Showing posts with label DC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DC. Show all posts

Friday, November 3, 2023

Black People's March on the White House this Saturday, Nov. 4 in Washington, D.C.


The 15th annual Black People's March on the White House will be held tomorrow, Saturday, November 4, 2023 in Washington, D.C. It will begin with a rally at Malcolm X Park (Meridian Hill Park) at 16th Street and W Street N.W. at 11:00 AM. Attendees will then march to toward the White House, and a second rally at Lafayette Square Park. A pre-march event - where signs will be made, chants practiced, and you will have a chance to meet some of Saturday's speakers - will be held tonight, Friday, November 3 at 6:00 PM at the Thurgood Marshall Center at 1816 12th Street NW Washington, DC 20009.

Speakers will include Marsha Coleman-Adebayo, President of the Bethesda African Cemetery Coalition; broadcaster Garland Nixon; African People's Socialist Party Chair Omali Yeshitela; WPFW-FM Program Director Katea Stitt; Hands Off Uhuru Fightback Coalition Chair Mwezi Odom; artist Yulong Jones of the International Women's Alliance; John McCarthy of the Center for Political Innovation; and a recorded message from Mumia Abu-Jamal. Cultural performances will feature Luci Murphy, Shirmina Geneva, and the Malcolm X Drummers. 

This year's march is being co-sponsored by the Black is Back Coalition for Social Justice, Peace and Reparations, and the Hands Off Uhuru! Hands Off Africa! Fightback Committee. Registration for the march is available online

Sunday, January 26, 2020

THRōW Social DC and Kick Axe Throwing opening in DC's Ivy City

The District continues to clean Montgomery County's clock in nightlife. THRōW Social DC and Kick Axe Throwing will be the newest addition to DC's nighttime economy when they soft-open January 31, 2020 at 1403 Okie St. NE. Their official grand opening will be on February 6. The 22000 SF facility will include five curling rinks and six FootBowl (a game that combines football and bowling) "ranges" on the former's upper floor, and twelve axe-hurling ranges on the lower floor.
The Aspen lodge-themed
Kick Axe Throwing
The founder of D.C.'s Escape Room Live, Ginger Flesher-Sonnier, is opening the D.C. THRōW and Kick-Axe location. Come with enough players for a team (eight), or the venue will help by pairing you with other smaller groups and individuals.
Axe ranges - Gilius Thunderhead
would be proud!
Kick Axe is far from the first axe-throwing enterprise in the District, but the upscale ski lodge aesthetic promises to set it apart. THRōW takes a decidedly different tack, themed around a Palm Beach tropical concept. It features a standard Las Vegas nightclub/dayclub feature you won't find in Montgomery County - cabanas.
A nightlife venue with cabanas?
You're definitely not in MoCo!
Kick Axe Throwing and THRōW Social DC will be open Wednesdays and Thursdays, 3:00-11:00 PM; Fridays and Saturdays, noon-2:00 AM; and Sundays, 11:00 AM-9:00 PM. THRōW is open to all ages; Kick Axe is open to everyone age 8 and older (children are offered foam axes to throw). Kick Axe patrons must wear closed toe shoes, and high heels are prohibited there. Expect to pay $29 per person for an hour of each gaming experience.

If you haven't been to Ivy City recently, you won't recognize the revitalized neighborhood near Route 50 and an Amtrak maintenance facility. Top-rated restaurants include La Puerta Verde and Ivy City Smokehouse. The latter has a rooftop deck. Other highlights include City Winery, Target and Nike Community Store. The nearby Echostage is a nighttime destination for many a young Montgomery County resident, after 18 nightspots closed in Bethesda alone following the County Council's disastrous Nighttime Economy Task Force debacle earlier this decade.

Photos courtesy Kick Axe Throwing and THRōW Social DC

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Atlanta's Gypsy Kitchen to expand to D.C.

Gypsy Kitchen, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar chain based in Atlanta, is expanding to Washington, D.C. They will open this spring in the former Masa 14 space at 1825 14th Street N.W. Gypsy Kitchen's pan-Mediterranean cuisine will draw on Greek, Moroccan, Indian,
Middle Eastern and other regional flavors.
Summer Pitim Stew
Southern Proper Hospitality is the restaurant group behind the chain. Its COO Alex Curley is not a stranger to 14th Street, having played a role there before in the opening of Barcelona Wine Bar.
Small plates assortment
Service at Gypsy Kitchen's launch will include dinner, weekend brunch and happy hour. Its 6400 SF dining area and 1100 SF rooftop deck will hold 217 guests.

Photos by Erik Meadows Photography

Wednesday, April 17, 2019

12 Stories opening at The Wharf: D.C. is doing what moribund MoCo won't for nightlife

Montgomery County is still reeling from the collapse of its nighttime economy following the County Council's disastrous Nighttime Economy Task Force initiative. Where there were crowds on sidewalks and corners outside of downtown Bethesda's nightclubs and bars prior to the initiative, 16 nightspots have shuttered since the task force debacle. Many other businesses slashed or eliminated their late-night hours. Downtown Bethesda sidewalks now grow empty and quiet after 9 or 10 PM. Thousands of young professionals have taken their wallets and purses to the District for nightlife since, including to The Wharf, where an exciting new rooftop will open tonight.

I recommended years ago that Montgomery County put incentives and requirements for nightlife, including rooftop nightclubs at the new hotels being approved for urban areas like downtown Bethesda. Those suggestions fell on deaf ears at the Council and Planning Board, as of course, it is much cheaper to put up a hotel with a non-active roof use. Naturally, our developer-controlled Council and Planning Board never put the public before the developers, which is how we ended up with no replacement cineplex and no replacement Capital Crescent Trail tunnel under Wisconsin Avenue in the Apex Building redevelopment - even though the Council and Board held full authority to require both. Heckuva job, Brownie!

By contrast, the District is getting its latest rooftop nightspot tonight, April 17, 2019 with the debut of 12 Stories, high atop The InterContinental Hotel at The Wharf. The 3500 SF rooftop features spectacular views of the Potomac River, waterfront and Washington, D.C. We could have had something like this on top of the new hotels coming to Wisconsin Avenue here, but...the Council was too busy collecting developer checks, and debating a ban on circus animals instead.
Current and prospective MoCo bar and restaurant
owners said, "Yes, Yes, Yes!" to privatization of liquor
sales, but our cartel-controlled County Council said, "No, No, No!"
At 12 Stories at The Wharf tonight, 13-foot floor-to-ceiling windows will give you views of the Jefferson, Lincoln and Air Force Memorials, as well as the pinnacle of the Washington Monument and Hains Point. From the future Marriott hotel in downtown Bethesda, nighttime will give you lovely views of car dealerships and a concrete parking garage. So much winning!
The J Street Spritz at
12 Stories at The Wharf
Tonight at 12 Stories at The Wharf, you could be sipping a zero-degree “Superchilled Martini 24” and taking in the sweeping vistas of the Nation's Capital. Perhaps you would prefer a “J Street Spritz,” made with Tito’s Vodka, Amaro Nonino, lime juice, raspberries, Domaine Chandon and sparkling soda. It's enough to make Jack Evans bust out the old Constituent Fund.

All that's busting in Montgomery County is the County budget, in the red again this year, with residents facing yet another increase in property taxes. With what the Maryland Restaurant Association complained was a "flat" restaurant and bar market in Montgomery County, record numbers of closures, and profits declining in a business with thin margins already, we're losing nightlife spending and alcohol sales to the District and Virginia, thanks to our archaic County government-controlled liquor monopoly.
The Wharf Burger
Just some of that lost revenue will end up being spent in D.C. at 12 Stories, where brunch will be added in May to a windows-on-the-capital-of-the-free-world menu that tonight already features locally sourced oysters, a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich, and a ceviche-style crudo.

While Montgomery County's "leaders" turn to taxpayers again this year for yet another payday 4.8% property tax increase, the developers of The Wharf in D.C. turned to the Gerber Group, the geniuses behind NYC’s Mr. Purple, The Roof and The Campbell, and Atlanta's Whiskey Blue, "known for its signature elevated nightlife experience and top-notch food and beverage," it says.

Montgomery County's vision for an "elevated nightlife experience?" "More taxi stands [ever heard of Uber and Lyft, guys?], more buses," and continued total monopoly government control of liquor sales to restaurants, bars and the public. No wonder Montgomery County is at rock bottom in the region by every relevant economic development measure.

They blew it, folks.

Photos by Anna Meyer

Friday, February 21, 2014

WATCH UFC 170 ROUSEY VS. MCMANN AT HOOTERS OF ROCKVILLE SATURDAY

Hooters of Rockville is once again UFC headquarters this Saturday night at 10:00 PM, when the always-controversial Ronda Rousey squares off against Sara McMann, with the bantamweight title on the line.

Monday, April 8, 2013

THAI RESTAURANT WEEK 2013 IN ROCKVILLE!

Enjoy lunch or dinner in Rockville during Thai Restaurant Week, starting this Wednesday, April 10, and running through next Wednesday, April 17.

The annual event is organized and sponsored by the Royal Thai Embassy's offices of Commercial and Agricultural Affairs, in Washington, D.C.

Participating restaurants in Rockville are:

Amina Restaurant, 5065 Nicholson Lane, 301-770-9509.

Tara Asia 199 E. Montgomery Avenue, 301-315-8008.

Thai Pavilion, 29 Maryland Avenue, 301-545-0244.

Pana Thai, 7224 Muncaster Mill Road, 301-990-8501.

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

DC RESTAURANT WEEK 2013 IN ROCKVILLE

Enjoy DC Restaurant Week 2013 without leaving Rockville!

Chef Geoff's Rockville (menu not online yet) and La Tasca Rockville (click for menu) are participating in the popular prix fixe event February 4-10.

Lunch will be $20.13, and dinner $35.13.

I will pass along the Chef Geoff's menu as soon as it is posted. But having dined at other Chef Geoff's locations during past Restaurant Weeks, the menu is usually quite generous - virtually the entire menu was available. Which makes it one of the best RW deals.

Friday, January 4, 2013

HONDA POWERSPORTS OF ROCKVILLE HAS BOOTH AT DC MOTORCYCLE SHOW THIS WEEKEND

Going to the Progressive International Motorcycle Show at the DC Convention Center this weekend?

Make sure to stop by your hometown Honda Powersports of Rockville's booth at the show!

You could also win the custom Mach 5 bike below, courtesy of Suzuki, at the show as well.

Get ready for winter blackouts by picking up a Honda generator at HP of Rockville's Randolph Road dealership.