BizBash Washington News

EVENT REPORT: Sponsors and More Than 100,000 Guests Flood Safeway Barbecue Battle on Pennsylvania Avenue

]]>The Safeway National Capital Barbecue Battle launched in 1992 as a way to celebrate southerners Bill Clinton and Al Gore winning the presidential election. The festival, which opened its 17th edition along Pennsylvania Avenue on Saturday and Sunday, now sees around 100,000 visitors each year. And it’s truly a family affair, with activities for every age—from moon bounces to Ecco Domani-sponsored wine lounges—and even husband-and-wife teams joining the 150 volunteers. The eight-block-long event showcased 25 restaurants and food vendors, 50 barbecue teams, 20 sponsors and exhibitors, and a product sampling tent from title sponsor Safeway. Tickets cost $10 for adults and $5 for children.

“The fact that it is the largest annual fundraiser for the Boys & Girls Clubs in D.C. really helps a lot because people just throw their hearts into it,” said Suzanne Tubis, vice president of publicity for the Safeway Barbecue Battle. “Attendees come down and are willing to do a little extra with volunteering or fund-raising. All kinds of different synergies happen there.”

EVENT REPORT: Cricket Launches Washington Service With World's Largest Cell Phone and Green Snow Cones

]]>Last Thursday at noon, with the temperature hovering in the low 90s, the sight of a freshly chiseled six-foot-tall ice sculpture in the shape of a K (for the capital K in the Cricket logo) drew the attention of some who passed by the Historical Society of Washington D.C. Nearby, a man passed out green snow cones. But for the lunchtime crowd, the center of attention was the 15- by 30-foot cell phone mounted on the side of two stacked black shipping containers branded with Cricket and Samsung logos.

Tuesday through Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., wireless provider Cricket teamed up with Samsung Telecommunications America to tout the launch of Cricket service in the Washington area by bringing to town what was dubbed "the world’s largest cell phone." The walk-through promotional kiosk and giant phone, which first appeared in March in Chicago, represented a $1 million investment in development and fabrication by the two companies.

EVENT REPORT: Candy, Ice Cream, and Rachel Maddow Accent MSNBC's Radio and TV Correspondents' Dinner After-Party

]]>Guests at the 65th Radio and Television Correspondents' Association Dinner on Friday shouldn’t have had any problem finding the after-party hosted by MSNBC. They simply walked across the street from the dinner at the Washington Convention Center to the Historical Society of Washington, D.C., where giant light projections of the MSNBC logo on the building’s exterior lit up the night sky.

The annual dinner, which was held at the convention center for the first time and included a speech by Barack Obama and a performance by Sweet Honey in the Rock, ended at around 10:30 p.m. As the journos and politicians on the guest list made their way across the street to the party, music pumped from speakers outside and red and blue rotating LED lights cast a glow on the society’s classical building. “We wanted to make an impact and put our imprint on the city,” explained Dana Haller, producer of strategic marketing for MSNBC, who worked with producer Philip Dufour of Dufour & Co. and lighting production company Atmosphere to design the look.

TOP 100 EVENTS: Washington's Top 100 Events 2009

]]>When two million people flooded the National Mall for President Obama’s inauguration this January, it signaled the unofficial start of a year when all the world’s eyes will be on D.C. Many of the District’s events have garnered new buzz in 2009 (regardless of whether planners were able to book the Obamas), and a surprising number continue to grow despite the economic downturn. These are the diverse events—from marathons to food festivals to benefit galas—that shine the brightest in Washington’s increasingly crowded spotlight.

TOP 100 EVENTS: Washington's Top Political & Press Events 2009

]]>1. State of the Union Address
The president’s big annual speech is the only time the entire federal government gathers in one place. Although a new president’s first-year address to Congress bears all the trappings of this gathering, it’s technically not considered one, so President Obama’s first official State of the Union takes place January 2010.

2. White House Correspondent’s Association Dinner
Comedian Wanda Sykes hosted this May 9 event, traditionally attended by the president along with some 2,000 politicians, journalists, and celebrities. Dinner at the Washington Hilton is preceded by a maze of pre-parties hosted by media outlets. For the first time, Bloomberg and Vanity Fair co-hosted an after-party this year.

3. Gridiron Club Black-Tie Dinner
President Obama bucked tradition in March, skipping this 125-year-old event in favor of a family vacation. The 600-plus guests at the Marriott Renaissance Hotel consoled themselves with barbs from Vice President Joe Biden and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

THE WALKTHROUGH: Jean-Georges Vongerichten to Open J&G Steakhouse in New W Hotel

]]>In a renewed signal that the nation's capital can't have too many steak restaurants, on July 8 chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten will open J&G Steakhouse on the ground level of the new W Washington DC hotel, which opens the same day, steps from the White House, in the former Hotel Washington.

Owned by Vongerichten’s restaurant group, Culinary Concepts by Jean-Georges, and designed by Los Angeles-based Dianna Wong Architecture & Interior Design, the 96-seat main dining room has 20-foot ceilings, massive arched windows, and wall and ceiling murals of cherry blossoms and Chinese coins. Two private dining rooms accommodate eight and 10 guests. In addition to grilled prime-aged steaks, the menu includes fresh seafood and organic vegetables from local farms.

THE WALKTHROUGH: J.W. Marriott Debuts Four Redesigned Luxury Suites

]]>The J.W. Marriott Hotel recently completed the final phase of a $40 million renovation with the debut of two redesigned presidential suites and two additional vice-presidential suites. On the 14th floor, all have access to a 7,000-square-foot terrace overlooking Pennsylvania Avenue, with views of the U.S. Capitol and Washington Monument.

VENUE NEWS: Bourbon Steak at Four Seasons Hotel Unveils New Patio

Bourbon Steak, chef Michael Mina's restaurant at The Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown, has a new lure for summer and fall diners: a luxurious patio. After $125,000 worth of upgrades, the space features new furniture and is accompanied by a new summer menu from executive chef David Varley.

The patio provides seating for 47 on woven resin lounge sofas with light-colored, weather-resistant cushions, as well as green ceramic garden stools. The area is also outfitted with metal oil lamps and bell-shaped planters, and a fire pit should keep the patio warm enough for outdoor dining well into the fall.

THE WALKTHROUGH: Antique Boat Now Offers Private Charters on the Potomac

]]>Last month the privately owned, 127-foot Miss Ann began offering charters for Potomac River cruises and dockside events. Built in 1927 as a luxury yacht for a Detroit industrialist, the vintage ship has two public levels that accommodate 100 for receptions and 50 seated.

The carpeted main salon has a rich walnut-paneled interior and antique and reproduction furniture of the period. French doors open onto a covered bar area with four cocktail tables. Two sets of stairs take guests to a covered upper deck furnished with contemporary patio tables and chairs.

THE WALKTHROUGH: Sleek Dupont Hotel Opens With Event Space, Upscale Restaurant, and Private Dining

]]>Sporting a $52 million top-to-bottom makeover, the former Jury’s Washington hotel reopened as the Dupont Hotel with a soft opening in late March. All improvements and a ninth-floor concierge level are expected to be complete by midsummer.

Owned by the Dublin-based Doyle Collection, the Dupont Circle property offers 327 guests rooms, a restaurant with an outdoor cafe, a spacious bar, and 9,000 square feet of flexible meeting space. Of the 10 meeting rooms, the largest is the 3,371-square-foot Dupont Grand Ballroom, which has a ground-level private terrace.

THE SCOUT: Organic, Locally Made Cookies for Gifts or Favors

]]>Chef, restaurant consultant, and floral designer Sidra Forman recently expanded her multifaceted company with a new line of handmade cookies. Forman emphasizes sustainability in all of her projects, so her cookies are made with herbs from her garden and organic ingredients. The cookies cost $10 a dozen; summer flavors include salty rosemary-walnut biscotti, lavender shortbread, toasted cornmeal, and oatmeal chocolate-mint chip. Forman can also create custom flavors or cookies that adhere to dietary restrictions. Ideal for gifts or favors, the treats come in individual bags with customized labels for an additional charge. Delivery is available for orders of $100 or more.

Forman is also still available to make floral arrangements for corporate gifts and events of all sizes. She specializes in seasonal, locally grown flowers and unique containers.

THE SCOUT: Trapeze School Offers High-Flying Teambuilding

]]>This week, the Trapeze School of New York opened a new location on the site of the old Washington Convention Center, bringing high-flying trills to downtown Washington. Instructors are trained in teambuilding, with an emphasis on forging bonds between participants and helping group members build trust. Aside from aerial skills, class members can try their hand at rock climbing or sword play. A typical two-hour class starts at $120 per person for groups of any size. The Trapeze School will operate at the H Street NW location until the fall, when plans call for a move to a tented site near Nationals Park.

THE SCOUT: An Outing to the Farmers' Market to Source Cocktail Ingredients

]]>This week, PS 7's bartender Gina Chersevani and chef Peter Smith launched a summer and fall series of cocktail courses, which begin with a trip to a downtown farmers' market and end with the creation of seasonal drinks and snacks for pairing. At the market, groups learn what flavors work well together and how to choose the freshest vegetables, fruits, and herbs. With their edible finds in hand, the crowd heads to PS 7's (or another venue) for a hands-on cocktail class and cooking demonstration. A typical two-hour class for groups of 10 or more is $50 per person.

THE SCOUT: Ideas for Entertaining Summer Associates in Washington

]]>A Tasty Outing
DC Metro Food Tours now offers themed three-hour guided walks of Capitol Hill that explore the area's food, history, and architecture. Groups visit three or more locally owned restaurants and historic Eastern Market for samples of local fare. A three-hour tour costs $50 per person, with a 10 percent discount for groups of 10 or more.

THE SCOUT: New Maryland Camp Offers High-Energy Teambuilding Exercises

]]>Last month, former health care executive Matt Baker opened an activity camp that offers exercise coupled with personalized teambuilding programs. In Savage, Maryland, Terrapin Adventures has a course with 39 activities, such as rope towers and a zip line, and also includes indoor and outdoor meeting spaces. In full- or half-day sessions, participants work toward the goal of building trust and understanding, are encouraged to solve problems, and develop team confidence. Itineraries for corporate groups of 15 or more may include a scavenger treasure hunt followed by a trek across the three-level high rope course. All activities are led by trained guides, with prices starting at $100 per person per day, which includes meals.

Q & A: To Expand National Harbor Food & Wine Festival, Lynn Schwartz Listens to Attendees, Adds Family-Friendly Elements

]]>The second annual Food & Wine Festival at National Harbor hits Maryland's waterfront complex June 6 and 7. Show manager Lynn Schwartz of Annapolis-based Shows Inc. is returning after producing the 2008 event, which she considered a success—despite a few problems. The festival hit its attendance target of 5,000 guests per day on the first day, but fell short on the second. This time around, Schwartz has increased the emphasis on food (with fewer alcohol vendors), developed programs for children (who weren't allowed last year), and changed the layout to boost attendance. With the festival just weeks away—and final preparations in high gear—we spoke to Schwartz about these and other changes.

What's planned to make this year better for families?
One of our lessons learned from last year, our debut year, was that some attendees want to bring their children to the festival. People voiced their complaints as it is, after all, an outdoor weekend event. I had to listen to our audience. To that end, we have added hands-on cooking classes for children, face painters, a balloon-animal maker, and the Maryland-Delaware Watermelon Association’s Watermelon Queen will host a watermelon seed spitting contest. The National Peanut Board with mascot Buddy McNutty will teach kids fun tasty ways to incorporate more healthy produce options into their diet and creatively explore, through drawing, their favorite ways to put that energy to work. Pirate cruises on the Potomac River are available at an extra charge.

Q & A: Virginia Gold Cup's Katie Snyder Adds Sponsor Categories for New Revenue Streams�

]]>The race never stops for Katie Snyder, director of development for the Virginia Gold Cup Association. Based in Warrenton, Virginia, Snyder and her full-time staff of four produce the Old Dominion’s largest twice-yearly horse race, with the leading purses for timber racing (jumping fences) in the country. The two race days in spring and fall draw a total of more than 85,000 fans to the 175-acre Great Meadow equestrian facility and event venue in the town of The Plains for one of the biggest social and sporting events in the D.C. area.

Before taking the Gold Cup reins in summer 2007, Snyder was the associate director of corporate development for the Sundance Institute in Los Angeles and also practiced law. Her efforts at Gold Cup have added new corporate-sponsorship opportunities, such as a Chairman's Box and JumboTrons, to an already action-packed day at the races. In addition to the ever-popular Jack Russell terrier races (sponsored by the Virginia Lottery) and tailgate competition (sponsored by Goodstone Inn and Estate), there are now nearly 25 sponsored programs and activities. We spoke to Snyder as she nailed down details for the upcoming Virginia Gold Cup race May 2.

When do you start planning for Gold Cup?
We start about 18 months out. This year will be the 84th running for the spring races, and our major vendors for tents, equipment, and catering have multiyear contracts to receive the best pricing. But so far this year we are seeing an 8 to 10 percent decline in ticket sales from 2008. Still, our attendance is very diverse, from young socialites to college alumni to business groups, as well as neighborhood families and friends. These groups annually book tailgate spots or buy the higher-end tickets on Members Hill for the spring tradition of seeing and being seen.

TED KRUCKEL: On Inauguration Night, Purple Ball Had Color But Lacked Authenticity, and American Music Balls Were a Bust�

On Tuesday night, as my taxi inched down M street to the Georgetown inaugural ball, held in two venues alongside the Georgetown Shops Mall, one shop owner had posted a hastily made but hard-to-ignore suggestion: “Why not go home already: Take it all in on your TV!” I wish I had.

Let it be known that this mostly jaded reporter was down with the oneness, surprising everyone who knows me by hopping the metro yesterday at 11 a.m. and, with careful planning, arriving on the mall in time to hear Barack’s speech, call my sister, take a picture, etc. It was touching and all that.

But a night of overly commercialized, under-organized (or failed) party planning reminded me that even the noblest of causes or movements are not free from shameless exploiters and profiteers. It's been a long trip.

So as I rush to Union Station—I decided to forego my business class reservation and early return to the calm and cool oasis that is Manhattan—herein are my parting observations.

TED KRUCKEL: I Saw Fierce Models and Senator Feinstein at Two Presidential Inaugural Fashion Shows

]]>I was fascinated that there were not one but two Presidential Inaugural Fashion Shows on January 18. And let me tell you how glad I am to have seen both.

As a veteran attendee, promoter, and producer of fashion shows and events, I thought I had seen and done it all. But I was wrong.

TED KRUCKEL: Texas Black Tie & Boots Ball Had Winking Cowgirls, Giant Rooms

]]>In Texas, you should know, they go big or they stay home ... where it is big.

So for the Texas State Society’s 11,000-person party on Monday night, organizers chose the Gaylord National Resort across the Potomac in Maryland. Yee-ha!

If you like greeters, and I do, the Black Tie and Boots Ball was your party. First, a dozen or so wannabe Dallas Cowgirls obeyed their matron, took the gum out of their mouths, passed it forward, then marched, two by two to the escalator, to get in position at one of the many entrances. Every third gal greeted me and every fifth winked.

NEWS: Philippe Chin Named Executive Chef at Walter E. Washington Convention Center

]]>The Walter E. Washington Convention Center is hosting an official welcome ceremony for its new executive chef, Philippe Chin, this Thursday. City council members and other guests will meet Chin and get a sneak preview of his cuisine. The former chef of the Partridge Inn in Augusta, Georgia, took on the position in early June.

Chin is overseeing a team of four managing chefs and 31 other kitchen members and creating all menus offered at the convention center’s events, including last Friday's Radio and Television Correspondents' Association dinner, where President Obama spoke. (Our coverage of MSNBC's after-party is here.) Chin is replacing chef Greg Sharpe, who moved to the Baltimore Convention Center.

NEWS: Weidmaier Wins Rammy for Chef of the Year

The city’s restaurant community packed the Omni Shoreham ballroom Sunday night for the 27th annual Rammy awards gala, sponsored by the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington. Big winners included 2009 Chef of the Year Robert Wiedmaier of Marcel’s, Brasserie Beck, and Brabo, as well as Restaurant Eve, which received the nod in the fine dining category. Cork took home the coveted crystal obelisk for best new restaurant, Rasika for best upscale casual eatery, and the award for hottest restaurant bar scene went to CoCo. Sala. A complete list of winners is available here.

As she did last year, Kelly Morris of KSM Marketing produced the gala cocktail reception, dinner, and awards presentation.

NEWS: America's Cup Founder Fails to Comply With State Fund-Raising Laws for His Journey for the Cure Foundation

The state of Virginia has warned consumers that the Journey for the Cure Foundation, based in Hume in Fauquier County, has not complied with the law that requires groups to register with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services before soliciting charitable funds. The charity has been under investigation since March. Horseman and winemaker Tareq Salahi is on the foundation’s board of directors. He also owns the currently closed Oasis Winery, also in Hume, and with his wife, Michaele, runs the Land Rover America’s Polo Cup, which debuted in 2007.

NEWS: Hosts Gear Up for White House Correspondents Weekend Parties

With the approval rating high for the new administration, it appears that a tsunami of V.I.P.s will be in town for this weekend’s line up of brunches, cocktail receptions, dinners, and after-parties surrounding Saturday night’s White House Correspondents Association dinner at the Hilton Washington. (The only big name not mentioned, thus far, appears to be British reality TV sensation Susan Boyle.)

The once-sleepy insider’s dinner and joke fest, traditionally attended by the President of the United States, has never been the same since that day in 1987 when Baltimore Sun reporter Michael Kelly escorted the Iran-Contra scandal’s Fawn Hall. One hot guest still in the paddock is Sir Elton John, reportedly in town this weekend attending the Land Rover America’s Polo Cup, according to the Washington Times.

Few details have emerged ahead of Friday night’s Time Inc. joint party for Time and People at the Astor Terrace of the St. Regis or the joint fete Bloomberg News and Vanity Fair are teaming up to host Saturday night for 300 guests at the residence of French Ambassador Pierre Vimont. Other media organizations, however, are sharing details.

NEWS: People and Time Team Up for White House Correspondents Weekend Party

Cohosting, it appears, is the order of the day for media companies throwing parties before and after this year’s White House Correspondents' Association dinner Saturday, May 9, at the Hilton Washington.

Time Inc. publications Time and People will jointly host a cocktail reception Friday evening at Astor Terrace at the St. Regis. Expected to attend are some of the entertainers who will be at the People table the following night: Sting and his wife, Trudie Styler, along with Miranda Cosgrove, Kevin Bacon, Forest Whitaker, Jon Hamm, Eva Longoria Parker, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, and Brooke Shields and her husband, Chris Henchy. Time has not released its dinner guest list.