The winners in Shaw Main Streets' Best New Shaw Business of 2005 contest were announced at the Shaw Main Streets annual meeting on Tuesday, March 21, 2006, at Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church, 900 Massachusetts Avenue, NW.

The winner of the title Best New Shaw Business of 2005 was Azi's Cafe, 1336 9th Street, NW, the neighborhood's long-anticipated first coffee shop, which opened in April 2005. Owner Azeb Desta, nicknamed Azi, has become a part of countless Shaw residents' everyday lives. The shop's coffees, pastries, sandwiches and salads have drawn the attention of the Washington Post, DC North, and other publications. The cafe's opening created a new center of gravity for the neighborhood, a meeting place where community newspapers and literature are available, a 'third place' where people spend time other than home and work.