Charlie Palmer Steak, a favorite of lobbyists and lawmakers, closed in late 2024 after a 22-year run on Capitol Hill. Now, a new steakhouse is taking its place. The Ruxton, from Baltimore-based Atlas Restaurant Group, is slated to bring its dry-aged ribeyes and chandeliered dining room to DC in the spring of 2027.
“It’s unlike any steakhouse in that area,” Atlas CEO Alex Smith says of their ambitions. “We’re—certainly from a culinary perspective—more elevated than Capitol Grill, and also very much so from a design perspective. I think we will be certainly one of the most upscale steakhouses in DC, for sure.”
Smith says the landlord reached out to them via its broker, seeking a new power restaurant or upscale steakhouse to fill the space. “Charlie Palmer had a great run there. We just thought it needs capital investment. We’re completely gutting it and remodeling it,” Smith says.
Like its Baltimore sibling, the DC location of the Ruxton will feature custom millwork, original art pieces, and Murano glass chandeliers. The luxe dining room is being designed by Baltimore-based interior designer Patrick Sutton, who’s also worked on some upscale homes in Georgetown. The restaurant will have three private dining rooms and also be the exclusive caterer of the building’s rooftop with views of the Capitol building.
Smith says the Ruxton is known for dry-aging its prime cuts in-house and serving wild-caught fish. The menus will be more or less the same with seafood towers, tater tots and caviar, and steaks ranging from New York strips to wagyu Tomahawks. About 15 to 20 percent of the dishes will be specific to DC. Smith says the wine list will have many steakhouse classics—” a lot of California cabs and some big bold stuff.”
Atlas Restaurant Group was previously the center of controversy over its dress code, which did not allow for athletic shorts. In 2020, a woman sued the company for racial discrimination after she and her son were denied service from Baltimore’s Ouzo Bay, but a judge ultimately dismissed the case.
The Baltimore location of the Ruxton has a “business casual” dress code that asks men to refrain from wearing short or sleeveless t-shirts, among other restrictions. Smith says they will likely do something similar in DC. “Other than that, there’s really no enforcement,” Smith says. “We’ve stepped back from full-on rigid dress code, just like a lot of other fine dining properties have as well. But what we’ll do is we’ll match the area and be reflective of what’s going on in the community.”
The steakhouse is part of a larger expansion push by Atlas. The Ruxton will also open in National Harbor in November and in Philadelphia next year. The group, which previously operated a seafood tavern called Parlour Victoria in DC, is looking to open more restaurants in DC.
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind DC’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.
