Go Mama Go!

Hey! We’re not closed yet! Not till March 31, 2011.
The business has struggled the past couple years since the original owner passed away & the economy got all lame … so the new owner, her husband, Jonathon, has been looking for someone to take over the lease. Though many restaurants & other business concepts considered it, it didn’t happen. So he’s waiting out the lease ending in March.
In the meantime, please VISIT us! This is such a special store… like a creative little family… the employees all contribute art. Lots of regulars & artists pass through. I guarantee it’ll brighten your day. Earth-​friendly, unique, rich history of supporting the local community, the arts, & very GLBT-​friendly.
In the couple years I’ve worked there part-​time, so many people have shared warm stories of the original owner, Noi, who was quite the neighborhood rockstar. They even threw a parade in honor of her when she passed away.
January-​March 2011 will be full of lots of events at go mama go! & I’m betting a big sale at the very end. Artist receptions, poetry performances, theater, drag shows (employee & performer Special Agent Galactica is behind Ganymede Arts, the ones who built a great theater in the back of the store)… come watch &/​or if you’re an artist maybe you can participate.
Gift shop + art gallery + theater = Swing by ;)
P. S. If you need another excuse to visit, our neighbors include Pulp (the best card shop in town), Busboys & Poets, Café Collage, Saint Ex, ACKC (chocolate), nearby yoga studios, etc. Oh, & Black Cat (which you’ve of course heard of) is right next door.

RIP, Noi. Go Mama Go was the original. The best. A Pioneer in the neighborhood. It will be open til March and then be out of business.

After being one of the first kids on the block, go mama go is closing! So sad as it is a great spot on 14^th street, but we wish the owner good luck in whatever comes next.

I was completely oblivious about this place until the gallery I volunteer for occasionally held a reception here. It’s a cool store that has alot of international-​themed kitchen items like teapots, bowls, cups, etc. The continent most represented in the store is Asia. I was almost tempted to buy one of their small cast-​iron Chinese teapots they had for sale. The owner, who I’ve met, is very nice, as is the rest of the staff. Almost everything in the store I couldn’t see myself buying, either because it was just too fancy or modern or just too expensive. It’s a store to find an interesting gift for someone.

I was excited to receive a gift certificate to this place! It made me even more excited that it was printed by hand on a cool little card!
Then, I heard the sad news. As we have heard so much recently, another business is going to close. So, I headed on down to check out what they might have so I could use the gift before they ran out of cool things.
I have to agree that after visiting this store several times, it can be a good place for gifts, but they dabble in so many things that it sometimes is difficult to pinpoint what exactly they are trying to sell here.
Ended up with some cool Japanese bowls and a set of cobalt blue glasses created and recycled from some glass water bottles.
The staff was very friendly and the owner went above and beyond to answer any questions I had about the art that was hanging on the wall. He even offered to contact his suppliers to do a special order for me if necessary. It is businesses like these that I wish could continue to operate. It is a shame so many other people do not seem to value customer service in this day and age.

I think Aisha M sums this place up quite well: «It’s got a lot of stuff but I can’t really see bringing any of into my house.» Baaaaaasically…
I’d passed the place a ton of times, getting a slight giggle off the name, but never *quite* enticed to go in. LT and I stopped in during the Dog Days sale, mostly cajoled by the guy selling sno-​cones in front of the store. I walked in and made that «What the… hell?» face. I couldn’t help it. Lots of knick-​knacks, mostly Asian-​themed, but nothing that seemed very useful or tasteful for decorating. Lots of little Buddha statues, tiny tiny spoons, other random things that I can’t even remember. They did, however, have some beautiful rugs, lots of Marimekko bags (although, I swear, I saw the same ones in the Marimekko for Target collection. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but the price they sell for at this store made me go into that «What the… hell?» face again), and some great tea kettles. But that’s abooooout it. Yep.
Oh, and there’s a weird little incline in floor in the middle of the store that you WILL trip on. I promise.

At the risk of sounding melodramatic, I have to agree that DC lost a treasure when Noi passed away.
And seriously, even the haters admit the stuff is cute and fun! Just pick up a few things, wrap them up (better yet, have them wrapped by the staff), stick them in your closet, and there you have your very own stock of crowd-​pleasers. No emergency trips to the mall on your way to a party for the host/​hostess gift you forgot about.
I don’t find their prices objectionable, and trust me, I’m no baller. True, it’s not Bed Bath and Beyond, but neither is it Neiman Marcus.

I am a Go Mama Go window shopper. I think I’ve only bought things like once or twice over the years of browsing here. I think the stuff that they have here (as others have said, mostly Asian inspired) are really great pieces to look at and admire… but I don’t purchase. It’s not because I don’t LIKE the things here… I do… they’re just a bit out of my price range… and I don’t have my own home to decorate.
Now, if you’ve got some expendable income, and either a friend you’re shopping for, or for yourself… then you might want to look here and see if any unique pieces catch your eye. I love the candle holders that make it look like there are rows, and rows of candles, just from one strip… so pretty.
At the very least, Go Mama Go is a place you should stop into if you’re in the area, just to take a look and see. But, if you’re like a bull in a china shop… be careful because a lot of the stuff here is breakable.

Would you really pay $ 3 for a teeny tiny spoon that is probably even too small to feed a baby? Or $ 80 for a silver dumb bell? (I’m pretty sure you can get dumb bells of the same size for $ 6 at Target, one metro stop north.)
Sure, the store is cute and filled with lots of gift-​y things (think plates, stationery, lotions, candles, sushi sets, Asian stuff, African stuff, etc.)…however I think I’d rather photograph them than buy them. The prices are ridiculous and you could probably find just as nice stuff for significantly less at a flea market.
To sum it up: fun to look at, too expensive to purchase — especially in this economy!

Go mama go is so lost on me. It’s got a lot of stuff but I can’t really see bringing any of into my house. If I was going to decorate a room in an Asian theme then I would probably love this place. However when it’s time for me to finally purchase that sushi set I will stop here first.

I love this place. They have beautiful things. Anytime friends and family come into town I take them here for great souvenirs and gifts. The staff can be a bit… gruff maybe? But, great place!

It’s alright… but not what it’s hyped up to be. It’s got a great selection of pottery-​dishes, stationary, lotions, and pricey hand-​crafted goods from Africa. But so do the folks at Eastern Market.
Plus, the gifts in here are just a little too cliché… like the iron art in the back of the store that says «diva» or «love» or «bitch» …I’m just not really getting it.
Plus there’s so much crap stuffed in to this tiny space that I feel like my shopping bags are going to knock over some glazed clay bowl.

BEST source for sushi sets. Chock-​full of unique and international gifts. Pricey-​pricey-​pricey. But seriously: where does one find caviar bowl with a shell spoon (required for serving caviar!)? Or a cup made of horn? Or porcupine quills, sold by the quill? Or perfect-​sized slate cheese serving trays? Or credit-​card-​sized zip wallets (Ok, maybe Eastern Market has those). Or a large clear serving bowl/​art piece fused to a glass fish that forms the base? Or all manner of writing journal imaginable?
Did I mention sushi sets? Glass, metal, pottery… they’ve got ‘em. Save up ’cause they ain’t cheap. But they’re the best. Get what you pay for.

A lot of funky mostly Asian inspired decorative stuff here. I always shop here for friends who are more stylish than me. Nothing in here is a necessity, so in my book this place is pretty much a drain on the wallet, but for certain people on my gift list, it is a no brainer. The best part about buying gifts here is that they will wrap it for you in a very nice package. There’s no better way to earn brownie points with the misses than by giving the prettiest gift, especially when your the straight guy like me.
So five stars for being a great spot to buy a gift. Minus one for having nothing that I would want.

If you’re trying to save your cash, stay away from Go Mama Go. Not because it’s particularly pricey, mind you, but because every time I pop into this place – usually because I’m looking for a gift for the person-​who-​has-​everything – I find a dozen items I’d like to have. If I went there just for myself, I’d be in trouble.
Sweet-​smelling Archipelago candles and copious Marimekko bags, linens and kitchenware (think: potholders, oven mitts, plastic trays, dishes) make me weak in the knees. Small but tasteful selection of stationery and related items, so much dishware and pottery that I always walk around the store a bit timidly, afraid I’ll send some Japanese noodle bowl with chopstick cut-​outs crashing to the floor. Unusual finds, too, like tiny ceramic bowls and spoons for holding caviar.

I have to say that I found the review by «Matthew D» offensive. First of all, bipolar disorder, like any other mental illness, is no laughing matter – but to describe someone he hardly knows as bipolar on a website such as this is not only trashy and low-​class, but inappropriate and potentially insulting to those who live with this condition and use this website.
Noi is probably the most generous local businesswoman and straight ally that the GLBT community in Washington DC has ever had. Yes, in full disclosure, I work for the shop, I do it for a few hours a week not out of necessity, but because it is enjoyable. As a matter of fact, many people volunteer a few hours a week or month because they know the role that the shop plays in the community.
Every day that I work there, someone comes in off the street and says, «I have never met you, but I am a part of (Name your DC gay organization) and I want to thank you for your support.»
She is flooded with requests for help not only from local gay organizations, but national ones as well. Many organizations have benefited from Noi’s hard work: Whitman Walker Clinic, Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, Actor’s Theater of Washington, Gay Men’s Chorus and on and on and on. I am happy to see so many good reviews of Go Mama Go! on this site, they are well deserved.

Go Mama Go is the most colorful and fun store I’ve been to in DC. Its full of beautiful things — a great place to go for gifts in all price ranges. She has the best candle selection in town, as well as Japanese dishware, vases, art work of local artists, and all kinds of other things.
I often find myself stopping there on my way to birthday celebrations, dinners, etc, to pick up the perfect gift.
The owner of GMG (Noi) is dedicated to her community and is endlessly raising funds and giving of herself and her proceeds to a large variety of local causes.
Stop by now and then and you will likely be remembered by the very friendly staff.

Every Christmas I struggle with people on my shopping list who have everything– what to get them? The answer is always hiding in Go Mama Go.
While it’s not a store you’d want to rely on for things you «need» the selection of gifts from around the world is astounding. Bamboo cutting boards, decorative chopsticks, scented candles, Indian textiles, and lots of other stuff that you’d never need but they’re pretty and marginally useful.
5 stars for selection and interestingness, but they lose a star for the prices. I’ve traveled to many of the places that they got those things from and know what they’re worth– GMG has some hefty margins.
TIP: There’s one weekend in December where 10% of proceeds go to Whitman-​Walker. Consider shopping then.
TIP: Many of the Chinese-​style dishes that Go Mama Go sells you can get for ¹⁄₅ the price at a grocery store in Chinatown.

go mama go! is a treasure trove! From dinnerware, lunch boxes and Marimekko purses to table runners, candles, decorative bowls, this store has so many fun things to look at. It’s a perfect place to find a unique gift for yourself or someone else!

Go Mama Go is a street bazaar stuffed into a store. That is the best way I can describe it. This place sells high ticket items like thousand dollar artwork all way down to bound blank paper journals.
I love to stop in here and browse whenever I am in this hood. You can find leaded glassware from Czechoslovakia and dinnerware from Japan. Most of the plates and silverware are well priced and also unique. The tables and bookcases here are packed with the stuff, but luckily everything is well organized.
Stop in here next time you are looking to add a new accent to your place, or for a housewarming or hostess gift for a friend. Other than dishes, flatware and glassware, there are also candles and lamps for sale.