In terms of sheer beer volume, the new Rustico in Ballston will eclipse its parent operation in Alexandria. The Arlington spot, which officially opens for lunch today, will have 400 beers available by bottle, 40 by draft, and three on cask. By comparison, the original Rustico on Slaters Lane practically feels like Hank Dietle's Tavern. [...]

This may be the most painfully cute sugar cookie ever. I say "painfully" because the beehive-shaped treat is available at, ahem, Buzz Bakery in Alexandria, where pastry chef Josh Short created it several years ago for a  fundraiser. Now it's permanently on the menu at Buzz. I have to admit, over the years, I have [...]

Starting Friday, Y&H will be on vacation, far from computers and their crack-like ability to keep me addicted to them. No, I'll be sleeping late, eating well, and trying to hide my spare tire with beach towels. This is not the news. The news is Greg Engert, beer director for the Neighborhood Restaurant Group, including [...]

Washingtonians, particularly those recent arrivals from seemingly cooler places, love to tell themselves how far behind the curve things are here in the District. Neapolitan pizza is so 2002! Oh, we had micro-coffee-roasting shops six years ago in Seattle! New York is already in a post-mixologist period! You know, endless shit like that. Let me [...]

We here at WCP HQ finally unleashed our annual Best of D.C. issue yesterday, and I guess I should say this out loud so that it's official: 2010 is the year of ChurchKey, the Neighborhood Restaurant Group beer emporium near Logan Circle. The watering hole dominated the Food & Drink section this year, winning two categories outright and even inspiring [...]

Let's just call it Birch & Barley week, shall we? The new Neighborhood Restaurant Group establishment dominated Y&H this week, along with other beer-related posts. Check it out: Birch & Barley Opens Today. What's Inside? Budweiser Launches Select 55, Light Beer Arms Race Gets Absurd DC Finally Getting a German Beer Garden? The Lagerheads Share [...]

Believe it or not, there has been other news in the world this week, aside from the opening of Birch & Barley/ChurchKey, the long-awaited Neighborhood Restaurant Group project on 14th Street NW. You wouldn't know it, though, from all the local food coverage, which has devoted a ton of server space to detailing every nook [...]

UPDATE: NRG spokesperson Amber Pfau says that Birch & Barley/ChurchKey will open tomorrow, "barring natural disasters." For an inside look, see Metrocurean's preview on the place. The DC-Beer listserv has been humming today on a rumor that Birch & Barley/ChurchKey, the long-awaited twin-concept, beer-soaked bar and restaurant (which is not a gastropub!), will finally open [...]

Beer and controversy, controversy and beer. They are the backbone of the Young & Hungry blog. Here's what you've been reading this  week: Budweiser Launches Select 55, Light Beer Arms Race Gets Absurd WTF: Makoto Is Once Again the Top-Rated Restaurant in the Annual Zagat Guide Not So Fast: There's No Deal for a Ray's [...]

Kyle Bailey was shopping for wedding rings with his fiancee at a Jersey City mall last month when he got a call on his cell. He didn't recognize the number, but he decided to take the call anyway. On the other end of the line was Michael Babin, co-owner of Neighborhood Restaurant Group, who was [...]