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D.C. restaurants, bars ready to celebrate Pride

Many drink, food specials to benefit local LGBTQ charities

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A bartender at Dacha pours a Pride Pils from DC Brau in 2019. (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Capital Pride looks different this year as the city wakes from its pandemic closures. While official Pride events are mostly virtual in June, bars and restaurants will still have plenty going on to celebrate and commemorate LGBTQ+ Pride in DC.

Selected options for drinks, food, and events are listed below.

Food & Drinks

Aslin Beer Company (847 S Pickett St., Alexandria) made news this spring with an announcement of a planned second location on 14th Street where Dacha had sought to open a location. The brewery will again produce its ā€œNow More Than Everā€ beer, an 8.6% double IPA hopped with citra and sabro, in recognition of Pride month. It will be $20 for a pack.

Astro Doughnuts & Fried Chicken (1308 G St., N.W.) is circling the Pride square with fried goodies. At all three locations, the Pride doughnut ($3.75) is a vanilla glazed with rainbow sprinkles ā€“ plus other decorations, including one with a non-edible rainbow ring that can be worn after the doughnut is enjoyed. A portion of proceeds go to SMYAL.

ANXO Cidery (300 Florida Ave., N.W.) is producing a Pride cider, with a portion of proceeds benefitting Casa Ruby. It will be a Northern Spy apple cider, fermented dry in in stainless steel. It is sugar-free and gluten-free, and will sold nationwide. The can will be decked out in rainbow colors.

Karma Modern Indian (611 I St., N.W.) is offering a special cocktail for the month of June: the Banyan Shade ($14). Itā€™s made with Tito’s Vodka, Domaine Canton, and ā€œSpinach Aquaā€ and has a garnish resembling a colorful flag. Karma will be making a donation to Casa Ruby from the proceeds.

Dirty Habit DC is having “Colors of the Rainbow,ā€ a month-long series during which the restaurant will feature a different color themed food and beverage offering each week. A portionĀ of sale of every “Colors of the Rainbow” signature item will be donated to the Human Rights CampaignĀ and PFLAG.

As an LGBTQ-owned business, KNEAD Hospitality + Design is supporting the Capital Pride Alliance by donating a portion of proceeds on punch cocktails at all KNEAD restaurants: The Grill, Succotash, Gatsby, and Mi Vida, on June 12 and 13.

Foxtrot Market (1267 Wisconsin Ave., N.W.), the new upscale corner store and cafĆ© in Georgetown,Ā is partnering with Brooklyn artist Cute BruteĀ to create a Confetti Cake Brownie for the month of June. Proceeds from sales of the brownie will go to Casa Ruby.

In keeping to its annual tradition, DC Brau Brewing is making its hops queer, with a limited run of a special PRIDE PILS. Proceeds will go to benefit SMYAL. DC Brau will do a second run of PRIDE PILS in October, benefiting The Blade Foundation, set for the weekend of National Coming Out Day.

El Tamarindo, the Mexican-Salvadoran restaurant more than three decades old, is serving a Walter Mercado cocktail ($11), garnished with an elegant orchid. The front window display is dedicated to Walter Mercado and his cultural influence. Proceeds from the drink go to Casa Ruby.

The eco-friendly plant-based fast-food joint HipCityVeg is mixing up its first-ever Pride drink: The Love Shake, served all June long. This strawberry shake is topped with rainbow and glitter sprinkles and gets a compostable rainbow straw. A percentage of sales go to SMYAL and Whitman-Walker. ā€œWe wanted something colorful and festive that would both raise spirits and raise funds for organizations that serve the community,ā€ explains Director of Marketing Aviva Goldfarb. ā€œWe have tons of LGBTQ+ staff members and customers and knew this would also be meaningful (and fun) for them. Plus, we have seasonal strawberry shakes in stores in June so adding the colorful and glittery sprinkles and the rainbow straw made sense.ā€Ā 

Events

Dacha Beer Garden (1600 7th St., N.W., and 79 Potomac Ave., S.E.) is hosting a Cause Tuesday fundraiser with Gay for Good on Tuesday, June 7, and a Dacha Beer Club with local brewery 7 Locks on Wednesday, June 8. The Beer Club event will showcase the 7 Locks Surrender Dorothy beer, part of the sour series Bitch Monkey. Dacha will have a Dorothy Drag surprise, and guests are encouraged to wear their Wizard of Oz best. Special Dacha brand tank tops will be on sale at both locations.

Via the Capital Pride Alliance is its official weekly mixer of Pride Season, Hooked on Capital Pride! It will take place at Hook Hall (3400 Georgia Ave., N.W.) in Petworth. Every Wednesday beginning June 9, there will be drink specials, music, and celebrations. A portion of the proceeds from this event will support the Capital Pride Alliance and partner Pride organizations through the GivePride365 Fund. Every reservation will include a bottle of Rose Bubbly, and a celebration kit. This event will take place on June 9, 16, 23, and 30 from 3-9 p.m.

Bark Social (935 Prose St, North Bethesda, Md.) is partnering with Montgomery County Council member Evan Glass to celebrate D.C. Pride with a PAWrade and canine costume contest on Saturday, June 12 from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. This beer garden and coffee house for dogs and humans will create a rainbow-filled canine festival of pride + paws. The bar will pour a special Pride-inspired cocktail with proceeds donated to the Moco Reconnect Center to work with other local creating inclusive spaces for LGBTQ+ youth.

Capital Pride is hosting a citywide Sunday funday on June 13 to support local LGBTQ businesses with the first-ever city-wide Taste of Pride Brunch. Various local restaurants have made a commitment to support Pride and local LGBTQ+ charities, featuring food items, drink specials, and entertainment. The event will raise awareness and resources for the GivePride365 Fund, benefiting local LGBTQ+ charities, and help to ensure the return of a full-scale Pride in 2022.

The speakeasy-style back room at Capo Deli (715 Florida Ave.) rounds out Pride weekend parties with an post-brunch event Sunday, June 13, 2-5 p.m. The event, called Bubbles & Bass, features DJ Babbitt and DJ Chris Adam playing disco over rose, Champagne, and other drink specials.

Caboose CommonsĀ (2918 Eskridge Rd., Fairfax, Va.) and its dog-friendly patio is hosting an event for Pride on Saturday, June 19 with Beer Babes Drag. There will be two seatings (12 p.m. and 3 p.m.) and a portion of sales (including items sold) will support PFLAGĀ and the National LGBTQ Task Force.

Celebrate PRIDE with a staycation, via Kimpton Monaco. This hotel is the Trevor Project’s ā€œPremiere National Hotel Partner.ā€ When guests make a reservation at Hotel Monaco D.C., Kimpton will donate $10/night to The Trevor Project, and guests receive 15% off the hotel’s ā€œBest Flexible Rate.ā€

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Dining

New D.C. restaurants opening just in time for spring

Mexican fare, burgers, fancy cocktails, and more on tap

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Many restaurants, bars, and hotels are planning events across the city for the National Cherry Blossom Festival later this month.

Shaking off winter slumber, the D.C. dining scene this spring is gathering steam. Just a taste of the openings and happenings are below:

Already Open

Pascual (732 Maryland Ave., N.E.): This modern Mexican restaurant is helmed by chefs Isabel Coss and Matt Conroy of LutĆØce, and run by The Popal Group (which also owns Lapop and Lapis). Pascual gets its name from the patron saint of cooks and kitchens. The menu, which rests on fire-grilled dishes, is inspired by Cossā€™s Mexico City roots, and both chefsā€™ past work at top Mexican restaurants. Pascual plans to add a daytime bakery and coffee shop called VolcĆ”n.

Moon Rabbit (927 F St., N.W.): Chef Kevin Tien abruptly closed his Moon Rabbit restaurant on the Wharf a year ago during union negotiations by staff of the Intercontinental Hotel, where the restaurant was located. This reopening represents a welcome comeback of this fine-dining Vietnamese restaurant. The restaurant concept will be the same, but will have new dishes for the new space.

Joia Burger (3213 Mt. Pleasant St., N.W.): Itā€™s smash patties and French fries that make up the entire menu of this fun-filled carryout spot. Run by Purple Patch chef/owner Patrice Cleary, she brings burgers (including veggie burgers) in a family-friendly and homey atmosphere, as well as vibrant ube soft serve as a nod to her Filipino heritage.

Coming soon

Press Club (1506 19th St., N.W.) is an intriguing new spot from industry old-timers including Will Patton (from Bresca and JĆ“nt). Located in Dupont Circle, it will be a new bar and cocktail lounge based on the format of records (i.e. sides A and B). The a la carte ā€œTrack Listā€ menu is a cocktail menu that rotates biannually featuring the teamā€™s favorite spirits and techniques. The curated ā€œPlay Listā€ menu is a bi-monthly rotating cocktail flights highlighting more seasonal ingredients, presented tableside with supplemental bites. The cocktails will draw inspiration from songs loved by the founders and are arranged to resemble the flow of a record.

Immigrant Food (4245 N. Fairfax Dr.): The restaurant group combining global dishes and advocacy is set to open a new spot in Ballston. Immigrant Food has three locations already: the Planet Word Museum, by the White House and in Union Market. The restaurant will feature both indoor and outdoor dining areas by the Ballston Metro.

 Bar Japonais (1520 14th St., N.W.): This restaurant is still forthcoming in the former Estadio space, set for later this spring. It will be a take on its sister restaurant Bar Chinois in Mount Vernon Square. Bar Japonais will bring together French and Japanese influences. Developed in the izakaya style, the restaurant will have Japanese-leaning food and French-leaning cocktails, and has weekly events in the works.

Dogon, at Salamander Hotel (1330 Maryland Ave., S.W.), is a highly anticipated opening from celebrity chef Kwame Onwauchi. The opening represents his return to D.C. with a concept inspired by D.C. Surveyor Benjamin Banneker and Onwauchiā€™s heritage to the West African Dogon tribe. Pronounced ā€œDoh-gon,ā€ the restaurant will serve vibrant cuisine through an Afro-Caribbean lens and draw from Onwuachiā€™s unique Nigerian, Jamaican, Trinidadian, and Creole background. 

Alfreda (2016 P St., N.W.): A pizzeria in Dupont Circle, named for the chefā€™s grandmother. The pizzas – made on a sourdough crust and including gluten-free options – are based on more traditional techniques, but using global flavors. The menu also includes salads, small plates, and a long wine list.

Beresovsky’s Deli: Gay-owned KNEAD Hospitality + Design is teasing a deli later this year. It will be located inside the preexisting Mah-Ze-Dahr Navy Yard location. 

Events

The Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington (RAMW), is expanding from its winter and summer Restaurant Weeks to give diners another opportunity to celebrate the change of seasons with Spring Wine Fling. Spring Wine Fling is a platform for local eateries to highlight their wine programs with creative pairings. Participating locations will showcase their wine programs through curated wines paired with two-course prefix $55 menu offered during dinner service. 

National Cherry Blossom Festival: RAMW is also working with the National Cherry Blossom Festival. The National Park Service has anticipated peak bloom dates for 2024 between March 23ā€“26. The festival has developed a full list (called ā€œcherry picksā€) of where to eat as part of the celebration. Many restaurants, bars, and hotels have also set up activations and events across the city.

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Pastry chef Alex Levin creates desserts with global influences

And now heā€™s on a quest to bake the perfect chocolate chip cookie

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Alex Levin

A decade as a decorated pastry chef in Washington, D.C., and Alex Levin knows how to create a global realm of desserts. But he also knows that the whole is tastier than the sum of its parts.

Levin serves as Executive Pastry Chef and as part of the executive team for Schlow Restaurant Group, where heā€™s worked since 2017. Heā€™s crafted desserts for the groupā€™s breadth of restaurant cuisines, from Spanish at Tico (recently rebranded as Japanese Nama Ko), American at now-closed Riggsby, Japanese at Nama and Nama Ko, and Italian at the several Alta Strada spots. He also throws an annual sold-out bakery pop-up for Thanksgiving and for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. ā€œThereā€™s something fun and so meaningful to spend nine straight days making food that will be a part of so many peopleā€™s celebrations,ā€ he says.

Yet as a gay man, he also strives for representation and a focus on supporting the LGBTQ community.

After graduating from Yale and focusing on a career in management and finance, Levin fled that industry to attend the Culinary Institute of America to follow his passion for pastry and restaurant management. After graduation, he trained at restaurants like Jean Georges and Cafe Boulud in New York, and moved to D.C. in 2013 to open Osteria Morini as pastry chef. There, he made a name for himself, earning a spot on Eaterā€™s Young Guns in 2015 and in 2016, he earned the title of Best Pastry Chef from the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington. 

It was a time of invention in the dessert space. Levin was deeply embedded in some of that boundary-stretching.

ā€œWhen I first became a pastry chef, all of my mentors were pushing me to create deconstructed desserts. I really fell in love with that approach, because it challenged me to think very far outside of the box to have a guest really understand that a plate with five components on it could be considered a lemon tart.ā€

Yet at Schlow, running dessert programs across the city for an increasingly demanding clientele, his approach evolved. The deconstructed version might look more beautiful, but he realized that it also has to taste even better than its classic counterpart.

ā€œI realized that sometimes there is no reason to alter a classic dessert but to add perhaps a modern shift. Thatā€™s where I feel most comfortable now. It allows me to continue to express creativity both visually and with flavor to create the best version of a classic dessert.ā€

At Alta Strada (which has landed in the Washington Postā€™s Dining Guide for several years), Levin leans in to the restaurantā€™s homey style, with a touch of his signature flair, in the several desserts he makes. Traditional bomboloni get a glow up, given depth and tang with ricotta, vanilla, and orange in the batter and receiving a liberal dusting of cinnamon sugar; theyā€™re served on a platter with chocolate hazelnut crema (i.e. liquid Nutella). He also crafts a brownie-cheesecake mashup: a whipped ricotta (sense a theme?) cheesecake sits atop a rich brownie, the black-and-white dessert set off by a single Luxardo cherry on top.

At Nama Ko, Levinā€™s menu is more concise but takes some additional liberties. The star is the Miso Honey Black Truffle soft serve ice cream, drizzled in chocolate sauce and caramel, under a shower of chocolate and toffee (thereā€™s also a passionfruit sorbet with ube shortbread crumble). Now an expert at adjusting his soft serve machine to the right ratio of sugar, dairy, and flavor, Levin matches the sushi restaurantā€™s entrees with the ice creamā€™s balanced umami. Speaking of matching: he also plates a matcha crĆØme brulee.

ā€œWhen planning the dessert program for Nama Ko, I wanted to do something totally different for dessert ā€” something the restaurant could be known for all on its own. The program had to be fun and allow the guests to have a Japanese dessert but with a twist. Once we landed on soft serve, the proposed flavors needed to have a level of simplicity and complexity.ā€ The rollout received accolades, including in Washington City Paper and Eaterā€™s Soft Serve map.

Levin, though, also serves as director of Strategic Business Initiatives. He coordinates operations, recruiting, reporting, marketing, menu design, and photography. He is constantly rethinking: refining his rotating selection of chocolate bonbons for special events, using colored cocoa butter for visual effect. He stays up on cookbooks, YouTube, and Instagram as resources for explanations and demos, ā€œeven how to braid a challah dough using a new technique.ā€

After coming out in 2000, Levin says he never encountered much homophobia in the culinary industry. In D.C., he works to support LGBTQ groups, personally and through his restaurants. ā€œThat might mean making Thanksgiving desserts for SMYALā€™s annual Thanksgiving dinner for the kids, or even transforming one of our restaurants into a destination for D.C.ā€™s annual Pride.ā€ Levin also picks up a shift at the special seated dinner tables at the annual Chefs for Equality event, one the largest (and most fabulous) fundraisers for Human Rights Campaign.

Levin wonā€™t rest on his soft serve laurels, continuing to find creative space. Stay tuned to his latest project, going on three years: to create ā€œthe best chocolate chip cookie. The current version is pretty close, but I continue to make some small modifications to improve the outcome.ā€

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D.C.ā€™s Restaurant Week is back with expanded pricing structure

ā€˜More dining options to customers at a variety of price pointsā€™

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Jamie Leedsā€™s ever-popular Hankā€™s Oyster Bar is among venues participating in Restaurant Week. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

The wintertime culinary highlight is back: Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington (RAMW) Winter Restaurant Week returns Monday, Jan. 15, through Sunday, Jan. 21.

The big news: Restaurant Week is expanding its pricing structure. Participating restaurants can offer multi-course brunch (including on Jan. 15, in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day) and lunch menus for $25 or $35 per person. Dinner menus now run for $40, $55, or $65 per person. And again, many restaurants will also offer cocktail and wine (and non-alcoholic) pairings, giving diners various ways to drink (or not) along with their meals.

RAMW President & CEO Shawn Townsend said that the new ā€œmenu prices have been added to the promotion to allow more restaurants to participate and have these participants offer more dining options to customers at a variety of price points that fit every budget.ā€

More than 250 restaurants across the city, Maryland, and Northern Virginia are participating this year.

A non-comprehensive list of new restaurants:

ā€¢ Latin-inspired Flora at luxe Wharf hotel Pendry

ā€¢ Modern Malaysian restaurant Makan in Columbia Heights

ā€¢ Mita in Shaw, a showstopping vegetarian restaurant that opened less than a month ago

ā€¢ Ceibo in Adams Morgan, a unique Uruguayan restaurant that opened in October

ā€¢ Code Red in Adams Morgan, a halfway hidden mood-lit speakeasy-style spot

ā€¢ Mercy Me at Yours Truly Hotel, which just debuted a new menu

ā€¢ Little Black Bird, a cozy wine bar

ā€¢ Michelin-starred Xiquet DL in Woodley Park, where the everyday tasting menu runs a cool $265

ā€¢ Big-name celebrity chef Jose Andresā€™ blockbuster new restaurant The Bazaar.

In NoVa, there are also a few first-timers, including Ingle Korean Steakhouse, Sabores, and Makers Union; first-time Maryland participants include Charley Prime Foods in Gaithersburg and several Milk and Honey locations.

RAMW is highlighting the H Street, N.E., neighborhood (which this author noted is struggling in his 2023 D.C. Dining Year in Review) through the participation of an overflowing handful of new (Ethiopic, Granville Moore’s, Irregardless, Paste & Rind, Pow Pow, The Queen Vic, Sospeso, and Sticky Rice) and returning (Mozzeria, Maketto, Stable, and Sticky Fingers Diner) spots. In fact, H Street is home to the only two vegan restaurants participating, Sticky Fingers and Pow Pow.

To support LGBTQ-run restaurants, diners could visit Hank’s Oyster Bar (Dupont Circle and on the Wharf), owned by Jamie Leeds. Gay-owned KNEAD Hospitality + Design is involving its restaurants in the promotion. The groupā€™s restaurants include Gatsby, Mi Vida, The Grill, and more.

The ā€œRW-To-Go dinner meals,ā€ a program popular during the pandemic, has ended. As Restaurant Week was originally created for people to dine-in, ā€œwe would love for people to get out and enjoy meals in restaurants,ā€ said an RAMW representative.

Some spots are offering additional deals, extended timelines, and other options. For example, Buena Vida Gastrolounge and Ambar are extending promotions through Jan. 28.

Winter Restaurant Week is also offering a Diner Rewards Program. Participants are entered into prizes for each Washington Restaurant Week cycle, including gift cards, cookbooks, and event tickets.

ā€œRestaurant week is important because it brings people together, boosts the economy, and puts a spotlight on all of the wonderful restaurants in the region,ā€ says Townsend.

The Washington Blade held a short interview with two restaurateurs: one returning, and one new (responses have been edited for space and clarity).

Returning restaurant: Trummerā€™s. Responses by Stefan Trummer, owner.

 BLADE: Why is your restaurant participating in Winter Restaurant Week?

TRUMMER: We are excited to offer our guests a fun menu to encourage diners to try both our lunch and dinner experience. We havenā€™t participated in RW since before COVID and it feels right to get back on track with this promotion. 

BLADE: What do you like about the promotion?

TRUMMER: Restaurant Week often attracts new guests to the restaurant. It gives us a chance to meet some new diners and offer our menus to a wider audience.

BLADE: Tell us something unique and specific about your restaurant

TRUMMER: Trummerā€™s is a modern bistro in a beautiful historic building and town. Each room of the restaurant offers different experiences from the bar with specialty cocktails and a massive whiskey list to the Winter Garden with bright airy dining or the Wine Room with a large picture window looking into our expansive wine cellar.

New restaurant: Fireclay. Responses by Frank Gray, executive chef at the Hotel Washington.

BLADE: Why is your restaurant participating in Winter Restaurant Week?

GRAY: Fireclay at Hotel Washington is a newcomer to the downtown D.C. gastronomy. It is joining the rooftop bar, Vue at the Hotel Washington. (Formerly POV at W Hotel). This is Fireclayā€™s inaugural Restaurant Week and we want to showcase all it has to offer.

BLADE: What do you like about the promotion?

GRAY: It gives newcomers such as Fireclay extra exposure in the D.C. market alongside some of the best restaurants in D.C.

BLADE: Tell us something unique and specific about your restaurant?

GRAY: It is a ā€œkissed by fireā€ food and beverage concept. All dishes and drinks have a component of smokiness and the majority of dishes are finished in wood burning Argentine-style ovens.

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