La Betty. 420 K St., NW.
The family behind Baked & Wired and a Baked Joint first opened La Betty in 2019 as an elevated comfort food restaurant. The Mount Vernon Triangle spot struggled to adapt to carryout during the pandemic and eventually closed in 2022. Now, it’s back—this time as a natural-wine bar and vinyl listening lounge.
Over the last few years, co-owner Tessa Velazquez—daughter of Baked & Wired founders Teresa and Tony Velazquez—became a private chef in New York and started a “women’s culinary and lifestyle collective” called Yesbabe, which hosts pop-up parties. Meanwhile, her husband, Anthony Demby, is a DJ who always has his turntable on the kitchen island. Gatherings with friends at home always blend together music, snacks, and wine—something they hope to replicate at La Betty.
The place continues to be a family affair. Tessa’s brother Zak Velazquez, who’s also helping lead the business and curates the coffee program for the bakeries, designed a top-notch sound system for the space, and Demby is the “music director.” Inspired by the Japanese listening bars “where you’re really there to appreciate the music,” La Betty will feature an array of genres from all over the world and different eras, Tessa says.
“You’re really getting these rare, deep grooves that you wouldn’t normally hear on the radio, that really have a story to them,” Tessa says. Wednesdays and Thursdays, the bar will play records from its own collection, beginning to end. On weekends, local DJs will play their own sets.
The ever-changing natural wine menu will offer 10 to 15 options by the glass ($12 to $15) and around 20 by the bottle (mostly in the $40 and $50 range). The global food menu is inspired by the kinds of snacks and small plates Tessa likes make at home for parties, like garlicky labneh topped with Moroccan-spiced shaved carrots and served with poppyseed lavash for dipping. Meanwhile, ancho chili wings are inspired by Korean fried chicken, but use Mexican chilies instead of gochujang. You’ll also find baked goods from La Betty’s sister bakeries, including focaccia with citrus-zested butter beans and a flourless chocolate cake.
La Betty was originally built to look like a home, and it’s maintained that aesthetic with a “living room” lounge plus booths, tables, and bar seats. DJs will play alongside the bar where wine is poured—”just like my kitchen,” Tessa says.
“DC has such a music scene historically. I mean, punk, go-go, all of these genres were really born here,” says Tessa, a DC native. “It’s really cool to provide a space that I think we can celebrate that.”
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.
