2421 18th Street, NW
The Mediterranean Spot expanded with a second location in Adams Morgan back in July of last year. Their U Street location (formerly 24/Seven located at 14th and U) opened at 15th and U in Aug. 2012. Anyone know if that location had a name change too?
Anyway, the Adams Morgan location – just got new awnings for Philly Cheesesteak & Gyro. Think it’s just a marketing plan to be more appealing to a late night Adams Morgan crowd?
Props to Compass Rose for their sweet (relatively) new signage on T Street next to Cafe St. Ex:
1346 T Street, NW
4306 Georgia Ave, NW
From a press release:
“Petworth’s restaurant landscape is a kaleidoscope of culture, with everything on the menu from Asia to Africa. Teeming with diversity, it can now boast another rare gem in its growing nightlife offerings – Safari DC, an East African restaurant that offers authentic East African food.
With its succulent flame-grilled meats, sumptuous fried fishes, and uniquely seasoned rice, Safari DC provides a terrific introduction to some of the foods unique to the East African region and highlight the chef’s passion for tasty fare. With hopes to providing a glimpse into the contemporary side of modern African cuisine and drink, Safari Restaurant DC plans to utilize its patio seating area for fun outdoor activities that will make you feel like you are in East Africa. Safari DC is offering people a chance to sample Kenyan and Tanzanian food as a delightful precursor to the Folklife Festival scheduled to take place at the Smithsonian later on this month. The Folklife Festival will feature Kenya and China this year.
Photo via Safari DC
The restaurant is under new management, and the owners are excited to be in Petworth, a neighborhood that they feel has a rich sense of history and a diverse, close-knit community. It echoes of the African values of family and togetherness; a strengthening of community through cooperation and mutual support. There are three floors (two for dining) and an upper room for events. Out back is a breeze-filled patio with ample seating and a view of tree-lined streets. There are several televisions where people can watch the games, and a bar that also offers a television and several different types of alcohol.
Take the journey into new cuisine that is difficult to come by in the DC metro area. Safari DC the only East African restaurant in the DC area that offers Kenyan and Tanzanian food. The restaurant is open from 4 p.m. to midnight, Tuesday through Sunday.”
4811 Georgia Ave, NW
“Dear PoPville,
Moroni’s pizza closed down months ago, which sucked. I passed by it today and the windows were spray painted from the inside, but I found a slit in the paint and it looks like re-modeling is happening. I hope it’s a new North Petworth Neighborhood bar or restaurant! The brick pizza oven is still standing……”
Anyone hear who’s coming in?
Thanks to a reader for sending from Shake Shack’s opening in Union Station this morning:
“This is a great design. There are three entrances, one from the outside, you can see in the middle of this picture. One from the corner entrance which is on the left in this picture, its the entrance next to Starbucks and one next to Roti.
Tons of seating upstairs, tables, booths, and lounge type chairs.”
Upstairs seating:
and @JoshGFlood tweets us the line at lunch:
From a press release:
“The Pig [1320 14th St. NW] is launching a weekly summer BBQ pop-up each Sunday and Monday night from 5:00 pm to close (10:30 pm). Chef Michael Bonk’s “Bonk’s Smoked Que” features smoked BBQ pig meat (belly, shoulder, loin and hot links) as well as BBQ’d appetizers, mains and desserts. [ See full menu here]. The pigs used for the BBQ will all be Woodland Foraging Pigs from Catoctin Mountain Farm in Maryland. These pigs are completely free range and only eat what they forage themselves. Diners can “Build Your Board,” choosing two meats and a side ($17), or “Pig Out” with all four meats and four sides ($39). In addition, there’s BBQ-themed drinks, such as the “Bar-B-Drink” made with bourbon, BBQ sauce and beer ($9). The Pig’s full menu will also be available.”
700 6th Street, NW
More movement for Penn Commons coming to Chinatown – their Facebook page says:
“Hello DC! We are now hiring for all front-of-the-house positions! Stop in at 700 6th Street between 11-7 Mon-Friday to apply, Saturday Noon-4!”
We previously learned:
“Opening is slated for late summer. The restaurant and bar will be similar to the group’s already successful District Commons restaurant at 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW.
Chef Jeff Tunks, David Wizenberg and Gus DiMillo are the partners behind Passion Food Hospitality. They opened their first restaurant, DC Coast, in 1998 and have expanded their style of American eateries to include such restaurants as Acadiana, Burger Tap, & Shake, Ceiba, and PassionFish.”
A peek in the window, at an obviously very early stage, looks promising:
Photo by PoPville flickr user jmorrow
From a press release:
“Top foodservice industry professionals and their fans gathered last night at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center for the 32nd Annual RAMMY Awards as Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington (RAMW) announced winners in 20 award categories. To keep up with metropolitan Washington’s quickly evolving dining scene, new this year were seven award categories, celebrating brunches, service programs, mixology and other definitive aspects of the greater Washington’s restaurant and foodservice industry.
The selection process for the winners involved two esteemed groups, the voting public and a panel of volunteer judges, consisting of food and dining journalists, educators and foodservice industry professionals who remained anonymous to the public as well as each other through the judging process. The voting public decided the winners in four categories: Favorite Gathering Place of the Year, Upscale Brunch, Everyday Casual Brunch and Favorite Fast Bites.
The winners of the 32nd Annual RAMMY Awards are:
Formal Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year: Fiola
Upscale Casual Restaurant of the Year: Ripple
Everyday Casual Restaurant of the Year: Toki Underground
New Restaurant of the Year: The Red Hen (more…)
Finishing touches outside of 828 Upshur Street, NW
Whoa! Crane and Turtle turned out even nicer than the renderings. I had to do a quadruple take when I walked inside. I think you’ll do at least a double take next time you pass the little spot between Dannie’s Carryout and Kilroy’s Cleaners on Upshur Street. Until then you can see in the photos below that it is truly a beautiful transformation.
Here’s how the space looked in 2012:
And they open Tuesday at 5pm! To start hours will be:
Sun, Tues, Wed, Thurs: 5pm – 10pm
Fri, Sat: 5pm – 11pm
Mon: closed
Check out the menu:
Crane and Turtle Opening Menu (PDF)
More info from a press release:
“CRANE & TURTLE is a chef-driven, neighborhood restaurant that celebrates the marriage of Chef Makoto Hamamura’s great passions—Japanese and French cooking. Located in a cozy commercial building on Upshur Street, NW, the restaurant has been designed by Nick Pimentel to put food and drink at center stage.
Crane & Turtle is a small, intimate space seating 25 inside and 14 outside. The menu features a strong seafood component, marrying ingredients and techniques from Japan and France. The beverage program highlights dynamic offerings from all over the world that pair with the food and celebrate the interplay of cocktails, wine, ciders and craft beer.
Paul W. Ruppert is the operating partner for this new restaurant. Over the course of 20 years, he has created a number of noteworthy restaurants and bars, including Ruppert’s Restaurant, The Passenger & Columbia Room, Room 11, Hogo and Petworth Citizen.
ABOUT THE NAME
Our name—Crane & Turtle—comes from the Japanese fable celebrating friendship, longevity and mutual support. Many years ago during a great flood, water covered the land and the Crane had no place to rest. The Turtle rose from the floodwaters and welcomed the Crane to rest on his back. Years later, there was a terrible drought. Seeing that the Turtle needed help, Crane lifted him up and carried him a long distance to a thriving lake. Wildly different, the Crane and Turtle became mutually supportive and enjoyed a long life as friends.
Chef Hamamura has a personal connection to this classic Japanese story. At birth, his mother was
given the Japanese name Crane and her twin sister became Turtle. Their life-long connection
has influenced his career and encouraged him to look for the harmonies that join disparate things together.”
And here’s a look inside:
Lots more photos of the small but incredibly beautiful space after the jump. (more…)
Photos courtesy of Etto
A couple weeks ago we noted that construction had started on Etto’s patio at 14th and Q St, NW. Couldn’t picked a nicer day to open! From an email:
“Some good news to share with you at Etto: our new patio is now open. We have almost doubled our seating, and hope to be able to make waiting for a table a thing of the past (or, at least, a whole lot shorter). We’re excited to see all of our friends and customers soon!”
1541 14th Street, NW