Our last morning in DC was beautiful and sunny, so we headed out for a walk- fueled by the promise of amazing coffee at the end of it. Gavin and I both have a deep love for coffee…and when you go to DC and ask around about THE BEST coffee- everyone will tell you the same thing- “go to Peregrine.” So, you know, this was a “must do” for us!
We both ordered the cappuccino and sat outside to enjoy it. They use Counter Culture Coffee which made me really excited (more on this later)- and their cappuccino was great! A perfect way to start the day.
The last day of Q was really wonderful. Though we enjoyed every minute of it- we were ready for a few days to process everything that we heard throughout the week. After the first session, we headed to another much buzzed about lunch spot called Teaism. It was another 2 mile walk away and we were excited to see more of DC.
The reviews of Teasim were all pretty great…and everyone recommended that we try one thing: the salty oat cookie. I love anything with a sweet and salty combo- so that was the first thing that we ordered. It was a nice treat (though definitely nothing compared to Levain’s bakery in Nyc).
The rest of our meal, the “real food” was just ok. I really enjoyed my bento box, though I thought it was extremely over priced…but Gavin absolutely hated his burger (and he loves burgers!) It was super dry and flavorless.
So, after a sub-par lunch, we headed back for the last bit of the conference. The last session left us both feeling renewed and excited for the rest of our week (in NYC)!
After the conference, we walked back to our lovely hotel for happy hour…and it was a very happy and yummy hour, indeed! In the Tai Pan lounge, the hotel offers a gorgeous display of small plate dishes and a few selection of wine every afternoon. We decided to stop by the lounge before heading to meet some friends. As with everything else that we experienced at The Mandarin, happy hour was amazing.
I don’t know if its the overall abidance of the hotel, or the care that they seem to put into every dish- but this happy hour was just lovely, and a great time for Gavin and I to relax and chat after a busy week. Everything looked wonderful- so naturally, we basically got one of everything to sample. The star of this show was hands down the rice pudding. Anytime a dish inspires me to try to recreate it- I know that it was both unique and delicious. Rice pudding and I are good friends- I have loved it since I was a little girl. It is comforting and creamy…and usually packed with cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg. This was so different- but equally creamy and comforting. It was made with heavy cream, a little coconut milk and scented with lime zest instead of cinnamon. Oh my goodness, I will absolutely crave this dish until I try to make it again!
We had a lot of tasty adventures in DC- and then boarded the Bolt Bus for NYC…and even more tasty treats and great memories :)
