Questions for the DC ladies?

[Zen]

It's nowhere near where we'll be, I think it's up on U street

[divingbiker]

It's nowhere near where we'll be, I think it's up on U street

That's only a mile or so north of the White House. Not hard to get to at all, and there's a metro station nearby.

[Kalidurga]

Ben's Chili Bowl definitely looks like an interesting place that could be a lot of fun. They don't show the veggie items on the menu, but the mention veggie burgers and chili in the History section. Apparently, Ben's is a favorite of Bill Cosby! I haven't been to the Shaw neighborhood in years, but I know it used to be borderline sketchy. Zen, do you know if there would be a safe place for all of our bikes?

[Zen]

I must confess I know nothing about it except the type of food and the atmosphere

[divingbiker]

Ben's Chili Bowl definitely looks like an interesting place that could be a lot of fun. They don't show the veggie items on the menu, but the mention veggie burgers and chili in the History section. Apparently, Ben's is a favorite of Bill Cosby! I haven't been to the Shaw neighborhood in years, but I know it used to be borderline sketchy. Zen, do you know if there would be a safe place for all of our bikes?

I ride very close to there on my commute every day. That whole U Street area has been improving over the last few years, so it's not nearly so "sketchy." Sometime I'll take a detour down to Ben's and see if there's a spot for the bikes. I would guess if we tied them all together and kept an eye on them out the window they'd be fine, but I will look.

A bowl of veggie chili on a November day might be pretty tasty!

[Kalidurga]

We'll just have to make sure they're open on Saturday, which I didn't notice at the website. A lot of places downtown are closed on weekends.

That is just a first suggestion, though. We've got plenty of time to plan, so let's put Ben's on the list and keep things open.

[divingbiker]

We've got plenty of time to plan, so let's put Ben's on the list and keep things open.

I checked out Ben's Chili Bowl this evening, and I think we need to take it off the list. There really is no place to park the bikes. The sidewalk is very narrow, and there aren't any street signs or light poles to attach the bikes to. The only fixed thing is an electric/water/gas/whatever meter on one side of the building. But since the sidewalk is only about 7 or 8 feet wide, I just don't think it would work.

[Zen]