The 5pm Post – Bastille Day Fun This Thurs.

From an email:

In celebration of their 7th Annual Bastille Day Block Party and 2011 French Maid Race, L’Enfant Café Bar announces it has enlarged its street festival. The casual café-bar has again made arrangements to close an entire city block. Co-hosted by King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette – who strongly resemble L’Enfant’s co-owners Jim Ball and Christopher Lynch – the Bastille Day Block Party will take over Vernon Street, NW, between 18th and 19th Streets. Doors open at 4 p.m. and the street party concludes at 11p.m. Unique entertainments on the hour will include a can-can extravaganza, Miss Joule the Fire Twirler, and Wham Bam Pam’s seductive danse magique.

Entry to D.C.’s revolutionary summer party is $5 for commoners and royalty. Guests are invited to chill to DJs on the patio, dance in the street and enjoy street bars and food trucks in anticipation of the arrival of the Absolute Monarch, his queen and courtiers who will preside over the French maid races.

The 2011 French maid race will start at 8p.m. L’Enfant will provide costumes for up to 40 competitors. Racers must don a short, frilly black and white lace apron dress and prepare to get silly. And wet. The object of the race is to fill a Champagne coupe with soup spoons of water by running back and forth between the glass and a bucket of water. Winners in categories including “Fastest” and “His Majesty’s Favorite” will win prizes.

After the race, DJ booths will be rolled into Vernon Street and all attendees will be gifted with a mask. The dancing on the street will conclude at 11p.m. when the street party ends.

L’Enfant Café Bar is a neighborhood gathering place and as such has literally reserved a special VIP section along the race course for the residents of Vernon Street. Organizers have lengthened the race course so all guests can witness the race and cheer for their favorite contestant. Food trucks will be parked on site for hungry merrymakers. The party’s sponsors include Stella Artois, Mouton Cadet, Marquis de la Tour and Svedka.

Schedule of events:

4 p.m. Bastille Day Block Party Kicks Off

6 p.m. Arrival of King Louis XVI

7 p.m. Can-can performance

8 p.m. French Maid Race

8:30pm Arrival of Queen Marie Antoinette and courtiers

9 p.m. Masquerade Ball on Vernon Street NW between 18th and 19th Streets

10 p.m. Can-can performance

11 p.m. Last dance

L’Enfant Café Bar, 2200 18th Street, NW

And

What: BASTILLE DAY BAGUETTE RELAY RACE at PAUL Bakery and Café

To commemorate France’s National Holiday, PAUL – France’s leading bakery – invites the public to come have some fun and participate in a “Baguette Relay Race” which will take place in front of PAUL in Penn Quarter, where relay team members will take turns running a lap around the plaza of the US Navy Memorial with a fresh baguette in hand, in lieu of a traditional baton.

We’ll divide up racers into teams of six people. Each team will be led by a PAUL employee. Each racer will do one lap around the circle of the US Navy Memorial and then hand off his/her baguette (baton) to the next teammate. All members of the winning team will get a $25 gift card to PAUL. We’ll be encouraging relay racers to sign up in advance on our FB page: Facebook.com/Paul1889.usa

When: Thursday, July 14, 2001 at 11:30am
Where: PAUL Bakery and Café in Penn Qtr. (at the US Navy Memorial)
801 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC
Tel: 202-524-4500/01