Union Social in NoMa
Union Social (100 Florida Avenue, NE) will be hosting a Thanksgiving Day feast for anyone in DC looking to eat out at a restaurant. Starting at 6 pm, there will be an hour long complimentary cocktail hour, followed by a buffet style Thanksgiving dinner at 7 pm until 9 pm. Union Social will have a communal table set up for solo diners to eat together, and dinner will be $25 per person.
Storefront That Was Supposed to Become Sin Bin Sports Bar Now Up For Lease
Several years ago, a concept called “Sin Bin Sports Bar and Restaurant” announced that it would be moving into 1336 H Street and applied for a liquor license. Sin Bin was going to be a sports bar that also had an outdoor space. Construction began on the site but for many months it has been stalled and vacant. Well it now appears that it is back on the leasing market as you can see from the posting here. The real estate posting notes that the building is currently a shell but that the owner may work with the tenant “on some rent abatement.”
New Exterior at Uni Bistro, Previously Batter Bowl Bakery
Batter Bowl Bakery (403 H Street) has recently rebranded as Uni Bistro due to an ownership change. Previously, the restaurant was owned by neighboring Ethiopic that opened it back in 2013. It is now owned by the husband and wife team that has been running the day to day operations. According to the owners, Uni is a play off of nearby Union Station as well as the word unique. The new logo that they will be rolling out soon is based off a thumb print to highlight the restaurant’s unique character.
As we previously reported, they are hoping to attract more customers in the afternoon and evening by serving alcohol and expanding lunch and dinner menu items. As part of its rebranding efforts, the outside of the restaurant has been repainted gold and there is a new sign outside. Expect to see new menu items rolled out soon in a push for later in the day customers.
The Front Entrance of Future Cotton & Reed That Will Be Transformed Into Roll-Up Glass Window
Looking for something to look forward to during the cold winter months after the holidays? Look no further than Cotton & Reed, the new craft rum distillery coming to the Union Market area (1330 5th Street, NE) this winter. Cotton & Reed will have both a tasting room and a distillery in the location, which is slightly up the street (to the north) from the main market building at Union Market. While you wouldn’t be able to tell based upon the outside of the building, construction is well underway inside as Cotton & Reed hopes to open in February of next year.
View of Cotton & Reed from Front Door Looking Back. The Tasting Room Will be in the Front (Bar to the Left in Picture) and Distillery in the Back.
Cotton & Reed was founded by Reed Walker and Jordan Cotton who met in a previous professional life as NASA consultants. They created Cotton & Reed several years ago at Blind Dog Cafe and have been working to expand and open a distillery with a tasting room ever since. Cotton & Reed has crowdfunded much of its initial start up money utilizing Indiegogo campaigns, which recently raised over $45,000 for the business. In addition to the founders, the company has assembled a team that includes general manager and herbalist Lukas Smith, who recently won DC Eater’s Bartender of the Year award.
Future Tasting Room Area at Cotton & Reed. The Bar Will Be on the Right in Picture.
While looking for a location, they were approached by Edens, the mega South Carolina real estate company that opened the Union Market market building and that has purchased major portions of the surrounding warehouses and vacant land over the past several years. At the time, 1330 5th Street was occupied by Samsung Tofu, a wholesaler that operated in two side by side warehouse stalls. Samsung will continue its operations but has shifted everything into one of the two stalls and a wall has been erected to subdivide the two businesses. February is the tentative open date, but that could slide depending upon construction. The building is quite old, and the construction team keeps finding surprises as they renovate (including unknown pipes recently).
Future Distillery Area at Cotton & Reed
Monterey Jack Doughnuts at DC Harvest
DC Harvest (517 H Street) will be serving brunch on Black Friday from 11 am until 2:30 pm. In addition to their usual brunch menu, they will be serving their signature Old Bay fried chicken, $20 bottomless Bloody Marys, and monterey jack doughnuts. The restaurant will be closed for Thanksgiving but will otherwise have normal operating hours during the weekend.
701 H Street
A taqueria will be replacing The Spot Deli (701 H Street) which closed back in September. The name is somewhat unclear from the signage–either Pronto Taqueria and Rosticeria or Fresca Taqueria and Rosticeria. The location had undergone a renovation prior to opening as The Spot Deli; it had previously been Heaven & H Deli for only a few months and had been Grace Deli prior to that. It is unclear if the location is related to The Spot Deli and its owner Troy Williams who is also opening a restaurant at 1255 H Street (although that construction has been stalled for several years).
District Cuisine 