Fine Dining on the Park
Park Café, located on the southern edge of Lincoln Park at 106 13th St. SE, is the perfect place to dine within view of the cherry blossoms. Start with the ceviche of freshwater scallops and then try the fettuccini topped with pieces of free-range chicken or the hanger steak.

Be sure to ask about wine pairings, since The Park Café has one of the most interesting cellars on the Hill. And don’t leave without sampling the bread pudding for dessert.

Dinner starts daily at 5:30 p.m. with the kitchen closing at 10:30 p.m. Brunch is available on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.parkcafedc.com. For reservations call 202-543-0184. 

Bits & Bites
Just in time for the Cherry Blossom Festival, Fusion Grill on Barracks Row is offering a cherry blossom-inspired cocktail including cherries mixed with Godiva chocolate liqueur and Godiva caramel liqueur. 515 Eighth St. SE, 202-546-5303.

Tortilla Coast is the place to be on Mondays for “Larger Lunes.” Get a bottle of Dos XX Lager for just $2.75 and wash down an order of Tortilla Coast’s mini burgers.

Looking for a date night that won’t break the bank? Try the Ugly Mug, 723 Eighth St. SE, which offers half-priced pizzas and bottles of wine on Mondays. On Wednesdays, buy six sliders for $6, to go along with $6 buckets of six Rolling Rock ponies. Visit www.uglymugdc.com for more information.

Go Al Fresco! With spring in the air and longer days, patios are the place to be on the Hill. There is no better spot for people watching than the patio of Marvelous Market at the corner of Seventh and C streets SE. Every Friday, Marvelous Market celebrates the end of the workweek with live music, wine tasting and of course freshly baked breads. The fun starts at 5 p.m. and runs until 7. Call 202-544-7127 for details.

Prefer dining in? Check out Urban Tastes, a unique meal delivery service that provides delicious, freshly-made dinners to new parents, busy professionals or people that just don't feel like cooking. Customers choose from a variety of meals that change weekly and order them online. For more information, please visit urbantastes.com or e-mail megan@urbantastes.com.

Hamilton's Bar & Grill, 233 Second St. NW, offers a full menu of appetizers, soups, salads, sandwiches, wraps and entrees. On Sundays, chase 25¢ wings with $8 pitchers of Bud Light. Mondays is the time to drown your sorrows with $4 Jim Beam shots and $8 Miller Lite pitchers. On Thursdays, Captain Morgan rules with $4 rum drinks. Fridays, Hamilton’s goes south of the border with $2.50 Coronas, $4 margaritas and $4 shots of Cuervo Gold. This is just a taste of the establishment’s happy hour specials. For more information, visit www.hamiltonsdc.com.

H Street Highlights
Until this year, most folks headed to Pennsylvania Avenue or Barracks Row to drink and carouse. All of that has change with the growth of the H Street entertainment district. Here are some tips if you want to walk north.

The Argonaut, 1430 Maryland Ave. NE, is a wonderful place to hangout with friends, especially once they open their large patio. Drop by Mondays and order any bottle of wine at half price. Tuesdays is SoCal night with fish tacos and West Coast IPA on special. Bring the entire family on Wednesdays when kids under 12 eat for free if their accompanied by an adult ordering a sandwich or entrée. Calling all MoTHS: Thursdays are devoted to moms night out, with half-priced bottles of vino. Check out Sunday brunch as well, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Visit www.argonautdc.com for more information.

The Pug, 1234 H St. NE, offers its patrons more than 23 great beers. Now, you can choose from delicious paninis cooked pugnaciously on a George Foreman grill. Try the Italian Stallion with provolone, salami, sun-dried tomatoes and pesto. Chicken pies, beef shepherd’s pies, crock pot dogs are also available. For more information, call 202-388-8554.

Feel the need for a bit of spice? Visit Naby's Island, 1128 H St. NE, for Ackee, Saltfish, Callaloo, jerk chicken, oxtail and of course goat curry. Happy hour is from 4 to 7 p.m. from Wednesday to Friday. For more information, visit nabysislandrestaurant.com.

NAPA 1015 Restaurant Lounge, 1015 H St. NE, holds wine tastings on Wednesdays in their swanky bar. Visit during their weeknight happy hour, 5 to 8 p.m., and enjoy $10 pairing of tapas plates and wine. Napa also serves a Sunday brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Theatergoers can stop by for a price-fixed menu before the show served from 5 to 7 p.m. For more information, call 202-396-NAPA.

SOVA Espresso & Wine Bar, 1359 H St. NE, is the newest wine bar on H. The establishment offers 16 wines by the glass and 10 varieties of bottled beer. Night owls will love SOVA’s late hours. It closes at midnight Mondays to Thursdays and 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. For more information, visit www.sovadc.com.

Monocle Celebrates America
In April, the Monocle will offer a three-course small plate tasting menu for only $16.95 on Friday and Saturday evenings. Drop in and sample an arugula salad topped with shaved parmesan and pears. Dine on sliced tenderloin beef or grilled shrimp. Don't leave without a slice of cheese cake slathered with pineapple soaked in Meyer's rum. The Monocle is located 107 D St. NE. Call 202-546-4488 or visit www.themonocle.com for more information.

More Moore’s!
Chef Teddy Folkman of Dr. Granville Moore’s can’t hide now that Capital Community News has plastered his visage all over the city on the March cover of the Hill Rag’s sister publication, DC North. Drop into Granville Moore’s on Mondays for $10 moules and $1 discounts on selected beers. Interested in learning the wicked ways of Belgian brews? On Tuesdays he hosts a weekly beer tasting in the upstairs bar. On Wednesdays, Bavik, Hoegaarden and Leffe are only $5 per glass. Chimay Connoisseurs can celebrate their addiction at a special happy hour on Thursdays. Attending a performance at the Atlas? After the show, bring in your ticket stub for a choice of any moule, petit frite and brownie for $20 as well as a $2 discount on glasses of Stella. Dr. Granville Moore’s is located at 1238 H St. NE. Call 202-399-2536 for the latest information.

Café Berlin
I love German food. Nothing beats a good schnitzel or sauerbraten. Unfortunately, my chosen mate is a pescitarian, so German is seldom an option other than the alcohol. Imagine my delight to hear that Café Berlin had a special seafood menu.

While my partner might balk at an appetizer of large gulf shrimp wrapped in bacon topping a cucumber and onion salad, she would happily consider the entrées. There are several choices. A tilapia filet baked in foil with root veggies arrives with thyme potatoes. Sea scallops swim in a Grand Marnier sauce among sautéed grape tomatoes framed by a rice timbale.

Tomatoes and liquors are steady themes throughout the special menu. Opah fillets are pan steamed but framed with sautéed tomatoes, olives and artichoke hearts on a bed of basmati rice. PEI mussels are smothered in a spicy tomato sauce and served over fettuccini.

Being carnivorous at heart, I might prefer the “Land and Sea.” Here, beef tornados are topped with jumbo shrimp painted with a brandy sauce on a bed of zucchini. Since it is German cuisine, potatoes au gratin accompany it.

Café Berlin is located at 322 Massachusetts Ave. NE. Call 202-543-7656 or visit www.cafeberlindc.com for more information.

Lounge 201 Welcomes New Chef
Somehow I always associate Lounge 201 with lobbyists in suits smoking expensive cigars while sipping delicious drinks from oversized martini glasses. Enter Javier Angeles-Beron, the executive chef at Silver Spring’s well-received ceviche. Born and raised in Lima but traded at L’Academie de Cuisine in Gaithersburg, Angeles-Beron brings a new tapas menu. His “Novo-Andino” approach fuses the tastes of his homeland with Asian inspirations. Look for old favorites such as chimichurri and fresh ceviches as well as fusion-inspired dishes such as crab cake wontons and the nearly ubiquitous mini burgers. Look for Angeles-Beron to make similar changes at nearby Union Pub. Lounge 201 is located at 201 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Call 202-544-5201 or visit www.lounge201.com for full details.

Proof’s Late Night Menu
As a theater buff, I’m often in search for the perfect late-night lounge. I am now going to put Proof high on my list. This wine-centric restaurant located in the heart of the dynamic Penn Quarter is keeping its kitchen open Thursdays through Saturdays until 1 a.m.

Feeling indulgent, dine on foie gras scrambled eggs served on truffle buttered toasted brioche or the chef’s take the Philadelphia cheese steak, which combines Waghu beef with provolone cheese garnished with Maitake mushrooms and a jalapeno mayonnaise.

More traditional charcuterie items are available. These make an excellent accompaniment to Proof’s full wine bar that includes more than 40 by-the-glass selections and over a 1,000 vintages.

Proof is located at 775 G St. NW. For more information, call 202-737-7663 or visit www.proofdc.com.

Tidewater Inn for Mothers’ Day
Sometimes the best life therapy is a quick getaway to the shore. The Historic Tidewater Inn in Easton offers a Mom’s Delight. This Mother’s Day-inspired pampering package is available the entire month of May. $225 buys a room for night, a bottle of Champagne that arrives with six chocolate covered strawberries, complimentary valet parking, a $50 gift certificate to Albright’s at the Tidewater, and a specialty spa gift bag. There is a special Mother’s Day brunch menu as well. The Tidewater Inn is located at 101 East Dover St., Easton, Md. 21601. For more information, call 800-237-8775 or visit www.tidewaterinn.com.

Boil Throw Down at Acadiana
Some culinary skills can’t be learned from watching Iron Chef, like, say, turning a patio into a party for a Louisiana customary boil. Fortunately, the chefs at Acadiana are at the ready to teach some of their secret tricks on May 17 (May 31 rain date) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Your friends will marvel when you produce “mud bugs,” potatoes and corn on the cob right on your porch. Be sure to have enough beer on hand to wash it down. The cost is $75 per participant. To register, contact Darnell Howell at 202-222-0987 or e-mail darnell.howell@dccoast.com.

Acadiana also resumes its crawfish boils every Friday, starting May 2, from 3:30-6:30 p.m. Guest have their choice of crawfish ($13 per pound) or shrimp ($17 per pound), plus potatoes and fresh corn on the cob. Add a bucket of four ice-cold Abita Lights for $12. The crawfish boil is available on the patio only, first-come, first-served – no reservations necessary! Acadiana is at 901 New York Ave. NW. Call 202-408-8848 or visit www.acadianarestaurant.com to learn more.

Down at the Half Shell
While most reviews of Johnny’s Half Shell rightly focus on its award-winning Chef Ann Cashion, the more discerning take equal time perusing the establishment’s wine list, so large it requires a binder. The cellar kept by Ann’s partner and sommelier John Fulchino, is an impressive collection of wines from all over the globe offered at wide variety of prices.

Beginning in April, every Saturday evening this award-winning list will be offered at half price. Yes, that’s right, every bottle at half the price. This Saturday night wine special continues as long as the restaurant’s elegant terrace is open for dining. And by the way, expect to hear some great live Jazz and Blues at the same time.

On June 21, Johnny’s Half Shell celebrates the release of the fourth edition of "Cornbread Nation," the Southern Foodways Alliance's collection of the best writing on Southern cuisine. Ann, a native of the Mississippi coast, will serve a special menu inspired by the book. The evening includes readings by several contributors. Diners will receive a copy of the book.

Johnny’s Half Shell is located at 400 North Capitol St. NW. For more information, call 202-737-0400 or visit www.johnnyshalfshell.net.