It’s the first weekend of fall, but the weekend is still full of outdoor activities. Although the forecasts calls for temperatures in the lower-70s, it is also calling for scattered showers. As long as you keep dry, it will be an action-packed weekend with the Barracks Row Fall Festival, the Landmark Music Festival, .the Turkish Festival and Art all Night, just to name a few of the events going on.

This weekend, Green line trains will operate at regular weekend intervals. Orange, Silver, Blue and Yellow line trains will operate every 24 minutes. The Yellow Line will only operate between Huntington and Mount Vernon Square. Red Line trains will operate every 10-20 minutes between Shady Grove and Glenmont with trains running every 10-12 minutes between Farragut North and Rhode Island Avenue between 9 a.m.-9 p.m.

Jim Webb’s “Shaw Shadows” installation, which will be on Seventh Street NW, projects participants onto a five-story building. (Photo: Jim Webb/Art All Night)

Art All Night

Five District neighborhoods come alive with music and art performances, art installations and exhibitions, films and more during the annual Art All Night event. The neighborhoods — Congress Heights, Dupont Circle, H Street NE, North Capitol and Shaw — all sit near Metro stations or other forms of public transportation, making it easy to explore more of the city’s scenes. First-timers should consider checking out Dupont Circle or the original Art All Night hub, Shaw, which features Jim Webb’s “Shaw Shadows” installation on Seventh Street NW that projects participants including Step Afrika! on a five-story building.

Sept. 26 from 7 p.m.-3 a.m. at more than 65 venues in D.C.’s Congress Heights, Dupont Circle, H Street NE, North Capitol and Shaw neighborhoods. Admission is FREE!

Best of the Beatles

Rajton will perform The Best of the Beatles with the National Symphony Orchestra. (Photo: Rajton)

On the heels of 2014’s tribute to ABBA, the a cappella sextet Rajton is teaming up with the National Symphony Orchestra again, this time bringing Beatlemainia with Best of the Beatles. First, you can enjoy the fearless fun of your favorite tunes from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, including Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds and With a Little Help from My Friends. Then the group teams up with the NSO to perform the Fab Four’s number one hits.

Sept. 25 and 26 from 8-10 p.m. at the Kennedy Center, 2700 F St. NW.
Tickets are $20-$85 online or at the door.

Uncensored: Opening Night

(Image: D.C. Public Library)

Banned Books Week starts with the D.C. Public Library’s annual fundraiser, Uncensored: Opening Night. The evening includes music from Baby Bry Bry and the Apologists, the Delafield String Band and jazz trombonist Reginald Cyntje; an art exhibition focusing on “abuse of information in the digital age”; a pop-up market; and banned-book-inspired cocktails from the mixologists at such D.C. bars as Mockingbird Hill, Jack Rose Dining Saloon and 2 Birds 1 Stone, among others. The display, “Uncensored: Information Antics” features works by local artists including Nancy Daly, Brian Davis, Eva Hume, Kelly Towels and Fabiola Yurcizin, among others selected by an advisory committee. The art will be on display through Oct. 22.

Sept. 25 from 7-10 p.m. at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 901 G St. NW. Tickets are $50.

Barracks Row Fall Festival

The Barraks Row Fall Festival takes over Eighth Street SE on Saturday. (Photo: Popville)

The Barracks Row Fall Festival takes over Eighth Street SE near Eastern Market with a Military Chef’s Cookoff; a beer garden from Matchbox and Belga Cafe; a petting zoo; bands performing at Eighth and G streets SE; and much more, including donkey processions and the Silent Drill Platoon. There will be docent led tours of the Marine Barracks Washington at 12:30, 1:30, 2:30 and 4 p.m. starting at the Eight and I Streets gate. Entertainment includes CMI Kidz hip hop group, Capitol Hill Aikikai martial arts, the Marine Corps Brass Quintet, illusionist and mentalist Max Major, the a capella group Georgetown Chimes and contiueous demonstrations from the Trapeze School D.C. There will also be fashion trucks, food trucks, artists, craftsmen and more.

Sept. 26 from 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on Barracks Row, Eights Street SE from between E and I Streets SE. Admission is FREE!

Crafty Bastards Arts and Crafts Show

Crafty Bastards returns to Union Market this weekend. (Photo: City Paper)

The 12 annual Crafty Bastards Arts and Crafts Fair returns to Union Market’s parking lot this weekend with more than 170 independent artists. It’s the perfect spot to shop for unique, handmade gifts for someone special or yourself, and you can refuel in the market, at the food truck pavilion featuring Arepa Zone, The Big cheese, BonMi, CapMac, Dangerously Delicious Pies, D.C. Empanadas, D.C. Pollo, Lemongrass Food Truck, Red Hook Lobster Pound and Tapas Truck or enjoy a $5 beer in the New Belgium beer garden.

Sept. 26 and 27 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at Union Market, 1309 Fifth St. NE. Admission is $5 for one day or $8 for both days online. Children 10 and younger are free.

Museum Day Live!

Admission to the National Museum of Women in the Arts in downtown D.C. is free as part of Museum Day Live! on Saturday. (Photo: National Museum of Women in the Arts)

The Smithsonian spoils us. We can visit any number of Washington museums as often as we like and never pay a dime. But a few private institutions charge a fee, which makes the annual Museum Day Live! event such a treat. In the District, for instance, a handful of pay museums will waive entrance fees Saturday: the National Museum of Women in the Arts, the National Building Museum, Dumbarton House, the Newseum, the Kreeger, Calvert Marine Museum, Montpelier Mansion and the National Inventors Hall of Fame just to name a few. For a complete list of a participating museums in the DMV and nationwide, click here.

Sept. 26 at various times and museums across the nation. Admission is FREE, but pre-registration is required. Each pass is good for two people.

Explore@NASAGoddard

NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble telescope. (Photo: NASA)

Explore@NASA Goddard: Celebrating Hubble and the Spirit of Exploration celebrates the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble space telescope this year. In addition to the typical events related to the annual festival — films, stories, hands-on learning and entertaining, guided walks and tours — there will be special activities related to Hubble, such as seeing the control center and where NASA is building the next telescope, James Webb. All that and Star Wars characters. Food trucks will be available on Goddard’s mall as well as at Buildings 28 and 32.

Sept. 26 from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt. Admission is FREE! Visitors must park at the Greenbelt, New Carrollton or Largo metro stations or the Maryland Trade Center, 7500 Greenway Center Dr., Greenbelt, and take free shuttles to Goddard. Shuttles will run every 15 minutes from 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. After 3:30 p.m., the busses will only drop off visits at the sites. All visitors must pass through security and bags will be inspected.

College Park Day

Celebrate College Park at College Park Day on Saturday. (Photo: College Park Day)

Celebrate College Park Day with two stages with live music featuring Supreme Chord a capella group, Eli August & the Abandoned Buildings steampunk band, ReFreshed jazz, hip hop, R&B and soul band and Black Masala rock band, among others. There will also be food trucks, the Orioles and Ravens mascots, free admission to the College Park Aviation Museum, a rock wall and inflatables, a bike ride, Zumba classes, local artists and more than 100 vendors.

Sept. 26 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at 5000 Paint Branch Parkway across the street from the College Park Metro station. Admission is FREE!

Landmark Music Festival

Drake headlines the Landmark Music Festival this weekend. (Photo: Drake)

At The Landmark Music Festival, more than 40 musicians will perform on five stages over two days benefiting the restoration of the National Mall. The star-studded features performances by Drake, the War on Drugs and D.C.’s own Wale, among others, take to the various stages on Saturday, followed by George Ezra, the Strokes, Alt-J, Chvrches and Dan Deacon on Sunday. Some of the performances will be live streamed on Yahoo. There will be a food court with food from Amsterdam Falafelshop, Ben’s chili Bowl, Curley Q’s BBQ, Duke’s Grocery, Old Ebbitt Grill, The Hamilton, Oyamel, Pepe, Pete’s New Haven Style Pizza, Proof, Estadio, Doi Moi, Rocklands Barbeque & Grilling co., Shake Shack, The Big Cheese and more. Vendors will accept cash, credit and Landmark Cashless payments. There will also be a Kid’s Land from noon-4:30 p.m. both days where they can get punk hairdos, temporary tattoos and jam out with cool instruments, dress up in historical costumes and learn about the National Parks.

Sept. 26 and 27 from noon-10 p.m. in West Potomac Park, West Basin Drive SW. Single-day passes are $105 and two-day passes are $175 online. Children under 10 are free with an adult admission.

Wiener 500 Dachshund Dash

The Wiener 500 Dachshund Dash moves to Yards Park this year. (Photo: On Tap)

Gentlemen, start your dachshunds! Now in its fourth year, the Wiener 500 Dachshund Dash is back, but at Yards Park this year. The unique Oktoberfest event revolves around racing wiener dogs, costumed animals and dog tricks. There are also food trucks, music from Sly 45, a beer garden and a contest for the humans — Sam Adams stein hoisting. But the dogs are the star of the show. There will be free best dressed dog and best dog trick contests at 2:30 p.m.

Sept. 26 from 1-5 p.m at Yards Park, 355 Water St. SE. Admission is FREE, but .race registration is $35 per dog online, which benefits the Washington Humane Society.

Turkish Festival

The Turkish Festival will take over Pennsylvania Avenue on Sunday. (Photo: Turkish American TV)

Watch whirling dervishes and a gospel choir perform together at the D.C. Turkish Festival, which culminates Turkish Heritage Month. The festival features Turkish food from kabobs to vegetarian dishes to pasties from 16 area restaurants, live music and folk dancing, a Turkish bazaar with 20 vendors, arts and culture, kids’ tent with games and hands-on activities and Turkish coffee and fortune tellers reading fortunes from the coffee grounds.

Sept. 27 from 11 a.m.-7 p.m. along Pennsylvania Avenue NW between 12th and 14th Streets. Admission is FREE!

James and the Giant Peach wraps up this summer’s Movies on the Potomac. (Photo: Walt Disney Studios)

Movies on the Potomac

Summer is over and this is the last hurrah for this year’s Movies on the Potomac at National Harbor. Pack your chairs, grab food to go from one of the area restaurants and meet at the Plaza’s jumbo screen. This week’s screening is Disney’s James and the Giant Peach.

Sept. 27 from 6-8 p.m. at National Harbor’s Plaza, 165 Waterfront St., Oxon Hill, Md. Admission is FREE!

Loretta Lynn

Loretta Lynn comes to the Lincoln Theatre on Sunday. (Photo: Loretta Lynn)

At 83 years old, country music legend Loretta Lynn tours the United States at a leisurely pace. The Coal Miner’s Daughter; the 2003 Kennedy Center honoree, is celebrating the 50th anniversary of her 1960 debut single, I’m a Honky Tonk Girl.

Sept. 27 at 8 p.m. at the Lincoln Theatre, 1215 U St. NW. Tickets are $55-$75.

Grab your buns, May is National Burger Month! And what better way to celebrate than with a juicy hamburger. Burgers are an iconic American food. Americans consumed 52 billion pounds of meat last year – five times more than 100 years ago. And the average American eats 43 burgers every year. To celebrate, several area restaurants are offering their own take on the traditional American burger.

Area restaurants will be serving up special burgers for National Hamburger Month. (Photo: National Hamburger Month)

701 Restaurant, located at 701 Pennsylvania Ave. NW is frying up a portobello burger glazed with black truffle sauce and topped with shaved Brussels sprouts and a roasted garlic aioli for $12 and the 701 Burger made with Cabot white cheddar, crispy onions and smoked ketchup for $13.

Balkan restaurant Ambar at 523 8th St. SE, 20003, will serve the Ambar spicy gourmet burger, a twist on the classic American burger for $12. The burger meat is made of 60 percent pork and 40 percent beef ground in-house daily with onions, bacon, smoked Gouda cheese and chili flakes. The burger is served on fresh house-made lepinja bread and topped with cucumber yogurt, cabbage slaw, fresh tomato and pickled onions and served with house-made crispy fries.

Ardeo+Bardeo, 3311 Connecticut Ave. NW in Cleveland Park, is serving a char-broiled natural beef burger on a brioche bun with pimento cheese whiz, bacon jam and French fries for $14.

Blue Duck Tavern, located at 24th and M Streets NW in the West End, is featuring the Shenandoah dry-aged hamburger with a choice of aged cheddar or Maytag blue cheese and served with steak fries for $22.

City Tap House, located at 901 I St. NW near City Center is serving its special Tap Burger made with Pineland Farms all natural, hormone free ground beef topped with Lancaster rustic cheddar, Agrodolce onions and a beer gastrique on a toasted brioche bun with hand-cut fries with black truffle aioli for $14. Diners can add Benton’s bacon for $3 and fresh avocado for $2.

Copperwood Tavern at 4021 Campbell Ave. in Shirlington, is featuring three spring burgers that include a lamb burger topped with herb goat cheese, tzatziki and pickled red onion for $16; the tavern burger, an eight-ounce coffee-rubbed burger, served with aged sharp cheddar, crisp bacon and red wine shallot aioli for $14; and The Copperwood, an eight-ounce burger with blue cheese, fried green tomato and bacon jam for $14.

Cuba Libre Restaurant and Rum Bar at 801 9th Str. NW, will offer the churrasco steak burger, a half pound hand-chopped skirt steak burger with Cuba Libre’s secret sauce, cheddar and Swiss cheese, lettuce and tomato on a toasted brioche roll with Boniato chips and Cuba Libre steak sauce for $13.50. Diners can add fried egg or bacon for $1.00.

Daikaya izakaya and ramen shop located at 705 6th Str. NW in Chinatown will feature the Hawaiian Ono-licious Burger, a four-ounce griddled burger with grilled spam, brown sugar-soy sauce, roasted pineapple and shredded cabbage for $13. The burger will come paired with a choice of salad or miso soup.

Belgian French restaurant Et Voila!, 5120 Macarthur Blvd. NW will feature three special burgers. First is the burger de moules, a mussels burger served with sweet potatoes fries and an aioli sauce for $15.95; second is the lobster burger with scallop mousse, lobster and shrimp diced and served on a bun with aioli with parsnip chips and a side of Belgium fries for $18.95, and finally the Et Voila! burger, Meyer ground beef, Chimay cheese, bacon, confit, tomato and onions served with a green salad and Belgian fries for $16.95.

Mio Restaurant located at 1110 Vermont Ave. NW is serving a special hamburgesa de res boricua “El Hambergón” made with daily ground grass fed beef, ripe plantains, mayo, ketchup, ajili mojili, white cheddar, sofrito, and red onions for $13.

Nopa Kitchen + Bar at 800 F St. NW is celebrating with the Nopa Burger glazed with a Tonkatsu Japanese sauce before being topped with Vermont white cheddar, Applewood smoked bacon and served with fries for $14.

TKO Burger, which opens Saturday at 2350 Washington Place NE in Rhode Island Row, is serving 8 ounce burgers made certified Angus-beef, seasoned and cooked to order over an open flame and topped with fresh condiments. Burgers include the mac & cheese burger, BBQ burger, brunch burger, Rocky Philly burger, veggie burger, jerk burger, Norwegian salmon burger, Maryland crab cake burger, black bean burger, turkey burger and chicken burger.

Toro Toro, located at 1300 I St. NW puts a Latin twist on the American cheeseburger with the Toro Toro Burger made from hand-ground USDA prime beef burger with a choice of cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle and chipotle remoulade priced at $14; and the BBQ turkey burger with chipotle BBQ, habañero slaw, avocado and Gruyere cheese for $14.

Phillips Flagship seafood restaurant closed recently to make way for The Wharf development. (Photo: popville.com)

Phillips Seafood moving to L’Enfant Plaza

Just a few days after its Phillips Flagship on the Southwest waterfront closed to make way for The Wharf development, news comes that Baltimore-based Phillips Seafood will open a small, food-court style location in the L’Enfant Plaza food court.

According to the JBG Cos., which owns the underground retail and restaurant area along with several buildings there, Phillips will take 896 square feet in the food court.

Other new restaurants coming to the L’Enfant Plaza food court include Amsterdam Falafelshop and a Red Robin’s Burger Works, a fast-casual burger concept from Red Robin Gourmet Burgers & Brews. It’s the first of that Red Robin concept in the D.C. area and on the East Coast. There are four in Denver and one in at Ohio State University in Columbus.

In all, there will be a dozen new restaurant and retail offerings as part of the remodeled shopping area.

Nopa Kitchen+Bar in Pen Quarter (Photo: Mark Heckathorn/DC on Heels)

Nopa Kitchen + Bar celebrates first anniversary

Nopa Kitchen + Bar at 800 F St. NW, the 160-seat American brasserie located in Penn Quarter, is celebrating its one year anniversary. Executive chef Greg McCarty’s most popular dishes during the opening year will be featured beginning May 8 through early July.

Featured dishes include amaranth and quinoa salad with orange vinaigrette, pine nuts and dried cherries for $12; butter poached lobster with spring pea risotto, nori and passion fruit for $34; and a sautéed pork chop with rhubarb mustard and sweet and sour mustard greens for $25.

Then for the perfect pairing, Nopa’s wine director Jesse Hiney has crafted a Time Flies cocktail made from a combination of bourbon, sparkling wine, grapefruit and brown sugar simple syrup priced at $10. And what birthday would be complete without a special cake? Pastry chef Jemil Gadea has created a roasted blackberry shortcake with rhubarb sorbet priced at $10.

Alba Osteria(Photo: Urban Living)

Alba Osteria to hold two events with Manincor Wines

Alba Osteria at 425 I St. NW is teaming up with Manincor Wine Estate, located in the Alto Adige region of Northern Italy, for two wine events on May 14. Producer Matthias Jaeger will lead the evening with wine discussion.

From 6-7 p.m., guests can enjoy three Manincor wines paired with small plates created by executive chef Roberto Donna and chef de cuisine Amy Brandwein for $22 per person. Then at 7:30 p.m., dinners can have a five-course meal paired with Manincor for $100.

The menu for the wine tasting includes smoked salmon paired with a 2012 La Rose de Manincor, broccoli with shrimp sauce paired with a 2012 Riserva della Contessa and grilled beef with green sauce served with a 2011 Riserva del Conte.

The dinner menu includes warm lobster salad with artichokes and asparagus served with 2012 Riserva della Contessa; burrata and rapini tortelloni with clam broth, razor clams, sea urchin and Sicilian olive oil paired with a 2012 La Rose de Manincor; speck served with a 2012 Kalterersee Keil; venison with walnut and herb and grappa sauce paired with a 2011 Riserva del Conte; and a ricotta cheese and raspberry tart with honey ice cream served with a 2011 Le Petit Manincor.

The outside of The Gryphon (photo by Travis Vaughn)

The Gryphon to reopen in Dupont this month

The Gryphon, 1337 Connecticut Ave. NW in Dupont, will reponen mid-May as a steakhouse rather than a sports bar. Located in the old Heritage India location, The Gryphon opened in March 2013, but closed for “renovations” three months later.

An announced October reopening came and went. Now comes word that the 5,000 square-foot space restaurant from the folks behind Lost Society has scrapped the sports theme focus and about a fifth of its 31 TV screens. Others have been covered with framed mirrors that can be used for special events.

The new menu will be heavy on steak and fish, nearly identical to Lost Society with the addition of a raw bar and more seafood. The wine list will also be nearly the same as Lost Society with a few extra bottles and 20-25 craft beers.

Co-owner Tony Hudgins told the Washington City Paper that The Gryphon’s opening, which has already been delayed due to construction, was rushed. “We probably — and we’re not afraid to say it —s hot ourselves in the foot opening at that point,” he said. “Service just wasn’t up to par.”

Dark chocolate wood covers the walls for a warmer look and some of the antler chandeliers remain. The front of the restaurant is also getting a makeover with a collapsible glass wall that can open up to an outdoor patio. And the large open space inside has been sectioned off into more intimate settings and to divide from the bar.

The Gryphon, which was previously open only for dinner, will be open for lunch, dinner and brunch.

Liquor Bar coming to Chinatown

Liquor Bar, from Ari Gejdenson’s Mindful Restaurants, will open in late summer in the Oriental Building Association building at 600 F St. NW.

The bar from the owners of Acqua Al 2 and Ghibellina will have a European hotel bar style with round leather booths and brass finishes, according to a press release from Douglas Development, the buildings owner. The bar will feature a menu of hand-crafted cocktails, as well as an extensive selection of scotch and other fine spirits, wines and craft beers. A small food menu will also be available.

Gejdenson will open Sotto, a cocktail bar beneath Ghibellina, in September, according to the same press release.

Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab (Photo: popville.com)

Joe’s Seafood raises money for Miriam’s Kitchen

Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab at 750 15th St. NW will donate $1 for each slice of strawberry cream cheese pie sold to Miriam’s Kitchen, a local organization committed to ending chronic homelessness in D.C.

The pie features a graham cracker crust, whipped cream cheese layer and sliced strawberries. Each month, Joe’s donates a portion of the proceeds from a different specialty pie flavor to a select charity.

Mintwood Place team to open Shaw restaurant

Restaurateur Saied Azali and chef Cedric Maupillier of Mintwood Place will open a second restaurant together in City Market at O, 801 O St. NW, in Shaw. The yet-to-be-named, 120-seat restaurant will be a take on the business partners’ first restaurant, which serves American food with a French accent.

The new place will serve smaller portions at lower prices in the hopes of reaching a younger crowd. They hope to reach a younger audience. The 5,000-square foot restaurant will be on the ground floor of the Cambria Suites hotel and be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Ground breaking is set for August with the opening set for early 2015.