Ride #2: Saturday, Oct. 26, afternoon
Kung Fu Tea (1529 Wisconsin Ave., N.W., 2nd Floor)
Today’s coffeeneuring ride was not quite what I had planned, but it let me try something new, so worked out fine.
This week’s adventure started out with a bus ride to Cleveland Park, because I started a little later than I planned. I ran a few errands, including a trip to the library, a couple of fruitless shopping stops, and a stop in at an Italian deli/pizza shop for pizza dough and a slice for a late lunch.
Then I hopped on a bikeshare and pedaled uphill to get across to Wisconsin Avenue, which I took down to Georgetown. It was a pleasant afternoon for a bike ride — less humid than I’d expected — and I passed people out raking and many Halloween decorations in the upper-middle-class neighborhood I rode through.
Because the nearest dock to where I wanted to go was at Safeway, I stopped to buy cat food and litter. Apparently my unofficial theme for this year’s coffeeneuring is carrying heavy bags of groceries with me. For the record, this is a terrible theme.
Groceries in hand, I walked the block to the French bakery I wanted to stop at because I heard they had a seasonal pumpkin croissant I wanted to try. Unfortunately, they were sold out of said item, and I decided to carry on down the hill on foot.
Next I stopped at a new Italian pastry shop that opened up where a gelato shop used to be (the French bakery used to be a fro-yo shop), but they only had coffee-flavored drinks, which would have been appropriate to the task, but disgusting, so I pressed on another half block to a drink shop I’d been curious about for some time: Kung Fu Tea.
Focusing on bubble tea, Kung Fu Tea is on the second floor over a Korean restaurant. The girl at the counter was very helpful when I explained that I had never had milk tea and asked for her recommendation for a hot variety. She pointed me to the Kung Fu Milk, and I opted to skip the tapioca bubbles this time.
It seems obvious that the restaurant, one in an international chain of bubble tea shops, is aimed at Georgetown students. There was a dearth of furniture and only three food items on the menu, suggesting its clientele tends to be transient and in search of beverages, rather than sustenance. Decor was minimal with only a couple of cases honoring Bruce Lee, a couple of stylized pendant lights, and some cheerful corporate graphics on the wall.
But the tea was warm and sweet, and I enjoyed it as the light faded away. I walked the last couple blocks to the nearest bikeshare dock (Wisconsin and O) and headed home for the night.
Should you ride your own bike there, know the sidewalks are narrow and there is not a lot of room to lock your bike to road signs. You will have better luck locking on one of the cross streets and walking over.
Total mileage: 3.15 miles