Although we at DCist have no affiliation with any plastic surgeons' association, we can't help but bring news of today's annual 31-cent Scoop Night at Baskin-Robbins, tonight from 5 p.m. - 10 p.m. In cooperation with the National Fallen Firefighters Fund, The BR will once again shell out 2.5 oz. scoops of any flavor for anyone with three dimes and a penny. Note: there is a 10 scoop limit per person per purchase. As was......

Another day, another dollar. Another year, another free cone day. In celebration of their 30th anniversary - despite the fact that the giveaway occurs every year - Ben and Jerry's is offering one free scoop of ice cream to customers between noon and 8 p.m. Although all the classic flavors will be available, including Cherry Garcia and Phish Food, the company has previously used their free cone day to unveil new concoctions. This year they......

A Giant Food opened this morning on Alabama Ave. SE in Ward 8, making it the only full-service grocery store in the Anascostia ward. It's also the first supermarket to operate in the neighborhood in over a decade. On Saturday the Post ran a story highlighting the lengths Ward 8 residents have had to go to up until today to purchase groceries. The "Camp Simms" Giant joins a bank and a hardware in a shopping......

Moms are great. Aside from birthing us, they wipe our mouths when we dribble food, wrap us up warm when it gets cold out, and give us Jell-O and ice cream when we're sick. For many years it seemed like mom and dad were the smartest people in the world, an Encyclopedia Familica. Usually they give us advice like cover your mouth when you cough, wash your hands after using the bathroom and useful stuff......

For the past few weeks, we’ve been hearing rumblings between the Virginia ABC and Rustico’s head chef, Frank Morales, over his new concoction: beer popsicles. As of this past Tuesday, it appears the VABC may be getting what it wants, at least for a few days. According to Morales, Rustico has temporarily halted sale of its Brew Pops due to both a cease and desist order from the VABC and mechanical problems with the restaurant's......

>> Conner Contemporary opens Academy 2007, their annual BFA/MFA art show featuring talented graduates from the region. The curators have been touring student shows since January to find the best from this year's class in a wide variety of media. Find the Next Great Artist this Friday at their opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. >> Art Enables is really settling into their new space, and are celebrating the induction of their official gallery......

You heard it here first: The bloom is officially off the rose of the Fenty administration. On Monday, the Mayor held an opening ceremony for the District's public swimming pools, at which he failed to fulfill our simple request that he make sure somebody did a cannonball. The Examiner was there yesterday afternoon to witness the pitiful display of showmanship where Fenty opened the city's pools, not with a dive, but with a whistle. While......

>> Today is Ice Cream Soda Day. We're just going to start making up our own holidays at this point. Tomorrow is National Pedicure Day, and the day after that is Give A Stranger a Teddy Bear Day, OK? [Freakonomics Blog] >> A man who tried to force a co-worker into a sex act with a knife was only arrested because he's such a good employee. [City Desk] >> More on whether those beer......

Thanks to a tip from the writers at WeRiteGoode, we are letting you know of yet another fast food giveaway (well, almost). For those of you who find that standing in extensive lines for a dollop of ice cream or a free doughnut is a tad "lazy," California Tortilla is offering a bit of competition with their discount. For today only, if you beat the cashier in a game of Rock Paper Scissors, (Rochambeau, Jankenpon,......

It's never a good sign when it's already this steamy this early in the morning, and indeed, the heat index looks like it will near 100 degrees today (actual temps closer to 94). The D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management has some helpful tips to beating the oppressive heat, but this list has a shameful lack of ice cream sandwiches involved. DCist heartily recommends the Ice Cream Sandwich Method of keeping cool today, which involves......

Happy Father's Day! For those of you who have dads, are dads, or know dads, this one's for you, from all of us at the Gothamist network. It was a week of bizarre, embarassing headlines at DCist. The trial of the local administrative law judge who sued his cleaners for $54 million over a pair of missing pants left everyone shaking their heads. Then the capital city was nearly brought to its knees, twice, by......

Feeling a little blue? Flickr user Pa-ya-so packs a number of common zoo images (the little kid with ice cream, the picture taker, the folks bending forward to get a better look) into one shot here, but all in silhouette, framed by that intense aquarium blue, and framed again by the cinematic letterboxing of the top and bottom of the window. We also like how the seal seems to be looking at the people......

This post from DCist contributor Eddie Kim Isn't it the winter holiday season that's the time of year when we're supposed to gain those extra pounds from overindulgences? It doesn't help that several franchises– especially ice cream shops–have taken advantage of the spring months to hold promotional giveaways. Here's hoping you don't have a wedding dress to fit into anytime soon! In case you missed the Baskin Robbins and Ben & Jerry's giveaways earlier this......

There's so much going on across the Ist-a-Verse that it's almost impossible to keep track these days. Fortunately, we do it so you don't have to! Londonist took a walk through Oliver Twist's London, thanks to a gorgeous map layer for Google Earth. They also caught up with modern-day fictional London, with the Fantastic Four and 28 Weeks Later. It was a week of insanity over at DCist. They started the week off with......

This post is from DCist contributor Eddie Kim This week hasn't been easy for D.C.'s bravest. Though they suffered the pains of missing sprinklers and old electrical wiring on Capitol Hill or broken fire hydrants in Georgetown, we are thankful none of them were hurt in their smoke-eating heroics. For those who have given their lives in duty, however, Baskin-Robbins is offering a 31 Cent Scoop Night from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. tonight. The......

As you make your way to lunch, why not scrap the salad and go for a scoop? In an effort to make tax day a little easier, Ben and Jerry's is offering a free scoop of ice cream to customers between noon and 8:00 p.m. today. Maybe it's to time see if Stephen Colbert's AmeriCone Dream inspires feelings of patriotic pride while you fork over cash to the IRS. Be warned, lines tend to get......

It seems like, all across the network, folks were up to no good. Maybe it was all the green beer from last weekend... Gothamist spent the week writing about New Yorkers behaving badly: at the post office, at the Garden, and at the fertility clinic. Calvin Klein may not be misbehaving, but he's just a little dirty, and in a completely different way than some NYC kitchens. SFist had its share of misbehave-rs, too, like......

Our good friends at Pitchfork, who we all know you love to hate and hate to love, have a new weekly feature running in which they ask artists what music/movies/books/flavor of ice cream they’re really digging lately. Yesterday’s subject? D.C.’s favorite son (even if he did abandon us for Jersey), Ted Leo. It’s no secret Leo loves D.C. as much as we love him. Many of his early days were spent here, first with Chisel......

Our friends over at the Associated Press have dug deep into a story that's weighing heavily on all of our minds today: Why is it that the National Air and Space Museum, once the proud champion of the Smithsonian's annual Awesomest Awards for Attendance, has fallen from favor with the museum-attending set. Air and Space's attendance fell below that of the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History for the first time in recent memory last......

FRIDAY: >> This weekend is filled to the brim with events surrounding the 2007 Urban Film Series tour just in time for Black History Month. Dozens of short and feature-length films addressing the black experience are being screened at Regal Cinema Gallery Place, many with panel discussions following. There's a bevy of established and rising talent to see, but our pick for Friday has to be a conversation and book-signing with the Wizard's own center......

Our snack prayers have been answered. After studying vending operations in New York, Chicago and other cities, D.C.’s Department of Consumer & Regulatory Affairs is ready to give our street carts another go. Intimidation tactics–mob-style, we imagine–led to the 1998 moratorium on licenses, which finally ended Oct. 15. Under the city’s phase-in program, currently licensed vendors get first dibs so they can keep their current locations. New applicants can apply for spots within the Downtown......

Good morning, Washington. Get ready for another windy day, with some clouds and a high of 55 degrees. In news that should instill confidence in everyone planning to vote in Virginia on Nov. 7, a computer glitch has already been found in the electronic ballots that are to be used. It only affects the summary page and not the actual voting, or so election officials say. Senate candidate Jim Webb will appear in the summary......

Horace & Dickie’s is a tiny carryout that is occasionally touted as one of the last practioners of a homegrown D.C. culinary tradition: the massive fried fish sandwich. This steamy fry shack on a quiet corner of H and 12th streets NE is a one-of-a-kind neighborhood joint; a standing room only storefront that specializes in fried fish and chicken served open-face on a handful of bread and presented in a square of tin foil. On......

Written by DCist Contributor Abby Lavin Acerbic campaign ads, Redskins season, pumpkin ice cream from Max’s…it’s officially autumn. And what better way to commemorate Canadian Thanksgiving on Monday night than with a sundry cornucopia of local music at the Rock and Roll Hotel? Jazzy songstress Laura Burhenn and indie collective Meredith Bragg and the Terminals are two acts you wouldn’t expect to share a bill with heavy-rock trio Dead Meadow. But together, the three rising......

If you are not yet fatigued by the hype surrounding Snakes on a Plane, the Samuel L. Jackson action thriller where, um, snakes terrorize people on a plane, then head on up to Bethesda this weekend to Grapeseed, where Chef Jeff Heineman and friends have put together a super serpentine supper. Snakes on a Plate, a five-course meal riffing on the aforementioned movie, is available only at the chef’s table this Friday, August 25 and......

Though the galleries are usually slow in the summer, we still get the occasional rainstorm during the drought. And what better weekend to take a walk outside and sooth your overheated body than this one, which looks to be the blessed fever break from our soul-crushing heat wave? When you're ready to hit the cool(er) Friday evening air, many of the city's galleries will be open and waiting with heaven-sent A/C and thirst quenching libations.......

Last week, we told you that Griffin Market in Georgetown had Leave it to Beaver “Hot Box Lunches” and “Just For Men” boxed hair dye. But it was a sign near the register that informed us of something even more unusual—not in a box, but rather in a carton. The sign said, "Gifford's Ice Cream 'Coming Soon.'” And a few days ago, soon came. Now wedged between Dove and Ben and Jerry’s, Gifford's Ice Cream......

If you haven't made your way down to Gallery Place today, you're missing quite the celebration. The Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery opened their doors today after a six year renovation. Dancers, puppet-masters, Andy Warhol impersonators and live bands are ushering in the new era for the former Patent Office Building. Oh, and the free ice cream is nice, too. After the ribbon cutting ceremony this morning, residents and tourists......

Mission: To create a memorable Fourth of July menu that does not involve making this cake. Obstacles: Flood recovery, Miami wannabe terrorists, and bank statement snooping by the feds. Advice: Give these recipes a try. The ricotta, pork marinade, and cornbread can be made a day in advance, giving the chef plenty of time to mix with guests while grilling on the day of the party. Pre-Fireworks Menu Homemade Lemon Ricotta and Red Pepper Spread......

We may as well mention it, since it'll be the water-cooler talk of the day -- that was quite the storm last night. According to the Post, it was so bad that many morning commutes today might be delayed -- parts of the Beltway have been closed, all VRE train service has been cancelled, and Metro has been forced to close two stations along the Blue and Orange Lines due to high water. At the......