Silver Spring Restaurant Week: Head to Silver Spring and Takoma Park eateries for Restaurant Week, which runs Tuesday through Sunday. Participating restaurants such as Republic and Denizens Brewing Co. offer a range of options, from $12 two-course menus to $27 three-course dinners
Free wine tasting: You don’t have to be a oenophile to love Le Grenier’s monthly drink special. On Tuesday (and every first Tuesday of the month), the French eatery offers complimentary wine tastings from 6 to 8 pm. The new wine menu includes white and red wines from chablis to grenache.
Drink for a Cause: Local Louisiana expats are rallying together to raise money for those affected by the recent floods. Drink and eat for a good cause at the “Floodraiser for Relief,” held on Thursday at Little Miss Whiskey’s from 6 to 9 pm. For $20 you can “bayou” three drink tickets and enter in a raffle to win prizes. Smokin’ on the Bayou food truck will be serving barbecue. The proceeds will benefit the Louisiana Flood Relief Fund.
Cooking demonstration: In continuation of Jaleo’s Tomatina celebration, the Penn Quarter location will host cooking demonstrations on Thursday at the Penn Quarter FreshFarm Market led by Jaleo chefs. Attendees will learn how to create some of the month’s tomato-infused dishes, and can taste samples of the creations. There’s no fee to participate.
NFL Kickoff: Cheer on your favorite football team with drink specials at City Tap House on Thursday. Whether you’re a Denver Broncos fan, or rooting for the Carolina Panthers, sip $4 drafts and $5 wines.
Sip and shop at Via Umbria: Italian food market Via Umbria turns two on Saturday and celebrates with an open house “sip and shop” event. From 7 am to 9 pm, guests can enjoy Umbrian snacks, specialty cocktails, and wines for free. Guests will receive ten tickets which can be used to redeem bites like meatballs and porchetta sliders; additional tickets are a $1 a piece.
All-you-can-eat at Hank’s: Hank’s Oyster Bar’s 5th annual Luau is Saturday with loads of barbecue and tiki drinks. Hula at Hank’s is an all-you-can-eat feast from 11 am to 3 pm featuring suckling pig, veggie lumpia, salmon dip, pork sliders, and more. Tickets are $75 and include food and six drink tickets towards mai tais, scorpion bowls and punches; additional tickets are available on site.
Briana A. Thomas is a local journalist, historian, and tour guide who specializes in the research of D.C. history and culture. She is the author of the Black history book, Black Broadway in Washington, D.C., a story that was first published in Washingtonian in 2016.
