Union Kitchen at 430 8th Street, SE, held its grand opening on Saturday, February 15. It’s open daily, from 7:30am until 9:00pm. Pictured here are Store Director Matt Behringer (right) and vendor Sable Howard, (aka Joe Java) who founded and owns Grace Filled Cup.
The store also offers specialty grocery items including beer, wine, and sake as well as housewares.
One of the specialty items on Union Kitchen’s shelves is Grace Filled Cup’s Brew Luxe, a Premium Ready-to-drink coffee in a pouch. For more, see here: https://gracefilledcup.square.site/
And here are some other offerings you won’t find just anywhere.
Ruth Ellen Wennersten of 408 A Street, NE, Washington, DC, died in Talmarindo, Costa Rica on February 2, 2025, of heart failure caused by pulmonary embolism. Ruth Ellen was 79 years old.
She is survived by her husband, Jack Wennersten, two sons, Stewart (wife Maria) and Matthew (wife Mala) and two grandchildren, Anthony and Sofia (aged 17 and 15), all of Northwest Washington.
Ruth Ellen and Jack Wennersten moved to Washington, DC, in 2001, after academic careers. Ruth Ellen taught history at the University of Maryland, Eastern Shore and accompanied her husband on extended teaching assignment in Heidelberg, Germany, Naples, Italy, Asmara, Ethiopia, and Cambridge, England. She also taught English as a second language at the Hong Kong School of Ballet and Tokiwa University in Mito, Japan.
Active in civic affairs for over twenty years, Ruth Ellen was a docent at the National Building Museum, a volunteer at Friends of the Southeast Public Library on Capitol Hill, an usher at the Shakespeare Theater, and an avid supporter of the Anacostia Watershed Society.
A keen bridge player, dedicated reader, and world traveler, Ruth Ellen circumnavigated the United States, visiting all 50 states, and every continent except Antarctica, with extended visits to India, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and England. While she did not suffer fools lightly, she enjoyed entertaining and discussing politics. She had the love and adoration of her husband and family.
Donations to her memory can be made to the National building Museum, Development Office, in Washington, DC, 401 F Street, NW, 20001.
A Remembrance Service followed by a reception is scheduled March 1, 2025 from 3:00pm – 6:00pm at the Hill Center on Capitol Hill in Washington, 921 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE.
Union Kitchen Distribution and Construction Manager Keith Chapman (left) and Union Kitchen Director for Union Markets, Matt Behringer.
Union Kitchen – Barracks Row – Opens Thursday
by Larry Janezich
Posted February 10, 2025
The long-awaited opening of Union Kitchen at 430 8th Street, SE, is scheduled for 7:30am on Thursday, February 13, according to Union Kitchen Store Director Matt Behringer who adds, “The first 100 customers will receive a free freshly baked cookie.”
The Union kitchen concept is modeled on the small NYC bodega – a combination café and grocery story. It will open daily from 7:30am until 9:00pm for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The store will also offer specialty grocery items including beer, wine, and sake as well as housewares. An application for a sidewalk café – which would open in the spring – is in the works.
The opening will also feature several vendors whose products – many of them local – are found on Union Kitchen shelves. They will be there to interact and to introduce their brands to the neighborhood.
Reflecting store’s strong neighborhood orientation, Behringer says the Order Here counter will feature a QR Code soliciting photos of pets and neighborhood life for posting in a gallery on Union Kitchen’s wall. Wiki says of the NYC bodegas, “they are renowned for their convivial culture and colorful character.”
Progress report on renovation of SE Library. Photos: DCPL
Structural steel has been added to the new underground addition.
Electrical rough-ins are underway on the main floor. Note the skylight space in the ceiling.
Here’s the almost the same view of the design plan rendering illustrating the completed new main level. Note the center skylight which will illuminate the floors below.
MPD 1D CAC Update: Last Tuesday night, the MPD First District Citizens Advisory Council (CAC) held its monthly virtual meeting featuring MPD 1D Commander Colin Hall (far left), Captain Adam Crist, and Captain Paul Hrebenak. The officials gave an update on crime in the First District. Some of the highlights:
Crime stats continue to decline in the First District and across the city.
Recent items which have been the target of robberies include Canada Goose and Moose Knuckle Coats.
MPD D1 has worked with ABCA to shut down two illegal cannabis shops on PA Avenue, SE, one on the 1100 block and one on the 1200 block. Two months ago MPD 1D officers assisted in the shuttering of two illegal cannabis shops on H Street.
MPD has made progress on cleaning up the corner of 8th and H Street, NE.
The area around 15th and Independence SE has been quiet after MPD made several arrests and took some violent people off the streets.
Commander Hall will lead a contingent of MPD 1D officials participating in the Polar Plunge in Yards Park on Saturday, February 22. (See below for additional info.)
ABCA Shuts down Illegal Weed Shop on PA Ave, SE. Here’s a photo of Friends Smoke Shop at 1223 PA Avenue, SE, one of the two illegal cannabis outlets closed recently by the Alcohol Beverage and Cannabis Administration. (At Friends Smoke Shop, Investigators recovered 1.4 lbs. of marijuana, 42 grams of THC vape cartridges, and 92 grams of mushroom infused products.) The other illegal weed shop on PA Avenue, SE which was closed recently is on the 1100 block. ABCA also closed two illegal shops on H Street SE last month.
Former Oehme va Sweden Building Sold. The grand old building on Barracks Row at 536 8th Street, SE, has been sold. The recent home of Oehme, van Sweden Landscape Architects and formerly a City Bank Building went up for sale in January of last year. Reportedly, the architectural firm found maintenance of the 1908 building too burdensome. No word on the new owner, but it’s likely the building will see continued service as office or commercial space.
The Week Ahead…
Tuesday, February 11
ANC6B will hold a hybrid meeting at 7:00pm.
Meeting location will be 700 Pennsylvania Ave SE; First Floor (entry adjacent to Trader Joe’s).
For info on how to join the virtual meeting, go here: https://anc6b.org/
Among items on the Consent Agenda
321 D Street, SE. Motion to support Zoning Adjustment Application for exceptions for rear addition.
4-5 Library Court, SE. Motion to Defer Historic Preservation Application to add second story additions to two existing alley dwellings.
Amendments to Standing Rules and Bylaws.
Appointment of Resident Members and Alternates to all Committees & Task Forces.
Appointment of Committee and Taskforce Chairs.
Community & Commission Announcements and Speak Out
External Updates:
MOCRS Representative.
Representative from Councilmember Charles Allen’s Office.
Metropolitan Police Department.
ANC 6B Input on Other Items of Concern
Alcoholic Beverage & Cannabis Committee
7th Street Love (Acqua al 2), 212 7th Street. – Motion to take no position on Restaurant Liquor License Application with Entertainment and Dancing Endorsement, pending receipt of a signed Settlement Agreement.
ANC6B Administrative Matters.
ANC7D will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm (new start time)
Chris Dyer, DC Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) Summer camp registration & spring programming
DC Government Updates
Eric Mullins, Mayor’s Office of Community Relations & Services (MOCRS)
Ward 7 Representative • Francis Campbell, Office of Ward 7 Councilmember Wendell Felder
Commissioner Single Member District Reports
Suggested Motion: ANC 7D to request FY2026 funding for DDOT to conduct a Kenilworth-focused road safety/design audit.
Suggested Motion: ANC 7D to send a letter to DC Government stakeholder agencies to request a feasibility study to install CCTV on I-295 pedestrian bridges to improve bridge user safety.
Suggested Motion: Recommend ANC 7D approve a grant in the amount of $1,500 to DCwise1 for food handling/safety training.
Public Safety Committee Report
Discussion of setting an ANC 7D Special Meeting between February 12 and April 12 for the purpose of a 7D01 Election.
Suggested Motion: ANC 7D to post information requesting contracting occasional administrative support for the Commission.
Recommendation: ANC6A protest the license application of Dumpling Hot Pot Beyond, unless a Settlement Agreement is reached between the ANC and the license applicant prior to the protest deadline.
Recommendation: ANC6A protest the license application of Tigo’s unless a Settlement Agreement is reached between the ANC and the license applicant prior to the protest deadline.
Recommendation: ANC6A protest the license application of Dreamy DC unless a Settlement Agreement is reached between the ANC and the license applicant prior to the protest deadline and ABCA confirms applicant is within allowed distance from another licensed establishment.
Recommendation: ANC6A send a letter to the Chair of the City Council, with copies to all members of the Council and the Mayor, requesting the city council to pass legislation creating a provision for a moratorium zone for cannabis licenses equivalent to the provision for a moratorium zone for alcohol licenses.
Recommendation: ANC6A send a letter to DDOT in support of the planned street closures for the Capitol Hill Classic.
Recommendation: ANC6A send a letter to DDOT requesting all-way stops and other traffic calming along Tennessee Ave. from D/14th/E Streets.
Recommendation: ANC6A send a letter to DDOT requesting they extend the protected bike lane project at 14th and H Streets south through Maryland Ave and also examine ways to prioritize the B2 bus in this area.
Recommendation: ANC6A send a letter to DDOT requesting they expand the FY25Q2 prioritization of 11th and F Street NE to re-examine traffic calming along 11th Street NE from Florida Ave to East Capitol.
Recommendation: ANC6A send a letter to DDOT in support of the Maury color the curb project (and that the art have some connection to the color the curb from Hill Family Biking).
Recommendation: ANC6A send a letter to DDOT suggesting and requesting safety improvements to the 16th Street/C Street/North Carolina Ave NE corridor.
Recommendation: ANC6A send a letter to DDOT requesting they expand the FY25Q2 prioritization of 14th and Ames Place NE to calm traffic along 14th Street from North Carolina Ave to East Capitol.
Recommendation: (Mini-Mall Planned for H 1355-1359 H Street, NE) ANC6A send a letter of support for the Zoning Adjustment Application requesting Special Exceptions to convert to a retail and eating and drinking establishment and use an existing, semi-detached, mixed use building in the NMU-4/HA and MU-4 zones.
Recommendation: ANC6A to send a letter of support for a Zoning Adjustment Application requesting Special Exceptions from requirement to permit construction of a two-story plus cellar rear addition, to an existing, attached, two-story with cellar, principal dwelling unit in the RF-1 zone.
Recommendation: ANC6A to send a letter of support to the DOB and the BZA requesting a Time Extension, asking them to expedite requests associated with bringing the facility at 1022 Maryland Avenue NE into compliance with updated zoning regulations, given Sasha Bruce Youthwork’s commitment to working with the community liaison committee on any ongoing plans related to the building, particularly any external work.
Capitol Hill Corner would also like you to know about:
Hill Center Event – Tuesday, February 11. 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Our City. Our Music. Our Writers – In-person
$10.00
Two eminent, essential local writers on jazz are featured in the February 11 session of the series.
Georgetown University Professor Maurice Jackson has just published Rhythms of Resistance and Resilience: How Black Washingtonians Used Music and Sports in the Fight for Equality. He will also talk about DC Jazz: Stories of Jazz Music in Washington, DC., which he co-edited.
NEA Jazz Master Willard Jenkins will talk about Ain’t But a Few of Us. Black Music Writers Tell Their Story, noted by reviewers as superb, overdue, and vital reading for any jazz fan. Though performers and innovators in this genre are overwhelmingly African American, Black music writers and editors are woefully underrepresented.
The Polar Plunge is a way for the community to come out and show their support for the athletes of Special Olympics DC. There will be an above-ground swimming pool erected at the Yards Park, and participants will “take the plunge.”
ANC6B Committee on Alcohol Beverage and Cannabis Administration met last Tuesday to consider a Restaurant License for Acqua al 2.
Acqua al 2 Update
by Larry Janezich
Posted February 8, 2025
Restaurateur Ari Gejdenson is returning to Eastern Market to reopen Acqua al 2 (AA2). The Italian menu will be the same, but the upstairs speakeasy – Jack Black’s – is gone. His aim is to convert the speakeasy space to a dining and dancing event space for which Gejdenson envisions hosts selling tickets (fund raising tickets?) – which would technically meet ABCA criteria for a cover charge. Gejdenson also wants to enclose the front sidewalk patio and extend dancing to that area with hours outside the same as those inside, 2am Sunday – Thursday and 3am Friday and Saturday. He would also add carryout and delivery service.
Last Tuesday night, ANC6B’s alcohol licensing committee met to discuss the liquor license application with the request for the expanded operation. Much of the discussion involved concerns of across-the-alley neighbors who have had ongoing issues with the restaurants facing 7th Street on the block.
Gejedenson had generally been a good neighbor during the first incarnation of AA2. After it closed, it was succeeded by Harvest Tide, whom the neighbors found unresponsive to their concerns about trash, rodents, and delivery trucks blocking the alley and preventing access to their garages.
Responding to neighbor complaints, ANC6B negotiated a new and more stringent Settlement Agreement with Harvest Tide. (A Settlement Agreement is the mechanism agreed to between the ANC and the restaurant which governs its operations – trash, rodents, parking, hours, etc.) Neighbors say that Harvest Tide continued to be a bad neighbor despite the new Settlement Agreement. Gejdenson said that was largely because the city was lax in enforcing the Agreement.
The (ABCA Committee – per comment below) want Gejdenson to sign the same agreement they had with Harvest Tide. Gejdenson is resisting signing the more stringent agreement saying he is unwilling to “assume additional risk” by signing commitments which could allow neighbors to put on him things that should be the city’s responsibility.
After two contentious hours of discussion, the committee agreed to designate temporary committee chair Commissioner Anna Krebs and Commissioner Jerry Sroufe to meet with Gejdenson and his attorney in hopes of reaching an agreement on a Settlement Agreement before the full ANC meets on next Tuesday. If not, the parties can request a two week extension to negotiate. Gejdenson hopes to open within the next 30 to 90 days.
RFK and the Commanders: The exterior demolition of RFK is underway. The Friends of Kingman Park RFK Taskforce will hold an in-person meeting on Tuesday, February 4, at St. Benedict’s Church to solicit community input on RFK in anticipation of a February 20 community meeting hosted by Friends of Kingman Park featuring representatives from the Washington Commanders. The event is billed as an opportunity to meet and learn about proposed plans for RFK. Since the Mayor’s office has not reached aa agreement on the proposed construction of a new stadium, any plans presented will be provisional and subject to change. A sign over on the south side of RFK shows the sentiment of how some in the community feel about the stadium.
EAT BRGZ Closes Eastern Market and the West End Locations. The sign on the door says, “We’ve made the strategic decision to move on to an exciting new chapter. It has been a our greatest pleasure serving this community over the past five years …. Thank you for all the love, support and memories that will last a life time.” EAT BRGZ owner Brandon Gaynor opened the burger joint in early summer of 2019, featuring a new concept based on a “complex burger” which set it apart from competitors. See here: https://bit.ly/2IOOcj3
Update on Lobby Bar. Here’s a photo from the past week of the on-going renovation of the former Boxcar at 224 7th Street, SE, across from Eastern Market. The owner of the new Lobby Bar expects to open at the end of February. Photo credit: Maggie Hall.
Acqua al 2’s owner Ari Gejdenson is stirring up the across-the alley-neighbors. Gejdenson is reopening AA2 at 212 7th Street across the street from Eastern Market. All well and good. However, the restaurant’s liquor license placard in the front window includes an application for an “Entertainment endorsement to provide live entertainment inside of the premises and on the sidewalk café with dancing and cover charge.” And it goes on: “House of operation alcoholic beverage sales, service and consumption and live entertainment for inside premises and for the sidewalk cafe. Sunday through Thursday 7:00am to 2:00am Friday and Saturday 7:00am to 3:00am.” That may be a bridge too far. The application will come up before the ANC6B ABC Committee which will hold a virtual meeting on Tuesday night at 7:00pm (see below for details). Could be contentious.
Foliage at Frager’s takes over the former Hype Café Space. Staff says Foliage at Frager’s opened up the new space a few weeks ago. A grand opening is a month or so away, but customers are welcome in the new space which is fully stocked with garden supplies.
Here’s what inside the former café looks like now.
BTW – Frager’s is holding its second annual Ladies; Night on Thursday February 13, from 5pm – 8pm, with 20% off everything in the store during the event which features demonstrations, giveaways, and “good eats.”
The Week Ahead…
Monday, February 3
ANC6D will hold a virtual Administrative Meeting at 7:00pm.
Discussion of a new Medical Cannabis Retailer license with delivery endorsement at Dreamy DC, 1111 H Street, NE.
Discussion of a letter requesting the city council to pass legislation creating a provision for a moratorium zone for cannabis licenses equivalent to the provision for a moratorium zone for alcohol licenses.
Discussion of a new Class C Restaurant license with carry out and delivery endorsement at Dumpling Hot Pot Beyond, 1216-1218 H Street.
ANC6B Alcoholic Beverage & Cannabis Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
The Friends of Kingman Park RFK Taskforce will hold an in-person meeting at St. Benedict’s Church to solicit community input on RFK
Representatives of Bridgepoint Hospital at 213 7th Street, NE, will hold a community meeting featuring Chris Lafontsee, the new Chief Executive Officer, Capitol Hill and Perry Limes, the new Vice President of Business Development. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss Bridgepoint Healthcare and community issues. The meeting is at 6:30pm in the Bridgepoint Hospital Conference Room.
Wednesday, February 5
ANC6B Transportation Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
Continued discussion on the Penn/Potomac improvement project. Discussion will focus on forming an agreement with NPS for maintenance of the park in the traffic circle.
Discussion on Lincoln Park traffic safety collaboration with ANC 6A
Presentation on traffic closures related to the Capitol Hill Classic and discussion of a support letter request
ANC6C Planning, Zoning, and Economic Development Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 6:30pm.
Rally Caps (In this star-studded family coming-of-age drama, young Jordy, who is recovering from a serious Little League baseball injury, goes to summer camp where he forms a friendship with Lucas, who just had Cochlear Implant surgery. Together, they form a special bond as friends and pitcher/catcher duo and lead their team in the camp championship game.)
Deaf Giants (Baseball-loving 10-year-old Bracken and his younger deaf brother investigate the contrast between early 1900s inclusion of deaf players in baseball and the present, seeking to understand why representation has regressed.)
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Community meeting on Watkins Playground and Park Update, Thursday, January 30.
Concept design for the new Watkins Playground
Last Thursday night, the Department of General Services (DGS) hosted a community meeting at Watkins School to solicit input on the design for the new Watkins Playground – part of the Watkins Playground and Park upgrades. Construction is scheduled to begin on the $2.25 million project this summer with completion anticipated in the fall.
The current playground will be demolished and new playground equipment will be installed. The basketball courts will be resurfaced and improvements will be made to Watkins Field.
A common community concern regarding DGS and Department of Parks projects is what happens to the project after completion.
Some parents of Watkins students who attended the meeting expressed frustration at the lack of planning for maintenance and how difficult it is to get equipment repaired. One attendee said she had “no faith in the ability of the DC government to fix things,” and questioned the wisdom of installing new swings on the playground, citing how quickly they tend to break and how impossible it is to get them fixed. The result, she said, was a dead zone in the playground.
Department of Recreation External Affairs rep Tommie Jones acknowledged existing difficulties in the city’s repair response record. But he also said that there was pressure from the community for swings because they are so popular with children.
ANC6B Chair Vince Marino attended the meeting and later commented, “I’m pleased that DPR is taking community feedback seriously, from both adults and children. I’m especially happy that DGS, the maintenance corps of the city, sent a representative who took notes on the neighbors’ heartfelt complaints about the slow pace of city repairs and litter removal.”
For more info and a link to the January 30 PowerPoint presentation, go here: https://bit.ly/4aDfKlD
Last Monday night, 6B’s Public Safety Committee met to lay the groundwork for guiding the committee’s agendas for the rest of current year. The session was chaired by chair pro tempore, newly elected Commissioner Brian Gorman.
Among suggestions for focusing on the work going forward, were the following:
Hear a crime report from MPD First District every meeting.
Continue discussions about safety at Eastern Market and support expediting installation of static and pneumatic bollards at the Eastern Market Special Use District, including the space occupied by the weekend street vendors.
Continue discussions with residents of Potomac Gardens regarding their specific needs.
Encourage engagement with the Office of the DC Attorney General and departments such as the Departments of Behavior Health and Youth Rehabilitation Services as well as the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, and with representatives of programs including Cure the Streets and the Violence Interrupters.
Monitor City Council legislation dealing with crime issues and advise ANC6B on positions they should take regarding such legislation.
Publicize public safety events, using emails to constituents and posts on the ANC6B website.
Continue neighborhood public safety walks.
Continue monitoring operation of the 911 system and the Office of Unified Command.
Provide a forum for people impacted by crime.
Request regular appearances by the DC Deputy Mayor for Public Safety.
There were two suggestions regarding actions committee members, commissioners and residents can take which pointed to things everyone can do to participate personally in addressing crime issues.
Every month, MPD provides an opportunity for ANC Commissioners and residents to engage directly with top MPD First District officials and raise concerns about crime issues which directly affect them or their neighborhoods. It’s surprising that more commissioners and residents fail to take advantage of this opportunity, especially since MPD offers offers assurances that they respond to concerns which are raised. One suggestion that came out of Monday night’s meeting was:
Encourage residents and commissioners to attend the monthly virtual meeting of the MPD First District MPD 1D Citizens Advisory Council Monthly (next meeting: Tuesday, February 4 – 1st Tuesday. 6:00 – 7:15pm. https://1dcac.com/ )
Regarding a another specific way residents can become personally involved to improve the public safety landscape – albeit long term – resident committee member Ann Keep offered a concrete suggestion, pointing to need for mentoring third grade students in reading. Keep, a Hill East resident, says she worked for 35 years in the DC Jail and that her public safety world centered on the jail and on people who are released. She cited a “chilling statistic – when people are considering the construction of new prisons, they look at third grade reading scores because those are the children that are possibly headed in the carceral direction.”
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Here are the 1st, 2nd (2), and 3rd place winners of the Hill Center’s 2025 Regional Juried Exhibition, juried by Phil Hutinet, publisher of East City Art. The exhibitions run from January 15th through May 3rd.
First Place, Jessica Maria Hopkins. Colors of My Reflection. Acrylic, Acrylic pen, ball point pen on canvas.
Second Place # 1, James Terrell, The Last Supper. Collage, Acrylic Paint, Paper and Fabric.
Second Place #2, Take Me to the Water. Collage, Paper, Fabric, Paint.
Third Place, Maddy Keener, Pick The Gleaming Bones Clean. Acrylic on Canvas.
Capitol Hill Books at night.
Here’s Triple Candies’ January exhibit and a detail from same, in the space in front of the former Li’l Pub at 655 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE. Triple Candie is a research-oriented curatorial agency run by art historian co-founders Shelly Bancroft and Peter Nesbett. Their purpose is to create alternative exhibition methods making that the object of critical focus rather than what is displayed.
The Week Ahead…
Highlights:
Tuesday: ANC6A ABC Committee considers proposed letter requesting the city council to pass legislation creating a provision for a moratorium zone for cannabis licenses equivalent to the provision for a moratorium zone for alcohol licenses.
Wednesday: Watkins Improvements Meeting
Monday, January 27
ANC6A Community Outreach Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
Discussion of a new Medical Cannabis Retailer license with delivery endorsement at Dreamy DC, 1111 H Street, NE.
Discussion of a letter requesting the city council to pass legislation creating a provision for a moratorium zone for cannabis licenses equivalent to the provision for a moratorium zone for alcohol licenses.
Discussion of a new Class C Restaurant license with carry out and delivery endorsement at Dumpling Hot Pot Beyond, 1216-1218 H Street.
ANC6B Executive Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
EMCAC will hold an in-person and virtual meeting in the North Hall, Eastern Market at 7:00pm.
For info on how to join the meeting, go here: TBA
Agenda: TBA
Thursday, January 30
Watkins Improvements Meeting
DC Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) and the DC Department of General Services will discuss the Watkins Recreation Center park and playground improvements on Thursday, January 30, 2025, 6:00-7:30 @ Watkins Elementary School. RSVP at https://watkins.splashthat.com/
Capitol Hill Corner would also like you to know about:
Thursday, January 30. 6:30pm. Free Event at Folger Library.
This panel discussion explores the unexpected ways Shakespeare’s legacy has endured, and how engaging with theater-making enhances the relevance and value of Shakespeare in the everyday lives of people.
The keynote is led by Folger’s Director of Programming & Performance and Folger Theatre Artistic Director Karen Ann Daniels in conversation with:
author, adaptor, director, theater scholar and Where There’s a Will podcast host, Barry Edelstein
Latine playwright, educator, facilitator, producer and Director of Public Works at the Public Theater Laurie Woolery
Free Exhibit at the Folger through February 9. Little Books, Big Gifts: The Artistry of Esther Inglis – A special exhibition at the Folger.
Stuart and Mimi Rose Rare Book and Manuscript Exhibition Hall
Free; timed-entry pass recommended
Esther Inglis (1570?—1624) was a professional-class Franco-Scottish refugee, a working mother of eight, and a contemporary of Shakespeare. Earning her living by her pen, she combined her artistic skills and her religious beliefs to create over 60 miniature handwritten and hand-illustrated books. She strategically gifted these books to dozens of prominent European Protestants during a period of religious turmoil. Four hundred years after her death, this exhibition explores Esther’s life and work as an early modern influencer and as the first woman in Britain to preface her works with selfies.
Artists: Open Call at the Capitol Hill Art League – Submissions Close 2/14/24. The Capitol Hill Art League (CHAL) is holding its 14th Annual “Open Call” art competition for artists throughout the DMV as well as Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia. This year’s theme is “Landscape”.
This annual competition awards cash prizes and attracts artists of many varied talents. The juror for the competition is Glenn Kessler, an internationally collected and awarded artist and founder of the Compass Atelier in Rockville, MD.
Capitol Hill Chorale is recruiting 55 and older adults as new members. No experience is required to join an Encore choir! There are no auditions to become a member of an Encore program; interested singers need only to have a love for music and a desire to improve their physical, mental, and emotional health. No singer needs to have any experience with music or singing, and the ability to read music is not necessary. Singers may be seated or standing for all ninety-minute rehearsals and performances. Most importantly of all, Encore is fun! Encore singers love the music, love to sing, and thrive on the camaraderie that comes with the Encore experience. You can register at: https://tinyurl.com/5y9e5up4
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Capitol Hill’s Acqua al 2, which closed in September of 2020, is returning to its former location at 212 7th Street, SE, across from Eastern Market. A placard for a liquor license in the window signaled the return, and an employee at work inside said that the restaurant would reopen in a couple of months with the same menu and the same owners as before, Ari and Stacy Gejdenson.
After Acqua al 2 on 7th Street closed, the space was occupied by a surf and turf restaurant – Harvest Tide – which closed in March of 2024. Meanwhile, Acqua al 2 continued to operate at other locations, including Annapolis and Florence, Italy.
Restaurateurs Ari and Stacy Gejdenson were owners of the Mindful Restaurant Group (MRG) which at its peak had eight restaurants and bars operating in the DMV. The businesses struggled during the pandemic and the Gejdensons dissolved MRG in 2020, closing some restaurants and turning others over to employees, though the Gejdensons remained involved as investors.
It may be a sign of the times – The Lobby Bar (formerly Boxcar) is opening a few doors away in the space formerly occupied by The Hill Restaurant Group’s Boxcar.
Here’s a link to the Annapolis restaurant where you can take a look at their menu: https://acquaal2.com/
CAPITOL HILL CORNER 