What about us?

It seems that every neighborhood of a block or more has a group these days where the residents can share information, experiences, and expertise. Every neighborhood, that is, but the Van Ness area. I know, I know, there is no "Van Ness" area, I believe its official name is North Cleveland Park though I can't imagine why. Why
isn't Cleveland Park known as South Van Ness? But wait, maybe that's another blog entry.


The Van Ness area I'm speaking about is, not surprisingly, around the Van Ness Metro station. There's a lot of houses and mounds of apartments in this area and, therefore, there's a lot of institutional knowledge residing in the neighborhood that could be shared.

So I've created a group for Van Ness area residents and you can find it here. You'll need a Yahoo email address but that's something you can easily get when you're joining the group. So don't hold back, come and share your neighborhood experiences.


Join vannessdc!

The Wearing of the Red

Nanny O'Brien's was bought by Bedrock Companies earlier this year and a few changes have occured since then: the smell has pretty much gone, the stage is no longer level with the center of the bar, it's been moved down to the corner, and the exterior has been spruced up: the sign is now level and the place is a shiny shade of red. All they need now is more customers, I was in on a Saturday night about 9:30 and there was less than a dozen people drinking. So get in there for some fish and chips and a pint of Guinness, they could use your help.

Dive into the Indian Ocean

Don't look now but the Indian Ocean on Connecticut Avenue in the Van Ness area has opened for business! Based on the way things have gone since Reidel's left, it's anyone's guess how long it will stay this way so get in there fast if you're a fan of Indian food. I first wrote about this place back in January when it was -- briefly -- the Coat of Arms. But as of Sunday, August 5, 2007, there it is: all the "North Indian Cuisine" you can shake a stick at. I hope to get in there later this week to give it a try so I'll add my thoughts to this entry by next weekend.

OK, here's the addendum. I'm not a food reviewer by any means, but folks, this was good. I'm told that Heritage India in Dupont Circle is one of the best Indian restaurants around and Indique in Cleveland Park is right up there as well while "Dhaba" as in Delhi Dhaba means "diner" or something like that, but the Indian Ocean was delightful. The menu is restricted for the first week or two -- about five entrees -- but is going to get a lot bigger as time goes by. Presently, the menu is a good introduction to north Indian cuisine. The owner, Raj, emphasized they use a healthy style of cooking; the portions were not huge, yet filling. On an important note -- for me -- they have wine and beer. Although the menu only lists wine bottle prices, you can buy by the glass -- for about seven bucks each.

You'll have to wait for a sensible review until Sietsma or some other foodie goes there but if I had to summarize -- and I do -- I would say this is a fairly upscale place -- for Van Ness anyway -- and if you like Indian food you're probably going to like this place -- get over there and give it a try. It was worth the wait.