Since opening just over a year ago in Shaw, the Dabney has mostly used its basement to store pickling jars. But the Blagden Alley restaurant is preparing to convert the brick-walled space into a wine bar and cocktail den with shellfish and charcuterie in the first half of this year.
“It’s just going to be an extension of the Dabney,” says chef Jeremiah Langhorne. (The bar won’t have its own name.) “We just want to give people a pace to hangout and get the same quality and the same service and even more of a casual vibe.”
Langhorne and business partner Alex Zink first revealed plans for the bar on Heritage Radio Network’s “In the Drink” podcast.
Like the Dabney, the bar’s wine list will be European-driven with additional boutique producers from around the world. A big chalk board will display daily specials. A small shellfish display will show off local oysters, clams, crabs, and scallops from the Mid-Atlantic region. A curated selection of local cheeses and country hams will also be available.
The basement space is only about 700-square-feet, but it actually has taller ceilings than than the restaurant. The owners have hired Edit Lab at Streetsense, which designed the upstairs, to take on the look below.
“It will be something interesting and fun that will fit but be a little different,” Langhorne says.
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind D.C.’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
