Fight For Your Right to Uber!

A few days ago, I wrote a post about Uber’s awesomeness. Well, it turns out that said awesomeness is being threatened by the DC City Council.

Uber announced a lower cost service, UberX, which provides a less expensive Uber option by using an all-hybrid fleet of cars. They were unable to release this service in DC because the DC City Council is trying to make it illegal for Uber to offer lower rates in any form by passing an amendment to the taxi modernization bill.

The real reason behind this amendment is to keep Uber more expensive than taxis and pushing for Uber to be no less than 5 times a taxi’s minimum fare. The Council is voting on the Uber Amendment TODAY.

Now, I understand that Uber can seriously impact business for taxi drivers. However, Uber wouldn’t have such a strong market here in DC if the taxis provided satisfactory service. Too often, people are denied taxi service based on their destination and charged unfairly when there is a high demand. Uber provides a solution to this problem and is simply trying to make their car service available for as many people as possible.

If you don’t agree, no harm done, I am not trying to change your mind. However, if you do agree, take just 5-10 minutes of your time today and call or write as many City Council members as possible to let them know that you want your right to Uber. Their info is below and you can find more info on the Uber Amendment on Uber’s blog.

You can also sign the petition to strike the minimum fare language from the Uber Amendment HERE.

 
 

Pacifico Cantina

As you might remember, I mentioned that I spent my 4th of July celebrating in a few Mexican eateries, one of which was Pacifico Cantina. A relatively new location on Barrack’s Row, Pacifico Cantina is a little taste of Tex-Mex north of the border. Boasting only fresh, never frozen mexican cuisine from executive chef Saul Canesa and visiting Texas-native chef, Ben Berryhill, Pacifico serves up traditional fare including tacos, quesadillas, burritos and made-to-order guacamole.

The interior bar at Pacifico (image courtesy of Pacifico Cantina)

We arrived late in the afternoon last Wednesday and were greeted with a bustling bar and an interior with so much color that it might have been held hostage by a Lisa Frank designer. Strangely enough, it works with the otherwise bare teak wood bar. Securing some seats, we immediately ordered a round of mango beergaritas, aka a corona bottle turned upside down in a glass full of mango margarita. In theory, this is amazing, in practice, the mango and corona were not the best pairing of flavors, but still enjoyable enough for me to finish the whole thing. We then moved on to some guacamole, chips and salsa and quesadillas, as they are half price on Wednesdays. The guacamole was tasty, but the quesadillas were the scene-stealers. Within our group, we had one each of the chicken, wild mushroom and shrimp quesadillas and everyone was raving about them! My husband was less than satisfied with his burrito, but tried one bite of my chicken quesadilla and his faith was restored. We of course went for some more margaritas, but the good old-fashioned traditional kind, on the rocks. We did notice the margaritas ordered from the downstairs, inside bar which much tastier than the ones ordered from the rooftop bar.

Oh, that’s right, I failed to mention the rooftop BAR, Pacifico’s most appealing feature!

A view of Pacifico’s rooftop (image courtesy of Pacifico Cantina)

Outfitted almost exclusively in teak wood, the rooftop transports you to some tropical locale so effectively you almost forget you are sandwiched in between two buildings. There are plenty of high-top tables scattered between a large communal table which is the focal point of the rooftop, featuring a bubbling fountain at its center. The 103 degree temperatures were almost bearable as we watched the sunset over Barracks Row.

All in all, I’d highly recommend checking out Pacifico Cantina. The food is good, but the drinks, novelty and quite frankly, darn well-done rooftop are even better reasons to make the trip to Cap Hill. I’d recommend heading over on a Wednesday to enjoy the half price quesadillas, which are delicious!

Other specials include:

  • Sunday – half price sangria and nachos
  • Monday – half price tacos
  • Tuesday – half price margaritas
  • Wednesday – half price quesadillas

It is a great place to go before or after a Nats game, too!

 
 

Uber-riffic!

If you haven’t heard of Uber yet, get out a pen and paper and prepare to take notes. Or just get out your phone and prepare to visit the App store, because you’ll want to hit download shortly.

The first time I heard of Uber, I was trying to hail a cab, which was proving extremely difficult since not a single one had driven by in 10 minutes. My friend then exclaimed, “Let’s Uber!” To which I responded, “Ok lady, I know we’ve been drinking, but I don’t think chanting German words will help us right now.” Then she hit a few buttons on her phone, and in the short time it took her to explain the magic of uber to me, a fancy schmancy town car suddenly appeared, ready to take us to our destination of choice.

Uber is described an “on-demand private driver.” That statement probably strikes fear into the hearts of all of us who attempting to stick to a budget. Private driver = $$$. On-demand? Even more $$$. But no, Uber breaks down all of their costs for you, so you know exactly what kind of deal you are getting. You can expect a $7 base charge and $3.25 per mile (if you’re under 11 mph, you’ll pay $.75 per minute), with a $15 minimum total charge. Is it more expensive than a taxi ($3.00 minimum and $2.16 per mile)? Yes. Is it exponentially better than a taxi? Yes. Is it a lifesaver when you can’t get a taxi? Hell yes.

So how do you Uber? Take a trip to the App store on your iPhone or Android device and download the Uber app. Enter in the requested info, including your desired credit card. Next time you need to hitch a ride, go ahead and open your Uber app, set your pickup location and then Uber dispatches a driver to you. You’ll receive a text with an estimated arrival time and your driver’s profile. You can check to see how close the driver is on the map and they’ll have your number so they can call you in case they have any trouble reaching you. The best part, you don’t have to have cash because your credit card on file is automatically charged and tip is included, so don’t worry about giving your driver anything extra. Be sure to rate your driver post-ride – and be nice, it helps them out, too! Uber chooses their drivers based on their ratings and if a driver falls below a certain rating, Uber will not work with them anymore.

As of today, Uber now offers the choice of an SUV only option. This is significantly more expensive, but it makes complete sense if you and your friends are rolling deep (i.e. more than 4).

So, what have we learned?:

  1. Download Uber. Now.
  2. Use Uber whenever you are in a bind if you are on a budget.
  3. Use Uber all the time if you are not on a budget.
  4. If you’re not going far, try to use a cab. remember, there is a $15 minimum charge.
  5. Use Uber if you are out with a 5 or more friends so you can share one vehicle instead of trying to convince a cab driver that yes, the six of you really can squeeze in the backseat.

Another tip, you can use Uber in other cities too. When I was in San Francisco last week, we couldn’t find a taxi so I just opened my Uber app and 5 minutes later, we were off in an Uber vehicle!