What do you think of the Wharf & Navy Yard?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Navy Yard is okay. I don’t care for the Wharf, it has a suburban feel and most of the restaurants are too expensive/not kid friendly.

I love the Wharf and think the exact opposite. Its the only neighborhood in DC with waterfront access and amazing amenities. The outdoor entertainment with live musicians feels like the kind of thing you'd see in Miami and California. We're lucky to have it here.

What? It's definitely not the only area of DC with waterfront access. Georgetown waterfront has been around for a while even before the new park opened up. Alexandria also has waterfront and water views.

A) Alexandria is in Virginia.

B) I know about Georgetown hence my qualifier 'and amazing amenities'. Georgetown's waterfront is boring and sad. And its their own fault. The local community has been fighting development in business and transportation for decades. Well now stores are closing left and right, and people are flocking to other areas of D.C. and the Wharf to get what they could have been.

Georgetown is a real residential neighborhood with functional amenities, there is shopping, entertainment, drug stores and banks and grocery stores and hair salons, schools and major universities as well as offices. It's not just a tourist or a night out destination. There are more food choices there than what Wharf has to offer, there is fast food and fancy restaurants and euro bakeries and coffee shops. Sure it's not a hot new culinary destination, but there are still more options there and it's a much more developed area. You make it sound like it's urban decay. Boring is in the eye of the beholder, every area has its charms. Wharf charm is largely artificial, similar to Mosaic or Reston, e.g. suburban outdoor mall but without retail. It's natural charm is waterfront, but the area is too small for more than a day outing. People are flocking wherever it's convenient, I doubt any of these neighborhoods will completely lose their patrons.

There are more food options in Georgetown, it's true. Of course, with a few exceptions, they universally suck. Seriously, other than Baked 'n Wired and Chez Billy Sud, where's the good food in Georgetown?

What's good in Wharf/Navy Yard? Even if you are new to the city and just look at Yelp you are surely going to find way more 4 star rated options in Georgetown than in the Wharf, with larger variety of food from casual and bakeries and fast food to fine dining. Sounds like you had never been to Georgetown of haven't been in years and only have this stereotypical view that it's a dying neighborhood about to become urban wasteland. It's far from it, despite major retail dying all over it still draws its crowds for shopping and most chain places are open as well as boutiques. Waterfront is usually packed, as well as movie theater and restaurants aren't empty either. It's still closer and more convenient option for people living in NW DC and nearby suburbs and these people are not about to pack up and depart DC metro to move to SW DC.

I don't understand why there is this need to put down some older established neighborhoods to aggrandize new ones, not necessary. Wharf/Navy yard are doing just fine and are great options, I love to have them. Having a ferry service between Georgetown and Wharf is awesome too. Good times to enjoy both, why the need to compete? It's very small town thinking that one area must die for another to take off. A big vibrant city would naturally have many such areas equally thriving and enough people to visit them. What I would like to see is more development around Wharf and Navy Yard, easier options to get there and a way to get from one to another, better food choices too.

I hate to break this to you, but according the the Georgetown BID, they are NOT thriving. Georgetown is concerned b/c they are watching all of the hot restaurants go to other parts of town b/c of zoning, the historic districts and volumes of tourists.

I don't know what agenda you have and what secret information. Georgetown has been around and stores and restaurants opened and closed and you or others had made similar predictions of the entire area becoming a dump years ago and yet it still stands and still looks pretty good and places are still open and people still come. There are many affluent neighborhoods around Georgetown and it's convenient option for them, I don't see them driving on regular basis to the Wharf/Navy Yard for a meal, some shopping or a movie, do you? Maybe it's an older crowd, families with kids and students and tourists, maybe it's not hip/cutting edge and that's your concern. But I didn't see abundance of hip people in the Wharf either and saw plenty of tourists too, and food was overpriced and overrated. For example, the Asian fusion restaurant there was terrible, one of the worst meals I had, Bangkok Joe's around Georgetown Harbor is incomparably better, at least it's eatable.

Georgetown is still a great option for a family to spend time and for a nice stroll on beautiful residential streets or waterfront, kayaking, some trails nearby, playgrounds and plenty of meal options as well as bars and pastry shops. You can argue with that all you want, people will still live there and will still come there. Wharf can benefit from more food choices, some retail and definitely redevelopment of the nearby shabby areas and extending waterfront, it's work in progress. Tourists are good for DC economy and these days they demand great dining options, they are not coming for food chains. You don't see Downtown dining scene being ruined by the hoards of tourists staying there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I work in Navy Yard. There is very little retail. No place to shop, no place to get your nails done. I would not want to live there.

I’ll give you there is little retail, but the nail salon on 4th Street is steps from Yards Park is always packed.

That’s exactly the point. And the problem.

[Anonymous]

Fun for 20-30somethings without kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My parents, who are growing weary of their giant house in CheChe are obsessed with the Wharf, so I think it's going to do really well with downsizing boomers.

IDK I guess they're going to eat gourmet toast and host dinner parties in the private rooms of those giant restaurants. Godspeed.

We are also downsizing boomers that just moved to the Wharf and love it! Tell your parents to come on down to the Wharf!

[Anonymous]

For those complaining about Wharf parking, park by the Mall and take the free shuttle (runs every 10 mins)), park at L'Enfant Plaza ($21/day) or park for free at Hains Point and take the free water jitney over.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know what agenda you have and what secret information. Georgetown has been around and stores and restaurants opened and closed and you or others had made similar predictions of the entire area becoming a dump years ago and yet it still stands and still looks pretty good and places are still open and people still come. There are many affluent neighborhoods around Georgetown and it's convenient option for them, I don't see them driving on regular basis to the Wharf/Navy Yard for a meal, some shopping or a movie, do you? Maybe it's an older crowd, families with kids and students and tourists, maybe it's not hip/cutting edge and that's your concern. But I didn't see abundance of hip people in the Wharf either and saw plenty of tourists too, and food was overpriced and overrated. For example, the Asian fusion restaurant there was terrible, one of the worst meals I had, Bangkok Joe's around Georgetown Harbor is incomparably better, at least it's eatable.

Georgetown is still a great option for a family to spend time and for a nice stroll on beautiful residential streets or waterfront, kayaking, some trails nearby, playgrounds and plenty of meal options as well as bars and pastry shops. You can argue with that all you want, people will still live there and will still come there. Wharf can benefit from more food choices, some retail and definitely redevelopment of the nearby shabby areas and extending waterfront, it's work in progress. Tourists are good for DC economy and these days they demand great dining options, they are not coming for food chains. You don't see Downtown dining scene being ruined by the hoards of tourists staying there.

Georgetown's own BID says it in their 2028 Plan http://bid.georgetowndc.com/media/uploads/pdfs/2028-plan-agenda_1-29.pdf: "While many residents, business owners and visitors speak emphatically about the unique charm of the neighborhood, they also clamor for easier and more efficient transportation choices, desire more contemporary and high-quality restaurants, and long for the independent boutiques that once dominated Georgetown. Increasingly, they travel to other neighborhoods to dine, shop and be entertained. As history demonstrates, Georgetown is not immune to the vagaries of the changing local and national economic climate. Georgetown merchants today compete in an increasingly crowded marketplace, with new shopping and entertainment destinations emerging in neighborhoods across the city and the region."

Sounds like the Georgetown BID has their act together and has a decent plan. And they are honest about the fact that Georgetown is at risk of losing some of what makes it a desirable destination because of some earlier practices that stifled easy public transit access and led to more chains than independent restaurants/shops. As an earlier poster put it, we (the collective D.C. residents) should be happy about multiple hubs/destinations that are growing in this city, especially when there is variety from one to the next. That's what makes a city an energizing place to be. I'd rather have Georgetown and The Wharf and Navy Yard and other D.C. neighborhoods all thrive.

[Anonymous]

I'm surprised by the complaints about restaurants at the Wharf being generic - I think Del Mar is very, very good and enjoyed Kaliwa and Kith/Kin, which people grumbled about above. Kirstin's was the surprise, for me: I was expecting unexceptional bar food and found it several notches above that, in execution. Navy Yard doesn't really have any restaurants I'd cross town to go to, but has a bunch of solid options for when you're already there.

[Anonymous]

I like the mid century modern architecture of SW around 4th st, and especially the ample green spaces around a lot of housing complexes better than that of the Wharf. But I think the Wharf is fun to walk around and I've shopped Politics and Prose and the hardware store a lot more than I expected. I think the next developments at Waterfront metro will ultimately have more neighborhood retail than the Wharf. I also think the Wharf will also feel less cut off when the second phase, which is on MAine between waterfront metro and the first phase, is done.

[Anonymous]

I love the Wharf. It's another unique neighborhood adding to the charm of Washington. I like the waterfront. I don't mind the overpricing, I think it changes the crowd and prevents it becoming something like Chinatown, overrun with rowdy teens. I like it much more during non-peak "visitor/tourist" hours when it isn't crowded with tourists, much like any part of the city. But it's cool when there are events too.

There is no other place in the world like D.C. Why does everything have to be better, or worse, or force ranked? There is a place for every type of crowd in a very small radius here. Variety is good. I like it.

[Anonymous]

Wow. I live in DC and haven't yet been to the Wharf, but came across this review of Wharf restaurant La Vie. Pretty brutal.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/la-vie-on-the-wharf-is-so-bad-im-only-writing-about-it-as-a-warning/2018/08/20/6ac7e7ee-98dd-11e8-843b-36e177f3081c_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.62adaffc6552

[Anonymous]

Is it easy to bike from the anacostia trail over to the wharf?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Navy Yard is okay. I don’t care for the Wharf, it has a suburban feel and most of the restaurants are too expensive/not kid friendly.

I love the Wharf and think the exact opposite. Its the only neighborhood in DC with waterfront access and amazing amenities. The outdoor entertainment with live musicians feels like the kind of thing you'd see in Miami and California. We're lucky to have it here.

What? It's definitely not the only area of DC with waterfront access. Georgetown waterfront has been around for a while even before the new park opened up. Alexandria also has waterfront and water views.

A) Alexandria is in Virginia.

B) I know about Georgetown hence my qualifier 'and amazing amenities'. Georgetown's waterfront is boring and sad. And its their own fault. The local community has been fighting development in business and transportation for decades. Well now stores are closing left and right, and people are flocking to other areas of D.C. and the Wharf to get what they could have been.

Georgetown is a real residential neighborhood with functional amenities, there is shopping, entertainment, drug stores and banks and grocery stores and hair salons, schools and major universities as well as offices. It's not just a tourist or a night out destination. There are more food choices there than what Wharf has to offer, there is fast food and fancy restaurants and euro bakeries and coffee shops. Sure it's not a hot new culinary destination, but there are still more options there and it's a much more developed area. You make it sound like it's urban decay. Boring is in the eye of the beholder, every area has its charms. Wharf charm is largely artificial, similar to Mosaic or Reston, e.g. suburban outdoor mall but without retail. It's natural charm is waterfront, but the area is too small for more than a day outing. People are flocking wherever it's convenient, I doubt any of these neighborhoods will completely lose their patrons.

There are more food options in Georgetown, it's true. Of course, with a few exceptions, they universally suck. Seriously, other than Baked 'n Wired and Chez Billy Sud, where's the good food in Georgetown?

What's good in Wharf/Navy Yard? Even if you are new to the city and just look at Yelp you are surely going to find way more 4 star rated options in Georgetown than in the Wharf, with larger variety of food from casual and bakeries and fast food to fine dining. Sounds like you had never been to Georgetown of haven't been in years and only have this stereotypical view that it's a dying neighborhood about to become urban wasteland. It's far from it, despite major retail dying all over it still draws its crowds for shopping and most chain places are open as well as boutiques. Waterfront is usually packed, as well as movie theater and restaurants aren't empty either. It's still closer and more convenient option for people living in NW DC and nearby suburbs and these people are not about to pack up and depart DC metro to move to SW DC.

I don't understand why there is this need to put down some older established neighborhoods to aggrandize new ones, not necessary. Wharf/Navy yard are doing just fine and are great options, I love to have them. Having a ferry service between Georgetown and Wharf is awesome too. Good times to enjoy both, why the need to compete? It's very small town thinking that one area must die for another to take off. A big vibrant city would naturally have many such areas equally thriving and enough people to visit them. What I would like to see is more development around Wharf and Navy Yard, easier options to get there and a way to get from one to another, better food choices too.

I hate to break this to you, but according the the Georgetown BID, they are NOT thriving. Georgetown is concerned b/c they are watching all of the hot restaurants go to other parts of town b/c of zoning, the historic districts and volumes of tourists.

I don't know what agenda you have and what secret information. Georgetown has been around and stores and restaurants opened and closed and you or others had made similar predictions of the entire area becoming a dump years ago and yet it still stands and still looks pretty good and places are still open and people still come. There are many affluent neighborhoods around Georgetown and it's convenient option for them, I don't see them driving on regular basis to the Wharf/Navy Yard for a meal, some shopping or a movie, do you? Maybe it's an older crowd, families with kids and students and tourists, maybe it's not hip/cutting edge and that's your concern. But I didn't see abundance of hip people in the Wharf either and saw plenty of tourists too, and food was overpriced and overrated. For example, the Asian fusion restaurant there was terrible, one of the worst meals I had, Bangkok Joe's around Georgetown Harbor is incomparably better, at least it's eatable.

Georgetown is still a great option for a family to spend time and for a nice stroll on beautiful residential streets or waterfront, kayaking, some trails nearby, playgrounds and plenty of meal options as well as bars and pastry shops. You can argue with that all you want, people will still live there and will still come there. Wharf can benefit from more food choices, some retail and definitely redevelopment of the nearby shabby areas and extending waterfront, it's work in progress. Tourists are good for DC economy and these days they demand great dining options, they are not coming for food chains. You don't see Downtown dining scene being ruined by the hoards of tourists staying there.

Your comment is so weird. I have no agenda. Georgetown is struggling to be hip and relevant. They see new restaurants going to other parts of the city. Kojo Nnamdi did a show about it on NPR.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it easy to bike from the anacostia trail over to the wharf?

You could do the 11th Street bridge, then whatever your favorite route through Navy Yard area is to the Eye Street bike lanes, and take them to 7th to the Wharf. Or head to P Street and take that to SW waterfront.

Or you could take the Douglass Bridge and go west on P Street.

Personally I much prefer the 11th Street bridge, and don't mind wandering around Navy Yard.

[Anonymous]

Just to point out "Georgetown is struggling with vacancies etc" and "Georgetown has more retail/restaurants than the Wharf and/or Navy Yard" are not contradictory. GTown has a LOT of legacy retail space. It can have way too many vacancies, and still have more occupied space than the new neighborhoods do now (and that is not even addressing issues of quality).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I work in Navy Yard. There is very little retail. No place to shop, no place to get your nails done. I would not want to live there.

I’ll give you there is little retail, but the nail salon on 4th Street is steps from Yards Park is always packed.

Ok, one nail salon doesn't make it a neighborhood. Honestly the areas around are a bit sketchy and not so nice, some ugly housing around outside shiny condos and it feels isolated to me, I would not live there, not to mention with kids and school options.

Wut? What sketchy areas are there near 4th Street SE?

I know, right? Where is the ugly housing and sketchy areas? The Potomac River is south. Head east to Barracks Row. Head west to SW waterfront. Head north and you are in Capitol South and the Brent catchment. Maybe all those senators are too sketchy for PP.

I am not the PP, however, if you walk along M street between the Wharf and Navy Yards there is a not insignificant amount of low income housing along the way. I concede I do not know a lot about that housing and tend to assume it is public housing from how it looks. I take that walk regularly during lunch on nice days, I would not feel comfortable walking there alone at night.