Fresh peaches are in season and in D.C. this week. (Photo by Carolina Peach Truck)
By DCist contributor Rachel Mastandrea
The coming week is full on summer in D.C., with peaches, beach brunch, a cast iron cooking competition, and other July-appropriate events. Read on for our top picks.
This week’s food events
Bottomless mimosas and Friday brunch
H Street’s DC Harvest (517 H St. NE) now serves brunch on Fridays. If you’re lucky enough to have summer Fridays, or you happen to take a day off, you can get a head start on your weekend brunching with bottomless mimosas and an Old Bay fried turkey breakfast sandwich (add the optional egg and bacon). Be seated between 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. and they’ll serve you bottomless beverages until 3:45 p.m.
It’s LIT in Old Town
Venture to Old Town, Alexandria on Friday evening for the LIT! Festival, featuring live music, dance, henna tattoos, face painting, food trucks, and more. Reggae fusion band Brown Rice Family will keep the beat going all evening long, and Jamaican dance group 1 Nation Dancers will be groovin’. All this family-friendly fun takes place from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Waterfront Park (1 Prince Street, Alexandria, VA).
Everyone loves the cast iron skillet
REI and Brightest Young Things are bringing a cooking challenge like no other—the cast-iron Skillet Battle tomorrow, July 22. There will be both amateur and professional chef rounds, judged by esteemed D.C. food pros including Chef Marjorie Meek-Bradley—Top Chef finalist and executive chef at Smoked & Stacked. The battle, taking place from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Wunder Garten in NoMa (1st and L Streets NE), is free to attend. There will be food samples, beer, games, and live music.
For the love of peaches
If you’re a peach person, don’t miss the CAROLINA Peach Truck from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Union Market (1309 5th St. NE) on Sunday, July 23. This “farm-to-street experience” is driving fresh freestone peaches from South Carolina up the East Coast. For $49, you can take home a 25-pound crate (that’s 65-80 peaches). If you’re seeking organic, snag an 18-pound crate for $59.
Beach brunch in the city
After you sleep in Sunday, head to Service Bar (926 U St. NW) for a beachy city brunch. Founders and industry pros Chad Spangler and Glendon Hartley have brought Chef Jerry Zawacki on to elevate their food selections. Chef Jerry has worked in other notable D.C. restaurants including 2941, Equinox, Rose’s Luxury, and Hazel. Every Sunday for brunch, you can now sip beach-themed cocktails alongside creative brunch dishes, like “Chilaquiles with tortillas cooked in guajillo salsa then cooked down in duck fat and served with salsa verde, queso fresco, julienne radishes, cilantro, jalapeño and sunny side up egg.” And enjoy it all while lounging in beach chairs under each umbrellas and playing beach games.
Watch Shark Week and eat shark
Shark Week is almost here. Kick it off at Hank’s Cocktail Bar in Petworth (819 Upshur St. NW) with a shark seafood boil. It runs from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., and the $35 admission buys a hefty seafood platter with potatoes, corn, mussels, clams, shrimp, and, mako shark. Also included are 2 drink tickets for the Bloody Mary bar.
Virginia wine pairing dinner
If you haven’t made it to Tim Ma’s French-Chinese restaurant Kyirisan (1924 8th St. NW) in Shaw yet, Tuesday may be the perfect time. The restaurant is combining forces with Early Mountain Vineyard from Charlottesville, VA for a creative and perfectly paired $85 five-course wine dinner. The first and last courses include zucchini and Szechuan chevre cheese (aka goat cheese) balls paired with rose; and a blackberry violet tart served with burnt honey ice cream and paired with Eluvium—a merlot based blend with hints of plum and blackberry. The experience begins at 6:30 p.m.
Plan ahead
1500 pounds of pork
Cochon 555, a culinary event that at its core celebrates responsibly sourced products, is returning to D.C. in two weeks. On Sunday, August 6 at The Watergate Hotel (2650 Virginia Ave. NW) will host five local chefs, five heritage beer pigs, and five wine makers will come together for the competition, It will feature dozens of dishes to taste and a plethora of wines and cocktails to sip. The afternoon celebrates farm-to-table at its best. Tickets are on sale now.
Summer restaurant week
DC’s 2017 Summer Restaurant Week is fast approaching with its $35 dinners and $22 lunches/brunches and $35 dinners. Fan favorites like Fogo De Chao, Sushi Taro, and Daikaya Izakaya are sure to fill up quickly. Plan ahead and book your reservations soon for the week of August 14 through the 20.
