August 2007
Washington, D.C. '07
by Celia Cheng
Once a year, I visit my friends in the Washington, D.C. area. The capital has a weird effect on me; I always say that I can smell politics in the air, which is probably why I left D.C. to come to New York after my first year in college. But on the other hand, I like going back there because D.C. is home to some of my favorite landmarks, including the Washington Monument and Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, and it’s also home to some of my dearest friends.
My priority on these visits is to spend time with these friends, and of course, good friends enjoy good meals together, home cooked or dining out, so these trips are always especially rewarding for me.
This year, Maureen suggested Komi but thought I might pass on it since I had just finished up an entire feature on Greek cuisine. Luckily, I never tire of good food and was intrigued by her mention of Komi’s chef-owner Johnny Monis’ philosophy and art of cooking, so I jumped at the chance to have dinner there. How fortuitous because this turned out to be my favorite meal in 2007 so far!
Another close friend, Julia, has been working on a guidebook series for D.C. called UR Here and has been telling me about Julia’s Empanadas (no relation) for years, so I finally made it there after lunch on Saturday, tried one, then picked up eight more the following day to bring back to New York.
Julia’s also been urging me to experience Maryland blue crabs during crab season, so we made it out to Jimmy Cantler’s Riverside Inn in Annapolis. Cantler’s is a big tourist spot, but it was just too much fun learning to eat crabs the right way and devouring them one by one!
So for the end of summer 2007, I hope you’ll enjoy this short piece on my weekend in D.C.
