Siblings are great—especially if you’re a restaurant. Dining rooms have long spun off their concepts into more casual and livelier bars, but the trend seems to be really taking off lately. Here are some DC restaurants with great drink-focused counterparts, plus more on the way:
Maydan and Medina
1346 Florida Ave., NW; 1328 Florida Ave., NW
It can be hard to score a seat at Rose Previte’s uber-popular Middle Eastern restaurant, known for its soaring hearth and generous family-style feasts. But now you can grab a bite and a drink just across the alley. Medina is equally as transportive, decked out to resemble a Bedouin tent. A menu of Moroccan tagines and a North African-inspired mezze platter are paired with cocktails highlighting ingredients from Tunisia to the Canary Islands. Don’t miss the martini cart with accoutrements like smoked olives and sumac onions.
Grazie Nonna and Grazie Mille
1100 15th St., NW
Italian-American restaurant Grazie Nonna is cranking up the vibes at its new cocktail bar next door. The red-sauce joint, from restaurateurs Casey Patten and Gerald Addison, serves up bucatini alfredo and vodka sauce-swirl pizzas. But its sultry sibling, with moody lighting and velvety banquets, channels northern Italian cocktail hour with DJs spinning vinyl.
Minibar and Barmini
855 E St., NW; 501 Ninth St., NW
Dinner (and a show) at José Andrés’s 12-seat tasting counter goes for $325 per person. For a more affordable taste, snag a res at its whimsical sister cocktail bar. An encyclopedic menu of more than 100 cocktails includes perfectly executed classics and some wacky originals. (There’s also a $115 flight.) The limited snack menu includes a truffle grilled cheese and foie gras-injected waffle.
Chez Billy Sud and Bar à Vin
1039 31st St., NW; 1035 31st St., NW
While the Georgetown French restaurant is elegant and bright with sunny herb-filled patio, its next-door wine bar is moody and intimate with a crackling fireplace. The two mostly share the same menu of bistro classics like onion soup and steak frites, but the bar is a particularly great date spot for French wines and cocktails.
Philotimo and Kaimaki
1100 15th St., NW
Chef Nick Stefanelli’s fine-dining Greek restaurant (recently reopened after a fire) offers whole grilled fish flown directly from seafood markets in Greece, caviar upgrades, and a 4,000-bottle wine cellar. Meanwhile, neighboring Kaimaki is a more casual spot for Greek street food and happy hour. Find gyros by day (with morning coffee starting in January), and mezze with cocktails and wine in the evenings—plus DJs for party vibes on weekends.
Beuchert’s Saloon and Fight Club
623 Pennsylvania Ave., SE; 633 Pennsylvania Ave., SE
Sometimes you want seasonal plates highlighting local farms. And sometimes you need a fat sandwich and a strong drink. Chef Andrew Markert delivers the former at Beuchert’s and the latter a few doors down at Fight Club. The sandwich bar actually started as a pandemic pop-up at his new American restaurant. In its current home, find Philly-style cheesesteaks and tortas al pastor alongside pitchers of punch and tall boy beers.
Makan and Thirsty Crow
3400 11th St., NW
Chef James Wozniuk specializes in Malaysian cooking at his Columbia Heights restaurant, while his basement bar mashes up Southeast Asian flavors and American sport bar fare. Snack on shrimp chips or peanuts spiced with anchovy, chili, and lime leaf while you catch a football game and sip a draft beer. Or dig into a bowl of beef rendang curry with a pandan-bourbon cocktail.
Lutèce and Maison
1522 Wisconsin Ave., NW; 1834 Columbia Road, NW
The team behind Georgetown’s charming neo-bistro is taking over the Adams Morgan row house formerly belonging to Habana Village. Co-owner Omar Popal, whose family also runs neighboring Afghan restaurant Lapis, describes Maison as the “bar version of what we’re doing at Lutèce,” focused on wines and cocktails with some small bites from chef Matt Conroy. “It’s like a brownstone with different levels and you’re hosting a party,” Popal says. It’s set to open in late spring of 2024.
Yellow and La’ Shukran
417 Morse St., NE
Albi chef Michael Rafidi will open a huge flagship location for his Levantine cafe in the Union Market area next year with a test kitchen and wood-fired kebab grill. A rooftop bar and bistro called La’ Shukran (Arabic for “no, thank you”) will feature arak cocktails, Levantine wines, and DJs spinning Middle Eastern music.
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind D.C.’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
