1100 block of Wisconsin Ave.
Monthly Archives: October 2011
Not So Long Ago: Wisconsin and S
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This week on Not So Long Ago, GM jumps all the way back to the top of Wisconsin to S St. Nowadays it’s home to the Homemade Pizza Co. and Cafe Divan.
As we’ve seen in earlier entries, several stores on Wisconsin Ave. were simply of an era gone by. That includes a video store and a whole store for books on tape. And this week we add another dead, or nearly dead, industry to the group: travel agents. In the space that currently houses the Homemade Pizza Co. there once was Adventures in Travel. And according to Google, this company is still around, now located up in Glover Park. Who knew there were still travel agents?
By 1997, this space hosted the late great Spiral Yoga, which closed last year.
Next to the travel agency was a frame store called Rowe House. It eventually moved across and down the street to next to Wagner’s Liquor. Sadly it closed a year or so ago.
Next to Rowe House was Apricots Deli, with the ubiquitous Gyros poster you see in all Greek restaurants.
Both of these spaces were eventually combined into Cafe Divan, a fantastic Turkish restaurant that offers sit-down service as well as take-out. They even run a small hotel!
Continue reading
Filed under Not So Long Ago
The Morning Metropolitan
Photo by M.V. Jantzen.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
- Normally when you say “compliments of“, you mean “this is free because these guys paid for it” not “that can of soda will cost you $1”.
- Got old running shoes? Drop them off at the Georgetown Running Co. so they can donate them to Miriam’s Kitchen for use by the homeless.
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
Updates to Aren’t They Building
Every once and awhile, GM remembers to get around to updating his “Aren’t They Building” list. And today is one of those onces in a while.
So here’s GM’s updates on the items that need updating:
Paul Bakery
-GM’s old predictions:November 2010spring 2011Late summer 2011
-Clearly GM’s been wrong now three times on this project. But it really does look like it’s opening soon; so GM is going to say November, a full year after the first prediction.Calvin Klein Underwear
-GM prediction: fall 2011
-GM was a bit too conservative, they opened a few months agoAll Saints
-GM prediction: August 2011
-That one was about right.Boutique Hotel on 31st St.
-GM prediction Late 2012
-They are now finally moving forward with this one, but don’t have a new announced date, but late 2012 still seems likely.Georgetown Waterfront Phase II
-GM prediction: –Late 2010 to early 2011August 2011
– They were just one month later.Developing Georgetown Post Office
-GM prediction:2011 at the earliestLate 2012
-This project seems to have been a bit stymied. It’s still moving forward, but the procedure is just taking a lot longer. GM thinks this now won’t come on-line until 2013 at the earliest.Billy Reid
-GM prediction: Fall 2011
-This one was supposed to go into the Riccardi shop on M St., but last time GM checked, Riccardi hadn’t left yet. So it’s unlikely Billy Reid is coming in very soon.Jack Wills
-GM prediction: Winter 2011
-Another one GM was way too conservative on. This one’s been open for months. Continue reading
Filed under Development
The Morning Metropolitan
Photo by Jim Malone.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
- Get some nice Oktoberfest beer at Pizzeria Paradiso this weekend.
- People want Busboys and Poets to move to the waterfront.
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
Georgetown Skyline: 1910
As the debate over the future of the West Heating Plant continued over here, the discussion turned instead to the past. Reader Walter directed our attention to a photo at the Library of Congress from 1910 (or thereabouts) taken from the top of the Washington Monument. It’s part of a 360 degree panoramic, but given the high quality of the large format photography used at the time, we can zoom in and get a wonderful snapshot of Georgetown’s skyline.
Here’s the overall shot:
The immediate point being addressed by Walter in linking to the photo was that at the time a gigantic tank of gas was stored at the corner of M and 30th. Here’s a shot of it:
What immediately jumps out at you when looking at this shot is the ramshackle state of the waterfront. It was still a very active and industrial area. There are five significant smokestacks, of which two remain today. But your eyes are also drawn to GU:
Filed under History
The Morning Metropolitan
Photo by Funky Tee.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
- Plot to kill Saudi ambassador likely to have taken place at Cafe Milano.
- Which left some asking: Why do “VIPs” like Cafe Milano so much in the first place?
- We Love DC stops by the new Brooks Brothers.
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
The Georgetown Metropolitan 
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