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2012’s new and notable bars and restaurants Looking for the newest and hottest place to go? Check out the Going Out Guide’s running list of the restaurants that have opened this year. Click the bold name of each restaurant to read the review and get more details.
Perhaps no late-year opening has been as highly anticipated as
Range
, Bryan Voltaggio's sprawling restaurant and market at Chevy Chase Pavilion, which opens Dec. 18.
Alex Baldinger
/
The Washington Post
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Fans of greasy subs have been clamoring for the Taylor Gourmet team's take on the classic steak and cheese since their first Philly-themed sub shop opened on H Street in 2008. With the December 12 opening of
Taylor Charles Steak & Ice
, they finally have it.
Maura Judkis
/
The Washington Post
Jeff Buben, the owner of Vidalia and Bistro Bis, says opening a third restaurant, the freshly minted
Woodward Table
, was “like deciding to have another kid.”
Katherine Frey
/
The Washington Post
Ian and Eric Hilton, the super-restaurateurs behind Marvin, the Gibson, Chez Billy and seemingly half of the restaurants on U Street, closed Blackbyrd earlier in the year, only to reopen it in December as
Hanoi House
, a stylish Vietnamese dining room serving a killer bahn mi and late-night pho.
Fritz Hahn
/
The Washington Post
Tom Sietsema reviewed the most recent incarnation of
Minibar
, Jose Andres's crown jewel, in early December, and while the restaurant garnered a respectable two stars, Sietsema seemed vexed by an inconsistent tasting menu that came with a four-figure price tag.
Scott Suchman
/
For The Washington Post
DGS Delicatessen
roared onto the scene in late November, putting a decidedly modern twist on Jewish delicatessen classics like pastrami sandwiches, whitefish salad, potato knishes and holishkes.
Alex Baldinger
/
The Washington Post
Cause
, a philanthropy-focused pub which opened in mid-October, gives away its profits to various charities, many of which are local.
Jeffrey MacMillan
/
For The Washington Post
In mid-November,
Room 11
, the Columbia Heights restaurant that has long been one of our favorite places for craft cocktails and dessert, opened its newly expanded dining room. In addition to 24 new seats, the bar/restaurant also added a new chef, Adam Howard, late of Volt and Family Meal in Frederick, along with daily breakfast and lunch service.
Lavanya Ramanathan
/
The Washington Post
The Board Room
, which opened in a spacious two-level building north of Dupont Circle in late September, is the latest outpost from the team behind Bedrock Billiards, Buffalo Billiards, Rocket Bar and other game-themed bars.
Evy Mages
/
For The Washington Post
Self-taught cook Matt Matros brought his
Protein Bar
concept from Chicago; the health-focused chain’s Bar-ritos claim to contain half the fat and less than half the calories of a Chipotle belly-buster.
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
October brought more Mexican fare to the area: Fuego Cocina y Tequileria opened in the spacious, two-story former Market Tavern space in Clarendon with a trove of more than 100 tequilas and a sprawling menu of Mexican fare. Pictured: The second floor, which features, well...fuego.
Meaghan Donohoe
Also new in October: Late-night dining a stone's throw from the 9:30 club. The Satellite Room is the latest outpost from brothers Eric and Ian Hilton (Marvin, the Brixton, American Ice Company, etc.), on Ninth Street, adjacent to the legendary music venue. The menu includes gourmet burgers, tacos, pancakes, fried chicken and milkshakes, in particular, boozy ones.
Fritz Hahn
/
The Washington Post
Doner Bistro
Doner Bistro , an Adams Morgan newcomer which opened in October, is an offshoot of a Leesburg favorite. The Columbia Road restaurant offers authentic German street food and beer.
Justin Rude
/
The Washington Post
A 20-seat bar and a few communal tables inside the new Union Market is the all the scene Rappahannock Oyster Bar needed to make an impression. The restaurant, writes Tom Sietsema, "brims with lures: live scallops, meaty chowder, lush tuna tartare ignited with lime and chili pepper, and drinks dreamed up by a former mixer at the top-drawer Columbia Room, JP Fetherston."
Jahi Chikwendiu
/
The Washington Post
At Rappahannock Oyster Bar, local oysters are offered for $2 each, though in coming months, options from other parts of the country might be available.
Jahi Chikwendiu
/
The Washington Post
Columbia Heights’s favorite new hangout might well be Kangaroo Boxing Club , the resturant that opened in June on an increasingly dining-focused stretch of 11th Street NW. On the menu: barbecue from the operators of the PORC Mobile food truck.
Bill O'Leary
/
The Washington Post
While the burger is garnering a lot of buzz, the vegetarian “Veg ’n Egg” is a menu standout featuring fried duck egg over a salad of seasonal vegetables, spinach and quinoa, drizzled with a balsamic reduction and barbecue sauce. Remove the egg, and the whole thing is vegan.
Bill O'Leary
/
The Washington Post
Steve Salis, 28, and Michael Lastoria, 32, are first-time restaurateurs who moved from New York to open H &pizza in mid-July on H Street NE. The restaurant allows you to choose your own crust, sauce, cheese and toppings, though the house pies include a few stellar options.
Katherine Frey
/
The Washington Post
H &pizza's big seller is The Farmer's Daughter, "which sports a pair of over-easy eggs, spicy tomato sauce, mozzarella, sausage, crisped spinach, a melted shower of Parmesan and a finishing drizzle of red pepper chili oil," writes Nevin Martell.
Katherine Frey
/
The Washington Post
Izakaya Seki
Hiroshi Seki and his daughter, Cizuka Seki, opened Izakaya Seki in a former barbershop on V Street NW in August. The pair, according to Tom Sietsema, have created a “serene two-story stage for sashimi, tempura, udon and other Japanese dishes.”
Tracy A. Woodward
/
The Washington Post
The menu at Izakaya Seki is broken down into such categories as “Raw” and “Grilled,” which includes these skewered chicken meatballs, “the fluffy texture” writes Sietsema, ‘explained by grated mountain potato in the mix.”
Tracy A. Woodward
/
The Washington Post
Hank’s Oyster Bar/Eddy Bar
The newest Hank's Oyster Bar in Capitol Hill opened in July and features neat design and food that's right in line with its siblings’ offerings in Dupont Circle and Old Town.
Tracy A. Woodward
/
The Washington Post
Of all the Hank's locations, writes Tom Sietsema, “only the new place can claim the liquid handiwork of popular Washington mixologist Gina Chersevani. From behind a long marble bar, she’s shaking gin-driven Squeezed Melons, dispensing her own sodas (strawberry-cinnamon, blueberry-cardamom) and carving ice — to order — from a big block kept cold by a built-in chiller set into the counter. Chersevani’s 20-stool watering hole even has its own name, Eddy Bar, a reference to swirling waters.”
Tracy A. Woodward
/
The Washington Post
Looking for a low-key take on Alexandria's cocktail temple, PX? The 20-seat TNT Bar and new location of Eamonn's a Dublin Chipper made their debut on Columbia Pike in Arlington in mid-August. There, you might find “Todd Thrasher...behind the bar in a tight black Jagermeister t-shirt, fiddling with the music playing from his iPod,” writes Fritz Hahn.
Stacy Zarin Goldberg
/
For The Washington Post
Like the bar itself, the drink menu skews casual, with such drinks as the smoky “The Cocktail Left on the Nightstand,” and pictured, “Curly and the Turk,” with blue Curacao.
Fritz Hahn
/
The Washington Post
Family Meal
Family Meal , opened in June in Frederick, is an 86-seat, diner-style eatery from Bryan Voltaggio. The restaurant, built in a former auto dealership, offers an “eclectic menu [that] bows to diner tradition with burgers, breakfast for dinner and milkshakes even as it tempts sophisticates with duck-fat fries, sauteed rockfish and mezcal-fired cocktails,” writes Tom Sietsema.
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
Among the “contenders for blue ribbons” is Family Meal's rockfish, which “arrives with a frizzy cap of fried collard greens on a succotash of fava beans and tomatoes, a country dish spiffed up for city palates.”
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
Tacos El Chilango
Tacos El Chilango , the modest taqueria opened by two Mexican natives -- and third-generation taco-makers -- in the District, serves such simple fare as the taco de lengua (beef tongue). “The new restaurant has a mere 15 seats, but it packs in a lot of color,” writes Tom Sietsema. “Squares of cut paper -- papel picado -- flutter from the ceiling, while the walls display vivid paintings of such Mexican icons as revolutionary Emiliano Zapata Salazar and actress Maria Felix.” [See more about D.C.'s taco boom here .]
Lavanya Ramanathan
/
The Washington Post
Jesus, left, and Juan Antonio Santacruz run the Tacos El Chilango food truck in Arlington and the restaurant in the District. The latter offers a broader menu, including more vegetarian offerings.
Lavanya Ramanathan/The Washington Post
Sakuramen
Jonathan Cho, left, and Seung “Jay” Park are co-owners of Sakuramen , the Adams Morgan restaurant that opened in May with a menu of trendy ramen and appetizers such as the steamed Chashu Buns, filled with slow- roasted Berkshire pork belly “bolstered by a marinade of hoisin, fish sauce, sugary mirin rice wine, sake and a bit of caramelizing brown sugar,” writes Nevin Martell.
Tracy A. Woodward
/
The Washington Post
Sakuramen's Shoki bowl features thick, curly noodles from Sun Noodle of Teterboro, N.J. topped with egg, bulgogi, sprouts, green onions and nori in chicken broth.
Daniel C. Britt
/
The Washington Post
El Chucho
El Chucho ’s Gordon Banks and Jackie Greenbaum opened their sliver of a modern taqueria in Columbia Heights in late June, serving margaritas on tap just in time for the extended summer heat wave.
Marvin Joseph
/
The Washington Post
“El Chucho’s muse,” writes Tom Sietsema, “is Jackie’s Chicago-born chef, Diana Davila-Boldin, who is Mexican by heritage. Her latest menu is, like the new open kitchen, tiny. Think street food with a twist.” Pictured: The tacos al pastor, adobo-marinated pork with classic toppings.
Marvin Joseph
/
The Washington Post
The Brixton
The picturesque Anglophile bar and restaurant The Brixton opened in July to crowds, thanks to its vast rooftop overlooking Ninth and U streets, but the interiors show thoughtful touches including vintage pieces, wrought iron, and nailhead-studded, well, everything. The menu? Think crispy fish and chips, British-style Indian curries and bangers.
Daniel C. Britt
/
The Washington Post
Turmeric
The former Aditi Bistro in Vienna was transformed by its owners into Turmeric , serving such dishes as the staple sag paneer. “Sag paneer shows off bright green spinach,” writes Tom Sietsema. “Black lentils balance butter with garlic, cumin and curry leaves; and you can count on a pleasant shock if you order the vinegar- and chili-spiked vindaloo.”
Daniel C. Britt
/
The Washington Post
“Like the design, the food is fetching. The deep-yellow dining room could pass for a smart gallery,” writes Sietsema of Tumeric. “The walls showcase Indian paintings wrought from carved (believe it or not) plastic foam, and a small bar has replaced a counter where Indian wraps were once rolled.”
Daniel C. Britt
/
The Washington Post
The Pig
At the new 14th Street restaurant The Pig , which opened in late May, Chef Garret Fleming, left, serves up a true nose-to-tail experience. Pork finds its way into nearly everything here, from the butter to the desserts.
Mark Gail
/
The Washington Post
Case in point: The Pig's “Sundae Bloody Sundae,” composed of ice cream made with pig's blood and dark chocolate, all topped with a bacon-peanut brittle.
Mark Gail
/
The Washington Post
Kangaroo Boxing Club in Columbia Heights opened in June in a space formerly occupied by Acuario. On the menu: barbecue from the operators of the PORC Mobile food truck.
Alex Baldinger
/
The Washington Post
Tel'Veh
“To prevent disappointment, you might want to nosh before you drop by this 60-seat, three-meals-a-day endeavor from the owners of Agora,” says Tom Sietsema of Tel’Veh , the new restaurant in Mount Vernon Square. Instead, go for the wines. Pictured: Ismail Uslu pours a glass of wine from the restaurant's Vinotemp wine dispenser.
Mark Gail
/
The Washington Post
Tel’Veh has no stove, leaving our critic feeling a little cold toward the food. “Crab cake sliders,” he says, “are the relative standouts in this humdrum collection, although even they count a negative: seafood centers so small, the glossy buns become the focal point. A side of creamy slaw made with shaved Brussels sprouts helps fill us up.”
Mark Gail
/
The Washington Post
Sugo Cicchetti
Sugo Cicchetti , an Italian restaurant featuring small plates and dishes, was opened in Potomac in May by the founders of the local Cava chainlet of restaurants. “Overlooking a garden plaza in Park Potomac, the dining room has plenty of selling points as well,” says Tom Sietsema. “Red leather booths and cheese shakers on the tables say old-school Italian; white globes suspended from on high lend their glow at night.”
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
Chef Dimitri Moshovitis runs Sugo Cicchetti, which turns out pizzas “sporting puffed lips and pleasing char.”
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
LacoMelza Ethio Cafe and Gallery
Etsegenet Lemma, left, and Alem Kidane opened Silver Spring’s LacoMelza — an Ethopian restaurant that combines artfully prepared cuisine and an art gallery — in February.
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
The fare at LacoMelza is served differently than you're likely to see elsewhere: it arrives in raised glass dishes, alongside a platter of injera. In February, first-time restaurateur Etsegenet Lemma opened the combination 55-seat dining room and art show in Silver Spring. “The chemical engineer works in the aerospace industry, yet in the cafe she makes a fine guide to the food of her native Ethiopia,” says Tom Sietsema.
Astrid Riecken
/
For the Washington Post
New York Avenue Beach Bar
Adirondack chairs and umbrella-shaded picnic tables have been set up atop 70 tons of sand in a vacant parking lot along New York Avenue NW. Expect tiki drinks, frozen margaritas, daiquiris and — just like the actual beach — crowds at New York Avenue Beach Bar , which opened in late May.
Fritz Hahn/The Washington Post
Bandolero
Mike Isabella's second D.C. restaurant, Bandolero , which opened in May, mixes the Top Chef star's take on traditional Mexican cuisine (mole served with short ribs; blue crab taquitos; crispy goat nachos) with a bit of a punk rock sensibility.
Alex Baldinger/The Washington Post
These aren't your favorite sports bar’s nachos: Bandolero’s version ($13) is topped with crispy strips of goat, goat cheese, white beans and chopped chili peppers known as “chile de arbol.”
Greg Powers
Sixth Engine
American restaurant Sixth Engine opened in February in the Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood with a distinct nod to the past. The owners kept the exposed brick walls and architectural details of the historic fire station that preceded the restaurant.
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
While Sixth Engine serves burgers and other hallmarks of conventional American restaurants, “the entree I’m most eager to try again partners red snapper with snappy andouille risotto and crisp, sweet corn,” says Washington Post food critic Tom Sietsema. “The fish gets some nice heat from a splash of chili-infused butter, but the fire is nothing a draught Guinness or Pimm’s Cup can’t put out.”
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
Green Pig Bistro
Arlington's nose-to-tail restaurant Green Pig Bistro opened in April with a menu full of homey curiosities, including a rabbit cake inspired by crab cake, pork tacos spiked with pigs ears and sea-salted cornbread. Is it any wonder it became a neighborhood hit?
Matt McClain
/
For The Washington Post
Chez Billy
In April, Petworth’s historic Billy Simpson’s Restaurant reopened as Chez Billy , a French restaurant and lounge run by the owners of Marvin and Blackbyrd Warehouse . “What’s interesting about Chez Billy is how the large interior, which covers two adjacent buildings, is divided into more intimate spaces,” says The Post’s Fritz Hahn. “A heavy wooden bar is faced by a long drink rail that’s split into smaller areas with chest-high pillars; a nook that’s tucked into the back of the building has a handful of high four-top bar tables. There’s a dining room with terrazzo floors and heavy wooden booths; an upstairs bar room that has an original fireplace and couches; and a second-story back deck. Flickering candles and low lights set an intimate mood throughout.”
Craig L. Moran
/
For The Washington Post
Rasika West End
Penn Quarter’s most impossible reservation, Rasika, expanded its reach (and thankfully, the number of tables) in the West End in March. But Rasika West End is no dupe. It boasts quirky modern decor and an expanded menu of Indian dishes.
Marvin Joseph
/
The Washington Post
“Among the fresh ideas at Rasika West End,” says Tom Sietsema, “are chili-rubbed, lentil-crusted scallops served on polenta-like semolina; spicy crab masala layered between airy sheets of phyllo; tender nuggets of goat buried in saffron-tinted basmati rice; and dori kebab.” Pictured: Goat biryani.
Marvin Joseph
/
The Washington Post
Bistro Bohem
Prague native Jarek Mika (pictured) opened his cozy 35-seat restaurant and bar Bistro Bohem in mid-March, serving Eastern European dishes of pierogies and beef goulash, Pilsner Urquell beer and cocktails laced with absinthe and Czech liqueurs. The restaurant is one of several new places near the reopened Howard Theatre .
Tracy A. Woodward
/
The Washington Post
Bistro Bohem’s chicken schnitzel, says Tom Sietsema, “manages the neat trick of tasting light and juicy beneath its puffy golden coating, a fine blend of baguette crumbs and panko. The dish is accessorized with a creamy scoop of potato salad that rivals the schnitzel for a diner’s attention.”
Tracy A. Woodward
/
The Washington Post
Mintwood Place
January brought the buzzy, French-accented American restaurant Mintwood Place , helmed by chef Cedric Maupillier, once the opening chef at Central Michel Richard . The big surprise? This temple of fine dining is serving its frog legs, steak tartare and chicken liver tartines in Adams Morgan.
Matt McClain
/
For The Washington Post
“The difference between the fare at Mintwood Place and so many other neighborhood dining rooms is the distinction between black-and-white and Technicolor,” says Tom Sietsema. “Even the most familiar-sounding dishes ... surprise you with their rich treatments and vivid flavors.” Pictured: The frog legs.
Marvin Joseph
/
The Washington Post
Boqueria
“The high-octane pitches might not matter if the small plates didn't live up to the hype, but plenty of them do at this recent import from New York,” Tom Sietsema says of the Spanish tapas restaurant Boqueria , which opened near Dupont Circle in March.
Marvin Joseph
/
The Washington Post
To order or not to order? The blistered shishito peppers sprinkled with coarse sea salt are a little like playing “Spanish roulette” at Boqueria, says Sietsema: “A diner never knows which sea-salted pepper might be tame and which might be blistering.”
Marvin Joseph
/
The Washington Post
Blind Dog Cafe
This signless cafe near the 9:30 Club opened in mid-February as a pop-up in Darnell's Bar on Ninth Street NW, but its fans hope Blind Dog Cafe (and its tasty sandwiches and baked goods) are here for the long haul.
Jeffrey MacMillan
Blind Dog, open until 4 p.m. every day, specializes in superlative lunch fare. Its menu was crafted by one of the partners, a line cook at Ardeo + Bardeo in Cleveland Park, and it includes a turkey sandwich spiked with Sriracha aioli (pictured) and a roast beef option slathered with walnut-pesto aioli. Meats for both are house-roasted.
Katherine Frey
/
The Washington Post
Unum
The intimate Georgetown restaurant Unum , which takes its name from the Latin “E pluribus unum” (Out of many, one), “takes diners to Provence with bouillabaisse, to India with a sweetly spiced lamb shank and to the American South with a grilled hanger steak,” says Tom Sietsema.
Katie Stoops Photography
The lamb shank at Unum, which opened in mid-January.
Marvin Joseph
/
The Washington Post
Haven Pizzeria Napoletana
Pizzaiolo Mark Bergami, one of the partners in Bethesda’s Haven Pizzeria Napoletana , prepares to bake the restaurant’s signature white clam pizza. “The pie emerges from the oven crisp of crust, thoroughly cooked through, bold with garlic and scattered with top neck clams that squirt hot juice when you bite into them,” says Sietsema. The restaurant opened in February.
Bill O’Leary
/
The Washington Post
Al Dente
Looking for Italian chef Roberto Donna? You'll find him, strangely, minding the open kitchen at the modern, casual Al Dente — which changed its name from La Forchetta a few months after opening in April in Northwest Washington near American University. (Pictured is the restaurant's pizzaiolo Panetta Giuseppe.) At this neighborhood restaurant, the chef who used to serve Parmesan custard gilded with porcini cream and black truffles now oversees a menu that features salads and pizzas and nothing priced higher than $20.
Mark Gail
/
The Washington Post
The “hemisphere” tiramisu topped with candied hazlenuts offers a sweet finish at La Forchetta. It “is plenty for two to split, but dangerously easy for one to knock back if he isn't careful,” says Sietsema.
Mark Gail
/
The Washington Post
District Kitchen
District Kitchen opened in Woodley Park in January with a menu of modern American dishes and a farm-to-table aesthetic.
Scott Suchman
/
For The Washington Post
The rockfish and other entrees at District Kitchen won raves: “There are a mere eight entrees, but plenty to admire among them,” says Tom Sietsema.”The day's catch (likely rockfish) comes as I prefer, head and tail attached, and bright with lemon and thyme in its seasoning. Duck leg confit is a two-part pleasure, its crackling skin giving way to succulent meat.”
Scott Suchman
/
For The Washington Post
Southern Hospitality
The American restaurant Southern Hospitality opened in the old Adams Mill in Adams Morgan in January.
Courtesy of Southern Hospitality
Boundary Road
Opened by a chef who cut his teeth on the lines at Fiola , Cashion's Eat Place and Central Michel Richard, Boundary Road already had buzz when it opened on H Street NE in February. Then the Obamas came calling, less than a month after its debut.
Matt McClain
/
For The Washington Post
“The most comforting dish on the menu may be pierogi,” says Tom Sietsema of the soft Polish-inspired pockets that Boundary Road fills with cheese curd and serves over onions. Bar patrons will rejoice, too: Happy hour, which runs from 5 to 7 p.m. on weekdays, features one beer and one wine for $4 each, and a four-ounce taster of any beer for $1, instead of the usual $6-$8 per glass.
Dayna Smith
/
For the Washington Post
Fujimar
The old Lima transformed between New Year’s and Valentine’s Day, reopening as the Miami-style dining room Fujimar . “What was once an airy dining room in inviting shades of green has morphed into an animated underwater voyage, courtesy of a video screen that dominates an entire wall,” says Tom Sietsema. “And where offices used to be in the rear, an expanse of white leather seating and a sushi counter (think South Beach) have taken their place.”
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
Fujimar's menu emphasizes Asia’s influence on Latin America, so you’ll find Peruvian fried rice and crispy empanadas.
Astrid Riecken
/
For The Washington Post
Since Society Fair opened, “the wine bar has been the source of some distinguished sandwiches throughout the day and some delicious entertainment in the evening,” says Tom Sietsema. “Trey Massey, an alumnus of Restaurant Eve, is the chef responsible for both the concise standing menu and the five-nights-a-week cooking demonstration in which 10 or so participants watch the 29-year-old whip up a three-course dinner that they eat as he moves from starter to entree to dessert.” Pictured: “My Turkish Cousin” with lamb.
Matt McClain
/
For The Washington Post
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