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Please The Palate Pick of the Week: Maxwell Park DC Wine Bar

Maxwell Park Wine Bar is one of the hottest spots in Washington DC right now. Modern, friendly, energetic, educational yet playful, it is a perfect wine bar for all wine lovers, no matter how much or how little you know. And that is why Maxwell Park Wine Bar (aka Maxwell's DC) is the Please The Palate pick of the week.

Maxwell's DC opened in June of 2017 in the Shaw neighborhood, one of the hippest areas of Washington DC. Sommelier Brent Kroll is the founder of Maxwell's DC which he named after Maxwell Park, a park he played in as a kid in Detroit. His partners, Daniel Runnerstrom and Niki Lang are also sommeliers.

Previous to owning his own wine bar, Kroll was the Wine Director for the Neighborhood Group for four years. During his tenure, he opened ten restaurants and oversaw the wine programs at all of them. Now he is focused on just one place and it is a gem.

24 February, 2018

Grab a glass of wine with friends at Oriel Chinatown

Looking for a place to meet for drinks? Try Oriel Chinatown. Just north of Union Station on Alameda Street sits a building just below the raised train tracks. First a tire shop and then a nail salon, the space is now home to Oriel Chinatown, a French-themed modern wine bar and bistro. Oriel Chinatown is an oddly-shaped building with a few tables in the covered entrance and a few more to the right of the entrance, which lead to a patio. To the left of the entrance is the bar and a few more seats. The walls are white with pink and purple floors and furniture that are illuminated by the low lighting to create a rose-hued space.

Oriel Chinatown is a project of Dustin Lancaster, who has opened Bar Covell and Augustine, two other wine bars in Los Angeles. At Oriel Chinatown the focus is on French wine.

08 February, 2018

Please The Palate Pick of the Week: Brunch at Good Measure

Good Measure has been on my list of restaurants to try since it opened this past summer. But between my travel schedule and availability to get across the city to Atwater Village, I had yet to go. But, for the very last day of 2017, I finally went to Good Measure for brunch and alas it is the Please The Palate pick of the week.

Good Measure is a wine-inspired restaurant. Opened by Matthew Kaner, one of Food & Wine's Sommeliers of the Year 2013 and wine director of Bar Covell and Augustine, the 75-seat Good Measure has more than 1000 bottles of wine from around the world. And chef Mike Garber, who previously worked at the now-closed BLD and at Ammo, has created a menu to pair with the wines.

06 January, 2018