Columbia Heights Gets A Street Performer

I thought he was pretty good!

Happy Houring with the PoP

The Heights Life hit the Prince of Petworth happy hour tonight.

Upon arrival at Looking Glass Lounge, it was a relief to see some semblance of the old Temperance Hall. A sign, however, does not taste as good as a fuji and fontina sandwich. As much as we are loyal to our Wonderland owners and support their Petworth endeavor, we're always going to miss the Temperance Hall menu. That burger was the best.

But to be fair, the food we saw at Looking Glass seemed like it would taste quite good, and the food we ate did taste quite good.

We spent the dining time trying to scope out the PoP. At first I thought the back of this head might be his:


I was mistaken. Turns out this is the back of his head:


Note that the outdoor area of Looking Glass was open, but on this May night it was cool enough that Matthew turned on the heat lamps! On this point, my mother would say: "See, there's no global warming." And I would reply: "Actually mother, one indication of global warming is increasingly extreme weather patterns, hot or cold." Mother's reply? "Whatever."

Anyhow, thanks to the Prince of Petworth for hosting a lovely happy hour. We made some new friends and drank a few beers. What more can you ask for on a Wednesday?

Spot The Heights Life in a Crowd

Spud Lite wrote yesterday about my tendency to write about bars a little too much, and this post is no exception. Tonight is another semi-regular happy hour hosted by fellow blogger Prince of Petworth:

WHERE: Looking Glass Lounge, 3634 Georgia Ave NW
WHEN: 7 pm

Come have a few beers, lament the loss of the old Temperance Hall burger, and see if you can spot The Heights Life in the crowd.

DCUSA Security: School is Cool

Apparently the DCUSA security team abides by a "Stay in School" rule.

As I was walking into the complex around 2:45PM a security guard (or perhaps hired police officer, I am not sure) stopped two younger looking folks to quiz them about their ages. When it came out that they were school-going youth, he told them they couldn't enter the building until 3PM.

The kids left quietly and on the street I heard one say she got out early. Anyhow, the lesson: School is Cool, kids! Target is also cool, but only after 3PM.

Biking the Heights: CH on Two Wheels

Though based on ArtBart's recent posts, it would seem that this blog has rededicated itself to booze reviews instead of notes on life in the Heights. I swear we've got more for you.

And today, we've got biking. ArtBart and I are both recent converts to the way of two wheels and we've noticed a plethora of cyclists in the area recently. I know some of you have been doing this for years, but many of you might want to jump on the band wagon with gas prices up and metro full of butts on poles. DC was recently ranked the most improved city for cyclists by Bicycling Magazine (read about it here on the City Bikes blog). So, in case you plan to pick up a new Schwinn at Target, we've got some notes for you on biking the Heights.

1. Going downtown = Easy, fun / Coming home from downtown = A bitch
For those of you who are employed south of the Heights, biking to work is a breeze. It's a smooth ride with few sweat-inducing moments. But it's not called "Columbia Lows" and that means the trip home is a climb. Be prepared to sweat through your oxford on the trip uphill, or do what we do - bring some extra clothes and consider the trip home your daily cardio.

2. The local hills are not all equal...
11th Street: Steep, but short, with a bike lane. This is a good option in both directions, even if it takes you off course a little.
14th Street: Long drag, no bike lane, buses. I do it all the time, but I don't always like it. Traffic.
15th Street: Super steep, awkward turns. I say avoid this, and as a commenter points out - it's one way, so don't go downhill as I previously suggested. I never take this street.
16th Street: Might be a bit gentler than 14th St. Also long, but with a sidewalk option to avoid buses. Lots of traffic.

3. Buses are thine enemy!
I think I hate the 50 buses the most when I'm on a bike. The S buses on 16th certainly aren't friendly, but they don't have any means by which to cut you off, thus they are forced into some degree of submission.

The 50 buses, on the other hand, are beasts. Between CH and U St. there isn't a bike lane, but as soon as that bike lane comes in north or south of CH, the 50 buses see a prime opportunity to cut off the ever-exposed biker. They pull into and out of that bike lane as if you aren't right there. It's a bit dangerous, and we all know Metro buses aren't known for NOT hitting people. Keep an eye on those 50s.

4. Bike Lanes = The Best
I frequently go off-route just to ride a street with a bike lane. In the Heights, this can mean going from 13th to 11th to R back to 14th. This route means only about three bike lane-free blocks. Washington now has 30+ miles of bike lanes, so we may as well use them.

DC DOT has a great map of local bike lanes. Here's the section where we live.

5. This is kind of unrelated, but bike taxis are fun!
This has nothing to do with the bike as a totally functional form of transportation, but ArtBart and I once bike taxied ourselves home from a bar and it was probably the best idea ever. They will even come get you! Check out DC Pedicab.

Listserv Post of the Day

Honestly, your bloggers do more than just celebrate drinking in the neighborhood.

From the WardOneDC listserv:

WINE & BEER at Pete's New Haven Style Apizza

Pete's New Haven Style Apizza, located in the Highland Park building at the Columbia Heights Metro, 14th and Irving Streets, now has wine and beer! We're starting off with four beers on draft this weekend: Allagash White, Yuengling, Dogfish Head 60-Minute IPA, and Dominion Lager. Because we just obtained our license today, we probably won't have a full Friday night's supply of all four brews, but rest assured we'll be restocked tomorrow. We're also working with a distributor to offer a selection of bottled beers starting next week, including a great Italian summer favorite, Peroni. Stay tuned! On the wine side, we have five reds and five whites, all Italian, with a range intended to match the flavors of your meal, from light and summery to fruit-bomb reds. We'll publish a detailed list shortly. Pete's has been open for three weeks now, and we are most grateful for all of the support and kind words. If you're from Connecticut, make sure to tell us! We're beginning to keep a map highlighting the town of origin of out Connecticut guests!

Mike Wilkinson Pete's
http://www.petesapizza.com
202-332-PETE (7383)
Sunday-Thursday 11A-10P
Friday-Saturday 11A-11P

Coming this Fall: Wine and Pastries on 11th Street

This started as "scuttlebutt" on PoP, but commenter New2CH adds some details from a recent ANC meeting: The 11th Street Deli will be closing to make way for a wine bar and pastry shop opening as soon as September. There's not much more information, but we will keep you updated as the 11th Street corridor continues to attract new businesses. While I enjoyed grabbing a sandwich from the 11th Street Deli from time-to-time, I won't necessarily miss it. I wonder if the new spot will be similar to SOVA on H Street NE?

Yet Another Post about Drinking Outside

Last week, we asked where is your favorite outdoor spot in the Columbia Heights to grab a beer or have a meal, and the winner by one vote is Red Rocks. Pizza for everyone! I am partial to 11^th Street versus 14^th Street, but that's because come Fourth of July, you can't beat the neighborhood fireworks displays. And the rest of the time, there's a lot less car fumes.

D'Vines Stocks Up

The Heights Life took a trip to d'vines to investigate the shelf situation. When the place first opened it was divine because it was open late seven days a week and sold good goods, but it wasn't exactly full of options. (See an interview we did with the manager here)

Now, however, all the vin is in and the beer case is so very colorful. We took home a South African Shiraz.

ArtBart says: It hits the sides of my tongue. I taste berries.
Spud Lite says: I think I taste the pepper packets you get with pizza, but that might just be because Pat at d'vines said it was "peppery."
ArtBart says: I want another glass.

Columbia Heights Forum Mixer? Yes, I said Mixer!

Apparently some folks over on the Columbia Heights News Forums started getting rough with each other.

But, it seems they enjoyed it enough to plan a mixer! Read the exchange here.

We spoke with one of the event planners at the Wonderland the other night, and this thing is a go.

When: Thursday, May 29th, Time = Nebulous
Where: The Wonderland, of course
Who: Columbia Heights News Forum Fighters and YOU!
Why: Because why not? ArtBart says it's on her calendar.

Also of note, the Price of Petworth is planning a PoP Happy Hour for May 21 at Looking Glass.

WTF: The Highland Park lobby

The best (read most ridiculous) website ever describes it as a "modern lobby with color-changing lighted 3form® walls." I describe it simply as, is this really necessary? While Washington has its share of gorgeous, albeit overpriced, apartment buildings and their equally luxe lobbies, the lobby for Highland Park is unlike any other.

Walking east on Irving a few nights ago, I wondered where the odd neon lights reflecting on the sidewalk and off the dark DCUSA storefronts was coming from. It was the Highland Park lobby, obviously, with a design aesthetic more akin to Miami Beach or nightclub set from an old episode of Alias. Not only are there color-changing walls and DWR couches, but there are suspended acrylic ball chairs, bamboo shoots, and orchids. My camera phone pictures capture only a taste of the mod-ness, so take a moment and stop to watch the pretty lights and experience the trippiness of it all.

Get your papers, pens, and printers on May 24

Staples is coming! Staples is coming! The sign on the door reads, opening May 24, so start making your shopping list. Here are The Heights Life we are hoping to get some snazzy pens and a hole puncher.

RESPONSE: Spud Lite here. Although ArtBart seems psyched about this Staples business, I must wonder... between Target and Best Buy, aren't the Staples goods covered? And with Fed-Ex Kinkos right across the street, don't we have the office crapola market saturated? I'm just guessing that my new pens will be Target pens. Back to you ArtBart!

Look What We Found!

Not to encroach on the Prince of Petworth's lawn art territory, but this planter/farewell card/lawn art on Irving was just so lovely.

It's missing an antler, but it does seem to be producing some fine foliage. And, as an added bonus, it has personal messages written all over it, plus a drawn-on mouth and eyeball. did I mention it's as gold as can be? Does anyone know this gem's full story?

Columbia Heights = Coffee Haven?

How much coffee can CH handle?

This question is about to be tested. We learned last week that Mocha Hut is heading into Highland Park. The news prompted a discussion about the plethora of coffee shop options in the area over on the Columbia Heights News forums. And previously, ArtBart blogged about the CH cup o' joe.

Between Mayorga, Starbucks, the Target Starbucks, Sticky Fingers, Cinnabon, Columbia Heights Coffee, now the Mocha Hut and anyone I've left out - this is officially a well-caffeinated neighborhood.

So who will survive the Great CH Java Battle? Is there a market for this much mocha in Columbia Heights?