H Street NE

First Look Inside the Spectacular Renovation of the H Street Nando’s opening Saturday

By Prince Of Petworth

nandos
411 and 413 H Street, NE – photos courtesy Nando’s Peri Peri

Say what you will about the chicken – the space looks freaking amazing. Last week we noted the opening would coincide with the streetcar carrying passengers this Sat. Feb. 27th. Nando’s is having a little fun with that too:

“With the much-delayed D.C. streetcar beginning service Saturday Feb. 27, Nando’s PERi-PERi will get in on the action this weekend by offering its own free streetcar rides along the H Street Corridor. Just in case.

“Nando’s congratulates the city for launching streetcar service on H Street, after years of delays,” said Sepanta Bagherpour, Marketing Director of Nando’s PERi-PERI USA. “But we’ll be launching our own streetcar too this weekend, because you can never count your chickens before they hatch.”

trolley

Nando’s PERi-PERi, the South African-Portuguese restaurant known worldwide for its spicy flame-grilled chicken, is celebrating the grand opening of its newest restaurant on Saturday, at 411 H Street, NE. The free streetcar—actually a trolley decked out with Nando’s signage—will operate between the new Nando’s and the Atlas Performing Arts Center at 13th and H Streets, NE. Hours of operation are Saturday Feb. 27 from noon to 9pm, and Sunday Feb. 28 from noon to 5pm.

The Nando’s streetcar is emblazoned with signs reading “H Street Trolley. Nailed It,” and “A Streetcar Named Fire. Here’s to Tasty Transit. Next Stop Nando’s.”

Kidding aside – the space turned out absolutely beautiful once again (don’t forget how it used to look):

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Lots more photos after the jump. (more…)

No Sunday Service for Streetcar but Better Late than Never? – “Streetcar to start passenger service next Saturday!”

By Prince Of Petworth

steetcar

Holy crow he got the divorce after all. Hope you watched that video…

From the Mayor:

“Big news, DC! Streetcar to start passenger service next Saturday! Visit http://www.dcstreetcar.com for more info.”

From DDOT:

“After more than a decade of planning, construction and testing, Mayor Muriel Bowser and District Department of Transportation (DDOT) Director Leif A. Dormsjo announced today that the DC Streetcar will open for full passenger service on Saturday, February 27 at 10:00 a.m., following a brief ceremony.

“I’m proud to announce that Streetcar is ready for passenger service,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser. “I want to thank the residents of the H Street and Benning Road communities for their patience during the construction and testing of the system. As a way of saying ‘thank you,’ fares will be free on the system for an initial period of time.”

The opening ceremony will take place at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, February 27 on 13th Street, NE between H Street, NE and Wylie Street, NE (intersection of 13th/H). Members of the public are invited to attend the ceremony.

Following the ceremony, the DC Streetcar standard hours of operation will be:

Monday-Thursday: 6:00 a.m. – 12:00 a.m.
Friday: 6:00 a.m. – 2:00 a.m.
Saturday: 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 a.m.
Holidays: 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
No Sunday service (more…)

Mark It. Maketto. March 9th “All You Can Eat and Drink Korean Buffet”

By Prince Of Petworth

maketto

From Maketto [1351 H Street, NE]:

“Chefs Erik Bruner-Yang and James Wozniuk are excited to welcome chef Deuki Hong (Kang Ho Dong Baekjeong, NYC) and writer Matt Rodbard (Contributing Editor at Food Republic) to Maketto for a one-night celebration of their new cookbook “Koreatown: A Cookbook” (Clarkson Potter, February 16, 2016 release date.) Joining them will be chefs Kristen Kish (“36 Hours” on Travel Channel, Top Chef, S10), Stephanie Cmar (Top Chef, S11), Cody Taylor and Jiyeon Lee (Heritage BBQ, ATL.) Guests will enjoy an epic Korean buffet created by the seven chefs, cocktails and beer thanks to James River Distillery and Tiger Beer, and a signed copy of “Koreantown: A Cookbook.” Tickets are $75 (inclusive of tax and gratuity.) (more…)

Gun Shots or Fireworks? Valentine’s Edition

By Prince Of Petworth

fireworks
Photo by PoPville flickr user Jeff Morrow

@PoPville got a lot of tweets last night:

“Anyone else hear those SEVEN enormously loud BOOMS in Northeast DC just now?”

MPD settles it:

“Someone had apparently ignited fireworks. We responded and recovered several fireworks from the area of H Street.”

There have been a number of Gunshots or Fireworks? tweets from around the H Street, NE area the last few weeks – so if you hear enormous booms there’s a good chance the stash has not been depleted. Of course you never know…so call 911 to report it. Also send a tweet to @PoPville if you’re concerned and folks can usually clear it up right quick. Props to @wcpsarah who called it fireworks early on.

Trouble with Trash Trucks on H Street

By Prince Of Petworth

trash truck trouble
Photo by PoPville flickr user Beau Finley

“Dear PoPville,

I am a neighbor on the 1100 block of H street NE and every morning a trash truck from Bates Trucking and Trash Removal number 175 or 176 comes to remove the commercial trash at 420-430 am. The truck is removing the trash from 1118 H Street NE (H&Pizza) who has their dumpsters located on public property without a public space permit. I’ve filed multiple official complaints with DCRA through the Trash Truck Noise Program as well as emailing and calling DCRA but they will not enforce the law in this case. Do you have any other suggestions?”

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Hunted House closing on H Street – An Interview with the Owner from ATTIC DC

By Prince Of Petworth

hunted house
510 H Street, NE

Over the past few months, there have been reports on the closing of four independent furniture stores. We’re now sharing news about the upcoming closing of Hunted House on H Street NE. It’s not simply another sad ballad — it’s just as much about a store and our retail sector shifting gears. We built ATTIC partly as a response to these types of changes. We’ve also just launched ATTIC Fashion, which seeks to make shopping from DC’s independent clothing boutiques, vintage shops, and DC area designers easier too. Ultimately, we’re concerned about a future where DC has little more than the same chains you can find in other cities. We hope you enjoy our reports and think about the city you want for the future too.

Tarek Anandan
Founder, ATTIC DC

—-

The following is an interview with Mark Johnson, owner and shopkeeper of Hunted House, a vintage store specializing in mid century modern furniture and home decor currently located on H Street NE.

Let’s start out with the big news. You’re going to close the Hunted House store on H Street at the end of February? Why?

Well, our four-year lease is up. The landlord is going to take over the space to meet their expansion needs. The Design Army firm owns the building, and they already use the two floors above the store.

So does that mean you are looking for a new space?

Another permanent brick and mortar space just doesn’t necessarily seem like “the way to go for stores [like ours]” right now. Instead, we’re excited about the idea of doing pop-ups. There’s no obligation, no long leases and no triple-net rents. Plus, it allows us to move around a bit and try out other parts of the city.

On a personal note, I won’t mind being a little less present. I’ve enjoyed running the store for the past ten years, but it’s a lot of work and there are some other things I’d like to spend some time doing. With a brick and mortar space I spend a lot of time trying to make sure we have four to six new pieces every week. I’ve had so much fun doing it, but it takes a lot of time and energy.

A Hunted House Pop-Up? Tell Us More. Anything Soon? (more…)

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