Most minds will be on Thanksgiving in the coming week, but that doesn’t have to mean seven straight days of turkey and cranberry sauce. Unwind with a traditional French wine celebration, dig into Italian truffles, or just kick back with some discounted Hawaiian food.
Toast to Beaujolais Nouveau
The third Thursday in November is cause for annual celebration in France, as the first bottles of the year’s Beaujolais Nouveau wine are released to the public. Washingtonians can celebrate a day later with a Friday night bash at the French embassy. Party with free-flowing pours of the namesake red wine while snacking on a spread of French breads, cheeses, and pastries. There will also be a cash bar, a DJ, and art exhibits throughout the space. General admission begins at 8 p.m. Early entrance VIP and Champagne table service tickets available for an additional charge. (4101 Reservoir Rd. NW, 8 p.m. to midnight, $69+).
Truffle time at Urbana
It’s truffle season in Italy, and these treasured fungi are beginning to pop up at menus around the city. For a relatively affordable tasting option, diners can book a seat at this Saturday’s edition of Urbana’s weekly dinner party. The “truffle tour in Alba” menu includes eight courses prepared over the Italian bistro’s hearth oven. Expect dishes like sweet and sour venison leg with black truffle or cavatelli with chanterelle mushrooms and white truffle. The intimate meal is capped at 10 people, and another one is planned for Saturday, December 1. (2121 P St. NW, Saturday at 7 p.m., $85 plus tax and tip, wine and drinks additional)
Happy birthday, Hula Girl
Shake off the cold and think tropical in Shirlington on Saturday for Hula Girl’s third birthday. To toast the day, the Hawaiian-inspired restaurant will have specials ranging from $1.50 spam musubi and $2 Kona beer drafts to $10 Kaluha pork or tofu teriyaki lunch plates. These deals and more will run all day long. (4044 Campbell Ave., Arlington, Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to close)
Learn pasta making the Italian way
Aperto restaurant is inviting home chefs observe—and taste—the making of true Italian pasta at this weekend’s Pasta Lab demonstration. Chef Luigi Diotaiuti will walk attendees through his traditional processes for mixing, kneading, shaping, filling, and cutting pasta of all sizes. The afternoon event will also include a tasting of pasta and small bites. Tickets can be reserved by emailing the restaurant at apertodc@gmail.com. (2013 I St. NW, Saturday from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., $35)
Eat and drink the best of the season
Commissary is known most as a neighborhood spot for brunch and lunch. Next week though, 25-year old executive chef Madison Han is putting together something a little fancier: a four-course feast drawing on some of fall’s best local produce and ingredients. A series of Virginia wines will be paired with the dishes, which will include items like an indulgent truffle egg carbonara. The rest of the meal will take inspiration from Han’s time cooking at Central Michel Richard as well as his Korean heritage. Tickets are limited and can be purchased online. (1443 P St. NW, Tuesday at 7 p.m., $45)
Dollar weekday oysters
Hank’s Oyster Bar locations in Dupont Circle and Capitol Hill have launched a new weekday “power hour” oyster pricing. Fresh, briney bivalves will go for just $1 a piece from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, with prices rising by $0.25 an hour up until 3 p.m. The Dupont Circle location also has a special $15 two-course lunch special during that time for those looking for a more substantial meal.
A free pre-Thanksgiving fill up
Anyone looking for a break from cooking before next Thursday’s big meal can take advantage of a complementary pre-Thanksgiving buffet at Barrel on Capitol Hill. The whiskey-focused tavern will be serving a whole roast turkey with sides next Wednesday and offering free dinner with the purchase of a happy hour drink. Specials start at 4 p.m. and include select $5 whiskeys, beers, and wines and and $9 Old Fashioneds. Food is first-come, first-served while it lasts. (613 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, November 21 at 6 p.m., free with a one-drink minimum)
