|
|
|
Articles
|
| By Celeste McCall |
VOICE writes, "By Celeste McCall
B. Smith’s, the dressy, Southern-style restaurant in Union Station, is seeking a new chef. The current top toque, Rahman “Rock” Harper, is leaving Capitol Hill for Las Vegas.
Having taken top honors in “Hell’s Kitchen,” the Fox TV foodie reality series, Harper has accepted a $250,000-a-year gig at the Terra Rosa, a high-end Italian restaurant in the Green Valley Ranch Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. "
|
In the finals, 30-year-old Harper and his all-guy team out-cooked Bonnie Muirhead, a 26-year-old personal chef and nanny from California and her female team. The contest was dubbed the “battle of the sexes.”
The final episode aired Aug. 13 and B. Smith’s was packed. Harper’s fans, including wife Tamara, children Elijah, 11 and Leah, 4, and proud mom Carole Harper were cheering him on.
The show was actually taped in February in Los Angeles, but Harper managed to keep mum all this time.
Besides designing their respective “restaurants,” both culinary teams had to create appetizers, entrees and desserts, while serving the food in a timely manner. Rock’s creations included a fried chicken and crab cake appetizer, ribeye steak and a down-home vanilla milkshake with chocolate chip cookies.
“It was the hardest night of my life,” said Harper, who wielded his whisk at B. Smith’s for nine years.
A native of Spotsylvania, Va., Harper graduated from T.C. Williams High School (“Remember the Titans!”) in Alexandria, then honed his cooking skills at the prestigious Johnson and Wales. Harper reports to his new job Sept. 10.
Meanwhile, he’s been house hunting in Las Vegas and is “excited” about his big move. Not surprisingly, since Harper made the final “Hell’s Kitchen” cut and is now headed for the bright lights, B. Smith’s reservations have tripled.Wow that was quick. We still miss Hoopla Traders, the eco-conscious boutique which departed Barracks Row for Adams Morgan in June. However, filling the void is Ipso Crafto, a nifty hobby arts shop that carries practically everything the creative craftsperson needs.
“I started my own store so I could have supplies for my crafts — clay sculpture and fabric art — which I learned for my mother,” says proprietor Karen Kormandy, who lives at Ninth and D streets, NE.
The store space — divided into cubicles familiar to Hoopla customers — is now painted bright shades of lime green. In them you’ll find materials for scrapbooking, woodworking, beading and jewelry making, acrylic paints, fabric, ribbons and other sewing notions, embroidery and multi-hued modeling clay.
For folks wondering what to do with all this, Ipso will hold crafts classes for children and adults this fall.
Open daily, Ipso Crafto is located at 733 Eighth St., SE; call (202-546-4329).Interest and support for Eastern Market continues to pour in from around the city — and around the world. On Sept. 6, the international German cultural and language organization Goethe Institut is hosting a panel discussion on the role of historic preservation in restoring the fire-damaged building.
Guests will view archival photos and hear sounds recorded at Eastern Market and at another market in Hellbronn, hometown of German-born architect Adolf Cluss (1825-1905). Cluss designed Eastern Market more than a century ago.
Panelists include Monte Edwards, Eastern Market Advisory Committee and Joseph Browne, director of the Adolf Cluss Exhibition Project. The moderator is Bill Gilcher. The seminar is free and open to the public.
The event runs from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at the Goethe Institut, 812 Seventh St., NW. Closest Metro station is Gallery Place/Chinatown (Red Line). For more information call (202) 289-1200.As summer winds down, activities are stepping up at the Corner Store, the neighborhood cultural center at Ninth Street and South Carolina Avenue, SE.
Scheduled performances at the Corner Store Theater Fest include:
Sept. 5: Local performer Marian Licha in a staged reading with the cast of “Margherita,” a new play about Benito Mussolini and his long-time lover.
Sept. 7 and 9: Hilary Kacser, “In Pursuit of the English: Rose.
Sept. 27: Maian Licha returns with “Frida, Vice Versa,” a one-woman tribute to Mexican artist Frida Kahlo
Sept. 28: Jennifer Crooks and Hilary Kacser “Love & War: The Bard’s Women.”
Sept. 29-30: “An Evening with Robert Prosky,” a one-man show featuring stories and video clips from our well-known actor/neighbor.
Oct. 4: Terry Nicholetti in “Dance with me Abuelita”
Oct. 18-21: Charles Mee’s “bobrauchenbergamerica,” a spectacular performance complete with roller skates.
Admission prices range from $25 to $45. The Corner Store fills up quickly, and there’s a “friends first” policy. For more information call (202) 544-5807.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Another fire
Yet another fire has struck Capitol Hill, this one very disturbing.
On Aug. 20, someone allegedly threw a bottle of gasoline into the lower level of Bravado Hair Salon, 655 C St., SE. No one was injured.
An employee from Marvelous Market reportedly witnessed the incident and called the police and fire departments, which arrived within about three minutes.
Bravado’s downstairs carpeting and manicure area were slightly damaged. The blaze, which was quickly extinguished, did not reach Capitol Hill Books next door.
“There was a suspicious fire in the [lower level],” said Rodney L. Taylor, fire/arson investigator with the D.C. Fire and EMS Division. “It happened around 10:30 p.m. and it is currently under investigation.” He estimated the damage at $5,000.
“The fire department came here very fast,” said Bravado owner Kay Rahmone. “It is very sad, we don’t need this, and I hope they catch him.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hill to be WETA feature neighborhood
Capitol Hill will star in a segment of “WETA Neighborhoods,” a mini-documentary on channel 26. You’ll have to get up early as the segments premiere at 8 a.m. on Sept. 1 but will run throughout the month. The station is producing four 2-minute profiles on our ‘hood, highlighting community traditions, history and landmarks.
Segments include:
• Marine Barracks: The oldest active post of the United States Marine Corps, the barracks has been a neighborhood fixture since 1801 and holds evening “tatoos” during the summer.
• Tom Kelly’s Capitol Hill: An author and retired journalist, Kelly was born and raised near Sixth Street and Constitution Avenue, NE in the 1920s and 1930s. He still lives there. WETA visits with Kelly as he shares his memories of his lifelong neighborhood.
• National Capital Bank: Sandwiched between two modern banking goliaths on Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, stands National Capital Bank. WETA explores how this small, family-run business has survived since 1889, weathering stock market crashes, great depressions, recessions and more.
• Congressional Cemetery: Now celebrating its bicentennial, Congressional Cemetery is the final resting place for such notables as John Philip Sousa and J. Edger Hoover. It’s also a favorite for dog-walkers. WETA explores how an immense community effort led to the preservation and transformation of the formerly rundown cemetery.
“WETA Neighborhoods” has spotlighted other local communities including Anacostia, Adams-Morgan, Georgetown, Dupont Circle and Shaw.
|
Posted on Sep 11, 2007 15:01pm.
(Return)
|
|
|
|
|
Categories
|
|
|
