Adams Morgan

Columbia Road and Calvert Street NW
Washington, DC

Submitted by: Dan Malouff

Not the typical neighborhood that you would expect to find in Washington, DC.

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Why It Works

Vivacious. Georgetown may be more famous, but city-dwellers know the real place to be is Adams Morgan. It's hip but not yuppified, diverse but not preachy, safe but still gritty, cool but not uppity, and fun but not taken over by Starbucks and Disney. Adams Morgan is, for many, the toast of the DC urban experience.

Physically, Adams Morgan benefits - or suffers from (depending on your point of view) - a location just north of the original planned city, and is sandwiched between the Georgia Avenue corridor and Rock Creek Park. That all means two things: 1) Adams Morgan is off the proverbial beaten path, hidden from suburban gentrification; and 2) its street network is based on European design rather than the grid, which has created a more intimate, less predictable environment. Thus, Adams Morgan is in many ways an antithesis to Washington at large. It's not monumental nor is it high-profile. Rather, it caters to the resident and the sidewalk vendor.

Adams Morgan represents not just a hip hang out; for many it represents an ideal. It's fantastically interesting, unmistakably urban, dense and busy, but still manages to pander to the person rather than the group.

What Makes Adams Morgan a Great Place?

There is no direct Metro access, but Woodley Park, Dupont Circle and Columbia Heights are all easy walks.

Adams Morgan is off the grid. It's not the kind of neighborhood one expects to find in DC.

Very mixed. There is a lot to do in this walkable neighborhood, great shops, restaurants, bars, and more.

Since it's somewhat off the beaten path, Adams Morgan isn't heavily visited by tourists. Even many "local" suburbanites don't seem aware it exists.

User Comments:

> Add your own comment about Adams Morgan

03/08/05 Jake W said:: I like Adams Morgan, but it wasn't a good choice for inclusion in this list. Here's why:
1. It's a great place to visit, but living there is another matter. There are some fun and quirky boutique stores, bars, nightclubs, and restaurants. But there isn't many nearby (walkable) options for the buying the basics of what you need to get through the week.
2. A *huge* issue that I can't believe PPS missed: Adams Morgan is not convenient to any metro lines. It's a long hike to get to either the Dupont or Woodley Park metro stations.
3. If you spent the time to look at housing costs in the neighborhood, you'd realize that calling it "off the radar" was off the mark. It's had a huge jump in housing costs over the past couple of years.
4. Little detail that isn't so little: residents of the community pay taxes but get no meaningful representation in congress. Democracy is part of what makes for a succesful place, and with that in mind, I'd like to encourage PPS to help the citizens of this community get the same voting rights that the rest of the country enjoys. I know, for those outside of DC this probably sounds like an out-of-left-field, but believe me, the lack of voting rights is something very integrally linked to community here in DC (just look out at license plates--"Taxation Without Representaiton"-- if you have any doubt about the widespread depth of feeling around this).
5. While it hasn't entirely followed Georgetown's decent into becoming just a bland outdoor upscale mall of national retailers, it's not off the retail radar as you suggest. The primary intersection of the community (18th & Columbia) is "anchored" by a McDonalds and Starbucks.
I think there are some wildly succesful and growing communities here in DC that deserve the attention of PPS, but I'm afraid the write-up of Adams Morgan here makes me think that you didn't spend much time in the community you were writing about. Or if you did, that it was many years ago.
If you wanted to pick a well established neighborhood in DC, why not Dupont Circle. Unlike Adams Morgan it has a vibrant public space, is much more "liveable" as a neighborhood, is walking distance to jobs that actually pay enough to live in the housing there, and that has its own metro stop.
If you'd like to consider some emerging communities, consider the 14th & U Corridor, which is a bit like the old adams morgan that you're describing here, and which has a metro stop. (Again, I'm just dumbfounded that PPS would choose a neighborhood that isn't well connected to its city's public metro.)
04/14/05 Jennifer Hefferan said:: I love Adams Morgan. It is my absolute favorite neighborhood in DC and perhaps the nation. This vibrant neighborhood is very well connected to the rest of the city. It's only a short walk to three different metro stations and is on numerous bus routes including one that runs more frequently than just about any other in the city (the 42). Adams Morgan has one of the highest residential densities in the U.S. and about one third of the driving-age population does not own a car. I've been living car-free in Adams Morgan for about three years and recently joined one of the local car-sharing programs but have found that I haven't actually needed a car for anything. I can walk nearly anywhere I need to go. Perhaps my favorite thing about Adams Morgan is its diversity. When I walk down the street I see people of all different ages, races, and socio-economic backgrounds and I hear people speaking numerous languages.
05/05/05 Asa Foss said:: Adams Morgan also has a unique and organic feeling of 'realness': like it's meant to be there, and will always last--while still remaining dynamic. What truly makes Adams Morgan a great place is not only its diversity, but that no matter what time of day it is, there is life on the streets. In the day, there are people shopping and running errands, or sipping coffee and eating lunch outside. At night, there is a plethora of dining options, with an equally impressive array of nightclubs and bars. There is something for everyone, and it shows by the (dare I say it again) diverse groups of people that inhabit the area. There are also two parks, a community center and reliable public transit.
07/19/05 Christian Calleri said:: As a resident of Adams Morgan, I support its inclusion in the list of great neighborhoods. I moved here 2 years ago, and have been living car free and loving every minute of living in this beautiful, diverse, vibrant place. It is a neighborhood in the best sense of that word. More diverse than anyplace this world has to offer (outside of New York City that is). The food, pulse of life, packed streets, festivals...just wonderful. The only downside is having to put up with the flabby suburbanites who truck in from Virginia each Friday and Saturday to visit our bars and restaurants. They ought to move into the city and be real residents, supporting this wonderful city and not just abusing it with the wheels of their SUVs!
07/25/05 Linda Eastman said:: Another aspect I enjoyed there years ago was a seasonal farmers' market at 18th and Columbia on Saturdays. It brought together a broad cross-section of the neighborhood in a community setting.
09/05/05 John Denning said:: Adam Morgan isn't particularly special. It has been redeveloped and gentrifying over the past 15 years, is uppity and trendy, and not particularly friendly. The entire DC area is astonishingly racist, and Adams Morgan is no exception. If one were really seeking a "Great Place" in the DC area, perhaps Takoma Park or the area near Howard University would fit the bill.
06/01/06 Catherine M said:: I'll agree that it's funky and relatively convienent metro-wise and walking-wise but I shudder to imagine what dealing with the throngs of severely intoxicated underage/barely legal college students (the frat type not the bookish type), assorted interns and young urban professionals on a mission who flock to "the morgue" on a near-nightly basis would be like. I actually know what it's like--and it includes vomit on the sidewalks. Count me out. My neighborhood has all of the Adams Morgan walkability and amenities, a similar metro situation, one of the lowest crime rates in the DC area. Major differences are that it errs more on the "quaint" side rather than "funky" side---but not by much and I don't have to put up with 22 year old drunk guys in polo shirts calling each other "bra".
10/06/06 Rachel Stewart said:: No, no, no. Adams Morgan is NOT a good choice for Washington, DC. The spine of the area, 18th Street, has too many cars and not enough sidewalk-width; the night life attracts rough crowds, especially on weekend evening (ask the local police about that). It's is basically a STREET, for heavens sake! Dupont Circle is a much much better nominee (especially for a group that loves Le Jardin du Luxembourg) . . . there are places to sit and relax day or night, to play chess, to sunbathe on the grass, or to cool one's feet in the fountain. Has a Metro station next door. Is centrally located in a thriving restaurant and art gallery area along Connecticut Avenue, P Street and 17th Street; with residential neighborhoods surrounding 3/4 of the circle; enjoys a hugely popular farmers' market on Sunday mornings one block from the circle. The major defect is the heavy traffic morning & evening running around the circle during rush-hours.
12/21/06 Katie Lima said:: I live in Dupont Circle, claimed to be one of the "great neighborhoods" of Washington, DC. I do not refute that it has its merits, but I do not consider it a "great place" with its eye towards tourists, growing numbers of chain stores pushing out the local businesses, and it's upscale atmosphere. It simply does not feel like a "real place." It feels like a place itended to draw tourists, not residents. For a real place, I walk up the street to Adams Morgan. Part of its charm is precisely because it's not perfect. It is easily accessible by many buses and a short walk from the rail station. Many of the stores are actually useful to residents, such as a hardware store and a small organic grocery store. It has people young and old, with many languages spoken into the air and wonderful aroma of cuisine from around the world. That's unique...and a great place.