From worst of times to ‘Best Of’ time

While Official Washington has been busy making us look bad to the rest of the world, we at Express have been hard at work tallying your votes for what makes the real Washington great. The result: the definitive guide to the best stuff in the D.C. area in 2013.

Inconsistently yours

Early in her career, novelist Ann Patchett tried supporting her fiction habit by waitressing on the side. In a new essay collection, she shares real-life stories. Well, mostly real.

Brewing a revolution

The same locovore movement that’s driving restaurants and farmers markets is now extending to beer-making: The District now boasts six breweries and neighboring states have dozens more.

Face Time: Rachel Roy

We talked with Rachel Roy, the Cali-born iconic designer, about her career path, her affordable secondary line and fall trends (hello, leather!).

Man, those are nice shoes

Dear Manolo, My engineer husband needs a new pair of shoes. He has had the same pair of black wingtips for the last 20 years, which he wears to every function that requires shoes more formal than sneakers. Can you suggest something brown?

Quite the spectacle

This week's coolest products and events, including the winter line of knitwear from DeNada designs, the Isabel Marant launch at H&M; and a new line of skincare from super model Miranda Kerr.

The camera lies

The opening scene of Monday night’s episode of NBC’s “The Blacklist" took place on the D.C. Metro. But if you believed it was actually filmed here, you've obviously been hanging with the mayor of Toronto.