Hump Day Roundup

TODAY

Mardi Gras season is upon us: Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board and Cajunator are teaming up to celebrate Mardi Gras in Washington, D.C. with a free oyster po-boy giveaway.  All patrons purchasing gumbo or red beans and rice receive a free ½ oyster po-boy and Mardi Gras beads.  Today from 11am – 1pm @ the Navy Yard Metro stop on “M” Street.

Last week was packed with tons of BBQ, this week is for the vegan in you.  DC Meat-Free Week is going on right now with Food Truck Day taking over this Wednesday afternoon.  Get complete listings here of the remainder of the events.

WORTH A SECOND LOOK

Bourbon Steak’s $7 Smoke n’ Stout deal: a Red Apron half-smoke and a stout, served in the bar and lounge only Sundays through Thursdays for $7.  The “Smoke n’ Stout” will be available through Wednesday, February 29th.

You Are What You Eat at the Strathmore features nine artists whose work comments on perception of body image and the cultural significance of food, with a bent toward American idolization of consumption. The exhibition includes painting, sculpture, photography and multi-media works by Danny Rozin, Peter Anton, Matthew Lawrence, Pamela Michelle Johnson, Davette Leonard, Rhonda Harris Banes, Matt Freedman, Joey Manlapaz and Donna McCullough on view through March 17, 2012 in the Mansion. Pieces in the exhibition can be purchased. For more information, call (301) 581-5100 or visit www.strathmore.org.  A free opening reception for the public will be held on Sunday, February 12, 2012 from 2-4 p.m. in the Mansion.

NEWS

Spring is upon us: Park Hyatt Washington will host Park Hyatt Masters of Food & Wine, a seasonal culinary experience on Saturday, March 24, saluting the ingredients, flavors, and talents of local chefs, regional artisans and producers, and master tea makers.  Get the full schedule here.

Walmart unveiled the “Great for You” icon in D.C. yesterday.  The icon, part of the company’s healthier food initiative, is an effort to implement a transparent, summary icon for its private label brand products backed by nutrition criteria. “Great For You” will initially appear on select Walmart Great Value and Marketside items, as well as on fresh and packaged fruits and vegetables at Walmart U.S. stores nationwide this spring.  By extending “Great For You” to fruits and vegetables and nutritious food options the company will make it easier for its customers to identify the healthy food selections in the store.

OUT AND ABOUT

Melody Tavern celebrated its Grand Opening last week with yours truly and many of the areas notable public figures. Kudos to Northern VA for bringing this cool jazz bar/restaurant to their Potomac Yards neighborhood.

On Monday, I picked up the largest piece of lamb to begin my journey toward becoming one of the four DC food bloggers to take the title in the D.C. American Lamb Pro-Am competition.  Because they did not cut me any slack on the competition, I have been working diligently to at least get myself in the running.  I will need your votes next week so I can bring one home for the team…emails/blog posts/Facebook messages/telegrams/etc. to follow!

World Tour: Super Bowl XLVI

Image via Wikipedia

There are a few times a year that are specifically set aside for you to pig out on all things comfort.  This weekend marks the first major pig out party of the year: the Super Bowl.  Wings, dips you would never eat any other time and all the pizza you can dream of will fill American living rooms across the country.  Being a native New Yorker, I am especially excited to see the Giants take the field and hopefully bring a win back.  If I had’ve saved my United Airlines points properly, I would probably be headed to Indianapolis on a cheap flight but I’ll simply have to depend on my big screen like most spectators of the sport.

While I’ll be enjoying the halftime show from the comforts of someones living room couch, here are a few spots to check out in the District for Super Bowl day shenanigans:

Café St. Ex

Fuel Pizza & Wings

Café Asia

Hudson Restaurant and Lounge

The State Theatre

Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse

McFadden’s DC

Buffalo Billiards

Cleveland Park Bar & Grill

Penn Quarter Sports Tavern

Friday Roundup

©JohnnaKnowsGoodFood

DC Food Events

The 11th Annual Sugar and Champagne Affair: The annual affair for food and animal lovers will be hosted by 94.7 FRESH FM radio host Tommy McFly @ the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center.  More info on the event here.

DC Meat Week kicks off next week (*January 29-February 5, 2012).  If you love BBQ, then this is the week you get to dine in DC with those of similar interests.  DC Meat Week will take place at seven BBQ restaurants in the D.C. area beginning with Urban Bar-B-Que in Rockville,MD (*5566 Norbeck Rd) on Sunday.  See the full schedule and updates here.

Winners Circle

Kudos to the winner of our Sweets on a Stick giveaway: TweetsSweets took the prize by participating in the contest and will receive a copy of the cookbook with over 500 ways to put sweets on a stick.

Now for the Sugar and Champagne giveaway winners (*Drum Roll…): Shawn & Aparna will join yours truly for a night of pups, champagne and chocolate.  Also, as a bonus, @ichoosethesun is the winner of the Two for One Muse Brunch card.  Congrats!  Thank you to all who participated.

New

Diep 9 has added some new things to the Genever family: Diep 9 Old Grain Genever and Diep 9 Young Grain Genever are unflavored and contain 35% alcohol by Volume, boasting “true” Genever.  Diep 9 has stepped out of the Belgian market in D.C. and expanded its sales in DC, VT, MA and RI…kudos!

A new way to eat: Feastly, an online marketplace that connects cooks with adventurous eaters, recently launched.  The concept is grounded on passionate cooks preparing homemade meals for the eaters at the cook’s home.  Get more info here.

Hello Cupcake keeps it fresh with their newest cupcake addition, DC Love Child.  DC Love Child is the first cupcake in the District to combine DC craft beer with chocolate cake.  The cupcake is finished off with a bourbon buttercream frosting and tipped off with a chocolate covered potato chip. Yum.

Girl Power!  The most popular young girls organization, The Girl Scouts of the USA, are set to celebrate their centennial anniversary.  Alongside the celebration, the Girl Scouts are launching ToGetHerThere, a campaign dedicated to girls’ leadership issues.  Congressional leaders Nancy Pelosi and Donna Edwards are among the Congressional support for this campaign to promote girls’ leadership.

Catch Me If You Can

This week I had the opt to hang out with one of my fave food bloggers, French Twist D.C., at Zengo for the launch of their new Shanghai-San Paulo fusion menu.  Pomegranate Kumquat cocktails, Picahna Steak topped with King Crab and Coconut Batida’s made for an excellent way to dine in D.C. on a random Wednesday night. #lovetherandomness

trending.

Happy New Year! JKGF is back from a much needed vacation that was long overdue.  I have been eating carelessly and allowing my kitchen to collect dust.  While I was on a bit of a hiatus, my mind was wandering in and out of what I want this year for the blog.  Of course, Etiquette Tuesday is here to stay but I also want to implement more comprehensive lists (*of course, food related) beginning with this one: five trends that will hopefully stay in 2011 and five trends that will hopefully grow in 2012.  For the trends that I wish would stay behind, this is not to say I did not enjoy every succulent moment but they need a rest for now…let us miss them and then come back with a bang. Now for these trends…

5 Trends to Leave in 2011:

1. Cupcakes.  We honestly have enough cupcake shops/bakeries, food trucks and in-home delivery cupcake services to last a lifetime.  Enough already.  We love the miniature baked goods but it’s time for a new handheld treat.

2. Small bites.  I love a good tapas spot but when your paying $15 for a pizza that’s the size of a small child’s hand, this is where things just get ridiculous.  Tapas is not for every cuisine, some places really do Need to offer the regular size portions, isn’t that the point of going out for some good ‘ole comfort food??…

3. Frozen Yogurt.  I love, love, love Froyo and I think this alongside the 10+ yogurt shops that have popped up around the District area are sufficient to serve our needs (*I’m sure other regions around the country have seen their fair share of yogurt shops pop up as well).  What about adding some old fashioned ice cream shops to the mix? Just a thought.

4. Secret supper clubs.  I’m all about amazing food but not when I have to perform Mission Impossible tasks just to get on the reservation list.

5. Haute Dogs.  After being in Chicago, there are very few places that can make a hot dog stand outside of its stereotypical ballpark food genre.  Throwing on a massive amount of toppings does not make for a “haute” dog, it is the combination that makes it stand out from the rest.  Let’s be more creative here and cook the hot dogs properly (*unreal but it happens) or leave this trend behind…

5 Trends that will hopefully grow in 2012

1. Locally produced foods.  This was huge in 2011 but I’m hoping everyone will make it a priority to visit at least one local farmers market this year.  Local produce is absolutely amazing and whether you believe it or not, you can actually taste the difference.

2. Southern Fried everything.  Thanks to Euro RSCG and CEO/trendspotter, Marian Salzman for this trend, which is turning everything from butter to pickles into a fried delicacy.  Fried pickles are my absolute new obsession, I hope to see them on every comfort menu I come across this year.

3. Chefs in Schools.  Times have certainly changed when you have professionally trained chefs preparing your lunchtime menu in the 7th grade.  I have disturbing memories of the food that was served in my high school cafeteria and I can assure you my lunch lady cared very little for the nutritional value in our food.

4. The Vegan lifestyle.  I am in no way close to vegan, but I love to hear and learn more about the benefits of this lifestyle.  Maybe one day…

5. Non-American brunches/breakfasts.  Who doesn’t love a good fix of eggs, bacon and waffles for breakfast?  I love the American breakfast but now I find myself gravitating towards Chile Rellenos topped with fried eggs on the brain for Saturday brunch.  Fingers crossed that all of the various cuisines will find a way to serve up their morning delicacies.

Winners, Vote & Freebie

Winners Circle

Twelve days later and nine ladies dancing, we have a winner.  Drum Roll, please….Janet!! After putting the names in a small box and having a colleague draw a random name, Janet is the winner of the $100 gift card to Chix DC.  Thanks to all who submitted and check out the other winners from the 12 Days of Christmas giveaway here.  Merry Christmas!!

*The winner of the Chix DC gift card, please contact Johnna at johnna@johnnaknowsgoodfood.com to redeem your prize.

The winner of the Vapiano giveaway is, drum roll, please….Renee!! After putting the names in a small box and having a colleague draw a random name, Renee is the winner of the $25 gift card to Vapiano.  Thanks to all who submitted and if you come back tomorrow to read my random notes, I will have another nifty giveaway waiting for your submission and a possible win.  Happy Holidays!

VOTE

Want to see my faves in the DC dining scene? Well, check out Lauren, of The Capitol Cooking Show blog, for the dibs on her fave DC restaurants alongside Lisa, of Dining in DC and yours truly.  Vote and let us know your fave spots as we round out 2011!

Also, you may have noticed this little grey box popping up when you visit my site.  No, this is not some phishing scam or annoying way to get your information.  It is a survey that Lisa of Dining in DC, Lauren of The Capitol Cooking Show, Mary of Girl Meets Food and myself have compiled to get an idea of who’s out there reading about DC food.  Fill out the survey for your chance to take home a $100 gift certificate.  Good luck!

Celebrate with FREE

Yola turns one! Happy Birthday to the Dupont yogurt spot that will kick off the week long anniversary celebration by serving up 365 Free chocolate chip cookies from Buzz Bakery tomorrow beginning @ 10:30 am.  ¡Feliz Cumpleaños!