Monday, November 15
The Fourth Estate Restaurant and Maryland’s Flying Dog Brewery are putting on a five-course dinner. A representative from Flying Dog will guide diners through beer-and-food pairings, which include Snake Dog IPA with a veal-and-pork country pâté, and Tire Bite Golden Ale with seared grouper and lemon risotto. The dinner ($60 for Press Club members, $75 for nonmembers) begins with hors d’oeuvres at 6:30. For reservations, call 202-662-7638 or e-mail fourthestate@press.org.
Share Our Strength is launching its No Kid Hungry Day with two events: During lunchtime, 11 food trucks—such as the Red Hook Lobster Pound, TaKorean, Bada Bing, and Cap Mac—are donating 10 percent of their proceeds to Taste of the Nation DC, the organization’s largest fundraiser to end child hunger by 2015. After the trucks close, the Passenger in DC’s Mount Vernon Square is hosting a happy hour from 5 to 8 with a special punch and other discounted drinks, and 10 percent of those earnings also go toward Share Our Strength. For more information, click here, and check out our Truck Stops post to locate the nearest truck.
Tuesday, November 16
The sixth annual Life Is Sweet Pastry Chef Showcase pairs local chefs with children from Best Buddies, a nonprofit dedicated to helping those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The duos (chefs include Citronelle’s Michel Richard, Restaurant Eve’s Cathal Armstrong, and former White House pastry chef and event co-chair Roland Mesnier) serve small dishes to partygoes. There’ll also be craft cocktails and an auction. All proceeds from the event, which runs from 7 to 10, go to Best Buddies. For tickets ($100, including venue parking) and more information, click here.
Alexandria’s Bastille is hosting a four-course dinner paired with sustainable wines from J. Fritsch Winery. Owner Pascal Fritsch will be on hand to talk about the wine-and-food pairings. Dishes include crayfish bisque, and braised rabbit in a Riesling cream sauce with spaetzle. The dinner ($49 per person, plus $29 for wine pairings) begins at 7. Click here for a full menu, and call 703-519-3776 for reservations.
Wednesday, November 17
Logan Circle’s Birch & Barley and Germany’s Brewery Tavern Schlenkerla are teaming up for a dinner that showcases the flavors of Franconia, a region in northern Germany. Schlenkerla owner Matthias Trum will talk about the brewery, its history, and the six beers on the table. Birch & Barley chef Kyle Bailey and Schlenkerla’s Wolfgang Theil are preparing such dishes as potato soup with smoked pork belly, and sausages with sweet cabbage and dark bread. Call 202-567-2576 to reserve spaces for the dinner ($55 excluding tax and gratuity). 7 PM.
Tonight, all proceeds from drinks and food at the Penn Quarter newcomer Cuba Libre go to a trust for Jerry Thompson’s children. Thompson, a veteran CNN cameraman, was diagnosed with brain cancer. Call 202-408-1600 for reservations.
Thursday, November 18
Today through Sunday, Zaytinya is pouring special flights of ouzo. Over the summer, the bar sourced produce from the farmers market to soak in the clear, anise-flavored liquor from Greece. Flights of plum-apricot-and-peach ouzo ($12) and a red-plum ouzo-based cocktail ($12) are available alongside such dishes as a salad with ouzo-honey vinaigrette, and ouzo sabayon with crunchy apple and sorbet. Call 202-638-0800 for reservations and information.
Today and tomorrow, Linda Berns of Custom Kosher Caterers is leading a cooking class, focused on Shabbat dinner, at B’nai Tzedek in Potomac. She’ll teach participants how to make Moroccan chicken, couscous, and apple tarts. The class is followed by a sit-down dinner ($18 for the class and dinner; $10 for adults and $5 for children for the dinner only). Click here for more information.
Friday, November 19
At his fine-dining restaurant, Marcel’s, chef Robert Wiedmaier and chefs from his other properties (Brabo, Mussel Bar, Brasserie Beck) are putting on a dinner with local produce. Dishes include Maryland-crab bisque, oyster soup, and lasagna with veal, and they’re paired with wine and beer. For a list of participating chefs and farms, click here. The dinner ($175 per person) begins at 7. Call 202-296-1166 for reservations.
Old Ebbitt Grill is hosting its 16th annual Oyster Riot, a pre-Thanksgiving celebration of bivalves from the East and West coasts. Last year, the downtown DC restaurant went through 50,000 fresh oysters. This year, you’ll find 25 varieties during the three “riot times:” Tonight from 6:30 to 9, tomorrow from noon to 3 and 6:30 to 9. There’ll also be crab claws, shrimp, and an open bar with beer and wine. Tickets ($100 for the afternoon, $135 for the evening) are available here.
Saturday, November 20
For those looking to pick up a few last-minute Thanksgiving tips, L’Academie de Cuisine is hosting a desserts cooking class with chef Nichole Ferrigno. Students will learn how to make pear-hazelnut crisp, pumpkin layer cake with cream-cheese icing, and pecan-chocolate tarts. To register for the class, which runs from 9:30 to noon, click here or call 301-986-9490.
Reveillon were originally long, festive dinners held after midnight mass on Christmas Eve in New Orleans, but now the holiday feasts are enjoyed throughout the holidays. Acadiana in Penn Quarter is starting reveillon season with a Creole cooking class from 11 to 1, led by executive chef Brant Tesky. Guests will learn to prepare dishes such as Gulf-shrimp bisque, Creole-blackened prime rib, and green-bean casserole, then sit down to lunch paired with wines. To reserve a seat ($75 per person,) call 202-408-0201.
Sunday, November 21
Stumped by what to pair with al
l those different Thanksgiving flavors? From 6:30 to 8, Arlington’s Screwtop Wine Bar is offering a sampling of five wines that complement the holiday meal. For reservations ($39.99), call 703-888-0845.
Hello Cupcake in DC’s Dupont Circle is hosting a two-hour class on cupcake design; making swirls, flowers, and monograms; and other decorating techniques. To reserve a space ($70 per person), call 202-861-2253.
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Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
