It’ll be a party this evening on Barracks Row, the stretch of Eighth Street SE that’ll be celebrating its Great American Main Street Award — a great honor for its revitalizing streetscaping project. The festivities kick off at the Old Siam Restaurant (406 Eighth St. SE) at 6 p.m. with appetizers and drinks. While its name may have “Old” in it, Old Siam is the newest restaurant on the strip.

In the process to revitalize a once-depressed corridor, we’ve heard a lot of terms being tossed around by business owners and neighborhood interests: Barracks Row is the next Adams Morgan or the next Georgetown. It’s probably best to avoid such characterizations for this Capitol Hill neighborhood that has a character all its own, almost village-like. Certainly, Barracks Row will see increased attention in the coming years, assuming the proposed baseball stadium (about a 10-15 minute walk away) gets built and sends pre- and post-baseball crowds make their way up and down Eighth Street.

In the meantime, Barracks Row deserves to give itself a pat on the back.

To the Red Liners out there, or anyone else out there who may be clueless as to where Barracks Row is, take the Orange or Blue lines to the Eastern Market station. Up at the plaza where Pennsylvania Avenue and Eighth Street meet, make a right and head south.