Making a statement against credit card “junk” processing fees, D.C.’s veteran-owned Compass Coffee invited today’s Navy Yard customers to buy their brew with digital dollars instead. The one-day pilot with Coinbase coincides with the global crypto exchange’s Update the System Summit conference in the nation’s capital. While mega-chains like Starbucks and Subway have recently started accepting payments in Bitcoin and the like, it’s rare for a small business like Compass to get into crypto. Today’s Half Street SE customers can scan a QR code to pay with USDC — a so-called “stablecoin” that acts like a digital dollar — and sip cups rebranded with Coinbase facts on “unnecessary transaction fees” pocketed by big banks. Decade-old Compass, which loses almost 4 percent in revenues to every credit card swipe, says its global bean suppliers could also financially benefit from using faster digital dollars. Coinbase tells Eater it’s teaming with Compass to “show D.C. a real-life example of how money can move with the speed and ease of the internet, without the middleman hiking up fees.” The unlikely partnership could blossom this year into the implementation of an actual crypto-accepting system across its 16 local cafes.
A female-led restaurant on a mission is coming to D.C.
M. Frances, a newly announced restaurant that functions as a nonprofit through the LEE Initiative, is opening in the Union Market district later this summer (1252 4th Street NE). Over its five-year lifespan, M. Frances will double as a case study in providing independent restaurateurs with real-time research on ways to improve sustainability, innovation, and labor practices. The all-female culinary team is comprised of chefs Amy Brandwein (Centrolina, Piccolina), Taylor Davis (Nami Steakhouse), AuCo Lai (Star Hill Provisions), Liliana Myers (Safta), and Lisa Donovan (NYT food writer).
More ways to fuel up at D.C.’s area airports
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) just announced 15 fresh concessions opening at Reagan National Airport and Dulles International Airport this year. Most are retail names, but there’s one big restaurant to note. DCA will welcome an outpost of Mi Vida, Knead Hospitality + Design’s stylish Mexican eatery with D.C. locations at the Wharf, Logan Circle, and Chinatown. Maryland-based chain Nalley Fresh will also bring its salads, wraps, and bowls across the Potomac. In less-exciting news, IAD and DCA will each get a new Starbucks.