In the middle of August, D.C. is at its swampiest. The humidity is high, the air-conditioning can never be set too low, and we rush through the streets seeking shelter from imminent storms (or, as we learned this year, unhealthy air drifting south from Canada). Congress and the D.C. Council are out on summer recess, and the days seem to drag on.
So here’s some excitement, in the form of our annual Best of D.C. issue. Thousands of you spent the first part of the summer voting for your favorite businesses, places, and people across hundreds of categories in our readers’ poll. Since mid-July, the staff of Washington City Paper has been tabulating the results and compiling picks of our own. Starting today, we’re releasing the results section by section.
You can read the results multiple ways: as confirmation of your already-held beliefs, as a representation of what was popular in D.C. in the summer of 2023, or as a guide to our region. I lean toward the third interpretation—even after working on 11 editions of Best of D.C., I still find myself in need of recommendations for, say, an eye doctor or a plumber, and City Paper readers never fail to provide.
While August might be a slower month, it also brings a slew of new residents to the region. If you’re just arriving, welcome! We hope our picks will give you insight into your new home. And if you’ve been here for a while, we hope you’ll learn something in these lists as well. —Caroline Jones