Apparently, some greasy spoon that serves chili dogs is having some sort of celebration for being around for 50 years. This event is expected to attract a fair number of people, and as such DDOT is taking the (unusual?) step of closing a block of U St. to traffic throughout the day on Friday.
Fortunately, the street will only be closed during the daytime, reopening at 4 PM. So all you Virginia and Maryland U St. party-types can still drive into the city on Friday night, become confused at the DC street layout, and end up parking in front of our building and blocking a fire hydrant. Hooray!
(If you decide to hit up Ben's to celebrate their 50th, make sure you bring your Rolaids.)
The full release is below.
***TRAFFIC ADVISORY***
U Street Closure for 50th Anniversary of Ben’s Chili Bowl
One Block will be Shutdown for August 22 Celebration
Media Contact: John Lisle at (202) 671-2004
WASHINGTON, DC — One block of U Street, NW, between 12th and 13th Streets, will be closed on Friday, August 22nd, for the 50th anniversary celebration of Ben’s Chili Bowl.
The roadway is scheduled to be blocked off beginning at 7am and reopened to traffic at 4pm. Parking restrictions will be in effect 1200 block of U Street and the 1200 block of Florida Avenue.
Ben’s Chili Bowl, located at 1213 U Street, NW, opened on August 22, 1958.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
1200 Block of U St. to be Closed Tomorrow
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4 comments:
You're apparently a johnny come lately in the neighborhood. That "greasy spoon" as you call it is an institution in Washington and has been in the U Street corridor for half a century - a feat not matched by any business in the city, U Street or otherwise. For the residents who have lived in the area long before gentrification it is more than that, and your disrespectful and uneducated comments are quite disturbing. Typical.
Anonymous, Mr. 14th & You didn't mean to offend. I think you missed the sarcasm in his entire post. It's just his style of writing, as you'll find if you come back to our blog.
We're at Ben's all the time, and very happy that the festival was in honor of its well-publicized 50th birthday. It's truly amazing that Ben's has survived the '68 riots, Metro construction, and a changing retail environment on U Street. By the way, Virginia Ali, who founded the restaurant with her husband was quoted in the Washington Post last week as half-jokingly calling Ben's a greasy spoon. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/20/AR2008082003383.html.
Sounds like someone needs a halfsmoke!
guess mr. anonymous never came back. hope he found his sense of humor. poor guy, he must be under tremendous stress... :P
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