Phase one is here, which means sparkling cocktails on the patio aren’t just a daydream anymore. Here, four newly relaunched spots, plus one that’s brand new.
Millie’s
4866 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Get ready for the frose crowd to descend on this Spring Valley patio, which reopens for 11 AM brunch this weekend. Pro tip: the coconutty frozen riptide cocktail is better.
Piccolina
963 Palmer Alley, NW
Reservations and advance dish selections are required for Amy Brandwein’s excellent Italian cafe (we’re partial to the vanilla-custard-filled bomboloni). There’s an hour time limit for brunch.
Punjab Grill
427 11th St., NW
Many of this fancy Indian restaurant’s dinner hits are on the Sunday brunch menu—don’t miss the tandoori prawns— but they’re now joined by morning-friendly plates of chicken and dosa waffles and huevos rancheros with yellow-pea curry.
The Royal
501 Florida Ave., NW
The morning arepas and guava pastries at this LeDroit Park all-day cafe—which just reopened for daily takeout—are a couple of our favorite wake-ups in all the city.
Yellow
1346 Fourth St., SE
We can’t wait to try the harissa focaccia, labne croissants, and fresh baked pita sandwiches (mmm, soft shell crab) from Michael Rafidi’s Navy Yard cafe adjoining Albi. Pastry chef Gregory Baumgartner is behind the Middle Eastern pastries made with classic French technique. It opens Saturday and is takeout only, Wednesday through Sunday.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
