RSS FeedCulinary Catch Ups
It seems that food has been on the mind of the Penn Quarter Living staff *and* readers in the last two weeks so we’ll just keep that ball rolling with sundry updates on new or yet to be opened places to scratch that culinary itch. Hat tips are noted appropriately.
Ping Pong Dim Sum Tagged with an Opening Date
WaBizJo reports that Ping Pong dim sum will open by November 2009 (corner of 7th and Eye Streets NW).
Carmine’s of New York City Coming?
A tip or two in our mailbag and a Craigslist job ad [ad snapshot] lead us to believe that Carmine’s of New York City, a family style Italian eatery, will be coming to the Penn Quarter in the Spring of 2010 and it may be coming to 7th Street NW. Where? Could it be in a space that was to be filled by a business whose name rhymes with a luxury goods retailer like Gucci? Hat tips to two anonymous PQ Living readers.
Chinatown Coffee Company Open…More Deets
The WaBizJo posts in more depth about the Chinatown Coffee Company as does The Daily Candy. We hope it eventually will stay open until 9 pm or 10 pm so us PQLers don’t have to watch the clock and race up there after dinner and the finish of the Hi-Def OTA evening news.
Galileo Will Be Back…Donna Takes Up Old Butterfield 9 Space
Roberto Donna who ran Galileo on 19th Street NW signed on the dotted line for a lease at 600 14th Street NW, the former home of Butterfield 9. What will he call it? Galileo III and it will open approximately October 2009 [PDF]. Hat tip to Cheryl.
701 Restaurant Undergoing Renos
And lest we not credit WaBizJo three times, they report that 701 Restaurant will be closed from August 2 to 10 for a facelift.
Spy Museum and DC Central Kitchen Team Up to Run the Spy Diner
PQ Living reader Linda tried the food from the Spy Diner, a joint venture food cart between Zola and the DC Central Kitchen found at the corner of 9th and F Streets, and gives it a thumbs up for taste and price. Hat tip to Linda.
Unsolicited Advice
It’s said those who can, do and those who can’t, criticize. That saying will no doubt ring true for many reading this post, nonetheless we have a few ideas that should be easy to implement to make some of our favorite establishments even better.
Can’t say enough good things about the food, service, and atmosphere of this establishment. But Bistro D’OC has one glaring deficiency in our minds and that is the beer selection. Of the three taps they have only two are in use and the best of those two is Stella Artois (some days it’s warm Stella). Bistro D’OC should be the ideal PQ setting for Chimay and Kronenbourg 1664. I have no doubt these beers would cost Bistro D’OC more than what they’re currently offering, but I bet they’d sell a lot more beer. When we go to Bistro D’OC we go for the food and grudgingly accept the beer. If they had Chimay on tap, we’d spend a lot more time at the bar (and spend a lot more money).
A lively restaurant with great truffle frites and an amazing private outdoor area. But the outdoor happy hours leave us feeling more like we’re at the Georgetown waterfront than Penn Quarter. Who wants to wait in line with 40 strangers for half an hour to get a drink? Poste could make their outside experience much more pleasant with multiple cash-only beer stations. These need be nothing more than a cooler filled with Miller High Life; a cheap fix that would make a world of difference at 6:30 on a Friday night.
This one is really nitpicking, but a year or so ago Gifford’s stopped serving ice cream sundaes in the sundae/banana split boats. Now sundaes come in the regular ice cream cups. We know how petty that sounds as a complaint, but using the cups means there is barely any room for the toppings once the cup has been filled with ice cream. We admit that’s because Gifford’s using a healthy scoop, and we appreciate that, but it was always tastier when served in the boat.
Another one that’s just a slight complaint, but we’ve always been surprised that Teaism doesn’t serve sandwiches on the weekend. They’re popular enough and sell out early Monday through Friday, we just wish they’d offer a selection for us on Saturday and Sunday as well.
We can’t be the only ones who think we have great, simple ideas to make our favorite neighborhood businesses better (we imagine many of you have ideas about how to improve this blog). What easy changes would make a big difference to you?
DC Link Roundup: Heard In The ‘Hood
Penn Quarter Living on Twitter is here and on Facebook is here.
Chinatown – Chinatown Coffee Company should be open by the time you read this. Yet another reason the East End is ‘da bomb. [CCC on Facebook]
Dupont Circle – Another Real World tracking page over at the CityPaper. Don’t forget there are a bunch of Real World Twitter hashtags out there if you *really* need to know where they are. [Washington CityPaper] & [#realworlddc] & [#rwdc] & [#rwwatch]
Capitol Hill – A DC newbie shares her view of settling in DC. If only she knew *how* much better it is here than it was in the 80s and 90s. [The Hill Is Home]
Georgetown – The Georgetown DC Public Library at Wisconsin Ave and R Streets NW looks pretty spiffy and Georgetowny. [The Georgetown Metropolitan]
Shaw – Stars and Bars poker (Texas Hold ‘Em) comes to the EFN Lounge and Motley Bar (formerly BeBar) on 9th Street NW. As David Letterman would say, “Please…no wagering.” [Baanc (Blagden Alley and Naylor Court) Blog]
U Street – “Top shelf” burger joint coming to 14th Street, NW. What do Spike and Ray think about all these me too places? [14th & You]
Ward 8 – Farmer’s markets are everywhere! That’s greeeat! [River East Idealist]
Union Station – The bike station outside Union Station really moving along now. [DC Metrocentric]
Glover Park – Our favorite German restaurant, Old Europe, gets a write up. We popped by Glover Park recently and took note of some of the changes in the last five years. The Apollo Market is now Surfside, Busara is now Blue Ridge, there’s a Z Burger, the Grog & Tankard is now Gin and Tonic and *lastly* there’s a big hole where JP’s used to be. Rockland’s BBQ and Max’s Ice cream are still there. Phew! [Capital Spice]
Spies In Penn Quarter
Have you seen any tourists wandering Penn Quarter with a large, sidekick-looking device in their hands? Washington DC’s Daily Candy tipped us off to this interesting new program that the Spy Museum is running. Named Spy in the City, participants carry GPS enabled devices throughout Penn Quarter on a mission to foil a terrorist plot. Drop a note in the comments section if you’ve seen this in action or know what sections of the neighborhood participants are directed.