🌸 The best things to do this weekend

Good morning, DC. Happy Friday, you’ve almost made it through the week. Read on for your guide to winning the weekend without fighting for parking in Georgetown.

In today’s District Download:

Let’s get to it.

The District's autumn film festival season kicks off this weekend with 10 festivals screening everything from civil rights documentaries to classic noir thrillers, though you'll need to act fast since Middleburg's advance passes are already gone, leaving only individual tickets when they drop in October. From the March on Film Festival's Harlem Renaissance party (September 15-21) to Howard University hosting Marsai Martin for the HBCU First LOOK showcase in November, the lineup reads less like a film schedule and more like a progressive dinner party through DC's neighborhoods. The Immigration Film Fest goes hybrid this year with 32 virtual screenings for those still working from their pajamas, while AFI Silver brings back film historian Eddie Muller to spotlight the femme fatales of noir for a cool $200. Greenbelt keeps it grassroots with their $25 community-focused festival screening at the Historic Greenbelt Theatre and New Deal Cafe, proving you don't need Georgetown prices for quality cinema. For procrastinators, the Wheaton Film Festival on November 8 offers last-chance fall film culture with industry panels and an after-party, all for less than the cost of two movie tickets at iPic.

Washingtonian just served up five fall escapes ranging from 31 miles (Middleburg's antique markets) to 171 miles away (Garrett County's actual treehouses), perfectly timed since peak foliage won't hit the DC area until late October. From Bucks County's boulder field where rocks literally ring like bells when struck with a hammer to Sperryville's two-hour zipline tours through autumn canopies, the guide reads less like a travel article and more like someone's very enthusiastic Pinterest board come to life. Charlottesville's wineries are hosting Sunday polo matches through October while Middleburg keeps it quaint with their September 20 Oktoberfest, proving you don't need a passport for biergarten season. The real surprise comes from Garrett County, where you can actually book treehouses with hot tubs and fire pits, though the Ella's Enchanted Treehouses sound more like Airbnb listings that escaped from a fairy tale. Pro tip: book now since peak foliage in Shenandoah hits October 16-31 and Middleburg's Virginia Fall Races on October 11 will draw 10,000 spectators, making last-minute accommodations harder to find than a Metro seat during Cherry Blossom Festival.

The New York Times just dropped its annual 50 best restaurants list after 14 reporters ate 200+ meals across 33 states, and the DMV scored three coveted spots: Kwame Onwuachi's Dōgon at the Salamander, Michael Rafidi's La' Shukran in Union Market, and Ian Boden's Maude and the Bear in Staunton, Virginia. Rafidi's speakeasy-style Levantine bistro opened just days after he won the James Beard Outstanding Chef award this June, while Onwuachi's Afro-Caribbean concept pays homage to Benjamin Banneker, the Black surveyor who helped map DC's boundaries and traced his ancestry to West Africa's Dogon tribe. The real surprise is Staunton's Maude and the Bear making the cut, a tasting-menu restaurant housed in a 1926 Montgomery Ward kit house that's putting the Shenandoah Valley on the national culinary map alongside the District's heavy hitters.

The DC Big Flea at Dulles Expo Center brings 500+ vendors under one roof twice this fall (September 20-21 and November 1-2), claiming the title of Mid-Atlantic's largest indoor antique market with everything from midcentury modern furniture to vintage clothing for a $10 weekend pass. Meanwhile, the Mid Atlantic Antique & Garden Festival transforms Poolesville's picturesque Aix La Chapelle Farm into a village of barns and tents October 25-26, drawing 60+ dealers from 18 states, Canada, and the UK with 18th-century prints and Italian terra cotta planters. For those willing to drive deeper into wine country, Lucketts Fall Market in Berryville (October 17-19) promises 200+ "vintage hip" vendors, beer gardens, and live music at the Clarke County Fairgrounds, though early-bird Friday access requires a special pass since the event draws 10,000+ treasure hunters annually.

Here’s what’s going on around DC this weekend:

Experience art nearly round-the-clock with painting, photography, fashion, music, and dining during DC's overnight arts festival across 20+ neighborhoods, featuring go-go bands at the Go-Go Museum, live podcast recordings at Art of Noize gallery, and street painting along 14th Street.

📍 Multiple DC location 🕐 7 PM

Play giant Jenga, Uno, Connect Four, and Spades while sipping Black-owned wines at this Friday night social event in Congress Heights.

📍 Congress Heights 🕐 6 PM

Get to know the District better on free guided culture and history tours exploring National Mall protests, Georgetown's spies, Arlington National Cemetery's Black History, and 60+ other themed walks across all eight wards.

📍 Various DC locations 🕐 9 AM

Browse jury-selected creations including sculptures, paintings, jewelry, pottery, and textiles from 190+ artists at this top-100 rated art show in John Carlyle Square, just two blocks from King Street.

📍 John Carlyle Square 🕐 10 AM

For 47 years, Adams Morgan Day has filled the DC neighborhood with live music, family entertainment, and art on multiple outdoor stages featuring yoga, reggae and soul concerts, dance lessons, and an artisan fair to shop handmade goods and jewelry.

📍 18th Street & Columbia Road 🕐 Noon

Watch this documentary to learn about the life and legacy of the 20th-century movie star, featuring a post-screening discussion with filmmaker Alexander Horwath.

📍 National Gallery of Art 🕐 1 PM

Friday

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Saturday

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Sunday

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9:30 Club | Wolf Alice | 6 PM

Jiffy Lube Live | Little Big Town | 7 PM

Birchmere Music Hall | Eaglemania - Eagles Tribute | 7:30 PM

The Atlantis | Rocco | 7:30 PM

Museum of the Bible | Danny Gokey | 7:30 PM

The Anthem | PUP with Jeff Rosenstock | 7:30 PM

The Wolf Trap | Maren Morris with Jade LeMac | 8 PM

Warner Theatre | Choir! Choir! Choir! | 8 PM

9:30 Club | it's murph with Badger | 10 PM

Echostage | SG Lewis with Sofia Kourtesis | 10 PM

Union Stage | Satin Jackets | 10 PM

9:30 Club | Wolf Alice | 6 PM

Jiffy Lube Live | A Day to Remember and Yellowcard | 6:15 PM

Walter E. Washington Convention Center | Rophnan Nuri Muzeyin | 7 PM

Warner Theatre | Legends of 60's & 70's Classic Soul Groove | 7 PM

Birchmere Music Hall | Kim Waters | 7:30 PM

Union Stage | Yaya Bey | 8 PM

The Atlantis | Trouble Funk | 8 PM

The Fillmore | Berlioz | 8 PM

The Howard Theatre | La Dispute | 8 PM

The Wolf Trap | Joe Bonamassa | 8 PM

Black Cat | yeule with Fish Narc | 8 PM

The Atlantis | Finn Woffhord | 6:30 PM

Birchmere Music Hall | 10cc | 7:30 PM

The Fillmore | Bruce Dickinson | 8 PM

The Anthem | Royal Otis with bby | 8 PM

Drop "the Micah Parsons trade" into any football conversation this week to sound instantly plugged in, because the Cowboys sending their star linebacker to Green Bay has shaken up the entire NFC power structure and made the Packers legitimate Super Bowl contenders overnight. Mention how Jayden Daniels and the Commanders are facing "regression narratives" after last year's Cinderella run to the NFC Championship, but you're "buying the sophomore surge" because they added Deebo Samuel and Laremy Tunsil (pronounced tun-SILL, not like tonsils). Casually note that the Eagles looked "championship-caliber" beating Dallas despite Jalen Carter getting ejected for spitting, which proves they have the depth to repeat as champs. Finally, pivot to how this is "finally Buffalo's year" because Josh Allen versus Lamar Jackson in Week 1 is basically an AFC Championship preview, and the Chiefs losing the Super Bowl means the dynasty might actually be mortal, though saying that about Mahomes is usually a mistake.

Did You Know? DC has more people with graduate degrees per capita than any other US city, yet the city bird is a pigeon and the official dinosaur is the Capitalsaurus, whose only fossil evidence is a single vertebra found in 1898.Retry

Till next time,