Final Wawa Scuttlebutt – Next Up – Georgetown!

Columns

by Prince Of Petworth June 13, 2017 at 3:30 pm 47 Comments

1222 Wisconsin Ave, NW via google maps

In your best Oprah voice: You’re getting a Wawa, you’re getting a Wawa, you’re getting a Wawa and now the final reveal (that I have) Georgetown is getting a Wawa! This is from the same solid source who told us about the Chinatown and Logan Circle locations.

The Georgetown Metropolitan also heard the Restoration Hardware on Wisconsin would be a Wawa and concludes:

“It’s hard to call this anything but a regression for the neighborhood. Specifically a regression to the early 90s when this corner was occupied by a fast food restaurant…

First the 7-11. Now this. What do you call the opposite of gentrification?”

Bobert

Damnit. Currently couch shopping and was hoping to stop by RH the past couple of weeks, but haven’t been able to get around to doing so quite yet.
- MadMax
  
  If you’re looking in the RH price range do yourself a favor and check out Arhaus (unless it’s an item you just really specifically want). Instead of mass producing all their stuff in a Chinese factory like RH does they make it down in NC and all the furniture comes with lifetime guarantees on the frames (for chairs, sofas, etc). Much better construction, and for my tastes better design too.
  - Bobert
    
    Will do – thanks for the tip!
  - turtwigs
    
    I worked for Arhaus for years. Another tip- Crate & Barrel sells the same, American-made upholstery for less than Arhaus marks theirs up. Room & Board is also all made in the US with a lifetime guarantee.
    - Ben
      
      +1 R&B has some nice stuff.
  - JohnH
    
    I’ve heard some VERY strongly mixed reviews of Arhaus – mainly the quality/consistency.
- JMR
  
  We have an RH couch and don’t love it. Agreed on the R&B suggestion. Also check out Cococo (Comfortable Couch Company). Custom orders made in the US and very reasonable prices for the quality.
ST21

It’s a shame what’s happened to Gtown. Loved that place growing up- coolest stores, great restaurants, beautiful. It’s still beautiful and there are a few great spots remaining but it’s turned into a glorified shopping mall.
- _____Woods
  
  its not all that glorified tbh. There are some good stores there…IE big nike store, but yeah its not that pleasant to walk around on those sidewalks.
  - JohnH
    
    The Nike store is horrible. You could fit everything they have for sale in that store in a coffee shop sized store. Their selection is horrible.
- Rich
  
  Yawn. Gtown has “been in decline” since at least the 90s. meanwhile the whole strip Westward from Dean & Deluca is filled mostly non-mall type stores. The old cheap suit places remain, the galleries haven’t left Book Hill and there is an eve rchanging selection of restaurants. It’s always had mall stores-RH is a mall store in much of the country. Georgetown is dead and no one goes there because it’s so crowded.
  - ExWalbridgeGuy
    
    +1 complaining about Georgetown having too many chains is starting to be like complaining about it having a university. The neighborhood has been this way for so long, decades now, that people look ridiculous when they present this claim as some sort of new development …
  - H-st
    
    “and one goes there because it’s so crowded””
    
    LOL
- JohnH
  
  I mean, they did it to themselves – but it was set in stone decades ago with a refusal to have a metro stop (which obviously will never be fixed). It’s always been a “shopping mall”, but with arguably better stores. A lot of stores coming in now that are high end are more home renovation-y, which makes sense I suppose, and boutique stores that just try to have fancy addresses (even though no one is ever inside). Where they’ve really hurt is on the social side – so many restaurants have floundered, and it’s not the place to go out unless you’re from out of town and you think that’s the cool place, or you’re from out of town (Reston) and want to go to the meat market…..errrr waterfront.
  - Ben
    
    The myth about “refusing a metro stop” needs to die. There was no real proposal to build a station in Georgetown because it would have been logistically difficult and outrageously expensive.
    - Iwantametro
      
      Thank you! The holier than thou attitude associated with Georgetown residents is frustrating. Yes, there are plenty of pompous folks (not limited to Georgetown!), but don’t lump the whole neighborhood into this please. A metro would be great but where would it go that isn’t already occupied?
    - JohnH
      
      Well did they advocate for one? I have a feeling the “neighbors” weren’t clammoring for it.
Joffrey

Poorification
dcd

“This is from the same solid source who told us about the Chinatown and Logan Circle locations.”
.
The guy at the hemp shop? I’ll take your word that he’s a “solid source.”
- Prince Of Petworth
  
  No this is a different guy. This is the guy from Royal Farms – hey wait a minute…
  
  How ’bout this – you owe me a hoagie from each one that turns out to be true and I’ll buy you a hoagie for each one that is wrong?
  - dcd
    
    Deal! But if I win? lose? I am going to introduce you to the Italian Store. Are there three predictions so far?
  - MadMax
    
    Seems like a Pyrrhic victory at best.
    - Prince Of Petworth
      
      hahaha no I really like them! I mean I still want to try those ones from Eckington but this’ll do just fine!
jaybird

Suburbanization
- anon
  
  Restoration Hardware feels as mall-like to me as anything short of an Orange Julius. A classier mall sure, but a mall nonetheless. I’m agnostic about WaWa but the closest comparator is 7-11 and that’s a retail category I can live without.
Ross

Oh, cry me a river, Georgetown. You pushed out all the cool stuff and now you’re getting exactly what you deserve.
- jaybird
  
  What was the cool stuff? Comander Salamander?
  - Ross
    
    Cellar Door. Bayou. Smash. Any number of bars and restaurants that have been replaced by chains.
    - jaybird
      
      Poseurs
    - anon
      
      the hippest hangout back in the day was the chain Haagen Dazs shop managed by Henry Rollins
OP Anon

“What do you call the opposite of gentrification?”
.
Jumping the shark.
domrep

So we went from having 1 to having 3 now? Why not wait and see how the first one does before opening up 2 more locations?
- Prince Of Petworth
  
  4 – 19th Street, Logan Circle, Chinatown and Georgetown.
  - domrep
    
    Damn, miscounted. Do you know what the ETA is? I just don’t understand the need for expansion this quickly, its not like the city was calling for a Wawa.
- wdc
  
  Economies of scale.
- eb
  
  Thinking about Wawa logistics, if they are going to bother to put stores in downtown DC they might as well do 4 given the benefit of foot traffic.
js

whatever, i’ll take a wawa over that any day of the week. i certainly never thought a restoration hardware was “progress”
- Duponter
  
  No, but it was an expensive high end furniture store in an expensive high end part of town as far as housing goes, so it at least seemed to make sense and had an audience.
Truxton Thomas

That’s it—time for me to start lobbying for a Casey’s General Store. They’re not great, but there are a lot of them where I’m from, so we need one here.
- d
  
  Hahaha, nailed it.
- anon
  
  yinz need a Sheetz dahn there in George-tahn
- maxwell smart
  
  And a Sonic Drive-In. It’s perfect Cherry Limeaid season.
  - Cleveland Park runner
    
    My world for a Sonic. Their limeaids are heaven on earth.
- Belinskaya
  
  The pizza is surprisingly decent. Papa John’s level but with better sausage. (not that I’ve eaten either since the late 90s, so everything is probably terrible now that recipes have changed and I have actual taste.)
- Egad
  
  Yes for Casey’s taco pizza!
J

People who complain about Georgetown being dead have not been recently. It did go through a slump, but it’s recovered quite well. Of course, this news here is rather disappointing…
CPBG

How quickly can we replace the 7-11 in Cleveland Park with a Wawa? That would be a giant step forward for the neighborhood.

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