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Eliot Seppa and friends entertain dinner guests at Marvin on April 15, 2019.
Marvin (2007 14th St. NW, DC), long favored for one of most DC’s relaxing decks, a sophisticated ambiance, and creative cocktails, has grown to add free live music to its appeal.
Arc The Hotel at night
Boutique inn Arc The Hotel hosted a reception in Foggy Bottom recently to showcase the opening of its restaurant Notti 824, now the closest dining establishment to the Kennedy Center (outside of the Kennedy Center, of course).
#ChefsForFeds
As the federal government shutdown continues, we at Parklife DC have become increasingly outraged by the treatment of federal workers living in our city. So we urge you to donate or volunteer for Jose Andres’ World Central Kitchen to help.
Diners gather on Pennsylvania Ave. NW for Diner En Blanc DC in 2017. (Photo by S Pakhrin)
Every year, thousands of diners gather for the world-famous Diner En Blanc, where they wear all white and picnic in a secret location in a major city. This year, in Washington, DC, Diner En Blanc takes place on Aug. 25, and you can sign up for the waiting list to receive an invitation!
The Emporiyum is tasty (Photo from http://theemporiyum.com/)
It’s that time once again to start focusing on food. Amazing, delicious food. Cookies, cakes and pies, ramen burgers (yes, it exists), lobster, dumplings, cheese, bacon, beignets, buns, beer and more!
Don’t worry, I’ll give you a moment to take all that in.
All good? On November 12th and 13th the Emporiyum returns to Union Market with over 90 purveyors of food, artisans and vendors.
A ticket gets you into the marketplace, where you can sample, sip, shop and generally be immersed in all things food-inspired.
There will also be a DJ and hand-crafted items to browse and buy.
Make a day of it or just go for a couple of hours – the ticket options are flexible.
Buy your tickets here.
The Emporiyum DC
Union Market & Dock 5 (1309 5th St NE)
Saturday, November 12 and Sunday, November 13, 2016
10:00am-3:00pm (depending on ticket)
$15 (Entry: 1:30pm), $25 (Early Entry: 11:00am Entry), $40 (VIP Entry: 10:00am)
All ages (12 and under are free)
Kick the Food History Festival off right with “Cookies and Kindness with Dorie Greenspan” (Photo Credit: thethrillstheyyield)
The Smithsonian hosts its annual Food History Festival on Saturday, October 29th at the National Museum of American History, while also offering other pre-events to get you in the mood. Plus an after hours beer event on ‘The Great History of American Brewing’.
Thursday, October 27th
The Food History Gala: A seated dinner and fundraiser.
Friday, October 28th
Roundtables: A day of moderated discussions on the ‘politics’ of food and health.
Dine Out: Afterwards, almost 30 restaurants in DC and VA will offer a special dish inspired by American food history. Learn more here.
Saturday, October 29th
Food History Festival: Live demonstrations, talks, book signings and other ways to learn about food and its history in our country. Find the full schedule of the Food History Festival here.
The Great History of American Brewing ($40): Taste beers, try food and learn a bit of history over four historical tales. Breweries include Alewerks, Heavy Seas and Bluejacket, along with New Columbia Distillers. Get tickets here.
Smithsonian Food History Weekend
Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History
Thursday-Saturday, October 27-29, 2016
Festival: October 29 (10am-5:30pm)
Free (The Great History of American Brewing and the Gala require tickets)
All ages
Taste of DC (Photo Credit: U.S. Department of Agriculture)
On October 8th and 9th, take a trek down to Pennsylvania Ave NW for the annual Taste of DC.
The 2016 edition will feature over 60 restaurants, along with live music, food demonstrations and tastings of over 100 beers and wines. Also look out for the Ben’s Chili Bowl chili eating contest…
The food options will be as diverse as you might want, from Croatian to BBQ to ice cream to Italian to Indian to Mexican to sushi to Turkish and beyond. There will be a Bier Garten with 50 beers. Five oz. tastes range from $2-4.
You can choose from a few ticket options, from the basic $20 General Admission (includes drink voucher, $10 towards food) all the way up to the $60 Tastemaker (free drink samples, $25 voucher, special access, etc.). They also have the Tastemaker Plus that gives you access to behind the scenes sessions like women in the food industry or local distilleries, among others.
Get your tickets here.
Taste of DC 2016
Pennsylvania Ave NW (between 3rd St – 7th St)
Saturday and Sunday, October 8 and 9
Sat: 1-8pm
Sun: 11am-6pm
$10-$80
All ages
View of H Street NE (Photo by IntangibleArts)
This year’s H Street Festival takes place on Saturday, September 17th and will feature over 250 vendors, plying their food, drinks, wares and activities.
It will span a lengthy 10 blocks (bigger every year) between 4th St. NE and 14th St. NE.
Look out for the music, the beer gardens, a pie eating contest, dance performances, fashion shows, a DC Comics superhero costume contest and much more.
The festival won Washington City Paper’s Best Community Festival six years running. It does get quite crowded, with estimates of 125,000 adventurers from last year!
There is also a handy app from H Street Main Street you can download, to ensure you don’t miss anything. Search for and download ‘H Street Main Street’ from the iTunes App Store or Google Play.
UPDATE on 9/15/16: The Festival app has been updated with performance/music stage locations, lineups and times. Looks like there will be nine stages and something for everyone. Download the app now. You can also find the schedule of performances here.
H Street Festival 2016
H Street NE (between 4th St. and 14th St. blocks)
Saturday, September 17, 2016
12:00-7:00pm
Free (pay for food, drink and shopping)
All ages
You can eat THIS!
Food. One word is all it takes to get most of us excited.
It might be a particular cuisine or style or dish (of the moment), but just the thought of it will cause you to perk right up.
Well, you are luck. No matter what you’re jonesing for at this particular moment, they are sure to have it at The Emporiyum at Union Market on Saturday, November 14th and Sunday, November 15th.
Over 75 vendors will offer some delicious food option for you to sample. And drinks I guess. And maybe some shopping if that’s what you’re in to.
But really, go for the food!
The Emporiyum DC
Dock 5 @ Union Market
Saturday, November 14 and Sunday, November 15
10:00am-3:00pm (depending on ticket)
$15 (1:00pm Entry), $25 (11:00am Entry), $40 (VIP, 10:00am Entry)
All ages
While you’re pondering what to have for lunch, remember that Saturday, October 24th, The Smithsonian will host a Food History Festival at The National Museum of American History.
What is a Food History Festival?
Well, expect lots of live cooking demonstrations (innovating salsas and guacamole or Oaxacan cooking, anyone?), book signings from authors of a culinary persuasion, agricultural displays, hands-on activities at the Spark!Lab and the Victory Garden, and a few film screenings and discussions. The documentary film, Farmland, following six young American farmers looks to be interesting.
Check out the full schedule.
Even if you don’t like food (please, you love it), this still affords you the excuse to visit The National Museum of American History once again!
The Smithsonian Food History Festival
The National Museum of American History
Saturday, October 24
10:00am-5:30pm
Free
All ages