Food Stuff

I once spent a week in New Orleans, during which I went to Café du Monde four times. The venerable open-air French Market spot serves distinctive chicory-infused café au lait and beignets (powdered-sugary rectangles of fried dough). Sure, it’s a tourist trap, but what a tourist trap! Despite crowds, fights for a table, and pigeons swooping under the capacious tent roof, that coffee and those pillowy not-quite-doughnuts made it all worthwhile. So, I was thrilled to learn about Bossa Nova Coffee Bar at Celestin’s Restaurant and Voodou Lounge in Midtown. There’s a range of breakfast choices, from Cali-style yogurt and granola to French-leaning baguettes or quiche, but I made a beeline for the Big Easy. A plate of warm beignets with milky coffee is just $3.75, and it will satisfy (and surpass) any doughnut cravings. Bossa Nova may lack the bustle of New Orleans—you won’t have to battle for a seat—but, on the plus side, there’s not a pigeon in sight. 1815 K Street, (916) 444-2423.