DC Brau and Epic Brewing Company Beer Dinner at Birch & Barley
Monday, October 10 at 7 PM.
Salt Lake City’s Epic Brewing Company is collaborating on a new beer with local brewery DC Brau, and although it’s not ready yet, Birch & Barley is commemorating the partnership with a five-course dinner with nine beers. Menu pairings include rockfish crudo with pickled parsnips and DC Brau El Heffe Speaks; sweet-potato gnocchi, wild-boar ragu, and Taleggio fonduta with Epic Brainless On Peaches; and seared ribeye with smoked butternut squash and Epic Smoked & Oaked. DC Brau’s barrel-aged series will also debut with the tapping of a firkin of Penn Quarter Porter, which was aged in rye whiskey barrels. The dinner is $73 per person. Call 202-567-2576 for reservations.
Dinner with the Duck at Dino
Wednesday, October 12 at 7 PM.
Dino promises “a flush of great duck dishes”—along with some bad puns— at this 10 course beak-to-tail dinner. Start out with duck-breast crostini and braised duck wings with pomegranate molasses before moving onto heartier courses like duck-ricotta cannelloni with duck cream and duck risotto with giblets (check out the whole menu here). The meal is $55 per person—Brunello wine pairings are an additional $30; beer pairings are $18). Call 202-686-2966 for reservations.
Week of Bacon at 3 Bar & Grill
Wednesday, October 12 through Saturday, October 22.
3 Bar & Grill’s annual week of bacon has been so popular that the restaurant has expanded the festivities to include nine days of bacon tastings, classes, pig roasts, and swine-filled feasts. The event kicks off with a patio pig roast—featuring $5 pulled pork sandwiches and craft beer specials—on Thursday, October 13 at 5 PM. There is a bacon-curing class on Sunday, October 16. A three-course bacon tasting menu (yes, that’s fried bacon with bacon gravy) is available for dinner during the festival, or you can try a bacon-studded waffle at brunch. Still hungry? The restaurant also sells its bacon to take home.
Eddie Huang Pop-Up Dinners at Toki Underground
Friday, October 14 and Saturday, October 15.
New York chef Eddie Huang joins forces with Toki Underground chef/owner Erik Bruner-Yang for two nights of specialty menus. In addition to Bruner-Yang’s ramen, Huang—chef/owner of Baohaus on the Lower East Side and Union Square—will make bao buns stuffed with pork belly; braised beef cheek; fried tofu; and brined and fried chicken. The 25-seat eatery doesn’t take reservations, so get there early.
Oktobeerfest at Rustico Alexandria
Saturday, October 15 from noon to 5 PM.
This annual beer-focused block party returns is in its fifth year, and it’s bigger than ever. Over 100 kegs will pour suds selected by beer guru Greg Engert. They include local selections from Port City, Lost Rhino, and Flying Dog, as well as imports such as Kräusen from Schlenkerla and Schneider Wiesen Edel-Weisse. Rustico chef Steve Mannino will be cooking up Germanic treats like braised pork with red cabbage; wild-boar stroganoff; fresh pretzels with mustard-cheese sauce; and more. Buzz Bakery will bake up the sweets and Planet Wine will provide vino. Admission is free, and tickets for food and drinks are sold at the entrance.
Taste of Georgetown
Saturday, October 15 from 11 AM to 4 PM.
This 18 year-old food and wine festival takes over Wisconsin Avenue and M Street, Northwest, with eats from over 20 neighborhood restaurants, a pumpkin cooking competition, and live music from Blues Alley. Graze on crepes from Cafe Bonaparte, lamb sausage from 1789, steak sandwiches from Morton’s, red velvet cupcakes from Sprinkles, and more before heading into the wine, ale, and spirits tent. Check out the full menu lineup here and the beverage roster here). Tickets for food ($5 for one tasting ticket, $20 for five) and drinks ($3 for one tasting, $10 for four) are available for purchase online or at the event. Sales benefit the Georgetown Ministry Center’s programs for the homeless.
McLean Uncorked Food and Wine Festival with Bob Kinkead and Alton Brown
Saturday, October 15 from 10 AM to 10:30 PM.
There’s plenty to do—and taste—at this day-long event at the McLean Community Center. It will feature a global wine tasting, individual wine seminars, and presentations from local chef Bob Kinkead and the Food Network’s Alton Brown. Kinkead and Brown will each give two seminars throughout the day (read more about them here). A wine-taster’s wristband costs $30; seminars are individually priced. Starting at 5 PM, guests can be picked up by the Old Town Trolley and given a dinner tour ($75) around McLean, with stops at Evo Bistro for appetizers, Cafe Oggi for dinner, and Assaggi Osteria for dessert. Call 703-790-0123 for more information.
Dine Out for Farms Week
Sunday, October 16 through Saturday, October 22.
Restaurants around Washington are joining in this national week-long event that helps educate diners on sustainable farming and the American Farmland Trust. Graffiato, America Eats Tavern, Founding Farmers, and DC Coast are among the places putting on special menus. Click here for a list of participating restaurants and more.
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.
