2606 Georgia Ave. NW

CLOSED: May 24

REOPENED: not yet cleared to operate by city but was open on June 21

HISTORY: A health-department official says the restaurant was cited on Aug. 20, 2004, for unclean equipment and the absence of a certified food manager. “It was just basically dirty back then,” says the official.

HEALTH DEPARTMENT SAYS: evidence of rodents, unclean equipment

BUSINESS SAYS: It’s a conspiracy. The politically themed vegan eatery, affiliated with the African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem, is apparently the victim of Stygian machinations stretching far beyond crudded-up equipment. “It ain’t about the health department at all. It’s a little bit deeper than that,” says manager Ahkibah Yehuda. What it’s about, exactly, he declines to say. “I’m not going to make any insinuations—anybody who knows [us] will know what the real deal is about it all,” he says. “But certainly whoever it is has managed to make a statement and print a statement that would give some credence to a perception.” The manager then cuts off all further questions: “We are thankful we are able to continue our service to the community here.”

—John Metcalfe