Hot D.C. restaurant openings through March
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Enjoy a Joia burger. Photo: courtesy Rey Lopez
Smash burgers, pizza, street eats—we can barely stop sampling with all the new restaurants, and more to come.
Why it matters: After a slow end of the year, it's March (and late Feb) madness for openings.
The latest: Mount Pleasant is popping with two hotly anticipated restaurants.
🍔 Joia Burger: Nostalgic smashburgers—wagyu or black bean—with an Insta-worthy special sauce-chop-on-top are stars at Patrice Cleary's Filipino American burger shack, plus ube ice cream and fun sides. Burgers start at $9 and kids combo meals are $10.
🇮🇹 Bar Del Monte: The family behind beloved 2 Amys Pizzeria expand their winning formula: an intimate, unfussy Italian restaurant with a graze-worthy menu of Neapolitan pies, meaty and fishy snacks, seasonal vedge, and fun wines.
Exciting second acts: Two revivals on the radar.
🥂 L'Avant-Garde: After a brief closure, Georgetown's haute French spot is back for lunch (just started) and dinner with new head chef Sébastien Giannini—an alum of Michelin star restaurants and luxe hotels — and showstopper plates like seafood plateaus.
🍗 Little Chicken: Downtown's crispy chicken bar moved to more fitting indoor/outdoor digs at The Wharf for crushes, tendie buckets, and soft serve.
What's next: More openings!
🍝 Cucina Morini: Caruso's Grocery chef Matt Adler is retracing his roots with NYC-based Altamarea Group and debuting a new Italian in Mt. Vernon Triangle with handmade pastas, loads of seafood, and $7 martinis all night. Open: March 26.
⭐ Reverie: Chef Johnny Spero, who earned a Michelin star for this fine dining room just before a fire shuttered it, is breathing new life into the 36-seat space. A whimsical tasting menu ($225 per person) draws largely from the sea and garden—think scallop in an edible shell. Open: March 26
🥟 Upside on Moore: The food hall boom continues with a Rosslyn newcomer that's run and packed with local talent. The six-vendor lineup includes popular spots like Stellina Pizzeria and Laoban Dumplings, plus a wine and cocktail bar. Open: late March.
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect that Adler's partnership is with Altamarea Group, not Michael White.