It’s a basement apartment in a fine neighborhood. Overall, appreciated the stay and seeing a different (less touristy) side to DC.
The metro stops are a 17-20 minute walk away. The walk is fine and safe, but it was much more convenient for us to walk 5 minutes to the bus stop and take bus 70 or 79 into downtown DC for $2. The bus ride was about 20 maybe 30 minutes, depending on where you want dropped off, and there are plenty of stops along the north of the National Mall. We took the same bus back to the apartment. The buses run very regularly.
As for groceries, we liked the *small* Sonya’s corner market, just a 5-minute walk from the apartment. If you want more fresh produce options (and just more food options!), I would recommend taking the metro into Columbia Heights station, and then going to the nearby Target or CVS. It’s a 15 or so minute walk from there back to the apartment. As the apartment description said, there are other groceries in the area, but we didn’t have a need to walk north or south for 20 minutes to get to them.
I also want to give a shout-out to NuVegan, which is a delicious restaurant less than 5 minutes from the apartment.
I’d recommend staying here at this apartment and exploring the area!