The D.C. location of a popular Route 1 restaurant gained international attention this week.

During the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, President Hage Geingob of Namibia stopped by upscale Kenyan restaurant Swahili Village, located at 1990 M St. NW.

“When you dine here, you dine with delegates and dignitaries,” the restaurant boasted on Instagram earlier today.

Owner Kevin Onyona first opened the restaurant in College Park in 2009 before moving to Beltsville in 2016, adding a bigger and more upscale sister location in downtown D.C. in 2020 just days before the pandemic hit. It also has locations in Tyson’s Corner, Va.; and Newark, N.J.

It’s one of D.C.’s only black-owned fine dining restaurants and among the few serving upscale African cuisine.

You can dine in-person at Swahili Village at 10800 Rhode Island Ave. in Beltsville or find it on find them on UberEats, DoorDash, Postmates and GrubHub.

D.C.-Africa Leaders Summit kicked off Tuesday, Dec. 13 and runs through Saturday, Dec. 17.

Support the Wire and Community Journalism
Make a one-time donation or become a regular supporter here.

The only fully woman-owned record shop in the D.C. area is on the Route 1 corridor.

Located at 11011 Baltimore Ave. in Beltsville, Sonidos! Music & More first opened in October of 2019, but it had to shut down briefly during the coronavirus pandemic.

Owner Claudia Mendiola-Durán told the Hyattsville Wire that the record shop got its start when she mentioned to her friends next door at Atomic Music about her idea.

“I’ve been friends with the guys at Atomic for many years, and when I mentioned that I wanted to open a shop of my own, they offered to clear out a space they were using for storage so I could rent it out,” she said.

During the pandemic, Sonidos continued selling via mail order, but the brick-and-mortar sales continue to be unpredictable. Still, she says she’s optimistic about the future of physical media, even as streaming services have taken off.

“There’s something to be said for physical holding a record or CD in your hands,” she said. “You get the album art, the liner notes, all the little extra details that you just don’t get from an MP3 or a stream. It’s a much more immersive experience.”

Sonidos, which is named for the Spanish word for “sounds,” also buys vinyl, books and CDs as well as some videos. You can email sonidos.musicshop@gmail.com or call (240) 366-6886 with questions.

The shop also posts updates regularly on its Instagram page.

Support the Wire and Community Journalism
Make a one-time donation or become a regular supporter here.

Prince George’s County has dramatically eased rules that have hampered food trucks from operating along the Route 1 corridor.

The county council recently eliminated its system of “food truck hubs,” which included designated spaces in Riverdale Park, College Park, Greenbelt and Mount Rainier.

Instead, food trucks will be allowed to operate in business and industrial parks, shopping centers, faith-based organizations, food halls, active construction sites, government buildings, golf courses and dog parks.

The only requirement is that they have a mobile food permit and explicit permission from the property owner or manager.

David Iannucci, president of the Prince George’s County Economic Development Corporation, said the new rules would support the “entrepreneurial spirit of the food truck community.”

Food trucks have been a crucial part of the local restaurant scene, serving as incubators for businesses like Little Miner Taco and expansions for places like Federalist Pig and Sugar Vault, and allowing places like Streetcar 82 Brewing Co. to offer food more easily.

In recent years, food trucks have become a big business, with the industry projected to soon cross the $1 billion mark.

They encourage entrepreneurialism, with the average food truck costing $55,000 to $75,000 to get started, compared to $250,000 to $500,000 to start a traditional restaurant.

Support the Wire and Community Journalism
Make a one-time donation or become a regular supporter here.

New York-based bubble tea chain Kung Fu Tea is expanding to Hyattsville’s Arts District, and it’s bringing Taiwanese fried chicken with it.

Located at 5501 Baltimore Ave., No. 105, the tea shop will take over the space previously occupied by Yogi Castle frozen yogurt shop.

The shop will also serve as a joint location for TKK Fried Chicken, a long-running Taiwanese chain, similar to its setup in Laurel.

The two chains first teamed up in 2019 in New York, where TKK’s signature kwa kwa bao chicken drew rave reviews.

Kung Fu Tea, which has a popular shop at 7313 Baltimore Ave. in College Park, has locations in the U.S., Canada, Cambodia, Taiwan and Japan. It’s expanding elsewhere in D.C., with new shops planned on H Street and Arlington.

Bubble tea has taken off around College Park in recent years due to the influx of Chinese exchange students at the University of Maryland, but the new Hyattsville spot shows how it’s expanding further along the Route 1 corridor.

Support the Wire and Community Journalism
Make a one-time donation or become a regular supporter here.

Mount Rainier is revamping the exterior of several businesses along Rhode Island Avenue.

Facade improvements are underway on buildings on the eastern side of Rhode Island Avenue dating to the 1920s and ’30s, from the roundabout south to the border with D.C.

The businesses where the exterior revamp is taking place include Potomac Fish House, Medina Market and Kitchen and Pan Lourdes Bakery.

The construction is being done through the Rhode Island Avenue Facade Improvement Program,  a project of the city’s Department of Economic Development.

The second stories of the popular Pan Lourdes Bakery and the neighboring Mediterranean Cafe now feature an abstract mural with intersecting bars of bright colors.

Originally meant to serve the regular crowd of passengers getting off at the streetcar station at the roundabout, the buildings were all designed with flat-fronts and big first-floor show windows. Several have second-story apartments.

The city is working with the Neighborhood Design Center, a nonprofit that helps with community design, and contractor J.D. Clark Professional Services on the facade improvements.

Support the Wire and Community Journalism
Make a one-time donation or become a regular supporter here.

Three towns along the Route 1 corridor allow non-citizens to vote in local elections, a policy aimed at getting new immigrants more involved that is gaining ground nationally, and now Washington, D.C. is considering its own measure, which would affect some 51,000 foreign-born residents.

Hyattsville allows 16-year-olds who have lived in the city for at least 30 days before Election Day to vote in local races, regardless of citizenship. In Riverdale Park, they must live in the city for at least 45 days. And in Mount Rainier, voters must be at least 18.

In all, 11 Maryland towns allow non-citizens to vote, out of just 15 in the entire U.S.

Although these measures only allow voting in local races, historians say that non-citizens were able to vote in local, state and federal elections at various times in 40 states from the founding of the country until 1926, especially when territories were looking to attract immigrants or boost their population to achieve statehood.

Some members of Congress are seeking to block the D.C. proposal, and several states have moved in recent years to bar local governments from allowing non-citizen voting, but for now it looks safe in Maryland.

Support the Wire and Community Journalism
Make a one-time donation or become a regular supporter here.

The New Deal Cafe, Community Forklift and other businesses along the Route 1 corridor were named winners in the annual Washington City Paper ‘Best of D.C.’ readers’ poll. And this year, a surprising number of entrants from the corridor were finalists.

Greenbelt’s New Deal Cafe won Best Place to Experience Local Music, beating out Blues Alley Jazz and the venerable 930 Club, and Best Place to Have Dinner With Live Music. It was also a finalist in Best Jazz/Blues Venue.

Edmonston’s Community Forklift won Best Green Business, which it has won before, while Hyattsville’s Bianca + Jean won Best Handmade Accessories. Federalist Pig, which is opening a location in Hyattsville, won for Best Barbecue, while Riverdale Park’s 2Fifty Texas BBQ was a runner-up in that category. Spartan Plumbing won Best Plumber.

Other local finalists included:

Best Street Art: Driskell Park

Best Theater Festival and Best Film Festival: Greenbelt’s Utopia Film Festival 

Best Art Class: Pyramid Atlantic Art Center

Best Movie Theater: Old Greenbelt Theatre

Best Music Festival: Greenbelt Blues Festival

Best High School: DeMatha Catholic High School

Best Arts & Crafts Supply Store: Artist & Craftsman Supply

Best Delivery Service (Food): Foodhini

Best Record Store: Red Onion Records

Best Brew Pub: Denizens

Best Kid-Friendly Restaurant: Franklins

Best Mexican Restaurant and Best Taco: Taqueria Habanero

Support the Wire and Community Journalism
Make a one-time donation or become a regular supporter here.