The Secretatiat and the Boogalee Crush at Arcadiana
Let’s start out the right way. With cocktails.
Arcadiana – We did not eat at this Louisiana cuisine restaurant…but we did have cocktails here every afternoon. It was located right across from the convention center and its outdoor seating – complete with umbrellas and comfy, padded wicker furniture and the promise of cocktails – was just the right kind of inviting to a couple of girls who’d been on their feet walking the exhibit hall for hours on end.
Our first round – pictured above was from their Signature Drinks menu. I was excited to see that they had a Sazerac on the menu – but as it was so, so hot, I resisted that pull and went for something that would be a bit cooler – so I chose the Secretariat: Bourbon, Vermouth, Triple Sec and house made Sour Mix, with a sugar rim. It was the grown-up cousin of the Whiskey Sours my dad used to make, and I loved it. C got the Boogalee Crush (which wins for most-fun name, by a landslide!): Jim Beam, muddled blackberries, ginger simple syrup and house-made sour mix. Fun, fruity and refreshing.
Our next visit-to-Arcadiana/break-from-the-convention was during Happy Hour, so we took advantage of the $5 Specialty Cocktails and tried the Cajun Dark & Stormy: Gosling’s Dark Rum, ginger simple syrup and ginger ale; and the Category Five: their version of that New Orleans cocktail with El Dorado Light Rum and Goslings Dark Rum. Two more great drinks – and a huge bargain at only $5 a pop!
Verdict: Eat (or in this case Drink) It!
Ethiopic – Great Ethiopian food in a lovely setting in a not-so-touristy part of town.
Verdict: Eat It!
Ebenezer’s Coffee House – Pretty, historic building with both inside and outside seating…drinks, snacks and even live entertainment if you time it right.
Verdict: Eat It!
Againn – Keep in mind the only thing ‘pub-like’ at this Gastropub is the names of the foods they’ve re-interpreted (Bangers and Mash and the like)…but if the sleek new steel building it’s a part of doesn’t throw you off, the house-made charcuterie and the *very* well-mixed cocktails (there is even a disclaimer on the drinks menu to please allow adequate time for your drinks to be made)……or if you only want to taste what could very well be the best Banoffee Pie of your life, you should make your way to Againn.
Verdict: Eat It!
Zaytinya– Jose Andreas’ Middle Eastern Mezze (small plates) restaurant…and while a few of the dishes were stand-outs, the rest were good to only ok…and the cocktails while inventive, were not quite the kind you’re dying to go back for…
Verdict: Skip it! (Unless you’re dying to try it and you’ve read our full review and don’t think the things that bothered us would bother you.)
Pretty archway in Union Station
Acadiana
901 New York Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20001
202.408.8848
www.acadianarestaurant.com
Ethiopic Restaurant
401 H Street NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-675-2066
www.ethiopicrestaurant.com
Ebenezer’s Coffeehouse
201 F Street Northeast
Washington D.C., DC 20002
(202) 558-6900
ebenezerscoffeehouse.com
Againn
1099 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001
Located on 11th St between K & New York Ave
202.639.9830
www.againndc.com
Zaytinya
701 9th Street NW
Washington, DC 20004
Corner of 9th & G Streets
202-638-0800
www.zaytinya.com
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