RSS FeedPenn Quarter Link Roundup: Heard In The ‘Hood
Follow PQ Living via Facebook here and Twitter here. Our Flickr tag is pqliving.
Here’s what we were reading recently about neighborhood news in DC. Have something to add? Leave it in the comments!
Have any tips? Send them in confidentiality to: pqliving [at] gmail.com
Penn Quarter – The MLK Library (9th and G St NW) is now open on Sundays for the full day from 9:30 am 1 pm to 5:30 pm. Extended hours throughout the week will start in the new fiscal year beginning in October; we’ll post those hours in a post next week. This is as a result of the addition of funds in this year’s city budget. [MLK Library – DCPL]
Downtown – Marshall’s will replace the old Filene’s in the National Press Club building at 14th and F St NW. One discount retailer replaces another. [Washington Business Journal]
Downtown – Negotiations are ongoing for a lease on the old ESPN Zone at 555 12th St NW (corner of 12th and E St) but there is a complication. Read on to find out what that is. [Real Estate BisNow]
Shaw – The Marriott Marquis construction is rocking along and the center atrium sculpture was recently installed. Follow the links for an updated photo of the exterior plus an inside look at the sculpture being set into place. (Hint: It is not a small piece of art.) [42 Bus Tweet (exterior photo)] & [Bad Wolf (Shaw neighborhood) blog – sculpture installation]
Downtown – The DC government releases the short list for redevelopment of the Franklin School at 13th and K St NW. We’ve been waiting for this to happen for a loooong time. [Washington Business Journal]
Mount Vernon Triangle – The pedestrian hit by a dump truck at 4th St and Massachusetts Ave NW passed away. Very unfortunate and the Triangle blog details why the timing of the light and walk signal at that intersection should be changed. [The Triangle] & [DCist]
Penn Quarter – Two property updates, one for 900 New York Ave NW which is the corner of CityVista currently not under construction, and the second for 600 Massachusetts Ave NW which is a parking lot. [The Triangle – 900 NY Ave update] & [The Triangle – 600 Mass Ave NW]
Penn Quarter Crib of the Week – We’ve seen a number of articles about residential microunits being built in large urban areas. These are smaller units that maximize the use of space with pull out/Murphy beds, smaller sized kitchens, and other shared space tricks. Our Crib of the Week is a junior one bedroom that could be redone as a microunit expanding the utility of the condo which is why we’re highlighting it. It’s a great opportunity for a rehab and it’s in the Market Square Condo, 801 Pennsylvania Ave NW, with a nice balcony facing north straight up 8th Street NW. It’s 475 square feet in size, has 1 junior bedroom/1 bathroom, carries a price of $339K, sports monthly condo dues of $497, and the MLS tag is DC8137601. It’s not our typical highlighted condo but an interesting possibility. [Redfin – 801 Pennsylvania Ave NW – Unit 1005]
Philistines No More
We don’t pretend to be the most worldly of people, even so we have to admit we were taken aback at the thought of restaurant serving nothing but ramen. Our only knowledge of ramen was that of the under-a-dollar-per-package variety that seemed to line the pantry shelves of everyone we knew in college. So it was with some trepidation that we ventured into Daikaya (705 6th ST NW) last night to see what all the fuss was about.
We had made reservations but found out when we arrived that reservations were for the upstairs bar/restaurant (izakaya), not the downstairs ramen spot. But the hosts were happy to seat us and alert the upstairs of our mistake. The ramen menu was initially confusing, covered with so many colorful Japanese ads, but once our enthusiastic server walked us through, it was very simple. Pick a base ramen (3 meat, one vegetable) and extra toppings if desired. There are also pork dumplings available, which we ordered and can thoroughly recommend.
Having never eaten ramen before we let our helpful server guide us through ordering a spicy bowl with a few extras including corn, a boiled egg, and pork belly. We decided to wash this down with cold sake and draft beer. It wasn’t long after ordering that our bowls of ramen arrived.
This, we realized after our first bite, is why everyone was so excited about a ramen restaurant. The bowl of ramen was declicious, we had to force ourselves to slow down as we ate, each bite was a taste of something new and wonderful.
While we may have been late to accept the idea of a ramen restaurant, we will not be shy about singing the praises of Daikaya. This is a restaurant that we’re lucky to have in Penn Quarter, and we look forward to giving the upstairs izakaya a try in the near future.
Summer Sips: Mockingbird Hill
Last week, we had the opportunity to pop into Mockingbird Hill (1843 7th St. NW), Derek Brown’s newest venture in Shaw. Derek’s been one of the leaders (if not, the leader) in the now booming mixology scene, and couldn’t be a nicer, more interesting guy to sit down and have a drink with. Mockingbird Hill is the third gem in his growing empire (alongside The Passenger and Columbia Room). When we first heard about the sherry and ham concept at MH, we were a little doubtful that DC was ready for such a niche offering. Any worry was put aside after 5 minutes talking with Derek enjoying a little sherry, delightful olives and some dreams (he has some amazing plans in the works next door to MH, stay tuned!). Memories of a favorite hole-in-the-wall SoHo joint, Ñ, and tapas bars in Barcelona came to mind, not just because of the fare, but because of the worn-in, well-loved, must stop by every week vibe Derek’s managed to embody with the place. Mockingbird Hill is exactly what every neighborhood needs, a place to gather with friends and enjoy something perfect in it’s simplicity.
Penn Quarter Link Roundup: Heard In The ‘Hood
Follow PQ Living via Facebook here and Twitter here. Our Flickr tag is pqliving.
Here’s what we were reading recently about neighborhood news in DC. Have something to add? Leave it in the comments!
Have any tips? Send them in confidentiality to: pqliving [at] gmail.com
Chinatown – Another two buildings get snapped up by Douglas Development which plans to redevelop the properties. This time it’s 736 and 740 6th St NW, homes to Kanlaya Thai, Burma, and some office space above, that will get the facelift treatment. [Washington Business Journal]
Chinatown – A woman is pushed into an alley and sexually assaulted at 8th St at H St NW. Maybe this explains the extra police presence we’ve been seeing downtown and in Mount Vernon Triangle recently. [WJLA News 7 (ABC)]
Downtown – Video of a man loading a shot gun in Freedom Plaza (13th and Pennsylvania Ave NW) shows up on YouTube. Adam Kokesh now faces charges in connection with the video. [NBC Washington – Channel 4]
Downtown – The main retail bay in 1010 Mass’ condo will be filled with…Bolt Burgers (1010 Massachusetts Ave NW). Renderings included in the linked article. [Bad Wolf DC (Shaw neighborhood)]
Downtown/Penn Quarter – Tomhe Sietsema, the Washington Post’s food critic, writes about MXDC (600 14th St NW) and Ashok Bajaj’s N0Pa (800 F St NW) restaurants. Underwhelming is the underlying theme. [WaPo – MXDC review] & [WaPo – NoPa review]
Penn Quarter – Zebras, small raised humps, will get installed on Pennsylvania Ave to discourage cars from making U turns across the bike lanes. We hope they’re seasonally removable because snow plows will tear them up. [Greater Greater Washington] (h/t: PQ Living reader)
Mount Vernon Triangle – Lots of great updates on the Mount Vernon Triangle from the Triangle blog. The last link listed here clearly is of concern to residents regarding public park “settlements” during the day by homeless people: [Rogue gets a fresh coat of paint **UPDATED**] & [601 Mass Ave Renderings] & [Concern over 2nd/Mass Park]
Penn Quarter Living Crib of the Week – Speaking of MVT, our featured crib is in MVT and has a great unobstructed viiew of the Washington Monument. It’s a 1 bedroom, 1 den, 1 bathroom unit on the 11th floor of 555 Mass. The list price is $465K, the monthly condo fee is $408/month, and the MLS # is DC8142973. [Redfin listing – 555 Mass Ave NW – Unit 1101 – MLS DC8142973]