Friday, July 03, 2015

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood...

Ben's
When we were buying our house, the realtor warned us that soon a DC landmark known for its chili and half smokes would be opening a few houses down and that we might be subject to the occasional breeze filled with the aroma of said half smokes and chili. We were undeterred, in part because we hadn't found any other houses that met our needs that we'd successfully bid on, and it wasn't really clear that Ben's Chili Bowl would ever open. After all, it collapsed just a few weeks into the renovation meant to maintain its historical façade, resulting in a whole mess of issues. Construction finally started...and then stopped, due to a budget dispute with the contractor. Months past. Projected opening dates past. Other Ben's restaurants opened across the city.

Eventually, though, new contractors were brought in and we received a notice that Ben's would like to invite their neighbors in for a sneak peak. Grandpa Fawcett was pretty excited -- he'd been privy to all the building problems due to his regular site visits (during his morning constitutional of H street development) and wanted to inspect the final product. Uncle L was equally excited, having become a fan of Ben's shortly after he moved to the DC area, and feeling a little toyed with having to see the "Coming Soon" sign every time he visited. The kids were mainly psyched about free hot dogs.

We had to wait in a line that snaked around the corner to get in (though Ben's son brought out ice cream for the kids), and we were a little bummed that they decided by the time we placed our order, that milkshakes should be off the menu on a giveaway night, but all in all it was a fun and delicious (if you like that sort of thing) evening with n'ere a Cosby mention around (though weirdly there was a shout-out to Pauly Shore in the History of Ben's pamphlet). Welcome to the neighborhood, Ben's.

To see all the pics, click here.

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