Three years after opening Hank’s Pasta Bar in Old Town, chef/owner Jamie Leeds will temporarily close the restaurant at the end of September. When it reopens several months later, the three-story space will have been transformed to include a revamped Italian restaurant, a second-floor event space, and a spacious rooftop bar with seating for around 80.
Leeds, who’s also behind five Hank’s Oyster Bar locations between Alexandria and DC, says she was inspired to add an event space to the building after celebrating her own wedding there. In addition to private bookings, she plans to use the rooms for cooking classes, ticketed dinners, and pop-ups. The rooftop bar—which will be one of the only such destinations in Alexandria—will be open to the public unless it’s reserved for an event.
Though the restaurant’s Italian theme will remain, Leeds is retooling the menu and pasta-centric focus. Patrons will still find crowd favorites amongst the homemade pastas in addition to a wider range of Italian dishes. A special rooftop menu is in the works with prosecco on tap, Italian sodas and cocktails, and a lineup of zero-proof drinks. Light bites and antipasti will also be available.
Leeds says they’re still waiting to nail down a closing date. The team is working on some ideas for pop-ups and events at Hank’s locations in the interim.
Hank’s Pasta Bar. 600 Montgomery St., Alexandria
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.
