Photo by PoPville flickr user ekelly80
From an email:
“Sprinkles Cupcakes is celebrating its new extended hours by giving away one free cupcake per person on March 15 and 16 from 8 pm – 9 pm. Starting March 15, Washingtonians will be able to enjoy Sprinkles cupcakes an extra hour each night (new hours will be Monday-Saturday 9-9, Sunday 10-8).”
Sprinkles is located in Georgetown at 3015 M Street, NW.
The Crave is located at 1211 Potomac St, NW. I’m always on the lookout for a good pastrami sandwich. And a good lobster roll. Anyone try them out yet?
Macaron Bee is coming to a cool old house in Georgetown at 1669 Wisconsin Ave, NW. While their Website is still mostly under construction – it does have a definition of a Macaron:
A macaron is a sweet confectionery made with egg whites, icing sugar, granulated sugar, almond powder or ground almond, and food coloring. The macaron is commonly filled with buttercream or jam filling sandwiched between two cookies. Its name is derived from an Italian word “maccarone” or “maccherone”. This word is itself derived from ammaccare, meaning crush or beat, used here in reference to the almond paste which is the principal ingredient. It is meringue-based: made from a mixture of egg whites, almond flour.
The confectionery is characterised by its smooth, domed top, ruffled circumference (referred to as the “foot”), and flat base. It is mildly moist and easily melts in the mouth.
Macarons can be found in a wide variety of flavors that range from the traditional (raspberry, chocolate) to the new (truffle, green matcha tea). The fillings can range from jams, ganache, or buttercream. Since the English word macaroon can also refer to the coconut macaroon, many have adopted the French spelling of macaron to distinguish the two items in the English language. However, this has caused confusion over the correct spelling of the cookie/biscuit. Some recipes exclude the use of macaroon to refer to this French confection while others think that they are synonymous.
Stay tuned for spring:
Edible Arrangements is coming to the corner of Wisconsin and Q St, NW in Georgetown.
Reminding me of the genius Onion article “Continued Existence Of Edible Arrangements Disproves Central Tenets Of Capitalism”
Upending more than two centuries of free-market theory, leading economists across the globe announced Thursday that the fundamental principles of capitalism had been “irrefutably disproved” by the continued existence of the designer fruit-basket company Edible Arrangements.
According to experts, the Connecticut-based franchise, which arranges skewered pieces of fruit into displays vaguely resembling floral bouquets, has defied all modern economic models, expanding continuously for the past decade despite its complete lack of any discernible consumer appeal.
Streets of Washington is the brilliant blog covering some of DC’s most interesting buildings and history written by John DeFerrari. John is also the author of the equally brilliant Lost Washington DC. ‘Streets of Washington Presents…’ will feature some fascinating buildings and history from around PoPville.
The Aqueduct Bridge, Gateway to Georgetown
Before the magnificent Francis Scott Key Bridge was completed in 1923, a far homelier structure linked Georgetown to Rosslyn. Known as the Potomac Aqueduct or Aqueduct Bridge, it was born of Alexandria’s aspirations to rival Georgetown as a commercial hub. A remarkable engineering achievement, the bridge served as a vital Potomac crossing for 80 years.
The Potomac Aqueduct, c. 1865. Source: Library of Congress
It all began with construction of the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal in the 1820s. The canal project was a long, complex, and expensive effort originally intended to spur commercial trade with Georgetown (and Washington) by establishing an economical transportation link to the vast and fertile Ohio Valley. It turned out to be too expensive to build it all the way across the mountains to the Midwest, and it never lived up to its investors’ early hopes, but in the 1820s it seemed like the next big thing for the city. Alexandria merchants sorely wanted to get in on this expected action. It would have been too expensive to unload canal boats arriving in Georgetown and reload them on river boats to take them down to Alexandria, so a non-stop method was needed to get the canal boats to Alexandria.
The solution was to build an aqueduct bridge over the Potomac and connect it to a canal on the Virginia side to carry boat traffic down to Alexandria. Congress granted a charter to the Alexandria Canal Company in 1830 and pitched in $100,000 to support the project, which was to be privately owned. Work began in 1833 on both the bridge and the Alexandria canal and lasted a full decade. (All that’s left of the canal is a recreated lock at the privately-owned Tidal Lock Park on the Alexandria Waterfront.)
When Congress stepped in, it put the U.S. Topographical Engineers, predecessors of the Army Crops of Engineers, in charge of the bridge work. Captain William Turnbull (1800-1857) headed this daunting task. Building the bridge’s piers was the biggest challenge. The plan was to construct cofferdams at appropriate spots in the river, pump the water out and then build the piers inside them. However, they had to be built at an incredible depth—through 18 feet of water and 17 feet of silt—to reach a solid bedrock foundation. River cofferdams had never been built so deep before. The first ones erected leaked mercilessly and had to be completely replaced. The second set were little better, filling with water after an hour or so and with mud oozing in from below.
As recounted by Pamela Scott, Turnbull was clearly concerned that the deep and unproven cofferdams—even when finally watertight—might not hold up while the bridge piers were being constructed inside them. In his journal, he observed that the spectacle of “men busily at work so far below the surface of the river, seemed to interest the public exceedingly; but to the engineer, whatever might be his confidence in the ability of the dam to resist the immense weight which he knew to be constantly pressing upon it in the most insidious form, the sight was one which filled him with anxiety, and urged him to the most unceasing watchfulness.”
Continues after the jump. (more…)
This rental is located at 1025 Cecil Pl, NW:
The listing says:
“Immaculate historic 2BR/1.5BA row house in the heart of G’town where nightlife and culture abounds. Centrally located with all of a young professional’s desires. Walk to Georgetown Waterfront Park,C&O Canal,Georgetown University, shopping restaurants and public transport. A few blocks to Metro-access to all of DC, NVA and MD. High end details,2 fireplaces. Short or longterm rental.”
This 2 bed/1.5 bath is going for $2,900/Mo.
Dear PoPville,
I was walking my dog in the park and passed by the front of the building and the flyer hanging on the front door caught my eye. Simply said ‘lo siento’ and that they moved to 1050 30th St NW. Their website lists the same new address for contact purposes. I live a block away, I guess I just completely missed the moving trucks. Property tax records show the Ecuadorian government still owns the building, so with no for sale sign out front I am just straight up bewildered as to what is going on. And does this mean that the naming rights for Ecuador Alley are up for grabs??
The Ecuadorian Embassy was previously located at 2535 15th Street, NW.
From a press release:
Today, Unum, located at 2917 M St. NW in Georgetown, opens to the public, serving dinner seven nights a week. Owners and husband and wife Phillip Blane and Laura Schiller plan to begin serving Saturday and Sunday brunch in this former Mendocino Grille location within the next few weeks.
The intimate and contemporary 50-seat neighborhood restaurant offers new American cuisine in a warm and dynamic space that also includes a 12-seat bar. Blane, who serves as Executive Chef, has created a menu that marries his East Coast cooking experiences with his international travels, so guests can expect to find dishes such as Indian spiced lamb shank with cauliflower, raisins, cashews and cilantro-mint chutney and desserts such as Ricotta beignets with cardamom blueberry sauce. Appetizers are priced $8-12 and entrees $14-$24. The complete dinner menu is included below.
Unum also serves a special bar menu with soups, salads and snacks, such as Cod and chorizo tater tots, creamy truffle mac and cheese, an Unum burger, and a selection of cheese and charcuterie.
Unum offers more than a dozen wines by the glass, as well as a 60+ bottle list, and a rotating selection of craft beer and cocktails. The wine list has a strong focus on California wines as well as labels from old and new world wine regions, with an emphasis on value selections in the $30 to $60 price range.
Unum is located at 2917 M St. NW, Washington DC. For reservations or more information, please call 202-621-6959 or visit the website at www.unumdc.com
2917 M St. NW is the former Mendocino Grill space.
Menu after the jump. (more…)
Photo by PoPville flickr user ekelly80
The fine folks at Sprinkles in Georgetown, 3015 M Street, NW, are getting your week off to a good start. They have been kind enough to call Monday – Prince of Petworth appreciation day. As such, customers who say Prince of Petworth at Sprinkles on Monday will receive one free Red Velvet cupcake. Enjoy!
From a press release:
This January, owners and husband and wife team Phillip Blane and Laura Schiller plan to open their first restaurant, Unum, in Georgetown at 2917 M St. NW in the former Mendocino Grille location. The intimate and contemporary 50-seat neighborhood restaurant will offer new American cuisine in a warm and dynamic space that also includes a 12-seat bar.
Blane will also serve as Executive Chef of Unum, creating a menu that marries his East Coast cooking experiences with his international travels. After growing up in New York City and London, Blane spent a decade in healthcare administration before following his passion to become a full-time chef. Having worked as the opening Chef at The Charlotte Hotel and Restaurant on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, as well as most recently as Sous Chef at Equinox restaurant under Chef Todd Gray, Chef Blane is looking forward to offering guests at Unum a range of approachable dishes with a contemporary spin.
To that end, guests will enjoy smaller plates such as Grilled quail with sautéed greens, pistachio nuts and a date sauce and a Four onion soup with slow roasted Spanish onions, crispy shallots, caramelized Cipollinis and fresh chives. Larger plates will include Smoked duck breast served with rainbow Swiss chard and pomegranate sauce; Rosemary gnocchi with oyster mushrooms, butternut squash, cranberries and truffle butter; and Indian spiced lamb shank with cauliflower, raisins, cashews and cilantro-mint chutney. Desserts will include Ricotta beignets with cardamom blueberry sauce and Winter citrus custard with candied kumquats and grapefruit sorbet. Appetizers are priced $8-12 and entrees $14-$24.
Blane will also serve a special bar menu with soups, salads and snacks, such as Cod and chorizo tater tots, creamy truffle mac and cheese, an Unum burger, and a selection of cheese and charcuterie.
Unum will soon offer brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. with items like Belgian Waffles with seasonal fruit compote topped with frozen vanilla yogurt, and an Eggs Benedict on potato-caper cakes with smoked salmon & salmon-roe hollandaise.
Unum will offer more than a dozen wines by the glass, as well as a 60+ bottle list, and a rotating selection of craft beer and cocktails. The wine list has a strong focus on California wines as well as labels from old and new world wine regions, with an emphasis on value selections in the $30 to $60 price range.
Unum is located at 2917 M St. NW, Washington DC. For reservations or more information, please call 202-621-6959 or visit the website at www.unumdc.com