Before last weekend I had never been to DC but I feel like I've spent a lot of time there in my head. My main job is a high school teacher specialising in Politics so I've explained to classes about the roles and functions of the different branches of the US political system. I've talked at great length about how the Legislators in Capitol Hill sit at one end of Pennsylvania Avenue and keep a literal and metaphorical watch on the Executive just down the road in The White House (with the Supreme Court peeping in from behind to make sure everyone's playing fair in the complex game of checks and balances). But I'd never seen it for myself.
I also have a lot of time and respect for the punk rock scene in DC. Primarily revolving around the Dischord record label, it seems that this small city produces a disproportionately large number of incredible bands. And all done in a way which deviates from the norms of contemporary corporate behaviour and guarantees the artists full control over their music.
Whether you believe this is the seat of the greatest democracy in the world or the home of a quasi-fascist state which, as Cheney as much as admitted with his "so?" comment, amounts to little more than an elected dictatorship where the citizens can only influence public policy every four years, this is an awesome town to visit. The buildings and monuments are stunning, the nightlife seems great and the whole feel of the city is just relaxed and friendly.
I visited The Reef (www.thereefdc.com) on 18th Street in the Adams-Morgan district for Sunday brunch and instantly fell in love with the place. We got a seat at the bar as a friend we were in town to visit is a regular and I can see why this would become some sort of secular, church-like, sunday morning experience. The bar staff have names and personalities and really know how to treat the customers. The place itself has so much character. We were sitting on a heated and mostly covered rooftop where there was very little uniformity but an abundance of charm. The place seems to operate in a cool manner too, for instance there's a discount if you live in the local area. And the burger..?
They have a choice of a straight ahead veggie burger or a vegan burger. I got the latter but opted to get blue cheese with it. It was a super tasty nut-cutlet type burger with just the right amount of cheese (too much of that blue stuff could over-power everything else), some lightly fried onions, quality lettuce and tomato and a superior bun. Served with perfectly seasoned fries, this truly was the brunch of champions. Our coffee was fresh and topped up regularly and as we were on a rooftop on the sunniest day of the year so far we got a couple of mimosas. Awesome food, good company and quite simply a magical way to kick start a sunday afternoon!
A must-do if you're in the area!
Other DC shout outs!
I got to see Rick from drive like jehu and hot snakes' new band. They're called obits and, although there's something a little more classic rock going on, they still know how to kick up a storm. And that voice! Wow!
I visited an incredible, independent record store. Crooked Beat (www.crookedbeat.com) is actually just down the road from The Reef and they have great stock, an amazing selection of music from the local DC area and, most importantly, the guy behind the counter was very friendly and chatted about a bunch of stuff.
Finally, I did go to another great veggie restaurant called Vegetate (www.vegetatedc.com) on 9th Street NW. This was a little more up market so no veggie burger on the menu but my risotto with cashew cream and truffle oil was pretty great.
Seriously, if you get the chance, go visit DC and while you're there go to The Reef and call into Crooked Beat. But don't forget about the obvious stuff. It's pretty cool too.
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