, only the NYC version lacks corn and chicken (presumably these additions come from the Eastern shore of MD). Continue reading →

The Features
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A DC Halcyon Day

Photo courtesy of
‘Smithsonian Castle 2’
courtesy of ‘tbridge’

Sunday was just about as incredible a day as we get here in DC. Perfect temperatures, brilliant jewel-toned sky with wisps of high clouds, and colors that popped. I went out with some friends to participate in a Ravenchase Adventure, starting at Presidents Park just north of the White House. With a package full of clues and DC-specific hints and puzzles, we took off around the National Mall, from John Paul Jones to the Enid Haupt garden and the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden. Running from statue to statue, sculpture to exhibit, Mall to Penn Quarter, we gathered seven worksheets full of codes and clues, all to realize we were carrying the solution in our bag all along.

We ended with a late lunch at Matchbox. We walked tired back to the Metro and car, having covered 4.5mi of ground in the middle of the city; it was the part of DC we usually reserve for tourism, doing our own tourguide duty for friends from out of town. It was nice to get down to the Mall to get to some of the out-of-the-ordinary places like the Enid Haupt Garden where the views are so lovely. Seeing Jim Sanborn’s Antipodes, a very similar work to his Kryptos which is at CIA-Langley and remains unsolved, was a real treat. I had somehow missed it on previous visits, and it is absolutely amazing in person. Our clues lead us to a code for Ian’s wooden chest, but lead us into parts of the Mall we’d otherwise missed. Our day, though, was not quite yet half-done. Continue reading →

Entertainment, Essential DC, The Features, Tourism
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Tourism: The Newseum

First Amendment Etched in Glass

Last Saturday, my wife and I decided to take some family members out to the Newseum on Pennsylvania Avenue. It was the first time I’d been able to visit the place since a pre-pre-pre-opening tour I’d had back in 2006 (when there were practically no displays in place, just the news van and the Checkpoint Charlie tower). And, for the record, the Newseum hooked us up with tickets; even so, I think the museum could be worth the full $20 admission price.

And yes, I said ‘could.’ I’ll qualify that later for you.

The building itself is a marvel of architecture. Designed by Polshek Partnership Architects, the combination of open space, glass and concrete blends well within the museum. The mix provides division for each contained exhibit (permanent and visiting), yet bleeds back into the open air of the general concourse. I suppose I could say it’s like the news field and media blending with the openness of life and all that, but why bore you?

The Newseum certainly won’t. Continue reading →

The Features, We Love Drinks
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Tea Time!

Tea Time at home
Tea time at home by Corinne Whiting

A few years back, a loveably zany Irish friend of mine lugged tea bags with her from her Drogheda cupboards to the communal hostel kitchens of Buenos Aires, Rio, La Paz and Cusco. I’ll admit that I didn’t really get it. (“If only I had brown bread right now too,” she’d sigh dreamily, nearby mate drinkers looking on curiously as she downed cup after cup of her smuggled vice.) To say that Edel is a tea enthusiast is an understatement.

I didn’t understand her tea passion…that is, until I moved east to windswept Scotland, where a steaming cuppa is sometimes the only sure way to chase the chill from one’s bones. There I also learned to appreciate the soothing and intimate ritual of gathering with friends over a shared refreshment that requires time—time to steep, to cool, to sip, to savor, to merely pause and take it all in.

Coffee culture seems the more visible beverage addiction in most US cities (DC included), while the army of tea devotees tend to fly under the radar. But I suspect they’re out there. So where can a tea lover get a fix here? The options include spots pretentious and proper, casual and cozy, and those somewhere in between.

Continue reading →

The Features, The Mall, Tourism
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Decorating for the Holidays

Photo courtesy of
‘Ribbon Cutting’
courtesy of ‘tbridge’

The holidays are a time of excess, from decorations and food to parades and retail displays. We splurge on gifts, we make rich feasts for friends and family; we gather close to the people we love, seeking comfort in midwinter. The Smithsonian invited Santa & Mrs. Clause and Twinkle the Elf to the National Museum of American History to open a new small exhibit on the Holidays. Focused on Parades of all seasons, from Tournament of Roses through to Macy’s Thanksgiving, and the retail window displays of department stores (something of a relic to those of us under 40) all across the US, the new exhibit has photos and artifacts from holiday celebrations across the country.

The exhibit is fairly small, just a couple rooms, but what’s contained therein will snap you right out of your Fall Funk and propel you right into Holiday prep. On Wednesday, I was grumpy as hell, seeing the Wal-mart Christmas ads on television already, but last night, that disappointment was absent. Was it the joy in the kids’ eyes, watching Mrs. Claus read a story? Maybe it melted my grinchy heart. Holidays on Display runs for a whole year, on the Third floor, on the West side of the museum.

There’s a companion volume of the same name put out by the museum that has some fascinating history that’s DC-specific, including whole sections on the displays at Woodward & Lothrop, which were deeply memorable. Look for an interview with Mr. Bird in the coming weeks.

Food and Drink, People, The Features, We Love Drinks
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Drinks Special: Holiday Rum Punch

Mixing up rum punch

"Mixing up rum punch" by Jenn Larsen, on Flickr

The first in an occasional series where we ask local bartenders, mixologists and other libation lovers to show us how to rustle up some specialty drinks. As I can’t fit you all in my kitchen, I’ll bring my kitchen to you.

In just a few weeks, many of us will be joining family and friends for a relaxing, low-key little gathering known as Thanksgiving. Perhaps you’ve been asked to contribute something, and you’re racking your brain for what to do. How about punch?

Ok, not that kind of punch – I’m not advocating holiday violence! Though I know many of us feel like pulling a punch over the holidays, let’s get happy instead. Punch by its communal nature is festive, like an alcoholic water-cooler bringing everyone together as you dip and pour. To help get us in the holiday mood, Dave McCabe tested out my kitchen one afternoon with a winter rum punch. He brought the punch ingredients, we provided the cheese, everyone got happy.

Formerly a manager at Oyamel, Dave is now co-owner of Punk’s Backyard Grill in Annapolis. He explained that the restaurant is dedicated to serving healthy food at reasonable prices, and as a member of the Maryland Green Registry is an avid believer in sustainability. Dave himself is clearly a passionate proponent of honest and simple ingredients, both in food and in cocktails. This punch recipe is both easy and approachable.

But wait, let’s kick up the classic champagne cocktail first. You’re going to need it while you squeeze all those grapefruits and lemons. Continue reading →

We Love Weekends
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We Love Weekends, November 13-14

Photo courtesy of
‘let’s get the party started’
courtesy of ‘staceyviera’

Kirk: I’ll be starting this weekend off with drinks at Gibson. It’s time to bust out the winter cocktails, which generally means some form of whiskey drink that contains no ice. I like drinks like that. On Saturday, I’m going to try to rediscover some of the Smithsonian Museums. It’s been a good while since I’ve been inside any of them, and, considering how great they are, that’s a real shame. Other than that, I’ll just be spending time with friends and bumming around the house.

Katie: You know what has been missing in my life? Brunch, that’s what. So I’m going to brunch it out this weekend. I’ll be heading to both Co Co Sala and Et Voila! for brunch. Co Co Sala has french toast s’mores (what?!) and Et Voila! has divine to-die-for quiche. In addition to brunching my face off, Cathy and I are going to be cooking up a storm with chef Victor Albisu at BLT Steak for a new Capital Chefs feature. Keep an eye out for it! Maybe I’ll even take a break from eating to go see the second half of Angels in America in Silver Spring. I loved the first half so much that I’ve been anxiously awaiting Perestroika at the Forum Theater. The cast is brilliant and that play is absolutely breathtaking. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, The Features, We Love Food
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We Love Food: Franklin’s Restaurant, Brewery and General Store

Outside

Franklin’s is Cracker Barrel. Minus the flagrant discrimination, and with house-brewed beers, and a general store that sells toys instead of wooden peg games, and craft booze instead of lollipops.

Located on Baltimore Avenue in Hyattsville, the restaurant, brewery and general store are steps away from the up-and-coming little-engine-that-could Hyattsville Arts District. The store and restaurant are in a landmark building built in the 1880’s as a blacksmith and carriage shop. As such, Franklin’s remains a lovable, family-friendly community staple. Continue reading →

Scribblings, Special Events, The Features
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Scribblings: Christopher Andrew

Photo courtesy of
‘MI5 Headquarters and Towers’
courtesy of ‘the grasshopper lies heavy’

This fall marks the 100 year anniversary of the founding of MI5, Britain’s counter-intelligence and security agency. As a celebration of the agency’s storied success since its inception at the turn of the 20th century, the service has authorized the publication of an official history by Professor Christopher Andrew of Cambridge University. This Thursday, November 12, the public is invited to meet with the author as he discusses his new book Defend the Realm: The Authorized History of MI5 (here’s the Kindle link) at the International Spy Museum from noon to 1 p.m. Attendance is free.

Prof. Andrew reveals the precise role of MI5 in twentieth-century British history: from its foundation in 1909, through two world wars, and its present roles in counterespionage and counterterrorism. He describes how MI5 has been managed, what its relationship has been with government, where it has triumphed, and where it has failed. Defend the Realm also reveals the identities of previously unknown enemies of the United Kingdom whose activities have been uncovered by the agency and adds significantly to our knowledge of many celebrated events and notorious individuals while laying to rest a number of persistent myths.

A brief chat with Professor Andrew after the jump. Continue reading →

Dupont Circle, History, The Features, Tourism
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Mystery Mansion in Dupont: The Heurich House

Photo courtesy of
‘Hidden Bronze Lion’
courtesy of ‘CathyLovesDC’

Tucked away in plain view, the Heurich House is the most intact late-Victorian home in the country. Right in the middle of the action in Dupont Circle – on a corner you have probably walked by at least a dozen times – you are absolutely transported back in time – easily envisioning the family who lived there enjoying a meal in the German beer tavern-styled breakfast room and needle pointing doll clothes and tapestries in the ladies’ retreat room. The furniture, furnishings, wall and ceiling canvas paintings, and even the gas and electric lighting are all original to the house.

The Heurich House museum was home to Christian Heurich, who was regarded as the patriarch of the American brewing industry. After moving to America from Germany in 1872 at the age of 30, he purchased an old, declining brewery and within 10 years, became the largest and most successful brewer in the nation’s capital.

Nicknamed the “Brewmaster’s Castle,” the Heurich House sounds more like a Brickskellar’s with a spiral tower, but the initial disappointment you’ll have to get over first is: they don’t serve any beer. A more fitting nickname for the mansion might be “Fireproof Fortress.” Continue reading →

Interviews, We Green DC
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He Loves DC: Seth Goldman

Seth Goldman

I’ve long been a fan of Honest Tea. It’s flavorful with a light sweetness, it’s organic, and the company that makes it is socially and environmentally responsible.

Co-founder and TeaEO Seth Goldman brewed the first batches of it in his Bethesda home in 1998. Now with offices in downtown Bethesda, the company makes 37 flavors of bottled drinks, plus tea bags. When I was there in late October, boxes arrived bearing the first bottles of fizzy goodness from the newest line, Honest Kombucha, which is now available at Whole Foods in the mid-Atlantic region.

Plenty of people share my devotion. Last year, sales reached $38 million, and The Coca-Cola Company purchased 40 percent of Honest Tea.

I met Seth recently when Bethesda Green, a nonprofit he co-founded, launched its new Education Center and Green Business Incubator. Here, he shares with We Love DC readers some thoughts on DC, green, and tea.

Donna: How long have you lived in the DC area?

Seth: My wife and I moved to Arlington in 1990, and I worked on Capitol Hill for two and a half years. I went away to graduate school for two years. Then we came back to Bethesda in 1995.

What do you like most about DC?

There’s a lot of openness around community. I’m from Boston originally. It feels like DC doesn’t have the same kind of ethnic neighborhoods, but you don’t have the feeling of being closed off. In DC, whether you’ve been here for a year, or five years, or 10 years, it feels very easy to connect to the community.
Continue reading →

Talkin' Transit, The Features, WMATA, WTF?!
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Talkin’ Transit: Same Old, Same Old

Photo courtesy of
‘Service Advisory’
courtesy of ‘MattHurst’

WMATA quietly announced last night it has lifted a long-standing ban on allowing independent safety monitors access to Metro tracks. Metro board Chairman Jim Graham met with WMATA higher-ups yesterday and it had some result, supposedly. Late Tuesday, WMATA officials said that the Tri-State Oversight Committee (TSOC TOC) does have the authority to carry out safety inspections and ensuring employees are complying with safety rules and regulations.

But once again, Metro fails to communicate. Eric Madison, chairman of the oversight committee, told the Washington Post that as of last night, no one from Metro had contacted him about removing the ban; he considers the ban still in place. The Metro press release appears contradictory to what the TSOC TOC has heard previously and didn’t contain any new information, so until WMATA provides the committee with a formal written agreement, they consider the ban still in effect. Madison told WaPo “[w]e want to get something in writing that lays out the specifics of how we access the right of way and that sort of thing. This has gone on long enough.”

We feel your pain, Mr. Madison. Continue reading →