For Immediate Release:
November 15, 2010


                                   DC Dish: What's New this Fall in Washington, DC

Just Opened:

Carmine’s
425 7th St. NW, Washington, DC 20004, (202)737-7770
Grab the kids, pass the Parmesan (and the vino). Carmine’s brings a taste of New York City-style Italian to DC. Designed to be an Italian-American “wedding feast-style” experience, every meal crafted to share. And portions are very generous. With seafood, beef, chicken, veal and pasta dishes as entrees, there is loads of variety to choose from - eggplant parmigiana, rigatoni and linguini being typical dishes. The classic 1920s and 1940s interior hides numerous private rooms. Carmine’s capacity is 700, placing it among the very largest of DC’s eateries. Restaurateur Artie Cutler's latest location opened August 3, 2010.

Casa Nonna
455 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington DC, 20001, (202) 377-5555
The Penn Quarter received a touch of home-style Italian-American cooking this fall with the opening of this upscale-casual Italian restaurant. The kitchen, lead by  chef Amy Brandwein, shows off its affinity for robust flavors with entrees such as veal Milanese and grilled branzino puttanesca. Portions are the size of Berlusconi’s ego, and are meant to be shared by at least two people, if not three or four. Crispy-soled wood-fired pizzas are best bets for solo diners.

Cuba Libre Restaurant and Rum Bar
Fall 2010 – 801 9th St. NW, Washington, DC 20001, (202) 408-1600
Cube Libre Restaurant and Rum Bar has brought a taste of Old Havana to downtown's Penn Quarter. The imaginative Cuban menu features the flavors of various Latin regions and combines beef, poultry, pork and seafood with exotic fruits and vegetables, herbs and seasonings. The dishes recognize the diversity of the Cuban people, reaching beyond the dominant Spanish influence to represent the native Tainos, as well as the African, Asian and Haitian-Creole peoples that have inhabited Cuba for centuries. On Friday and Saturday nights during late dinner hours, the eatery, which also has locations in Atlantic City, Philadelphia and Orlando, heats up with Latin rhythms as professional salsa dancers. After dinner hours the resident DJ spin Salsa, Meringue, Bachata and other Latin dance music to keep guests heading to the dance floor well into the night.

Galileo III
600 14th St. NW, Washington, DC 20001 (202) 783-0083
The name says it all: Robert Donna’s third iteration of his formal northern Italian eatery. The bar serves cocktails, light fare and pasta. The dining room set in the yellows and oranges of sunsets just seats 80 and offers exclusively tasting menus of three, four, and five courses. Donna won a James Beard Award in 1996.

Michel
1700 Tysons Blvd., Tysons Corner, VA 22012 (703) 506-4300
Named for owner and chef-patron Michel Richard (Citronelle, Central), Michel brings chef Levi Meznick’s refined touch to dishes punctuated by Richard’s affable humor: Crab “coleslaw”, escargot “spring rolls” and duck a l’orange join his take on burgers and a classic roast chicken. Expense accounts and special occasions and fans of Richard should keep this restaurant in the Ritz-Carlton in Tysons Corner, VA busy.

PJ Clarke’s
1600 K St. NW, Washington, DC 20006 (202) 463-6610
This NYC transplant is located blocks from the White House. Burgers, Cobb salads, cones of fries and massive steaks exemplify the American spirit of this friendly saloon. Tables bright with checked clothes dot the main floor. One floor below, a speakeasy draws the after work crowds. The original PJ Clarke’s is known as one of the oldest restaurants in Manhattan. The DC outpost is sunnier with large windows and high pressed tin ceilings but there’s a similar “Mad Men” vibe.

Opening Soon:

Crumbs Cupcakes
 604 11th St. NW, Washington, DC 20002
Cupcakemania is sweeping through our capital city, and the nation, bringing with it loads of tasty new cupcake bakeries – even ones on wheels! Instead of drooling at the thought of little, delectable, sugar-loaded treats, be sure to stop by for a quick nibble or a lengthy chomp at Crumbs, one of the new cupcake bakeries in town. With this one in Union Station’s train concourse, and plans of at least five DC locations in total, you won’t be without a sugar-fix – no matter where you are in the city. Crumbs will offer more than 50 varieties with outrageous combinations, and 4 sizes – from bite-sized (“Taste”) to almost cake-sized (“Colossal”). From cookie dough, cookies 'n cream, s'mores and cappuccino to caramel apple, cosmo and cotton candy, the flavor variety is enough to keep you coming back again and again (and again!). Order a Signature Pack of 6 and mix and match cupcakes, or choose from a variety of 6-pack options like the “College Care Pack” or the “Girl’s Night Out” pack (complete with cosmo and margarita-flavored cupcakes).The best part is, you can taste the succulent cupcakes right in your own home because Crumbs delivers!

Fiola
678 Indiana Ave. NW, Washington DC 20004
Fabio Trabocchi has signed a lease to open an “accessible” Italian restaurant. Chef Trabocchi, previously head chef at Maestro at the Ritz-Carlton in Tysons Corner, VA, returns to Washington, DC after a stint as the head of the kitchen at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York City. He is known for his mastery of the exacting preparations of the cuisine of Le Marche (the region in Italy where he was born) so the prospect of a more casual eatery has fans of pasta, prosciutto and Prosecco a glow.

Graffiato
707 Sixth St. NW, Washington, DC 20001
Former “Top Chef” contestant and top toque at Zaytinya, Mike Isabella is branching out on his own this an Italian restaurant near the Verizon Center. The menu will specialize in “cicchiti” the “tapas” of Venice as well as wood-fired pizzas, pastas and his grandma’s pork ragu. The restaurant will seat 145 and a charcuterie/cheese bar is planned for the upstairs.

Italian Cinema
1401 14th St. NW, Washington, DC 20007
Mark Weiss (Againn) is at it again. The former food and beverage manager for Ritz-Carlton is developing an Italian concept for the Whisk restaurant group. Salads, pasta, pizzas and yes Italian movies screened against the wall should hold the interest of the hip and hungry on 14th Street corridor.

Lincoln
1110 Vermont Ave. NW, Washington, DC
Alan Popovsky (Hudson in midtown) brings his talent for opening restau-bars downtown. Yankee-style comfort food will be served in a log cabin-themed dining room designed by local painter Maggie O’Neill. Bacon-wrapped scallop “sliders” and tiny meatloaf bites are early indications that Yankee-style comfort foods will be served by chef Demetrio Zevala. This new spot named for America’s 16th president is on track to open on Abe’s birthday.

Redline
707 G St. NW, Washington, DC 20001
A chic gastropub one block from the Verizon Center seems like a no-brainer. Table-side beer taps and 40 TVs will lure sports fans. The menu will be French-American with a few twists, like brick-oven pizzas. Redline is expected to open during the December holidays.

Sprinkles Cupcake
 3015 M St. NW, Washington, DC 20007
 A new and exciting cupcake bakery is coming to town, and not just any cupcake bakery, but the world’s first cupcake bakery is about to open its first DC location in the winter of 2010 in Georgetown. With huge success in its birthplace in Beverly Hills, California, Sprinkles is bringing its superior ingredients such as Belgian Chocolate, Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla and the finest, freshest fruits and citrus zests to the DC area. From classic flavors such as red velvet, milk chocolate and vanilla to exciting specialty flavors such as key lime, lemon coconut and chai latte, Sprinkles brings simple, delectable treats to Georgetown. The cupcakes are packaged as gifts, decorated for parties or weddings, or are served to a single customer with a glass of milk or a cup of coffee. Sprinkles also offers a selection of gluten-free and vegan cupcakes.