Washington, DC:
Capital In More Ways Than One
The USA’s most historic city revels in its parade of the unexpected and the little-known.
The White House. The Capitol. The Lincoln Memorial. Kiwis see the iconic images of Washington, DC on the news every night and feel they’re familiar with the USA’s capital city…but there’s much, much more to this energetic, ever-evolving, many-layered destination.
It is, as the Destination DC tourism organisation calls it, “the capital of more than you think.”
Elliott L. Ferguson, II, President and CEO of the organisation, agrees that part of the reason Washington is regarded as a top destination by Kiwis (and the global community) is its status in American history. “It's the nation’s capital, so the fact that our monuments, memorials and museums resonate with so many visitors is simply because you've seen them on TV, probably your entire life.”
He’s quick to point out the city’s relationship with the story of America, its history and its government, is only one facet: “Sure, we have amazing monuments and museums. They’re part of our 100 free things to do, including 25 free museums and the National Zoo.”
“We don't want Kiwis to think that they're just going to come to Washington and spend their time in museums and taking pictures in front of key monuments. They might not know that the city is surrounded by two rivers, and there are amazing events on those like kayaking on the Potomac, sailing on the Anacostia River, boat cruises, river cruises.
“When you think of major cities like New York, you think of Central Park because you see it all the time. In Washington, DC, we have Rock Creek Park, which is double the size of Central Park. It has significant running trails, you can go camping, you can go hiking close to the very centre of Washington.”
Stars and bars
Watch movies set in the nation’s capital – say, All the President’s Men – and you might think this is a city of bureaucrats meeting over power breakfasts or in steakhouses.
In times past, maybe. Not now. Washington, DC is renowned for its variety of international cuisine around the city and its suburbs. Since the Michelin Guide published its first DC edition in 2017, it has awarded its stars to no less than 24 restaurants, with another 100 notables spotlighted in the 2023 guide.
Chef Pepe Moncayo’s Cranes is the proud holder of a much-coveted star. The Barcelona-born chef worked at three-star restaurants in his home country before moving to Singapore and visiting Japan to refine his fascination with Spanish-Japanese fusion cuisine. Cranes, opened in 2018, re-jigged during Covid to high-end takeout and deliveries, earned its star in 2021 and has retaken its place among the capital’s finest establishments.
Moncayo has seen plenty of changes in that time, all for the better: “A lot of people in the industry will always say that this city 15 years ago, 10 years ago, was a desert for a good restaurant – the only thing that you could find was fast food and steakhouses. Cranes took over an old steakhouse that had been sitting on the site for 20 years, so that’s a good sign of the changes that are happening in the city.
“That was before the first publication of Michelin five years ago. Now chefs are coming into the city, they are being motivated to deliver to the standards of Michelin. People who were already here were also pushing themselves to get to that level. It’s very dynamic.”
Equally as exciting, Moncayo says, is the melting-pot of global cuisines, fuelled by the waves of immigrants who’ve come to Washington, DC. The city is home to the largest Ethiopian population outside of Africa, bringing their spicy, fragrant stews of beef, lamb and chicken. The largest Salvadoran population outside that country also resides in DC, influencing Latin American cuisine.
Southeast Asian foods enjoy a particularly strong presence. Longtime popular destinations include Baan Siam for Northern Thai and Maketto for Taiwanese and Cambodian cafe food; the family that sparked the #LaoFoodMovement has two restaurants, one offering a secret menu at their Thai restaurant in Northern Virginia. There’s an especially rich Vietnamese food culture, readily available Korean food and Malaysian specialties as well, full of sweet, spicy and sour flavours.
High-end, wood-burning Middle Eastern restaurants have attracted national notice over the past few years; Caribbean themes abound.
Food from the most unexpected places, too. Moncayo is currently excited by a diner that serves delicious Uyghur cuisine from the long-suffering Muslim enclave in China.
If you hanker for more traditional American-style fare, don’t overlook the quintessential DC brunch – mimosas and oysters fresh from Chesapeake Bay – or soul food like chili-cheese half-smokes at the historic Black-owned Ben’s Chili Bowl, sweet potato pie at Henry’s Soul Café or crunchy wings, collard greens and gooey mac and cheese at Oohs and Aahs. Even a bagel shop, the self-styled “Jew-ish” deli Call Your Mother, may get a visit from the President on any given Sunday. All the President’s menus, perhaps.
Rooftop relaxation
Washington’s low-rise landscape has spawned another fashion. Virtually no building is over 13 storeys, so it’s easy to create a rooftop establishment with magnificent views of iconic monuments; over 25 new or renovated elevated culinary and bar venues have set up shop since 2020.
They include Smoke & Mirrors (view of the Capitol Building), VUE Rooftop (view of the White House and Washington Monument) and Upstairs at the Morrow (view of the Capitol Building).
The city has long enjoyed a thriving craft cocktail and distilling scene. Speakeasy-style bars abound, many with unmarked entrances, hidden doors and dimly lit lounges. The city even has an official cocktail: the Gin Rickey, created in the late 1800s at a bar called Shoomaker’s. Best place to try it: the J.W. Marriott Washington, DC’s 1331 Bar & Lounge, now standing in that location.
“Four or five countries in one day”
Communities and their cuisines also come together at a unique cultural event: the annual Passport DC, where many of the capital’s 170 national embassies open to the public.
For Ferguson, it’s the sort of event that could only take place in Washington, DC: “In the month of May, several of the embassies on each weekend open their doors and put on events and activities and provide their national foods for visitors to come and enjoy for free.
“What makes that so cool, especially when you're bringing your kids, is that you know that when you're in an embassy, you're in that country. So it's like going to four or five countries in one day and that's something you can only do in Washington.”
While that might play into the world’s image of Washington’s leadership in global or federal affairs seen on TV, Ferguson notes the city is a living, breathing and dynamic community in its own right. “In reality, we have a huge melting-pot culture, and the city is very welcoming and inclusive.
“Everyone knows of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, which draws millions of people in the spring, and the list goes on and on. The DC JazzFest, Restaurant Week, music venues, music festivals and concerts in the various venues we have in Washington, that's a huge part of the draw in coming to our city.”
Washington boasts the largest collection of cherry blossom trees outside Japan. Each spring the city celebrates the National Cherry Blossom Festival with free events like a parade, kite-flying day on the National Mall, art installations and restaurant offerings.
A Capitol Fourth – a free concert and one of the largest fireworks displays in the US – happens each Fourth of July in partnership with the National Park Service.
Each year Capital Pride Alliance hosts Capital Pride, one of the largest Pride celebrations in the US, including a free festival with live performances, a parade and more. Washington will host World Pride 2025, taking the baton from Sydney 2024.
DC is home to more than 80 professional theatre venues, producing Broadway plays and other live performances; for a more personal creative encounter, chat with artists at local markets like Capitol Hill’s Eastern Market, NoMa’s La Cosecha Latin American Marketplace or the Downtown Holiday Market in Penn Quarter.
Music, marinas, malls, mighty stadiums and canals – a district of communities
Talk about a city reinventing itself. Some of Washington’s buzzing new local destinations are, in fact, some of its oldest neighbourhoods. Ferguson chuckles as he recalls: “I've lived in DC for almost 22 years. We didn't sell rooftop experiences in Washington 22 years ago because that wasn't really a part of the landscape.
“Now we have new neighbourhoods, ones that have always existed but now offer a different experience. Navy Yard has always existed and was famous for the [world champion Washington Nationals] baseball stadium but now you have amazing hotels, restaurants, malls and, of course, baseball.
“Buzzard Point has always existed at the meeting-point of the Potomac and Anacostia rivers. We just built a new soccer stadium for DC United at Audi Field and a whole new riverfront development is happening there.
“The second phase of The Wharf, which is on the Anacostia River, opened about eight months ago and with that, Michelin-star restaurants, nightlife, rooftop experiences and sporting events and concerts.”
Navy Yard is a redevelopment of the former naval base, which began in earnest in the early 2000s, with the $US600 million Nationals Park stimulating growth in the area. Over the ensuing years, offices, apartments, shopping malls and hotels have joined the party. The Barracks Row commercial district along 8th Street has the greatest remaining concentration of historic structures in the area.
Pride of place, however, goes to the riverfront development Washington Canal Park – named for the historic Washington Canal, which provided a water-borne connection between the Anacostia River and the Potomac River via the National Mall. Developers envisage "trees, grass, plants, a splash pool, aquatic garden and fountain.”
The Wharf is a multi-billion dollar development, containing the city's historic Maine Ave Fish Market, hotels, apartments, restaurants, shops, parks, docks and marinas, piers and live music venues. The area encompasses almost 10ha of land and 20ha of water, running along a mile of the shoreline.
The Wharf offers multiple live music venues and theatres, including The Anthem, a 6000-seat concert hall, as well as the Union Stage and Pearl Street Warehouse clubs, year-round street performers and musical acts taking the stage on a floating barge.
For visitors, there are water taxis to Georgetown, Alexandria, Virginia and the National Harbour in Maryland; cycle tracks and boat tours to Washington attractions and monuments from the river, kayak and stand-up paddleboard rentals – and, because this is Washington, DC, after all, the International Spy Museum.
Washington’s most historic neighbourhood, Georgetown, features cobblestone streets, Federal-style architecture, eclectic cafes and kitschy boutiques. This is the upmarket side of town with The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel and high-end fashion boutiques along M Street.
From the Potomac riverfront, there are opportunities for kayaking to iconic monuments or up into Rock Creek Park, while the beautiful C & O Canal runs through the area for a Georgetown Heritage canal boat tour.
A free outdoor light art experience, Georgetown GLOW, happens in winter. The U Street Corridor was once known as “Black Broadway” and still serves as a prominent symbol of Black culture and sophistication.
It was home to legendary jazz star Duke Ellington and at the forefront of the Black American jazz movement, also hosting artists like Ella Fitzgerald and Cab Calloway. Both the Lincoln Theatre and the Howard Theatre were popular spots; both are still in operation today.
Foodie must-dos in the U Street Corridor include coffee at Colada Shop, dinner at Compass Rose or a half-smoke from the previously mentioned Ben’s Chilli Bowl.
Land of the free things
“When the global community looks at coming to a city like Washington, we want them to be able to take advantage of these activities, especially since you're not paying. The added value of being in Washington is all the free things you can see and do, which gives you more money to spend on other things.”
It’s a big claim, but the capital boasts that “no city provides as many world-class activities for free as Washington, DC.” Washington.org guides visitors towards more than 100 options like museums, monuments, one-of-a-kind events and more adventures guaranteed not to break the budget.
Freebies include 17 Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo. There’s no charge at the world-famous monuments and memorials, including the White House Visitor Center, Library of Congress and Capitol Building tours, and walking tours of the historic areas.
At 700ha, Rock Creek Park is not only twice the size of Central Park, it offers locals and visitors the opportunity to escape the city bustle for free recreation, fresh air, majestic trees, wild animals and thousands of years of human history. Attractions include Civil War fortifications, working mills, Colonial houses, and thousands of years of DC history; activities include horse-riding, concerts, picnicking, golfing, tennis, hiking, biking and boating.
“City of Champions”
Seeing any of Washington’s eight professional sports teams in action – including the National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, National Hockey League and Major League Soccer – is relatively low-cost entertainment, too.
“We now have our own cricket team too,” laughs Elliott. “From American football to soccer, women’s basketball, men’s basketball, hockey, we have all those teams in Washington, DC and several of them are national champions. Our mayor talks about Washington as the City of Champions or Sports City.
“You can enjoy pickleball – an indoor court just opened – or volleyball on the National Mall. Roller-skating is resurging, with a new skating rink just opened.
Timing is important
So, what time of year is best for visiting Washington, DC?
“In terms of weather, spring (March-May) and fall (late September-Christmas) are always the best seasons. Those also happen to be peak seasons, so rates will be a little bit higher and you’re going to have more crowds. Late August is a good time to consider - better rates and fewer crowds. But in each season, we have a lot of events and activities for visitors to enjoy.”
And how long should you spend there? “Four nights, five days gives you time to really absorb all that Washington has to offer.”
It’s easy to get to. “You're able to take the non-stop flight from Auckland to New York City and then get on our high-speed train, Acela, and come to Washington, DC, a destination with so many amazing things to see and do, and we make it easy for visitors to get from the airport to downtown by the Metro system.”
To plan your next trip to Washington, DC, visit https://washington.org/ .
When you're ready to book, visit houseoftravel.co.nz
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