The 2019 Eater D.C. Holiday Gift Guide

With Christmas and Hanukkah just a month away, it’s officially crunch time for holiday shopping. Picking the perfect present is tough, but Eater D.C. is here to help — at least when it comes to a target audience that goes nuts for all things food and drink.

These locally themed gift suggestions range from a bottled amaro set for avid mixologists to indestructible dining sets for kids to fashionable swag designed by iconic D.C. eateries.

Need more ideas? Browse Eater National’s gift guide, and look back on Eater previous D.C. guides, because some items are evergreen (2018, 2017).

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Stellina Pizzeria Gift Set

Union Market district’s Eater 38 and Bib Gourmand-designated Italian destination stuffs a range of imported products into one metal basket. Curated by Stellina Pizzeria chef Matteo Venini, the gift set contains pesto, dry pasta, olive oil, homemade sauce, balsamic vinegar, olives, wine, charcuterie, and cheese.

Price: Baskets are $85 (small) to $150 (Iarge)

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Call Your Mother Loot

The humble wood-fired bagel shop in Park View has quickly risen into a nationwide phenomenon, nabbing a spot on Eater’s 16 best new restaurants in America. One way to show love for the beloved bagel brand is to sport one of its new, cool-dad hats in soft pink or blue. A whimsical “Boca-meets-Brooklyn” color scheme also appears across bottles and mugs for cappuccino and coffee.

Price: Hat is $25; drinking vessels are $10-$20; and shirts are $20-$25

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Leon Cookbooks

The expansion-happy British export, which opened three D.C. fast-casual locations in a year, lets diners take its healthy and simple recipes home. Along with its best-selling “LEON: Naturally Fast Food” book that hit U.S. shelves summer, the new “Happy One Pot Cooking” spells out how to make easy one-pot (or pan) pastas to stir-fries. Leon will show thanks for any holiday purchase with lunch on the house.

Price: “Happy One Pot Cooking” is $19.99; “LEON: Naturally Fast Food” is $29.99; reusable glass cup is $24.95, available at all area locations.

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Amaro Collection Gift Pack

Ivy City distiller Don Ciccio & Figli’s three-part set, seeped in years of tradition. is prepared to please any amaro aficionado. Fourth-generation distiller Francesco Amodeo, whose family hails from the Amalfi Coast in western Italy, ages his amaro for 12 months in 250-liter French oak barrels. Bottles include a resurrected recipe for Amaro Don Fernet that dates back to 1915. A flagship Amaro delle Sirene is based on an infusion of 30 roots and herbs, featuring eucalyptus, ripe fruit, and licorice flavors.

Price: The three-pack of 375-ml. bottles is $79.99, available at the distillery only.

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DC Loves to Cook Set

There’s something for every picky palate inside this concise cooking set from homegrown retailer Shop Made DC. Locally made items include a cutting board imprinted with the city’s three-star logo, a colorful kitchen towel, and an array of spreads, salsa, chips, hot sauce, and D.C.’s iconic mumbo sauce.

Price: $130

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Ivy City Smokehouse Platter

Give the gift of fish with a platter from Northeast D.C.’s prolific smokehouse and tavern that’s filled out with 4-to-5-ounce helpings of salmon (candied, smoked, and hot pepper), rainbow trout, whitefish salad. It comes with six bagels, cream cheese (either candied salmon or chive cream), and accoutrements such as lemons, onions, cucumber, and capers.

Price: $89

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Arcay Chocolates Holiday Set

Arcay Chocolates, the maker of super-rich candies with tropical flavors, fills fancy and festive boxes with 16 shimmering truffles, mini chocolate hearts, and a jar of passion fruit spread. Venezuelan master chocolatier Anabella Arcay, whose products have picked up 42 international awards, just unveiled a new sweets sanctuary inside Union Market district’s Latin food hall La Cosecha.

Price: $84 for red gift box and $60 for gold gift bag

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Little Beast Swag Set

Inspired by his inner child — and his 3-year-old daughter — D.C. restaurateur Aaron Gordon created a cute line of T-Shirts, bibs, and hats branded with the same animated creatures that are graffitied across his casual Chevy Chase pizza parlor, Little Beast. He says he’s selling these items at cost.

Price: Bib is $5; hat is $10; shirt is $12

Rey Lopez/Eater DC

Ekobo kid-friendly dining set and bib

Pint-sized eaters have met their match with Ekobo’s indestructible array of colorful spoons, bowls, and plates made of reusable, biodegradable bamboo. You can get them at Three Littles, a new kid-focused stand in Union Market from former nanny and District Baking Company founder Elizabeth Mahon. There are also branded silicone bibs that are FDA approved, BPA-free, and dishwasher safe. Available in four adjustable sizes for kids up to 3.

Price: Bibs are $13; Ekobo four-set plates ($34); bowls ($32); spoons ($11).

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