Eat your fill at more than 150 DC-area eateries during Metropolitan Restaurant Week. Also, Opera in the Outfield returns with a classic screening.
Best Things to Do This Week and Weekend
August 18–August 24
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- Metropolitan Restaurant Week. More than 150 restaurants are participating in Summer Restaurant Week. You can choose from a variety of specially priced prix-fixe menus to savor pasta, pizza, seafood, rice bowls, and lots more, for brunch, lunch, and dinner (Mon-Sun, $25+, various participating locations). (Here, our food editor rounds up what some of DC’s top restaurants are offering.)
- “State Fairs” exhibit. The new “State Fairs: Growing American Craft” exhibit features more than 200 artworks created for fairs dating back to the 19th century—including a life-size butter cow from the Iowa state fair (Fri through September 7, free, Smithsonian American Art Museum).
- Opera in the Outfield. Watch the Washington National Opera’s screening of Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess at Opera in the Outfield. The musical screening will be accompanied by pre-show activities such as a balloon twister, family-friendly crafts, and Puerto Rican-inspired song and dance by Semilla Cultural (Sat, free, Nationals Park).
- Around the World Cultural Food Festival. Old Town’s waterfront foodie fest at Oronoco Bay Park is a great way to try cuisine from Afghanistan, Ghana, China, Peru, and more locales. The child- and pet-friendly Around the World Culture Festival also features song and dance performances plus traditional artisan and craft vendors (Sat, free, Alexandria).
- Community Day at Arena Stage. All ages can play games, groove to music, and see live performances at Arena Stage Community Day. The outdoor block party will stretch across Sixth Street, Southwest, where attendees can participate in guided salsa dancing and R&B yoga, and see the go-go group TOB perform live (Sat, free, Southwest DC).
Want More Things to Do?
Arts and culture:
- Writers Scott McGill and Susannah Wright discuss their English translation of The Aeneid (Tues, free, Union Market).
- Solve a murder mystery at Dacha Beer Garden (Wed, $13+, Shaw).
- Test your spelling skills while sipping drinks at Prima DC to score a free bar tab (Thurs, free+, Shaw).
Community and heritage:
- Explore music exhibits, watch live paintings, and sit in on a DJ beat battle in honor of hip-hop and the National Hip-Hop Museum (Sat, free, Penn Quarter).
Theater and shows:
- The Tony-winning musical Parade follows the true story of Jewish couple Leo and Lucille Frank after Leo was falsely accused of a horrible crime. (Tues through September 7, $49+, Kennedy Center).
- Comedian and actor Pete Holmes does standup at Lincoln Theater (Fri, $45+, U Street Corridor).
Music and concerts:
- Latin dance festival DCBX wraps up this week (Mon, $46+, Downtown).
- Music legend James Taylor performs at Wolf Trap (Thurs, Sat-Sun, $79+, Vienna).
- Local punk duo Teen Mortgage join Glitterer’s show at Black Cat (Fri, $25, Shaw).
- Snag a ticket to vocalist D4vd’s two-night concert at the Fillmore Silver Spring (Sat-Sun, $49+, Silver Spring).
- DC’s own Soul Meets Body band blends pop and hardcore melodies at Songbyrd Music House (Sun, $18+, Union Market).
Get involved:
- You can treat yourself for Wellness Month and enjoy a refreshing facial for a good cause at Silver Mirror Facial Bar; a portion of the proceeds will go to the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation (daily, $159, Navy Yard, Dupont Circle, Penn Quarter).
- Contestants compete in a stylish Jewish-queer pageant to help raise funds for the DC LGBTQ+ Community Center (Sun, $21, Downtown).
Exercise and wellness:
- Relax on a yoga mat and bathe in the soothing harmonies of chimes, crystal quartz, and Tibetan sound bowls at Museum of Contemporary Art Arlington (Sat, $25, Arlington).
- At Faith Lutheran Church, yogis can stretch, strike a pose, and cuddle with a herd of Nigerian Dwarf goats from Walnut Creek Farm (Sat-Sun, $44, Arlington).
- Join a laid-back outdoor meetup at Kalorama Park to participate in a group stretch and cozy one-mile stroll to local gelato and coffee shop Pitango (Sat, free, Adams Morgan).
Bites and beverages:
- Asian cuisine hot spot Jinya is opening a new location at the Wharf. The first 100 guests to attend the opening can snag free ramen vouchers (Wed, free, Wharf).
Things to do with kids:
- Watch a screening of the Disney flick Moana 2 (Tues, free, Wharf).
- Roller skate, go fishing, and dance with the entire family at the Anacostia Park Skating Pavilion (Sat, free, Anacostia).
Plan ahead:
- Tickets to see local R&B singer Raheem DeVaughn at Birchmere Music Hall are selling fast (August 30-31, $142+, Alexandria).
- See music talents such as Lalah Hathaway and Joshua Bayer live at DC Jazz Festival next week. Tickets are on sale now (August 27-31, prices vary, Wharf, Downtown, Kennedy Center).
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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.
