Parachute Pizza Swoops Into Union Market This Fall

Union Market gets a new spot for Sicilian slices and pies this fall. Parachute Pizza swoops into, headed for the back food hall stall where Red Apron sat, comes from the team behind Brookland’s French wine bar Primrose (Sebastian Zutant, Erin Im, and Oliver Friendly). Parachute is an independent project for the trio, who all share a love for the rectangular Italian pies. “Sicilian style checks all my boxes for quality pizza: crispy, olive-oily-yet-airy crust, a thicker tomato sauce, and a good layer of delicious mozzarella cheese,” says Friendly, who also runs Eat & Smile Catering. While some D.C. pizza places specialize in Sicilian, including Slice & Pie and Della Barba, not many go all in on the order. Expect four to six varieties at a time topped with classic and seasonal ingredients, plus a gluten-free option. The menu also carves out room for oysters (filling a hole left behind by Rappahannock), plus salads, garlic knots, local beers, and wines. Parachute Pizza will offer lunch and dinner daily for dine-in and grab-and-go service.

French’s

Mustard Skittles shower over CityCenter

French’s and Skittles teamed up this month to make a mustard-flavored circular candy, and D.C. gets to tang the rainbow on Wednesday, August 2. A bright-yellow “mustard mobile” topped with giant Skittles parks at CityCenter for a one-day pop-up to celebrate the limited-edition, bite-sized release with samples and swag (11 a.m. to 3 p.m., 825 10^th Street NW). The short summer tour wraps with a NYC stop at Hudson River Park on Saturday.

Photo by Kyle Gustafson / For The Washington Post via Getty Images

Drake DJs at a D.C. club, eats Italian

Grammy-winning rapper Drake made the most of a two-night stand in D.C. last weekend. In town for his It’s All A Blur tour stop at Capital One Arena, he carved out time to DJ a set for a packed crowd at Dupont’s subterranean nightclub Heist and show up at Versus sibling Ciel Social Club atop the AC Hotel. In between concerts he gave RPM Italian an encore appearance — where he also dined in 2018 during his last D.C. tour — and was also spotted at the Four Seasons in Georgetown.

Wood-fired meats are coming to McLean

New Orleans native David Guas, the celebrity chef behind Arlington’s longstanding Bayou Bakery, expands his Northern Virginia presence with the early 2024 opening of Neutral Ground Bar + Kitchen in McLean. His first full-service restaurant will showcase small farmers and fisherman in the area and along the Gulf Coast. Early dish ideas include wood-fired double cut pork chop with loaded sweet potato; fire-roasted oysters on the half-shell with garlic butter; and a smashed double-patty cheeseburger.

A late-night diner fuels up MGM gamblers this fall

Bread + Butter

Bread + Butter will open its second East Coast location at MGM National Harbor this fall. Situated in National Market near the casino floor, the all-day American cafe will sling loaded “hangover” fries topped with sliced hot dog, bacon, beef patty, cheese, gravy and fried egg. Grab-and-go coconut cream pie, lemon meringue pie, and milkshakes will also be available from early morning to late at night. Bread + Butter will open in the Pappas Crabcakes space as Pappas transitions to the former Memphis Q location. The original Bread + Butter sits inside the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City.