CityZen DC

It was a quiet day in the office. So I did something I rarely do — crank up the tunes while I work. I was listening to The Briggs. Samantha stopped into my office, heard the racket and commented: “interesting choice of music.”

“Yeah, I’m actually a punk rocker, but people in the office don’t really know that. I used to shave my head a lot. I still listen to vinyl records and rock out at home,” I replied.

Later in the afternoon I decided to finally get a haircut. It’s been several months and it had gotten so long that it was a hassle. I’ve lived in Maryland for three years now (having always lived in the District before) and since moving here I haven’t been able to find a place for a decent haircut, so I get them grudgingly and few and far between. So I tried a new place today, right down the street from the office in Takoma Park. An old school barber shop. It had a good vibe. Couple middle age black guys with pictures of Muhamed Ali’s Rumble in the Jungle, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King on the walls. The barber had handed me a card on the sidewalk months ago inviting me to give them a try.

Well, since I haven’t been happy with the five other places I’ve tried in the area, so I tried this guy out today. When I came back to the office, Sam stopped by my office again and did a double take. “Yeah, they shaved my head,” I explained. “Why?” She asked. “Well, I told the guy to go pretty short but I didn’t know he was going to shave my frickin head. I guess it’s kind of funny that I had just been telling you about how I used to shave my head. I haven’t done that for at least ten years. I mean seriously, I could have pulled out the clippers and done this myself, why would I go to a barber and pay for this? Oh well, happy new year.”

That’s why I look like a killer spy in the picture on the left. That’s me and my friend Andy Myers, the sommelier at CityZen (one of the few four-star restaurants in the DC area). Seung took me there tonight for a special birthday dinner. Andy happens to be high school friend of mine so I let him know in advance that we were coming and he pulled some special beers for us — if you know the guy in charge of the drinks you have to make the most of it.

The bottle in the left foreground is Deus. I’d never heard of this — a champagne-style Belgian beer brewed by Bosteels Brewery in Flanders. It was fucking great. More words will only detract.

I proceeded with the Chef’s tasting menu…six courses paired with beers chosen by Andy. He said this was “the first time I’ve ever done a full menu pairing with beers.”

Yeah. That’s how special I am. Hey, it’s my birthday dinner okay — let me bask in the glory.

I really enjoyed getting a can of Dale’s Pale Ale literally served on a silver platter. I could go on and on about the amazing dishes and pairings, but what makes eating and drinking special for me is the company. Seung is my baby. Andy and I used to listen to punk rock together in high school and I think he even shaved my head once.

It was a very good birthday dinner.