Eater D.C.’s 10 Most Fashionable Tales of 2024

Whereas D.C. diners had been unhappy to see a lot of their favorites shut in 2024, they had been additionally hungry to know what’s opening subsequent. Readers had been particularly excited to listen to concerning the anticipated arrivals of a glitzy French brasserie a block from the White Home; a vigorous Lebanese rooftop off U Avenue; a show-stopping Italian makeover of a dearly missed Georgetown constructing; and a big-ticketed downtown lounge with Japanese aptitude.

Different sizzling headlines in 2024 included all the things from large higher administration adjustments at José Andrés Group to an ultra-exclusive White Home dinner to D.C.’s hottest cocktail pattern of the summer season.

And now, listed below are Eater D.C.’s 10 most-clicked information tales of the yr (listed in descending order)

10. La Grande Boucherie Makes a Jaw-Dropping Entrance Into D.C.

The subtle brasserie out of NY made a grand entrance in downtown D.C. this spring. Located within the Nineteen Twenties-era Nationwide Financial institution Constructing, the model’s sixth and most opulent version but blends the delicate ambiance of an indulgent steakhouse with a refined Parisian brasserie and uncooked bar. The formidable, multimillion-dollar undertaking gave the historic landmark a brand new life, with an elaborate inside full of mahogany wooden, glass partitions, and a curved metallic bar prime imported from Paris.

9. Inside Yalla, D.C.’s Gorgeous New Tribute to Center Japanese Delicacies

Hummus and meaty skewers from chef Marcel Chehaieb flip the penthouse of Area Lounge on U Avenue right into a communal dinner spot filled with stay performances and DJs. Chehaieb says he desires the plant-filled restaurant and lounge to change into a gathering house for all the things from quiet early night tea to high-energy dancing and imbibing till late. The mosaic-tiled bar lined with glass-blown lanterns runs almost half the size of the oblong room, reinforcing Yalla’s emphasis on drinks that combine flavors like dates, cheese, nuts, mandarins, peaches, apricots, sumac, za’atar, rosemary, and mulberry.

8. One in every of D.C.’s Greatest Pizza Locations Prepares to Open a A lot-Larger Location

Skilled pizzaiolo Giulio Adriani, the Naples native behind the U Avenue hall’s acclaimed Slice & Pie, introduced large plans this summer season to do a second D.C. location on the sting of the town on the Parks at Walter Reed. The much-bigger higher Northwest slice store will add an expanded menu of panini sandwiches along with its beloved New York and Detroit-style pies. The pint-sized unique bought large nationwide consideration this yr, named the No. 2 greatest slice store within the nation on the revered 50 Prime Pizza record.

Maria Lustre Rebrikova

7. Michelin Pronounces One other Three Eating places for the D.C. Information

Michelin began bread-crumbing diners with the bulletins of D.C. eating places that would seem on its incoming information, and September’s teaser was the closest one to the French tire firm’s December awards ceremony. All three of those additions, Amparo Fondita, Cucina Morini, and Pascual, had been open for a yr or much less on the time. When the precise information was introduced months later, Amparo Fondita bought Bib Gourmand standing and the 2 others ended up solely being acknowledged by Michelin (no stars, Bib Gourmand designation, or every other distinction). Pascual did, nonetheless, get large accolades this yr — named one in all Eater’s Greatest New Eating places in America, for one.

6. Inside Osteria Mozza, Georgetown’s Extremely Anticipated Italian Marvel

Acclaimed LA-based chef Nancy Silverton and East Coast mega-restaurateur Stephen Starr joined forces for the primary time this fall, utterly reworking Georgetown’s iconic Dean & Deluca house into the luxurious D.C. outpost of Osteria Mozza. The gorgeous restaurant combines all three of Silverton’s California menus in a single 20,000-square-foot setting, and an added retail element was a stipulation within the lease for the historic constructing. Starr had courted the house for years and began the sluggish overhaul three years in the past. The cross-country hospitality magnates hit it off from the beginning, with Silverton likening Starr to a captain adept at commanding an “huge crew” — and he calling her an inspirational “Wikipedia” of data on meals.

5. Inside D.C.’s Creamy Cocktail Craze of the Summer time

Transfer over, fizzy cocktails. This summer season, bars and eating places had been all about cocktails that had been clarified, foam-topped, frozen, emulsified with egg, or simply straight up creamy. There’s a science behind this pattern, with fat sticking to the palate higher than watery drinks as oils within the creamy liquid break down slower and can proceed to be launched over time, leading to an extended, extra luxurious end. Bartenders throughout D.C. broke down how they make their deliciously creamy cocktails — and why the wealthy drinks had a second this yr like by no means earlier than.

4, What the Elite Will Eat at Tonight’s White Home State Dinner

Photograph by Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Publish through Getty Pictures

The President and First Woman rolled out the pink carpet one night time in April to honor Japan’s visiting Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his spouse, and Eater DC bought an unique preview of what the VIP visitors ate inside 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue simply as annual cherry blossoms began to bloom exterior. For the fifth state dinner beneath the Biden administration, White Home cooks ready house-cured salmon, dry-aged Maryland beef, and a salted-caramel pistachio cake. After the lavish three-course meal, plated on George W. Bush and Lyndon B. Johnson china, 230 well-dressed visitors — which included former White Home residents Invoice and Hillary Clinton to actor Robert De Niro — caught round for an intimate live performance from famed American singer-songwriter Paul Simon.

3. Ina Garten’s Favourite Cheeseburger Is at This D.C. Spot

Ina Garten appeared on the Kennedy Middle this fall to kick off the tour for her new memoir, Be Prepared When The Luck Occurs, and an viewers member requested the place she’s had the most effective cheeseburger ever. Her reply? The one she had for lunch at D.C.’s personal Bourbon Steak. The luxe lounge inside Georgetown’s 4 Seasons lodge serves each a first-rate steak burger with aged white cheddar ($26) and a wagyu double burger with American cheese ($28).

2. José Andrés Is No Longer the CEO of His Restaurant Group

Three a long time and 40 eating places later, famous person chef and humanitarian José Andrés stepped again in Could as chief govt of his eponymous culinary empire that began with tapas at Jaleo in D.C. José Andrés Group (previously generally known as ThinkFoodGroup) promoted Sam Bakhshandehpour from president to its new international chief govt. Whereas the famed Spanish-born chef fingers off the highest title at José Andrés Group, he stays very a lot on board because the founder, artistic pressure, and govt chairman.

1. Contained in the Buzzy New Arcade, a Subsequent-Degree Lounge for Downtown

Two years after Shōtō introduced downtown a high-brow spot to pattern contemporary fish flown from Japan, the fashionable izakaya doubled down on Midtown Middle in February with a flashy new lounge subsequent door. Eater DC bought a primary look contained in the extremely formidable addition to D.C.’s nightlife scene that opened with a no-photo, invite-only format. Practically each eclectic element was sourced in Japan, from a blinking wall of Pachinko slot machines to a giant bonsai tree perched prominently in its terrace space. Managing associate Arman Naqi’s imaginative and prescient for the Arcade got here to mild whereas wandering the flashing streets of Tokyo’s two large leisure districts dominated by neon-lit golf equipment, video game-enabled bars, and karaoke rooms.

Rey Lopez