Changes are underway in Erik Bruner-Yang’s extended restaurant empire—particularly at Shopkeepers Gallery on H Street, Northeast. Chef Hiroaki Mitsui, who runs Conbini Cafe by UZU inside the boutique, will take his Japanese eatery on the road for a series of pop-ups after July 15. In its place will be Vietnamese pop-up Ðôi Ðũa, which has been hosting occasional dinners in the space, and will take on a more permanent role for evening service from Thursdays through Saturdays starting July 20.
Partners Anna Vocaturo and chef Sarah Bui have been serving excellent Vietnamese tasting menus at Shopkeepers on-and-off since March. They’re still working out details for their weekly schedule, which may be a mix of set dinners and other services. They expect to be at Shopkeepers at least through September. For daytime food service, a concept called Coronation Café will replace Conbini after July 15 (details to come).
Mitsui, meanwhile, is moving Conbini to Bruner-Yang’s Honeycomb Grocer at Union Market in August. Come September, both Conbini and Honeycomb, the latter of which has operated inside Union Market for three years, will move on, Bruner-Yang says.
It’s worth checking out Mitsui’s cooking wherever he sets up; Conbini Cafe is ranked among the best Japanese spots in Washingtonian’s Cheap Eats issue.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
