RSS FeedPoste Moderne Brasserie Gets A New Executive Chef
We love the Poste Moderne Brasserie (555 8th St NW) patio, bar, and restaurant in the Hotel Monaco (700 F St NW), and it’s been the location of many a date, lunch, happy hour meetup, or dinner for us. Summer isn’t checked off until we’ve eaten outdoors on the patio. Although we are sad to hear about the departure of Chef Rob Weland, we are interested in seeing how the newly named Executive Chef, Dennis Maron, will make the vaunted venue his own. We are also happy to hear that the Poste garden will continue. According to the press release:
Chef Marron joins the Poste team from sister restaurants, The Grille at Morrison House and Jackson 20, both located in Old Town Alexandria. Marron began leading the Poste kitchen on September 26th and will present new menus in early November.
Marron brings unique culinary skills from his experience overseeing two distinctly different concepts in The Grille, a fine dining French restaurant, and in Jackson 20, a casual, Southern-inspired American tavern. This very combination of fine dining meets tavern, makes him an ideal fit for the popular Penn Quarter brasserie. His breadth of experience and strong personal commitment to local farmers and ingredients will build upon Poste’s excellent reputation of supporting sustainable farming and restaurant operations. A popular fixture at the restaurant, the Poste garden will continue to flourish under Marron’s watch.
A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) at Hyde Park, New York, Marron has worked in restaurants from the age of 15, holding a host of back and front of the house restaurant positions including dishwasher, bar back, bartender, restaurant manager and of course, chef. He has worked in kitchens in San Francisco, Minneapolis, and Red Bank, N.J., and before joining Kimpton, worked for Chef Jeff Buben at the highly acclaimed Bistro Bis.
Ford’s Theatre Kicks Off Legacy Project With Free Shows
Ford’s Theatre is celebrating Abraham Lincoln’s legacy with The Lincoln Legacy Project and to that end is running a series of free shows Monday evenings in October (Ticketmaster fees apply, however). This is part of the lead up to the planned February 2012 opening of the Center for Education and Leaders across the street from Ford’s. It is launching the Lincoln Legacy Project, a five-year effort to create a dialogue in the nation’s capital around the issues of tolerance, equality and acceptance. Each fall, through a series of cornerstone theater productions, educational programs and special events, Ford’s will take a closer look at racial and religious intolerance, social injustice and civil rights in American history and contemporary society. The first Monday night production (tomorrow) is described below:
“E Pluribus Unum: Seeking Unity, Respecting Diversity”
Monday, October 3 at 7 pm
Current members of Congress discuss how we can find common ground amid the rancorous political discourse of today. Join Congressman Mike Simpson (R–Idaho), Congressman Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas) and Congresswoman Judy Chu (D-California) as they explore how citizens of differing backgrounds and points of view can find the commonalities that unite all Americans. Author and historian Jay Winik (April 1865 and The Great Upheaval) begins the evening discussing what we can learn from Lincoln’s presidency and leadership.
Tickets to Legacy Project events at Ford’s Theatre may be reserved at the Ford’s Theatre Box Office, through Ticketmaster at (800) 982-2787 or by visiting www.fords.org. Ticketmaster fees apply. Groups of 20 or more may reserve tickets by calling (202) 638-2367. Tickets must be picked up by 6:45 p.m. to guarantee admittance.
Mount Vernon Triangle Fun Fair Today
It’s a little rainy out this weekend but the Mount Vernon Triangle CID is organizing the Mount Vernon Triangle Fun Fair today to bring the community together for a day of fun, food, and music. The Fun Fair will host a live stage with jazz, rock, gospel, and DJs. There will be a kids area with moon bounce, ball crawl, spin art, and face painting. And, vendors will be on hand selling food, arts, and crafts with community nonprofits.
The world’s slowest bike race will take place at 1:45 pm during the festival. The public is welcome to enter or watch this unique race of balance and skill. The race is organized by BicycleSpace and will be held immediately adjacent to the festival site.
This event runs from Noon to 5 pm at 400 K St NW and is free. It’s organized by MVTCID, and sponsored by Kettler, 425 Mass, 1500 Mass, Gables, Quadrangle, The Wilkes Company, MarcParc, and Altman Parking.
Hat tip: The Triangle and the MVTCID
We Hear Nebraska Is Nice This Time Of Year
- Rush Hour
We’re sort of breaking one of our own rules here, as Clara Barton Dweller pointed out just yesterday in the comments section we don’t allow the “you should move to the suburbs” responses on the blog. Yet in many ways that’s how this post is going to sound to some; we really don’t mean it that way.
We don’t dislike having security minded neighbors in Penn Quarter, we think the neighborhood would be less interesting without them. But there is one gigantic drawback to them as well, namely the strict security they impose to the detriment of PQ. Do you remember the days when tourists would line up outside the FBI building for one of the most popular tours in DC? Or how about when E Street was the fastest east-west through-way in the city? Or did you ever finish a late afternoon run to watch the sun set from the west steps of the Capitol Building?
We know these are scary times and we don’t want to see anyone, ever, get hurt. But most of us learn from an early age that you cannot live in a bubble, and some of us believe that no one life (blogger, elected official, or anyone else) is more valuable than another. If you truly believe the only way to protect yourself, your family, or your employees from harm is to keep them tucked away in a fortress, maybe that fortress shouldn’t reside in the downtown of a major city.
But we’re realists and know none of this is going to change overnight, and probably not at all. We do think a few small changes could make a would of difference in Penn Quarter. Some of those small changes could include: Letting hotdog stands, tourist stands, and/or food trucks utilize the vast sidewalk on the Pennsylvania ave side of the FBI Building; removing the jersey barrier-like planters from the middle of the sidewalk on 9th street by the DOJ (no more passing single file!); inviting the PQ Living bloggers to a meet and greet at the White House to discuss how to be a better neighbor (hey, as long as we’re dreaming) .