M Street, NW just west of 19th Street

In early Aug. we noted that Sweet Diablo coming to coming 19th and M St, NW looked close to opening. I stopped by yesterday and found out they’d be soft opening this morning with a grand opening in September. To start they will be open from 7:30am-6:30pm with possible later hours on Thurs. and Fri.

Originally from Portugal, they have other locations in Spain, Brazil and Australia. This will be their first US location (with plans for more to come.)

Here’s what they’re famous for:

But the cafe will offer more than chocolate cake including cheese cake, other pastries, coffee, tea, juices, salads and Paoninis (their version of paninis):

Check out the full menu after the jump. (more…)

1200 New Hampshire Avenue, NW

Do you like the way the renovation turned out?

Back in March we learned that Sweet Diablo chocolate was coming to the small retail space just west of the Jos A Bank on M Street just west of 19th.

New signage is up:

And the inside is looking close to completion:

Dear PoPville,

I work near the 1990 M street NW building where the new restaurant from the Fast Gourmet people is set to open. I haven’t seen much development going on as there is paper over the windows and the Chinese restaurant sign is still up in front, but I did notice there’s a liquor license request now posted on the windows. Do you have any information on the name of the place and when it is set to open? Looks like the liquor application request is for August 2012 with a hearing in September.

Applying for a liquor license is a good next step. As you noted the hearing date is set for September 4, 2012. The application also lists the name of the restaurant as TakeEatEasy and lists some details:

“New casual restaurant serving gourmet sandwiches and salads. Occupancy Load is 110 and number of seats is 65.”

Let’s hope for a September opening and possibly even sooner if they are able and decide to open before they get their liquor license.

2101 L St, NW

Litestars was located at 2101 L St, NW.

Our mission: We pledge to provide our customers with healthier and tastier food choices prepared with fresh ingredients resulting in a meal with less fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrates and sugar contents.

They opened up back in July 2010.

1177 22nd St. NW

A reader sends an email:

“Rasika West End is now taking reservations on open table for their March 30th opening!”

Back in Feb. 2011 we learned that Rasika West End would be opening at 1177 22nd St. NW.

The original Rasika is located at 633 D Street, NW.

The Orange Spoon is coming to 1255 23rd St, NW right across the street from West End Cinema. Earlier in the week we learned that a Potbelly’s was coming soon nearby at the intersection of M and New Hampshire Ave, NW.

Sweet Diablo, claiming to have the best chocolate cake in the world, is coming to 19th and M St, NW in the small retail space just west of the Jos A Bank on M Street in southern Dupont. We’ll def. be back for a proper judging to test their claim. Stay tuned!

A Potbelly’s is opening soon in the former liquor store next to Meiwah in West End at the intersection of M and New Hampshire Ave, NW.

Thai Kitchen was located at 2311 M St, NW.

Dear PoPville,

Just walking by this building today and again wondered what the hell is it? It’s at the intersection of 21st and New Hampshire with Ward Place off to the side, next to the Grillfish restaurant. It looks like an apt building, but on closer inspection, the front doors are practically boarded up, with no door knobs. There is no name or address on the building, yet all the windows have matching curtains and there were lights on in what appeared to be a stairwell. Is this another of DC’s “mystery” buildings?

West End Cinema opened up back in Oct. ’10. They are located at 2301 M Street NW. You can see what movies are showing here. Since we often pine for new movie theaters – now that they’ve been around exactly a year – what do you think of West End Cinema? Do you like the films they show? Do you like the fact that you can also buy a beer or glass of wine there? I have to admit – it often falls off my radar – how does it compare to E Street Cinema?

Naked Pizza is coming to 2140 L St, NW (near Bourbon Coffee Cafe.) You can learn more about the pizza from their Web site here. There is a video where:

“Jeff Leach, founder of Naked Pizza, talks about how he formulated a pizza that would address the dysbiosis modern human shares with the microbial world.”

Well alright then…

You can see their menu here. Anyone ever try them before?

2230 O Street, NW Abandoned Apartment Bldg

“Dear PoP,

I was wondering if you or any of your readers could give me any information about this abandoned building on the corners of 22nd and O Streets, NW. It has looked this for about a year. One year ago a Public Notice sign went up, but other than replacing the bricks on the outside of the building about 10 months ago, nothing has changed. In fact, the front has recently been painted white. Have you any information about this eyesore?”

Any rumors or scuttlebutt of what’s going on here?

We first heard about the West End Cinema in August. Thanks to a reader for sending the heads up that they open tomorrow. They are located at 2301 M Street NW. Their Web site says:

We. Love. Movies. We love them. From summer blockbusters to offbeat indie dramas, we want to see them all. But here in Washington, we realize that all those art house, off-the-beaten-path kinds of films can be hard to find. The reason for this is simple: there just aren’t enough art house, off-the-beaten path kinds of theaters to show them. That’s where we come in. We rallied a team of dedicated film buffs around us, found a deserted theater just begging for a makeover, and brought West End Cinema to life. We show independent, foreign, and documentary films, especially ones that we feel offer new intellectual and cultural perspectives to our audience.

The films themselves are obviously the point, here, but as we all know, great amenities can really be the cherry on top of your Sunday night at the cinema… or better yet, the olive in your martini. West End Cinema offers a full bar and a wide range of concessions, from popcorn to baklava to gourmet sandwiches. And yes, yes, we also have candy.

The first film being shown is Howl with James Franco. If anyone checks them out be sure to send me an email and let me know what you thought. The place sounds very very promising.