* Archinect City Guide: Discover Washington, DC, with architect Andrew Linn, cofounder of BLDUS @bld.us and Visiting Professor of Practice at Virginia Tech's School of Architecture @vtarchschool @vtaad_

Favorite restaurant?

Spicy Water African Grill @spicywaterafricangrill at Eastern Market on the weekends. DC has so many world-class restaurants that I find myself appreciating simple meals in great locations. The guys at Spicy Water pack their Ivorian sandwiches and salads with flavor while the smell of the grill drifts over the lively scene. Peruse the market with food in hand, making sure to find another Ivory Coast native, artist Cherif Mamadou, to feel the underlying mood of the city in his paintings. Adolf Cluss's gorgeous 1871 brick market building serves as a backdrop to the activity.

Favorite bar?

Thursday happy hour at the Library of Congress @librarycongress's Thomas Jefferson Building. The most ornate, elaborate bar in the city features music, performances, and special conversations with people from around the world. While there, check out the Main Reading Room — a space that's meaningful to all Americans but typically reserved for researchers.

Favorite café?

Wine & Butter Cafe & Market @wineandbutterdc on Lincoln Park. Capitol Hill's rowhouses, gardens, and parks offer an authentically historic pedestrian-focused experience centered around its largest and most popular park, Lincoln Park. Wine & Butter is a tiny cafe stocked with everything you'd need for a picnic: charcuterie, cheese, bread and crackers, and fresh pastries. The terrace facing out over the park — complete with little bistro chairs, umbrellas, and a fountain - is one of the most relaxing spots in the city.