Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery (1515 N. Courthouse Rd., Arlington) will start taking orders for its King Cakes on Monday, the Feast of the Epiphany, which begins the Mardi Gras season. The Epiphany celebrates the visit of the three kings to the Baby Jesus. Twelfth Night — the twelfth night after Christmas — traditionally is celebrated on the eve of the Epiphany. King Cakes will be priced at $39.95 and serve 12 to 14 people.
On Monday, Gina Chersevani’s bar, Last Call (1301-A Fourth St. NE), is hosting a free party with muffalettas, red beans and rice, and King Cakes from Chef David Guas of Bayou Bakery. The first drink is free; the second is free with the purchase of a discounted ticket to the Mardi Gras Extravaganza on Feb. 25. Mardi Gras tickets are $40 for all-you-can-eat-and-drink with live music. (To attend this party, guests must register as a guest on Eventbrite.com.)
On Wednesday, from 7 to 10 p.m., Tony & Joe’s Seafood Place (3000 K St. NW) will host an opening party for its new indoor floral cocktail lounge, The Gardens, with 300 different floor-to-ceiling flowers, trees and greenery.
Winter Restaurant Week is here again, from Jan. 13 to Jan. 19. Hundreds of restaurants in Washington, Maryland and Northern Virginia are participating with specially priced multicourse dinners priced at $35, and lunches and brunches at $22.
Legal Sea Foods (704 Seventh St. NW; 50 Massachusetts Ave. NE at Union Station; 320 23rd St. S., Arlington, in Crystal City; 2401 S. Smith Blvd., Arlington, at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport) has declared a “Legal” holiday on Jan. 15 in honor of National Soup Month. For one day only, the restaurant’s New England clam chowder will be available for $1 per cup with the purchase of a main course. (The soup is regularly priced at $7.50 per cup.)
From Jan. 15 through Feb. 12, the restaurant’s Seventh Street and Crystal City locations are celebrating all things shrimp with a special menu showcasing nine dishes. The featured menu is titled “The Shrimp Classic” and presents dishes priced from $8.95 to $24.95, including shrimp risotto cakes, buffalo shrimp and blue cheese salad, balsamic glazed shrimp, and tempura shrimp.
There’s a new monthly tasting series at 2941 Restaurant (2941 Fairview Park Dr., Falls Church), in the bar from 6 to 7 p.m. on the last Friday of each month. Beverage classes are priced from $25 to $35 per person, and include pours of featured spirits, wines and beers, along with appetizers. The Jan. 31 class examines the difference between bourbon and rye, featuring Woodford Reserve’s bourbon and rye whiskeys.
2020 Chinese New Year (also called the Spring Festival) is the Year of the Rat, falling on Jan. 25 and lasting until Feb. 8. The REACH at the Kennedy Center (2700 F St. NW) will celebrate its first winter season and the Chinese New Year with an installation of winter lanterns showcasing the work of Chinese artists. Chinese New Year festivities include musical performances, artisan demonstrations, food trucks, cultural activities and sugar painting.
The Kennedy Center will celebrate Chinese New Year Family Day with a free Lunar New Year party at 1:30 p.m. on Jan. 25. Activities include a calligraphy demonstration, face painting, a dress-up photo booth featuring outfits from Cantonese opera, puppets and lantern-making.
On Jan. 26, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery (1050 Independence Ave. SW) will hold their annual Lunar New Year Celebration with live musical performances, acrobatics, puppetry, a chance to sample spicy dishes and the opportunity to view Chinese art exhibitions.
The American Art Museum (F and Eighth streets NW) honors the Lunar New Year on Feb. 1 with a list of traditional activities and demonstrations, including an acrobatic troupe from China and a scavenger hunt. Admission to all the museums’ programs is free.
The annual Chinese New Year Parade will take place at 2 p.m. on Jan. 26 at the Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro Station (630 H St. NW).
The Four Seasons Hotel (2800 Pennsylvania Ave. NW) will celebrate the Chinese New Year with the creation of a tree of good fortune in the hotel lobby.
In honor of International Sous Vide Day, Jan. 26, Cuisine Solutions of Sterling is hosting a sous vide brunch at the Estuary restaurant in the Conrad Washington hotel (950 New York Ave. NW) from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. “Sous vide” is French for “under vacuum” — a cooking technique in which food is vacuum-sealed, then slow-cooked in hot water. The all-inclusive brunch is priced at $125. Tickets will be available beginning Monday through Eventbrite.com.
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