My weekend
Well Saturday was the BACA clean up which Caryn over the BACA blog mentions the
turnout was low. Well I didn't help matters by not posting the announcement earlier, though I got it earlier. Also there were supposed to be fliers about it, but of a neighborhood of our size flier distribution takes a while. Yes, it doesn't seem like it but you never realize how many friggin' houses are just on one side of the street until you have to place a flier in every single one of those doors. Personally, I don't care for the stuff the flier in the fence method, as the wind can take those away. I took on the top triangular part of the TC till my bag got ripped. There wasn't much to do as we have a few neighbors who regularly clean the sidewalks.
Before I picked up my bag I was walking with Brett to 1st & P, where BACA normally starts these things, trying to explain the "Broken Window" theory and why clean ups are important. I'm hoping B. was playing Devil's advocate when he questioned the effectiveness of a clean up and the 'broken windows' theory. Quick summary, trash adds to the perception of crime and disorder.
After the clean up I ran my usual Saturday errands, one being the warehouse area on Florida Ave NE. At
US Beef I ran into
Ms. Frozen Tropics, Elise, who had a hunk of meat for carnitas. I had a bag full of drumsticks for curry, two pounds of butter, for making ghee, and a frozen boneless lamb. I mentioned that the frozen whole chicken there was rubbery, but the fresh chicken was quite good. Elise mentioned she was going to hit
Mexican Fruit next for limes. But there were limes near the register at US Beef and I had already been to Mexican Fruit, whose limes were lackluster that day, so we both picked up bags of lemons and limes. I was going to make marmalade, Elise margaritas. Somewhere in the middle of that a friend of Elise came up with a small tub of tofu from a nearby store. I expressed my confusion with the warehouse area of knowing which stores will sell to you. Apparently there is a tofu place between US Beef and Sam Wang, you go up to the window, you tell the guy you want the white tub, and for $4 you get a small gallonish tub of tofu. Half shopping experience. Half speakeasy.
Sunday, was chicken Sunday. Chicken stock. Chicken Marsala. Chicken Biryani. Buttery Chicken. And chicken curry. Somewhere in there I decided to clean 1/2 of my alley, with some help from a neighbor. The street was busy with open houses. The house that was under contract, is back on the market. Then a new neighbor has decided to move to the west coast and rent out his house so there were people dropping by to check the place out.
Labels: BACA, Capital City Market, food/dining, trash
Boundary Stone Tavern/Pub
Well Scott Roberts has
a much better description of the proposed pub for Bloomingdale because the man knows what questions to ask. All I asked about was noise, because the rear of the location backs up to several residential bedrooms. I was told that they expect to keep the noise on Rhode Island Ave., not a quiet street mind you.
You can ask what the heck is this photo I have attached here. Well, it is the cool looking tin ceiling that is hidden behind the dropped ceiling at 116 Rhode Island Avenue NW/Boundary Stone. What the owners would like to do (provided they get approved for the liquor license) is put in a mezzanine as there is about 10-11 extra feet in some spots. The building housing this proposed pub is in the former Sylvan Theater and the landlord for this building seems to be amenable to improving and adding value to his property (as opposed to some other commercial landowners who are crazy).
The pub owners are hopeful about when they may be able to make this come to life. But before any of that there is the ABC liquor dance between the ANC, the neighbors and the owners. The ANC will (regardless of support) protest the license, the owners will agree to a voluntary agreement, someone will go on and on about how there will be drunkards in the streets and that we don't need more liquor in our neighborhood.
PoP also has
a post on this too.
Labels: Bloomingdale/Eckington, business, food/dining
Can I boycott a place I'd probably never get to
Some of ya'll are aware of the
kerfuffle regarding U Street Girl and the owner of a wine bar
threatened legal action. She has recommended that others join her in not patronizing or promoting the 14th Street business. Okay.
I totally agree on principle, but honestly I haven't even gotten to the wine bars I actually want to go to, like Cork, so I don't know what use that would be. Also as a fan of redemption and forgiveness I hope that the owner of Du Vin Osteria, David Shott, will make an honest effort to undo the damage done.
Hopefully, we'll have none of that in nearby (to me) Bloomingdale. Tonight there is going to be an
open house Q&A for a proposed bar/pub/wateringhole at 116 Rhode Island Ave NW between 6 and 8pm. I guess it would be a good place to unwind after some
yoga 'round the corner. Seriously, I'm looking forward to the development, growth and appearances of all the small businesses in the Bloomingdale and eastern Shaw area.
Labels: blog, business, development, events, food/dining
Big Bear Beer II
Sometime after all the youth/school related stuff at the BACA meeting, about an hour into it, we finally got to Big Bear and their general ideas of pursuing an ABC liquor license. There were two persons from Bog Bear, one being Matt Sellers, the other guy a blond barista... now if it is a guy do you call them baristas? Not baristos?
Anyway. Big Bear is aiming for a
CR license. For those of you unfamiliar with the wonderful world of ABC licenses, a class C Restaurant license is one for places where at least 45% of revenues come from food sales. It is different from the class of licenses for bars or corner markets. The was one objection mentioned, coming from a Baptist minister, presenting his concerns about people getting drunk and hanging out in the park. This was countered by the Episcopalian church secretary reminding him of Jesus' first miracle at the wedding at Cana, turning water into wine.
There were questions about Big Bear expanding and the space they have. The bear is kind of landlocked and the space above is leased to tenants, so in the near future, nope. Maybe, years down the road. Another question was the issue of vagrants/ neighbor characters. Characters do drop by to get a glass of water and to use the bathroom and for the most part they don't cause a problem.
The idea is Big Bear has a vibe as a cafe, hang out and they have no intention of becoming a bar, they just want to expand their food service options. I asked the barista (m) if the idea is to offer something like Teaism, and he answered in the affirmative. As far as I can tell despite having a small park area and a restaurant/bar across the street, the Penn Quarter Teaism fails to produce drunkards rolling out of its doors.
Labels: BACA, Bloomingdale/Eckington, food/dining
Big Bear Beer?
I noticed this in the announcement for today's BACA meeting:
(b) Ms. Elizabeth Lyttleton, an Eckington resident who provides occasional consulting services to Big Bear Café, asked for time on our agenda to apprise our group of the status of the cafe’s current efforts to acquire a license from the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. I am advised that Ms. Lyttleton developed a scheduling conflict that won’t allow her to attend Monday’s meeting in person; however, she plans to identify someone else to make her expected presentation and to answer any questions that it might generate.
TODAY! 7PM Mt. Sinai Baptist Church, in the basement cafeteria.
Labels: BACA, food/dining
Safeway at RI and 4th NE
Really I should stay of this. But the store that was closed for a short period due to a
rat infestation. It is a store at the top of the hill and about 1/4 of a mile from the Giant near the Rhode Island metro station. I've been in the Giant a few times. I know people hate it. I've been okay with it, but haven't been in enough times to say if it's any worse than the O Street Giant. I've been in that Safeway once and haven't felt any deep need to return.
So on the listservs there is this clamoring to keep the Safeway from closing. Harry Thomas has gotten involved. There is some sort of petition for a Harris Teeter.
Okay, someone enlighten me. Someone 'splain to me how the politicos are supposed to convince a private business to land on top the same old unprofitable rat's nest? As
Safeway said they aren't making enough money in that spot, how is a Teet supposed to make it work?
Anyway good luck with that, but since a
Harris Teeter is slated to open near the NY Ave metro, I don't see one popping up anytime soon 1 mile away.
Labels: food/dining, politics
News from other blogs or Friday Misc.
Over in Bloomingdale The Yoga District is having a mommy & me, but with a more inclusive title of
Family Yoga and Community Playtime.
The Great Scott Roberts also mentioned some
tasty info he got from a Bloomingdale restaurant hopefully to come at NJ & R.
According to WashBiz Journal, Beau Thai, a carry out, is due to open in March, hopefully, maybe, fingers crossed.
Speaking of restaurants on R, anyone know what's going on with 6th and R for the proposed
Toque Cafe? I've noticed a change of windows and the application of paper over the windows, so I hope there is something good going on behind the paper.
Over here in the TC, the
BACA blog tells that there will be a grand opening of the
Eckstine and Ellington Theatre at the Dorothy I Height Community Academy Public Charter Schools (CAPCS)school, also known as Armstrong, this weekend.
have a great weekend y'all.
Labels: Bloomingdale/Eckington, business, development, events, food/dining, kids
Waggamama
I'm thinking about lunch, and my lunch buddy just cancelled on me. We were going to check out one of the nearby places for Restaurant Week. It's cold and so I'm going to eat at the desk.
Anyway food got me wondering about Waggamama. The signs are still up on the windows on 7th Street, but so far no change.
Checked the website and it appears they will open Septemeber 2010.
Labels: business, food/dining
Say it ain't so- Vegetate Leaving
Oh no!
CCCA reports that Vegetate is leaving us. Their lease is up and they are investigating a new location. Where? Dunno.
It was about 4 years ago the neighborhood was battling for the restaurant against the protestations of Shiloh Baptist Church. In the years they have been on 9th Street I've enjoyed their veggie burger sliders. They've also been the go to option when I or friends of mine were abstaining from meat for Lent or other fasts, but we weren't abstaining from fine dining.
Labels: food/dining
Friday Misc pt 2
Now I remember that other thing, Painted Hand Farm, which has a booth at the Bloomingdale Farmers Market got a
write up in the Wednesday Food section (hey at least something survived the revamp). The article "Veal, cast in a kinder light," by Jane Black mainly talks about another farmer, but Sandy Miller gets some mention and a photo with two male calves. Also at her stall at the BFM she sells her neighbor's Keswick cheeses and pudding. As the weather cools I'll be making veal stock and I'll be needing Painted Hand's bones.
Labels: farmers markets, food/dining
Mo Thai?
Don't get me wrong, I do love Thai X-ing, but most of the time I lack the forethought to get my order in early enough before Taw gets too busy and stops taking new orders. So I turn to Royal Thai or Kanlaya in Gallery Place as both places deliver to my hood. Anyway quickly looking at the CCCA Agenda for October 27, I see something interesting.
Ralph Brabham will speak on behalf of the restaurateur planning to open Beau Thai, a new Shaw restaurant with outdoor seating on the 400 block of R St NW
However, isn't there an apartment under that proposed restuarant?
Labels: business, food/dining
Couple of weekend things
Several communities near and in Shaw will be having clean ups. In the Truxton part of Shaw on the 22nd is the Bates Area Clean Up to take place between 10AM and 1PM. One may gather at 1st and P. Now the thing about this clean up is you can join a group and clean up, over at 1st and P and work your way from that point. Or you can clean up your own street, sidewalk, front yard, whatever. The idea is to clean up and beautify the neighborhood.
From Anita:
Dear Neighbors,
This is a friendly reminder that our individual undivided attention is needed in front of our homes, the sidewalks, curbs and gutter, alleyways, treeboxes and flower gardens. Additionally, we can do "first-hand observation about the appearance and safety features requiring service in our community" -- areas missing grass, broken sidewalks, overrun tree boxes, inoperative fire hydrants, etc. Lets join together in the Neighborhood Clean up by giving whatever amount of time you can spare to helping to keep our community clean, safe and a great place to live for all.
Since I had mentioned canning this week and since I have a novice's idea of what I'm doing, may I suggest the canning lecture at the Historical Society (801 K Street, NW) at 1PM (yeah you can do it right after cleaning the community). Specifically it's called Family Urban Gardening: Cooking & Preserving Summer Bounties.
Labels: events, food/dining
Can Can
Yesterday at the Bloomingdale Farmer's Market I ran into MVSQ's Si and mentioned I was going to buy 20-some odd pounds of tomatoes to can. On the Eckington Listserv or was it Scotts Bloomingdale list there was an announcement that one of the vendors was selling a box of tomatoes for $12. I started talking about my plans for canning and Si said I need to blog about it. So, here's the first.
Supplies- I picked up my canning kit some time ago at the
5th Street Hardware store. They didn't have it in stock so they ordered it for me and I picked it up several days later. It's the Ball Canning Kit
item # 6096606 and it comes with everything you need for hot water canning and costs about $55 bucks. I also grabbed some 1/2 pint and 1 pint jars from the store as well. The kit comes with the Ball Blue Book Canning Guide, which is how I sort of figured out WTF I'm doing.
So that afternoon I had Mrs.
DC Education Blog, BL, come over so the near sighted could lead the blind. I had already canned a lot of strawberry vanilla fruit spread, some pineapples and some peaches. And so BL came to see how this canning thing is done.
I had already pealed and sorta quartered and sort of seeded the tomatoes when she came. They were of the seedy variety and at a certain point I gave up on trying to get all the seeds. I discovered I didn't have to wait long, or for the skins to crack, after letting them bob around in boiling water and then dunking them in ice cold water. Too long in the boiling water and those puppies cooked in their skins, scalding my hands when I went to peel, core and deseed them.
Okay this post is getting long, so I'll do a part two later.
Labels: farmers markets, food/dining
Shaw Homestead Report
No, that's not my yard, but the amazing front yard garden on 8th Street near the Giant. Comparatively, my yard is sort of disappointing. The tomatoes are just plants. A few sport some small green globes. So far I'm doing very well with arugula and I've been giving away the salad to friends and neighbors. Another salad item I've got going gangbusters in the yard is purslane. I saw it at the Mexican Fruit Stand and found out it is called 'Verdolagas'. But no need to buy it as I have tons of it. I just have to avoid steeping on it, and the arugula.
I also have growing cucumbers, beans, sage and a bunch of other herbs. The cukes are weird. I bought a particular variety of cucumber that formed softly furred baby cukes. The other plant (I swear from the same seed) has fruit with hard spikes.
I, like many it appears, have started experiementing with canning. My excuse is, I'm running out of room in my freezer and would like to remove the things that can be canned. I ordered a hot water canning kit from the
5th Street Hardware Store, then went back later to pick up the last set of 1/2 pint canning jars they had on the shelf. I'm hoping that if and when my tomatoes do come, I can can them. So far I've canned a banana rum jam and some peaches from a neighbor's yard. I'm still looking at the jars carefully to make sure I did it right. 72 hours and so far so good. I would can the cherries, but my favorite form of preservation is to soak them in vodka. I'm trying to see if the drunken cherries are somewhat shelf stable. Problem is I keep eating them.
Speaking of canning there are
a few articles in today's Post's
Food Section. One on 14th & U and Bloomingdale farmer's market vendor,
Stefano Figerio. Stefano's pastas are taking up space in my freezer, which is why I must can.
And some dissappointing news about food,
organic isn't as organic as we'd like. And if you really want to depress yourself (or not, depends on you) here's
a big ole organic agri-business chart. Last word, which makes this mess so sad, I was overhearing a conversation between a shopper and one of the farmers at the farmer's market. She wanted to know if the veggies were organic. The farmer tried explaining that he couldn't use that word "organic" because of the USDA rules and what not, but yes, no pesticides or unnatural fertilizers.
Labels: farmers markets, food/dining, gardening
Fringe Festival Item: A Tactile Dinner
Weird but good. I enjoyed it.
There was an announcement that went up on the
MVSQ blog about a preview for this... thing. So I went, not really knowing what to expect except that it was about food. I like food.
Food was deconstructed and the audience was the participant. No sitting back and just observing. It was a
futurist meal. We "ate" beef (or mushroom if vegetarian) air, had salad (locally grown) without the aid of forks and knives, had a sugar cube course, and ended the meal with a spray of coffee or tea. Throw in some dance, and wrap it in
futurism and a good time was had.
Labels: Art, events, food/dining
Fun with booze and farmer's market
I'm running out of "drunken cherries" for my chocolate ice cream with drunken cherries. My 'drunken cherries' are cherries that have been soaking in sugar and vodka for 3 months. The purpose of which is to make a cherry liquor. Depending on how it turns out, because the two batches I made several months ago tasted different. One tasted more like a cherry sugar syrup, the other like a upscale NyQuil. I blame the bottle and not so tight cap (and spill) and the off season supermarket cherries.
Anyway, this time around cherries from the farmers market! And Stoli! I have two new batches waiting to sit around for 3 months. I hope to make a small 3rd batch, using the farmer's market cherries, the organic vodka I got from Bloomingdale Liquors sometime back, and maybe some Florida Crystals, depending on how much those crystals cost.
The basic recipe, should you want to make some is:
1/2 pound of Bing cherries, unblemished and stems removed
1/2 pound of sugar
2 cups of vodka
Place cherries in quart (?) sized jar, pour sugar on cherries, pour in vodka. Cover, seal, whatever, and label. Leave on top of refrigerator for 3 months without touching or shaking or messing with.
If there are strawberries still available I will play with the idea of making a strawberry liquor. I have a blueberry liquor that I have yet to strain, and decide if it worth trying to make again when blueberries come into season.
Labels: farmers markets, food/dining
BFM on NPR's Morning Edition
This morning I awoke to the sound of thunder and went back to sleep. Then the clock radio clicked on, and I tried fighting not going back to sleep, and then a story caught my groggy attention. Listen to local resident and NPR reporter, Neda Ulaby's
report about our dear Bloomingdale Farmer's Market. You'll hear the voices of other locals Ted Mcginn, Robin Schuster, and Scott Roberts.
It is amazing how the area (though not in the TC I'm claiming it) got this wonderful market. It's got kids and dogs and so far so good with that. I've said it before the market has a great atmosphere, that I haven't experienced at some of the other DC markets. Dupont has a lot of great stuff, but OMG is it crowded. I ran into one in Georgetown it was rinky-dink, but then again it was closing down when I showed up. and the farmer's market (this was a while ago so it may have changed) near the Department of Ag, felt lacking. And Penn Quarter's farmers market, where I'm heading to after work, is good, but not the same.
I'm still loving the strawberries that are in season. I still have some waiting for turning into a strawberry spread, loosely based on
Copper Pot's recipe
seen on Fox 5. I halved all the ingredients, including the time but except the vanilla, and use the spread to make strawberry ice cream. The jellies Stefano Frigerio (Mr. Copper Pot) sells is firmer, more jell-y. Didn't see him last week at BFM, so I'll be keeping an eye out for him this weekend as his pasta sauces are wonderful.
Labels: Bloomingdale/Eckington, farmers markets, food/dining, media
Using Duck Eggs To Make Super Rich Chocolate Ice Cream
I blogged about how the duck eggs made my chocolate ice cream so rich it was like a brownie that melted in my mouth. Here's the recipe:
Adapted from David Lebovitz's "The Perfect Scoop"
Chocolate Ice Cream
2 cups of heavy cream*
3-5 Tbls of cocoa powder**
5 ounces of 100% Cocao/ bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup of milk***
3/4 cups of sugar
1/4 tsp of salt****
4 Mallard Duck egg yolks
1 chicken egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Warm 1 cup of cream in small pot with 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder. Try to eliminate or avoid clumps. Get it too a boil then bring down heat to a simmer for 30 seconds, while whisking. Remove from stove and add chocolate. Here is where I had problems where the mix refused to get smooth, separating into solid and oil, so I added more cocoa powder and cream, watered down with milk. Stir with spoon to get smooth. Transfer to a big heatproof bowl.
In that same pot heat milk, sugar and salt. In another bowl whisk the egg yolks. Slowly add heated milk mix to eggs. Start with a few tablespoons of milk and whisk, then move up to 1/4 cup of milk and whisk. Then take milk egg mix and pour back into pot. Slowly heat while stirring to make a custard. When it coats the back of the spoon, remove from heat and keep stirring.
Place a mesh strainer over the bowl with the chocolate and pour custard into bowl through the mesh. The mesh will capture big clumps of custard. Add vanilla. Take bowl and put in ice bath, or in my case set on top of ice pak. When decently cooled, place in fridge.
After about 12 hours has past, put in ice cream maker and churn.
* The first cup I used cream, the cream used later was more like half and half.
** original recipe called for 3, I added more later.
*** original recipe called for whole milk, I used 2%.
**** original recipe called for a pinch, I add more to keep my ice creams from being too hard and solid. Booze is better at this, but salt is more child friendly.
Labels: food/dining
Duck eggs
Sadly there were no duck eggs at the Bloomingdale Farmer's Market today when I showed up. They were available yesterday at the 14th & U market, but I didn't buy any there.
So what's the deal with duck eggs and how are they different from the chicken eggs?
When I first bought them all I was told was that bakers love duck eggs. Ok. When cooking with them, when I made scones, the only difference I noticed was they were bigger and seem to have more yolk. When I made straight scrambled eggs, I didn't care for them. But when I made ice cream, and I primarily used duck eggs there was a noticeable difference.
The ice cream recipe called for 5 egg yolks. I used 1 chicken egg and 4 duck eggs. When separating the white from the yolk, the egg was thick like a hair gel and the white didn't separate easily. I had to run my finger down the side of the broken shell to get the white to drop. After the duck eggs, I did the chicken egg, and it was like water. I followed the rest of the recipe and set the mix in the fridge overnight. When I took the mixture out and poured it into the ice cream maker it was like pudding. Really thick pudding. The finished product, chocolate ice cream, was like a frozen brownie that melted in your mouth.
Labels: farmers markets, food/dining
A mix of cheap and pricey
Maybe I would make sense to a marketer, or not. I love the Bloomingdale Farmer's Market (
this week's info at BACA Blog) and I will buy several items from the vendors there, even though they are more expensive than products I'd get at a regular supermarket. However, the quality most of the time is superior to the Giant or Safeway and neither of those places give me the experience of chatting with the producers.
On the other end, I shop at the messy and chaotic
Florida Market where I get items from the Mexican Fruit Stand. I complained to my roommate that the avocado I bought there cost me a whole $1. Last week it was 50 cents. It seems that avocados are supposed to be more than $1. I've been spoiled. The fruit stand is where I get my onions, garlic, potatoes, pineapples, bananas, mangoes, lemons and limes. I go through a lot of lemons and limes. Sometimes I do spot organic items at the fruit stand, most of the time, not.
Where quality matters I may go with the local and organic items. When I'm probably going to boil the bejeezus out of them or they will get lost in the background of other flavors, I'll go with the cheaper items. But the way I see it, the cheaper stuff saves me money so I can buy the higher quality items.
Labels: Capital City Market, farmers markets, food/dining
Thai X-ing
Thai X-ing is still a big hit according to my web stats. People, he has his own website at
www.thaix-ing.com .
Labels: food/dining
Lunch options in Penn Quarter
Dear Wagamama,
How dare you make me wait until 2010 for tasty ramen.
Love,
Mari
I thought I took a picture but apparently, no. Yesterday I spotted signage on 418 7th Street stating that the noodle chain I fell in love with in London will be coming in 2010. Better yet, it will be close enough and priced about right to make a regular lunch spot.
Labels: development, food/dining, other neighborhoods
BFM and a teaspoon of Rolling Thunder
Besides the bikes that a few of my neighbors have, I figured the rumbling I'd hear would be limited to them and a few of their friends. Nope.
Sunday at the Bloomingdale Farmer's Market, where I wandered over to get pasta and strawberries, I saw a parade of motorcycles lead by the police. This is not a good picture, but back on Florida Ave is where a small portion of the bikes can be seen. It was a good bunch, men, predominately Afro-American, on shiny big bikes, waving to the people and honking their horns. Traffic was blocked for several minutes and it went on long enough to make me wonder if I could get back to the other side of Florida.
The mini parade went on long enough that as they were passing my attention went back to buying things. I really like the
Copper Pot's pasta sauces and meat filled pastas. I'll admit, I'm not that big of a fan of the spaghetti, but I like very, very, very thin noodles. Last night I had the lamb angelico(?), the lamb stuffed pasta,with a cream sauce I made from cream, white wine, garlic, a bit of lemon juice and some sage growing out in the yard. OMG that's good. The week before I had the rabbit pasta, which is very delicate and requires a delicate sauce. So far the lamb is my favorite.
And there were two vendors selling strawberries. Last week I made strawberry frozen yogurt with those strawberries and that very smooth yogurt found at Timor's. That was very good and no I didn't give any of that away, like I normally do with a lot of my ice creams. So this week, I bought some more strawberries, from both vendors and once again made strawberry frozen yogurt, and pina colada sorbet. Both have booze in them so that limits who I can give them away to.
Unlike store bought strawberries, these in season, local kind, don't have that tasteless white center I often find. The farmer's market strawberries are tasty throughout.
Labels: Bloomingdale/Eckington, events, farmers markets, food/dining
Garlicy, feta pizza
I think it was on the Eckington listserv I saw mention of
Italy Pizza, a hole in the wall pizza joint at 634 Florida Ave NW. From the outside it doesn't look like much. Honestly, it look like a greasy carry out place you just keep walking by. But looks are deceiving. There is good pizza to be had.
I picked up a portabella mushroom pie. It was a thin crust pizza with a garlic herb sauce (not tomato), mozzerella and feta cheese, portabella mushrooms, roasted red peppers and a lot of spinach. It was good. Not as great as Matchbox but a tad better than Ella's. Looking at the carry out menu I see I could make my own stinky breath pizza with the garlic sauce, caramelized onions, red onions, white onions, fresh and roasted garlic and anchovies. When in the mood for pizza I'll definitely choose them again.
Labels: food/dining
Chickens in the City
I woke up this morning (cue blues riff), and heard a
report on WAMU saying that "Officials in the mayor's office say there is currently no law prohibiting raising chickens within city limits if residents follow guidelines on proper animal care and shelter."
As I remember, I thought there were laws on the books that in one way or another say no to chickens. Just to make sure I checked The City Chicken, which according to it's
chicken law page says, "Washington D.C. Housing chickens here violates health laws and is not legal."
Then I checked the online DC Code, plugging in Chicken, poultry and fowl. DC ST § 8-1808, says, "(d) No person shall change the natural color of a baby chicken, duckling, other fowl or rabbit." and "(f) No person shall sell or offer for sale a baby chicken, duckling, other fowl, or rabbit that has had its natural color changed." and more importantly:
(h)(1) Except as provided in this subsection, no person shall import into the District, possess, display, offer for sale, trade, barter, exchange, or adoption, or give as a household pet any living member of the animal kingdom including those born or raised in captivity, except the following: domestic dogs (excluding hybrids with wolves, coyotes, or jackals), domestic cats (excluding hybrids with ocelots or margays), domesticated rodents and rabbits, captive-bred species of common cage birds, nonpoisonous snakes, fish, and turtles, traditionally kept in the home for pleasure rather than for commercial purposes, and racing pigeons (when kept in compliance with permit requirements).
As I read that, I don't interpret chickens or quail or ducks or any other fowl one may want to raise in the city as a 'common caged bird'. And if I want pigeons, or
squab, they'd have to be racing pigeons and have a permit, issued by what agency I don't know.
So far with my limited knowledge it looks like chickens aren't permitted, nor are they illegal.
Labels: animals, food/dining
Inauguration Musings- Inaugural Stuff in Shaw
A- I'm not going anywhere. I've told the Aunt and the 1/2 sister that I will be home to receive them and their people should they need a warm safe house between the Mall and Hyattsville. Besides that, I hate cold and crowds.
As I mentioned before with the Aunt, there are several things
Shiloh Baptist is doing for Inauguration weekend, and there is a
website up regarding that.
For the artistically minded there is the
Art of Change at the Warehouse, here's the press release:
From the press release:
Artomatic, Inc. and Playa del Fuego, Inc. – institutions of the mid-Atlantic arts community – have joined together to create this year's most distinctive inaugural celebration, The Art of Change (www.artists-ball.org), on Jan. 20, 2009 at 8 pm. With the generous support of Corporate Sponsor Scion (www.scion.com) and location sponsors The Warehouse Arts Complex (www.warehousetheater.com) and Douglas Development (www.douglasdevelopment.com), this event brings Washington, D.C., a unique opportunity to celebrate the inauguration of Barack Obama as President. Tickets are available immediately for $50 at www.artists-ball.org
Occupying three separate venues on the 1000 block of 7th Street, NW in downtown Washington D.C., The Art of Change will feature visual and performing arts, multiple dance floors, fire dancing and live music. DJs from across the mid-Atlantic region will be spinning an eclectic mix of musical styles on two dance floors, and in The Art of Change Galleries, displaying artworks created for this celebration. The Variety Stage will showcase performances all night long, including live music, comedy, belly dancing and spoken word poetry. And outside, attendees will enjoy fire-dance performances while dancing to up-and-coming DJs in the heated White Tent.
...
In the spirit of community organizing and collaboration that President-elect Obama has come to represent, The Art of Change is being planned in collaboration with a number of supporting organizations. These include DC Burners, Dance Afire, Bethesda Theatre, Cultural Attaché, Washington Project for the Arts, 4&9 Productions LLC, Brightest Young Things, The Pink Line Project, Pecha Kucha , Creative DC, Hungry for Music, Capitol Riverfront BID, and NoMa BID.
This collaborative ethic also facilitates social engagement by making us all responsible for the creation and maintenance of our shared culture. We encourage all attendees to contribute by performing, displaying art, volunteering, or donating to make this event a success. For more information visit www.artists-ball.org.
And there are some dining specials in Shaw celebrating the inauguration.
Acadiana Restaurant on 9th and New York Ave is having a 4-course menu for $44. A bottle wine for $44 to honor the 44th President. Two Inaugural Cocktails: The Dream and The Spirit ($9), and the regular menu also available.
Corduroy plans to be open, and I don't think they are doing anything special. Same for
Vegetate, open with the regular menu. Since these are close to the Secret Service Lockdown, I'm going to suggest if you reserve through
OpenTable, bring a printout confirming your reservation, should you get stopped by some out of town constable, to prove (you shouldn't have to but be on the safe side) you indeed have business in the area.
Labels: Art, events, food/dining, inauguration
Chef, Church, Contractor, Coffee
This posting is for stuff on the backburner I'd been meaning to post. So, going in alphabetical order
ChefChef Jean Claude LeLan that is. About a week ago I took my 3rd or 4th class with him and they are always wonderful learning and eating experiences. His classes tend to be on Sunday mornings at 10 at his home in Mt. Vernon Sq., so even after having a rich meal and a good deal of wine, I can toddle or waddle back home for a good nap. The next class he's having is the sauce class January 11th. I've taken it and it is well worth it because Chef Jean-Claude is a hoot, you get to take some sauces home and the after class meal is brunch. I also recommend that you take good notes and ask questions because the handouts are general and some steps are not mentioned or can be adjusted or are estimates or there are ideas that come out of the class.
Chef Jean Claude also offers catering and cooking classes in your home. I am tempted to have him cater, but a cooking class would not work. My kitchen is tiny.
ChurchChurch of the Immaculate Conception at 8th and N NW is one of two Roman Catholic Churches in Shaw, the other is
St. Augustine. The pastor of Immaculate Conception, Rev. Msgr. James Watkins resides in Shaw, so he is a part of the community. Mass is as follows- Saturday 5:30 (29 minutes or less or your next mass is free); Sunday 9AM (1 hour), 11AM (about 1.5 hours), 6PM (Latin. Fr. Watkins' Latin is lovely, everybody else....eh). And don't bother with the
website, it is stuck in Dec 2006.
CoffeeNot exactly in Shaw, but close, and they asked nice, and I needed another 'C'...
Hi,
I'm Ongisa and we just opened up CocoLibre at 786 Harvard St. NW. It's a Fair Trade Cafe' that specializes in certified tea, coffee, and chocolate- plus your typical coffee shop fare like paninis and pastries. I know we aren't exactly in Shaw, but we're close. If you could give us a shout-out or something, that would be great. Check us out on the web- www.cocolibre.com. Feel free to hype us up and stop in for some great organic (and ethical) tea! Thanks.
ContractorSome of y'all wanted my contractor's contact info. Well my 2007 big renovation job and my 2002-2003 kitchen job were done by David of Something Different Contracting, 2/321-6416. I do recommend him for your big house projects (things that may require permits). David is very communicative, and lives close, in Frozen Tropic land (Old City 1). He has worked with older homes and will work with you to salvage any old beauty that may still exist in your home. You can email me at mari at inshaw daht com if you have questions you want to ask.
Labels: business, churches, food/dining, renovation
Want to join me for lunch Nov 17?
or sometime that week?
I got a promo email from Opentable advertizing their
"Appetite Stimulus Plan", which is sort of like Restaurant Week but $4-$5 more. Anyway I noticed a few Shaw and Mt. Vernon Square favorites, like
Corduroy (lunch only) and
1905 (dinner only). There is also Vegetate and Acadiana. And I thought, I'd be willing to trek up to Corduroy for lunch from Penn Quarter. So if anyone else is working around Penn Quarter/ Gallery Place or at home in Shaw and care to join me for lunch at Corduroy, drop me an email in the next week or so at mari at inshaw period com.
Labels: food/dining
Fall garden
It must be tomato time, because they are all over the place. Well all over the place in the yard. Though 2 of the 6 backyard tomatoes plants were complete duds (no fruit), The front yard tomatoes have been making up for it. For the past couple of weeks I've been bringing my overflow tomatoes to work and giving the to co-workers.
The San Marzano Roma tomato plant has been obnoxiously fruitful as of late. After grabbing the mail I will notice some tomatoes ready to be freed from the vine, which are then deposited on the radiator in the entryway. I had about a dozen of the sometimes rudely shaped fruits sitting on the radiator, when I figure it's time for sauce making.
My method is simple. Wash tomatoes. Cut off bottom blossom rot (a problem part of the potted tomatoes). Remove seeds. Cut in half or several pieces. Throw in pot. Add water as needed. Heat on low. Find something else to do while it turns into pasta sauce mush. Throw in salt, maybe remove skins, or not. Maybe add garlic, cream, herbs, or whatever I feel like, or not. Cool. Label. Freeze.
As the tomatoes are doing their thing, I'm planting seeds for winter foodstuffs. Pretty much beets, leeks, garlic, and onions. The arugula and coriander were sown earlier and I expect them to serve me through the winter like they did last year. I'll see if the parsley will last.
Labels: food/dining, gardening
Windows Cafe Gettin' All Fancy
Bloomingdale's Scenic Artisan has reported that the cafe is
serving real food:
1. California mixed greens, shaved organic fiesta fennel, oranges, pinenuts, artichoke and balsamic vinaigrette. $8.95.
2. Pesto Canadian fresh salmon over saffron couscous. $11.95
3. Roasted Portobello, roasted red peppers, chevre, artichoke omelet with potato hash. $8.95.
4. Capalleni Angel Hair pasta with chipotle clam sauce. $8.95.
5. Grilled chicken breast topped with pepperoni, mozzarella on a rosemary focaccia. $8.95.
Soups $2.95:
roasted red pepper & tomato
cream of potato
I'll admit the nothing to write home about food was one of the reasons that kept me from Windows. The other reasons were I would have to cross 2 major roads to get there and it was too far. I'm going to have to check them out.
Labels: food/dining
East of New Jersey Challenge: Sorbet
I would have here Mango sorbet as the mangoes at the Mexican fruit stand were quite ripe, but the recipe calls for gelatin, and I don't know where you get that east of New Jersey.Instead...
Mojito Sorbet
1 cup Sugar (G & S or any quicki-mart)
2 cups Water (WASA)
5 Sprigs of Mint (my front yard/ Bloomingdale Farmer's Mkt)
1/4 cup lime juice (Mexican Fruit Stand-Capital City Market)
2 Tlb of Rum (Bloomingale Liquors)
Zest of two limes (Mexican Fruit Stand)
2 Tlb of mint cut into very thin strips (front yard)
Take sugar and water in a small pot, heat and stir till sugar dissolves. Simmer for 5 mins. Remove from heat. Throw in sprigs. Leave for 10-20 minutes.
Filter out mint (maybe use a strainer) and pour into a bowl. Add lime juice, rum and zest. Chill to 40F.
If you have an ice cream maker- follow manufacturer's instructions regarding sorbets. Add mint strips when you're done churning.
If you don't have an ice cream maker- use a stainless steel cake pan. Pour mixture so that it is no more than an inch deep. Place in freezer and agitate/ stir with fork every hour till frozen. Take batches of frozen concoction and place in blender. Get something slushy, add mint strips. Freeze and eat later.
Next time I'll try something without booze.
Labels: Capital City Market, food/dining
East of NJ Ave Challenge: Bananna Liqueur
I had an idea to share some recipes as well as promote some Bloomingdale businesses and the Capital City Market, and that idea is the East of NJ Ave challenge. The challenge is to create a few yummy things from items east of New Jersey Avenue and west of.... oh face it I don't bike past the Capital City/Florida Market. The borders are fuzzy. I don't know how much of a challenge it would be when there is a great farmers market in Bloomingdale, Timor, a big honking chaotic warehouse district, and whatever I or my neighbors grow in their gardens. Yes, a big cheat is the stuff I grow in my yard. Not much of a challenge and it's an excuse to talk about food.
So
Banana LiqueurRecipe from
Homemade Liqueurs by Dona Z. Meilach & Mel Meilach (1979).
2 Ripe Bananas (Mexican Fruit -Capital City Market)
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract (Don Pepe's - Capital City Market) or 2" vanilla bean
1 cup of sugar syrup (see below)
3 cups of vodka (Bloomingdale Liquor)
Take the bananas, peel them, squish them and place in jar. Add the rest of the ingredients to jar. Tightly screw on jar top, and leave in the back of a cool/dark closet for 1 week. After a week strain and filter to capture liquid. You can drink it but let it mature if you can, for 2-3 months.
Simple Syrup1 cup of water (WASA)
1 cup of sugar (G&S Grocery on 1500 blk of NJ Ave)
Combine the two in a saucepan. Heat and stir contents until mixture is somewhat clear. Cool and refrigerate. Add a smidge of vodka as preservative.
Labels: Capital City Market, food/dining
In search of a Happy Hour
Guess what? There is a dress code at
Corduroy. I suspected as much when I called up Jimbo and suggested we head over and check out the happy hour.
Jimbo was quite casual, sporting shorts, sandals and a tee. Jim had quite a
bit of news, which you can read over at his blog, and so we talked about that on our way over to 9th Street.
Heading down 9th we stopped by the
Long View Gallery. The cool painting in the window, of the flag wrapped like a bag (see pictured), just hung today, already sold. There is another blog posting about the opening for the artist Richard Currier,
by Shaw Rez. The opening is this Friday, but I've already now seen it. I like the style and Drew mentioned that some of (or one of) Currier's is in a museum somewhere. Oh, and there were two happy pooches in the gallery. Almost everytime I've been to Long View there is a canine in the house.
Anyway, we gave our reviews and said our goodbyes and continued on to Corduroy. And then we discovered the dress code. Shorts were a no-no. I didn't even consider Jim's shorts, I thought the sport sandals would be the deal breaker. The maitre'd asked if Jim lived close enough to change, but we decided to just come back another day. And I do hope to come back another day an try out their happy hour. That day, someone will be wearing pants, and maybe close toed shoes.
As I mentioned earlier, I suspected there was a dress code so I had a plan B.
Vegetate also has a happy hour, so we turned northward on 9th. Mini-veggie burgers are good. So are the accompanying fries.
Labels: Art, food/dining
