04.16 - boats against the current
what’s going on in d.c.
Take your picnic to the water at The Wharf by renting an eight person boat and taking a few hour spin around D.C.’s waterways.
Logan Circle’s Viceroy Hotel is partnering with Blue Ribbon Floral for a bouquet making and rosé-sipping session on Saturday at 3 PM. Tickets are $40 and include a bouquet to take home.
Feeling active? Over the next few Saturdays, Navy Yard restaurants are teaming up with running store Pacers to offer a Brunch on the Go experience - a guided running/stretching event followed by a meal from Osteria Morini, Shilling Canning Co., or Chloe.
let’s talk food and drinks
my weekly best bite: The cornbread skillet at Ruthie’s All Day in Arlington
Little Food Studio in Petworth is a new grab-and-go spot serving breakfast and lunch receiving rave reviews. The Black woman-owned restaurant is selling out most days, so get there early to guarantee a bite. Another eatery selling out most days - Donut Run in Takoma, which reopens tomorrow after recovering from a break-in.
Another new spot to check out - Gatsby opened last week across the street from Nationals Park. The art deco diner features a wide-ranging menu that is fitting for the expansive, two-story, space.
Or, looking for a “new to you” spot to try for an outdoor happy hour? Here’s seven options with a little creativity in their offerings - late night sushi, all-you-can eat food and drink, and Instagram-friendly frozen cocktails.
what’s on our minds?
A classic D.C. bonding experience - complaining about gate 35X at DCA - is no more. A new 14-gate concourse for American Airlines replaces the pre-departure packed shuttle buses and honestly, looks super swanky. DCist and Washington Post reporters took some early pictures prior to the concourse’s soft opening on Tuesday.
D.C. restaurants are struggling to hire - an issue pre-pandemic, but one seemingly exacerbated by the pandemic. While some may assume extended federal unemployment benefits are driving the issue, research isn’t bearing that out - a UMass study found that states with “less generous unemployment benefits” haven’t seen any faster rebounds in hiring. Instead, uncertainty of hours/staffing and safety concerns are key points of hesitancy for Washington City Paper’s Laura Hayes’ hospitality interviewees.
Hundreds of cyclists held a memorial bike ride last night to honor Jim Pagels, a Washingtonian killed earlier this week while riding a Capital Bikeshare near 2nd and Mass Ave NW. D.C.’s traffic deaths have increased for two consecutive years, and advocates are calling on the city to improve bicycle and pedestrian safety.
Quick links to other weekly #goodreads:
This DC Real-Estate Agent Is Like the Hugh Hefner of Mansion Porn - per Washingtonian, “Daniel Heider is the millennial king of DC real estate. That he’s become a star of mansion TikTok makes the competition shudder even more.”
The ‘Herald Square Bomber’ Who Wasn’t - per The New York Times Magazine, “Since 9/11, U.S. authorities have used informants to convict hundreds of people of crimes related to international terrorism. Did the informants help create plots where none had existed?”
A Kidnapping Gone Very Wrong - per The Atlantic, “In 1974, John Patterson was abducted by the People’s Liberation Army of Mexico—a group no one had heard of before. The kidnappers wanted $500,000, and insisted that Patterson’s wife deliver the ransom.”
The Redemption of Justin Bieber - per GQ, “Two things brought Justin Bieber back, ultimately: his marriage and his faith. What they had in common was that they were value systems that didn’t depend on him performing in exchange for money.”
what are we watching/reading?
Hype: How Scammers, Grifters, and Con Artists Are Taking Over the Internet—and Why We're Following by Gabrielle Bluestone. In this buzzy read, Bluestone, a reporter who also executive produced Netflix’s Fyre Festival documentary, digs into how social media personas push society “past truth” and into new methods of fraud (beyond Fyre Festival, we’re talking Theranos, Anna Delvey, and questionable influencers such as Danielle Bernstein and Caroline Calloway)