New Whole Foods to Open Up Exactly Where it is Needed Least
The Weekly Feed: Experimentation Edition
Morning Roundup: Change Edition
Former Blade Staffers Launch 'DC Agenda'
D.C. Unemployment Rate Reaches 11.9 Percent
Locavore's Delight
Alice Waters finally got her wish last Friday when Michelle Obama and a gaggle of students from Bancroft Elementary picked up shovels and hoes and set about planting an organic vegetable garden on the White House's South lawn. Waters and other proponents of sustainable food are understandably ecstatic, and White House chefs Cristeta Comerford, Sam Kass, and Bill Yosses are looking forward to whipping up some tasty meals from the garden's 55 different varieties of fruits and vegetables and two beehives.
However, if you're an urban dweller without a yard or green thumb (I myself am a serial killer of of basil plants), you can get your share of local produce at one of the many D.C. farmers markets. With the weather finally turning warmer, most neighborhood markets will be opening in short order. Look for the Foggy Bottom Market opening on April 1, followed by the Penn Quarter Market on April 2. Penn Quarter will be getting a couple new vendors this year, including a lamb farmer. Nothing says spring like delicious baby sheep.
The Georgetown, Del Ray, Silver Spring, and Chevy Chase markets will also be opening in April. And, of course, you can always visit Eastern Market and the Dupont and Takoma Park markets all year round. Adventures in Shaw has compiled a complete list of area farmers markets, including opening dates and hours.
Small Bites
James Beard Award finalists announced
Several D.C. chefs are in the running for James Beard awards this year, including José Andrés (Outstanding Chef Award for MiniBar) and Johnny Monis (Rising Star Chef). Cathal Armstrong (Restaurant Eve), Peter Pastan (Obelisk), and Vikram Sunderam (Rasika) are also up for for Best Mid-Atlantic Chef. The Washington Post's Food Section and reviewer Tom Sietsema have also been nominated for Best Newspaper Food Section and Best Restaurant Reviews.
RAMMY nominations
The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington has announced the finalists for their annual restaurant awards, the RAMMYs. Awards are in thirteen categories from Hottest Restaurant Bar Scene to Best Neighborhood Gathering Place. Winners will be announced on June 7.
Cocktail in a Bottle
Bartender Owen Thomson will be launching his selection of handcrafted bottled cocktails at Bourbon in Adams Morgan on April 1. The idea of bottling cocktails dates back to "How to Mix Drinks", a bartenders manual from 1862, as a way to prepare a large volume of a particular cocktail. Thomson will unveil his concoctions starting at 7 p.m.
Molecular gastronomy at the Smithsonian
Local tapas king José Andrés will be teaming up with Wylie Dufrense (wd-50) to discuss “Spanish Vanguard Cuisine and its Influence in the United States and the World”. Both trained under renowned Spanish chef Ferran Adrià, the man who brought foam into the dining room. The talk will be held at the Museum of American History on April 7 at 7 p.m. Admission is free, but seats are first-come, first-serve.
Have your cherry blossom and eat it too
In honor of the Cherry Blossom Festival, restaurants across the city will be devising creative ways to inject cherries into all sorts of appetizers, entrees, desserts, and cocktails. A complete list of participating restaurants, along with recipes, is available here.
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If you're an urban dweller without a backyard and you actually want to "grow your own" as the title suggests, check out dc.sharingbackyards.com
Nothing says spring like delicious baby sheep.
Mint jelly anyone?
Just for the record, the list I compiled at Adventures in Shaw is a not a complete list of all the markets in the area. It is a list of the opening dates of farmers markets not opened year round. I just don't want people yelling at me through my blog because I didn't mention their neighborhood market. And I'm still trying to get firm dates for a few markets (including Bloomingdale and U Street's markets).