The Go-To Gathering Place With a Killer View

When the fireworks start on the Mall this Fourth of July, one group of partygoers will have a better view than almost everyone else in the city. The location? The third-story balcony at the home of Reid and Ryan Zaritsky.

Sitting 36 feet above street level, the balcony extends across the front of the upper Northwest Washington house and provides a sweeping vista of the city, as well as what seems like an eye-level view of the fireworks displays in the District and Virginia.

While waiting for the fireworks to begin, guests on the Zaritskys' balcony can also check out such D.C. landmarks as Washington National Cathedral, RFK Stadium and the grounds of the vice president's residence. They may even spot a plane flying closely overhead as it prepares to land at Reagan National Airport.

During the winter, says Reid, the view from the 225-square-foot balcony also includes Embassy Row, the Potomac River, downtown Washington and parts of Northern Virginia: "People who aren't from D.C. can get a sightseeing tour without ever leaving the house."

Brothers Reid, 24, and Ryan, 21, bought the three-story, four-bedroom center hall Colonial (officially owned by a family trust) near the cathedral in the summer of 2006 from a close family friend they called Aunt Eloise. The balcony was built onto the house last year as part of a larger renovation that included updates to the kitchen, master bathroom, basement and backyard patio as well as the addition of an "observatory" built directly on top of the attic.

The addition was built for two reasons, say the owners: to take advantage of the views and for social gatherings. "My father, my brother and I, we like entertaining," says Reid, who graduated in May with a mechanical engineering degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York state. "It's kind of our thing."

Architect John Katinas, along with partner Michael Bruckwick, designed the 380-square-foot observatory space to be well-equipped for entertaining. The room has two seating areas, a game table, a wet bar with a granite countertop and French doors leading to the balcony. Special features include windows that have Gothic-style grills to echo the neighboring cathedral, a vaulted ceiling with a cupola rising from the center, and a 42-inch plasma TV tucked inside a panel behind the bar. It rises and lowers at the touch of a remote control, keeping it from obstructing the window views at times.

The brothers, who grew up in Silver Spring, have found that the room is not only an ideal space for gathering with friends. It's also a perfect spot to spend quiet time alone, whether that means studying, practicing guitar or relaxing and watching TV. "I like to just sit up there," says Ryan, who will be a senior in the fall at the University at Albany in New York. "It gets great natural light."

Last summer, the brothers celebrated the completion of the renovations and addition by -- what else? -- throwing a party. On Independence Day, they hosted about 80 friends and family members, played music throughout the house, had drinks set up on the bar upstairs and served a buffet downstairs prepared largely by Ryan (he and Reid are minority owners of MGM Roast Beef, a sandwich restaurant in the District's Brentwood neighborhood). On the menu: roast beef, turkey, ham, coleslaw, chicken and potato salads, mashed sweet potatoes and desserts with homemade whipped cream. After an afternoon of eating and drinking, the guests gathered on the observatory balcony and watched fireworks across the city.

After the main event, guests "over 40 went to bed around 10 or 11 o'clock," Reid says. "But my friends . . . . We went outside and hung out, then went out at 2 a.m." Not surprisingly, when it comes to weekend revelry, their house "is destination number one."

Though they've had several parties since the room was completed, the Zaritskys plan to make their Fourth of July party an annual event. With a newly designated party room upstairs and a backyard patio that has a seating area, stereo speakers, a Ping-Pong table and grill, it appears that the house is ready for any type of gathering.

But according to the brothers, there's another house project on their wish list: They want to install an asphalt blacktop in the back yard and put up a basketball hoop. Says Reid confidently, "That's next."