St. Regis Renovations; Huge Gingerbread House

MCPHERSON SQUARE— Best Bites fills us in on renovation news at the St. Regis. While the hotel's bar undergoes a makeover, guests at Alain Ducasse's Adour have been moved to the hotel's Chandelier Room. But fear not, Adour's normal dining service resumes Friday and the decor at Adour remains intact. The re-designed St. Regis bar will have a traditional English club vibe and will be open in time for the inauguration. [Best Bites]

HEART HEALTH WIRE— Despite our love for pork belly, fried chicken, and The Luther, DC topped the Journal of the American Heart Association's list of the most heart healthy states, the Washington Post reports. Vermont and Virginia rounded out the top three. Now for the bad news: only 6.9 percent of District dwellers have what researchers view as "ideal" cardiovascular health, and that was still good enough to earn us in first in the nation. [WaPo]

WEST END—In case you've always dreamed of dining in a life-size gingerbread house, the Ritz-Carlton in the West End can make that happen for you. Express has more details about the hotel's gingerbread "boutique," constructed at the Ritz-Carlton by pastry chef Nelson Paz out of 560 gingerbread bricks and 35 pounds of icing. And through Christmas, Ritz-Carlton executive chef Yves Samake will host dinner inside the gingerbread boutique — that's a $110-per-person, four-course, gingerbread-inspired dinner, to be exact. [Express] —Adele Chapin

Adour [Photo: Facebook]