Sweet Berry - Review

A Belgian waffle topped with strawberries, Nutella drizzle, and a scoop of chocolate gelato

Waffles, gelato, crepes, and frozen yogurt: All of my favorite things in the same shop at the corner of Main and Pickett Streets.

The first time I went to Sweet Berry, I sprang for the Belgian waffle topped with strawberries and Nutella. My dining companion, who opted for a comparably modest desert of gelato in a cup, had major food envy. The second time, we both bested the already-magical combination by adding a scoop of gelato to our Nutella-topped Belgian waffles. Needless to say, we walked out smiling and skipping.

Another popular combination is a crepe -- which can be filled with any combination of fruit, Nutella, or whipped cream -- swaddling a scoop of gelato.

It's unusual for a business establishment that serves such varied offerings to execute each one so excellently, but Sweet Berry does. And it's not just the waffles that shine: the tiramisu gelato, for example, tastes, amazingly, like its eponymous dessert. The frozen yogurt -- of which there is a choice of more than 10 different flavors daily -- is solid as well.

This definitely is a family-friendly place located across the street from Woodson High School, so expect to hear many a high-school girl gossiping, and tiny tots philosophizing with each other and their parents at nearby tables.

Q&A

A Q&A adapted from the version that appeared in my department newsletter in summer 2015:

What is your favorite leisure activity?:

I’m a big reader. I carry around my Kindle everywhere with me so I can read if I’m standing in a long line, riding on the Metro, or waiting to get an oil change. I used to read before the start of classes in college, and my friend asked, “Don’t you think that makes you seem antisocial?” Maybe, but that doesn’t bother me :)

If you could vacation anywhere, where would it be?:

Either Thailand or London: Thailand for the pretty beaches, and London because I’m a complete Anglophile. I considered taking a solo trip to London for my 25^th birthday but I knew my parents would not be too supportive of me traveling internationally alone :). Maybe in a year or two.

What is your favorite thing to bake?:

My favorite things to make are the yumyums I enjoy eating :). My favorite things to bake are banana muffins because they’re really tasty and so easy to make. My absolute favorite thing to eat (currently) though are probably Nutella poptarts, but I don’t make them too often because they’re tricky to make.

What is your favorite TV show at the moment?:

My all-time favorite show is Friday Night Lights (I love Kyle Chandler!). I will watch Downton Abbey for as long as it runs – or as long as Lady Mary remains a part of the show :) -- but I like watching reality television (e.g., The Bachelor/Bachelorette) when I want to watch something light to relax.

If you could meet one celebrity who would it be and why?:

Kane of the Kane Show morning radio program, but I think I would be too star struck to say much :). If we’re talking about someone with a broader fan base, I would say Kate Middleton (she seems like a really nice lady!), Ruth Bader Ginsburg (she is a G! And my new idol), or Katie Couric. Fun fact: Katie Couric and I were both crowned Cavalier Daily Earth Mama during our time at the University of Virginia, a title that is the newspaper’s equivalent of prom queen.

What is your favorite funtivity that you’ve planned for the group or participated in?:

The Valentine’s Day breakfast potluck is my favorite funtivity that I hope will be an ongoing tradition for the department :). Also, the department did not celebrate team member birthdays before I came on board, which is completely crazy to me! Every birthday boy or girl deserves cupcakes or donuts on their birthday! (Especially if they’re spending their birthday in the office ;)

Describe your perfect day:

I would wake up early, go to the gym, eat a strawberry and Nutella crepe for lunch, explore D.C., and then go to dinner with someone special.

If you were to get a new bunny, what would he/she look like, and what would you name him/her?:

I want a light grey, lop-eared bunny named Henry with white spots.

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?:

Invisibility so I can walk around uninterrupted. A more useful one, though, would be the power to make people respond to my emails in a timely manner without escalation. [Note: this question was answered in a workplace context ;) ]

If you could have dinner with any fictional character, who would it be?:

Mr. Darcy (of Jane Austen’s Price & Prejudice), or Lizzie Bennett (who becomes Mrs. Darcy).

Toilet paper: over or under?:

Always over!

Other than food and water, what 3 items would you take to a desert island?:

(1) a grill with a bottomless propane tank (I suspect I would not be too adept at building fires), (2) indestructible, all-weather shoes, and (3) a snorkel.

If you were having a dinner party and could invite three famous people (dead or alive), who would they be?:

(1) Kate Middleton (notice a theme here?), (2) Katie Couric, (3) Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and (4) Kane of the Kane Show. I would love to be a fly on the way for that dinner party.

What is your favorite restaurant?:

Rabieng for Thai food, Curry Mantra for Indian, Sweet Berry for waffles, and Miyagi in Vienna for sushi.

What is your favorite snack food?:

Savory: Harvest Cheddar SunChips. Sweet: Warm chocolate chip cookies.

Sweet notes

I used to keep notes from my sweetheart in my work desk drawer, and take them out to read whenever I was having a particularly trying day or otherwise in need of some positive vibes. I still keep screenshots of sweet, uplifting emails I’ve received from colleagues to read when I’m feeling unsure of myself. A senior business development manager at my old job came by my desk during my last week with the company to say, in passing but in earnest, that sometimes people don’t know how much they are appreciated until they hand in their notice, after which the appreciative notes start pouring in. By then it’s too late – their desks are packed.

Appreciation should not merely be inferred; that’s how people and companies lose stellar employees, partners, and friends, and, I think, why so many long-distance relationships dissolve. The absence of criticism is hardly the inference of appreciation. There are few people (at least in my life) who can deliver criticism constructively because it takes some effort and thought to do so; the kind of criticism that flows easily probably is not received too well. In any case, I think everyone harbors enough internal self-doubt at times without the aid of anyone else’s unsolicited sharp words.

Charley Harper Homecoming

Quotes

"You can love someone so much...But you can never love people as much as you can miss them."
- John Green

"When we are in love, we are convinced nobody else will do. But as time goes on, others do do, and often do do, much much better."
- Coco J. Ginger

“If you have to speculate if someone loves you and wants to be with you, chances are they don't. It's not that complicated. Love, in most cases, betrays the one feeling it. Don't waste moments waiting and wondering. Don't throw away your time dreaming of someone that doesn't want you. No one is that amazing, certainly not the one who would pass you up.”
- Donna Lynn Hope

Gym observations

1. While pedaling away at the elliptical today, I spotted a frazzle-haired woman mount her machine a row ahead of me. I took a double take when I saw her attempt to balance a chunky electronic on the machine’s magazine holder. It was indeed what I thought it was: a cassette Walkman.

2. To those on the stairmaster machines beside the floor-to-ceiling mirrors: I can see you shamelessly checking yourself out in the mirror, and so can the rest of us. After all, there are floor-to-ceiling mirrors all over the cardio area.

3. There’s a lanky, middle-aged woman who makes swimming motions with her arms while walking on the treadmill. Does that do anything?

Airport encounters: NYC

Sitting in La Guardia Airport terminal, waiting for my flight:

My sneeze interrupted the 8 a.m. silence, only to be followed with more (this time offensive) silence. Not one ‘bless you’!

Later:

Accidentally drop driver’s license between the two rows of connected seats. Literally have to climb and dangle my body through the gap to retrieve driver’s license because nearby occupants tried to ignore (during the silence) the unmistakable sound of a driver’s license-type card fall onto the ground, and were too rude to kick my driver’s license back over to me.

Standing on NYC's High Line in December 2013 for my NYE trip

Solo sushi picnic

On Friday I left work early for some “me” time. I ordered some sushi from one of my favorite sushi restaurants, and leapt over to the grassy area across the parking lot overlooking the man-made pond and two splashing fountains, unrolled my yoga mat, and plopped myself down. After contemplating whether or not I could finish my second roll, I decided to pack my things up and head back to the car. I turned around to find an SUV parked facing me. Young female driver in the driver’s seat, shades on. Probably Instagramming a selfie. Had she been parked there the entire time?

Drawing by Tony Ma