In the D.C. alcoholic beverage scene, the phrase, "Where there's a will, there's a way" has been proven time and time again. Legend has it that in the early days of the Brickskeller, Dave Alexander drove cross-country to purchase beer from breweries on the West Coast. More recently, Ledroit Brands (a D.C.-based distributor) started bringing in barrel-strength whiskey from Kentucky under the Willett brand. Even in the last few weeks, the Dolin brand of vermouth entered the D.C. market, a product that was unavailable in the States until D.C.'s own Derek Brown prodded an importer to look into it. more ›

You can lead a horse to water, yada yada. Same with music. You can force a kid to sit in front of a piano for two hours a day, but unless he actually enjoys what he's doing while he's there, eventually the force of his will not to be there is likely to win out over yours. Of course, you can dress it up. Making the tedium of endless scales and exercises into a fun... more ›

In the summer of 2003, Chef Ed Hanson opened a pizzeria on the western edge of a neighborhood that had just renamed itself Penn Quarter. Four years later, Ella’s Wood Fired Pizza, named for Hanson’s young daughter, remains a rarity in downtown Washington: it is an independently owned--and not the least bit pretentious--place to enjoy a drink and a bite to eat. Located at 901 F Street, Ella’s features neither a unifying decorative theme (Matchbox)... more ›

As we enter the final stretch-of-the-pants holiday eating season, perhaps we all feel a little tight in the trousers, but apparently not as much as the chatters last week over on TomChat offering their inane advice on what a poor patron who has undergone gastric bypass surgery should tell a waiter who wonders why so much of a meal has been left on the plate. The discussion dominated last week's last-of-the-year chat, thus crowding out any serious discourse on holiday cocktails or the pros and cons of dining out on New Year's Eve. more ›

We are fully aware that pizza is a very contentious issue here in D.C., what with all the wood-fired homegrown options, upscale regional inspirations, and the occasional pie that's been specially designated Napoletana. We’ve certainly had more than our share of the stuff from celebrated area ovens such as 2 Amys, Pizzeria Paradiso, and the like, but lately we've found ourselves craving a simple pizza-by-the-slice unencumbered by framed certificates or toppings exotica. We recently found our personal holy grail of pizza at Vace, an Italian delicatessen and pizzeria in Cleveland Park (with another branch in Bethesda). more ›

For those of you who haven't been to Birreria Paradiso, the basement bar in Pizzeria Paradiso in Georgetown, I recommend you go now. Thor Cheston, the genius behind Birreria's high-quality-only beer selection, is setting sail for different shores. In a posting to the D.C.-Beer mailing list, and re-posted to Don Rockwell, Thor said goodbye to Washington, indicating he was leaving for Philadelphia at the end of month. Damn you, Philly! I knew Philly was conspiring against us; I guess they're still bitter about that whole not being the nation's capital thing. more ›

Vace, 2Amys, Italian Store, Pizzeria Paradiso, Matchbox, and Radius. Finally, Washingtonians have a choice as to where to go for good pizza. Some old-school residents haven’t needed a new place though, since their pizza craving has been satiated for the past 50 years by A.V. Ristorante Italiano. Rarely, however, is it nominated as the city’s best pizza, nor is it mentioned as the place to go for authentic red sauce Italian fare. Except, of course,... more ›

Part two of two. While conducting research for his book Pizza -- A Slice of Heaven: The Ultimate Pizza Guide and Companion, Ed Levine tried 1,000 slices of pizza in 20 cities. Some would love to follow in Levine's footsteps, travelling in search of excellent slices, but our day jobs confine us to the Washington metro area for our pizza-sampling expeditions. Though not traditionally a mecca for pizza connoisseurs, D.C. boasts some serious pie-makers. DCist... more ›

The results are in: The Post's 2004 Best Bets Readers' Choice Awards were decided today. And the winners are ... (drumroll, please): Pretty much all the same places that won last year! But that's OK -- by and large, DCist approves of the victors (though we'll never understand why Starbucks consistently comes in the top three of Best Coffee Shop; same with Borders for Best Bookstore. Isn't this supposed to be about D.C.'s best local and non-totally-massive-and-impersonal establishments?). more ›