12 New Restaurants in the DC Area We’re Excited About This Month

Bazaar Meat

In March, José Andrés turned the Bazaar, his theatrical destination restaurant in the Waldorf Astoria, into this more carnivorous concept. It serves large-format cuts like rib-eye “chuletón” and Spanish-style whole suckling pig and comes with the same over-the-top sensibility as its predecessor—plus the same soaring ceilings in the Old Post Office building.

The Boulevard

Antonis Karagounis, an area club entrepreneur known for loungey spots such as Decades and the Mayflower Club, recently opened a Clarendon rooftop bar. The food is fusion—lamb-slider bao buns and the like—while cocktails such as the Breakfast Fizz (rum mixed with Froot Loops–infused coconut milk) lean gimmicky.

Chao Ban

A counter-service spot in Tysons Galleria from one of DC’s best chefs? It’s an intriguing concept—and an accessible way for diners to try Moon Rabbit chef Kevin Tien’s highly personal Vietnamese American cooking. Sample five-spice chicken wings, beef pho, and Nashville-hot chicken bánh mì after shopping at the Sunglass Hut next door.

Hijos del Maíz

It may be a tiny trailer with barely enough room for two employees, but Hijos del Maíz has already made waves with its Mexican snacks, tacos, and tostadas made with house-milled masa. Salvadoran-born, Washington-raised, Oaxaca-trained chef Saul Zelaya opened the Rockville taco trailer earlier this year and is hoping to expand to a brick-and-mortar soon.

Marv’s Dogs

The traditional Chicago dog—snappy all-beef frank, pickle, sliced tomatoes, sport peppers—has a cult following, and Diane Gross and Khalid Pitts, who own Cork Wine Bar, are adherents. They’ve now opened Marv’s Dogs, serving the Midwestern-style franks along with milkshakes, on a stretch of Wisconsin Avenue between Tenleytown and Friendship Heights.

Ox & Olive

Bresca and Jônt chef/owner Ryan Ratino calls his new Georgetown restaurant a “temple of beef.” It takes over the tucked-away alley space formerly occupied by Reverie and offers well-marbled rib eyes, steak-tartare “éclairs,” thyme-scented martinis, and crisp wedge salads in a candlelit setting.

PopUp Bagels

Some New Yorkers scoff at this viral chain, but the truth is any new arrival to the Manhattan bagel scene that can draw long lines is doing something right. The first DC outpost opened in April, and lines quickly formed in Georgetown for its “rip and dip” bagels, served hot and unsliced with cream cheese or butter on the side.

The Riggsby

Chef Michael Schlow is launching a comeback of his late retro-American restaurant, which closed in 2019 and will now be housed at Dupont Circle’s Royal Sonesta hotel. Look for dishes like chopped salad, schnitzel alla Holstein, and Swedish meatballs with mushroom sauce.

Rosselli

Ashok Bajaj’s substantial restaurant kingdom—which includes Indian spots the Bombay Club and Rasika—has had one modern-Italian restaurant, Modena, for years. That dining room closed in 2025, and this replacement marries a swanky redone dining room with crudos, fresh pastas, and secondi such as osso buco.

Rye Bunny

This much-anticipated “fine casual” spot from the team behind the shuttered Tail Up Goat recently opened in the same cozy Adams Morgan space. The restaurant’s homey, folk-Americana decor, its distinctive counter service, and its unpretentious seasonal American and Italian menu all feel like something new for DC. You may have to wait in line to order, but the time passes faster when you’re sipping an Audrey’s Martini.

Uchi

The stylish, Austin-born sushi spot Uchi has expanded across the Southwest in the past several years and just landed in down-town DC. James Beard Award–winning chef Tyson Cole tapped Rob Drennan, previously of Rose’s Luxury and Pineapple & Pearls, to lead the kitchen locally, serving dishes like yellowtail with Thai-chili ponzu and oranges and a vegan mushroom-shallot carpaccio.

Wheelhouse

The upper Connecticut Avenue space recently taken over by Bo Blair (also behind Millie’s, Surfside, and Jetties) has had a high turnover rate—its last tenant was Wine and Organic market. But this retro nautical-themed family restaurant hopes to be the “neighborhood anchor” that Chevy Chase DC needs.

This article appears in the June 2026 issue of Washingtonian.

Ike Allen

Staff Writer

Ike Allen covers politics, food, culture, and transportation in DC and writes the monthly Hidden Eats column for the magazine. He grew up in DC.