At Long Last: Construction, public works, and utility delays plagued the opening of Chesapeake Chicken & Rockin' Ribs in Bethesda (the original in Grasonville, Maryland is a must stop for hordes of Eastern Shore and Delaware beachgoers). But the rotisserie chicken and rib restaurant finally debuted at lunchtime Friday.

Bethesda bakery Bundles of Cookies has been turning out snazzy-looking occasion cookies--rubber duckies with yellow icing for baby showers, little black dress and Elvis cookies for theme birthdays, and Eiffel Tower and palm tree cookies for bon voyage ‘dos--for years. Decorated with swirls and squiggles of royal icing, they actually taste as good as they look.

The Washington-area palate must be pretty refined. Or maybe it’s that we just like to eat a lot. Whatever the reason, major food and beverage distributors such as Starbucks love to test out their new products here first, before introducing them to the rest of the country. Ever since the first East Coast Starbucks opened in Washington in 1993, we've been their corporate guinea pigs. Much of the testing--of new Frappucinos, latte flavors, and baked goods--happens at the Georgetown store at 3122 M Street, one of the nation's highest-volume Starbucks.

If this carelessly stylish cafe, with its folksy blackboard and retro black-and-white checkerboard floor, were in my neighborhood, I’d stop in every day--for breakfast, lunch, and to pick up dinner.

Photograph by Aldo Tutino.

Friday, January 19 and Saturday, January 20

So it’s finally feeling like winter. And who better to help you deal with the chill than Domku, the Scandinavian aquavit-and-gravlax cafe in Petworth? During their Winter Weekend Getaway series (held on the third weekend of every blustery month), you'll find a separate menu inspired by a sunnier cuisine. This weekend, they'll be cooking up vegetarian selections from India: Cachoombar salad with lentils and curry crackers, potato curry, paneer simmered in spicy tomatoes, coconut mung dal, spiced chickpeas, and to drink, sweet lassi and cardamom chai. And if you’ve still got a yen for pickled herring, the regular menu’s available too.
Where: Domku, 821 Upshur St., NW; 202-722-7475.