Guide to Union Station in Washington, DC
The hub for transportation in the nation's capital is also filled wi...
Epicurean, Artsy, Outdoorsy, Inventive
NoMa and Union Market are neighboring hubs where cultural cross-pollination and forward-thinking creativity thrive. Tens of thousands of people pass through Union Station every day. Innovators like Gallaudet University, the nation’s first college for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, and National Public Radio call this part of the city home.
Union Market, located in a restored, mid-century food hall, caters to couples, kids and chefs alike with its mix of restaurants, kitchen supply retailers and gourmet shops selling spices, meat, bread and more. However, the spirit of the market extends far beyond a single-building infrastructure. Businesses have popped up all over the Union Market industrial zone, including an Angelika movie theater, Masseria (a Michelin-starred Italian restaurant from chef Nicholas Stefanelli) and La Cosecha (a contemporary Latin American marketplace).
For International Women’s Day in 2015, LA-based graffiti artist Mr. Brainwash created a heart-filled mural at Union Market that has quickly become one of the neighborhood’s most Instagrammable images.
Shops and restaurants have continued to redevelop historic buildings and push northeast through the NoMa neighborhood and across the border into Ivy City which has itself become home to distilleries, acclaimed restaurants and much more. The Uline Arena, a barrel-vaulted brick building that hosted the Beatles first U.S. concert now holds a flagship REI store and Red Bear Brewing Co., the District’s only 100 percent gay-owned brewery.
The second-busiest Amtrak hub in the nation, Union Station is situated along Massachusetts Avenue NE.
You can find Capital Bikeshare stations near NoMa and the Union Market District or hop on the eight-mile-long Metropolitan Branch Trail here, which goes all the way to Silver Spring, Md.
From Union Market to edgy restaurants and Union Station, learn more about what it’s like north of Massachusetts Avenue.
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