Coming Soon

A regularly updated list of noteworthy restaurants slated to open soon in the D.C. area, and brief reports from the unconfirmed rumor mill.

• Acqua al 2
212 Seventh St. SE
An outpost of this Florence, Italy-based restaurant is planned for Capitol Hill. The only other US location is in San Diego, serving dishes like bresaola carpaccio, penne with vodka sauce and veal chops sauteed in porcini mushroom sauce.
ETA: fall

• Barrio (tentative name)
3418 11th St. NW
Aman Ayoubi, owner of Local 16, and partners Eric Gronning of Gronning Architects and Doug Whipple of Whipple Farms plan to open this Columbia Heights spot serving Latin-influenced and American food.
ETA: late 2009

• Bayou Bakery
Location TBD
Pastry chef David Guas (at right) previously partnered with The Liberty Tavern to open this Southern-inspired bakery in the old Murky Coffee space. Plans fell through, and Guas is hunting for new space. We may still see those snoballs, pralines, puddings and hot beignets get their own space yet.
ETA: TBD

• Buddha Bar
455 Massachusetts Ave. NW
The Asian-themed Buddha Bar, known for its trendy locations in Paris, New York and Vegas' Little Buddha, will open another outpost in an expansive space downtown.
ETA: 2009

• Carmine's
425 Seventh St. NW
The New York-based Italian restaurant has leased a 20,000-square-foot space in Penn Quarter.
ETA: early 2010

• Cork Market
1805 14th St. NW
Metrocurean broke the news that Diane Gross and Khalid Pitts, owners of the popular Cork Wine Bar, have more in store for the neighborhood with Cork Market. The shop will offer all of the wines available on Cork's European list, a small selection of beer, food and specialty items, including cheese, charcuterie, jams, oils, vinegars, pasta, bread and baked goods. An open kitchen in the back will turn out sandwiches and salads to carry out, as well as some favorites off Cork's menu — chicken liver pâté, oil-cured roma tomatoes, olives, nuts. The building's second floor will house a classroom for wine programs and private events. Read more here.
ETA: fall

• Cuba Libre Restaurant and Rum Bar
801 Ninth St. NW
As first reported on Metrocurean, Cuba Libre, a Cuban restaurant with locations in Philadelphia, Orlando and Atlantic City, is headed to DC. The 200-seat restaurant, which channels Old Havana circa the 1950s, will serve lunch and dinner, and plans include a large patio. The restaurants are under the culinary direction of chef Guillermo Pernot, a two-time James Beard award winner for Best Chef Mid-Atlantic during his time at Philly's ¡Pasión! and his cookbook "Ceviche: Seafood, Salads, and Cocktails with a Latino Twist."
ETA: 2010

• Diamond District Seafood Co.
1612 14th St. NW
Chef and sustainability advocate Barton Seaver's planned seafood market and restaurant finally has a name: Diamond District Seafood Co. Seaver is partnering with Eli Hengst (Blue Ridge, Sonoma) and Doug Singer to open the 14th Street spot (space pictured at right).
ETA: late 2009

NEW • Estadio
1520 14th St. NW
Proof owner Mark Kuller and his team plan to open Estadio, a Spanish restaurant on 14th Street. The menu will feature bite-size pintxos, tapas and larger raciones, overseen by Proof head chef Haidar Karoum. The small tastes, or pintxos, will run $1-$2, tapas $4-$9 and mains $10-$18. Bread will baked in house. Read more here.
ETA: summer 2010

• Galileo III
600 14th St. NW
Chef Roberta Donna has signed a lease to take over the former Butterfield 9 space and resurrect Galileo.
ETA: winter

• Hill Country
410 Seventh St. NW
Tom Sietsema reports that Manhattan barbecue joint Hill Country is headed to DC next year. On the NY menu: brisket, beer can game hen, ribs, baked beans, chipotle deviled eggs and PB&J cupcakes. The 250-seat restaurant will also feature live music.
ETA: July 2010

• Kushi
465 K St. NW
A new Japanese Izakaya-style restaurant is slated to open this fall at 465 K St. NW in the City Vista building. Kushi will serve sushi, regional Japanese food and Kushiyaki — skewers of meat, seafood, poultry and vegetables grilled over open flames. An open kitchen will feature grills for the Kushiyaki and a robata fire pit for grilling whole fish and large cuts of meats. Read more here.
ETA: 2009

NEW • Lyon Hall
3100 Washington Blvd., Arlington
The team behind Liberty Tavern plans to open a brasserie dubbed Lyon Hall, Zagat reports.
ETA: winter

• Morso
3277 M St. NW
Morso, which is slated to open at the corner of Potomac and M streets in September, will be a Mediterranean spot serving small plates with a modern Turkish influence. Chef Ed Witt has been tapped to lead the kitchen. With his new DC gig, the chef is coming full circle in a way. Before cooking school and working at various San Francisco and New York restaurants that included Jardinière, Daniel and Il Buco, Witt worked at DC's Occidental Grill. Morso's main dining room will seat 70 or so. The restaurant will also offer a separate area with a few seats and separate menu for take-out.
ETA: November

NEW • Screwtop Wine Bar
1025 N. Fillmore St., Arlington
Former AOL exec Wendy Buckley is working toward opening Screwtop later this year. The retail component will offer boutique small production wines, cut-to-order cheeses from around the world, imported and domestic meats and patés, antipasto and other specialty foods, as well as party accessories and custom gift baskets. The wine bar will feature 24 table seats and 10 bar seats, 40 wines by the glass, a couple of beers on tap, several craft beers by the bottle, and a menu of cheese plates, appetizers, sandwiches and salads. Screwtop will also host monthly wine classes. Read more here.
ETA: December

• Ris Restaurant
2275 L St. NW
Ris Lacoste, who earned her stellar reputation as former executive chef of 1789, plans to open her long-awaited restaurant soon. Look for a sizable patio and 170 seats inside.
ETA: November

NEW • Table 14 (tentative name)
1832 14th St. NW
Aman Ayoubi, owner of Local 16, and partners Eric Gronning of Gronning Architects and Doug Whipple of Whipple Farms plan to open Table 14 by spring 2010. Plans for the new spot include a farm-to-table restaurant serving modern American cuisine with an Italian influence on the main floor; a yakitori grill and bar on the second floor overlooking a green roof and garden space; and a space for events on the third floor with a small roof deck.
ETA: spring 2010

• Wagamama
418 Seventh St. NW
Signs are now up in the window heralding the arrival of this popular UK-based noodle restaurant, opening in Penn Quarter.
ETA: May 2010

For more news on DC openings, click here. Have a restaurant you think should be added to the list? Email me at metrocurean AT gmail DOT com.