A Sunday at Union Market

We spent last weekend entertaining my in-laws.  It's always a fun excuse to finally try some places around DC that for whatever reason we put off.  So, we gave Union Market a try. As I said to my husband, "It's hipster as shit...and I love it."   Everything was so beautifully laid out, well-curated, and just plain delicious that I thought I'd take you along.

Read on for lots more pics,and some of my favorite spots in the Market.



Although the Market technically opens at 8am, most of the establishments inside don't actually get up and running until 11am.  We'd heard so many good things about Union Market, that we opted to get an early start.  So our arrival at around 9:30 am missed the crowds, for sure, but also locked us into staying for at least another couple of hours to actually experience anything.  Lesson learned.






While most places were closed, Peregrine Espresso was up and running bright and early, so we started our trip off with some much-needed coffee.







Our next stop was the Border Springs Farm stall, where I enjoyed some ridiculously good lamb sausage and biscuit.


This shmancy, new version of Union Market just opened in September, but it was once home to the Union Terminal Market.  This display is a nod to that history -- which you can read more about here.




But what we were really waiting for was the opening of the Rappahannock Oyster Bar.



The oysters are all sourced locally from Virginia and tasted fresh and delightfully briney.





Salt & Sundry is an adorable shop with Anthropologie-like home offerings and a very nice selection of cocktail books, bitters, and simple syrups.



We ended our trip with grilled pimento cheese from Red Apron -- who also has a gin & tonic made with DC's own Green Hat Gin...wait for it...on tap!  Unfortunately, their tonic has apple in it (to which I'm allergic), but Michael said it was among the top 3 gin & tonics he's ever had (which naturally made my pain all the worse).

All in all, a very lovely space full of great choices.  It's not an overly expansive space, which means you can get in and out pretty quickly if that's what you're looking for.  I wouldn't say it's a one-stop shop for all your market needs.  There are definitely worthy choices as meats and dairies go.  Slim pickins on produce, though, with only one small stall dedicated to this offering.  The stand-out in this market is certainly the dining, so go hungry.
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