I’m hitting the road to the East Coast next week — this time for a quick trip to DC! I’ll be pouring my wines (Six Cloves) at Rice Market on 5/4 for a really fun event all about pairing sashimi with wines made by Japanese female winemakers. It’s already sold out (thank you DC!), but I’m hoping to come back for more events and meet even more of you next time.
I’ll have some free time during my stay and would love to hear any recommendations you have — favorite wine shops, restaurants, cool spots to explore… anything!
Last time when I visited NYC, the tips I got here were amazing, and I’m excited to dive into DC a bit more this round.
Thanks so much in advance and hope to cross paths with some of you soon!
I think MacArthurs (www.bassins.com) is the best in person wine shop in town. It’s not easily accessible by metro though —if you want a solid wine store accessible by metro I’d recommend Calvert Woodley near the Van Ness metro
Also A Litteri near the Union Market has an excellent Italian selection (but so does MacArthurs) - it’s also metro accessible at the Gallaudet station
Rice Market is on a stretch of 14th Street with scores of restaurants serving just about every cuisine you might imagine. One (Le Diplomat) is a block away if I am not mistaken and is a really great spot for bistro food
The two largest/most prominent wine shops in DC are Calvert Woodley on Connecticut Ave (and on the Metro) and MacArthur Beverages on MacArthur Blvd (no metro). There are endless others with particular specialties.
I successfully avoided stoping by MacArthur’s on the way to DC recently. There is a new shop in DC’s West end near 24th and. M Streets called District Champagne. Wound up buying from there. Good selection but a smaller selection than Mac Arthur’s or Calvert Woodley. District Champagne is way better than most of the shops in what I think of as central DC (Schneider’s is in Capitol Hill).
You could pair a trip with a meal at BlackSalt.
It’s mentioned in the thread Neal posted, but in Asian-adjacent food, Moon Rabbit is great. So is Shoto for “hip” Japanese. But you may want to get away from that, in which case there are dozens of excellent places.
Well, I totally disagree on the casual suggestions. But I don’t know where the OP hails from so don’t know what in DC may complement the selections in the home city.
Seylou is my favorite bakery and not far away. I love their croissants and think some of their savory options can pair well with your Chardonnay. Reikina’s omakase experience is amazing but would be fully booked. Another interesting restaurant with Japanese concept is Perry’s by chef Masako.
Every time there is a BWE event in DC, some of us go to Black Salt for lunch. We stop at MacArthur’s next door to shop and pick up white Burgundy for our lunch. This is always a treat, especially so when there is an in store only deal going on.