Recently I have been in a blogger's funk and have not been able to muster much inspiration. Perhaps it is because two of the fabulous woman who have guided both my weekdays and weekends, Oprah Winfrey and Liane Hansen, said goodbye last week. Or maybe the constant roar of motorcycles circling my condo for Rolling Thunder drowned out my inner voice. But this weekend, staying in DC brought me back to my jovial blogging self with my local Memorial Day weekend journey that went from haute to hot.
Despite the noxious noise, I found Memorial Day weekend a great time to really experience DC as many choice spots were largely deserted. This was certainly true this weekend at the Jefferson Hotel's Quill bar. Despite the absence of a large crowd, the service, cocktails, and entertainment were all top notch. The Jefferson's elegant take on the finer things in life carries from the ornate decor to the menu. While cocktails are not inexpensive ($15 a piece), they are all handcrafted, unique, and creative. Their Tequila Mockingbird, showcases premium tequila in a wash of handcrafted strawberry grapefruit grenadine. And if the menu's listed cocktails do not wet your whistle, there is always the Master Mind, an option that allows for collaboration between you and the bartender; B was quite happy with his chai bourbon-infused martini concoction!
Quill makes it easy lose yourself in a setting that feels far removed in space and time; you forget you are in DC. The plush chairs cradle you as you listen to jazz standards played by the amazingly talented jazz pianist and singer Peter Robinson, whose quirky quips punctuate his amazing by-memory repertoire of jazz greats from Porter to Gershwin. And if the library is not reserved for the evening, make sure you stop in. Signed books of the hotel's many guests line a far wall and it is here you discover that many of America's dining legends have too enjoyed this space.
Readers know that my tastes range from fine to frugal. And it is this leap that brings me to my next Memorial Day food experience -- lunch for two for $3.27. Where, you may ask? And it is that question that causes me to blush ever so slightly. This feast was at the suburban weekend nightmare that is the Pentagon City Costco. But what is more American than enjoying an all beef hot dog in the middle of a consumer-driven, fluorescent lit cafeteria? The hot dog was satisfying in a I can't remember when the last time was I ate a hot dog kind of way. The Diet Coke was free flowing. The onion dicing machine crank, well, that was just fun. 
So from haute to hot, there are so many ways to take advantage of long summer weekends in DC.
If you're looking for more inspiration come out to Last Exit in Mt Pleasant. I moved there from Tonic at Foggy Bottom. It's been a while (at the Sheraton hotel tour) since you said you'd come out and let me make you a delicious alcoholic beverage.
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