We’re Out of Here turns one this week!
It’s been a busy year. We started this as a humble Wordpress blog and expanded to our own website. We traveled up and down the East Coast — covering Maine to North Carolina. We’ve eaten jelly fish, ramps, duck fat fries and lobster fresh from the boat. And we’ve had a beer (or two) in every stop along the way. Here’s a recap of the best and worst of our first year.
The Best Bars
Novare Res Bier Cafe and The Great Lost Bear in Portland, Me.: With the help of the guys from Portland Taps, we found these two amazing beer bars. Great selection, great atmosphere (Novare Res had a cellar quality; The Great Lost Beer bar was like a log cabin in the Great North Woods). See our post here.
Brewer’s Art in Baltimore: I don’t understand why Baltimore gets a bad rap with Washingtonians. Bar hopping there makes for a riotous, and affordable, night out. This bar in particular is great. Its is in the cellar of a Victorian townhouse and on tap are the bar’s own Belgian-style microbrews. Even Esquire magazine noticed; it named Brewer’s Art the best bar in the US this April. Wow! See our post here.
Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick, Md.: While this is not actually a bar – and we did visit many great bars this year – it comes in 3rd. Flying Dog has an excellent spread of beers of which you can enjoy limitless samples. The atmosphere at one of these Saturday afternoon tasting is that of a well-behaved college house party – strangers chatting and spilling out on to the back porch. And, did I mention, its $5. See our post here.
The Best Surprises
Yeah, of course Maine was gorgeous and New York City was a captivating metropolis filled with excellent food. These places/events were just as amazing – in ways we never expected.
Davis-Elkins loop – Although I’ve been singing West Virginia’s praises since this blog began, I have yet to influence anyone to actually go there. I don’t give up easily. Follow this route for a road trip, a mellow escape from DC insanity and a getaway that’s great in the winter. There’s skiing, burritos and beer. Just do it! See our post here.
Kinetic Sculpture Race – I heard about this race from a blogger meet-up. I mentioned that we cover quirky travel, and this event sprung to everyone there’s mind. For the Kinetic Sculpture Race, groups of friends, classmates and coworkers make human-powered parade floats that can float in the bay, push through sand and coast down bumpy brick roads. It’s amazingly odd. Next year, I’ll be bringing a bike so I can better follow along with the race. See our post here.
Ohio Brew Week –The word “festival” (and its cousin “fair”) often makes me shudder. It usually means high prices, hoards of people and lots of vendors pushing useless junk (used laser disks, anyone?) However, this beer festival was the complete opposite. It was festively crowded and reasonably priced. We heard some great music and tried beers I’ll never see elsewhere. And there was a beer choo-choo. See our post here.
The Biggest Disappointments
We really wanted to love to these popular destinations, but they just fell short.
Assateague – Although camping on the beach sounds romantic and relaxing – think: falling asleep to the sound of the waves and taking an early morning swim — the reality is that you are camping in a hostile environment. Sand is everywhere, mosquitoes swarm and the sun beats down without mercy. I wanted to love Assateague. But Assateague didn’t love me. After a weekend of being eaten, burnt and drenched, I submitted. See our post here.
Asheville – Maybe it was the rain, but this southern city let us down. It wasn’t nearly as outdoorsy or hippified as I hoped it would be. Although, West Asheville had a food co-op, coffee shops and dive bars, downtown was too upscale. How many boutiques does one tiny town need? I think we missed Asheville’s heyday. See our post.
Best beers
Saison Dupont from Brasserie Dupont: This is a truly world class beer. If you want an introduction to the style called Saison, this is the beer to try. My favorite brew, at my favorite restaurants with my favorite person; it doesn’t get better than that. Find it at Annabell Lee Tavern, Baltimore MD
Grand Wazoo Batch 2 at Jackie O’s Brewery: A bourbon barrel-aged sour dark ale with raspberries, definitely a one-of-a-kind beer. This brew really showed off the range and diversity of the beverage. It’s flavors are probably more in line with a wine than any beer most people have tasted. Had at: Jackie O’s Brewpub, Athens OH
Dale’s Pale Ale from Oskar Blues: Our go-to summer beer. Dale’s is a very tasty IPA that comes in a can. Naturally, makes it perfect for camping, tubing, and backyard barbeques. Had at: just about every trip that involved a cooler.
Undiscovered neighborhoods part I: Del Ray
Mount Vernon Avenue in Del Ray Alexandria
It should be no secret to our loyal readers that We’re Out of Here are huge fans of Anthony Bourdain. On one recent episode of his show No reservations, Bourdain explored the outer boroughs of his hometown of New York City. In keeping with the theme of copying everything Tony does, we decided to explore some of the lesser known “outer boroughs of the DC area. First up in this series is Del Ray, Alexandria. Read More »