New Year’s 2008 — Welcome!

 

Welcome to Brunch and the City! Yes, it’s a bit cliche but you’d be amazed at how hard it is to find a url name out there that is not already taken! And, well, this one fits. For one, I happen to love everything about brunch. I mean really love everything brunch. I could eat it every meal of the day if I could (although I guess that ruins the definition of it). Mimosas, bacon, pancakes, waffles, eggs, toast, croissants, french toast, fresh fruit, coffee, bacon, grits…I could go on but I think that by now you get the idea. Second, I keep saying that I want to re-explore the city I grew up in. This is a way to get me to finally stick to my resolution.

When I decided to start this blog, my dad asked the typical “dad” question: how does one “blog?” I didn’t really have an answer but I thought it was funny and typical “dad.” While he did want to know the technical side, he also just wanted to know what I would blog about. So here it is…to start, and to be true to the name, is I plan to find and review every brunch option around DC. But I don’t just want to write about brunch. I love it but there is more to this city than restaurants and diners. So that is the other side to my blog…I want to re-explore DC as a tourist in my own town.

I grew up in DC (and when I say that I don’t mean in VA or MD…I was actually born and raised in the city lines), but I feel like there is so much of the area I have never seen. And to top it off, the city has changed a lot since I was a kid. For example, Barracks Row on 8th Street in SE was a wasteland of closed up store fronts when I was growing up. But it is now a great spot for shopping or going out at night. Chinatown is another example of a revived neighborhood that was never a big destination spot but now has a wide array of things to do during the day and at night. The area around the new ballpark and The Atlas District (H Street NE) shows another story of the balance between development and maintaining the history and social integrity of a neighborhood. It is a touchy subject that I do not want to debate but do think should be highlighted. And let’s come back to the ballpark for a moment–my hometown finally has a baseball team to call its own, and its ballpark is being built in my neighborhood! I have been following this closely since the first news that DC was a contender to get the Expos, and have been going to games since the home opener in 2005. I love the Nationals and am ready for the 2008 season!

So as part of a New Years resolution, I want to see what this city really has to offer and let others know what is really worth checking out. If you want to see a certain review, just let me know. Or if you want to add your own, send it my way. I have always believed this is a great city and am vowing to stop using work and other life distractions as an excuse to not get to really know the city I grew up in.