As editor of the DC version of DailyCandy, the breezy, in-the-know e-mail newsletter, Annie Lou Bayly is in the business of fun. Every day, she scouts the latest boutiques, samples new restaurants, and tries spa treatments like apple-paprika facials.
So what does the Chevy Chase native—a daughter of a DC Superior Court judge and a painter—do in her spare time? She showed up at Georgetown’s Peacock Cafe toting a copy of the site’s new book, DailyCandy A to Z: An Insider’s Guide to the Sweet Life, and let us in on a few of her favorites.
Favorite hangout? I always end up at Raven Grill. And at Local 16 and Café Saint-Ex.
Favorite way to relax? Driving around and looking at buildings and finding new streets. I have a convertible so I can see things better.
Favorite way to work out? Alex Tydings Luzzatto’s Rock and Roll Yoga. It’s not like head-bangingly crazy music, it’s just good music you’d want to hear anyway. And I play tennis twice a week; I have a trainer.
Favorite drink? White-wine spritzers. It’s so goofy, I know.
Favorite everyday restaurant? Perry’s or Sushi-Ko or 2 Amys. And I love half-price grilled-cheese night at the Toledo Lounge in Adams Morgan.
Favorite meal ever? The most simple pasta puttanesca at this little hole in the wall in Buenos Aires.
Favorite hidden eat? A. Litteri. They have the best sausages.
Any guilty pleasures? Pastries from Pâtisserie Poupon.
Favorite escape? I’m not a sailor, but I like to go to Annapolis and rent a boat for the day. Also, the Bethesda Crab House. Not that it’s a day trip, but it feels like one.
Favorite city? Rome. There are so many beautiful things and ugly things, but they’re all interesting looking. The light is really great.
Favorite place in Washington? The hill next to the DC public library on Wisconsin Avenue in Georgetown.
Most romantic spot in Washington? Where I got engaged. It’s this crumbled-down aqueduct near Key Bridge. We went on a bike ride, got engaged, went to Cafe Milano, and then went swimming. It was the perfect day for me.
Favorite object? A painting by my mom. It’s very abstract, and there are a lot of really vivid reds.
Favorite flea-market find? The antique-and-vintage linens dealer at the Georgetown flea market.
Favorite chain store? H&M. They have cute lingerie, and it holds up. It’s much cooler to buy something trendy for $10 than $500.
Favorite book? Homer’s The Iliad and The Odyssey.
Favorite movie about DC? My own movie, “Mount Vernon for Ladies.” It’s on Annielou.com.
Favorite concert? Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, the Jesus Lizard, and Cibo Matto at the 9:30 Club on New Year’s Eve.
Best party you’ve been to? I threw a pop-art-themed Christmas party a few years ago. I felt like Christmas wasn’t enough of a theme. I blew up the Andy Warhol print of Marilyn Monroe and put it as a star on top of the tree. And we lined up cans of holiday pie filling on the mantel.
When you were a kid, what did you want to grow up to be? I wanted to work at Commander Salamander.
Favorite childhood spot? The Broadbranch Market in Chevy Chase—it’s not there anymore—because I got to walk there and buy candy. And I could afford everything.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
