It’s officially fall, which means you can start padding up for winter. Luckily, there are food specials and events galore all over the city where you can eat your heart out.
New Venues
New Deal Cafe
You’ll have to hit up the suburbs to try this new vegan spot, which just opened in Greenbelt, MD. New Deal Café has live music six nights a week and a vegan menu featuring subs, burgers and snacks like cauliflower wings and king trumpet mushroom calamari.
Beet burger at New Deal Cafe
Eaton House
This new hidden bar might just be the best date spot on K Street. Here’s what we thought.
LEON
Healthy fast food? It sounds like an oxymoron but it’s actually a thing now in D.C. British fast food chain LEON came up with the idea of serving fast food items that follow the basic principles of the Mediterranean diet, in other words dishes that feature veggies, herbs, spices, olive oil and nuts. After expanding across Europe, they just opened their U.S. first location in D.C. So, it’s healthy and it’s fast. The question is: does it taste good?
Pisco y Nazca
There’s a new Peruvian restaurant in D.C. and we think the pisco menu is the best part. More details are here.
New Menus
Dylan’s Raw Bar Grill
Dylan’s Raw Bar is now open for brunch and lunch. Come it early to sample items like baked eggs or an omelet for brunch. If you need a lunch fix, dishes like a roasted mushroom salad, avocado mac n cheese and a spicy goat cheese tart look pretty damn good.
Colada Shop
Visit Colada Shop to sample dishes from their new fall menu, which includes a garlicky kale and squash empanada, a sweet potato and queso fresco croquet and a sweet plantain latte. New cocktails include a blood orange mojito and a tamarind pineapple cider.
Q by Peter Chang
A new weekend dim sum menu is now available at Q by Peter Chang; we went and loved it. Check out the full review here.
Dumplings at Q by Peter Chang
Espita Mezcaleria
Fall drinking season is here and Espita has a new cocktail menu to get you in the spirit. We’re especially interested in their ginger tumeric highball, but we love the fact that their cocktails are named after songs from the Smashing Pumpkins, Leon Bridges and more.
Tyber Creek Cafe
Tyber Creek Wine Bar and Kitchen will now be offering an all-day cafe menu starting at 11 a.m. Tuesday through Friday. The menu will include seasonal house-baked bread as well as three new toasts including avocado toast and strawberry and ricotta toast. The menu will also feature seasonal soups, salads and sandwiches.
Events for You
Colada Shop’s First Annual Coffee Festival
Colada Shop’s festival will take place from September 29 to October 7 and is free to the public. The festival will feature coffee specials and coffee cocktails like the Havana Noir which is made with aged rum, espresso, fernet, simple syrup and mint. There will also be coffee cocktail classes, which run $45 and include a welcome cocktail, light snacks, and even more coffee cocktails.
National Coffee Day
Saturday, September 29 is National Coffee Day, which means there are all kinds of caffeinated specials all over the city. Head to Petite Loulou, where you can get a complimentary cup of coffee at both locations in Purcellville, Virginia and Union Market, Washington D.C. Stop by Opaline Brasserie to check out their new coffee cocktails. End your dat at Le Diplomate, which will be presenting a coffee and whiskey ice cream from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. for $5.
Sake + Small Plates dinner
On Tuesday, October 2 O-Ku DC will host a three-course seated dinner paired with sake in the second floor whiskey lounge. Everything is curated by sake sommelier Chris Johnson, also known as “The Sake Ninja.” Tickets can be purchased for $40 per person, by clicking here.
Oktoberfest at City Tap House
Visit City Tap from September 2 to October 7 for loads of beer specials. City Tap Penn Quarter will turn its patio into a biergarten, while the restaurant will pour more than 20 Oktoberfest-themed beers. City Tap Dupont will offer a rotating selection of Oktoberfest beers priced between $7-10 through the festival, as well as $6 16 ounce steins of Sam Adams Oktoberfest on Wednesdays during Oktoberfest.
Pretzels at City Tap House
Political Pizzas and Pours
Starting October 3 and continuing through election day, Pizzeria Paradiso will celebrate women who are making strides for underrepresented communities, by offering five pizza specials. Each pizza will highlight ingredients from the home state of each of the five women honored and is paired with a beer from each of their respective states. A portion of proceeds from the sale of the special pizzas will go to the League of Woman Voters in support of their work encouraging women to participate in the democratic process.
All Things Go Fall Classic
This food and music festival will take place at Union Market October 6 and 7. Listen to live music and purchase food and drinks from vendors like Compass Coffee, Timber Pizza Co., Bun’d Up, and Pinstripes. Tickets are available here.
Halloween Party at Dirty Habit
Dirty Habit is hosting a Halloween Night Circus party on Saturday, October 27 on their courtyard patio. Come in costume and expect a contortionist, live fire breathing, a DJ, Halloween-themed cocktails and dishes like truffle fries and absinthe cotton candy.
Ale to the Redskins, Flights for All DC
Jack Rose will open early every Sunday this fall for happy hour and will be showing late afternoon games, offering beer specials, whiskey flights, and half-priced bar bites, from 3:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Beer Flight
Newsworthy Restaurant Updates
Local sandwich shop is no more
Taylor Gourmet, which used to be a popular sandwich shop in D.C., closed all of its restaurants over the weekend and has filed for bankruptcy.
