New Market and Frozen Yogurt in Adams Morgan by John

New Street Market in Adams Morgan

A new street market was looking lively over the Holiday Weekend at the Unity Park (Columbia/Champlain/Euclid) in Adams Morgan.

There were a dozen or so stalls selling food, crafts etc. – including a Prince of Petworth favorite – hammocks, marked at a surprisingly expensive $75.

 

Most of the food looked to be the usual, familiar neighborhood offerings – pupusas, tamales, bags of sliced mango, shaved ice etc. as well a stall selling prepackaged bags of nuts and other dried goods.

There was also a cool looking leather goods stall selling belts and other western items. Who doesn’t want a keychain shaped like a cowboy boot?

I’d never seen this market in action before and a quick search online yielded little. Does anyone know more about it – how long and how regularly it will run?

I sometimes feel that the humans surrendered Unity Park to the pigeons. Maybe this market will help claw back some of our territory.  More on frozen yogurt coming after the jump.

Fro-Yo Phenomenon Sweeps onto 18^th Street

A sign in the window of the vacant, former Miss Pixie’s spot at 1810 18^th St announced that Adams Morgan will welcome the latest addition to DC’s frozen yogurt fixation – Cali Yogurt, with branches in California and Florida.

I confess I’m a bit of a fan of both Tangy Sweet (P Street) and Mr. Yogato (17^th Street). Although I’ve never tried the LA originals I do enjoy the slightly odd flavor, the fresh fruit toppings and the fact that I can devour a “huge” portion without the dairy and sugar overload that I usually get from traditional ice-cream.

So I’m looking forward to Cali Yogurt’s deserts and green tea in the neighborhood. Well, mostly their deserts, to be completely honest.

What I find interesting is the “herd mentality” I often observe as new spots open up around the city. Frozen Yogurt is a good example with two new and very similar spots opening up in Dupont, seemingly within weeks of each other.

Wine Bars are another example – Cork, Veranda, Vinoteca all suddenly appeared in Shaw – demonstrating, if nothing else, that there was a serious, pent up a demand in the area for $10 plus glasses of wine. Who knew?

This isn’t meant as a discussion of the products themselves (fro-yo or wine) or the individual businesses selling them. Regardless of your desire for a kite store or a roller-disco, most would agree that new, independent businesses are good for the neighborhood and if demand for their product is sufficient to cover rent, pay staff and turn a profit then fair play to them.

But when you witness the successful launch of two (or more) fro-yo joints or wine bars, do you think:

“What a great concept. It obviously works. What we need is another, similar spot.”

Or do you think:

“How much fro-yo can people really eat? Have we not yet reached saturation point?”