In today’s episode of “Matt About Town,” we’re heading to Lucky Pup Yoga to try out some moves and experience the joy of posing with puppies.
A new yoga studio in Adams Morgan is bringing wellness — and cute, fluffy, four-legged companions — to D.C.!
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New puppy yoga studio opening in AdMo!
In today’s episode of “Matt About Town,” we’re heading to Lucky Pup Yoga to try out some moves and experience the joy of posing with puppies.
Lucky Pup isn’t your run-of-the-mill studio. Founded by co-owners Sophia Bonde and military veteran Tyler Shea, the business contributes to dog fostering efforts, working dog facilities and local shelters in the D.C. area. They also work with ethical veteran dog breeders.
While puppy yoga is offered on weekends, the studio offers plenty of regular classes with certified yogis during the week, too.
Lucky Pup has only been open for about three weeks, and, as we found out, the dogs who come by to visit aren’t much older than that!
To learn more about Lucky Pup, and experience a cuteness overload, head to their website.
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Amid controversy over the misuse of funds at Voice of America, displaced staff are raising awareness through a comedy fundraiser in D.C.
In March, President Donald Trump signed an executive order firing hundreds of journalists and other employees at the Voice of America, an international multimedia broadcast news service funded by the U.S. government run by the United States Agency for Global Media.
It was part of the Trump administration’s efforts to radically reshape the federal government by eliminating tens of thousands of positions across the government.
Many lawsuits ensued, and judges issued temporary restraining orders blocking the effort, which some observers have called illegal.
A movement emerged among the displaced employees called #SAVEVOA, and it seeks to raise awareness about the agency and funds for struggling employees.
Kate Neeper served as director of strategy and performance assessment for USAGM and is one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit that aims to stop the administration’s efforts.
She told WTOP about their latest effort to benefit VOA employees: A comedy show.
“A colleague of ours got in touch with this organization that I guess has been running a number of fundraisers for folks affected by everything that’s been happening in the federal government in the last few months. And they offered to host a fundraiser for the SAVEVOA campaign,” Neeper said.
The acting head of USAGM, Kari Lake, cited “radical propaganda” and misuse of taxpayer funds as reasons for the firings. A continuing resolution passed by Congress the same month had provided funding for VOA and its sister networks through September 2025.
“We just want people to know what VOA does,” Neeper said. “We want them to really understand … that there’s been this American government-funded press outlet established for 83 years, talking about what’s happening in the world to people who live in places where they don’t have press freedom.”
The show is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 25, at the Festival Center in Adams Morgan. The lineup hasn’t been settled yet, but they are offering prizes for the best Halloween costume. You can learn more about the event and purchase tickets here.
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A woman has been critically injured after getting her ar, m caught in an elevator door on Friday evening in Washington, D.C.
A woman has been critically injured after getting her arm caught in an elevator door on Friday evening in Washington, D.C.
According to officials, the D.C. EMS and Fire Department rescued the woman and brought her to a hospital with life-threatening injuries.
The D.C. Department of Buildings was alerted about the incident last night at a building in the 2400 block of 16th Street NW, in the Adams Morgan neighborhood. A DOB chief inspection official responded on the scene and ordered the elevator removed from service.
“DOB will investigate to determine the cause of any elevator malfunction and assess the safety of the equipment. The elevator will remain out of service until DOB deems it safe to operate,” Gwen Cofield, chief communications officer of the DOB, said in an email statement.
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A new documentary tells the story of artists who moved to D.C. after fleeing El Salvador in the 1980s and have found solace in their art forms.
Edwin dancing on Mount Pleasant Street in D.C.
(Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”)
Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”
Many families from El Salvador ended up in D.C., particularly in Mount Pleasant and Adams Morgan.
(Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”)
Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”
Aviles said the largest Latin American immigrant group in the region is from El Salvador.
(Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”)
Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”
Aviles believes that the art featured in the film showcases how each artist found some sort of peace.
(Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”)
Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”
The film documents how Aviles, and four other artists who relocated to D.C., tried to come to terms with what they’d lived through in El Salvador, and what they were experiencing in their new home.
(Courtesy “The Most Beautiful Deaths In The World”)
WTOP celebrates National Hispanic Heritage Month this Sept. 15 through Oct. 15, with stories spotlighting the contributions, culture and accomplishments of Hispanic communities across the D.C. region.
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Artists who fled El Salvador for DC are focus of new documentary
When he walks down Mount Pleasant Street, in Northwest D.C., Quique Aviles is repeatedly greeted by people who know him, from his decades as a poet, performer and community activist.
Born in El Salvador, Aviles fled when he was 15, “Because of the civil war that broke out in 1980 between the leftist guerrillas and the military dictators that he been in power for more than 50 years.”
Many families from El Salvador ended up in D.C., particularly in Mount Pleasant and Adams Morgan.
“The war kind of put the migration at warp speed,” said Aviles. “When your house is on fire, you run, right? So we ran. And for some reason, a lot of Salvadorans came to D.C.”
During a WTOP interview, Aviles returned to 3045 15th Street NW, near the intersection of Irving Street and 16th Street.
“This was the Latin American Youth Center. This was my after-school place. I lived down the street. And this is where I became an artist,” Aviles recalled.
The youth center was located next door to what was known as the Wilson Center, in the basement of the Central Presbyterian Church, which became a legendary D.C. punk venue through the 1980s.
“We all had something in common,” said Aviles. “This was a hub of political activism.”
The film documents how Aviles, and four other artists who relocated to D.C., tried to come to terms with what they’d lived through in El Salvador, and what they were experiencing in their new home.
“The different types of arts that are featured in the film shows you how each one of us that came from this very troubled situation found some kind of solace, no?”
Aviles said the largest Latin American immigrant group in the region is from El Salvador.
“We thought we were just passing by, fleeing the war, and when it’s over we would go back,” said Aviles, “But you fall in love, you get a good job, you buy a house, you have kids, and all of a sudden we had roots here, and we stayed.”
Today, walking through Mount Pleasant, evidence of the Trump administration’s recent federal law enforcement surge is present in flyers posted on utility boxes and sidewalks.
“It kind of has this feel, right now, that we’re living in the same situation that made us come here in the first place,” Aviles said. “For us, seeing troops, people my age, that brings back a lot of baggage, and a lot of discomfort.”
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After being filmed throwing a sandwich at a law enforcement agent, Sean Charles Dunn is becoming the face of D.C. resistance as his likeness is being used in artwork throughout the region.
Street art in Washington D.C. in the style of Banksy, which references the recent incident where a man threw a sandwich at a federal officer.
(WTOP/Jimmy Alexander)
WTOP/Jimmy Alexander
Posters of a person throwing a sandwich are pictured along H Street, Sunday, Aug. 17, 2025, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson
WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 10: A man, who was later arrested. for assaulting law enforcement with a sandwich, interacts with Border Patrol and FBI agents along the U Street corridor on August 10, 2025, in Washington, DC. U.S. President Donald Trump ordered an increased presence of federal law enforcement to Washington, DC in an effort to curb crime.
(Photo by Andrew Leyden/Getty Images)
Photo by Andrew Leyden/Getty Images
WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 21: A person walks past Banksy-style posters of a protester throwing a sandwich on August 21, 2025 in Washington, DC. The Trump administration has deployed federal officers and the National Guard to the District in order to place the DC Metropolitan Police Department under federal control and assist in crime prevention in the nation’s capital. A Justice Department employee who threw a sub sandwich at a federal agent in an act of defiance has turned into a city icon for protest.
(Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images
A protester holds up a loaf of bread in front of the White House as Thousands march through Washington D.C. in protest of Donald Trump’s use of federal agents and the National Guard to conduct policing actions throughout the city. August 16, 2025 (Photo by Dominic Gwinn / Middle East Images via AFP)
(Photo by DOMINIC GWINN/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
Photo by DOMINIC GWINN/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
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How ‘the sandwich guy’ became the face of DC resistance
Though some call it a sub, others call it a hoagie or a grinder. But after Sean Charles Dunn was filmed throwing a foot-long sandwich at a federal law enforcement agent on Aug. 11 in D.C., he became known as “the sandwich guy.”
Now, artwork depicting his likeness has covered the District of Columbia.
Since the incident, Dunn was arrested on an assault charge, the video went viral, he was fired from his job at the Justice Department and prosecutors failed to indict the Air Force veteran for hitting the Customs and Border Protection agent in the chest with the sandwich.
He’s also become the face of D.C.’s resistance to the law enforcement surge implemented by President Donald Trump’s administration.
In homage to graffiti artist Banksy’s “Flower Thrower,” images of Dunn throwing the sandwich started popping up on buildings around the District and T-shirts worn by Washingtonians.
Speaking to some D.C. residents in front of “the sandwich thrower” image on Columbus Road in Adams Morgan, WTOP tried to find out why so many have thrown their support behind Dunn.
“I think it’s more of like a folk hero thing,’’ Connor told WTOP. “He’s just sort of a symbol for the emotion that everybody is feeling, watching people get abducted off the streets and mistreated and manhandled.”
Another D.C. resident, John, was not sure if the image is the face of resistance, but rather just an embodiment for the pent up feelings many in the District have had for a long time.
“Not being a state and not having representation here, it feels like we are powerless against literally anything anyone wants to do to us and against us,” John said.
A native North Carolinian was more blunt in her description of D.C.’s infatuation with “the sandwich guy.”
“We’re highlighting the ridiculousness of it,” Betsy Jordan said.
She said Dunn being charged for a felony for throwing a sandwich was extreme.
“Just like frogs in a pile of hot water, they get used to it so they don’t jump out. We are getting used to things being normalized,” Jordan said.
The sandwich throw heard around the world
Someone who has really delved into the artistic expression of resistance is Lorraine, a former D.C. resident who now lives in Virginia and creates T-shirts, tote bags and enamel pins inspired by Dunn on her Etsy account, RainyMorningPrints.
Each item has D.C.’s flag on the front with the two red stripes replaced by a sub sandwich.
“It really did start off as like a joke in passing. I do, otherwise, very nonpolitical linoleum prints as a hobby, just as like a creative outlet,” Lorraine told WTOP.
With everything going on, Lorraine said she had people in her life who were worried, and she was trying to make someone chuckle.
Tote bag design inspired by “the sandwich guy” that is available through Lorraine’s Rainy Morning Prints Etsy account. (Courtesy Rainy Morning Prints)
“People started reaching out about, you know, wanting to buy the print, wanting, like, some form of this to purchase,” she said.
At first, Lorraine admitted feeling uncomfortable for not only not being a professional artist, but also for Dunn’s situation.
“The man who threw the sandwich was potentially facing prison time, and it didn’t feel right to me to try and make a quick buck off of that,” Lorraine said.
Now, thanks to the 600 items that Lorraine has sold over the last two weeks, she has donated $12,000 to local charities, including the Capital Area Food Bank, Thrive DC and Miriam’s Kitchen.
“Maybe this will help out these organizations in a time when their services are really sorely needed, probably more than usual,” Lorraine said.
WTOP asked Lorraine if she had a message for Dunn.
“Thank you for inspiring this community movement, whether you meant to or not when you first decided to do what you did that night. I think a lot of good has come out of it, just for the community, as we can see with this huge amount of donated money,” she said.
In a very ironic coincidence, while researching the history of the D.C. flag, Lorraine discovered it was designed in 1938 by graphic designer Charles Dunn — no known relation.
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Ten people are out of their homes after an apartment fire in the District’s Adams-Morgan neighborhood Sunday afternoon.
D.C. Fire and EMS responded to an apartment building on fire in the 2400 block of 17th Street Northwest in Washington, D.C. on April 21, 2024.
(Courtesy, DC Fire and EMS)
Courtesy, DC Fire and EMS
D.C. Fire and EMS responded to an apartment building on fire in the 2400 block of 17th Street Northwest in Washington, D.C. on April 21, 2024.
(Courtesy, DC Fire and EMS)
Courtesy, DC Fire and EMS
D.C. Fire and EMS responded to an apartment building on fire in the 2400 block of 17th Street Northwest in Washington, D.C. on April 21, 2024.
(Courtesy, DC Fire and EMS)
Courtesy, DC Fire and EMS
D.C. Fire and EMS responded to an apartment building on fire in the 2400 block of 17th Street Northwest in Washington, D.C. on April 21, 2024.
(Courtesy, DC Fire and EMS)
Courtesy, DC Fire and EMS
Ten people are out of their homes after an apartment fire in the District’s Adams-Morgan neighborhood Sunday afternoon.
D.C. Fire says it got the call around 3 p.m. for a reported blaze in the 2400 block of 17th Street Northwest between.
Reports say smoke was coming from a second-floor bedroom when fire crews arrived on the scene.
Officials evacuated the building and quickly put the fire under control. Euclid Street and Kalorama Road, which were closed to traffic while first responders fought the fire, reopened to traffic at around 9:30 p.m.
No injuries were reported, though there was some damage to the structure. Officials say the seven adults, three children and one dog displaced after the fire are getting help from Red Cross.
Officials haven’t shared what caused the fire.
An approximate location of the incident is included below.
WTOP’s Ivy Lyons contributed to this report.
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The former Mintwood Place, a longtime restaurant in D.C.’s Adams Morgan that closed two years ago, has reopened as Namak, an Eastern Mediterranean restaurant.
The former Mintwood Place in D.C.’s Adams Morgan has reopened as Namak, an upscale casual Eastern Mediterranean restaurant. (Courtesy Scott Suchman)
The former Mintwood Place in D.C.’s Adams Morgan has reopened as Namak, an upscale casual Eastern Mediterranean restaurant. (Courtesy Scott Suchman)
The former Mintwood Place, a longtime restaurant in D.C.’s Adams Morgan that closed two years ago, has reopened as Namak, an upscale casual Eastern Mediterranean restaurant.
Saied Azali, owner of the former Mintwood Place, and business partner John Cidre have brought on chef Tolgahan Gulyiyen for a menu of spreads, soups and salads, mezze, kebabs and entrees, with spices sourced from Turkey and surrounding areas. Gulyiyen, a native of Turkey, formerly of Zaytinya in D.C. and Nostos in Vienna, Virginia.
The former Mintwood Place space, on 1813 Columbia Road in Northwest D.C., has been redesigned with blue-and-white Mediterranean tiles and nautical accents. Inside, it seats 90 people with a large bar. The outdoor patio fronting Columbia Road remains.
Azali, Cidre and Tolgahan said Namak is inspired by their travels across the Eastern Mediterranean.
Azali and Cidre are D.C. restaurant veterans. Azali owns Perry’s next door, the multilevel restaurant with rooftop bar going on 40 years, known for its Sunday drag brunches. Cidre is co-owner of Unconventional Diner in Shaw.
“Namak embodies the flavors I hold dear. It is the Farsi word for salt, but for Iranians like me, it connotes hospitality and generosity and I hope it becomes a cherished destinations for our community,” said Azali.
Namak is open Tuesdays through Saturdays for dinner. Lunch and weekend brunch will be added later this year.
