While we are happy to see cool bands who play D.C. offer up some of their favorite post-show food spots, as +/- did for Pitchfork this week, we’d like to suggest that there’s more to life than Ben’s Chili Bowl. In fact, much more, in terms of taste and variety. While the institution on U Street was hot long before the “new U” was a part of our vocabulary, and is full of multicultural ambience and good old-fashioned grease, its chili is watery and bland and its chocolate shakes taste like they are reconstituted from from an astronaut’s freeze-dried rations.

Carb and protein binging before or after a sweat-inducing show seems to be a universal necessity for the bands who regularly tour, and figuring out where to go in each new city has always been a hit-or-miss proposition. Some folks seek out diners, some settle for Mickey D’s, but for those who seek a little inspiration in our hometown, may we suggest: