jtyler

Hi, I know it says this under the Addie's Oyster Roast post, but I wanted to add the information about the dr.com promo code for members. "Blacks Restaurant Group is offering a Promo Code to DR.com members for $5 off the ticket price. The promo codes are only valid until 10/20---so get your tickets before then! For the Pig Out the promo code is DRPIG and for the Oyster Roast it is DROYSTER. " I hope to see lots of you there. -- Jill

Here is the link to learn more + purchase tickets to the different events Black Restaurant Group is hosting in October/November to benefit the Children's National Medical Center. http://blackrestaurantgroup.com/events.html Each one of these events is going to be a blast! The Pig Out is on October 24th and contestants include: Dan Gusti (1789) Wes Morton (Againn) Quanta Robinson (Black’s Bar & Kitchen) Rick Cook (BlackSalt) Andre Cavallaro Alex Vallcoreba Brian Patterson (L’Academie) Garrett Park Team Missy Carr I am also really excited for the Oyster Roast. Oysters will be roasted, bbq'd, shucked, and fried! A wonderful way to spend a fall afternoon. **Edited to add** Blacks Restaurant Group is offering a Promo Code to DR.com members for $5 off the ticket price. The promo codes are only valid until 10/20---so get your tickets before then! For the Pig Out the promo code is DRPIG and for the Oyster Roast it is DROYSTER. Hope to see lots of you there! Jill Tyler Volta Live

Announcing the 2nd Annual Ebbitt Block Party on June 19, 2010 It's summer in the city and the sun's out so it's time to shut down G street and turn up the music. Join us as we push DC summertime into full swing! The 2nd Annual Ebbitt Block Party has quickly established itself as DC's premiere street festival and tastiest cookout. We will be parking ourselves on the 1400 block of G street, paving the way for hours of non stop musical performances and sparking up the grills for signature Old Ebbitt Grill food and drink! Write the date down and sunscreen up, we can't wait to see you there! We are joined again this summer by our charitable partner, the DC Central Kitchen who will again be collecting canned or commercially packaged nuts and raisins, as well as can openers. Bring something to contribute and receive a free raffle ticket for each item! For more information about menu, drinks, performances, and tickets please visit the website http://ebbittblockparty.com/ Hope to see you there!

Hi All, Due to an overwhelming number of requests, as of today we are offering entrance-only tickets for the Ebbitt Block Party for $25 each. These tickets do not include food or beverage like the $75 package that is still available. Food and beverage tickets will be available for purchase in the event. To purchase tickets or for questions and more information visit www.ebbittblockparty.com. Hope to see you there. Jill

Join Old Ebbitt Grill for the First Annual Ebbitt Block Party. The Block Party will be held in a traditional style right in the Ebbitt's backyard on G Street NW between 14th and 15th Streets. Featuring incredible food provided by Old Ebbitt Grill, the Block Party will entertain party guests with performances by Mudcat, a high-energy Blues Musician from Atlanta, local street performers, and headlined by Bruce in the USA. Nationally known as the premier Bruce Springsteen Tribute Band, Bruce in the USA will shock the attendees with a performance recognized by Clarence Clemons himself as the 'Greatest Tribute' he has ever seen. The Party begins at 6:00 pm on Saturday, September 5th, 2009 and will continue into the night until 11:00pm. Tickets are available at $75.00 per ticket until September 5th. If available, tickets will be offered at the door of the event for $85.00 per ticket. Each ticket includes entry, 5 Food Tickets redeemable for Old Ebbitt's Block Party Fare, and 5 drink tickets redeemable for your choice of beverage (including beer, wine, frozen cocktails, soda, and water). Additional food and beverage tickets will be available for purchase during the party. Tickets can be purchased at http://www.ebbittblockparty.com/ A portion of the proceeds from the Block Party will go towards D.C. Central Kitchen, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary proudly exploring new ways to combat hunger and create opportunity. In addition, we are encouraging donations of canned tuna fish which can be brought to the Block Party and exchanged for a complimentary Drink Ticket. Limit 1 (one) complimentary Drink Ticket per guest. *** RAIN OR SHINE EVENT *** Stage Schedule 6:00-6:30 - Pattie Reese, Sol and Emilie Bogrand, Justin Trawick (Street Stages) 6:30-7:30 - Mudcat (Main Stage) 7:30-8:00 - Pattie Reese, Sol and Emilie Bogrand, Justin Trawick (Street Stages) 8:00-9:15 - Bruce in the USA (Main Stage) 9:15-9:45 - Pattie Reese, Sol and Emilie Bogrand, Justin Trawick (Street Stages) 9:45-10:45 - Bruce in the USA (Main Stage)

Hi, This year is my first time participating in a CSA, and I decided to go with Bullrun Farms. Below is the weekly newsletter Leigh sends out. Shares are still available as apparently many people dropped out this year for economic reasons. Just thought I would post, just in case someone is still looking/interested in a CSA. Again, I haven't done this with Bullrun or any farm, but have enjoyed the weekly newsletters and offers of farm tours, seedling pick-ups, and u-pick weekends. So far very happy, but the actual CSA doesn't begin until 6/8. EMAIL BELOW: (contact is farm@bullrunfarm.com) Whose poodle is that anyway? That was Wenonah's Thursday morning thoughts as she was leaving the farm on her way to work. She had just driven her Prius to that place, you know it if you've been to the farm, where the road quickly makes that crescent drops down to the creek, Catlett Branch, right where there is that one time beaver pond. The poodle, or whatever it was, was trotting along the road in front of her for maybe a minute when suddenly it stopped at the top of the hill, turned, and stood up on his hind legs. Have you ever seen a large, maybe 200 pound, black poodle stand up on its hind legs, and then glance over its shoulder to give you the once over? I guess that's when Wenonah decided that her poodle maybe wasn't really a poodle after all. Maybe, in fact, it was something quite different than a poodle. Maybe a bear. Actually, a black bear. A cub, she guessed. A very skinny cub that was really in need of putting on some weight after its long winter fast. And with that I'll get down to the farm news which is "What to expect on delivery week." Deliveries start the week of June 8th. That means if you get your vegetables at the East Falls Church spot the vegetables will be there at that little parking lot between 5:30 and 7 on Monday the 8th. 16th and P on Tuesday 1701 Quaker Lane Wednesday 3rd and D SE on Wednesday Manassas train station Thursday Farm pick up on Friday. The hours and directions are on our webpage Next week I will send out an e-mail to you confirming which spot you are signed up to get your vegetables. There is no need to send me out an e-mail now asking for that information. Right now I am double booked trying to catch up on those three weeks of rain that kept us behind on planting (though Memorial Day's rain waiting until 5 pm was much appreciated, allowing us to plant 12-15,000 plants between 7 am and 5 pm). Here is how the pick up will work. The night/morning before you get your vegetables I send you an e-mail with the subject 'Today's vegetables' which will list the vegetables in the week's share. Then underneath 'the day's vegetables' are the electives. These are things that are part of your share but aren't things that everyone might want. These will have a heading of something like 'by noon request' Meaning? I'm asking that you e-mail back by noon to tell me which of these you want that week (if in fact you want any). This way I will know how many to pick. Now for the time of pick up. I usually get there about half an hour early so I can set up. What this means is I drive up in our white delivery van and unload the bins of vegetables. We do not pre-bag or pre-box our shares. I set the bins out in a row. First week should be something like-- A bin of Pac choi A bin of broccoli A bin or garlic scapes and so on. Then I take out my large white erasable board and down the left side list the days vegetables. Along the top is written 'share size 1 -2-4' ( the 1-2-4 represents the share sizes. one person, two person, four person) And underneath those numbers and across from the vegetable name will be another number Let's say pac choi 1 -2-4 or maybe 1-1-2 scapes might say 4-8-16 for the mizuna it might say ayce (ayce in Bull Run Mountain CSA speak means 'all you can eat in a week without giving any away') or it might say handful. (handful in brm CSA speak means what you can pick up if your hands were my size). There are probably other brm csa speak terms but you will learn them as we go on. Now for the process of getting your vegetables. The first several week I will have a check off sheet with your name on it. You line up and when you get to me I check off your name, give you a tote bag and you file past the vegetables taking your vegetables out of each bin. While I do provide a large well made canvas totes to each shareholder to carry their vegetables home in I do not provide separate bags to sort the different vegetables . That is your responsibility. (this is a way to reuse those grocery bags, if you want, bring extras for others to use). And that's basically it. If you get an egg share it will be marked on the check off list and I will have eggs for you in cardboard egg boxes boxes. (recycled egg boxes are appreciated). If we have extra eggs besides those for the egg shares I will announce it. You can buy them at $2.25 per half dozen. First come first serve. When the time period is over I pick up the empty bins, load them in the van, Clean up, and drive home. Since it takes me as much as an hour and a half to get back to the farm I appreciate people not being particularly late. And that's the process in a nutshell. Other news? Plant give away went swimmingly. It didn't seem we had more that fifteen cars at a time but that was constant. Somewhere between 150 and 200 came out and took home over 2500 seedlings. We'll most likely have another seedling giveaway on Saturday, June 6th. More about that next week. Open shares. We have openings. This year we have an unprecedented number of people who signed up but later changed their mind (lost their job, because critically worried about their financial condition, etc) We have openings at the Dupont, Alexandria and Manassas pick up. thanks, Leigh

Hi--this should be a fun time at Bourbon next week, hope some of you are able to stop by! Join Owen Thomson, Bourbon's Operations Manager and President of the DC Craft Bartenders Guild, at Bourbon on April 1, 2009 from 7 pm to 10 pm for the launch of his handcrafted "bottled" cocktail collection. The happy hour will take place at the Adams Morgan location of Bourbon at 2321 18th Street NW. When asked the reasoning behind the concept Thomson said, "I first came across the concept of bottled cocktails in Jerry Thomas' 1862 Manual (the first bartenders manual written in America) and it seemed like the perfect solution to a problem that often befalls modern bartenders. In a higher volume bar it is sometimes hard to turn out consistent and well crafted drinks, especially when you have lines of people who just want a drink quick. I figured that utilizing an old concept in a modern way could allow people to get high quality drinks in a more crowd friendly presentation."

Total self promotion-- This Thursday: Jimmy Russell, Master Distiller of Wild Turkey will be at the Bourbon in Adams Morgan for a Wild Turkey happy hour. There will be complimentary appetizers, a Wild Turkey collection tasting, and cigar rolling from 7 pm to 9 pm. There will also be an extended wine and beer happy hour. Owen Thomson has created a few new cocktails for the event that will be available. Hope some of you are able to stop by! Jill

Hi, I throw this question out the knowledgeable masses for suggestions. Looking for a venue (probably bar/restaurant) that could hold 200 guests for a cocktail party. Any ideas?? Date TBD--but a Friday eve. Thanks!

Hi Everybody-- I was just logging on to give some info about this event, but Jparrott beat me to it! Below is a little more information. From 5pm to 8pm on Friday the 24th Fred Noe, the Bourbon Ambassador, will be at Bourbon for a meet and greet! This will be a really fun & cheap happy hour. Included will be lots of delish food like our bourbon glazed lamb chops, mini crab cakes, bbq chicken skewers, grilled cheese stix, shrimp cocktail, etc. Free bourbon and bourbon cocktails provided by Jim Beam. These will include Jim Beam White Label, Black Label, Rye, Basil Hayden, Bookers, Bakers, Knob Creek, and Makers Mark. If you plan on attending please shoot me a PM if you have the time-- this will be super helpful to our kitchen! Hope to see you there! This is upstairs at the Bourbon located in Adams Morgan. Jill Events Manager Bourbon

I heard this weekend that it was going to be on 8th SE. Where Ellingtons used to be.

I have to respectfully disagree. I have worked in every kind of enviroment-- from chains, to mom and pops, to bars, to fine dining--- no matter where I have worked a table that had dinner has always had the option to order dessert. I might have grumbled about it under my breath, if a table was keeping me forever & seemingly the kitchen was closed to any newcomers---BUT they are there to dine and that includes the whole exp. At the very least a table should be asked if they would like dessert, because the kitchen in finishing up. We are there to provide service, I don't think a table would be wrong to be taken aback--if it all happened as its been laid out.

I should have posted sooner, but had a crazy two weeks. I went to Sonoma about two weeks ago for a late dinner. We were having a rough time choosing wine-- one wanted light one wanted bigger, the manager/owner/som? came over and helped us choose a bottle. A merlot, that wasn't merlot-y-... it was very good. We each ordered two aps: The Alaskan King Crab- served chilled with a ginger/lime sauce (i belive) the crab was wonderful and didn't need the sauce which was to cloying and overwhelming for the delicate meat. The Octopus- Woodgrilled and served with a saffron aoili & a few mixed greens-- this was my favorite dish of the night. Tender, smokey and a little crunch, it was sooo good. Then a pizza, and the special pasta. Both needed a little salt, but were good. Our server was wonderful! The only glitch in the evening was two servers (not ours) dropping all four plates at once-- both the apps and the mains. When our server came by a moment later her face fell when she saw all the plates, it wasn't her mistake and we didn't make a big deal about it. It didn't ruin our meal, but it did make it feel a little rushed. It is also a mistake that shouldn't happen-- but will def. go back!

This is probably the last spot you would think to look, but Eagles Nest (the campus conv. store at AU) carries them.

Is this strictly a lunch spot or are they open in the eve?