West End's former Marcel's gets a witchy Italian makeover
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Ellizabetta La Strega opens in West End. Pictured: "Witching hour" cichetti snacks and meyer lemon pasta with caviar and creme fraiche. Photo: Courtesy Steve Parke
A witchy, woman-owned Italian restaurant opens tonight in the West End.
Why it matters: One of D.C.'s leading sommeliers, Apéro's Elli Benchimol, has transformed an iconic restaurant space — the former Marcel's — and made it her own.
The intrigue: Gone are 25 years of besuited servers, white tablecloths and baby grand piano. Benchimol — aka @Elligoth — is, as she puts it, "embracing the crone stage of life" with Ellizabetta La Strega, named for her mystical Italian grandmother.
- "I always thought [Marcel's] was very beige and kind of stuffy," Benchimol says of the haute Belgian restaurant. "And it's such a beautiful space."
- So out with the old, in with the new moon: a moody noir interior streaked with sage and chartreuse, big strega-style bowls of pasta and "witching hour" cocktails.
Zoom in: One thing hasn't drastically changed: the chefs.
- Wife-and-husband team Jennifer Castaneda-Jones, culinary director of Benchimol's three restaurants, and chef de cuisine Stephen Jones previously led Marcel's kitchen under Robert Wiedmaier.
To eat: Family-style Italian, starting with homemade garlic-rosemary focaccia and artichoke spread, spicy Venetian mussels and chopped salad.
- Pastas include meaty and vegan Bolognese, plus Apéro's signature Meyer lemon chitarra with caviar and crème fraîche.
- Bigger plates are built to share, from crispy porchetta to whole branzino.
Appetizers run $16-$26, pastas mostly range from $22 to $28 and large-format entrees $32+.
To drink: Classic Italian aperitivi — especially during lounge "witching hour," served with gratis cicchetti — plus, this being Benchimol, a serious wine cellar.
- The 500-plus-bottle list leans Italian and Champagne, with Benchimol aiming for a coveted Wine Spectator Grand Award.
The bottom line: Yes, there's "Wiccan chicken" Milanese on the menu. But Benchimol doesn't want the theme to become a gimmick — the idea is to channel the joyful, slightly mystical spirit of her Italian grandmother's kitchen.
- "I wanted to do an homage to her, and bring out that witchy side, which I love," Benchimol says. "We need a little bit more of that, with all the weirdness in the world."
If you go: Ellizabetta La Strega, 2401 Pennsylvania Ave NW. Open for lunch and dinner.