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Washington, D.C.'s Emerging MidCity

Whitney Lawson The oldest restaurant on U Street, open since 1958, has catered to the likes of Martin Luther King Jr. and Bill Cosby.

Photo: Whitney Lawson

As D.C.’s inner city blossoms, roughly six contiguous areas north of downtown are being grouped as MidCity. At its heart, Logan Circle and the U Street Corridor have been among the city’s most embattled neighborhoods. Now there’s an influx of artists, students, and professionals, and businesses are opening in a collaborative spirit—with one eye toward the global village and the other very much on the local scene—showing what can happen when fashion, art, and food mix with politics.

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Our Picks

6 Restaurants 11 Activities

Destinations: Washington, D.C. · Dupont Circle · U Street · NW Washingon

Themes: Arts + Culture · Food + Drink · Shopping

Inspired by: Up-And-Coming Washington, D.C. — by Meeghan Truelove, Published Oct. 2006

Restaurants (6)

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1 - 6 of 6 Results

Etete

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Brothers Yared and Henock Tesfaye, Ethiopian transplants, opened Etete in 2004. The restaurant, a gift for their mother, serves traditional Ethiopi
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Viridian

Washington, D.C. | U.S. + Canada | U.S.
Creme Cafe

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.
Busboys & Poets

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Part restaurant and part community gathering spot, Busboys & Poets is a socially-conscious restaurant founded in 2005 by Iraqi-American activist an
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Ben's Chili Bowl

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Up until very recently, the only VIP deemed worthy of a free meal at the Ali family chili shrine was longtime devotee Bill Cosby, who made the venu
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Café Saint-Ex

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Inspired by owner Mike Benson’s affinity for flying and the works of French author-pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Café Saint-Ex is a neighborhood
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1 - 6 of 6 Results

Activities (11)

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1 - 11 of 11 Results

Muléh

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Founded by Christopher Reiter following a four-year stay in Asia, Muléh is a unique lifestyle store blending home furnishings and fashion. The home
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HR-57

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

The city’s coolest jazz plays day and night at this groovy, dim-lit classic. The name, Washington geek-speak for House Resolution 57, refers to the
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Gate 54/Saint-Ex

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

A boisterous thirtysomething crowd fills both floors of this popular watering hole: the ground-floor bistro has seats for dinner or an alt-sceney d
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Candida's World of Books

Washington, D.C. | U.S. + Canada | U.S.

Candida’s World of Books leaves bookstore travel sections far behind, and stocks cookbooks, coffee-table tomes, and fiction in 15 languages from 40
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Lettie Gooch

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

This trendy boutique, located in the U Street Corridor sells fashion-forward, offbeat apparel and accessories for women. The store has an inventory
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Carbon

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Located on Connecticut Avenue in Woodley Park, Carbon is known for its selection of stylish, eco-friendly shoes, clothing, and accessories. The sto
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Wild Women Wear Red

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Wild Women Wear Red sells sexy but practical shoes, such as puzzle-patterned suede boots by Camper and Lisa Nading loafers with kittenish heels.
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Nana, Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C. | U.S. + Canada | U.S.

Opened in 2003, Nana is a locally minded women’s clothing boutique that showcases independent American designers, many of whom use sustainable, org
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Project 4

U Street | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

This bi-level gallery is located at the intersection of 14th and U Streets in the U Street Corridor. The 1,000-square-foot Project 4 displays inter
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Irvine Contemporary

Dupont Circle | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Irvine Contemporary, founded by Georgetown professor Dr. Martin Irvine, showcases works by emerging and mid-career artists. Past exhibits have incl
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Nevin Kelly Gallery

NW Washingon | U.S. + Canada | U.S. | Washington, D.C.

Half of the artists represented by Nevin Kelly Gallery live in Poland, the rest are in D.C.: a delightful hybrid of old-world skillfulness and new-
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1 - 11 of 11 Results

Similar Trips (8)

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1 - 8 of 8 Results

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Green Travel in Washington, D.C.

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Maryland, Mumbai, Gujarat + Western India, Dupont Circle

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