What to Get the D.C. Dad: 10 Ideas
OKAY, WE KNOW this is a tad last minute—sorry. But there’s still time to dash out and get something fabulous for Daddy Dearest or whoever the main man in your life may be.
And, we’ve got a great list of possibilities:
My main man loves good barbecue—ribs, in particular, so when it came time to celebrate his birthday, his thoughtful son ordered up a barbecue feast of ribs, brisket, sausage and turkey from Texas’s Salt Lick BBQ. A lot closer to home, though, is Hill Country (410 Seventh Street NW). Take your dad there for dinner or order the mouthwatering meats and sides of corn pudding, baked beans and corn bread to take home. Hill Country’s caterers can arrange for things like picnic tables, chairs, gingham table cloths, picnic china, even rock and blues music. See the Hill Country website for further information.
Think Dad needs better-fitting clothes? Well, a made-to-order, bespoke tailored suit from Savile Row tailor Kathryn Sargent will set you back about $5,000. (Sargent will be at the Jefferson for appointments June 17 to June 19, and November 18 to November 20.) If your pockets don’t go that deep, here’s an alternative—an Alton Lane (1506 19th Street NW, third floor) custom-made shirt ($99-$265). Warn Dad beforehand that he’ll have to enter a booth where a full-body scanner will take his measurements.
The best way to stop the complaining about the dull-knife situation at home is to get your guy a hand-forged Japanese kitchen blade at Union Market’s DC Sharp. It’s the only Japanese kitchen knife boutique in the Washington metropolitan area and one of the few businesses in the country that practice Japanese-style knife sharpening. Expect to pay at least $120 and on up for these precision-cutting tools.
He has a love-hate relationship with golf? Get him a package gift at Golftec, which is offering Father’s Day specials. It starts with a swing evaluation and include a series of lessons (five for $315) with a GolfTec personal coach, a club fitting and video-based practice. Hope for significant improvement.
The gadget guy who loves his Starbucks cappuccino will be pleased to make an at-home version with light, creamy hot or cold milk froth, a breeze to achieve with Nespresso’s Aeroccino ($99). There’s a new, more expensive version for $119.
So Dad won’t have to choose between two compelling games of strategy, Restoration Hardware’s handcrafted wood and leather box has a chess board on one side, backgammon on the other. $245, or $183 if you’re enrolled in RH’s membership program.
A combination of grill, oven and smoker, the Big Green Egg enjoys a cult following. My friend’s husband is a believer. If your dad fancies himself a barbecue master, gift him with the Egg. The 15-inch medium size sells for about $650. Dozens of local hardware stores stock the Eggs.
Opening bills is never fun. But a letter opener with a sense of humor like this gecko-shaped one will make the chore not as odious and add an attractive decor element to a desk. $120 at L’Objet.
Appeal to the James Bond in every man with this art deco silverplate 2 oz. jigger. Shaped like a mini cocktail shaker, a corkscrew nests inside the jigger’s top. $350 at Alexandria’s Hour Shop (1015 King Street), dedicated to all things cocktail.
Classic wooden jigsaw puzzles from Liberty are works of art—and devilishly hard. Made with quarter-inch maple plywood and top-notch archival paper and inks, no two pieces in any puzzle are alike. Whimsy pieces, which comprise 15 to 20 percent of the total, are cut in the shapes of recognizable objects—characters, animals or complex geometric shapes. Maybe too late this year, but the company will create a custom puzzle of an image—e.g., a family photo—that you provide. In the meantime, how about this Rainbow trout for $95?
— Janet Kelly
Janet Kelly is the editor of MyLittleBird. She last posted on Rizik’s Renovation Sale.
