Hooray For H Street! Hooray For Sushi!
Did you know that even when sushi is only minimally associated with Asia it stilltastes like sushi? Did you know that in DC it's possible to enjoy sushi in a revitalized former open-air crack market with some tater-tots and leather chaps on the side, all while drinking PBR? Of course this all true and possible in DC! So long as this city is on a quest to make the phrase "It's just like New York" apply to every square mile,everything will be possible.
These true and possible things can all be realized at the restaurant Sticky Rice. Sticky Rice is exactly what you would expect from a restaurant in the Atlas District, the little oasis in Northeast that ships in kids from all the other quadrants, for fun, debauchery, and economic development. It's got fusion-y food, '90s music videos, drinks made with Red Bull, tater tots, cut-off shorts, vegan fare, and irreverence, but not so much irreverence that the food's overpriced.
The menu is more diverse than the crowd. It's full of interesting-sounding foods, and includes everything from sushi to noodles to sandwiches to burgers. It's a good use of the concept of "fusion food," because instead of encountering hamburger sushi rolls, you simply have a diverse menu full of items that anyone who makes the journey to H Street can enjoy.
The house specialty? Tater tots! This delightful potato concoction that you may remember from your childhood is now a Big Kid Food, and the ideal appetizer before eating raw fish.
Where do the leather chaps fit into all this? Trivia was the bar-to-do of lore. Now That Which Is Fun To Do While Drinking At A Bar is anything that either corrupts your first years or seeks to corrupt your last years on this planet. And so on Thursday nights Sticky Rice hosts Blingo, which is a mash-up of bingo and the popular Christmas game "White Elephant." Combining alcohol with a frantic search for B40, the opportunity to win leather chaps and other strange prizes, and the sweet musical stylings of Ace of Base is fun! If you're into any or all of the above, yes, it is fun.
The restaurant is loud, and -- imagine that -- you may have to wait for a table. But it's a fun place, and when you dine you feel like you're hanging out with friends, specifically the semi-multicultural group of friends all good Obama loving libruls feel like they should have, but don't.
By dining there you're also helping to ensure that every gimmick anyone can ever think of finds a home, and that every person who can't afford the gimmick finds a new home in another quadrant.
Sticky Rice, 1224 H Street Northeast, Washington, DC 20002 (202) 397-7655
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