Alexandria, Entertainment, Food and Drink, Inaugupocalypse, Life in the Capital, News, People, The Daily Feed

Obama at Dairy Godmother!

Photo courtesy of
‘Fresh & Frozen’
courtesy of ‘M.V. Jantzen’
Obama hit the Del Ray creamery (well, custard-er-ry, or whatever you call it) Dairy Godmother this afternoon. Good thing I snuck in last weekend for the Bordeaux Cherry,  ’cause after seeing what happened to Ray’s Hell Burgers, lord knows Dairy Godmother will be a packed house for the rest of the summer.

Dairy Godmother tweets “President Obama and his daughters just left. Pres. had a hot fudge sundae and daughters had vanilla cone and brownie sundae with sprinkles.” and “Malia had a brownie sundae with a housemade brownie, van.custard, hot fudge, whipped cream and cherry. Then she gave her whipped cream to dad.”

Happy Father’s Day, Mr. President.

Alexandria, The Daily Feed

Lovebirds and Ducks Agree: Alexandria Waterfront is Filthy as Homemade Sin

Love Note

I found this note on a dock at Alexandria’s waterfront area the other day while my Lovely Wife and I were taking what could have been a lovely stroll. Of course, the jerk who was so upset about pollution as to write this note also was dumb enough to make more litter by leaving it there.

The river is polluted and dirty, littered with bottles, tires, bags, shoes and even dead fish. Yes, apparently it’s even too dirty there for the fish. On our 20-minute walk, I counted no fewer than five fish floating in the filth. That’s pretty messed up.

Take a look at one view of the trash:
Continue reading

Alexandria, Food and Drink, The Daily Feed

The Butcher’s Block Opens

Photo courtesy of
‘The Captain’
courtesy of ‘EssG’

The two foodie trends of Spring ’09 I’ve noticed? Brunch and raw meat. Not necessarily together, thank goodness, but still – breakfast and meat-eries are going strong this year. Adding to the line of new butchers/charcuterie places is The Butcher’s Block, a Market by RW, located at 1600 King Street, next door to sister restaurants BRABO Tasting Room and BRABO.

The Butcher’s Block is “a chef-driven market with a wide selection of value wines, international beers, artisanal cheeses, charcuterie, prime cut meats, desserts, dry goods and home cooking accessories”. In addition to the charcuterie, pates, sausages and terrines, The Butcher’s Block sells prime cuts of rib-eye, fillet, lamb tenderloin, veal chops, pork loin, rabbit and chicken. Chef Wiedmaier sources much of his meat from the region, and he offers braised lamb shank, pork and beef carbonnade that can be purchased with his signature sauces to be heated and served at home.

On your way to a picnic along the Alexandria waterfront or off to Mount Vernon? Customers can schedule to pick up crusty baguettes still warm from the oven, and purchase freshly made sandwiches and seasonal salads for a grab-and-go picnic. Sandwiches come with choice of beverage and potato chips or fruit for $12. Perfect for your next lazy weekend afternoon – a nice thought to get you through the Monday doldrums.

Alexandria, Fun & Games, History, Special Events, Weekend Flashback

Photo Flashback: George Washington’s Birthday Parade

Happy Birthday, GW

Yesterday, we headed out to the “largest parade celebrating George Washington’s Birthday in the USA!” – Alexandria’s George Washington Birthday Parade. How can you beat that as the perfect homage to President’s Day? Here it is in a photo review, from clowns to horseback riders, the parade had it all. Continue reading

The Daily Feed

Worried about ice? You should be!

Watch Your Step - by Mr. Ducke (Creative Commons)

Watch Your Step - Mr. Ducke (Creative Commons)

As I walked to the metro this morning, I realized that I saw a lot of sidewalks in my area that still had the awful combination of snow and ice all over them.  The first thing I thought is “why haven’t they shoveled”?  But I felt better when I realized that Arlington would quickly come down on those who didn’t shovel…

… I shouldn’t have been that hasty.  It turns out that Arlington, like many other counties and cities in the area, don’t require homeowners or businesses to shovel their sidewalks.  So although the streets are clear, the pedestrians are out of luck.

I don’t know about you – but I think that’s just ridiculous.  This isn’t a rural community with no sidewalks.  Plenty of people in the DC metro area have been convinced to give up commuting by car and walk to a bus stop, metro station, or to work.  So why don’t they require business and homeowners to clear their own sidewalks?

Continue reading

Alexandria, Food and Drink, We Love Food

We Love Food: Vermilion

Wall at Vermilion

"Wall at Vermilion" by jenn larsen, on Flickr

“Mmmm…” a friend sighed contentedly into her glass of hot buttered rum, “liquor pie…”

Brunch with the girls at Vermilion on a chilly afternoon was a mellow affair, lingering over hot toddies in the brick-walled upstairs room. With the place almost all to ourselves, we curled into a corner table and indulged to celebrate a birthday.

Vermilion serves brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 11:00am – 2:30am, with an eclectic menu that ranges from eggs and french toast to scallops and bifteki. The hot drinks were especially welcome, as was the laid-back service allowing us to savor everything without feeling rushed. And of course, any place that serves lamb sausage ranks high on my happy meter. Continue reading

Adventures, Alexandria, Entertainment

Tourism: The Potomac Riverboat Company

Photo courtesy of Me
Out on the Potomac
courtesy of Me

I’ve thought about taking one of the Potomac boat trips for almost the full seven years I’ve lived in the DC area and have always passed on it. When I proposed writing this feature Jenn L chimed in that she’d always wanted to go but never had, so apparently I wasn’t the only one. In retrospect I don’t know why I balked at the price. If you take the poorly named – but very enjoyable – “mounments cruise” you can expect to pay about $25 for a round trip, which isn’t the most I’ve ever paid for two hours of entertainment. You can start in Georgetown or Alexandria and in fact you’re under no obligation to purchase a round trip. Continue reading

Alexandria, News, Talkin' Transit, The Daily Feed, WMATA, WTF?!

“I wasn’t expecting to come home to a bus in my apartment.”

A Metrobus crashed into an Alexandria apartment last night. No one was injured as the resident wasn’t home and the driver had just offloaded his passengers due to a door problem — just before the bus started rolling away — but both apartment and bus appear to have been totalled. WJLA has more, and here’s some video of the scene from Associated Press: