A top chef is opening a speakeasy-style Fairfax restaurant
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Chef Jon Krinn at Clarity. Photo: Deb Lindsey for The Washington Post via Getty Images
Speakeasies — they're not just for cocktails. One of the D.C. area's top chefs is opening an under-the-radar tasting room inside a quirky Fairfax annex.
Why it matters: Chef Jonathan Krinn gained a loyal fanbase at Clarity in Vienna, and now he's upping the game with Elyse — an intimate, ambitious restaurant run like a family joint.
The intrigue: Krinn and wife Antonia Le have been quietly fine-tuning the 30-seat restaurant on an invitation, those-in-the-know basis since February. It's "the slowest-roll soft opening you've ever seen," Krinn tells Axios.
- Resy reservations are live for Wednesday's official opening, but Krinn's keeping the slow-food vibes. Elyse will open only four nights a week, with one booking per table so guests can linger.
Plus: When Krinn and Le are off leading their global foodie-yoga retreats, Elyse will go on break.
- "You see people in Europe doing it this way," says Krinn. "I'm 56, so I'm over the seven-nights thing."
Dig in: The restaurant takes over a 50-year-old outbuilding. Krinn's open kitchen serves $125 tasting menus with multiple options per course, plus some off-menu supplements.
- Menus are the chef's whim — fresh pastas, a cool spice-cured duck dish, inspo from his latest trip to Marrakesh.
- Krinn tapped friend and former Citronelle somm David Hale to run the wine program. Pairings are $85, or guests can BYO for a $35 fee.
Flashback: Krinn ran Clarity for nearly seven years before leaving in 2021 after a series of creative pandemic pivots. "I was going for 500 straight days and needed a shift," he says.
- Another longtimer, chef Tracy O'Grady of Green Pig Bistro and Kinkead's, now runs the show.
Between the lines: Another happy comeback is Krinn's dad, Mal, an avid baker who made addictive loaves for Clarity and, before that, 2941. "He's 84 years strong and back with the bread," Krinn says.
The vibe: Suburban speakeasy. Krinn says his wife is "the environment whisperer" and has transformed the old building into a moody haunt.
- "Let's just say your facial expression when you drive up will be different than when you walk in."
If you go: Elyse, 10822 Fairfax Blvd., Fairfax. Dinner, Wed-Sat.