LL reached a rather distraught Marshall Brown moments ago.
Brown (along with fellow politico and ex-Barry aide Bernard Demczuk) is first among local politickers as a denizen of Ben's Chili Bowl, and as a friend of its proprietor, Ben Ali, who died today at 82. He remembers his longtime friend with this line: "He came here [...]

Sad news for the District of Columbia: Ben Ali, the patriarch of U Street institution Ben's Chili Bowl, passed away last night at around 9:00 pm. A family member said that Ali "passed peacefully," noting that he'd had "health issues off and on." Ali had just recently returned for a cruise with his wife, Virginia—the [...]