Winter Restaurant Week returns to the DC area Monday, January 13 through 19, with $22 lunch and brunch deals and $35 dinners. Here are seven exciting newcomers (you’ll want to book soon).
Brasserie Liberté
3251 Prospect St., NW
Mirabelle restaurateur Hakan Ilhan’s new all-day French brasserie in Georgetown is going all-out for its first Restaurant Week, offering brunch, lunch, and dinner. Menus have yet to be posted online but the regular menu from chef Jared Hyrn mixes classic fare like French onion soup (we recommend) and steak frites with healthy-ish vegetarian options such as mushroom bourguignon and hearty entree salades. Lunch, brunch, dinner
Laos in Town
250 K St., NE
NoMa’s airy Laotian restaurant is a good bet for bright and fiery flavors. Restaurant Week menus aren’t online but if you see the crispy rice salad or spicy fried chicken—go for it. Lunch, brunch, and dinner
Maialino Mare
221 Tingey St., SE
The hottest Restaurant Week ticket in town is New York-based restaurateur Danny Meyer’s Roman seafood restaurant in Navy Yard (opening January 8). A spinoff of Manhattan’s Maialino, the kitchen here nods to the waterfront location with crudos and seafood pastas alongside the signature maialino (slow-roasted suckling pig). Lunch only
Mekki DC
517 8th St., SE
Restaurateur Mekki Karrakchou brings modern flavors from his native Morocco—and wines from his family’s vineyard—to a cozy space on Barracks Row. The eatery, which originally opened in NYC, serves small plates alongside shareable tagines. Brunch and dinner
Modena
1100 New York Ave., NW
In September, Rasika restaurateur Ashok Bajaj replaced Bibiana with a more modern, antipasti-cart-driven Italian dining room. Chef John Melfi’s Restaurant Week menu—which appears the same for lunch and dinner—includes comforting dishes like meatballs over polenta, lemony chicken with escarole, and chocolate budino cake. Lunch and dinner
Randy’s Prime Seafood & Steak
8051 Leesburg Pk., Vienna
We’ve always said $22 lunches are the best Restaurant Week deals, and this looks to be the case at Great American Restaurants’ finer-dining venture. Options for the three-course meal include lobster bisque, a filet mignon with duck-fat fries, and a hot fudge sundae—not light, but still sounds like a steal. Lunch only
Shilling Canning Company
360 Water St., SE
Chef Reid Shilling’s first Restaurant Week menu at his Mid-Atlantic venture in Navy Yard is short and sweet. Three courses include chicharrones with crab mayo, grilled Roseda Farm kielbasa with braised kraut and potatoes, and s’mores cake for dessert. Dinner only
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.
