DC: A Place to Visit? Ranked 43

From Mathew Harkins. Email him at mharkins[AT]borderstan.com.

The past couple of weeks have seen Passport DC events happening all over the city. If you’ve been lucky enough to find the time, then you’ve had the chance to be transported to Parisian cafes, Brazilian jazz clubs and Slovenian concert halls, all without packing a single suitcase.

But, you might ask yourself, how does my own city stack up against all this international competition? How do I know where DC stands in the great ranking of countries and cities?

Look no further than the Travel section of The New York Times, which published a list this past January of the 46 Places to Go in 2013. Some may be surprised, but our city made it onto this select list, coming in at #43 and one of only seven U.S. locations on the list.

The main reason for the attention on our city has to do with our ever-expanding food scene. The handful of restaurants/locations that have been selected for the piece include:

• Toki Underground — at 1234 H Street NE
• Union Market — at 1309 5th Street NE
• Graffiato — at 707 6th Street NW
• Little Serow — (our own nearby entry) at 1511 17th Street NW

At the close of this short list, the Times includes the exhibit, “Food: Transforming America’s Table 1950-2000,” currently open at the National Museum of American History.

And as we good Borderstan readers know, this is only the thinnest sample of the culinary excitement happening here in DC. From Stephen Starr’s Le Diplomate to the Italian invasion we’ve seen happening on 14th Street; from the outdoor barbecue to the expansion of local culinary entrepreneurs. The Borderstan area and DC at large is full of exciting new food and restaurant experiences, keeping our taste buds happy and our interest piqued for what might come next.

Not only do we have a few more bragging rights now, but if we keep up at this rate, we’ll be closer to the top of a few more lists next year.

For a rundown of some of the restaurants newly opened or opening in the area this spring/summer, take a look at the list from this past March.

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