DC Beer Week: The beeriest seven days in Washington are upon us: DC Beer Week 2014. Each day is stacked with multiple tastings, parties, seminars and more, from a DC Brau-sponsored crab feast at the Quarterdeck on Monday to Old Ebitt’s “Brewhaha” suds-fest on Friday, and tons more. Prices, locations, and times vary, so make sure to spend a few minutes checking out the full lineup.
More Restaurant Week: Missed Summer Restaurant Week the first time around? Fear not. We have a roundup of eateries offering extensions throughout the month of August, from fine dining spots like Fiola to neighborhood haunts like Mintwood Place, Graffiato, and many more. Alexandria Restaurant Week also runs through Sunday, so look for options at your favorite Virginia spots: $35 dinners for two, or three-course set menus of the same price.
Doggie dining: Join the EatWell DC restaurants, including Commissary, the Pig, and more, for the third annual Dining Out With Dogs on Monday. Each eatery will donate 15 percent of its proceeds to City Dogs Rescue from 5 to close, and will serve a special vodka-based cocktail whose sales will entirely benefit the rescue operation. Happy hour runs until 7 at each location, plus special late-night discounts from 10 to 11. Kids also eat free from the children’s menu until 6:30.
Top Chef rules: Catch Bravo’s new series, Top Chef Duels, with one of the local stars at Kapnos on Wednesday night. Chef Mike Isabella will watch alongside fans as he faces off onscreen with his former fellow Top Chef competitor Antonia Lofaso in an Italian-style cooking duel. Join him at Kapnos for a viewing party plus happy hour in both the restaurant’s bar and neighboring G Sandwich.
Rock-solid cooking: Chef Rock Harper guest-cooks at Taberna Del Alabardero on Thursday alongside his host, Javier Romero, during a Spanish-American fusion wine tasting and dinner. A portion of the ticket sales ($99 per person) will benefit DC Central Kitchen.
Doggie wall of fame: The upcoming Fairfax location of the Austin restaurant Chuy’s hosts a photo shoot/fundraiser on Saturday from noon to 3 at Uptown Pet Bistro & Boutique. Dog lovers and their four-legged companions can be photographed for the restaurant’s “La Chihuahua Bar” community dog wall, and receive a free future Chuy’s appetizer with $5 donations to Friends of the Fairfax County Animal Shelter.
Pig roast: Get your fill of swine at Society Fair’s Southern-style pig roast on Saturday. Reservations ($29) start at 5:30 and run until 8:30 for a feast of roast pork, watermelon salad, succotash, and more.
Rare sherry: Eager to try what specialists call the “unicorn” of the sherry world? Head to Mockingbird Hill on Saturday at 3 for a tasting and class featuring Palo Cortado sherries, considered some of the best in the world. Tickets are $45 online.
More and more dogs: If you didn’t get a chance to dine out for the pups at City Dog Rescue earlier this week, check out Vinoteca on Sunday for the Dogs and ’Tails fundraiser (through August 31). The promotion starts with a party on the back plaza, where they’ll have a bocce tournament, dog adoption section, food and drink specials, and more from 4 to 8. Make a $10 donation to CDR and get happy hour pricing all night; for the rest of the week, buy any house-made grilled dog or “dog days of summer” cocktail to benefit the rescue organization.
Share food: The Alexandria Food Swap returns on Sunday, hosted at Friendship Firehouse from 2 to 3:30. Participants bring homemade, foraged, homegrown, and other self-procured edibles to exchange. Online tickets are $5.
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.
